RunningWithScissors

I just heard from my fiance- she got her notification from the embassy of her interview date. It's not until May 20th but at least we have a date now.

Okay, the latest trip log is a bit rough, but here it is: Trip log (Trip #8) This trip really was a lot of fun, in spite of *cough* everything.

A quick update from Cambodia..... I got here the 7th, just in time for the Chinese New Year extravaganza. What a blast- the town goes berserk and everything is just plain crazy. I got in and my fiance and I got to work on the Packet 3 paperwork. She had everything she needed so all we did was sign it, affix a couple of passport-style pictures and bundle it up. We went across town to the EMS station and had them courier it to the US Embassy (which is only about a block away). Apparently EMS is the preferred way to move a legal-size envelope 1,000 feet in Cambodia. It's also one of the few ways the embassy allows you to turn in legal documents for processing. Soooooooooooo, we're just waiting to hear from them as to when Sakha's interview will be. I'm flying out tomorrow and my guess is that they'll call her a week or so after I get back, and they'll give her 30 days notice of the interview date. If all goes well then she should be in the US in time to celebrate her birthday in April. We'll see..............I'll do a trip log when I get back and I'll post a link to it here. The trip log will have lots of fun/cool stuff to report this time- i.e. what happens when you argue with the Cambodia Traffic Cops, The Unfortunate Experience Of Accidentally Running Over A Couple of Innocent Schoolgirls, Weird Hooting Noises Cambodian Girls Make, Drilling For Oil In Our Hotel Room, What To Do When They Insist You CANNOT Take A Picture, Fishing For Lunch (Sort Of), The Magic Traffic Horn, Prohibited Fruit, and a bunch of other nonsense. Stay tuned.

A quick update on our progress... My fiance received her "Packet 3" forms in Cambodia yesterday (YESSSSSSSSS!), with instructions for her medical exam and a list of documents. She's supposed to get the medical exam, assemble the documents, and return it all to the embassy in Phnom Penh as soon as she has everything they're asking for. We have pretty much everything ready except for the medical paperwork and she'll be going to one of the two "approved" exam locations within a day or so to get that done. She called me up last night just bouncing off the walls and saying "Oooh darling, I'm so exciting, I'm so exciting!!" (She means, "I'm so excited", lol. ) I don't know what the lead time is after she returns the paperwork to the embassy, but we're both hoping like crazy that she'll get to have her interview while I'm there this time...I'm due to be there February 7th through the 19th, so with a little luck it may just all work out perfectly. So.......that's where we're at now. "I'm so exciting, I'm so exciting!!" lol B)

A quick update...I received our 'PHP' case number from the State Department today and they're stating that the paperwork will be transferred to the embassy in Phnom Penh in 5 days. Soooooo, there's a slim chance that my fiance will have her interview while I'm there in February. In Cambodia sometimes they just send a packet to the person, but sometimes they call them up, tell them what paperwork they need to gather and then tell them to call for an interview as soon as they have it. It'll be interesting to see what they do.

I just found out that our paperwork was transferred to the NVC. They claim it'll be out of there and on its way to the embassy in Cambodia in roughly 5 business days, so we'll see- it's remotely possible that her interview could happen during my planned February trip but I'm not holding my breath. The last time we were there we stopped by the embassy just to say 'hi'. (Frankly they were pretty jerky about it, but that's another story.) There was a line that appeared to be for visa apps that was about 30 or 40 couples long. I don't know for sure if that was what it was for, but the line was all couples and they were all holding chunks of paperwork.

Another month, another trip. I'm getting too old for this, lol. The trip is grueling but I'd leave again tomorrow if I could. The latest blurb (writeup) for this trip is here: Cambodia Trip #7 (http://discoverseattle.net/forums/index.php/topic,3388.msg113207.html#msg113207) This trip was for our 1-year engagement anniversary and my birthday, plus the usual horsing around in the city. The weather was beautiful- 75 degrees and sunny with a nice breeze blowing almost the whole time. Still waiting for the nice folks at USCIS to forward our papers to NVC and then on to the US Embassy in Cambodia. With any luck we'll hear something in a month or so.

