JnLMN

I see a lot of comments here supporting the illegal Mexican migrant--from poverty, to family ties, to what would it hurt... The fact is, those reasons apply to all of us here, and if an illegal Mexican can afford to wear Nike jogging suits purchased in the US and drive a new car, they can afford to come here legally. Don't attempt to tell me that's not the case, because I've personally witnessed it. They actually brag about it.

The problem is that the politicians don't want to offend the hispanic community by upholding the law--the law they swore to uphold and enforce when they took office. If enforcing immigration laws on hispanics, just like everyone else, is offensive...TOO BAD. We here are following the laws. We are making financial sacrifices to make our dreams come true. They should, too. In fact, with their large families, many of them are in a better position to do so than most of us. Take up a collection..say USD20 from all family members...and all expenses are easily paid. Phone calls are cheap, it's easy to visit by taking a simple walk across the border either way, and easy to transfer funds to family over the border...what the heck is the problem?

Sure, it's not fun...but what gives a Mexican more of a right to be with family than an Asian spouse and child waiting years to come here while battling through red tape? It's double standards pure and simple...and the poverty level is just as bad, so that can't be used as an excuse.

On top of that, noone expects a Mexican to learn English or to even attempt to become American for fear of their "losing their identity". That doesn't apply to Asians, Russians, Australians, Europeans...you name it. We have to bend over to make allowances for them and if we say anything, we're racist.

Flame me if you like, but if I have to follow the law to get my honey here and keep her here, then a Mexican should follow the same law, and be held accountable for violating it, just like me. I'm not racist in the least--I'm just sick of special interest groups winning concessions which, if given to me as a heterosexual white male born in this country, would be discriminitory.

Whew - made it through the rest of the posts!

Hey, congratulations Rob and Wendy!!!

And thanks to all who congratulated us and sent best wishes. Thank you thank you thank you.

Lye says she'll go into more details of her interview after I get there--things went into overdrive for her these days between her school duties, tutoring, clearing the decks for a move to the states, and making arrangements for our trip.

Some questions asked were:

Where and how did we meet?

Does she know:

a) that I was divorced;

b ) the reasons for the divorce;

c) that I had children;

d) where my daughters live;

e) my daughters' names;

f) my home address; and,

g) my mother's name.

When did we meet in person?

How long was I there, when did I leave?

What did we do, where did we go?

Did I meet her family and friends? (Like, umm...what does it look like in the pics? )

Asked her about the pictures, where we were, when it was.

How have we been communicating--e.g. phone, email, snail mail, TMs, et. al.

What were our plans?

That's about all I can recall off the top of my head. Some things that helped were to have some humorous stories behind some of the pictures (good ice breaker), and to have everything organized. That was apparently a BIG plus.

Well, gonna run now since it's waaay past my bed time.

Later all!!

Oh - by the way. Any advice on travel agent to use to get her a ticket to the States? She's already working through one, but was wondering if anyone has had any particularly good luck.

Thanks!

hey jnlmn how are you able to keep your beard lol if i even let a stubble grow out i get the sad pouty face and tons of grief ( i miss my goatee)

I simply refused to get rid of it. LOL Not that I don't love her, but I look like a dork without at least a mustache--I think so anyway--I get bad ingrowns when I shave it off, and I do live in MN where at least some form of facial hair is a good thing. I think she may even let me be stubborn in this.

Of course, the other night on the phone, she did hint that she liked me without it...

Well, I came on here earlier to see how everyone is doing and was going to type some replies...but I got called away by an incoming TM. Know what?

Chalk up another APPROVED!! Wooohooooo!!

I haven't got the details yet. Poor woman was starving--she didn't sleep last night and was too nervous to eat this morning--so had to get some food in her. We talked for a little bit while she was waiting in line, and she said they were impressed with how organized all the paperwork was, and that the interviewers were very polite. So definite tip there, that ties in with what RebelHeart said: going overboard on organizing and logical presentation of material seems to help. (My final assembled 'document' was over 2.25" thick.)

I will pass on more details when they become available.

Thank you for your well-wishes and prayers, PW, R&W, Soul, JoseandHelen--they definitely helped!

And CONGRATULATIONS, too, J&H!!

PurpleDonkey, I'm so sad to hear about the AR. Have they said anything further on how long it might take them to figure out she is who she says she is and not someone else with the same name? At least...I got the feeling that is what they are doing...smack me if I'm wrong there. I pray they clear it up soon.

Andrew, I'm really curious to find out what Lira is embarassed about! Come on--share with the group.

Danoco - you asked about age? Lyra is 28 years old and I'm 34...so she's over 25, but we're not too far apart in age (which may also affect how they look at the cases).

Good luck everyone, and thanks!!!

Waiting - I can't believe they've kept you in limbo all this time! OMG! What are they waiting for? Even at the glacial speed of government, they should have figured something out by now. Heck, even the VA works faster than that!

I can't imagine wating that long.

I hope and pray they get things taken care of soon.

That's great, Soul!!

So tell me: how's your excitement level now, having it right there in your hands?

