A clean bill of health for Hoopla!

"Can I transmit citizenship to my spouse? - No, a United States citizen cannot transmit citizenship to a spouse." --- U.S. Embassy London Website.

Well, that's good because I've been U.S. Citizenship (USC) Positive for twenty-some years now, and finally medical research proves that it is in fact a non-communicable disease! FOILED AGAIN! Nonetheless, it does make for a hearty laugh every time we read that bit of the embassy's website. Phew.

Right, well I just got a letter from the NVC saying they have assigned us a case number and our petition will be forwarded to London within a week. I looked at people's timelines and expect Xavier will receive Packet 3 quite definitely around October 1st. Which puts us ahead of expectations. Again. And that is not nice when you run a website called "Immigration-Agitation," but I expect I will get over it. That said, we are debating whether to respond to Packet 3 immediately or to delay our response in hopes of getting a visa interview during the time I will be in the U.K. Yeah, so waiting for Packet 3 is about all that is going on as we have pretty much got the embassy forms ready already (heh).

- Hoopla

Mmmmm, English Boys

Hoopla : you're hot when you sound english
Xavier : ok, I'm writing that down by the way
Xavier : and maybe I will get it written onto a little laminated card that I can carry with me always and flash at you when you smirk at me when I say "Tackoes" (tacos) or "Loss Anjalees" (Los Angeles)


Teeheeehee :)
Well, NVC in New Hampshire just received our petition TODAY, grrrrrr, and said 2-4 weeks to process, so October 1-15ish they will be sending to London. We are a bit more behind than we expected, but that may mean his interview will be when I am in the UK in late November. Kay bye!

Simple Pleasures

Xavier: america has lots of foods on sticks.. that makes me happy

America, And Stuff

Well, I received NOA2 in the mail on Thursday, sent off I-134 to Xavier on Friday (notarized and all), and just when I thought we had sort of accomplished something, the AOS (adjustment of status) forms I ordered arrived. Man. Those are some forms alright. It is an enormous pile that makes a threatening thud when you drop it on a table, and seems to be a in-depther and more daunting task than everything I have done so far put together. Woe.

Tried to call the NVC yesterday (long distance, might I add!) and they do not seem to have any kind of automated information, so I am just gonna hang around for another week and see if they mail me anything, and then attempt to call if necessary.

Meanwhile, Xavier is in the process of getting his new passport and his police clearance (supposing I'm not Marrying an Axe Murderer *smile*) and all that other stuff. We think his interview will probably be during the last two weeks of November, which is when I plan to go to the UK, if my work will let me have the time off (we are moving buildings around then, so I'm sure I will end up with some desk in a dark corner all by myself, but such are the tribulations of love!).

Anyway, I am not much for politics or blatant patriotism, but as it's September 11th I have been thinking about that sort of thing a bit. There are plenty of things I don't like about America (*cough*Bush*cough*), and I know we are wasteful and overweight and generally not as concerned about the environment as other countries, and too many people feel the need to own guns, and the average person doesn't know very much about other countries or what is happening outside U.S. borders, etc etc. There are alot of people in this country, and there are plenty who are not like that. There are bad people and bad aspects of every country, race, religion, and boy scout troop. In just the same way, there is also good. America has beautiful, vast, and varied landscapes. There are people who are concerned about the environment, who have never owned a gun, and who are interested in and concerned about other countries. We are by no means all a bunch of, "Yeah, go git those damned I-raqis! That'll teach 'em to mess with Texas!" snivelling bastards.

If you are reading this, you are (likely) a person who has fallen in love with an American and is willing is move to America to be with that person. That says something for our character (and yours) right there, though the famous quote:

"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free"

seems to relate more to the ordeal of filing immigration papers these days than anything else.
*grin*

- Hoopla

I-129F Petition Approved

I was grumping around work, checking the aila.org processing dates every ten minutes for about three days straight when lunch time came and I checked my e-mail and just about fell backwards because there was a message from the USCIS and all I saw was "This case has been approved" and I started shaking uncontrollably without even reading the rest. I wanted to burst out of my chair and scream and stand on the desk and yell "WE'RE APPROVED!!!!!!!!!!!!" (yes, with that many exclamation points), but I ended up going for a cigarette and just about skipping down the street, and then couldn't function at all the rest of the day (or eat my lunch, heh). So yay, NOA2 is in the mail and I expect I will receive it next week. Meanwhile, we are about three weeks ahead of what I expected and I have spent all day today working on I-134 stuff to get notarized and send to Xavier next week. We expect his interview to be during the last two weeks of November, which is when I am hoping to visit him in the UK anyway, so that works well!

The poor boy is going to have to get his, like, ten vaccinations at once soon. Alas.
In other news, I am the proud owner of a ladle (and a toaster and some Tupperware and, er, steak knives, etc). I have been romping through stores acquiring stuff we will need for our apartment.
It's weird to think that someone actually picked up and looked at that thing (I-129F) I worked on for about six months, read through it all, and approved us! It was way faster than I expected, too, especially being the Nebraska Service Center. I hope that will give high spirits to whoever is reading this - Nebraska seems to have come a long way - the increased fees and whatever improvements they are making are proving themselves. Don't know what is up with the lack of updates on the AILA processing dates page, though; it is enough to make you pull your hair out.

- Hoopla