WonTanNara

If your parents are US citizens, then I believe without your offense in Miami they could have petitiond for a relative visa for you. In your case they might be able to prove hardship because they are sick and obtain a waiver for you, but you'll need a lawyer.

WONTANTARA inshAllah dont worry.. keep ur faith....

i know you will get it.. God is with us and cannot give us anything we cannot handle

u mention this

AP can be for several different things. It could be for document verification, it could be to investigate the relationship and do home visits, or it could, as in my fiance's case, be for security clearance. Maybe if the AP is not security clearance they could tell you things like "it's in the last 30 days" but I believe nobody can give you any information if it is security clearance

WHAT DO U MEAN, THEY CAN SAY THINGS LIKE :ITS IN THE LAST 30 DAYS?

DID THE OPERATOR TELL U SOMETHIN ON THAT PHRASE? PLEASE LET ME KNOW AS I AWAS TOLD THAT BY dos OPERATOR 2 WWEKS AGO...

PLEASE EXPLAIN WHAT U MEAN about that please maybe its a hint to my case that its not in sec check

Hi there,

I was in fact referring to the comment you received from DOS a few weeks ago. I was very surprised when I read that because from my experience I just don't see how they could tell you that. I don't say that to make you feel bad or take away hope... not at all, I just don't see how it's possible, unless the processes are different for different types of AP. None of it makes any sense, eh?

You are right about keeping the faith. Insh-Allah we'll all be reunited soon.

At the very least I'm going back to Africa to see him in December...

I just called the DOS. Our interview was six months ago today. Of course I played dumb and the woman was actually very pleasant to me. She told me everything she could see in our file, which of course had nothing to do with anything going on with our AP. She said "ok it looks like you had your interview in April, they have your contact numbers, I see Senator inquiries, then she got all excited and said OH it looks like he's good to go!" I said WHAT? WHAT WHAT WHAT? She said "After his AP is finished he's good to go, that's great news!" Oh, well, yeah I knew that already but I suppose it's nice to have that confirmation. I said is there any way to see what's been going on with the AP? She said "Unfortunately, no. We used to have a lot more leeway but they came in and changed our system so now the only thing we can see is that the case is in AP." I have been given that same response by several DOS employees.

AP can be for several different things. It could be for document verification, it could be to investigate the relationship and do home visits, or it could, as in my fiance's case, be for security clearance. Maybe if the AP is not security clearance they could tell you things like "it's in the last 30 days" but I believe nobody can give you any information if it is security clearance. My advice to those on AP would be to get with your Senator and find out the exact reason for the AP. Each Senator has a DOS liason that can give a little more information than the DOS employees at the 202 number.

I also asked her if such a long delay is common. She said "I don't want to scare you and I hope your case will not go this long, but I've seen them go as long as a year. Six months is really not uncommon." Well, we already knew that too, right? Tammy, chaingang, and others have been waiting longer than a year.

I'm so crabby with our gov't right now...

Very true that there are no statistics or rhyme or reason to AP. Good advice to prepare for the worst and pray for the best. Be thankful that you will not be surprised if it does happen to you. My fiance and I NEVER saw it coming. I had no idea that there could be such a long delay after the interview. We've been waiting six months since the interview, and there are others that have been waiting a lot longer. Waiting waiting waiting...

Hopefully you'll have better luck.

Panic over!!! Passport found. It was under my desk Don't understand how it got there as there is less than an inch of clearance, but oh well it is now in my carry on. I am nearly packed, just have a few things to buy at the store and some things that I use daily that I'll pack Wednesday night. SO left for Thies this morning after he checked in at the apartment ot make sure it was being cleaned. He and his friend bought a computer so that I will be able to email with my family every day - ain't he sweet!!!!!!!!!

Bon voyage! Stay in touch while you're over there, too.

Mohamed Diaby, of Guinea, began playing the djembe at age seven, under the supervision of his elder brother Moustapha. By fifteen, he was asked to join a group sponsored by the wife of Guinea's infamous President Sekou Toure. Encouraged to continue by world famous djembefola Mamady Keita, Mohamed joined Africa Djole, led by Fode Yulla. Mohamed later joined Les Merveilles de Guinea as lead drummer, touring all over West Africa, including Sierra Leone where he stayed for five years. While still away from home, Kemoko Sano, Artistic Director of the world famous troupe Les Ballet Africains, had approached Mohamed's father saying when your son returns, I want him to join my group, because I love his drumming. In April of 1995 Mohamed arrived in America to play at New York City's Symphony Space and within a few years he was in Atlanta directing Africa Sogaye, a Guinea style Dance and Drum Troupe as well as organizing Atlanta's annual WAH WAH Drum and Dance Conference. He currently travels throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe teaching drum and dancing and promoting the music and culture of Guinea.

