The line at the DMV is a character test disguised as paperwork.

Long waits strip away the version of yourself that is kept up for an audience. Nothing is at stake, nobody important is watching, and the only thing on offer is tedium, so how you treat the person behind the counter is unusually honest information. They have been absorbing other people’s frustration since morning and had no hand in designing the system.

Treat the wait as a fixed cost rather than an insult, and bring something to fill it. Be friendly to whoever helps you, especially if the news is bad. You lose the same hour either way.