LAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi

[AnnexoxShay 1]

Hi Guys I see a few new faces lurkin' Sorry Ive been MIA for so long but as you can imagine lifes gotten rather hectic ....

As usual nothing can go smoothly ... I tried to apply for my SSN and they told me I couldnt until after Shay and I were married and so after we returned from our honeymoon we went to Le Grand got caught in a blizzard only to be told by the guy that I could have applied for the SSN before the wedding ... We're like but we called and spoke to such n such... his like, I dont know why she told you that but yeah .... So I had to apply for it in my maiden name because the marriage licence wasnt registered yet so now we have to make the 2.5hour drive again just so we can apply for it in my married name .. Im just waiting for them to say they cant do it until I receive the one in my maiden name ....

Friday past we went to the court house and thank goodness the marriage licence has been registered finally and we were able to get a copy stamped and signed for $3.75 so I can start getting a few things in my new name! Like a bank account etc ... unless they want a SSN.

Ive spent the better part of the morning looking at AOS papers and I had flashbacks of what it felt like to filling out all the K1 papers and I've managed to give myself a headach yet again ... nothing ever changes

Apart from the inconviniences that have me in a panick everything is going fantastic.... Its taking a bit of getting used to living in a small country town because it is soooooooo small but surprisingly Im finding everything facinating ... I love the deer and the elk and all the masses of birds that Ive never seen before .. the other day a hummingbird managed to fly into the house and needed rescuing .... The local are all very nice and welcoming although I was rather taken aback when the convinience store clerk said ' I see you made it back ok' I was like 'Ummmmm from where' thinking she had mistaken me for someone else .... 'from Reno' she said ... I just looked at her and said 'Ill never get used to everyone knowing my business' ....

The funniest thing to date happened a couple weeks back ... Shay and I had gone into the neighbouring town for some groceries and had bought lunch and gone to the local park to eat ... the park has a pretty pond with ducks and there was a little otter playing so I was telling my new 4 year old nephew (who I adore) about it and the little so and so started mimicking me ... 'Otter in the Water' I sat there gasping, he put on the accent and everything ... its bad enough his father (shays brother) makes fun of my and calls me british but a 4 year old? but it really was funny after I got over the shock of the nerve! so I tickled him and gave him a big kiss and told him he was just tooooo cute and he then informed me that he wasnt cute, big tough guys were mean and ugly

Our honeymoon was awesome!! .... we spent one night in Winermucker which was 5hours drive away then the next day we travelled another 3 hours and spent 2 nights in Reno and then headed up to Lake Tahoe for another night ... we were going to drive the 9hours all the way back on the return trip but Shays mother called when we were about 3hours away and told us a storm had hit and so we drove another couple hours and spent another night and headed back the following afternoon ... We both wished we could have stayed in Tahoe longer and are planning to go back, I mean Reno was fun but OMG I wish we had spent the extra time in Tahoe it really is a beautiful spot ...

Anyway reality is starting to set in and the panick of getting the AOS stuff together ... My poor honey has an ear infection but has to work 12hours today because his boss is a MOOOO but thats another story but he did have the Memorial Weekend off and we hit the yard sales and got a chest of drawers and a few other bits and pieces for the bedroom ... and on Saturday w went up to the flea markets in Sumpter and stopped of at a couple more yard sales ... Sunday we rearranged our bedroom and on Monday we finished bringing in the stuff from the garage ... So today I decided I wasnt doing a darn thing!

[MzMo1102 0]

Woot!! Interview has been scheduled for June 9th at 8 am!! I'm so excited I can't stop bouncing in my seat! If everything goes as planned, Ben should be arriving here just before July 4th--he gets welcome home fireworks and all!!

Hey, my interview is on June 9th at 8am as well!!! I may see you there

Actually, its Ben that has the same interview date and time as me

As for flights...Ben can go from Sydney to Honolulu...Ive entered there several times and its always a breeze to get through. Ive done direct syd to honolulu which is 9 hrs and direct from honolulu to NY which is about 11 hours. Also, flights from honolulu are mostly on time and hassle free...Immigration at the POE are all very friendly which is a plus!

