a peek at life in Hickville

Got done with work and went to Kate's to help her pack (she is moving). She wanted to show me her new apartment (she had done some decorating) and so we went over there, and I notice that my power steering is whining. Its embarrassing. Every one is staring at me. But I haven't got cash, and I have some power steering fluid at home, so I think I'll wait. This is an okay thought, but then, we got stuck in the driveway nightmares are made of, and I have to crank it into four wheel drive. This is good, except it makes turning more difficult, and the power steering is whining angrily now, but what can I do? I can't sit in the middle of an arcit lake of slush and ice and deeep ruts where people have driven through a much unploughed road. And this is in TOWN!!! *sigh*

So, we finally get through the heaps of ice and snow and park. And... she realizes she's forgotten her new house keys. So we get BACK in the truck and get stuck again, I gun it, thinking I'll get out easier. And we fishtail. Okay, no, we'll go slow then, won't we. *sigh* While I am irritated with the bad conditions of the road, I'm thankful I don't have a car, because I would still be sitting there.

But alas, we discover the power steering HATES me. It is whining more now, and Kate tells me she has Power steering fluid at home. So since we have to go back to her house anyway, its cool. We get there, she finds keys... and empty bottle of power steering fluid.

So we go to the gas station (with the keys) and by this time, there is no power steering, and I feel like Rosie the Riveter because I'm cranking the wheel and just barely turning.

We check power steering and find it spilled all over everything and where its supposed to be -- its empty. *sigh* After refilling it, I knock the cap off and it falls into the bowels of the truck workings. So I fianally find that, and after seeing kate's apt., we head off for home.

I got home at 3 am, and plopped into bed, the dog was up early and I wanted to know about truck anyway, and it was discovered that there is a leak in the pressure hose. So we have to replace it tomrrow.

I've had enough fun for the week, thank you very much.

change of plans

Well, we got news from the visa place -- turns out it will take 5 to 6 mos just to process the application at the Nebraska Service Center (they are slow, its only taking 1.5 months in Vermont). So anyway, will have to postpone wedding. To make it safe, will shoot for a November or December date. Will definately have to book a church now. Would be a bit chilly outside. Okay so things are not working out as smoothly. I shouldn't be depressed, but I am because being attacked from all sides by people who think that Nick and I should not marry because of our religious differences.

This time, I'm not gonna listen to anyone else. I have let people tell me what to do all my life and I've regretted alot of things because of it. There's people I should have stood up for that I didn't because people convinced me I was doing "the right thing".

And then I get told that I don't really love God because I won't do what's "right" (in their opinion). Yeah, its sooooo much better to break your word, be a liar, and break someone's heart. Definately sounds like the better thing to do.

Feeling very bearish and irritated at the moment. I have enough crap going on without people being un-helpful enough to ADD to it.

i've been busy - that's my only lame excuse...

well, let's see, since the last time i wrote... Becky and Delton got a new truck. And I was making grand plans to save money and pay cash for a truck in a few years, after school payments, and we were settled in our new home, etc.

Things have a way of happening. IT turns out, that the head gasket had blown on my car. *sigh* But then no sigh, because it turned out that I had to get a new car, not pay for repairs, as it was such an old clunker that it would have far exceeded it's value just in repair costs. So... I'm sure you're getting where this is headed. I decdied to buy a truck. I've wanted one ever since I could drive, but my parents have always talked me out of one. A.) they guzzle gas, and B.) my mom is afraid of looking like a full-blown redneck. With the junk on the porch, though, I think we already do.

So my adventure began when I went with my father (who had the flu) tol look at cars. IT was our unfortunate luck that we ran into the carlot we did, and to make a long story short, the sales guy tried to sell me this jazzed up truck with graphics and loaded interior and I almost bought it (because interior was so nice) but the dashboard went out when I was on the way to the shop to have delton check it out to make sure it was okay. Then the tranny was bad; it wouldn't shift into third. The guy still wanted to sell it to me!!! HE said he'd throw in a warranty and pay for half of it, like he was doing this big favor. As if. Do I have stupid written on my forehead? Hmmmm... Don't answer that one.

I was being nice that day, I should have been in a BAD mood. MY warning flag should have shot up the moment he purred, "what do you want your monthly payments to be???" I should have refused when the montly payments were going to be $100 more than what I had given as my absolute limit. But I talked down the price to only $50 dollars over. And prayed about it, because I wasn't sure. And God must have pulled the tape loose that was holding that truck together because it all went to pot when I brought it back. Dashboard, tranny... I think I should stay away from small, used car lots.

I found another truck for a much more reasonable price, it looks better too, and its a total tuff truck. Its good in this snow too. So I've been extremely busy.

For the wedding we still have to call a whole lot of people, figure out the flowers, bridesmaide dresses (!) yes, i know!!!, and that's crazy because about half of the groomsmen can't give definitive answers til about March. Which is probably too late to wait to get the dresses. Nick says to ask all my girls and worry about the guys later. As a last resort, I could always hire chippendales... hehehhee... just kidding.

