Daily Musings - page 18

Hi Carrie - I know the humzingers hang, but they are quite stable as compared to the balloon or bottle type. I'd love to have the sculpture type w/multiple colored glass globes but that is just silly here. You can't imagine how many windmills I've gone through. Yesterday my DH & I had to go next door to rescue my DS 30 ft. tent which was staked (we thought) securely. Off it flew, over a 6 ft. fence, past trees and gardens and wood piles. No damage to the neighbors property, did blow their minds with thoughts of aliens landing in their pool, and the tent stayed all together with only a few tears. Very lucky, but it was a darn thing to take apart to get home. DS was working. The stake sounds good but I have many flowers in the gardens the hummers enjoy, and I hang their feeders off the deck outside my bedroom and living room windows for ease of viewing. Have a great day.

Wow, Daisey - that's quite a breeze!! I can't imagine what the neighbors thought at the sight of it. A 30-foot tent is quite heavy.....My goodness!

DB - fortunately the neighbors drink, and they are used to strange flying things (only kidding) but it's not that extreme all the time, but we do have a breeze just about 350 days a year. It is delightfull for 3 seasons. Each month when the electric bill arrives I remind my DH of the cottage wind turbines. He still doesn't take me seriously....yet. :)

Funny, Daisey!! Where is Assonet??? I don't recognize it ...on the shore or at the Cape?
The breeze sounds lovely if you can batten down the hatches sufficiently! :)

Carrie - I can just picture your 13-year-old with her hummer alert. Cute!

As to hummer feeders on a stake.......I can't say Ican picture it. I've only had the ones that hang. I have one hanging right next to where I sit on our screened porch. It is just on the other side of the screen. We eat breakfast and lunch there, and the hummers are so close I can actually feel the breeze from their wings when they feed. You get to where you can recognize them individually, and it is fun to see their different behavioral characteristics....some sit side-saddle on the perch and some just prefer to flutter and drink. Of course, I can relate to that. I tend to flutter when I drink too. That's why I don't....actually. :)

DB we are near Fall River. We are on a quiet (but windy) little bay (if you have a big enough boat you can go anywhere in the world from my backyard.). The moon tide drops the bay to a small stream at low tide, so we do not get a lot of party boating in our bay. It is a little piece of heaven. I have even rescued a whale which stuck in the low tide out back. Now that was a thrill.

Wow, that is thrilling Daisey. Good for you.

Yeah, everybody, good stories! The idea behind the staked feeders was that I wouldn't have to ask DH to drill another hole. We have a patio with only so many eaves to put holes in. I've always hated Fall River - it's great to hear there's a lovely place down that way!

xxx, Carrie

Daisy, That is amazing!

How very cool, Daisey! Did the whale have a golf ball in its blowhole??? (Sorry, made me think of the Seinfeld episode about the whale with Kramer's golf ball and George the fake marine biologist) Seriously - that is really something! How lovely to live right on the bay! It does sound like a little piece of heaven!

DB it was amazing. My neighbor called and told me he thought there was a dolphin stuck in the Bay. I checked with the binoculars and the poor thing seemed to have blisters on it's back from baking in the sun. My son called LLoyds (a local conservation group) and N.E. Aquarium (both got lost and arrived hours later.) He then started stringing hoses together. I took a beach towel and went out in the canoe. As I approached her , she flipped her tail up. Thats when I realized we were only seeing her head and that it was a whale!! I was no more than 2 feet away from her for a couple of hours. I covered her with my towel and kept splashing her. Jay was able to spray her with the hoses also. She sprayed me a couple of times. I think she was returning the favor. When the tide rose she swam off (with my beach towel). It's one of my most precious memories.

Daisey:

That the most beautiful story that I have heard in a long time.

I can see why it would be one of your favorite memories.....that was a once in a life time experience!

Fantastic story daisy. You were so lucky to have had that experience. Certainly worth the price of a towel!

Well, I just received notice from the Dept of Labor that my application of June 2004 has been rejected and I have until Sept 20th to offer a rebuttle. I need their approval to apply to INS for permanent residency or we will have to leave the country next August. sigh . . . man, oh, man, if the gods want us to be here, they had better get working on this . . .

Whoa - good luck!

Thanks - this is very stressful. We have a home here, a career, been actively involved with our neighbourhood - and now we face being tossed out. DH is going to explode when I tell him.

Best wishes for you to navigate all the red tape and get a positive outcome. :)

Thanks - this should be interesting. . . . I wonder how much the lawyer is going to cost now . . .

Get the college people and some local politicians to lend support.

We'll all write you letters of recommendation - won't we, guys?

xxx, Carrie!

I've had experience with this with a colleague. Letters from individuals are meaningless to them.

Thanks Carrie, I really appreciate your support, but I think Victor is correct. This is a bureaucrat who is simply following the rules, trying to make a living and support his/her family. My mistake was the application was done by me - which means I am an easy target to reject. I obtained a lawyer this spring when since my time frame for legally staying in the US was quickly dwindling. She can stress out over this - that's what she is getting paid for. I am trying not to stress out. I am trying to stay positive, and assume that with new paper work from an immigration lawyer, things will be swiftly approved - then we can start fighting with the bureaucracy at Immigration and Naturalization! What fun!