Meanwhile, back in the states:

<Less than two days to go...>

Alright Andy and Lira!! Congratulations on the approval...and you are sooo lucky to not be back in MN right now! Got some hefty snowfall, icy and whiteout conditions, and the temp's dropping tonight. Hee hee...

PurpleDonkey, RebelHeart and JoseandHelen: GOOD LUCK!! You'll have to let me know if they are in a good mood when you're there...Lye's interview is on Friday.

Gotta love that feeling: excited, unsure but also confident...and just plain bouncing off the cieling! LOL I feel bad I won't be there for it, but it sounds like she met a LOT of other ladies who have their interview on the 17th, so she'll have a bunch of familiar faces around. It sounds like they had a lot of fun while waiting and sharing stories.

Again, congrats, good luck!

Alriiiiight, soulseeker!!

Whew--lots of catching up to do.

First of all, I'm so sorry to hear about the AR JeeLeeBee and FeelinBlue ...I really, really hope things get back on track quickly!

Happy anniversary, R&W!!!

Aaaand, CONGRATULATIONS Greg2005 and ckoahou!! I'm so terribly happy for you all.

On this end, Lye's medical seems to be going well; she's sitting around now waiting for the shots. Me? I'm going bonkers knowing the interview is in a week. That's okay, though: I've told my boss and co-workers not to expect too much out of me until May at the earliest. They seem pretty understanding.

Thanks, PW! I'm hoping this year we're not sitting right at the edge of a weather front so we can watch a decent sunset.

Well, we're at less than two weeks, and ya know, it's getting pretty hard to concentrate on anything else. LOL I gave Lye a pop quiz when I talked to her this weekend and she did great! So, I'm thinking she'll do just fine. Now, if only the interviewers are in a good mood next Friday...

Welcome back PW - Sounds like you had a great time! I'm going to make note of your travel advice for the next time we get back there. This time we're just going to do Manila/Antique/Boracay. Not a lot of traveling around...just saying goodbye to everyone, a quiet pre-wedding honeymoon, then getting things together for the trip back <praying, God-willing, hopefully, please please please> .

Jeeleebee - GOOD LUCK!!

I was talking to my friend whose fiance is getting medical on 17th of March. He had a really hard time getting to the embassy and when he finally had a conversation today , they told him they 'would not' accept form 1040 tax return for 2005 until July?

I just want to ask anybody if this can be confirmed or denied?

To me this does not make sense? Seems like they would want the current and most recent tax return?

If this is true I will have to redo my affidavit of support and put in the income from my 2004 tax return.

Thanks Robert & Lorna

That sounds so like a Manila thing to do. Maybe it's because it gives the IRS time to correct/catch any errors in a return, but since all they're looking for is income (which would be shown on the W-2's, 1099's et al) it really makes no sense to not accept TY2005 returns.

I would do like a lot of folks have been doing here: send 3 years' worth of returns (including most current), and let them sort it out.

VISA APPROVED for us today honesty and borninabarn We are so happy!Im glad i was here for ester during her interview!Thanks to all we both will be back in Iowa usa soon!

Woohoo--congrats!!!

Starting to wonder if I shouldn't have sent chocolates or a carton of smokes with the I-134 packet...

Congrats KTM!

Good luck!

J

ya but the weird thing is we've sent over 14 faxs (over 10 week period) called several times and they dont seem to be able to correct her address. plus she live less then 15 minutes from the embassy i think its a bit weird that mail takes 10+ days to be delievered in the same town. i know yove gets her bills on time so im sure the mail system cant be that much worse then the U.S. mail

I've wondered the same thing myself.. I've been trying since December to get my address changed with those cowboys and it still hasn't happened, and the DoS refuses to do it. As far as mailing goes, it's beyond me. <shrug>

Of course it may not be the postal system's fault: Lye sent me a Valentine's card normal post way after the embassy mailing, and it arrived here a day after she received her paperwork. With Manila's track record, they probably didn't mail the things out when they say they did.

For the all fiance out there whenever your fiancee got the MMR vaccine from their medical, shouldnt be gettin pregnant after 1-3 months, bcos surely it gonna have worst side effect for the baby. So tight ur belt hehehehe,

-rebelheart-

RH, after reading this one, I laughed so hard I squirted coffee out my nose. Thank you.

It's definitely a more polite way of saying: tie a knot in it! Hee hee. Of course, why they don't offer the medical sooner because of it is beyond me. I mean, really: it's a marriage-based visa, and you have to get married within 90 days of arrival after waiting forever to be together. <shaking head> Soooo romantic on the wedding nite, eh?

Let's hear it for the sadists in the DoS!!

has anyone gotten there packets for april yet?? they mailed it on the 13th, but we still havent gotten it. when i call the embassy or the state dept. they still have her old address. (we've sent 14 faxs of the new address) yove has gone to her old address every day to check if its come, but still hasnt arrive

I wouldn't get too excited about it yet, Dano--Lye just got hers two days ago, and it was supposedly mailed on Jan 26th...and she lives in Paranaque.

