CBR

Aww, I just saw this now...been busy getting married!! That day Nick's flight was delayed is the day my then fiance, now husband, saw a "tornado vortex signature" or whatever he called it above out house!! It's probably a good thing Nick's flight was delayed, there was terrible weather all over the place that day. He said the sky was just absolutely black, then the sky opened up above him and he could see layers of clouds swirling around...that's the tornado trying to form. UGH. It didn't, but sounds like it was close to it.

Can't wait to hear about your POE experience. I hope it was painless!

Welcome to the USA!! Doesn't it just feel so good to be back together again? I'm so happy for you guys!!

Congratz!! I loved your review, I could feel the excitement. It sounded so similar to ours too. I really like that they seem to have interviewers who truely enjoy their jobs there at Montreal.

Our guy said he'd try to get the visa mailed out that same day. It was received by the post office in Montreal the next day, but didn't show on Canada Post website until he 3rd day. The website was never updated after being received in Montreal's post office. I wouldn't even bother looking at it. We received the visa in the mail 5 days after the interview (and that's with a weekend in there! Interview Wed...Visa Mon)

Aww, thanks for thinking of us krikit! Have a fun trip, and yea, get packing!

jundp, safe journeys to you

Exactly. And the advice you got here is probably much better than the advice CIS gives out. Back before we started out we were told by them (CIS) that "Sure, you can have your fiance come to the US, marry him and file for AoS...the US allows your spouse then to wait with you in the US during the process" Well, we all know that's a HUGE no-no and we would have been screwed had we done that. The POE officer at the border set us straight and gave us the whole run down on the immigration process (after a really scary lecture (practically screaming at us) about being banned from the US for trying to shortcut the system).

The whole "intent" thing is regarding immigration. Did you INTEND to IMMIGRATE when you entered (in your case, yes, of course because you filed he i-130 and you're married...no kidding you intend for him to live here). The intent isn't regarding filing AoS. I get that you didn't know your IR-1 would be approved while he was here, but you had to know the chances were good since you're so close, but that's besides the point.

I think the responses you got here are appropriate, and were meant to help you so you're not screwed over in the end. of course you are sick of waiting (we waited 11 months to be together just for a freakin k1), isn't everyone? I hope you make the right choice and things go your way. It's been a long time, you've been through alot of ####### and it's about time you are allowed to settle into normal life. If you decide on AoS, best of luck to you. Who knows, maybe it'll work out for ya.

Wow! This is an awesome post. It's so true that "they" don't show us this kind of stuff in the media. The pictures are so beautiful, my jaw dropped. I'm taking a tour of the regional forums for the first time now that I have the time and focus (fiance is finally with me!) and this is a wonderful start. Thank you!

Canada's relationship with the US has often been described as living in the shadow of the elephant. When the elephant turns over - you notice - and you react if you don't want to get squished. The Canadians will understand this from the inside out

Unfortunately, the Americans just read it that we're calling them a fat elephant.

But when you start making comparisons people are gonna feel offended and I'm sorry to single you out Reba (cuz I know you're a sweetheart) but your post was a comparison on our differences and it was definitely intent on putting the US down and Canada up

No, I'm not a sweetheart, anyone who knows me personally will tell you I'm a cruel heartless ######. Including my darling husband, and my own mother. Why, because I have a rather direct way of speaking. I don't beat around the bush, use euphemisms, or politically correct language. Its #######, its a waste of time and really serves no purpose other than to coddle. I share this trait with the late great George Carlin. Who I am sure is screaming up at us at this very moment.

If you took offence to my earlier post, well I can assure you that was not my intent. I really was merely making comparisons between the countries to explain our differences, nothing more. If you found offence in that, well, maybe you should take another look.

The point is, the way that our 2 countries were founded have deeply affected the later generations. Those first settlers to each country each had different outlooks on life, and different purposes and reasons for coming to the new world. The attitudes of those first people have continued with later generations, and with the "founding fathers" of both countries. Those early settlers may have all come from the same European countries, but the people themselves were different. They had different agendas, they had different experiences, and they formed our countries independently of each other. So even if at the base of things, our gentic make-up may be exactly the same, we are fundamentally different.