Yes! You should definately go take classes with Mohamed and come to our conference next year in VT! My dance teacher used to dance in Africa Djole too. This type of dancing absolutely can get you into the best shape of your life but it takes a while before you can dance full-on. The rhythms and movements are very different from Western rhythms, but if you stick with it and don't get frustrated, pretty soon you'll be havin' the time of your life.

I would not have met my fiance if it were not for my dance community here, and now that we're stuck in AP, it's my community that is keeping me going.

I can't help it, I have to move when I hear a drum!

Just stopping by and saying HI from the Yardie (Jamaicans) thread! I lurk around here sometimes but wanted to stop in and officially say Hi

WonTanNara - beautiful rings

Thank you! Lurking is fun, ain't it? Tee hee...

Thanks again WanTaNara. I will go back to the first video and try to find you

I am really getting excited about the possibility of finding a class here in my town. And I also just saw the pictures of your wedding rings. They are exquisite. I have not yet looked at the second video, but I am going to do so as soon as I post this.

You have such great info to share. Whenever my SO gets here, we might have to look into Vermont as a possible relocation spot

Ohhhh our rings, I'm so happy about them!

Who'd a' thought, but we have a really strong African community here in Vermont. We have artists from Guinea, Senegal, and Ivory Coast. A couple from Ghana runs our African market, and I don't know any of them personally but I know there are several Nigerians and Sudanese here too. Ah, there's a couple guys from Togo too. We'll be here if you ever need help relocating or want to come visit! Insh-Allah... our men will be here soon.

That was OUTSTANDING!

Vermont is rockin'

I especially enjoyed seeing all the different races/cultures of people all together, dancing, enjoying, and really getting into the meaning of the dances.

Why can't the WORLD be this way? Can you imagine a world where everyone celebrated each others cultures so openly and freely? I have faith and hope that we will oneday see that day.

It also looks like a workout that burns thousands of calories. I would love to join a class around here now. But I don't know if my old bones could do some of those moves. This seems more strenuous than my Tae Bo, Step Aerobics and Walk Aerobics by far!

Thanks for sharing. I really enjoyed the video WanTaNara.....which lady were you?

Ah Stevi I'm so happy you enjoyed it! We are definately blessed here in Burlington, Vermont. Everybody seems to get along just fine and it makes the winters well worth it. I just wish my fiance had been able to come this summer to have a little time to adjust, have a feeling he's going to be arriving in the dead of winter! And yes, dancing like this burns a zillion calories. I always come home exhausted after class. Here is a link that lists classes by state, maybe there is something in your area.

African Dance Teachers by State

Here is another little ditty about our conference last year. In this one you can see two of our Guinean artists up close and personal and some really cute little girls with attitude!

As far as which lady I am, you'll have to come to Vermont to see! Hee hee... really, the only spot you can see my face clearly is in the first video in one of the still shots under the classes section. We're all in class in the studio and I'm wearing a brown and ivory lappa w/ an ivory top. Dark brown hair, all slicked back from sweat!

I've been so sad the last few weeks waiting for our AP to be over and sharing this has perked me right up, so I thank you for your interest!

Won tan nara (it's Susu and it means we walk together).

Would love to see them. Try posting in the gallery where you can view pics under " my photos " in peoples profiles.

Ok I think I figured it out, here they are! Ohhhh I cannot wait for us to be wearing these on our fingers. Insh-Allah, soon...

Very cool, thanks for sharing . Man ,I find it very, very difficult to dance around the drum and keep the rhythm going with the drum so I just drum.

It will take years for me to get advanced like that .

My teacher is African American and was taught from the split away group who learned under K. Dunham.

She is a stickler for authenticity which is good though but oh my poor feet and legs.........

I am just there to get some exercise and learn and not into performing all though they are insisting I go along for the performances which I have not done yet.

I think it's awesome you are dancing! It really is hard on the feet. One thing that helps are these nifty little half socks called dance paws. I don't wear them every class because I want to keep my callouses for dancing on that darn concrete in Africa, but they allow me to dance 3-4 times a week without bruising my tootsies!

The African rhythms are so different from our Western music and it does take years of practice. Your hubby will be so happy to see you dance I'm sure!

I started a couple months ago and have not even got one single dance down from start to finish to have an opinion. It will take me much longer to even begin to differentiate between the rhythms. Still trying to " listen " to the drum talking to me and interpret what the heck it is supposed to be saying to me as instructed by the teacher

Making baby steps progress but sorry I can't answer your question......yet. The jumping is extremely difficult for me , especially the quick turns of direction. Am jiving more with the slow to medium pace.

The group is looking into going on youtube soon so I will post a link when that happens. I will do whatever I have to not to be on there

Where is your teacher from? If you can find a teacher from Mali, Malian dance is a lot less jumpy and more grounded than Guinean or Senegalese. The jumping really is tough and it's taken my feet years to develop good callouses. I always have to soak my feet after class but it's so worth it!

