Medical done

[TimsDaisy 0]

Daisy -- just to change tack here a moment. I just saw on your timeline that the medical is "in the file" at the Embassy. When I was doing my own version of Department of State bothering (and everyone else seemed to be getting P4 and we weren't, grumble), I was told that receiving the medical file *sometimes* has the effect of effectively jogging the Embassy's memory about your file and getting off its institutional backside to do something. This was presented to me as not the gospel truth, but as a possibility. I seem to recall that Bruce's medical arrived on the 11th of May and by the 18th, voila, there was P4.

Yes, they do have medical something or other being entered on June 11. But that's the last entry. Prior to that, just the May 20 sent-p3-out date.

TracyTN - I called them and said, I want to find out if it is entered. They said no. I said, well, it's been awhile, is there anything to be done. I'm afraid it didn't get there. Would it be worth it to send it again. The operator said, you can send it again, there's no other way to check unless theyupdate their system with it. So there's no problem with that, then, I asked. No, said the operator, I would go ahead and just re-send it.

RJ - I really don't think you've been paying attention to what I've been saying I've been doing, nor what I want to happen. And a better point: do you think you're going to change my mind on how to handle my affairs in this process? This whole unfortunate interaction started because I said I *was* sweating the process and I was frustrated that London got slower again. I hardly think it was an unreasonable, hysterical grumble. You took it and ran with it. So be it. But I'm not recommending paying off diplomats or chaining myself to the White House gates until our visa is taken care of.

I'll save zen child-bearing patience and philosophy for the yoga studio where it finds a more appropriate home.

Oh, but with pregnancy, I don't think the baby can get lost on the way down the vaginal canal. So the two processes are different.

Please ease off now. You're stressing far more than I ever did in this thread.

[TracyTN 237]

TracyTN - I called them and said, I want to find out if it is entered. They said no. I said, well, it's been awhile, is there anything to be done. I'm afraid it didn't get there. Would it be worth it to send it again. The operator said, you can send it again, there's no other way to check unless theyupdate their system with it. So there's no problem with that, then, I asked. No, said the operator, I would go ahead and just re-send it.

Ok - I was just trying to understand. I know it seems like splitting hairs a bit, but if she had suggested it to you before you brought it up, well - I guess I just see those as two different things.

[Tim and Bethanie 1]

This is the time of the year when London slows down. Two weeks is really not much to worry about. It is quite possible the person handling your case is off on holiday. Looking at my own timeline, it was roughly a month between the time London rec'd our case to the time we got packet four, and then another month to schedule the interview. Our case hit London right at the end of May as well. Call DOS tomorrow, as I have mentioned before they seem to do updates often on Fridays.

[Mags 112]

God and the State Department help those who help themselves.

Well, I don't believe in God so does that mean the only option for me is to pray to the State Department when we want rain?

Edited June 14, 2007 by mags

[Rubycon 0]

Well, I don't believe in God so does that mean the only option for me is to pray to the State Department when we want rain?

I'm sure they'd be happy to do some cloud seeding for you...

Right, now its my turn to grumble. I'll be screwed if the interview takes longer than usual to schedule as my employment contract expires at the end of August, and with it my place to live...

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

TracyTN - I called them and said, I want to find out if it is entered. They said no. I said, well, it's been awhile, is there anything to be done. I'm afraid it didn't get there. Would it be worth it to send it again. The operator said, you can send it again, there's no other way to check unless theyupdate their system with it. So there's no problem with that, then, I asked. No, said the operator, I would go ahead and just re-send it.

Ok - I was just trying to understand. I know it seems like splitting hairs a bit, but if she had suggested it to you before you brought it up, well - I guess I just see those as two different things.

I still think it's a mistake. In my 2 years of reading this board 4 weeks is far, far more normal than Tracey's experience (and I think she won the London Embassy lottery on that one!). When I first started this process there were people waiting as long as 8-12 weeks - I don't think anyone waited less than 3-4. And it almost always took that 3-4 week minimum to enter packet 3 in the system.

I really just think it's futile and unnecessary worrying to do anything at 2 weeks - I really wouldn't hit panic mode and even consider re-sending that packet 3 until 6 weeks. And even if she suggested it, I think that has the potential to make matters much worse.

Two things I learned going through this process:

1. Don't expect to be able to apply logic to anything they do

2. Don't apply the same methods/manner of customer service you would expect from, say, a bank. It won't happen. If you do get something resembling such, consider yourself very lucky.

In the words of my lawyer "they're the US government, they can do what they want."

[TimsDaisy 0]

I'm not in panic mode.

It's already been mailed.

How will it make things worse? Do you have examples of such situations?

I based my decision on approximations gathered from recent VJer experience. How it was one or two years ago is not how it was 3 months ago which in turn is not how it was 1 month ago which in turn is not how it is now, which is closer to how it was 3 months ago.

I'd still love to know what dark and scary future could befall us? Are there examples here on VJ? Will they deny our visa because we sent two copies of the same forms back to them, with a full explanation.

I don't know why I'm still defending either my feelings or my decisions here. I'm not sure if I asked for input on this thread or not. I don't think I did. If I did, thanks for your reply. But it's been mailed now, so guess you can just enjoy a "told you so" moment if something bad does happen.

VJ is a great source of information but it is also a hotbed of imagined boogeymen and trumped up fears.

Go find someone who did the process free of both legal and VJ help. They'll have done it fine, in most cases, and never even grown fears akin to the ones spawned here daily. I still think there's good info here, but man alive, there's too much fear.

p.s. the State Department has offered twice the level of customer service of my bank, which isn't saying too much, but it's still far better.

[rebeccajo 14]

Please ease off now. You're stressing far more than I ever did in this thread.

