clueless_in_usa
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Posts posted by clueless_in_usa
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I didn't know you could die from inhaling carbon monoxide for two minutes. Hmm. Learn something new every day.
Who said two minutes?
Russians (women I know) are insatiable
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Finally had our interview at the Dallas office. It took forever to actually get into the interview room, but once there it was a pretty simple process. The woman going through all the documents to make sure everything was there. And then she did some fact checking of what we had in our documents. "What's your social security number?" "What's your address?" "Phone number?" etc.
She only asked for the most basic of evidence. In spite of us having brought a stack of copies and originals and photography, she just glanced over our bank statements and wanted to see our marriage certificate. She checked our IDs, and took back Ira's employment authorization card.
Then she said, "And now I'm going to ask you some personal questions." At this point, I figured we were going to get into the horror story territory, but the questions were ridiculously impersonal. "Are you a terrorist or affiliated with any terrorist organization?" "Are you now or have you ever been a member of a communist party or organization?" etc. She didn't ask a single question that I would consider in any way invasive.
In the end we got approved for a 2-year Green Card (if we'd waited until the end of June, we could have gotten the 10-year card right then and there). It'll take 4-6 weeks to arrive in the mail.
Lucky you!
My wife is worried. The Biometrics happened two months ago and to-date she has not received EAD or AP. Interview is scheduled, so I guess that we will have to sort everything out then and there.
It seems that they do not believe in a bonafide marriage because we do not have any commingling of assets (she cannot work yet, so she has no assets).
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Try applying for a Capital One Standard Platinum Credit Card, that's the one my husband applied for when he first arrived and he now has a credit score of over 750. We use it to buy groceries and gas and pay it off each month. It was a huge help when it came time to file for a mortgage, so it's a great way to establish your own credit.
I added him to my own credit cards and that didn't help at all, I was later told that he needed to establish his credit on his own and after applying for 4 different credit cards, Capital One was the one who approved him. The card does not have an annual fee and is designed for people with limited credit, such as students, new immigrants, or for people who want to re-establish their credit.
Diana
My wife tried and was denied!
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What I learned from this thread ...
Gary will be very successful as a Science Fiction writer. Every one of his stories is more unbelievable than the previous ...
... or he can also make it as a fairy-tale writer, because all his stories end "happily ever after."
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Shoulda married an FSU woman, they are good at shoveling and have no idea what a snowblower is. Alla keeps mentioning she sees "some sort of machine for cleaning snow" that people use but I tell her it is her imagination.
Joking...we have a snowblower, she never uses it (man's job) the driveway and walk are always clear for her so she can wear high heeled boots going from the house to her warmed up car.
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We? Got a mouse in your pocket?
Considering that highly feminist and pro woman USA does not acknowledge this day says something. Paradoxically, Russia and the Ukraine, famously male oriented and chauvinistic countries celebrate it. Life is truly a puzzle.
VV, your words reveal the truth: YOU do not appreciate women. YOU yourself just said so.
It's good to know. Do you appreciate men?
EDIT: Just to say that I forgot to mention that my wife was very happy to receive my acknowledgment on her special day. She appreciated my appreciation, and that is what matters to me.
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There is no banking requirement to show cents. I cash checks every month made out simply: "Four hundred dollars" with a line after the word dollars. No doubt thousands of similar checks are processed every day in the US. It may be a USCIS requiement but I can't imagine why. Truly mind boggling.
Edit:
I see that as Bobby+Umit noted it is a USCIS requirement to show cents: USCIS link
If that rule is true, they applied it only to you.
I just checked the check I sent and it says:
TOP: 1010.00
BOTTON: One thousand ten dollars ------------ (I wrote the dollars word before the one on the check)
My check was ACCEPTED. Interview will be very soon.
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Fact: I married my wife in Russia in her hometown, with her family and friends...and in the Russian tradition. Fact: the rest of you supposedly wife honoring, Russo-centric, swinging diks didn't, or will not. Yet you try to claim the high ground because you rent Russian movies and send flowers on communist holidays. Big deal.
Now, what is the greater gift? Sending her flowers on IWD, or marrying her in her home country? All you honeymoon boys must be shocked that VV trumped your a$$.
The 90 day money back thing has been typically misunderstood or misrepresented by some of you spin doctors and the young miss eekee (who seems to have decided to enter into an exercise in futility). My wife represents one thing to me...a magnificent woman. Play your silly games and make your mean-spirited and sideways comments about money. You're all wrong.