Lol, that's like saying World War II was "loud". Yes, the first attorney cost me a lot of money and I wasn't pleased at all with what she did. The attorney I have now is much more experienced and, in my opinion, much better. The first attorney used an online data collection system called "INSZoom". It was gruesome to work with and made a mess of a lot of the data I input. It mixed up my ex-wife's name with my fiance's name (!!), then it would put my mother's name in place of my name, then it would swap my mother's and fiance's birthdates, etc etc etc. It would also truncate my previous work addresses so they were no longer valid or even real- it would change something like "125 Oak St, Suite 200" to "125 Oak St S 200", making it look like the address was on "South 200" rather than in "Suite 200". I'm a web developer and a programmer. I build applications like INSZoom, so I'm not exactly unfamiliar with filling out a web form. The real confirmation came when I mentioned INSZoom to the 2nd attorney. He started ranting about how he used to use INSZoom and he said his clients "hated him for using it"- it screwed up their data too. So it wasn't just my imagination. INSZoom has or had some serious problems. I build web applications for a living. I've built stuff at least as complex than INSZoom and I damn sure know how to type my own name into a text field. I'm also pretty sure I wouldn't mix up who my ex-wife is and who my fiance is over and over again. INSZoom was a huge problem for me and the first attorney even admitted they'd had "some issues" with it. Just like Ford had "some issues" with the Pinto (such as when it was hit from behind it would burst into flames and incinerate everyone inside). Yup, and that's why I came here. I heard good things about CFR and it was highly recommended. I think this is a "must visit" site for anyone involved in immigration whether they've retained an attorney or not.

It's been a while since I've been here and a lot has happened, so I thought I'd take a moment and do an update.... I got back from my 6th trip to Cambodia a couple of weeks ago. I think I've made 2 or 3 since I was here last but heck if I can keep track. It's all turning into a big fuzzy blur, lol. To make a long story short, a few days ago we received notice that our K1 Fiance petition has been approved. (Yes!) It took forever- about 6 months from the date I filed it. Today I got the paper copy of the approval notice in the mail. According to the notice, they've sent the stuff we filed to the National Visa Center in Hew Hampshire. They claim that the NVC processing "should be complete within 2 to 4 weeks". Then they send it off to the embassy in Cambodia. I've talked to a bunch of people in Cambodia regarding the interview timeline, including a couple of ladies who just had their interview and are actually in the US now. The consensus is that the embassy gets it and normally processes it within a week or two, then sends out the interview notice by email. The interview is usually about 30 days from the notice date. Again, this is Cambodia so I don't know how that compares with other countries. (I understand that China's processing takes considerably longer, probably because they have a lot more people to process.) But no matter what, we're getting very close to "show time". The US just built a brand new embassy in Phnom Penh about a mile from my fiance's home, so we're lucky in that respect. Prior to it being there I'm told that applicants had to go all the way to Thailand for their interviews. Now, I'm going back to Cambodia on December 5th for a couple of weeks. I'll be there for my engagement anniversary and my birthday. Soooooo......if everything goes just right, I may get the official packet to hand carry over there before I leave. If not, my attorney is going to put one together that has all the same forms so either way I'll be taking some papers over to fill out. Wish me luck. It's possible that my fiance could be here by the end of January or (more likely) sometime in February. A few other items I wanted to mention: 1) First of all, I was completely wrong when I stated my attorney was going to fly over to be at the interview. He meant the interview here, not the one in Cambodia. Doh. My bad for mixing that up, but that's what he said, "I'll be there for the interview". My mistake. Double Doh. 2) I understand that Rak's lovely wife is here in the US now. I've spoken to him a few times and he sounds like a very happy guy. Bravo to you Rak, for surviving this long ordeal and seeing it through to a successful conclusion! I wish you and Jen (sp?) many years of happiness together. If there was ever anyone who deserved it, it's you. 3) If you're really bored and want to read the latest nonsense on my trip-log or whatever it's called, you can do that here: My Fifth Trip To Cambodia The Mud Garden, Awesome Landings, Phnom Penh Traffic Insanity My Sixth Trip To Cambodia Scary Mannequins, Wedding Rings, The Jetson's Place, and "epignyous goodish fidelity!" So...that's what I've been up to......

Lol, I've been shuttling back and forth to Cambodia. It's an incredible place in so many ways. When we're all done I'll do a write-up on the Cambodian process so other folks who come here after me can (hopefully) benefit from it.