LOL, just look for the really nervous guy there, that'll be Ben

He's going to be flying from Brisbane, not Sydney--is the same kind of flight available?

Im sure he wont be the only nervous one there!

The only really cheap prices from Aus to Hawaii is Jetstar really, unless you find a good qantas deal which there should be at the moment. Although as for Brisbane direct to Honolulu, im not sure about that, he might have to do brisbane to honolulu via sydney...

[MzMo1102 0]

Anne!!!

Good to see you back on here!! Sounds like you’re having a great time over there..as for the SSN, yes, you could’ve applied for it before getting married. Sometimes when you call for advise, you have to do it twice to double check as most of the times the customer representative on the phone has no idea what they’re on about and give you incorrect information.

Glad to hear all went well with your trip – haven’t been to Tahoe yet but its on the “to do” list! As for us, we don’t know where we are going to have our mini honeymoon as we will be having a 2 month old by the time I get to the US so we cant really leave the baby for anyone to look after for too long as I intend to breastfeed.

Im actually dreading the AOS phase as I have waivers for the K1 visa with regards to the chest xray and some vaccinations due to my pregnancy so I need to sort that out and find out how to go about doing them on top of the rest of the requirements for AOS!!

That’s cute how your new nephew is mocking your accent lol…they’ll eventually get used to it..

Well, again…good to see you’re back and having a great time over here – are you missing home yet? Lol..

[mingus_drake 0]

realised last night that we stupidly forgot, somehow, to put my medical stuff in pack three when we sent it off! i'd gotten in such a tizz over it that i somehow left those envelopes! mailed them off today with a letter explaining what happened, so i'm sure it'll be fine.

[densusan 0]

Hi Anne,

Glad to hear you are settling in ok. I too live in a very small village in Upstate New York (hour from Canadian border) and yes everybody seems to know your business but they are all very friendly country folk & would do anything for you. So yes there are positives & negatives about living in the country. All the wildlife is wonderful and the beautiful scenery, great people but on the negative side the shopping is pretty average unless you are prepared to drive along way and the employment opportunities are limited but I would rather live here than in one of the big cities!

You will need your SSN before you are able to open a bank account. Don't stress too much about the AOS because that will all work out fine.

Hi to everyone else ......hope everyone is doing well.

Susan

[densusan 0]

Anne, OHHHHHHHHHH! Forgot to mention about your nephew mimicking you! Let me tell you I work at a school and the kids are constantly trying to mimick my aussie accent. Most people get a real kick out of listening to my accent but think I am british (they have no clue). One of the kids said to me oneday "I like your accent where are you from?" and I replied back to him "Thankyou I like your accent too!" and he looked at me and said "But I don't have an accent!"

Get used to people asking you where you are from and quite a few seem to have trouble understanding but they get it in the end!

[girlfrmoz 0]

Hello Aussies!

Wow, I haven't been on here in forever.....

I've been in the USA now for about 2yrs and about to apply for 'lifting conditions' which reminded me to get on here and update my timeline, etc.

Hello to all the Newbies and others I haven't met before....how's it all going?

Anne, I get picked on all the time too, for my accent.....why do they confuse us with the British...I just say G'Day and that fixes them! Oh and Densusan, I say exactly the same thing....I don't have an accent, you do!

Isn't it funny....when you've been here a while you start to crave the foods that you only ate occassionally in Oz...like I am really craving twisties...cheetos just don't do it for me.

Lyndel

[myperfectflaw 11]

"I like your accent where are you from?" and I replied back to him "Thankyou I like your accent too!" and he looked at me and said "But I don't have an accent!"

Hahahah! I have that same conversation with my fiance's Grandfather, it always makes me smile!!

