US Immigration: Our love/ hate relationship

In light of recent events and letters threatening permanent residency denial, I have put all of my university report writing skills to its best use yet.

One disappointing decision letter, many tears and hugs, one MacBook Air, my knowledgable brain and eight hours later and we have one kick-ass letter to immigration.

And I have some idea of how I got here, but here I am in the midst of a very interesting love/ hate relationship with US Immigration particulars.

Two months ago we could've kissed the immigration officers that granted my Advance Parole so I could go to Canada and re-enter the US for my final interview. We were going to bring champagne and let it flow from the ceilings.

Who knew that we would then receive such disappointing news from the same people. In the words of parents everywhere, 'I'm not angry, I'm disappointed'.

I mean, really. You're really doing this now. Like I said, love/ hate.

I want to believe you can fix this, Mr Immigration. Let me love you again.

A Christmas movie isn't a Christmas movie without some serious Christmas spirit

Christmas is one of the best times of year. Not only because I get to drag a huge tree into the house and play with glitter glue but because I have an excuse to watch a tonne of Christmas movies.

My favourites include The Grinch, Home Alone 1 and 2 (not 3), A Christmas Story, Scrooged and It's a wonderful life.

They are great Christmas films because they have Christmas spirit. They are stories about characters who have lost their Christmas spirit or have forgotten what Christmas is really about. The film takes you on a journey of their transition from Christmas 'Grinch' to realizing what Christmas is really about. You see the characters Christmas mentality shift. It's great, I love it.

The Grinch hates Christmas and thinks the Who's down in Whoville only like Christmas because of the presents they receive. But Cindy Lou shows him the true meaning of Christmas and his heart grows and he no longer hates Christmas and the Whos.

Kevin McCallister in Home Alone is a spoilt kid who wishes his family would disappear so he can spend Christmas alone. He is left at home by accident. Who says wishes don't come true. He realizes that his family isn't that bad and that he loves them even though Buzz is a gross, pain in the butt. He befriends the local 'caretaker' and realizes he has a pretty great family. Hence, realizing Christmas is about family and how much he loves his own.

You get the point I'm trying to make. Christmas movies like Jack Frost with Michael Keaton, The Santa Clause with Tim Allen and Christmas with the Kranks do not fit my Christmas movie criteria. Trying to 'skip' Christmas so can have a break from it but then realizing you can't because the people around you are throwing parties and buying cookies doesn't equal Christmas spirit, like in Christmas with the Kranks. And becoming Santa Clause because he fell of your roof and died doesn't mean you have automatic Santa spirit. You're just delivering presents not showing your son the real meaning of Christmas, Tim Allen.

So I have rid myself of those films. And if I have to watch The Grinch every day of December until Christmas so I can get my fix of true Christmas spirit, I will.

And in the words of The Grinch, those terrible Christmas movies can 'pucker up and kiss it'.

US Immigration: What's love got to do with it?!

With the possibility of facing possible Permanent Residency denial, I ask US Immigration 'whats love got to do with it'?!?

Heading into our final interview my hands were sweaty and my voice shaky. All of the interview horror stories were spinning in my head. Dammit, what color was Anthony's toothbrush again, what did we eat the night of our wedding?

Our interviewer immediately realized we had very recently, within the last couple of weeks moved out of the US to temporarily reside in Toronto, Canada. We were told this wouldn't be an issue and had relevant documentation as proof. Didn't matter.

We weren't asked any specific details about our relationship, how long we knew each other, was I a criminal creep.

He said our application wasn't looking good and we were facing probable denial simply due to the fact we were temporarily out of the US.

So residing in the US and buying up all the US, Walmart, Coca Cola goodies is what gets me my permanent residence? Apparently love has nothing to do with it.

Cross country driving

There's nothing better than a summer road trip.

So when we had to pack up and move from LA to Toronto, I was excited for the drive. We mapped out our route, going through Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York. Wow! That seems like a long trip. 

Arizona and New Mexico are full of the same thing... nothing. A lot of Joshua Trees, cacti, Mexicans and dirt. Not to mention it is hot, like 'I can't breathe' it's so hot, type of hot. The highlight of Arizona is absolutely the Grand Canyon, an amazing spectacle. 

Texas has got to be one of the best and most hilarious places. Ah, yes I do want an entire store dedicated to thousands of cowboy boots, thank you Cavenders. 

Oklahoma, Missouri and Ohio as much as they stink to drive through they provided some stunning fall scenery. The colors of the trees and the farmland are beautiful and made the terrible drive worthwhile.

We completed the trip from LA to NY in four days, we were pretty impressed. Impressed that we arrived alive as we had jammed so much crap in the trunk of the car that it wore on the tires, making them completely bald but only on the inside, so most of the drive was spent wobbling around like a crappy shopping cart traveling at 70 miles per hour. 