If being different is offensive, well, I can't help that. If over-simplification is offensive, well, blame Reader's Digest.

And if you want to see some Canada bashing for a change, just check out any of Gary's threads over in Off-Topic. He's always finding all sorts of factually wrong articles with sweeping generalisations about Canada.

I didn't find your post offensive and I never said that word. I found it incorrect.. Paying with beer is not unique to Canada and the US is not unaware of this concept. That is a generalizaiton using the location you moved to in the US to generalize that the entire US must be the same. It's done here in WI and MI and IL (family & friends in those states do it too) You talked about Canada gaining independence with a beer at a party which I understand you were simplifying, but it was a ridiculous thing to say when Canada gained true independence in 1982 and the US did in 1776. Very different times, different things being done to the colonists back then, and a very unfair comparison. And I know your intent was to point out huge differences in the two countries to emphasize your point that the US is a war mongering country.

I apologize for saying you were sweet. The nice words you left me when I was waiting for our noa2 led me to believe that. I just don't agree with the philosophy of being blunt...I call it rude. You don't care about hurting people's feelings? And I don't mean mine, because mine aren't. I wish you'd rethink that. I know a few people like that and they're not pleasant to be around. Coddling is one thing, but using tact and keeping your negative opinions to yourself is another. if you know your opinion is going to offend someone maybe you should think twice before saying it. And I'm not referring to VJ, I mean in real life. Obviously this is a message board and the point is you can say whatever you want if you don't care what people think about you.

Well, I don't have that opinion Cassie. I understand that there are going to be things you miss and stating so isn't what I'm talking about. I'm not talking about people touting their home country either. I love to hear about life in other countries directly from people who grew up there. But when you start making comparisons people are gonna feel offended and I'm sorry to single you out Reba (cuz I know you're a sweetheart) but your post was a comparison on our differences and it was definitely intent on putting the US down and Canada up. I'm not the only one who disagreed with it and it is what it is. Also, I don't spend time in the other regional forums, but I have caught a couple posts with the same attitude and it made me feel the same. I'm not picking on this forum, it's just the only regional forum I read in because my fiance is Canadian.

Back to the topic of this thread which was the article on Canada stealing the American dream (nice title). I actually agree with most of it. Americans in general are crazy with their wanting to one up their neighbors...bigger car, bigger house, bigger boat, better job etc... I wish we would get back to spending time with family, putting children first (referencing our crappy maternity leave here), having more time off etc... There's a good part of the article that states how impossible it is to compare the two countries since the US within itself is hard to compare to itself. Salaries, city size, cultures etc... I don't agree that drinking more is a positive. I don't know about Canadians having better social lives. What I've experienced is that it costs a lot more to do anything there (where I visited compared to where i live) and there's not much to do. There is a lot more drug abuse and teen pregnancies there (where I visited compared to where I live) and I would attribute that to boredom and lack of parental guidance into activities (which aren't available in canada like they are where I live). There's a lot more for kids to get involved in here.

Who said bashing? I must have missed that part.

CBR- If it is not okay to say that someone feels Canada is a better place to live for themselves than the US, then you are basically saying no one has a right to feel they way they feel. It isn't always negative either! I believe some people are really going out of their way to say that the majority of threads on this section of VJ are negative, which just is not true. The Canadian community is a strong community and we are just trying to help each other through of all this the way we know how. There are a lot of hardships and negatives in this process so it's easy to say "why can't we all just be positive about the two countries", when that is pretty idealist. There is no way you know what you are getting into when you move to another country. Some people end up not liking it and that is okay; it doesn't mean the place in BAD, it just means they don't like it. I think people have a hard time separating personal preference from anti-anything here. That is the most frustrating part for me.

If you truly believe that this board has an affect on American-Canadian relations on a wide spectrum than I don't know what to tell you.

As far as history being historical, as someone who has both a BA in history and english literature, I can honesty say that not all of what you read is true. A lot of fiction is passed on and written as fact. As they always say, history is always written by the victor and therefore always incurs some sort of bias. Therefore, I find nothing wrong with people have their own perceptions of history, especially when we have not been there to see it with our own eyes.