[SCFsnoopy 0]

I got a good laugh reading over how EVERYONE gets picked on for their accent! I worked as a nanny for 12 months in the US and I constantly had to translate for my kids... I'd say "get your jumper on" and they'd look at me like I was crazy, until I figured it out and corrected with "put on your sweater!". I did get the British thing too - it never bugged me, I'd just correct them and then they'd get all excited and without fail every single person would say "I always wanted to go to Australia, that's such an awesome country!" I'm so proud of my nationality when things like that happen

Ironically enough, when I got home to Aus after my initial year in the US, I got picked on for my accent again... Especially living in Connecticut/New York, I picked up a lot of turns of phrases that simply are not Aussie! Not to mention pronouncing "bawl" instead of "ball", "cawfee" instead of "coffee", etc... I still say "'Sup?" whenever a friend calls which is so different to how I used to answer the phone.

Anyhoo, we are still waiting for our NOA1 - I suspect the long weekend might mean it takes an extra day or two, but I wasn't expecting it before the end of this week anyways. We just got good news about our wedding venue - it's free! - we're having the wedding at Jesse's parents house, they have an absolutely beautiful house and garden with a three-tiered koi pond and bonsai and the works... his stepdad is pretty well off and he was happy to let us use his house as our wedding venue because, "we'd rather you have money to start your life together with than spend lots of money on a wedding." Considering they wouldn't co-sponsor us it's a generous offer!

[jldut80 0]

I got a good laugh reading over how EVERYONE gets picked on for their accent! I worked as a nanny for 12 months in the US and I constantly had to translate for my kids... I'd say "get your jumper on" and they'd look at me like I was crazy, until I figured it out and corrected with "put on your sweater!". I did get the British thing too - it never bugged me, I'd just correct them and then they'd get all excited and without fail every single person would say "I always wanted to go to Australia, that's such an awesome country!" I'm so proud of my nationality when things like that happen

That is so funny. I was a nanny for 6 months in the USA and i had the same issue with the word jumper They would say 'Whats a jumper, i dont have one' Mine were a little more cheeky though and told me to speak english Other words they didnt understand were lounge and heaps

GOT MY PACKET 3 TODAY!! Boy things move fast after NOA2!!!

[kaffy 2]

Everyone I meet here says I have a Kiwi accent which is partly true since that's where I grew up but I swear it's very mild and I don't say things like "ded" and "sexty sex" anymore But yeah, the Americans think I have a Kiwi accent, the Aussies think I have an American accent and everyone else think I have a mild mixed up accent which is probably what's closest to the truth

It's good to hear from you Anne! How far are you from the big cities?

Edited May 27, 2009 by kaffy

[SCFsnoopy 0]

When you get the NOA1, what happens exactly? Does he get one emailed and then a hard copy sent? Or can you just tell when the check is cashed?

[myperfectflaw 11]

When you get the NOA1, what happens exactly? Does he get one emailed and then a hard copy sent? Or can you just tell when the check is cashed?

We didn't receive any info by email, we simply got a hard copy sent to us. We also sent ours certified and got the card back from the post office showing the delivery confirmation, so we knew it was on it's way shortly. I paid by money order, so that's all I had to go on, but I'm sure checking with your bank to see when the check is cashed is also a good way to know.

[SCFsnoopy 0]

We didn't receive any info by email, we simply got a hard copy sent to us. We also sent ours certified and got the card back from the post office showing the delivery confirmation, so we knew it was on it's way shortly. I paid by money order, so that's all I had to go on, but I'm sure checking with your bank to see when the check is cashed is also a good way to know.

Jesse sent our petition in by Fedex so I know that it was received a week ago... check hasn't even been cashed yet, should I be worried or do I still have a little while to wait before being worried? Seems like most people get their NOA1 within days, but I've seen some timelines that indicate a couple of weeks. I can't imagine there would be anything missing or wrong with our application so it's curious that it's taking a while for them cash the check.

[MzMo1102 0]

When you get the NOA1, what happens exactly? Does he get one emailed and then a hard copy sent? Or can you just tell when the check is cashed?

Once the check is cashed, you can find out what the number is on the back of the check (most banks) - this is your case number. It will either start with a WAC or an EAC followed by a bunch of numbers. You wont get an email however a hard copy will be sent. Once this NOA1 has been received you are then able to sign up for online updates regarding your case where you will also receive the approval notice via email as well as the hard copy of the NOA2.