The Joys Of Tax

Today I went with Ben to pick up his new car tax disc. I didn't have to, but I had offered and he had accepted. It's the sort of thing one would normally do alone but, being a Friday, I had a bit of time to kill. Moreover, since getting rid of my Punto I've missed the many joys of car tax purchasing.

I was really looking forward to discussing with Ben whether he was going to go for six or twelve months tax. Alas, he had already made that decision when I met him - pre-ticking the six month box, which, incidentally, would have been the box I'd have recommended.

At least I would have the pleasure of seeing how Ben approached communicating with the post office cashier.

Options are: 
a) Approach window and announce 'I'd like to pay for my car tax please' whilst passing the relevant papers through. It feels quite an unnatural and formal approach and one that is not particularly popular in West Oxfordshire.
b) Approach window, say a simple 'hello' whilst passing papers through. My usual tactic.
c) Approach window, pass the papers through and mutter 'There you go'. An arrogant method.
d) Approach window with a broad smile and a quip such as 'Oo It's that time of year again' before passing papers through.
e) Approach window and whilst passing papers through deliver an awful gag such as 'If I slip you seventy quid under the window and you slip a tax disc back then I'll have a slipped disc. DO YOU HEAR ME AT THE BACK OF THE QUEUE, I SAID I'D HAVE A SLIPPED DISC.'

Sadly as we entered the post office I received a phone call from O2 and subsequently missed Ben's cashier exchange.

Ah well, I still had the pleasure of discovering which colour the new tax disc was going to be. But, would you believe it, at the very moment when he walked towards me with his new disc I was struck down with colour blindness. Inexplicably, Ben contracted lock jaw at the very same moment and thus was unable to tell me what colour it was.

The whole outing had become a bit of a damp squid. My only consolation is at least Ben went for the six month option. Otherwise I'd have to wait a full year for another chance to experience the joys of car tax purchasing.