BTW eekee, I never brought my wife to the DR because I decided it would be too difficult for her to make the trip without good English and her lack of travel experience. But, on the other hand, I have clocked 8 trips to the FSU and paid my physical and financial dues. If a woman has to take her turn at some travel suffering, I don't see anything unreasonable? In fact, it sounds fair and "equal." Something I'm sure is important to you.
The K-1 visa is non immigrant and lasts for 90 days. If a marriage does not occur in those 90 days, the lady comes home...probably to a lost job, no flat and other issues. She will probably have a tough time trying to marry another American man as well. If a man decides in the 11th hour to back out of the marriage, he can do so without penalty. This is what I call the money back guarantee. It has nothing to do with money. It's a metaphor.
If some of you want to twist and spin that to relate to money, have fun. This has nothing to do with money. It has to do with armchair heroes talking a good game and yet, when push comes to shove, they prefer a cheap wedding at the nearest JP office to a truly romantic marriage in your wife's home and with her traditions.
The CR-1 visa is an immigrant visa and the woman arrives a legal immigrant with a two-year green card, the right work and travel. What does it take to show this is a superior visa and much better for the wife? The issue is it's easy for you Russia loving cats to let your lady come to a strange land and, alone, without family and friends to celebrate and support, and have her married down at the clerks office.
I took the K-1 route and let me tell you...
... my wedding was neither CHEAP nor UNROMANTIC.
And the fact that we decided to first marry in USA, for logistical reasons, does not mean that there will not be a wedding in my wife's home with her traditions.
Which makes me wonder ... if a wedding with your wife's people and/or traditions was so important to her, how come she now decides to abhor everything related to her people and/or traditions?
I think that the right word to describe such situation is: CONUNDRUM
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Oh, word games.
OK...you put the burden of travel for marriage on them and it took place in a non Russian environment unless you found an Orthodox Church. I see how powerful you all feel about Russian culture and tradition...except when it comes down to who has to give up their traditions for marriage. You denied them their local Russian marriage traditions. Probably to test drive her before you commit. How admirable. How heroic.
My wife married in the Russian way and her family was there. I think this speaks to how far I was willing to go to marry her. No need for the 90 day test drive.
Actually, VV, it was MY WIFE who wanted to Test-Drive me before she married me and committed herself to this little thing called family. We married after 60 days and she was still hesitant to do it so soon. Her family and friends in Russia are too important to her and she was not sure whether she could change all that for just me.
If she had married me in Russia instead without really knowing what was entailed in moving alone to a foreign country her choices would have been limited.
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SMR...
His argument makes NO sense. ALL of our wives got a green card AFTER they married us. His wife, my wife, your wife. NO ONE got a green card before marriage. We all had equal opportunity to ruin our wives lives (and still do). Trying to split hairs over where the couple was standing when the vows were taken is BS. He married his wife in Russia, then abandoned her and FORCED to live there while she waited for her green card. Too bad for her if he took many months (or years) to file a petition. She was married and stuck with having to get a divorce if he didn't do as he said. I will bet you $100 she waited LONGER after the marriage for her green card than my wife did. My wife had her green card in her hand 3 months and 4 days after she said "I do". How long did VV's wife wait after the wedding?
VV, what is the answer?
My wife could have gotten back on the plane and left when she arrived. No divorce necessary. SHE could have tried things out and changed her mind. She could have waited 90 days, but we didn't. The "guarantee" was available to both of us. To suggest my wife could NOT have gotten back on the plane and returned all on her own is an insult. maybe VV's wife is so dependent as to be unable to do so, my wife is not. She has never been without enough CASH to buy multiple plane tickets back to Ukraine at any time. She could drive her own car to JFK today and get on the next plane to Kiev, pay cash from what she has stashed around the house and she would be winging her way back before I noticed she was gone. To suggest otherwise is ludicrous...or perhaps a reflection of how VV restrains his wife. Mine is not restrained in any way.
On the other hand, after abandoning his wife in Russia (what kind of MAN does that?) he then FORCED her to come to a country she had never seen and FORCED her to live with him, if she didn't like it, she would have to get a divorce
If I want to paint a negative picture of the CR-1 visa, I certainly can. Why would I do that? I presume that VV and his wife are adults and make decisions as adults. They made a decision of what was best for them. We made a decision of what was best for us. What the #### is the problem with that??????
If she wants to do that, tell her to buy a roundtrip ticket instead and try to pay with a Credit Card (oh! I forgot you don't believe in Credit Cards). Buying a one way ticket with Cash will flag her as a terrorist. May not be able to fly.
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NATASHA. That is a term for a working girl.
One of my in-laws has a daughter named Natasha (not Natalia, but Natasha). So, is she a working girl?
