The "Power of Now," the DMV and the Unconscious

I'm currently reading this book called The Power of Now (does listening to an audio book count as "reading"?) where the author discusses what it is to "be present" and the effects of it. He points out how most of us walk around "unconscious." I prefer to use the phrase "being on auto pilot."

Since starting the book, I've been noticing more when I zone out, and when and how other people do the same. So I decided to go into one of my favorite hangouts, a place where employees and customers never zone out, are always present, and good cheer is spread on a daily basis. I went to the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles)! Why did I decide to go? Because it's one step above "slitting my throat with a dull knife," on my to-do list, and I couldn't find a knife.

My wife is recovering from foot surgery and I wanted to get her a Disabled Persons Placard so she can get those primo parking spots. Here's where the fun starts. I wait in a line for about 10 minutes. That's pretty damn good for the DMV! I finally get to the front and the guy says, "Next." I say hello and hand him the completed application. He stares at it for a second, flips it over, his eyes scan the page, flips it back over again and his eyes keep scanning.

I ask, "Is there a problem?"
His response is "What do you need? What's this for?" as he flipped and scanned...scanned and flipped.

Now I'm sure this guy is a nice guy. I'm sure he's good at his job, and maybe I just happened to catch him at an unconscious moment. I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt. But when you see a pic of the application below, you'll see why his response of "What do you need? What's this for?" was so -- how do I say this without sounding mean -- unconscious.

Me: "I'd like to get my wife a disabled person placard."
Him: "Okay. Take this number and we'll call you."

They called my number, we got the placard, I went home and found the knife. Damn! Too late!!