Passport Renewal Time Already?

Could it really have been nearly ten years? Is that why the eyes of the border guard dart back and forth between Brian's face and his photo? Brian shuffles aimlessly while the official squints. Why is he smiling like that? Do I need a haircut? Oh, hair...

After an overnight return trip across the Canadian border (for which a passport isn't required yet), maybe there's time to squeeze in a renewal, especially when accompanied by the expedited renewal fee baksheesh.

Filling out the form online isn't difficult, after reading through all of the information. Yes, a couple of minor glitches surface but it saves the trouble and sloppiness of filling it out by hand.

Brian does have to fill it out a second time, just to confirm that the total fee for a mailed-in passport renewal application and expedited service is $135, otherwise a well-kept government secret on the site that appears and then disappears in the middle of the application process.

A quick photo session at an exclusive photo studio today and we'll see how speedy that expedited service will be. In the meantime, we're off on a quick trip to Oahu in a couple of days packing a driver's license.

Let the passport-delivery-countdown begin.