Here is a link to our group!

I got a nice surprise today and I have to share... my friend makes custom jewelry and has been working on our wedding rings all summer and they are finally done! I want to attach a picture but I can't figure out how to get it into my post!

Nanga def ? Dieure dieuf. ...................( Wolof )

Don't know any Wolof (except waw waw) but I know lots of Susu!

http://www.nathanielturner.com/katherinedunhamdancinge.htm

I am enjoying West African dance and drum lessons for a donation ( $ 5 to $10 per week ) about 30 min from my home.

Our group performs for schools, libraries, events, state fairs etc. and is an offshoot from a group that was under the great Katherine Dunham.

Nice! What countries rhythms do you study? I find similarities yet very distinct difference between Guinean, Senegalese, and Malian rhythms. Music from Ghana and Ivory Coast seems to be totally different. My preference is obviously Guinean, I think it's because it's what I am most familiar with. I've tried Senegalese sabar and it's tough! They make it look so dang easy.

It seems weird to say but I do believe this long waiting process has made our marriage stronger, that's for sure I got to know my husbands moods much better

That is not weird at all Nita, I say this every day. The morning of our interview was the first time I saw my fiance act like a total JERK. His passport photos that he got in Guinea were too small and he took it out on ME! Like it was my fault! He was practically running down the streets of Dakar trying to find a photo shop leaving me in the dust. As I was trying to keep up in my fancy interview sandals I was thinking in my head "OMG I don't know if I can handle this!" I was fuming the entire time we were waiting for our interview. FUMING! However, after the whole experience of the interview and being put on AP for the last six months, this wait has enabled us to get to know each other under stressful situations too. I now know exactly how to handle him when he gets mad and I can diffuse it so we're laughing 5 minutes later. He now knows how to handle me when I get all emotional and sensitive and can get me laughing within 5 minutes too. I now have absolutely no doubts about this endeavor and I think this wait was necessary for us both to get to this point. Our relationship is DEFINATELY stronger not only in spite of the wait, but because of it.

OT, but I had custom rings made for us and I got them today! I want to post a picture into my signature but I can't seem to figure it out. It seems as if the only way is to have a link to the photo to insert, but the photo is on my PC. If anybody wants to PM me w/ that info I sure would be grateful!

Thank you for sharing! When I was exploring options for hotel accommodations, which were few, I discovered a drum school that offered overnight accommodations and lessons for $1000 for a week.

I am so tempted to go, but I will have to wait until next year. Hopefully my husband will be here and we can make a weekend of it.

Yes yes! Come next year! It's so much fun.

There is also Camp Fereta in California in July. This is the link for the 2008 camp but they will update it soon.

Camp Fareta

We are blessed to have so many incredible W. African artists here in America. If it wasn't for my dance teacher here in VT I would not have made the trip to Guinea and subsequently met my fiance. Getting connected in your community might help some of you that are waiting to pass the time! I know I'd be a lump w/out my community here.

Hi everyone, did you know that Vermont has the longest running W. African dance and drum festival in the country?

Check it out!

Jeh Kulu dance and drum festival

Today the lady at the DOS told me "We arent the ones who work your file, we just work the phones." What happened to the USCIS announcement back in April that 95-98% of security clearances will last for only 30 days and the other 2% will end in 60 days.The DOS website states most are done in 60days. I think our files just sit until they run the clearance which probably "is" only 60days.Meanwhile, our lives are on hold till some government worker decides to start working on our cases. Like our lives havent been on hold long enough. I think with the kind of money we pay for this process we should get better service. And there should be a max timeframe. We should also have the option to pay more for expedited service. Just like we do to get our passports. I think they tell us AP and nothing else cuz they definitely dont want to say nobody has worked your file yet although we have had it for the last 3-4 months and dont know if we will get to it in the next 3 months either.

Our cases DO sit for months without being touched... in a big long queue. But, I don't think it's until somebody just decides on a whim to work it, I think it's because there are over a million visa applications processed every year and they are completely swamped. I asked my Senator why somebody who had an interview in July and is on AP for security clearance would get their visa before my fiance, who had his interview in April. She said it depends on how many different security checks need to be done. The more checks that need to be done, the more time you will spend "waiting in line."

Has anyone ever had to answer phones for a living? I have, and it's not an easy job. You basically listen to people's problems all day and some of them are not very nice to you. Some of them are downright rude and nasty. After a while you DO become robotic. It's unfortunate, and very frustrating for those of us who really would like to hear a compassionate voice that can give us all the answers we need (myself included). Though there is MUCH to be improved upon, I do not believe that there is malicious intent in this process.