Actually, I was trying to be virtually supportive; the government rarely cares about what Jane Q. Public thinks! But you'll still have time to help me with my dahlias, right? (It's ok if you don't.)

xxx, Carrie

Of course I will help you with the dahlias :-) And virtual support is really appreciated :-)

:-))))

Oh Michaela! I am floored! Do I understand correctly? You made the application in 2004, and they turn around and give you such a short time to prepare a rebuttal? Or am I just one that doesn't understand how this all works?

I will put you and your HBL on my prayer list and see if we can't get something positive from a higher authority.

Hang in there, Michaela! Dealing with those bureaucracies is a nightmare! I hope your lawyer is successful and soon, so you won't be hanging out there by your fingernails waiting to hear something. I will join Candyce's appeal as well.........

Daisey - I'm in awe of your whale story. It is just incredible, and I would love to have been there too! Have you seen the independent film, "The Whale Rider"? If you can rent it, do....it is such a quality film. It wasn't out in the theaters and we just stumbled across it. You of all people would really enjoy it! I save even the flies that get trapped inside.......:)

I saw The Whale Rider in the $3 movie theater - it IS well woth seeing!

Thank you. I was unaware of the movie. I will get it. Seandor, good luck with your battle.

Got a couple bug pics for you Andy

hoverfly

some kind of fly

Great hoverfly shot, Al!

You have a way of making bug shots really pretty, Al.....go figure!!

Yeah! Whale Rider is a great movie! Thanks for your support, guys.

Yes- you understand perfectly Candyce. The Dept. of Labor received our application on June 24, 2004 - but was in the process of changing some aspect of the system - anyway, instead of hearing by Sept. of 2004, my application was put into "back-log" (which is essentially true physical evidence of a "black hole"). I contacted them in Feb. of 2005 and was told I was in "back-log"; given a phone number to contact, and told "good luck reaching anybody" Truer words were never spoken. I called countless times and never was able to talk to anyone.

Didn't want to appear ungrateful, so I didn't contact again until June of 2005, then again in Sept, 2005, and again in Feb. 2006, and in June of 2006 (always being told I am in back log and "for sure it would be dealt with in the next 4 months . . .) In June of 2006, I contacted the office of the local Federal Congressman. A member of his staff was able to reach someone who stated they would deal with the file in 7 days. Well, 7 days later, the guy had retired, and the woman responsble for the file, simply put it back into backlog. In February, (because I am a slow learner) it finally occurred to me that no one was going to pay any attention to my file unless I got a lawyer. So the lawyer was able to reach someone, and was assured the file would be dealt with before September - which this time it was - but of course all the information no longer jives with 2007 expectations (e.g. the Dept of Labor is trying to protect American workers; this is a good thing to do.) The Dept wants to make sure that alien workers are not undercutting the wages of Americans - but unfortunately, the dept rejected my ap in part because my salary appeared to be sooo much lower than the average for my profession. But the wages were 2004 - and for a 9 month contract (profs don't get paid for 12 months of work). So rather than do the quick calculation to figure a) the comparable annual wage based on 12 months of work, and b) compare to 2004 wages (since the delay was their fault), the Dept. simply rejected it out of hand.

This is partially my fault as well. When we first entered the US in 2002, I should have immediately applied for permanent residence, but I was under the impression that I could not leave the country after I applied until I received a decision as to whether I would receive permanent residency. I wanted to go to my parents 50th wedding anniversary in 2004, so I delayed my application. Then when I applied, I found out that since more than 18 months had passed, I would have to reapply to the Dept. of Labor for approval for permanent employment in the US. You know the rest of the story . . . sigh.

I am in a better position than others, I can still work in the country under NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) - but it requires I have a residence in Canada, I pay taxes in both countries, and David (DH) will never be able to work in the US. We have been living on my wages alone, waiting for permanent residency so DH might work at least part-time.

Okay . . . my apologies to anyone still reading this . . . don't want to sound too whiney. It is really weird that American people are soooo great and American bureaucracy is soooo difficult.

And yes, I have until Sept 20th to rebut (their term).

Incredible! Best of luck, once again. Catch-22 lives.

Michaela - Victor's suggestion is a good one. You need some local clout behind you....talk to your college administrators and the state senator & congresspersons for your area. I think that is key. I have known that to make all the difference. Good luck!

You guys are great! I feel better already :-)

Well, the college administration is on board since the college is technically the applicant - applies to the Dept of Labor for permission to hire a non-American on a permanent basis. But I will follow up (again) with the local federal congressman. We contacted the state senator before, but we were told that she would have no influence on what is a federal jurisdiction.

No - Congressman and Senators are the only ones who can help.

Well, Ted Kennedy is supposed to be on the committe regarding immigration . . . ummm, anybody close, personal friends with the Kennedys?

Seandor, I hate to sound hokey but would it help to contact someone like the TV channel 10, Susan (something) who intervienes when people have hit a stone wall? Perhaps they only deal with consumer issues, but it may be worth a try. I'm worried for you. Good luck