Both ARE great countries and I would never try to dispute something as subjective as that. However, in my opinion, it doesn't mean any one is wrong or not being nice in saying they like one more than the other and stating reasons for feeling that way.

As far as living close to NYC, sure it's a short train ride, bus ride, drive there, which is great. However, the expense and population of New York City has driven up real estate and almost every other cost that I have to incur in my life substantially. There isn't that many benefits, especially if you don't have the chance to go there on a weekly basis. More over, it's population is what I find alienating. Most bigger cities in Canada are big with a small town feel. They are much more homely, in my opinion. But I digress.

You're taking my words to an extreme. I never said people don't have a right to feel the way they do, I said that the negativity makes me feel unwelcome. I didn't say this board has an affect on American-Canadian relations, but it seems to be representative of the Canadian viewpoint (the article this thread is about says it all).

I don't think you'd feel welcome either if the tables were turned.

Heheheehe, it bears repeating . . .

"Canadians will understand and Americans will go 'huh'? (i.e won't understand).'

What an interesting collection of reactions to what was posted as an 'interesting' article .

What are we Americans not understanding? There have been quite a few incorrect generalizations made about American history (canadian too btw) and culture here. Some pointed out by deadpool and eric and corinna.

I think a point needs to be made that all these Canada is better than the US sentiments are driving an unnecessary wedge. In general I find all the Canadians here and people I've met while visiting my fiance are wonderful people...well educated, kind, having good values, funny etc... overall people I would like to know. When these comments fly around it honestly pi$$es me off (and my fiance too...he made me add that). I don't see Americans making the same crappy attitude comments about Canada.

Yes, this is the Canada forum, but it's an immigration website. Aren't we Americans welcome here in the Canada section if we're marrying a Canadian? Can't we focus on the good, focus on the positive similarities? Why do we have to constantly endure a negative attitude? Why can't we all just be friends dammit?

Where do they get these people from? I can't stand it. I often wonder if and how they train them to be such jackasses to us. I don't expect top notch customer service, but just in comparison to the guards at the montreal embassy who do their jobs with straight faces, but still treat people decently...it makes me sick that we have to deal with those attitudes every time we want to visit jer's family.

Other risks for the mother include the following:

* Infection. The uterus or nearby pelvic organs such as the bladder or kidneys can become infected.

* Increased blood loss. Blood loss on the average is about twice as much with cesarean birth as with vaginal birth. However, blood transfusions are rarely needed during a cesarean.

* Decreased bowel function. The bowel sometimes slows down for several days after surgery, resulting in distention, bloating and discomfort.

* Respiratory complications. General anesthesia can sometimes lead to pneumonia.

* Longer hospital stay and recovery time. Three to five days in the hospital is the common length of stay, whereas it is less than one to three days for a vaginal birth.

* Reactions to anesthesia. The mother's health could be endangered by unexpected responses (such as blood pressure that drops quickly) to anesthesia or other medications during the surgery.

* Risk of additional surgeries. For example, hysterectomy, bladder repair, etc.

In cesarean birth, the possible risks to the baby include the following:

* Premature birth. If the due date was not accurately calculated, the baby could be delivered too early.

* Breathing problems. Babies born by cesarean are more likely to develop breathing problems such as transient tachypnea (abnormally fast breathing during the first few days after birth).

* Low Apgar scores. Babies born by cesarean sometimes have low Apgar scores. The low score can be an effect of the anesthesia and cesarean birth, or the baby may have been in distress to begin with. Or perhaps the baby was not stimulated as he or she would have been by vaginal birth.

* Fetal injury. Although rare, the surgeon can accidentally nick the baby while making the uterine incision.

I would never choose these risks if I didn't have to. And btw my son who was born by csection had frequent bronchitis as an infant, and to this day has reactive airway disease (a sometimes dangerous form of asthma that comes on without warning for him...these could be the result of his method of birth as respiratory problems are more common among children born by c/s. I would never have chosen this, but both our lives were at risk due to placenta previa).