I'll tell my in-law
Now that I think about it, for some strange reason I am surrounded by Natashas
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I am behind you 100%. You go first and let us all know how it turns out, OK?
Personally I've listed Alla on both utility bills (gas & elec). She will be added to the car insurance. She will have her own bank account and debit card as well as be listed on mine. (I thumb my nose at the Internet; I'm all over it and never have been scammed or taken for money, never. And, I use online purchases with my credit card all the time. I thumb my nose at Al Gore.)
We have a marriage certificate. We will have photos. We will enter the interview as the happy family, thankful for USCIS for giving us the chance to be together. We will kill them with kindness.
We have the DS-3025s and I-693s as well.
I have new tax transcripts coming.
She already has her SSN. She has applied for a Discount card and will soon now with the SSN, apply for a credit card.
She will keep her last name and I will keep mine.
We will give them what they want and they will give us what we want.
If you only had to go through what they went through dealing with the Russian Adoption process and all the subjectiveness surrounding that, you'd be whistling a different tune.
I pick my battles and win those that I must. I am not blind.
Good luck, I am right behind you but you go first.
So, soon we'll have our chance to tell USCIS what we think about their "suggested" proof of relationship.
Maybe you receive your GC without interview, but we will not miss the fun stuff. In addition to what we sent with the I-485, we have no more evidence, except for the joint tax return for 2009 (I was not going to miss out on the tax refund). We opened a bank account for her benefit, but no commingling of assets whatsoever. We have the same dentist, though
Maybe we can show that.Also, the invitation asks for my original birth certificate. I do not have one and cannot get it. Is that a problem?
My wife thinks that they are going to interview us in separate rooms. How are those interviews called?
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A few days ago, after USA showed Canada how to play hockey, I was nervous that Russia and the USA would meet for the gold. Wouldn't have been good for domestic harmony, if you know what I mean.
No, I see the first signs of patriotism toward the USA in my better half.
USA BETTER TRASH THOSE CANADIANS, I hear!
I guess that Canada learned the lesson well. The faces of the Americans after they lost that game was like Master Card: Priceless!
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Well my girlfriend found out her visitor's visa was denied for France/Paris. Long story short.... the French embassy called her to ask why she is going to Paris, then called her manager at work. the manager was not in the office when they called, so they never had a chance to talk to him, and a day later she was denied. we are in a little bit of shock, but are thinking, "What next?" So, I told her I would come see her in Russia. I have not problem visiting her in Kemerovo, Russia, but she said let's try Moscow. Moscow is fine too. the reason she said to try Moscow is so we can visit the US embassy if we decide we want to get engaged. however, I told her I do not think we can really do much in Moscow at the US embassy if we do decide to get married. Now I know we should get married here in the US for getting her here in good time, but is there anything we can really do at the US embassy? My impression is once I return from Russia the application process begins and visiting the US embassy in Moscow does not really help too much.
so the bottom line is if we go to Moscow is there anything we can really do at the embassy if we decide to get married? If there is nothing we can do at the embassy are there other cities that would be better to go to? I was thinking St Petersburg are there any others you all could think of? thanks for the help guys.
You, as the USC, can go to the US embassy in Moscow whenever you want. You cannot be denied entrance (unless you misbehave).
She, as the foreign citizen, cannot enter to the US embassy without a previous invitation.
EDIT: Go to St. Petersburg.
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I don't like engaging in debate with VV. It is an exercise in futility.
Also, I am a she.
Regarding the original topic, my RW is very proud of her Russian heritage, but yet I did not receive any congratulations on February 23rd. And I agree because I was never a defender of the fatherland ...
... in fact, I am 100% against wars, guns, and violence in general. Always believe that whoever (person, culture, government, etc) turns to violence to impose their views of the world are people with a significant lack of intelligence. Instead I subscribe to the dogma of peace that Ghandi promoted through his life. People from such society are amazing.
Anyway, despite not receiving even a hug on February 23rd, I am still going to honor my wife on March 8th, because she's indeed a WOMAN, regardless of where she is from. March 8th is a holiday declared by the UN. However, the USA has always abhorred the UN. Maybe the reason why this holiday is not even mentioned in this country.
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Best part was a Biathlon race, when they kept showing an American guy who came in 19th the whole time. I didn't even know who won, I had to go online and look it up.
Olympics is all about watching the sports. I don't care who wins, to be honest, but I wanna watch top 3 men and women fight for the pedestal, no matter the country.
I've never watched as little Olympics as I did this year, all due to sh!tty coverage
I have had "the luck" to be in Canada these days and have had the chance to see the Olympics on Canadian TV. BIG DIFFERENCE!!!
