monnik

Evelyn

Giza

Happy trails to you, Melinda!

Druscilla

Anvil

Ashraf

Nell

Amarillo

Amberlyn

Sarah, here are some costumes that look very easy to make.

I don't know when your party is, but if you need any last minute ideas....

I like the credit card idea on this site. And there are some other simple ones.

http://www.kidsturncentral.com/holidays/hcostume3.htm

This site was fun to read. They even have 60 second costumes. Corny, but hey..if you are in a pinch.......

http://costumeideazone.com/

Let us know what you decide to wear!

Astrid

Easley

Felicidades!! I am glad to see that it worked out for you guys.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Oh really? You are funny.

I am not trying to be confrontational, I swear. I just feel like if one department or ministry in Egypt is slow or confused, then the WHOLE visa process suffers. You can't say that the Immigration & Passport office is organized (because they can process a passport in a day), when your MC proves that it's not. The right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing.

And all the while, the embassy can't move forward until it is done! But, guess what?? It doesn't matter how slow they are. Even after they have the MC in hand, the embassy will be just as slow & inefficient as the Egyptian offices! Because the whole system is broken. Not just one wheel.

So, bottom line, Tam: I don't know where to place the blame for this problem. (I don't believe it's Adam's fault, though) I don't even know what to say to help you out. .... refile maybe? People have filed more than once for a MC... for example, if the embassy requests another one because the first one is outdated. Try that, maybe.

You are in a tough situation. Who knows if you refile or make a 2nd request if the system will jam up even more...... but if you don't try to file or find a solution, you will just be waiting around for them to magically fix everything.

Good luck in whatever you choose. Would it help if I went down to the Cairo office and stomped & waved around my little blue passport??? heheheeeeeee

They would probably wish me a nice day & then take Mina into custody!! heheeeee

Well, I am trying to figure out how to tell this story.

I used to work in a telemarketing office with a lady who was very nice & polite, but a little bit eccentric. i.e., lipstick ring around her mouth, funny shawls & leggings tucked into her socks w/ballet slipper type flats, and LOTS of off-the-wall comments.

Anywho. One of our coworkers quit, and apparently, this lady was obsessed with her because she used to ask me EVERY DAY "Have you heard from her?" "Do you think she's ok?" "Why hasn't she called any of us?" You know... like it's commonplace for ex-employees to come & hang out at your office or call everybody they used to work with and check in.

Back story: our telemarketing screens were able to be monitored by the managers. they could tap into your screen & type you messages while you were on the phone. hosting or whatever it's called. after a few weeks had went by, i tapped (hacked maybe?) into the password for the ghost screen & i used it to talk to my friends in the call center.

One day, I was irritated with the lady. She was telling me weird stuff " I come from a pure blood line..Straight from the blood of Mary." (I guess she meant mother of Jesus, and not her great-great-grandmother somewhere . ) and, of course, she asked about our ex-coworker AGAIN. So, I went into the ghost screen, and typed her a message on her computer...."Hi. It's me, Coworker. I am doing fine. Just wanted to say Hi and I miss everybody at work." I thought it was a good idea at the time.

So, this lady started FLIPPIN out! ok? She jumped out of her seat, started pacing back and forth down the aisles..... talking to herself.... mumbling stuff..... and then the management came to talk to her. She started to get hysterical and I started to feel really bad & guilty.

They tried to calm her down & gave her a week off from work to take a break. They sent her home & then I was called into the office and apologized for what I did. I told them I was sorry. I didn't try to hurt anybody. They had to change their passwords & were annoyed with me, but they didn't fire me.

Anyway, she was supposed to be out of work for a week, but about 2 nights later, she showed up for work..like normal. They started to talk to her & ask her why she came back early, did she feel any better, etc. She started screaming & running around the office & ran into the break room & saying "Help me! They wanna chop my head off! "

Mental Health came & picked her up that night. I was very upset & embarassed. And, that was about the most ridiculous thing that every happened at any job I ever had.

It's a true story, but I still don't think it beats out almaty. That was something special!

Yes. It only took one day to get my residency stamp. (Even though the office was crowded like craaaaaaaazy... my husband was jumping in front of people & shoving my passport through the window. Maybe they are organized internally, but it's not very organized from an outsider's perspective. There was no organization, no system, no lines; it was chaos.)

Yes. It only took my husband one day to get his passport renewed. He tipped the officer extra and he got it back later in the afternoon.

I know exactly what you mean. I know you are in the same boat as we are. I am not arguing, I promise.

My point, and the reason for my joke was this: travelling is the hard part. What difference does it make if you have your passport or not? You can't travel. Maybe to Cyprus, KSA, Kuwait, or travel with the army.

