vaneskygh

Finally, I am American

USCIS Dallas/Lewisville, Texas Lockbox
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UserName......|Sent|Dlvd|Chek|Notf|I797|FPNt|FPLt|FPDt|FPCp|InLn|IVNt-|IVLt-|IVew-|Oath-|Field Office
MapleLeafBaby.|6/27|7/02|-/--|7/08|-/--|-/--|-/--|7/28|7/28|-/--|--/--|10/15|11/13|11/14|Philly, PA
huhuhot.......|6/30|7/02|-/--|-/--|-/--|-/--|-/--|-/--|-/--|-/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|??
r&m...........|7/01|7/03|7/08|7/09|7/14|7/14|7/17|8/05|8/05|9/02|--/--|09/12|10/17|12/09|Washington, DC
onek..........|7/02|7/07|-/--|7/09|7/12|7/15|7/18|8/05|7/24|7/30|09/15|09/19|10/14|10/14|Fairfax, VA
rahul77d......|7/03|7/07|7/10|7/09|7/12|7/14|7/17|8/05|8/05|8/07|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Houston, TX
Allta.........|7/05|7/07|-/--|7/08|7/09|7/14|7/18|7/30|-/--|-/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|East Irving, TX
usuxcis.......|7/07|7/10|-/--|-/--|-/--|-/--|7/25|8/13|7/29|9/05|--/--|09/12|10/27|11/21|Raleigh, NC
Turbota.......|7/08|7/11|7/16|-/--|7/21|7/22|7/26|8/06|8/06|8/08|09/04|09/09|10/14|--/--|Tampa, FL[
nunette.......|7/09|7/10|-/--|7/--|7/18|-/--|7/26|8/01|8/01|8/05|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Hartford, CT
VahidF........|7/11|7/13|7/17|7/17|7/21|-/--|7/26|8/11|8/04|9/08|10/03|10/10|11/13|11/20|San Antonio, TX
Leonje........|7/12|7/17|7/23|7/23|7/28|-/--|8/01|8/08|8/08|8/12|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Baltimore, MD
Aswanco.......|7/17|7/18|7/21|7/21|7/21|8/02|8/07|8/19|8/14|8/25|10/06|10/09|11/13|11/25|Fairfax, VA
Chalupatato...|7/18|-/--|-/--|7/22|-/--|-/--|8/12|-/--|8/18|-/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Washington, DC
mmb206........|7/18|7/21|7/24|7/24|7/25|-/--|8/07|8/20|8/20|8/22|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Houston, TX
Ninij.........|7/19|7/24|-/--|-/--|7/28|-/--|8/02|8/21|8/21|-/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Baltimore, MD
dcnova........|7/19|7/21|7/24|-/--|7/28|-/--|8/11|8/18|8/18|-/--|--/--|10/09|11/13|11/25|Washington, DC
Lji...........|7/21|7/23|-/--|-/--|-/--|-/--|-/--|8/18|8/18|-/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Houston, TX
Houston 1.....|7/22|7/25|7/--|7/28|8/02|-/--|8/12|8/19|8/19|-/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Houston, TX
Pablosky37....|7/24|7/27|7/30|7/30|7/30|8/11|8/18|-/--|-/--|-/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Baltimore, MD
FaZz..........|7/24|7/30|8/04|8/04|8/08|None|8/18|8/26|8/18|8/20|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Boston, MA
Sibtain.......|7/25|7/29|8/01|7/31|8/07|None|8/18|8/25|8/25|9/18|10/27|10/30|12/04|--/--|JAX, FL
HairyRandy....|7/27|7/30|7/31|8/03|8/09|-/--|8/18|8/28|8/28|9/15|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Dallas, TX