In Canada they consistently have at least three channels showing different events LIVE! And usually with minimal interruptions. I love Speed Skating and during the Men's 1000 mts, I happened to watch every single pair from beginning to end without commercials and no matter which country the skater was from. This is in contrast to NBC showing the Men's 1500 mts on Sunday, when I could only watch the Americans and two other pairs, all of them with commercials in between.
Better yet, if you are in Canada, you can access ctvolympics and watch ANY event LIVE!
That's coverage! NBC's coverage really sucks, and I rarely watch it. I was even thinking of writing a letter to the IOC, comparing both experiences I have had.
I am sad because I have to watch the upcoming Football World Cup on American networks. My cable operator dropped the international broadcasters for some reason.
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Verizon is CDMA still, right?
How the hell are they claiming their 3G network is so awesome over CDMA...just curious, I thought it needed GSM to be that awesome
Then again, I have no idea about all that stuff
Edit to reference wikipedia for the following quotes.
Verizon Wireless is one of the two major U.S. carriers to use CDMA technology, the other being Sprint Nextel. Alltel also used CDMA before becoming part of Verizon Wireless. Other regional carriers that use CDMA are: U.S. Cellular, Cricket, and MetroPCS (see List of United States mobile phone companies for more information). Verizon supports the 3 generations of CDMA (IS-95, 1x, and EV-DO) networks.
On September 20, 2007, Verizon Wireless announced a joint effort with the Vodafone Group to transition their networks to the 4G standard LTE[10] and on November 29, 2007, Verizon Wireless announced that they would start LTE trials in 2008. On December 9, 2008, Verizon announced that they intend to build and begin to roll out, a LTE network, by the end of 2009. Adopting LTE would make for a gradual shift away from Verizon Wireless’ current use of CDMA technology because it is a completely different platform, but would offer increased operability for users traveling worldwide.
During a Long Term Evolution developers conference held on May 13, 2009, CEO Lowell McAdam clarified the schedule Verizon Wireless has envisioned for rolling out its fourth-generation LTE network running at 700 MHz. McAdam said the network will launch in 20 to 30 markets during the second half of 2010. It is still on track to launch two trial networks, one each on the east and west coasts of the United States, by the end of 2009 and the company will reveal exactly which markets those are closer to launch. McAdam also revealed that devices that can access its LTE network will have swappable SIM cards, similar to those found in today's GSM-capable handsets (or Japanese CDMA handsets). However, the SIM cards will only be swappable with other Verizon Wireless LTE-certified hardware. McAdam said Verizon Wireless believes its LTE network will be capable of speeds ranging between 8Mbps to 12Mbps, although its upper limits have been testing between 50mbps to 100mbps.
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Yes, it has to be an unlocked phone. Almost all in Ukraine are. There are 4 frequencies used here and four there and only two overlap, so I was told (this could vary by area of the country) which means you ened up with more "dead spots", but it worked.
The charger is not the problam at all.
Listen up Slim. waflle makers are resistive loads...heaters. Nothing here applies to them. Get your gun out and SHOOT the waffle maker in the eye, it won't work here.
Ok, this time I have to say it:
If you do not know what you are talking about, please do not say anything that will confuse everybody. Your comments are welcome if they are informed. Otherwise, let others answer. Your name does not have to be on every thread opened.
Having said that, IN GSM THERE ARE FOUR FREQUENCIES USED AROUND THE WORLD (there are much more frequencies, but these four are the ones used by cell phone operators).
1) GSM-900 and GSM-1800 are used in most parts of the world: Europe, Middle East, Africa, Oceania and most of Asia. In South and Central America the following countries use the following:
* Costa Rica - GSM-1800
* Brazil - GSM-850, 900 and 1800
* Guatemala - GSM-850, GSM-900 and 1900
* El Salvador - GSM-850, GSM-900 and 1900
2) GSM-850 and GSM-1900 are used in the United States, Canada, and many other countries in the Americas.
That is why you have to buy at least a TRI-band phone, to work in Europe and America. AT&T uses 850 heavily, so buy a QUAD-band if you have AT&T
Note: Verizon does not use GSM. Therefore, if you have Verizon your European phone will not work in the USA.
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I haven't researched this at all, but thought someone here might save me some time. My fiancee plans on bringing her mobile phone (Cyrillic and English alphabets) to the USA. I assume, however, that she will not be able to charge the phone in my home due to the 110/220 difference in electricity between USA and Russia. I am sure she would like to have a Cyrillic phone to SMS her children and friends back home. Any suggestions on where to get a Cyrillic cell phone that operates on our electrical system? Or am I better off buying some kind of transformer so that she can charge her phone, and if so, any suggestions on a reliable product? Are transformers prone to causing damage?