Hope you get it soon, though!

Hey Jasman, it seems like you are just the right person to ask this question since a- you were divorced, and b- from California.

You said you sent in a notorized copy of your divorce. Was this requested by the embassy, or did you just do it on your own hook? Reason I'm asking is that my divorce was handled through Ventura, and I was in TX when the judgement was entered. All I've ever received was the Notice of Entry of Judgement, no signature, but a couple original stamps in the date field saying we can't get married before such and such a date, and that it was filed by so-and-so on this date; along with that was a signed copy (but a copy nonetheless) of the Judgement, covered in original stamps saying it was filed by so-and-so on such a date.

I never even thought about requesting a notarized copy of this until seeing your posting about getting one yourself, since I had the originals that the court sent me 8 years ago (and which I sent along to Lye for verification). Logically, it should be good enough since it was what the court sent me, and I've also got three years of tax returns filing Single, and information about child support, but... <shrug>

It was a good investment!

Same here, Wind.

I sent copies of my tax info for the past three years just to be sure--and for verification, original W2's , a 1099 and the original of a TY2004 notice of error (plus a copy of the IRS-cancelled check that I paid them after a very large DUH!, and a smack on the forehead). Hee hee...at least it wasn't that big of an error, and I still got to keep most of my return.

Ever tried reporting a 1099? That has got to have the most complicated and convoluted set of directions of any government form I've ever seen--and I used to work for the government!

I'm guessing what your tax preparer gave you should be good enough Swell, since a) I've not seen anyone get dissed for it [for what it's worth], and B) not one US citizen has their original tax return...and if they do, they belong in jail.

Wow - lots of posts in 4 days!

PW, that is such a total, complete bummer--I'm sorry to hear about your setback. I'll pray that the court looks at it and swiftly rubber-stamps the re-annulment. At least it seems they are working with you in this! Good luck to you, and if it helps: at least they caught it before filing for AOS. Now that could have been a mess and a half.

Wind - I hope the BC gets straightened out really soon. One typo due to someone's carelessness, and...

Frankly, pretty much the only thing I'm nervous about is my previous marriage. (Yep, another high-risk divorced person.) Everything is in order, don't get me wrong--but all I ever got was a Notice of Entry of Judgement (stamped as being filed, and then sent via mail, but no signature anywhere on it), and the Judgement itself which was a signed copy (but still a copy) and a couple stamps saying it was filed. Logic says it should be no problem (the doc's 8 years old and shows it, plus filing single on my tax returns, plus paying child support...) but ya never know.

Good luck everyone!

<crossing fingers, toes, knocking on wood, and eagerly looking forward to Mar 17th, and then arrival in Manila on the 23rd!!>

Ahh, balut. 'Nuff said. <shudder> I'll eat 'most anything, but there ARE some places I draw the line.

I'm quite happy to give up the fish...parts as well, but am looking forward to goat again. I'm still trying to figure out why everyone was so amazed I ate rice, though.

Regarding the rioting... Well, conditions bite over there when there's really no reason for it to, what with all the businesses and foreign money getting pumped into the economy. Add into the mix a sense of helplessness, resentment, and fatalism regarding crime, corruption and the economy, toss in a match like protecting rapists, and something's gonna blow.

Of course, if they'd riot against things they can control, it would be more effective. I mean, over twenty people sitting around watching a mugging--by five guys with knives, one of whom is bleeding on the ground already--doing nothing, then going home to ###### about the crime rate...? Some people just gotta learn to pick their fights.

Well...finally have time to get back on here. LOL Between meltdowns at work, putting the finishing touches on the packet to send to Lye and preparing for a VA appeal hearing, it's been buuu-uusy. Then, of course, everything moves around on here since I last checked in.

So. First of all, congrats to those who have interviews AND who've already had them and passed with flying colors!

It also seems I have good news to report as well: Lye's not received the appointment letter yet, but found out last Monday (1/30) that she has her medical on Mar 10th and her interview on the 17th!!!! I sent my packet of information out today via FedEx, and it weighed in at 3.9 lbs. <chuckle> Well, that should be complete enough, eh?

Since she'll be tied up with finals, tutoring and graduation for her students until 3/24, we decided I should skip the interview--but oh, I really want to be there for it!--and am flying over on the 22nd in time to see her in 'teacher mode' and see her 'kids' graduate. Hee hee. Should be lots of fun. After that, a couple days in the Manila, a couple in the provinces then 3 or 4 nights in Boracay before coming back.

So how long is it taking for them to get the visa out to the fiances these days? I'm soooo hoping that we are able to receive it before I go, and that we can get her on the same flight back with me on short notice.

==============================================

Oh, and here's our info for this new-fangled setup they have here:

Name-------------NOA2-----MNL REC’D--PACKET--INTERVIEW--MNL CASE#--STATUS

JnLMN---09-28-05--10-??-05--??-??-06--03-17-06--2005-787xxx

Name--------------------Your Home State------------Fiancee’s Home Town

JnLMN------------------Mankato, MN-------------------Paranaque