Mick

Wow and double Wow!!!

Don't know for sure, but it could be that the Chinese family might expect the Nanny to work long hours and be on call at a moment's notice. They may think an American husband would object to such an arrangement. I know this very thing happened to a couple we know in a nearby city (Nashville). The couple in question owned a restaurant (or maybe two) and worked from 9am until around 1am each day, seven days a week. They wanted the Nanny to be there from 8am until 1am, seven days a week. The same thing happened. When they found out she had an American husband, they thanked her for applying and showed her the door.

150000 RMB for a parking space??????!!!!!!! Whoa, that's a tad on the high side to say the least. How much to use a bike rack - 50000?

I am not up to speed on the current process but what I do know is this: if they send that paperwork back to USCIS you are in for another long wait. If at all possible, see if there is some way you can intervene in the process before the case leaves GZ. Folks have suggested Mark Ellis - might be a good time to get him involved. Sounds like whatever the reason they denied the visa the first time reared its head again. Is there any possibility that a third party may have contacted GZ, giving them info (not necessarily true information) that would cause a major red flag? This has happened before...

Li is the same way, tsap, except she rarely buys clothes for herself. Mostly she buys for Salina. She still has clothing that she owned when I met her, in 1997. For example, on a recent anniversary (April 4th), she wore the same outfit she wore on our first date. And they still fit! Back to her shopping - she combines sales, coupons, return strategies and the like to purchase expensive clothing at a fraction of the normal price. As a result, Salina is the best dressed kid in her class. She also dresses me far better than I ever did for myself. Even my ball caps, a required part of male attire in these parts, are top of the line.

Li has often expressed the same sentiments, David. Over the past nine years here in the States, she has met and befriended numerous Chinese, but she keeps them at a distance for the most part. In the small (very small) town where we live, the Chinese community consists of five people (five and a half if you count our daughter Salina as a half). Li says she has no desire to move to a city with a large Chinese community.

A true professional. May he rest in peace.

AZ - Let's hope the visa process goes a lot easier this time around. Going through another Black Hole saga would be too cruel....Best wishes old friend! (for those who don't know - AZ and I were here back in those nasty, unbelievable days of the original Black Hole, that gave birth to Candle).

Wow!!! I remember Bone Crusher quite well. And I also recall that fight with Tyson. Although not a boxing fan, I am a sports writer and, working for the Miami Herald back in the 80's, I often manned the "wire," which was slang for the overnight sports ticker that brought in scores from the West Coast (my job in spring and summer included writing blurbs on games involving the Dodgers, Angels, Padres, Giants, Athletics, and Mariners). I also had to log in other stuff for the boxing guys and I remember that bout's results coming in from Vegas. Our main boxing writer at the time was stunned that Bone Crusher had lasted so long.

Been there, done that.

Best wishes for a speedy and successful visa process.

Looks like a great trip, Dan. Don't envy all that train time, but the places you are visiting are very special. Danhuang and the caves are incredible and hopefully you will get to hear the "singing sand." In addition to the Buddhist paintings in the caves, this is also the place where the Jesus Sutras were found, giving evidence of Nestorians in the area at a very early date. They were the first Christians in China, but because they were considered heretics, you rarely hear much about them. Should be a great trip...

Reference the Mayan Calendar? http://tickers.TickerFactory.com/ezt/d/4;3;459/st/20121221/e/Dooms+Day/k/5f48/event.png http://candleforlove...__fromsearch__1 Yep, that's the 2012 reference Dan. Tongue in cheek of course. Let's hope we make it past the 21st of December (the 23rd by some counts). I would hate to miss Christmas.

I couldnt help wondering what on earth Chairman Mao would say about this. Can you imagine his reaction if somehow he was magically restored to life for one day and had a chance to view contemporary China? I had the same thought years ago when we were living in the Middle Kingdom. The city where we lived had a new Wal Mart open up. They had a huge street party out front to celebrate. Li and I were in attendance and I couldn't help remarking on the scene before us. There were five separate stages with two rock bands belting out the hits, two fashion shows, and on another stage, people were paying money to throw pies and assorted food items at their friends. What a scene! One of the fashion shows featured models in skimpy bikinis and was, without question, the most popular of the events. Yep, I wondered that day what the good Chairman would think of all this.

I think it will be interesting to see how this all plays out as the next couple of years unfold. (provided, of course, we make it past 2012). I should think any kind of deep return to the Maoist hard line might meet with strong disapproval from the newly-minted upper class and upper middle class. Of course, as we have seen before (eg. 1989), strong disapproval does not necessarily mean any kind of successful policy change. I think perhaps a key player in all this, if any kind of open conflict arises, would be the military. Would they, once again, turn on their own brothers and sisters like they did in '89? Chances are it will never get that far, but it is interesting to speculate. Will be wise to keep an eye on which way the wind blows over the next month or so.

Let's see now - de-ter-gent.....uh.....uh....uh......yep, we nose awll bout atair stuff downcheer. A detergent iz sumpin' that sposed tuh make you not do sumpin' bad. An egg-sample might bee: Capital punishmint iz a detergent tuh krime.....We uns haint neerly az bakkards as yawl yankees thaink we iz.

