Thursday, July 25, 2013

Paperwork

Caution: This post is a rant.  If you are here to be inspired or uplifted in anyway, click away now.  I am going  to rant and complain and generally rally against the forces that be.  No good will come of it, but I will feel lighter after laying down this burden upon my lovely readers.  Again, click away from this page if you are looking for happy, joyful, and uplifting.  She does not live here today. 



Okay...I think the Pollyanna Lolly-pop Guild has left the page.

(Rant on)

Paperwork.  I hate it.  The kind of paperwork I am referring to is the permission slips, camper liability, health forms (especially if they need a doctor's signature), registration for activity forms...all of them.  Forms.  I hate forms.  I HATE FORMS.  The information is repetitive, tedious, and annoying.  I hate copying the front and back of insurance card to attach to forms.  The immunization records that have to be copied and attached, OR even worse, transcribed onto a health form (this is the worst).  The older my kids get the more numerous the forms become, the more sheets of paper that get included.  It is torture.  I have never been water-boarded, but I think if given a choice between filling out forms and the water-board...I might just choose the water-board.  Seriously.

My daughter, who is lovely, sweet, and talented has generated a lot of paperwork for me this summer.  In fact, I am in the middle of filling out the third set of camp related forms this summer.  I stopped filling in forms to write this post.  The annoyance was festering.  I was about to become crabby with her, but decided to take it out on the keyboard instead.  The problem is, there is no real solution to this problem.  The camps, schools, and organizations NEED the information in case there is a problem.  I get it.  I certainly would not send my kid to a camp or activity with just a backpack and a hug good-bye.  I really want to be contacted if there is a problem.  I certainly want medical attention sought if they are sick or injured.  I just am sick of filling out the same information on slightly different forms for each camp or activity.  What I really want is universal forms.  I want all camps, schools, and activities to have ONE set of forms that satisfies all the groups.  Once a year I want to sit down and update the forms, save it to my computer, and then print out the same packet of forms for each organization.  Honestly, all camps ask the same questions.  A health form is rather standard.  Even the waivers for High Ropes Courses are rather standard.  No it will not include the school or camp logo letterhead, who cares?  I know what I am signing them up to attend.  I want and need UNIVERSAL FORMS!!!!  Do not tell me it can not be done.

It can be done.

It is possible.

It is my dream.

My beautiful, simple, dream.

A world with less paperwork.

(Rant off)