Right on kathryn41! I understand too the concern you're expressing, nighthawk, but did you read the OP? This dog is dangerous and its owners are being irresponsible.

The best solution is for them to get involved in some good dog training with a professional. Dogs cannot be allowed to go after people in the neighborhood nor in their own yards. Yes they are territorial (I have had a few dogs in my life and have one now) but they need to behave and their owners need to be responsible for them.

I do not agree with euthanizing dogs just because they're aggressive (and whoever suggested shooting this dog is just immature). Have you ever seen the Dog Whisperer? Amazing things can be done by people who understand dog behavior and can teach the owners how to "reprogram" their dog. Many times the owners of dogs like this are clueless about how a dog's brain works even though they absolutely love their pet. They often treat them like a human member of the family, like I'm afraid you do, nighthawk (great intentions, bad results...which you described well for us) which screws up their behavior. They need an authoritative "well-balanced" (as cesar would say) leader to be happy, friendly, NORMAL dogs. Remember...be calm ASSERTIVE

...this works well with teens too btw lol. This is probably how peejay survived his encounters with his neighbor's unbalanced dog.

Just curious,

Why is it that women who choose to have a c-section deemed selfish? What's wrong with having a c-section if the mother doesn’t want to have a tore ####### or want to have the baby out by specific time or might be afraid of a long labor? It is the mother body is it not? So what is the different of natural and c-section to the child if we take the mother out of the picture?

I don’t have any kid and don’t plan on having one (might change my mind but seems very unlikely) so this is just out of curiosity question.

It's selfish if the choice for a c-section is made on the basis of convenience. C-sections are overall riskier for the child (and mother too). Every labor and delivery is unique and once it's underway choices have to be made, but to make that choice beforehand is just plain irresponsible. Doctors should be choosing the safest route in everything they do, not the easiest or most convenient.

Mine from Port Huron 6/16/08 says "employment authorized". Weird that they'd even have a stamp that says UNauthorized. Sounds like the Keystone cops have settled into their retirement at the Sault St. Marie border

Oops I think I meant to post this in part 2.

Those do seem kinda weird.

The kindereggs I mean.

Thank God you have VJ!! Can you imagine if you followed what they said and you visited Canada before you got your AP? You'd be screwed! That just makes me so mad that these morons flippantly give us incorrect info that can create havoc on our lives. I want them held accountable!! It may sound like I'm over-reacting, but what they (uscis customer service and POE officers) told us a year ago could have left my fiance homeless for almost a year!! I won't get into it here, but i'm serious.

The contractions in an induced labor are MUCH stronger and come on like hitting a brick wall versus the gradual wave/buildup you feel during a natural birth.

Generally speaking that my be true. However, that was the central problem with my own natural, non-induced labor. It went from joking and having fun one contraction to a ride straight to hell the next. That was why I had no control of myself. It was absolutely unexpected. Like being hit with a freight train.

You're right, that was just my experience in comparison since I had experienced both ways. If you had that with a natural birth I'd hate to know what would happen if you did get Pitocin. You describe how the induction felt to me too...fine...fine...to... KILL ME NOW!!!!!!! I really cringed reading all your posts and am so sorry your experience was so horrific.

This post started in March, I sure hope it's been resolved by now!

and I have to add that I love Cesar too! He's awesome!

I have not heard of any recent trend toward requesting c-sections on either the mother's part nor the doctors. I guess I've been out of the loop.

I've had a drug-free vaginal birth, an induced breech birth (stillborn-he had a heart defect), and a planned c-section due to placenta previa.

I can't think of any other variations on how a baby can come out. I would have to say that the induction/breech and the c-section rival in how painful they were. The contractions in an induced labor are MUCH stronger and come on like hitting a brick wall versus the gradual wave/buildup you feel during a natural birth. The c-section was the more painful immediately afterward, but I was able to care for my son on my own within a couple days (as slow as a sloth, but still could do it). The vaginal birth resulted in painful "relations" for a complete year afterward...I had stitches but from an incision which tore further.

