@dbears : just i don't know if it works really will see. I use to have the same hairdresser for years, it will be not easy to find a new place where i feel enough comfortable... but yes, like said Cecile its not the first thing i worry about right now.

They are late november filers at CSC shes... you can check other people's date of filing and etc. by clicking on the timeline icon below their screen name.. well, that is provided they have set up a timeline.




Of course hair shouldn't be your topmost worry but then, you already have a very beautiful gown which would make you look like a goddess with or without make up and just free flowing hair.

tic tac tic tac... clock keeps on going.. we're aging here while our loved ones are so far away

oh well, on the bright side: weekend is about to start

Aah I have no dress!

Yes! I'm really looking forward to the weekend. My sister is coming up to visit - well, providing she meets with no more disasters. She's one of the unluckiest girls alive!

ok, you don't have a dress... but... if i list all i still have to do... ARGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH

I'm still looking about what i gonna to do with my stuffs. A movers gave me an estimation for all i have, they say 16 cubemeters. (it include my furnitures). They ask about 7000 euros to move that. OUCH!

So i decided to keep only one chair that i really like and sale what i can on ebay. Will just keep clothes, books, cds etc... So another movers will come at home to give me another estimation for only clothes and books etc. I hope that i can move that for not more than 2500. If not i don't know what i gonna to do. You know I don't move alone, i move with my daughter, and i can't imagine to let all.

If you know a good solution about that...

Have you tried looking for local forums? I know that there is such a thing for me as the Sheffield Forums where you can sell your things and people will come and pick them up from your house and there's no need to deal with ebay or postage. That might be handy for furniture. Either that or classified ads in the paper.

I'll be selling my only piece of furniture - a big, comfy desk chair - and probably my computer and some DS games on there as those don't sell well on ebay.

I can't imagine letting everything go, either. I imagine I'll keep a good many DVDs and books. Those will be more expensive to replace than to keep and move. I'm hoping I'll make enough money from selling my other belongings to cover shipping costs for the rest.

Hmm... I actually started selling stuffs before we even filed the petition haha.

I started with my CD's since I got everything of that on a harddrive anyways...
I gave away my PS2 including the games..
My DVD's will all go to my mother, the furniture will be sold...
Some other stuff like electronic equipment (synthesizer, vinyl, recordplayers and such) are also already sold since I wasn't doing anything with it...

Ah some furniture also went to my mom in the meantime..

I don't have much at all to take with me since we're all set over there (she actually even bought stuff for me for when I am there like a new desk for my business lol)..

The only stuff I will take with me is my clothes (not even all at once, it's too much but I will take more with me when I go back and forth again), photoalbums, some important papers and some books... that is basically everything I need lol..

The timelines are kinda weird right now. We've had no approvals, yet my anticipated adjudication date has continued to move up. Now I'm at July 2 where yesterday I was at July 4. Go figure. Anyway, if last year is a guide (optimistically stated) this will be the last slow week of the spring holiday season. Next week we shoudl see a significant increase in the number of approvals - this should continue through to the memorial day weekend. According to Igor's list the first January filers are about to crack the 100 mark - which is when I've seen approvals start. The big target is 70 after which I've seen approvals becoming frequent. On occasion the CSC has been able to string together some 30 - 40 approval weeks. So...... even though the slow pace we are seeing right now is depressing, I truely think this is the dark before the dawn.

I'm probably not going to have lots of things to take with me either. the very few furnitures I have will go back to my parents' house, they'll do whatever they want with it
I think I'll try to choose which clothes to bring because there are lots that I own and that I never wear (especially old ones). I have two teapots that I almost never use but I want to bring them with me. Some books, some important papers. And probably a few other things I haven't thought about. Oh yeah 4 years ago my family gave me a picture frame with photos of the entire family, I'd like to bring it too (but it's quite bulky...)
Anyway I doubt that is going to fit in two suitcases, but when my parents come for the ceremony wedding next Spring (nothing planned so far) they can bring the rest of it.
Or maybe if NOA2 takes too much time to arrive, I'll go back to the USA for 2 weeks, and that way I start moving my stuff!


Of course moving is a lot more complicated when you have children! Good luck MissYoko!

Yes the timelines are acting strange! I've noticed it too.
If they start approving 30-40 petitions a week again, that means that maybe they're going to start approving January filers in 3 weeks! that would be awesome!

I actually think that we'll see our first January approval in about 2 weeks - end of April. May belongs to us!!

I'm crossing my fingers then! (not easy to type! )

I hear it's hard to get a decent electric kettle in the US. Because of the lower voltage, they don't boil water so efficiently.