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USCIS Phoenix, Arizona Lockbox
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UserName......|Sent|Dlvd|Chek|Notf|I797|FPNt|FPLt|FPDt|FPCp|InLn|IVNt-|IVLt-|IVew-|Oath-|Field Office
cutie bear....|7/07|-/--|7/11|7/14|7/16|-/--|7/25|8/07|8/07|-/--|--/--|10/04|11/06|12/02|Chicago,IL
meelo.........|7/07|7/08|-/--|-/--|7/16|7/23|7/25|8/08|8/08|8/12|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Phoenix, AZ
Garfield529...|7/07|7/10|7/14|7/11|7/16|7/17|7/19|8/01|8/01|8/20|09/08|09/10|10/23|11/21|St. Louis, MO
GreenEyez.....|7/08|7/10|7/15|7/19|7/31|-/--|7/26|8/14|7/30|8/04|09/29|10/03|11/07|--/--|San Fran, CA
ethelmorgan...|7/08|7/10|7/14|7/14|7/18|7/17|7/19|8/01|8/01|8/05|09/22|09/24|11/06|--/--|Des Moines, IA
Alan_G........|7/17|7/21|7/23|7/23|7/28|-/--|8/14|8/21|8/18|-/--|09/24|10/02|10/29|11/06|Detroit, MI
jamster0105...|7/17|7/21|-/--|7/23|7/25|-/--|-/--|8/21|8/21|8/27|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Phoenix, AZ
Lizette.......|7/17|7/21|7/24|7/23|7/26|None|8/16|8/19|8/19|9/18|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|LA, CA
shekoujay.....|7/17|7/21|7/24|None|7/26|-/--|-/--|-/--|5/18|-/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Honolulu, HI
Diazy.........|7/19|7/21|-/--|7/23|7/26|None|8/11|8/20|8/14|8/18|11/03|--/--|--/--|--/--|Chatsworth, CA
paulmherrie...|7/23|7/28|8/01|7/29|7/29|-/--|8/09|8/21|8/21|8/26|09/17|09/27|10/28|11/10|Hagatna, GU
Can-USA2010...|7/28|7/30|8/04|-/--|8/14|-/--|8/19|8/27|8/27|-/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|Detroit, MI
Emptii........|7/30|7/31|8/05|8/04|8/08|None|8/16|8/29|8/27|8/29|11/05|11/10|12/10|--/--|San Diego, CA
Em01..........|7/30|8/02|-/--|8/07|8/09|-/--|8/20|9/02|9/02|9/04|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|LA, CA

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Nebraska Service Center (Military Members or Military Relatives Filing)
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UserName......|Sent|Dlvd|Chek|Notf|I797|FPNt|FPLt|FPDt|FPCp|InLn|IVNt-|IVLt-|IVew-|Oath-|Field Office

vaneskygh.....|7/25|7/29|-/--|-/--|-/--|8/18|9/05|9/05|9/05|-/--|-/-- |-/--|10/28|11/21|Chatsworth, CA

Honestly, from my experience. If you are not able to work weekends, holidays or overnight shifts you have no chance at all at any big retail company. I would suggest maybe a small shop, but chances are near to zero. If you try to apply online the system would automatically reject you from continue to further steps in the application. I applied to several places, and went to several interviews as well, but when I slightly mention it would be nice to have some weekends off I knew my interview over. What I did was I landed the first job they hired me. It was for a waitress position, then after a couple of months I got weekends off and that's the only reason I'm still there.

Hi there!

I was on the same boat few months ago. It really makes you feel awful not being able to be productive and even though you try it is so depressing ending an interview and knowing the "we will call you" means it won't happened. I had to change jobs because my husband's work required him to move to other cities but my experience tells me the best thing you can do is take any job, yes whatever, them move to a better one. Once you start having at least one job, employers would be more prone to call you. I found two of my jobs on craiglist and one of them is my current job. It's a waitress job, not really what I want to do in life but so far it works for me. I go to school and even have money left to save. Something that I recommend is to look for financial aid, you might qualified and you can take some classes. I got a grant for school and I can't complain it keeps me busy. Hang in there... yes I even cried because I failed so many interviews, then I realized I was not the only one.

Based on the visa bulletin my parents would be soon elegible to request an interview at the embassy and apply for the F4 (family petition visa).They are uncertain about travelling, and therefore living in the US so they are wondering if they can put their visa on hold. Does anybody have any experience with this? how long can you put a petition on hold if it's priority date is currently available?

Thank you!