No problem. I'm definately easing off. Why? Because your problems are 'small stuff' and I'm not sweating them along with you.

[Dawny&Tommy 0]

I'm not in panic mode.

It's already been mailed.

How will it make things worse? Do you have examples of such situations?

I based my decision on approximations gathered from recent VJer experience. How it was one or two years ago is not how it was 3 months ago which in turn is not how it was 1 month ago which in turn is not how it is now, which is closer to how it was 3 months ago.

I'd still love to know what dark and scary future could befall us? Are there examples here on VJ? Will they deny our visa because we sent two copies of the same forms back to them, with a full explanation.

I don't know why I'm still defending either my feelings or my decisions here. I'm not sure if I asked for input on this thread or not. I don't think I did. If I did, thanks for your reply. But it's been mailed now, so guess you can just enjoy a "told you so" moment if something bad does happen.

VJ is a great source of information but it is also a hotbed of imagined boogeymen and trumped up fears.

Go find someone who did the process free of both legal and VJ help. They'll have done it fine, in most cases, and never even grown fears akin to the ones spawned here daily. I still think there's good info here, but man alive, there's too much fear.

p.s. the State Department has offered twice the level of customer service of my bank, which isn't saying too much, but it's still far better.

Then just don't?

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

How will it make things worse? Do you have examples of such situations?

I do actually - I accidentally sent 2 copies of my G325a forms with my AOS package and they had a 20 minute conversation about it at the interview. Why? They were confused as to why they had 2 copies.

someone was banned from emailing/contacting the London Embassy because they freaked out after a few weeks of no confirmed receipt of packet 3 and couldn't find about their status for weeks. Do you want this to happen to you as well? Because yes, bad things have happened when people overreacted to normal processing times.

I'm trying to attack you or even scare you - I'm trying to help you. Everyone's experience - whether 2 years ago or 2 weeks ago - is unique. What is not unique is waiting 4 weeks or longer for London Embassy to acknowledge receipt.

[TimsDaisy 0]

Please ease off now. You're stressing far more than I ever did in this thread.

No problem. I'm definately easing off. Why? Because your problems are 'small stuff' and I'm not sweating them along with you.

Oh save it. Honestly, save it. You were the only one ever sweating my expression of frustration to begin with. Others chose to vent as well. Not you, because you're done with the visa part. So be it.

Go out to dinner with your husband or something. Since he's here and you can do that. Once my fiance is here, and we can, I won't be sweating this kind of 'small stuff' again, I assure you. I hope to hell I've never trivialized anyone else's journey here - if I have, I am truly sorry.

Really, rebeccajo, badly played.

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

I think spending over a year in name check hell means rebeccajo knows a little bit more about hellacious waiting times and having no control over the process than you do.

[rebeccajo 14]

Please ease off now. You're stressing far more than I ever did in this thread.

No problem. I'm definately easing off. Why? Because your problems are 'small stuff' and I'm not sweating them along with you.

Oh save it. Honestly, save it. You were the only one ever sweating my expression of frustration to begin with. Others chose to vent as well. Not you, because you're done with the visa part. So be it.

Go out to dinner with your husband or something. Since he's here and you can do that. Once my fiance is here, and we can, I won't be sweating this kind of 'small stuff' again, I assure you. I hope to hell I've never trivialized anyone else's journey here - if I have, I am truly sorry.

Really, rebeccajo, badly played.

Not badly played. It's the truth. Waiting two weeks is small stuff - you know that and everybody here knows that. It's the truth, but you don't like it - so that makes me a bad person for pointing it out to you.

Oh well. My bad.

[TimsDaisy 0]

I think spending over a year in name check hell means rebeccajo knows a little bit more about hellacious waiting times and having no control over the process than you do.

I hadn't realized he needed to leave the country during that processing time, my mistake.

This is so not a game of whose process sucks more. I never for a second said I was getting an unfair shake from the Embassy. I said, damn, I hate that I missed that fast period where things went so well. Then, #######, some are still getting through in short time, hope my stuff didn't get lost.

I don't claim I'm suffering an undue amount. But I'm not going fake like I enjoy the waiting. No one here does. And I haven't been yelping for special attention. Nor have I bombarded the Embassy with calls and emails.

You're all off in your own little world of facts here, few of which seem to exist in reality.

If questions arise about duplicate information at the Embassy, we'll be prepared to answer them. We'll be prepared to answer questions on much bigger-deal-issues than that, for that matter.

Anyway, I hope you all can calm down after worrying so much about my problems - past any level of worry I had ever expressed. Others said they were frustrated too, so why am I the only bad guy? Don't answer. Doesn't matter. Your "small stuff" - not mine.

[TracyTN 237]

Seriously, peeps. Let's put it out here in black and white. There are at least 3 people 'ahead' of TimsDaisy in wait times. People who have sent theirs out on the same day as TimsDaisy have already received their interview dates while she has not.

This suggests to me that there is NO way to predict any of this, or make sense out of it - which is exactly the same situation as when you are in the service center. I *think* that is all that anyone is really trying to say here.

And FWIW, I DO think its unfair to suggest that someone's wait is easier because of no longer being separated. That does ring a bit towards belittling what someone else goes through.

Name..................Visa....P3Sent..MedDate.....P4Rec'd...IntDate/Time........Status

Disco....................K1.......05/02.....05/09..................

justbee&robbie.....CR1......05/12.............................

psho.....................K1.......05/24.............................

TimsDaisy.............K1........05/29....06/07................

ValWesUKUS..........K1........05/30....06/06...................

Jake & Ali..............K1........06/04....06/12...............

Dawny&Tommy.....K1.......06/07.............................

Edited June 14, 2007 by TracyTN