Glitches?

Came dangerously close to "panic mode" the other day when...in my naivete...I realized the whole passport experience wasn't going as I thought it should.  Recently the post offices (in Madison/Middleton/Waunakee, Wisconsin anyhow...and, I assume, nationwide) determined that appointments were needed for receiving passport applications.  Since I had read, on official government Websites, that tourists traveling to Honduras are required to have their passport six months prior to travel, I metaphorically grabbed the paper bag needed to keep from hyperventilating.

You see, the whole basis of this move was predicated on my apartment lease being up for renewal at the end of August; my 65th birthday being at the end of August, my license for driving a school bus being up for renewal at the end of August (since I drive a school bus for a living, very important!)...and...six months prior to travel at the end of August...is...the end of February!

My heart sank when the Postmaster told me my application would take four-to-six weeks to process.  I explained my predicament.  "Oh, don't worry", he replied.  "That six-month time frame just means that they want you to have at least six months before your passport expires."  Really?!!  I joyously paid the State Dept. the required $110 and the Post Office their $25 and returned to work.

Before long, however, the nagging doubts crept in once again.  Which "official" rhetoric was correct?  Should I just take the Postmaster's word that I needn't worry?  And if I did that, then found out upon arrival at the airport that I can't enter for at least another month, what then?  I realize I can't rent my apartment in Honduras until I'm sure of an arrival date.  And if I can't leave for Honduras at the end of August, where am I going to live until I can leave?  And what am I going to do for income if everything is delayed for a month or more?

I decide, now that my hands are clammy and my breathing laboured, that I should contact the Honduran Embassy.  I Google it on the computer at work, then click on Contact Us.  Great...everything is in Spanish!  (While Honduras is a Spanish-speaking country, the island of Utila is mainly English-speaking.)  I manage to semi-translate a few things which need to be filled in, such as email address, name and comment, and proceed to transmit my concerns.  I'm hoping to hear back in a timely fashion...preferably by Monday...so I can take any further necessary steps to insure I leave the states at the end of August!

I will only accept this as a minor setback.  I tell myself, 'Things WILL work out...I AM going to Utila at the end of August.'  A positive attitude...right?  Stay tuned!