Another horrific moment was entering Texas and running over a Tarantula. If that wasn't terrifying enough these huge Tarantulas stalked the sides of the highway. There was screaming. 

Urgh! Apologies for the picture but you have to understand what we were dealing with.

US Immigration: waiting is the hardest part

The worst thing about US Immigration is that they can't tell you any specific details about your case.

I've never heard such vague answers in all my life. 

'So can I expect a receipt from my change of address submission?'...... ' Hmmm, maybe but I can't be sure.' 

'So... are you able to tell us when we might receive my travel card in the mail?' ...... ' It should be soon maybe within the next two weeks, if you haven't received it by then come back and see me.'

What!! It's ridiculous and very frustrating, especially when you are living out of a suitcase waiting to receive it so you can flee to Canada for a fresh start and a new job.

So, we wait as patiently as we can to receive this travel card so I can finally leave the US without accidentally deporting myself. If nothing else this experience is definitely strengthening our tolerance for call centers and patience with the waiting game. 

And now I'll go back to reading Jurassic Park but before that I might just check my case status online one more time.

There's more to Pooh

I have always been a fan of Winnie the Pooh. Growing up, my favorite stuffed toy was a Pooh whose stomach squeaked (it was designed for babies), I would sleep with him every night and set him on my bed with my other toys when I went off to school. I watched the cartoons, I read the books, I had the merchandise... fan!

So when my husband pulled out a book from his collection called 'Tao of Pooh', I thought 'excellent, a chance to read Pooh as an adult'. I had no idea what it was about and failed to notice the ying-yang symbol on the front.

The book, by Benjamin Hoff turned out to be a great read and an excellent guidance/lifestyle type book. It uses ancient Chinese theories to break down each character perfectly and analyze their personalities and how those traits can benefit or hinder you. It is full of inspiring and obvious quotes that have been stuck in my head since I finished the book about a week ago.

Wisdom, knowledge and courage are great things but some people, who are lucky to have these qualities, abuse them. Take Owl, he uses his knowledge for the sake of appearing wise and superior, he doesn't share his knowledge with the others.

The basic idea of the book is knowing your own limitations and listening to your 'inner nature', it can be very positive and beneficial to your own happiness.

I love this book and would recommend it to anybody, 'Winnie the Pooh' lover or not. I already know that my sister will benefit from reading this book. This book is a great resource for bringing yourself back down to Earth and to listen to that inner nature because sometimes life gets shitty but if you just take some tips from Pooh, things don't seem so bad after all!

“Things just happen in the right way, at the right time. At least when you let them, when you work with circumstances instead of saying, 'This isn't supposed to be happening this way,' and trying harder to make it happen some other way.” ― Benjamin Hoff, The Tao of Pooh

“There are things about ourselves that we need to get rid of; there are things we need to change. But at the same time, we do not need to be too desperate, too ruthless, too combative. Along the way to usefulness and happiness, many of those things will change themselves, and the others can be worked on as we go. The first thing we need to do is recognize and trust our own Inner Nature, and not lose sight of it.”― Benjamin Hoff, The Tao of Pooh

“You can't save time. You can only spend it, but you can spend it wisely or foolishly.”― Benjamin Hoff, The Tao of Pooh

“The play-it-safe pessimists of the world never accomplish much of anything, because they don't look clearly and objectively at situations, they don't recognize or believe in their own abilities to overcome even the smallest amount of risk.”― Benjamin Hoff, The Tao of Pooh

Keepin it freshhhh!

New blog title!

I was doing my best work, jogging and listening to my iPod when Bowie's 'Space Oddity' came on. I love this song. Great lyrics, great tune. For some reason I paid extra attention to it as I jogged down the beautiful streets of Brentwood.

The meaning behind the song gets very deep into alienation and perception but I like the words 'and the stars look very different today' as it has personal meaning for me. Our life is ever-changing and as my husband and I navigate ourselves through it we find that every day is different and amazing and there is no excuse to not make your life awesome because you never know when you might get up one day and have an offer to move to Canada, and the stars definitely look different there.

Wedding rings and gold bling!

 

  

    

US Immigration: Hurdle, Numero Uno

Don't let the huge stack of US Immigration paperwork leave you feeling like this...

After a week of filling out forms, reading instructions on how to fill out forms, gathering birth and marriage certificates and any other type of form, print out, certificate, photo, phone bill, movie ticket, dinner receipt, hand drawn love note or other significant type of 'relationship' evidence you can think of  we finally submitted my US Immigration paperwork which will grant me permanent residency, WOO! Now we patiently await their response.  

Out with old... In with new

Every so often I get dressed and wear something I haven't worn in a while for the sole reason of seeing whether its good enough to stick around or whether its taking a trip to Goodwill. So I was taking a look at the items in my wardrobe and realizing all of the multicolored hippie dresses with unstitched hems that I have cut myself and unflattering tops and dresses that I have kept because they hold some kind of sentimental value had to go.