You are saying: **The visa office is a different system.** I know this. But, when the embassy is depending on important papers (MC, etc.) from different ministries within Egypt, and everyone takes their sweet time (for example, by letting people jump in line LIKE MY HUSBAND DID or when people who TIP & PAY can get their papers/passport sooner than the ones who came before them!! Or when you have to speak to the #1 officer and he takes personal responsibility for getting your paper finished, and then goes out of the country... it happens all the time! even inside the embassy, people go on vacation & leave cases sitting on their desks. Why would anyone else touch their work? They are busy enough as it is!) then, they are not being very efficient. Especially when there are millions of people who are applying for the same thing.

I really don't know where the ball got dropped with Tamara's Movement Certificate. It's so hard to tell what is going on. But, I know it shouldn't have taken this long..... especially if the office is so "organized" . And, each and every person shouldn't have to speak with the head officer in order to get something done. It should flow smoother than that; but it didn't. So, that's why my opinion is: the delays are unnecessary & obtaining the passport in one day is useless because you can't travel that fast anyway!

Happy Anniversary , you guys!!! So glad that you are spending it together! Lucky ducks.

A park near my house.....beautiful Fall colors

Another pic from the park...who's beautiful 2007 Nissan Sentra is that?

I miss fall foliage!!!! I miss walking around at the county fair in a big jacket and being able to see my breath when I talk! I love fall weather! Nice pictures Jackie! The picture of Lexy is tooooo cute!!

It's getting cooler here in Egypt. We can't leave the window open all night anymore. It starts to get very chilly around 3am. It's almost time to break out the sweaters!

Olivia, this is the Egyptian filing system:

No wonder passports are so easy to get!! They know they will never let you out of the country. Who cares if you have a passport??!?!!?? One day to get a passport & 2 years to make it out of the country. Bureaucratic efficiency at its finest.

Oh... Shukran awey for my passport ya basha. That was fast! Zay el saroukh!! Now, I can travel to any place I like... America, or London, or Austr.... HEY HEEY!!! OWWW!!!!!! *help*

Good morning everyone! Today is my daughter's 15th birthday! Wow another birthday! Going to my mom's to sing happy birthday this afternoon, we're eating pizza (her choice) then it's off to a girls night out!! I told her, we can go to the movies and you get to choose, and she said: "I want to see "SAW IV"!! Oh well, it IS her birthday after all, so I have to be a good sport about it. LOL

Ohhhh and I got her a beautiful 14k gold ring that has a rose and the number 15 on it! Her first ring ever! She's so excited.

Anyway, have a great weekend all!

Hugs,

Ayesha

What a great idea for a gift!!!!!

YEAH! I have seen a lot of those 15 year charms & rings. You have never been to a party for a Quinceañera before Doodle? You know that show on MTV called My Super Sweet Sixteen?? In Mexico, the show is called Mi Quince Años (my 15 years). 15 is the milestone teenage year for Latin America and Spanish countries.

Google quinceañera jewelry or gold & you will see lots of cute things for the 15 year old girls.

My favorite rings for the 15 años are the motion rings. They are so cute! (Just wait until my nieces have their quinceaños!~~~~~~ I am already thinking about it.... only 10 more years to go!! )

My sister's husband bought her a motion ring for mother's day that had 3 layers. In the middle was a rose, and some leaves that swung around with diamonds. Very pretty!

Good news all around, sparrow!!!

Don't forget, we want pictures of the wedding!! plzzzzzzzzzzz

Tatto party:

She is a tattoo artist. She is probably working on tattoos for a group of people or at a gathering. Just means long hours & hard work.

Don't get down about it, Tam. Please!! Even though his certificate is taking longer than other people's, there is a purpose for everything.

I am so sorry that you guys are having to wait so long.......

WOW. I see a lot of similarities.

Visa in Hand- My husband does the same "I am not hungry" bit. Then, 30 minutes later, after the kitchen has been cleaned & everything has been put away, he's scrambling around in the fridge.

Mona_jamie - The grocery store scene sounds familiar. Except our roles are reversed. I have to take my time. I hate to forget anything & I always want to see every aisle. My husband gets antsy and irritated if we are in ANY store for more than 20 minutes. I DEFINITELY can't go clothes shopping with him. We tried it once and we fought because he isn't patient enough with me. But, I can't shop in Egypt by myself, so now I take a female friend/family member with us & he stands outside until we are done!

I have my quirks, too. I change my mind a lot and it drives him nuts. I also forget about a lot of small things & he gets irritated when I update him 2 weeks later on what someone said or did. Oopsie!

Well, Cheryl, girl....I am up. I had to start adjusting my sleeping times because I will start my new job soon. I am so excited!

The boards are usually dead around this time. Hope you can keep your energy up for your work this weekend!

Happy Furr-iday everybody!

Ill go ya one better. I work for Professional Medical Services. And yes, you guessed it, our website is P-M-S.com giving out my email addy has never been so entertaining

Oh and Doodle, I think Tranny came to my office.

HEHEEEE.. One of our neighboring schools changed from Pacolet Junior High to Pacolet Middle School. Then, after they realized what their new letters would be, they changed it to Middle School of Pacolet.