Funny quiestion. I really don't know anyone that uses an electric kettle, lol. Olga's got one that is amazing, but I've never been able to find one here. People just use the stove and a regular kettle (tea pot) or coffee maker. Of course you can always microwave your cup of water to get it hot, but I don't think that's very economical.

It's rare to find a British home without one - largely because of all the tea and instant coffee we drink! I don't actually drink that much tea - and if I do, it's either really weak green tea or herbal - but I find an electric kettle really useful in so many situations - for example, boiling water for cooking vegetables with is much quicker to do in the kettle than on the hob.

You are absolutely right - I think they're a great invention, just one that we don't use here. I absoulutely swore by the one I used in the Ukraine. The only water heaters like that I've seen are the kind college kids use to heat a cup of soup with, and even they don't work very well. Perhaps you could import and sell the British model.

Thanks for posting this. I needed a nice pick-me-up! If we start seeing January filers getting approved in the next two-three weeks, that gives me SO much hope!!! I have kinda reached the stage where it feels like nothing is happening, this is going to take FOREVER, and I'm starting to get depressed all over again. Your little glimmer of hope is exactly what I needed.

Thanks BlakeandOlha! Here's to May being OUR MONTH!!!!!!

Going into a weekend after a particularly miserable week of approvals at the CSC (second such week in a row) it would be easy to be depressed. I pray that everyone remembers to stay strong and positive. Many of you have already made it 80, 90 or even 100 days - most of the wait is done. We've survived the hardest part and there is not much farther to go. I would suggest that, in a positive light, everyone make sure that they are well underway with the documentation needed for the interview so that there is no further delay once we move past the application approval phase. Stay busy, move forward, and have a wonderful weekend!

My mom is a big tea drinker.... And no, there are few electric kettles around. Its not a voltage thing (Amps are what are important, and that's the same), it just American's don't drink tea. Most drink coffee so there's plenty of electric coffee machines.

they are saying that USCIS has not been updating their site and that there are more and more people who have not received NOA2 emails from CRIS but have received the hardcopy by snail mail (a few days to a week delayed of course). If this is the case then maybe there were many approvals say, first week of april but have just updated their timeline coz they have just received the hardcopy of NOA2. when they update, they will not be shown as most recent approvals but will be inserted on a previous date... sometimes there are even people who update when their approval date has been pushed down away from the list so we don't see their names on the approved list anymore. they simply disappear from the waiting list.

who knows there has been december approvals or late november approvals that has been inserted on the approved list (you would need to take note not only on the names on the top but also the names on the bottom of the approved list and then the names in between) or some additional december approvals may have had NOA2 dates like march 23 which can't be seen on the list already but will still move your tentative adjudication date up.

Blake, I like the dark before the dawn that you mentioned. I have this quote that was passed on to me as a text message years ago. I have saved it on my phone and I read when i feel down and I have also passed this on to some of my friends when they are facing trials of their own:

"Do you know that the darkest hour is the hour before sunrise? So when you feel you're at your darkest moment, you may be just a moment away from your sunrise."

About the timelines i've been wondering too, and it's still a mistery to me who makes those anyway?
And about the rest...God hear your word! Amin...

Yeah,BlakeandOlha, i worship your posts!!!

It's good to see people staying positive - lets just send some of that energy over to the CSC.

It's a calulated average based on how long it has taken current K-1 filers to get approval. So, if a number of July filers get approved it will actually increase the expected adjudication date, but if the CSC skips remaining November filers and starts in on December, then your date will come down quite a bit. We had one person a couple weeks back enter her timeline information incorrectly to say it took something like 2 years for her approval - everyone's expected adjudication date increased by a couple of weeks overnight - freaking everyone, including me. So, when looking at timelines, Igor's list and others, just see them as a tool to guage some progress, not as a true indicator of what's really going on. Really, it is more important to take a positive but realistic view than to hope for miracles from the CSC. That being said, my understanding of the trends and history indicates that we should see some action coming out of the CSC soon.

Cecile, try your toes too -

And whoever's cutting in line, stop it, I hate moving backward.

hm...
i saw another funny one:
vina & les introduced the NOA2 date as 2008-04-08 on 2008-04-03
it hapens...

it happens... another one that scews the stats is the people that join and enter their timelines but then go on to other endeavors and never update their timelines - so they just sit on Igor's list until they are kicked off the list by the CSC updating the month they are "currently processing." Every time the service center updates its timeline a good number of Igor's folk drop away.

Grrr yeah I moved down 5 or spaces on Igors list in past couple of days too dang it haha! I wanna be moving uppppp! But also in good news my supposed adjuicated date has been moving up at least

yeah that made me angry when I checked Igor's list yesterday evening. I hadn't checked for 2 days and there was nothing new!! I hope dbears's theory is right (website not being updated, people get NOA2 by snail mail later, and that's why we don't see the approvals)

Good morning (well, afternoon now) people!