One more to the approval list! VANESKYGH.............05/21/13.......05/29/13.......06/19/13.......08/26/13...(Early bio 6/7)

Unfortunatedly, any retail job would required you to work on weekends and also have a flexible schedule, this means anytime (yes, I had to work at 5 am and next day I was schedule to close the store) anyday, otherwise your chances to be hired are low or even impossible. If you have experience in another field just give it a try and send your resume.

I was thinking how much my life changed since I got here and I was curious to hear stories of those of you who has been in the US for few years or are married to a foreign person. Let me share you my personal experience: I got here 2 years ago, lived in 3 different cities, worked at 3 different places. I started living in a small apartment and now I'm living in a cute townhouse with a backyard, bought a car, yes old but a good start. I made a road trip from washington state to California. Travelled around the US and abroad. I started building credit and soon back to college which is my next goal and super excited to think about new experiences in the future. What about you guys?

I found my current job after almost a month applying everywhere. I wish I had a better job, but they are flexible with my schedule and hopefully I can take classes and get my degree. It's hard to be an immigrant, and requires a lot of patience with this economy. Even the new hires mentioned how hard was to find a job.

Hi there, I used to live in Silverdale and honestly, I was not a huge fan, but a positive attitude would help you to see things much better. There are tons of things to do around there, if it doesn't rain of course, I don't think I would ever want to live there again but a couple of years were fair enough. I guess you are a military spouse, try to spend more time on base, go to the gym, classes, like the workshops or compass class are great, etc. I worked on base and I can tell most of the staff were filipinos, the fact that I started working helped me a lot. It surprises me that you mention that filipinos are rare in the area. If you have any questions you can PM anytime. Hang in there and try to explore a little bit more of washington. Trust me I travelled a lot in the US and there are places that would make me run back to my country and never come back

Good point. Next time I will try to be more confident and ask that question. I was always afraid to ask something besides the job conditions.

Thank you for sharing! Inky you just gave me a great advice. Honestly, I was constantly asked on interviews about why I changed jobs so fast and how long I was planning to stay in the area, even at a store on base they asked me for how long my husband was supposed to be in his command because they wanted to hire someone able to commit for a longer period of time. It crossed my mind to say.. really? this is how you support military families? but oh well i didn't. It is very frustrating, but I'm trying to focus on the bright side Also I'm thinking how unprepared I am for interviews, since I spent lots of effort on applying every kind of job, pretty much everything under the sun I'm qualified for. I gotta try my luck again and keep applying.

I was wondering how many applications and resume you guys submitted before getting your job. I just moved to another city and finding a job is becoming a nightmare since I don't know anyone in the area. I've already applied to several jobs... and still waiting I would love to hear your stories. They might encourage myself to keep trying.

I was wondering how you guys deal with the constantly changes due to the military? I've been living in 4 different places in less than 2 years. The hardest part for me is looking for a new job..any inputs are appreciate it!

Hi there! I'm happy to hear you guys are planning a honeymoon. I think a reasonable budget would be Florida I don't know about Mexico beaches but I went to Mexico City and I could tell how they rip off your money if you are not from there I believe it's worse in more touristic areas but of course they look gorgeous. Orlando is very nice and lots of things to do.

Personally, I don't consider Vegas a honeymoon I've been there twice. Would be a good vacation but definitely not a romantic place to spend your honeymoon.

I'm not sure if you told me if your husband is military. There's an option to travel for free! even HAWAII!!!

I miss just being there. It's funny but I miss things that I've never consider it meant something or even worse I used to hate. I miss walking on the street, I miss our accent, I miss the horrible traffic, I miss the noise, I miss the weather, I miss the food, people the list can go on. There's always something to miss about our country but oh well, We are in the States. Isn't it the most diverse country in the world? I honestly think if we would have been lived in other country the culture shock would have been worse.

Hola Miguel!