I feel the same way all of you do ladies, we've been waiting for six months (which is nothing when I think about poor Tam and Chaingang waiting over a year) and this sucks. I have days where I can barely get out of bed and sit at my desk on the verge of tears unable to focus. But, we have to stay positive. In the grand scheme of life and how many years you have left to live with your spouse, this is just a little bleep on the timeline. Use this time to reaffirm your love for one another. Talk about the important things so there are no surprises when you are finally together. After what you've been through, talk about never taking each other for granted! Let's help each other focus on the good stuff.

Insh-Allah, our time is coming...

I hope you ALL get your AP over soon!! This is not fair!!!!!!!!!!!! I want to be a Wizard and fix this problem

Come on AP be OVER, come on AP be OVER... Use the law of attraction guys!!!

Nita

The two of us are workin' on it Nita, every day when we talk we say it out loud, "It won't be long now." Even the cowrie shells have told him that it's not long now. The power of positive thinking...

so they did not say anything about requesting parents names??

then how did they tell you that when you called before.. do they even know what they are saying? or is this all made up??

most of time they are confused by themselves too lol trust me on that

When I ask if there are updates they always tell me about the updates I already know about such as Senator inquiries, phone number changes, things like that. If I ask if there are any updates on the progress of our security clearance, they always tell me there's no way for them to see that. Sometimes I think they make up this ####### just to get us off the phone. I've also asked the embassy if they can see any updates on the progress of our security checks and they told me "we are not privy to that information, we can only see if the checks are incomplete or complete." And so we wait...

Happy happy joy joy happy happy joy joy happy happy joy joy joy...

I called DOS again today.......Well Just for the record the more I thought about them asking for my husbands parents names the more it didn't make sense. So today I called and asked for them to verify that the name request had been received she put me on hold for a long time she come back and said what is your question again I told her she was confused she said I dont see anything like that I asked her when the last update was and she said when the senator inquired in september so I am back to square one she did add it shouldnt be much longer and I asked her why and she replied because you have been her AP since July LOL we know that means nothing sorry that I have nothing more favorable to add LOL now I sound like the Embassy

Yeah we've been on AP since April. Are we there yet? Almost. Are we there yet? Almost. Are we there yet? Just a little longer. Are we there yet? Shouldn't be too much longer...

Wow! Thats great for you!!! I wish I did not have to have a Visa. Before I get mine I need so much info with it (letter invitation, yellow card,airplane ticket etc.. and the fee for Visa).. Have a saft trip!

Ohhh if only it were that easy for our spouses and fiances to get visas to come to US (and I mean 'us' and U.S.)!

Merci WonTanNara.

Everything everyone has said has be so valuable!

De rien ma souer, bonne chance! Too bad you will be leaving before I get there but I cannot wait to hear about your experience!

Je parle français un peu. Mon fiancé dit que je le parlerai couramment avant que je parte. (translation courtesy Babel Fish )

I could "miss" my flight....LOL!

Your fiance might be a little crabby if you miss your flight tee hee...

I am really hoping to be in Guinea during that time, Insh-Allah!

Actually I was talking about missing my flight home - think my husband would actually like that

HA! Well yeah that makes a heck of a lot more sense! Stay a few weeks longer! In 3 weeks you will just be getting settled and used to the heat. You will be amazed at how quickly the time passes. You will be a the same latitude as Honduras in Central America. Senegal ca c'est tres sho et troi semen c'est tres rapid!

OK so my French is failing and babel fish SUCKED. Here is what I got:

Senegal ca it is very sho and troi semen (three weeks?) it is very rapid

WAIT I think I figured it out - with the help of my son who doesn't speak a bit for French.

Le Sénégal il fait très chaud et trois semaines est très rapidement!

Yeah my French spelling sometimes leaves much to be desired especially if I am in a hurry. I spell fenetically HAhahah! But, the online translators do in fact suck. I'm no expert, but I can also tell you there are two very big differences between African French and Canadian/Parisian French: Africans use very simple grammar and syntax and their speech is much more open mouthed. I like it better. Be careful with the online translators, they can twist your words into something you don't want to say. Doh!

Merci WonTanNara.

Everything everyone has said has be so valuable!

De rien ma souer, bonne chance! Too bad you will be leaving before I get there but I cannot wait to hear about your experience!

Je parle français un peu. Mon fiancé dit que je le parlerai couramment avant que je parte. (translation courtesy Babel Fish )

I could "miss" my flight....LOL!

Your fiance might be a little crabby if you miss your flight tee hee...

I am really hoping to be in Guinea during that time, Insh-Allah!

Actually I was talking about missing my flight home - think my husband would actually like that

HA! Well yeah that makes a heck of a lot more sense! Stay a few weeks longer! In 3 weeks you will just be getting settled and used to the heat. You will be amazed at how quickly the time passes. You will be a the same latitude as Honduras in Central America. Senegal ca c'est tres sho et troi semen c'est tres rapid!