Believe me, I want my fiance here as quick as possible, and I wouldn't have waited so long to file except for the advice of my first attorney. I see her reasoning, but I'm not sure it was really necessary to wait so long before filing. In any case, the time has passed and we've filed. What's done is done, all I can do is move forward. If I'm atypical, so be it. It wouldn't be the first time that's been said about me, lol. I was divorced too, as Rak can tell you. Like you, I had virtually all of my savings, property, and wealth go up in smoke too. My divorce cleaned me out, basically. I was left with all my ex's debts, plus all my divorce bills too. I did get custody of my son, but I've gotten virtually nothing in the way of child support for the last ten years. I lost my entire 401K fund to my ex as well. I've raised (and paid for) my son the entire time, all the while fighting off my ex's incredibly hateful agenda and continuous attempts at interference in every aspect of my life. No offense, but I'll bet I went through a much uglier and more contentious divorce than you did, or that you could imagine. The fact is that I'm STILL going through it, ten years later! My ex is a classic psychopath with a vindictive streak a mile wide. Again, Rakkasan can verify that I'm telling it like it is. He knows all about me and my divorce history. (As for my son, today is his last day of 7th grade. He's graduating with almost straight "A"'s and made Honors this year, so I think I've done a fair job of raising him so far.) I certainly hope so. I'm doing everything possible to ensure that things go smoothly. I came here because I was told this was the best place on the web to get information and assistance, and I appreciate your input. I believe I am fortunate, and I try like hell not to take it for granted. I do find that the harder I work, the more fortunate I am. Thank you for your best wishes Roger, I'll let you know how it goes.

I've worked hard for decades and saved every penny I can. So, yes, I'm fortunate in that I have this money to spend right now. I'm fortunate in that I have simple tastes and that I haven't dug myself into debt. I've worked my butt off and have something to show for it. I'm not going to be made to feel ashamed of it. Simply put, this is what I choose to spend my money on at this time. I'm not sure what to make of this, but "RunningWithScissors" is the only name I've ever used here. I found out about this forum from Rakkasan, who has known me for years and years. If I had accused ELM of anything illegal or made claims of malpractice they could sue me. All I've done is state some simple facts: They billed me for a lot of money and never filed a single piece of paper for me. (TRUE). I also stated that there is other competent representation available at a lower cost in this area. (TRUE). Neither of these statements is actionable nor cause for a libel suit. I also stated that it was my OPINION that no one should retain them and that I was disappointed in them. That's my opinion and I'm entitled to state it. My opinion is also not actionable. The fact is you're allowed to make your feelings known as long as you don't make untrue statements, and I've made no false or libelous statements. Certainly true, but I stand by what I've said. Rak has known me for years; please feel free to ask him what he thinks of me.

Well, suing a law firm is usually a losing proposition.

No, he charges a flat rate (under 2K) for his immigration cases. As far as the flight over there, I'll gladly get him a ticket for his trouble since I wouldn't expect him to cover that cost. No, the people that charged me thousands upon thousands and still didn't file a single sheet of paper for me are the law firm of Ellis, Li, & McKinstry in Seattle WA. I would personally not recommend their services as there's plenty of competent representation out there to be had for far less than what they charged me.

I have to disagree, even in light of what happened. An attorney can be worth their weight in gold (or lead, unfortunately). I think having an attorney involved helps legitimize the process from the viewpoint of the consulate officers, and the attorney can make sure that everything is being done correctly (if they know what they're doing). The one I'm working with now has over 30,000 immigration cases under his belt and the vast majority went through without a hitch. He definitely knows what he's doing and I feel better having him involved. He's going to fly over with me for the interview and be on hand should anything go wrong. That in itself is a huge load off my mind. Yes, sometimes you get a clunker, but more often than not I think they're worth it if you can afford to spend the money and you get a decent one. Like they say, "Your mileage may vary", lol.

It's been quite a while since I posted here but I thought I'd update folks. First off, I just got back from my 4th trip to Cambodia to see my fiance and I took my son with me this trip. We had an incredible time and if you're really, really bored you can read about it here: 4th Trip To Cambodia (There's actually a story about my 3rd trip before that one if you wanna read it too.) We finally filed our paperwork on about May 15th or so. My original attorney became too bizarre to work with and we parted ways. It's a long and very strange story, but I'm using a much more experienced one now and things are finally moving ahead at a faster pace. My only comment regarding my previous attorney is that it is my personal OPINION that no one should ever retain the the law firm of Ellis, Li, and McKinstry based in Seattle WA to handle their immigration case. I'm extremely disappointed with their performance and if anyone is interested I can recommend a much more capable attorney in Seattle. PM me if you're interested in his contact info. After filing we got notification that our paperwork was 1) received and then 2) transferred to the California Center for processing. They claim 60 to 180 days to complete the processing, so we'll see...