Como tu, muchos nos encontramos en la misma situacion, es que en algun momento nos preguntamos si todo el sacrificio por estar al lado de la persona que queremos vale la pena. La verdad es muy dificil pero te recomiendo que busques un trabajo si es que ya tienes el permiso de trabajo o la green card. Tal vez pensaras que no tiene sentido porque lo que estas pasando es lo que aca le llaman "homesick" donde comienzas a pensar que en tu pais todo es mejor, que extranas a tu familia, amigos, trabajo, vida en general, pero el simple acto de salir de casa e interactuar con otras personas te va a ayudar. Yo me deprimi muchisimo esta vez y aunque ya he vivido en otros paises, otras ciudades, nuevos amigos, nuevo trabajo... esta vez fue diferente, el no poder estudiar o trabajar y estar 24/7 en casa me estaba deprimiendo ahora ya me estoy adapatando gracias a eso y aunque no he logrado tener una verdadera amistad, creo que es saludable al menos conversar con alguien.

Suerte

What are the odds! I had an interview at Macy's too and apparently their standards were too high for just an entry level job so I didn't get it.. well I didn't prepare myself either and like you I'm glad I didn't get it. I just started a job on a military base and I love it. It's just seasonal but better than nothing. Thanks to all the good advices!

I'm glad to hear the good news and I wish you the best life here in the states. Things are not easy here either but oh well you already had experience living in another country and adjusting to the new life. Anyways, again congrats and if you need help with the AOS process don't hesitate to contact me

I'm currently living in Washington State close to Seattle so I've been there several times it looks like a big city but in fact it's not, many options to eat, events, shows, concerts. If you drive just half hour lots of green, lakes. It's pretty but thanks to the weather it's either overcast or rainy almost the whole year. Again, I would recommend San Francisco!

May I ask you where are you from? to me american nightlife is definitely not what I expected. Movies and tv programs show an unrealistic nightlife. Anyways, if you are looking for diversity L.A. is nice, too many different styles of bars and clubs to choose what I noticed though is people tend to go to certain bars depending on their race or ethnicity. Keep in mind that any type of bar or club close at 2am. Las Vegas is nice to party but I would never live there. New Orleans used to be nice before Katrina but I heard it really affected economy and there's a lot of bad political influence in that area. I love Orlando but I felt everything was too "Disney oriented"..Well since you are thinking about moving north I would choose San Francisco, city per se is beautiful, people is very unique, weather is nice overall. Seattle is nice but unless you like overcast weather don't move here. I've been living close to seattle for less than a year is nice if you are into art and music but I haven't seen too much diversity in this area.

Since I got married I enjoy spending time with my husband rather than going to bars. I used to love that before but I reached a point when I enjoy other activities. Again nightlife here is boring! I've been to several countries and I would say without a doubt this is the worse country to party.

After reading your post I realized I shouldn't complaint too much about not being called for an interview. So far I sent 5 applications and had 2 interviews I guess I need to change my perspective and be more flexible about applying to any kind of job. I'm going to check on those temp agencies I thought was easier to get a job directly from them.

Don't stress out too much! My first job in the states was working as a cashier in a fast food restaurant. I was able to speak 10 words in english and most of the times I had a hard time to understand orders. So what I did was I went to other restaurants and pay attention every word, every mannerism and I think that helped me out a lot. Don't be afraid just be yourself, be enthusiastic and don't take too serious if someone is rude with you at work.

Thanks for the website it's good to know what kind of background check do the employers I've already worked in the food industry here in the states but I wanted to try other types of jobs. Unfortunately, they were jobs I worked a long time ago (about 8 years)and some online applications don't let me input so many jobs I had since that last time. I'm so frustrated, I think I can't even get a job that pays minimum wage. I think I'm not living the american dream instead, I'm living the American nightmare

I've been looking for a job since a couple of weeks. Since I don't have a degree I lower my expectations and I decided to apply in retail jobs, restaurants, etc. I was called for an interview for a seasonal position and even though I thought I did good they didn't hire me. I don't know if they focus on experience in the states. My question is: what is the best way to consider a qualified employee for a position that only requires High school?. Do they consider my experience in another country? Also I need an advice about how they manage the background check if I lived most of the time abroad. Any thoughts are appreciated!

Apparently she has same problem I had. My country also use 2 last names. My father and mother side are included so when I got married and apply for the green card I changed my name to my married name but I didn't update my passport because it would still show different (it's mandatory for my country to have 2 last names). I flew a couple of times. The answer it's easy: if you are traveling outside the US, her ticket would be exactly as the name in her passport. If your flight is domestic, her ticket would be exactly as the name in her id.