Jacob, our oldest, will be five at the end of July so he'll be starting kindegarten in the fall.  School registration is actually next month so we figured we'd better hurry up and get his shot record updated.  In an unexpected sign of the economic times we were unable to make an appointment with our pediatrician to get the shots because they haven't been able to afford to buy any and didn't have any in stock.  The nurse there told us to go the health department - that should be easier because its free and you can just walk in, no need for an appointment.  What a FIASCO that turned out to be!!

We get him all ready to go one morning, make a production out of it trying to prepare him for being a brave boy and we promise him a trip to the dollar store afterward to buy a truck.  Well when we get to the health department there are only a couple people in the waiting room, but they tell us they no longer take walk-ins, that we'll need to make an appointment and come back.  The next available appointment is in two weeks.

Well Jacob has been promised a truck and he kept his end of the bargain so we head to the dollar store to get him one then take him back home.  The day of the appointment he asks again about a truck so we promise him another trip to the dollar store then head back to the health department.

This time, the waiting room is packed, kids everywhere running and climbing and literally one toy in the waiting room.  Signs in Spanish and English everywhere proclaim that since they perform a variety of services people will not be called in the order in which they arrive.  We were right on time for our appointment, MANY people came in after us and left before us, and finally after two hours we get called back.  But only to be taken to a desk and asked for our financial history which we balked at giving and so were asked to pay $15 for the shots - a bargain to be sure for the four shots he got - then sent back to the waiting room to wait again.  Shortly thereafter the nurse finally came to get us, then proceeded to be rude and nasty and call us "some of THOSE parents" when we explained to her our family history of allergies to thimerisol.  She actually snapped at my husband "would YOU like to read the inserts" then stomped from the room.

It was all I could do to keep him from taking Jacob and leaving but at this point we didn't have much alternative.  She actually was kind to Jacob while giving him the shots thank goodness, and surprisingly she even apologized to us for her attitude before we left but all I could think of was "this is how she acts before lunch on a Monday? I'd hate to catch her at the end of a long day."  Oh well, rest assured we will NOT be taking the quads to the health department next year