Social Security
Public Services & Government
1122 N Vine St
Hollywood, CA 90038
The Social Security Office seems to offer something here for everyone, but especially for old people not born here and homeless people. It offers an organization scheme that works pretty well. Since I am a lost social security card person, my experience probably would differ from someone who doesn’t have a number or needs some type of benefit. It took me about 45 minutes total to get in and out on a busy Monday. It seems about 1.5 people are called per minute.
My first impression was a good one. I was greeted by the two nicest security guards I have ever met. They were incredibly calm, patient and gently told me that I forgot to take off my belt before stepping into the metal detector. Upon stepping in, I see many people are inside. About 3/4 appear to be older immigrants (many Eastern Europeans), 1/8 are vagrants and the other 1/8 are miscellaneous. There is a machine with a touch screen that you put what you are coming here for. I am replacing a social security card I lost, thus I press the “Social Security Card” button. It asked for my SSN and then the machine printed out a number on a ticket and I sat down. My number was B282 and the current number they were calling was “B244”, uh oh.
So I sit down and play three Words With Friends games. “B263.”
I write two lengthy emails. “B279.”
I am about to text message my friend back, when all of a sudden a guy pops out from the door, “B282!”
“B282! Are you B282?”
“I am B282.”
“Follow me this way.”
We sat down at Desk 16 and he chucked my ticket in the trash.
It took about 30 minutes to get through about 40 numbers. I gave the guy who was helping me out my paperwork including a driver’s license and passport. He looked at the paperwork and was typing numbers on his keypad, like a lot of numbers. Type, type, type, type, type … about 200 numbers later, a receipt is printed out and had some Russian woman’s name on the print-out, “Katharina” or something next to my street address. It freaked me out.
“Why does this say ‘Katharina’?”
He looked at it. Asked for my driver’s license again. About four or five minutes and lots of typing on the keypad, a print-out of my name appears. No identity theft, maybe.
Upon leaving, some homeless guy next to the security stand was convulsing on the ground with a backpack being used as a pillow as the police were coming in. I am sure nobody chooses to convulse at the Social Security Office but it makes me wonder what kind of gritty circumstances does someone has to live like to presumably get benefits here?
Useful: 6 Funny: 5 Cool: 3
3/4/2013