Gee, and I thought it was gonna be something about Alabama football.

I noticed this, and experienced it many times during my five-year stay in China. When out with friends, they often protected me from various price-gouging shemes. And heaven help anyone who tried this when Li was with me. She would explode on them in a heartbeat. I recall one incident where a cab driver tried to charge me triple because he ran the air conditioner (it was July in Shantou, which is located on the Tropic of Cancer - same latitude as Havana). By the time she was finished I swear the guy would have been happy to pay us, just to get away from her.

I'll share a story about a very embarrassing moment I had when we were living in China. After my first year in China, I moved down to Shantou, in northeast Guangdong Province. Li joined me shortly thereafter and she also began teaching at the university where I taught. In early September (either the 8th or the 10th - I forget which) the Chinese celebrate "Teachers Day." The university took all the foreign teachers and their wives or husbands to a very nice restaurant at one of the big hotels downtown. This place had a huge buffet and was very popular and on Teachers Day, it was packed to the gills. Li and I were working our way into the section of the buffet that had some really nice chicken dishes and we were elbow to elbow with a crowd of folks. We finally worked our way into the grub and while getting my food, I leaned over, kissed Li on the head and whispered in her ear, "You are by far the most beautiful women in this place." There was only one problem: It wasn't Li !!!! Li had drifted over a few spaces to get some ribs. Meanwhile, I am turning fifty shades of red. I thought, "Maybe she doesn't know English." No such luck. She is at least as red in the face as I am. Speaking in a voice that was quivering she said: "Thank you." Good Lord did I screw up. Of course Li saw the whole thing and was laughing hysterically. Too funny.

When Li and I were living in China, we always celebrated March 8 with a special dinner and I always gave her flowers and a stuffed animal. It kind of became a tradition for us and we continue to celebrate Woman's Day since retruing to the States. Going to go out tonight and for the past seven years, I have two women to honor - Li and our daughter Salina.

I moved to China back in 1997. It was in August, in Anhui, and hot as Hades and even more humid. Whenever I taught an afternoon class I would literally sweat puddles of water. You think I could find a cold Coke anywhere after class? Not a chance. Also, they drank their beer warm as well. This took me some getting used to. I understand it has now changed somewhat, at least in the larger urban areas. A cold beer is not too hard to find.

Yep --- on our very first date Li and I were walking down the street and she turned to me with a sparkle in her eyes, smiles and says - "You're fat." You coulda knocked me over with a feather. I was only about eight pounds over the normal weight for my height. We still laugh about that one to this day. When I met Li, she weighed all of 96 pounds.

When I lived in China I was often told that a female was a "woman" if she was or ever had been married. Otherwise, she was a "girl." Even if she was 60 and never married. She was an "old girl." I recall an expat that lived a floor above me was dating a young girl, only in her early 20s. I remember a conversation where another Chinese woman, upon learning that this girl had been divorced, stated, "Oh, she's a woman, then. She knows what she wants."

Come this November, I will have been a member of this illustrious forum for ten years. When I first signed up for Candle, I would have never predicted I would have hung around that long. Needless to say, over the course of those almost ten years, I have seen many members come and go. Many I missed and still do - a few others I was glad to see go. And over the years I have also seen others who were tireless in their efforts to help those going through the process. These folks were such great assets to the board. I am speaking of members like Donahso who was our fearless leader; warpedbored who now has that thankless role; and Frank 1538, a member who many may not know, but was a positive force of help and was an encyclopedia of immigration information. When Frank left the board a few years back, it was a major loss. I say all this because I want to recognize a specific member of this board who I feel has gone far beyond the call of duty in immersing himself in the subtleties, arcana, and more esoteric aspects of the visa process. In a process that is constantly changing, this is no small task. This member repeatedly gives wise, solid information that newbies, those in difficulty, and those who have been blue slipped for whatever reasons, can readily use to deal with whatever they are facing. dnoblett, my hat is off to you and I want you to know as an "Old Old Timer" of this board, I appreciate so much what you do for this community. From the things you post, I am well aware that you have spent much time and effort exploring and keeping current on the visa process and its intricacies. Again, I thank you for your sacrifice and your efforts. There are many other who help as well. It's just that the job Dan has done is exemplary. He has helped countless folks here and he should, at least in my eyes, be recognized for it. I wasn't sure where to post this, so if a mod wants to move it, feel free.

I live within and among the largest Chinese area within the US. Happily, I don't see this here. I believe that, once here, they quickly learn what is accepted as appropriate behavior. I also believe that other chinese teach and probably admonish those who attempt to carry on those China behaviors here. And, don't think that those Chinese who live within this area the more well healed. I often wonder how beggers and winos got here. Dennis, I know you are in So Cal, but where exactly? Do you live near Monterey Park? Before I moved to China, I spent a month in that area immersing myself in the culture. I loved it there. Also spent time way out in Pomona (sp?) at Cal Poly Tech in language training.