For the past 5 years I buy ALL my GSM phones in Russia or the Ukraine. Currently I have the Samsung DUOS, because I need to carry two phones all the time (Work and Personal). They work with two different providers in one single phone.
Cyrillic or not cyrillic I have never had any problem. Cyrillic messages will be shorter due to the character conversion.
You must be sure that the phone is at least Tri-band (like the Samsung DUOS), but for AT&T is better QUAD-band. My wife brought a Sony-Ericsson that is QUAD-band. All cell phone chargers are universal, like laptop chargers.
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Both Alla and Leonid received Biometrics appointment letters today, for their AOS petitions.
The date scheduled is March 3 so I see no need to try to move this up.
Everyone is doing just fine; going to indoor water parks and the local pool to pass the winter away!!!
My wife is still one month ahead of yours ... no RFE yet. And no compromising interview either. We are waiting anxiously, although we do not have any commingling of assets (she does not have assets. Only liabilities).
However, it may help our interview that we filed taxes as "married filing jointly." I was not going to let the government keep that bigger refund.
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Baron,
I wanted to ask you. When Alla went to apply for a Social Security Card, was she required to present an original birth certificate or they accept a certified translated into English copy?
Thanks.
Oksana,
My wife got it just presenting the passport and her I-94. No birth certificate required at all.
She got an SSN (the actual card in the mail) three weeks after arrival.
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When it comes to geography, you're probably not exaggerating. I used to teach web design to inner-city kids, and decided to break with the curriculum to talk about Russia once I decided that I'd be going there. Not one student in the class could locate Russia (although after a few moments of reading the map, they found it)...
But, then again, I don't know that I'd even consider geography a relevant topic. It's great trivia to know where, I don't know, Uruguay is located, but it's really pretty useless information. I'd be more concerned with graduates' reading and writing proficiency, and prowess with advanced mathematics and sciences -- in other words, their ability to listen, understand, analyze, solve, and communicate -- rather than how well they recite memorized facts.
I don't know.. What I saw of Russian universities was the RSL (Russian as a Second Language -- my term, not official) program, and what I saw second hand through my wife and her friends. So I'll have to go with your opinion here.
Indeed.
So you think Geography is pretty useless information? Your assertion above reminds me of the guy who told me that he spoke the the only important language in the world: English, after he complained about my accent because I speak different languages.
Do you know what is the most important cabinet member in the US government? Let me give you a hint: it has been occupied by women (who certainly know a lot about geography) during NINE of the last 13 years.
And regarding the original topic, for me there was no question about it. When I asked my current wife to marry me I was very clear about the condition, and that did not mean that I loved her less. If she wanted to have a family with me, it had to be here with me. Otherwise, she could find a Russian man and live a happy life in Russia.
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Yeah I know and she knows, getting her to go is the problem. On my computer can open the photo and reduce to 75%, that is what it looks like when I print it out. See what you think.
From the USCIS instructions:
Passport-style photos must be 2" x 2." The photos must be in color with full face, frontal view on a white to off-white background. Head height should measure 1" to 1 3/8" from top of hair to bottom of chin, and eye height is between 1 1/8" to 1 3/8" from bottom of photo.
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Well for me (and us):
Valentine's Day is the anniversary of when we first met in person. After that date both our lives changed for the better.
Women's Day gives me another chance, besides every day, to surprise and spoil my beloved.
If any man feels forced to obligate their woman on these days, then I'd question the state of their relationship.
AND, I don't need to spend a lot of money (to surprise and spoil her).
The spoil word is the one that gets me. Why do I have to do much more just because is V-day and/or W-day?
Isn't it enough of "spoiling" ALL that I do for her everyday of the year?
And please, do not say that all those things are things that I HAVE to do.
Purchasing Airline ticket from Moscow to US
in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus
Posted
Most airlines offer cheaper fares if you buy the ticket in Russia, but that means that it has to be paid there. They will not allow you to pay for the cheaper fare in the USA (Lufthansa is an example). Others offer the same fare either way (Aeroflot is an example).
I would go directly to the airline websites because in Travelocity or Expedia you will be paying American prices. That is my experience!
One more thing, if you cannot wait for her at POE, domestic connections may inflate the final price, especially if they need to use a partner airline.
The airlines with the best schedule from Moscow to USA (in no particular order):
Aeroflot -> JFK
Delta -> JFK
United -> DC
KLM
Lufthansa
Air France
Alitalia
Swiss