I would never choose a c-section, but would also never judge another woman's choice to have one based on her past experiences. There's no question in my mind that if it's medically necessary it should be done. And there's no question in my mind that just choosing to do one for convenience (i want to make it to my sister's wedding blah blah blah #######) is wrong. The baby's best interests should be put first followed close second by the mom's.

And for the girl who just moved here already pregnant, NO, they can't force you into a c-section. And also don't believe everything people tell you. The US in general does NOT CHOOSE c-sections. There are pockets of selfish doctors and selfish mothers, but in general don't believe that hogwash that all the docs here do that.

Krikit, yea I tried that with the multiple quotes (attempting here again) and it got all messed up. I was adding color to my text and that didn't go well either. I'd be a horrible programmer! The dashes and brackets and commas and everything just make me crazy!

oh ya, i purchase the otc codeine!! alll is good in moderation,lol its actually kept behind the counter, but one just has to ask for it.

Yes, because you're a good patient. After being a nurse in the US for a while you might find yourself shocked at grown up's behaviors!! I know I was.

To everyone buying cough syrup with codeine in it...omg there's a reason it's not otc here!! Codeine is addictive and with all the alcoholism and drug abuse I've seen and heard about in Canada (at least where i've visited, don't be offended!) I'm surprised they sell that otc. As a nurse I've seen enough patients get hooked on it and repeatedly want refills when they don't need it. I hope the otc is much weaker than the script version. I took a dose once when I was sick and it made me zonk out uncontrollably. My daughter was talking to me at the time and I just couldn't stay awake, it was an awful feeling.

I just happen to have right here infront of me the last bottle I bought..... way back in March 2006! And it is still over 1/3 full - so no addictions here.... but I understand what you are saying

FYI, here are the specs:

*Life* brand cough syrup with codeine 250ml bottle,

Nasal decongestant - antitussive - expectorant,

each 5ml (1 teaspoon) contains:

- 3.33 mg codeine phosphate

- 30 mg pseudoephedrine hydrochloride

- 100 mg guaifenesin

I *think* it's a pretty mild formula.... yes??

Yes, I think the prescription has about 10mg in it (at least the one I looked up). And I have to clarify my error. The cough syrup I had when I was sick had hydrocodone in it!! No wonder I was loopy!

What is a Kinderegg? Are the eggs meaner here in the US???

Congratulations!! That's such an awesome feeling!

Good luck to Deb and Jill!! You seriously will be fine. We went together and were pretty nervous, but it was actually fun. It does go so quick once you take that elevator up.

For crying out loud!! I was going to reply to several posts here and I can't figure out how to do it neatly. I can play childish video games like a 12 year old, but I can't figure this out??

Anyway, I was gonna say to Krikit, Yes, according to my soon-to-be mother in law there's a BIG difference in the McDonald's and I'm not a huge fan either, but am curious to see what she was all a tither about. Shreddies being like Chex...aww forget it then, lol. Everyone on here seems to make such a big deal about them I thought they'd be good.

And, did you ever have Panera bagels? I love theirs. Einstein's? really?? They're similar?

To everyone buying cough syrup with codeine in it...omg there's a reason it's not otc here!! Codeine is addictive and with all the alcoholism and drug abuse I've seen and heard about in Canada (at least where i've visited, don't be offended!) I'm surprised they sell that otc. As a nurse I've seen enough patients get hooked on it and repeatedly want refills when they don't need it. I hope the otc is much weaker than the script version. I took a dose once when I was sick and it made me zonk out uncontrollably. My daughter was talking to me at the time and I just couldn't stay awake, it was an awful feeling.

Pickles...does anybody have a good recipe for canning dill pickles? My mom used to make them in a huge ceramic crock but can't remember what she put in there besides dill and hot peppers. They were soooo good!

For store pickles here I like Klaussen. They're more garlicky than dill but yummy.

Harvey's in Canada...yummmmmmm I agree they beat all the other fast food burgers except maybe tied with Culver's for me (and they're not really fast). Their poutine was also my favorite of what I have sampled so far.