After throwing them all in a plastic bag and then looking at all the now empty coat hangers it was obvious it was time for a serious think about a new look.

These ladies are my style inspirations...

   

My style goal...

• Good quality basics
• Feminine shirts
• Good black blazer
• Bold necklaces

My style never agains...

• Flip flops are for emergency liquor runs and beach only
• Every item of clothing must have stitched hem
• Don't buy it just because its $5
• And unfortunately it may be time to ditch the Goodwill and vintage shopping

Ditched at the cinema!

Fact of life # 4765... It's always cold in the cinema. I thought this was general knowledge. So when you go to the movies you always bring a jacket like when you go bowling you always wear pants, duh! Doesn't matter if its 108 degrees outside, you can absolutely count on that cinema being an icebox.

So last night when we went to see 'Shut up and play the hits' I was appropriately dressed for extreme a/c.

However, the woman next to us was not. She looked great in her super sunny, short sleeve dress but when she started rocking back and forth in her seat and rubbing her legs like she was sanding a table, this was my reaction...

This went on for a while before she picked up her bag and left her date at the movie by himself. Just up and left him there. Shocking, I know! A lovely evening ruined all because she didn't bring a jacket. 

Rules of the cinema... Sneak in your own candy and bring a freakin jacket.

Perfect relationship?

On our wedding night we went out for a lovely, romantic dinner. We were seated at a table between two other couples, at one table were an older couple holding hands and talking softly to each other and at the other table were a younger couple talking loudly and a little bit too aggressively I thought.

Further into our meal the older couple made a comment about our dinner and we started chatting. Barbera and Sandy had been married 52 years and were thrilled that we had just tied the knot. Sandy still had his original wedding ring and Barbera was referring us to Cartier. They were so sweet and said there was no secret to long lasting love and marriage. They would have sat and chatted with us all night but thought they should leave us to our marital feast.

At the other table and much further into the food and wine drinking the other couple were engaging in very passionate and aggressive conversation. I noticed that she wore a wedding ring and he didn't, my first thought was 'affair?' so I was surprised to hear when they asked us if we had any cigarettes that they had actually been married for 20 years. They were from Dublin and at first refused to believe we had just that afternoon been married. It took some convincing but once satisfied by the evidence we produced they congratulated us and tried to order champagne but the bar was 'closed' or maybe they had been cut off from the booze supply. They applauded our decision to have a civil ceremony with minimal witnesses and were more thrilled when we told them were the best places to drink and dance were.

After they left we looked at each other and thought 'wow!' Here we were placed between two married couples who were opposite ends of the personality scale. We could have been sat anywhere in that whole restaurant but fate or coincidence had put us at that table. What were we to learn from this experience? There is no perfect relationship, you have to go it at your own speed and do it your way and it really made me think about what is is that makes our relationship work so well. It was a truly humbling experience and one that makes me feel alive and so happy and blessed that I have found such an amazing person to spend my life with.

Just married this morning, how haaaappy they are!

Last week we got married! YAY! It was the greatest day.

We had the ceremony at the Beverly Hills Municipal Court because there was some greenery and I didn't feel like I was going to be robbed.

After we arrived and found out that they actually didn't have a reservation for us but would try to 'squeeze' us in, I tried not to go Bridezilla on the poor lady's ass. 

Once in the 'wedding chapel' we stood at the front and the butterflies and sweaty hands begun. She gave a short but memorable and beautiful ceremony. 

Then we kissed and we were husband and wife.

Happiness and love exploded out of us. It was a shame that we weren't in a Disney movie because this is definitely how our kiss would have looked......

99 reasons to read my blog

I have always put off starting up a blog mostly due to the criticism that some bloggers cop from the asses of society. But due to the following personal factors.. starting a new life in the US, being unemployed and wanting to do something other than watch Access Hollywood every day I started this blog. I want to write about my life, the great people in it and the things that interest me.

So heres my 99 (ish) reasons...

• I have a degree in Professional and Creative Communication that I should probably put to use.

• Hilariously awesome things happen on a daily basis.

• I'm married to my US husband so I'm in the process of migrating to the US... So I'm on a first name basis with possibly all of the call centre staff at USCIS Immigration... Pablos, immigration agent #45673 likes spaghetti and sangria. Needless to say my knowledge of US immigration is top notch.

• I like to nerd out on elephants. 

• My husband is awesome, he says awesome things that we repeat and turn into daily quotes

• I'm an Australian living in LA which is great and fun but sometimes frustrating and stressful. Thongs are flip-flops and Rocket is Arugula.. whaaat!

• I want to drink wine on Booze-day Tuesday with Cathy- Lee and Hoda.

'The fluke is the duke of soul' are lyrics to the Disney song 'Under the sea'. I named my blog this as my husband and I love the song and as a reminder to lighten up and sing some Disney songs.