I'm with Blake - I really do hope that CSC follows the trend of last year and picks up after this week.

make that 7 times... i know it sounds kinda desperate, but this is how bad i wanna be with my baby!

Good morning !!!

Oh yes i hope so too, it will makes all of us feeling better.

There has been approvals! Some July filers were approved on the 28th of March and just updated their timeline. And also a couple who filed at the end of November was approved last week.

HOORAY to the late March early April approvals! Let's hope mid-April brings us A LOT more approvals!!!! So missing my man lately well guess it never has gone away but yes some days def seem worse than others without him and lately has been those harder days! Think it is knowing we won't be together for his birthday, my daughters birthday, or my birthday that is a real kicker to us lately since we have April, May, June birthdays

yes, but next year and all the years after that one, you'll be together for his birthday, your birthday, your daughter's birthday, Christmas, Easter, Halloween, New Year's Eve and all the other good days

Yes!

Alex and I are summer babies so we'll miss each other's birthdays, too - but this is the last year it'll be happening! Next year will be our first Valentine's together, too. I can't wait for that.

I've lost all excitement - right now it feels as if nothing's going to be happening any time soon and I'm just so bored with the process. Sigh!

I have to say that i was becoming a little bit under obsession last week. Reading VJs, watching timeline and igor's list.
So i was searching something to do, something who cost almost no money.
So, i know maybe there is already tons ... but i do a blog now.
Its for me, I don't care about traffic or stuff like that.
so, it helps me... a bit

http://blog.miss-yoko-usa.com/



hugs and kisses to you all

I hope you didn't write to many pages yet, MissYoko, because now I have to read it!! which means I can't concentrate for work until I finish it.

There is nothing you don't know already and as i started last friday it's ok but if i take the same rhythm i will fill it very fast

Even though there's nothing I don't already know, I still love to read the stuff people write. I like to know people's feelings and emotions oh and your engagement ring is absolutely beautiful!

You can't imagine how proud i am wearing my ring

Actually I think I can I'm so proud of wearing mine

hey hey True
It's a wonderful feeling, i have no word to describe it.

Here are the words I use to describe it (though I know that it sounds very submissive): I am proud to show everybody that I belong to him.

Ooh, I shall read it now! I like how you've peppered your writings with little pictures.

Cecile is right - your ring is gorgeous!

I love wearing my ring, too. I was distraught the other week when I thought I had lost it. My mother and I were walking along a street in London when I noticed it was missing. Fortunately my mother found it in my hotel room! Although I can buy an identical ring online a replacement would not be the same - this is MY ring and it was the one that was given to me by Alex. No ring could ever replace it.

I was thinking about updating my website (which is rarely updated - I have a livejournal for most of my writings) with visa stuff but I hadn't really known what to write.

I'm always afraid I'm going to lose it or that it's going to break and the diamond (so strange to say that I have a diamond! ) is going to fall from the ring.

I have to be careful - it's a little bit too big for my finger; not so big as to fall off, but big enough to slide off easily if I get it caught on something (which I think is what happened in the hotel room).

I wouldn't want to lose the stones, either! Fortunately Alex chose a ring that matched what I wanted exactly (I gave him a couple of suggestions, but he still chose it by himself) - the centre stone is tension-set (a sapphire) and the four surrounding diamonds are flush-set, so none of the stones are in a vulnerable position.

I'm always afraid too! If iI loose it I gonna die!

Thank you Rachel. My blog has many goals, yes its for spending time and its also to force me to write in English, as i left school when i was 15, I only learn English one year at school. I was first learning German.
So all my knowledge in English is what i learn by myself. I need to improve my English. Writing is I think a good way. Feel free to tell me my mistakes when it's really bad

I am always super-impressed by anyone who can speak more than one language! I learned French from the age of 7 to the age of 15 and I can barely remember anything - and I certainly can't speak it. I was reasonably okay at writing and reading French but when it came to speaking it I could never make myself understood. It was very disheartening! I don't have a very good ear for languages - heck, I often have to ask people to repeat themselves when they are speaking English - so I find it amazing when people converse in a language other than their native tongue.

Writing a blog in English is a great way to practice the language! I think you have done really well to learn what you have! I'll be sure to tell you if you make a really, really bad mistake.

Despite my inability to converse in other languages I am fascinated by language in general and I love all the nuances in the English language. I'm quite excited as Alex is currently doing an essay-based course and I'm getting to proof-read all of his essays. I just e-mailed one back to him, actually, covered in my red notes - I hope he's not too offended! It really was quite well written but I kept thinking of ways to improve it further.