tmkeith

Only Dallas and JFK http://candleforlove.com/forums/index....3e640f2ad78747a Thanks. Wei is being transferred by her company (sort-of...work authorization must be based on her K-1....they aren't paying for it) and we need to know what start date we can offer them.

My Wei definitely wears her heart on her sleeve. Makes it hard to tell when they're really playing games, though.

Does anyone have word on EAD stamps at SFO?

I do know that the zero has been around for many years now. I don't know the rhyme or reason to the numbering system, though. When I was a welfare caseworker in Texas, we had to verify the "A-numbers" of any LPR who applied, and that zero caused problems with their automated system back then.

with 6.5 months to rehearse...I think you're right.

And when Wei tells you she 'doesn't want to tonight'.. .don't think of it as a denial, but request for more evidence that it is necessary to do tonight !! Man, I just fell out of my chair! I'd better start gathering evidence now.

I gotta get out of the frame of mind of using the word "denial" when it comes to the blue slip. An RFE is exactly that: a request for evidence, not a death sentence.

Might want to be careful stating an honest opinion or observation, no matter how well-intentioned in here. That being said, I'm glad you did it. I can all but guarantee you that some peole in the room will benefit from it, and go that extra mile in their preparations. Yes, some may be offended. I'll take being offended now over being denied later, anytime. I caught flak a few weeks ago for pointing out an observiation my wife made from her interview based on the attire of the applicant. As long as the observation is not malicious or directed at individuals, I feel it should be welcomed.

I have a few monstrous "North Face" duffel bags I got in Beijing for less than $10 each. (Wei's a vicious bargainer!)

Congratulations Jim!!! Also, Congratulations, CFL...as I count it...not a single misspelling of the word "Congratulations" with a "d" so far.

On one of my first dates with Wei we went walking on the Stanford campus and she commented on all of the squirrels running around there, saying that you'd never see that in China...because people are hungry.

What types of visas are those from the middle-east coming over on? I haven't seen that thrown into the equation here.

You might get some leads by typing in "Zhuhai" in the search window at the bottom of the General Visa Discussion topic page.

What's the quality of those calls? I use callingcard.com @ 3.5 cents/min through local access #s, but the quality isn't the best, and there are times when I can't get through at all. I've tried others in the past, and they've been even more frustrating, so, with the exception of my cell phone, I just dial directly through SBC at 10 cents/min when I'm home. It's more expensive, but the quality is much, much better. Guess I'm falling into the "you get what you pay for" trap.

I changed my work schedule so I could spend my evenings with Wei using Yahoo! messenger. Gotta say I, too, have been forced to turn the cam on the room and get her complaints about being 'too messy.'

Not quite what I intended with the post, so I'll dig a little deeper and you can rip it apart if you wish. There seems to be a bigger push to reward those who break the rules than there is to make things easier for those who do. C'mon, the plight of the documented immigrant doesn't stir up enough attention, does it? How many people who are pro-immigration do you see stumping for our cause, versus those who are demanding full citizenship rights for those who came here illegally? I'd say the numbers are tilted very strongly in favor of the latter. What I'm saying is that much of America, wrongly, blurs the lines, for whatever reason, and forms the opinion of "an immigrant is an immigrant, regardless of how they got here."

I agree that Americans are against illegal immigration, versus immigration as a whole. Problem is, for many, that line has become blurred, namely because of political correctness and ignorance (some would say they're the same thing.) Advocates for illegal aliens lump their subjects in with those who go through the legal process to attract attention to their cause. They accuse anyone who's against illegal immigration to be "anti-immigrant." Thus, there are people like us who sometimes are faced with having to defend our choices of SOs, EVEN WHEN WE'RE PLAYING BY THE RULES.

I hope you're marrying a university professor...or someone who can keep up with you.

Has anyone here taken their green-card holding SO to Mexico?

Woohoo!!!! I actually knew what "dichotomy" meant without having to look it up! I think the system (immigration - I'll get back on topic) can be changed by external forces...but it will take huge numbers (more than we can imagine producing) and a long time. Change does happen, never as fast as we would like for it to, and maybe our time here is actually being spent planting the seed of change for future generations.

I guess if CFL was a discussion forum for welfare recipients, there are some of us who would whine about welfare reform (i.e. complain about the system)...and some of us who would look for work (i.e. find a solution).

only a married one

I'm gonna buy a dictionary and figure out what you just said. I did understand "this leads to people taking a stand when they feel unfairly treated and abused by a system... This is an ego-centric way of life, since we want what we deserve and what should be coming to me..." and agree whole-heartedly. Now what's to blame? The "entitlement mentality" created by 40 years of big government and social programs created in the Kennedy-Johnson 60's? The "America First" optimism of the Reagan 80's? Previous immigration policies that appeared to be more "open door" in nature, especially compared to post 9-11 scrutiny? We could spend ages debating the cause, and feeling sorry for ourselves; or, we can do as others have stated in this topic and work towards a solution. The "rah-rah" comments were desperate, baseless, and unnecessary.

Just had to bring this one back to the forefront: Happy THREE-OH!!! Enjoy your day!

Amen to that... Also, may need to try to keep things in perspective. We have SOs trying to immigrate from the most populous country in the world....and only have ONE consulate to go through for it. The mountain of paperwork that any immigration office (service centers, consulates, etc...) must be enormous. Unfortunately, too much does fall through the cracks, but I find it hard to believe that they even have time for "singling out" groups or individuals. jmho