Am trying to design my invites - that is... interesting. I bought an easel so that I could paint easier ( I haven't painted for years, since I had to quite art school), and I"m totally jazzed about painting again, but, it took me about 3 hours to put an impossibly cheap and flimsy easel together. I finally dug thru the trash to find the label, so that i might maybe get the instructions online, and found the stupid instructions on the INSIDE of the label. *sigh* I finally got it together, but the dog and cat ran around it today while i was painting and almost upset it several times. If the easel survives (and I do), we might have multicolored cat and dog. Well, they'll match my wedding scheme.

Oh, and was looking at houses and found the perfect house on 8 acres in a beautiful setting. A lovely old farmhouse with 3 bedrooms and a HUGE kitchen. I want it!! Am praying hard for this one... need to work out the mortgage; and that's interesting.

Well, have to go to Wal-mart tonight, have to -- no, MUST -- get a daily planner or something. Or a HUGE wall calendar where we can pencil in appointments and reminders. WE have alot going on!!!!

WEll, will let you all know more of what's going on.

Ciao for now!! NOra

not enough hours in the day

Today was.... interesting. I got up early to go to car lot with Becky and Delton cuz they wanted to buy a new truck. The roads were crazy; we got a foot of snow -- literally, and I had the profound excitement of doing two 360's on the road when I tried to navigate the unplowed and icy roads. Luckily, no cars were coming.

Of course, we spent more time than planned at the car dealership -- about 4 hours. I finally left and went shopping, and got my visa photo's done.

Then we ran into one of Delton's friends, and all of us went to eat. I got his friend laughing so hard he accidentally spit a piece of his french fry out, which got me laughing. So much for impressing the girls.

"What's so funny?" Delton asked.

I was laughing too hard to tell him.

By then it was time to go to work, and I hadn't gotten done half of what I'd intended to.

How does it work out like that?

a little update

Right now we are working on the Visa application, which I was told will be 3 months (from day I mail it in) to even process it. Which means we are looking at May before a cheerful immigrations agent pulls Nicks application out of the endless files of other visa applications.

I called the Immigrations helpline for clarification of some issues, and they seemed to know less than I did.

First, I asked what the instructions for the I-129F form meant when they asked for "original documents stating intent to marry".

"Where is that?" the voice on the phone asks. So I tell her where. She reads it. "Original documents... well I guess that means you write something that says you want to marry each other, I don't know."

Okaaaaayyyy... This is not good.

Then I had a more comoplicated question. Like that would get an answer. I had wanted to know if we could get married in England, go on our honeymoon, and could he enter on his fiancee visa.

The girl I was talking to said, no, wait and file after you marry. And I asked her how that would work, when we arrived in the US and he has no visa.

"Well, you have to have a visa to be allowed entry!" she exclaims.

"Well, then it won't work to apply AFTER WE GET MARRIED, will it?" I ask her.

"No, I guess not," she says. I can picture her right now. She was probably filing her nails and skimming a Cosmo magazine while she was talking to me.

So I pressed futher -- I asked her then, if it would work to enter with the fiancee visa (if we were married).

"Yeah, but you'll have to file for change of status," she tells me.

But she sounds confused, and I am more confused after talking to her, so I call again the next day.

After being on hold for 25 minutes, a woman with a pronounced southern accent comes on the line. I tell her the situation, and she rattles off the rules like C-3PO. This is what you do for blah and blah, and if you are married you file, blah and blah, please look at our website for more instructions, and do you want to order the visa forms, and have I helped you today?" She sounds pained to have to be speaking to a yankee, and I almost feel like I should apologize. But not quite.

Instead, I told her I had looked at the website, and had the forms in front of me; which is why I was calling with questions about the form.

I did learn, through the hostility seeping through the phone, that the I-129F visa (fiancee visa) were taking about 3 months to process -- the immigrations people were working on cases that were filed 3 mos. ago. AND, the petition for alien relative (the visa for the husband that miss helpful from the first call told me cheerily to file for after we got married) was back TWO YEARS. Yeah, sure, like I want to get married and then have to wait two years to get re-united. Well, okay, we could file for the fiancee visa to get him here sooner, but that would still take three months, which is a LONG separation after you just got married. Not MY idea of a honeymoon. So after I find this out, I say, oh so brightly (like the fact isn't obvious).

"Well, I guess it's better to have him arrive on Fiancee visa and get married here, isn't it!"

She is not in the mood for friendly chit-chat; she sounds like she'd rather spit in my face than speak to me any more than she has to and says again, tersly, "Yes, I suppose. If I have helped you with everything, ma'am please visit our website for more information."

*sigh* Eat my grits, lady!!!!

Who hires these people anyway? Its a help line and they don't know any more than I do about the forms (except how loooong it takes, which the first one failed to mention).

So here I am now, having read and re-read the instructions about 5 times -- and I think I know what I'm doing. But pray -- we need all the help we can get. I don't wanna have to postpone my wedding.

Anyway, once we hear word on the visa, I'll feel alot better.