"When did you say you mailed in your voter registration form?"

"About two months ago," I said, ear pressed to the phone.

"That's not what I like to hear," she sighed.

I've mailed in my permanent vote-by-mail application three times since the primary. You'd think I'd be registered by now.

But when I called my local election board yesterday, my suspicions were confirmed: They don't have me on record.

"Maybe it went to the Secretary of State's office. By the time it gets here, who knows whether... well, we're mailing the ballots on Monday. Let's just send you a new form and have you mail it back."

Even if you think you're registered, check with VotePoke. If those results aren't clear — as they weren't for me — you may have to (gasp) get off the Internet and call your local election board.

If you're not registered, hurry-hurry-hurry and register at Declare Yourself or get more info from maps.google.com/vote.

The deadlines are coming up. Don't be left kicking yourself on November 4.