Michael and Manyun

The last thing I want to do is rain on your parade. You made it! You have the pink slip. I am very happy for you. My issue is not with you, or anything that you did to reach the point that you are at. I admire how you were able to succeed under that kind of pressure. Please forgive me if this is not clear. There is no need for further explanation, yuan fen. I am sincerely happy for you. My issue is with the VO's at the Consulate, and the discretionary powers that are given to them, nothing more.

I believe that I read on Manyun's Blue Slip that the consulate makes a "valiant" attempt to reply in two business days. BTW, sorry that I hijacked your other post. Mike

I wholeheartedly agree. By Wednesday, I may have one HELL of a lot more to say. I again repeat my congratulations on your success. The luck of the gods was with you.

Great. These are all getting saved in "My Favorites".

Congratulations. Further proof of the broad discressionary powers of individual VO's.

Congratulations, and wishes for a long and happy life together.

How quickly you folks forget..... You argue this point as if I never posted.

Ratz!!! Like an obedient dufus I went ahead and filled in all of the spaces. Oh well, probably become an issue around Blue Slip #: 1.) 2.) 3.) 4.)

I bought the first 4 CD set from Pimsleur, and gave up after the second lesson. No matter how hard I listened, the intonations were very muddled to my ear. If at least there was a phonetic booklet supplied, it would have been much easier. Thanks for the other suggestions. I am going to check them all out. I want to learn some Mandarin just so that I can help them learn English....get over the rough spots.

Fantastic, thank you. It's a good "timewaster" here at work.

My most sincere wishes for a good timeline, my friend. I am happy for your recent notification.

Smart move. Congratulations, Randy.

My sincere thanks to all of you. Sorry I took this off topic. Think I'll go scrounge up some "comfort" food and get away from this computer for a while. It's perfectly fine to rant and scream, it's frustrating to say the least. But when it comes down to preparing and presenting your overcome evidence you need to be cool, calm and collected, anger will only make the process move slower or backwards which can only hurt you. Personally if I were in your situation I'd consider trying to have the sob of an ex prcecuted, that would give you plenty of evidence to present as the PSB nailed him and the dates of his actions would be shown in the record. Actually, another member of CFL has offered their assistance in doing something close to that. I have told Manyun that we will see how the consulate handles this first overcome appointment, and the documents that I put together for her. I see 3 different directions it could go, but if they insist on us finding him for the evidence, then I will take the aforementioned member up on their offer.

My sincere thanks to all of you. Sorry I took this off topic. Think I'll go scrounge up some "comfort" food and get away from this computer for a while.

I think Mike and others may have the impression that those who receive Blue and White slips fall through the cracks on CFL, which is NOT the case. Many of them feel bad enough without discussing the specific details of their case in a public forum and some are concerned about posting too much information publicly on CFL at the time for fear of making things worse. They do not see the PM's, phone calls and direct emails concerning these cases as each person continues the fight to overcome. I'm aware of a few blue slip situations with a long delay in review that appear to be almost over but discussion of those is specifically up to the member who has gone through the pain. You make a very good point, Lee. And perhaps I AM being to vocal and upfront about my case, maybe even making things worse, or blowing things all out of proportion. I think I need to take a step back, cool off, and wait for the overcome appointment. I get too cranked up after chatting with Manyun, and tend to spout off. As my dog is tired of listening to me, I naturally turn to CFL, where my mouth tends to get the best of me I'm not the only one in this situation. Sorry for the implication about CFL. I should know better by now.

Thanks, Mike. Best of luck to you too. Keep us posted. We got the letter back from GZ today. It says wait three months for further processing. It doesnt say what kind of processing or anything else. Just to contact them after three months. Poor woman is in tears. What are they doing. So totally lame. Someday their must be accountability. This is a ridiculous process. CM The sad truth is that there is no accountibility at GUZ, the VO's are given too much leeway, and other VO's cannot override them without evidence so compelling that you don't even have it yet. Been there. IMO, on CFL the Pink Slippers get the most attention, the White Slippers (revocation) get some, while the Blue Slippers are tolerated, the problem children, the in-betweeners. We are the ones that the majority does not understand. Feel free to PM me. Mike

Make sure you get all dates correct. That is one area where they can really screw you up. That's just my little contribution so far. Get to work! and good luck. Ron Ron is correct as usual. It is an out-of-whack date that has now added weeks, and potentially months to our process. An innocent mistake, or lapse in attention to details anywhere along the way could be cause for someone flagging your file so the VO can dash your hopes at the interview. Everything is evidence, so keep it organized as you collect it, such as ANYTHING pertaining to your first visit to lovely Nanning (receipts, boarding passes, proof of payment for airline tickets...you took lots of pictures together, Riiiiiight???) I survived without Cheetos, but the vodka and beer kept me going..... Check your sanity at the door. Oh yeah...WELCOME to CFL Mike

Thanks, Mike. Best of luck to you too. Keep us posted.

I think you nailed it right there, chinalove. A simple RFE to clarify an issue thereby saving time, a plane-load of money, and to simplify/hasten the process. Now why didn't THEY think of this??? Oh yeah, I almost forgot. it's not their job to make this an easy process for us. Mike

When they ask you for the sealed envelope, I doubt they will take your evidence at the same time. The contents of the sealed medical envelope are taken at the window by the VO as the "interview" is to begin, not before. My SO was requested to tear open the envelope and hand the VO what was inside. She still has the empty envelope. Per my instructions, when the VO asked for the passports, my SO also passed over to him a detailed "Index" (one typed page) of the evidence that she had brought along with her. He glanced at what it was, and pushed it back. They won't take anything they don't specifically ask for.

That's my take on it also.

Based on experience, I have to agree with Rick. I thought we had a slam-dunk. Seems these latest groups of VO's are getting more blatant about hitting you with a blue slip without ever asking for evidence first, or even asking any questions. Manyun was asked for no evidence other than passports and photos (seemed kind of silly...she had a 6" stack of folders sitting in her lap), and was not asked one question. Nothing. They are not trying to hide a predetermined outcome either.

Come On Doctor, Plug the Hole in My Intestines. I admire your Intestinal Fortitude. I'd like to try this, but I think I will modify it a bit for the more "mature" palate.

When I used it a few times last week it worked, but the reason I was using it in the first place is because Manyun had some sort of trouble with it. However, she could not accurately convey just what the problem was, but by the look on her face and some deducing, I'm thinking it was something similar to your problem, but with the Chinese option. All I can suggest is wait a little bit and try it again. You aren't charged until you start to speak to a human. The woman who answered the phone every time I called was actually very nice. And, it's a very long-winded recording too. Mike

Wishing you both a long and happy life together. Michael