On August 31, I (legally) became an adult. In that same day, I got my first real tattoo. A couple of days later, I bought my first firearm that wasn't just a gun that my father owned but was technically mine.
I've always been a very independent person; I'd often get into arguments with my family about whether or not I should be allowed to do certain things, like going to a punk concert in Boston, which wound up being the greatest concert I've ever been to. The hardline, somewhat arbitrary distinction between a child and an adult was a tough situation to live with.
Sure, when you're sixteen, you can drive a car. That's a huge leg up if you're a working person or if you're a student athlete or you just really hate taking the bus to school. Transportation is the first major freedom you can possess. However, Maine's driving laws, though not as harsh as New Jersey's, are really restrictive.
Recently, the teen driving restrictions were beefed up in the overprotective mom-controlled state government. Basically, the firm-but-fair nine month wait to have passengers in a vehicle who weren't immediate family, including step-family was set aside for a longer wait. The new law states that a teen driver must be eighteen to drive non-family members around.
Another section of the old law was that in the same nine months that a new driver couldn't have non-family member passengers, they also couldn't get a speeding ticket, or they would lose their license. That was also moved ahead to eighteen.
It would not be unreasonable to think that a person who had their license since shortly after their sixteenth birthday would be a well-seasoned driver after one full year. However, as you may know, our government is far from reasonable when it comes to giving anyone under eighteen some credit.
Even though I'm now legally an adult, there's plenty of things I still can't do. I can't rent a car, I can't drink, I can't go to most casinos. I can't buy a handgun or any pistol cartridges, even though some could be used in a firearm that is not a handgun, which I am legally allowed to own. Also, I can't adopt a kid. I don't want to do that, but I couldn't even if I wanted to. However, I am legally required to register for the draft within thirty days.
Let that sink in; I'm not allowed to rent a car or have a beer at a barbecue on Independence Day, but in a time of war, I can be sent to fight and probably die in a country that I probably don't have any real issue with. I love my country and everything, but I don't like the idea of some old guy pulling my draft number out of a hat like my life doesn't matter. Also, I can go to jail for violating some of these laws. That's a nice touch.
Luckily though, I can vote in the upcoming election. I can choose between two pretty untrustworthy people, or essentially throw my vote away voting for a third-party candidate and keep my hands clean. Can't wait.
In short, adulthood has some advantages, but for the first three years, I'm still treated like I don't know what I'm doing. That may be true, but I have met plenty of really stupid people who are a lot older than me and, therefore, are allowed to drink, own guns and gamble, assuming they're not on probation and/or a felon. Being an idiot is perfectly legal. Sometimes I think that being an idiot might be encouraged in some pockets of our great country, but that's none of my business.
I'm a capable person who can't do a lot of really cool stuff because I haven't been around the sun three or four times extra. It sucks, but that's just the way things are. I try not to hope for the future too much, because I know that with more freedom comes more age. I try not to waste my youth waiting to be older, but I know it would be a hell of a lot more fun if I didn't live under restrictions set by people who don't even know me.
