Just Turkish

[Melinda&Necmi 0]

Yes.. I am here I wasn't supposed to arrive until later today but.. when I was talking to Fuat, on Wedensday, he said "honey.. can't you come now??" So.. I called the airline, found a seat on a flight that was leaving, from Washington DC, in four hours so changed my ticket, ran out of my office.. ran home.. threw my stuff in a bag and left for the two hour drive to the airport His voice was just so sweet I couldn't resist. Good thing I had a few extra vacations days left and could just say "Hey, I'm leaving now." My original flight was out of Richmond, but it's worth the extra driving time to be able to be here a few days longer!!

Too bad EMU will be closed for break when I get to Michigan. I would love to sit in on the class. The one I took here was alright, but taught by an Engineering grad student and not someone who was really a teacher. Made it difficult sometimes. Spending the next few days with Fuat's family, so my limited Turkce will be put to the test

Good thing we all know how to flip through the dictionaries and point to words !!

Wow, how lucky you are to be able to do something like that Sometimes Necmi asks me to go to him. I would love to, but I can't even get away from my job in time to get to Turkish class on time!! Tonight we decided we will have class the 21st and the 28th. If you are up here let me know, maybe we can have coffee if nothing else:) I will email you my number this week.

My job is a huge stressor. I have been on the unit for not even two weeks as a graduate nurse and i am passing meds to the entire unit! It is really cutting into mine and Necmi's MSN time Which is probably a good thing, becuase I have been so stressed out at work I can be a bit snappy. I think spych nursing is going to cause me to go inpatient one day! I have been required to stay over two nights, which sucks for making plans. I need to look on the bright side...without this job there is NO way I could sponser Necmi with all 5 of my kids.

I hope you are having a great time. Hey, when you get back maybe we can practice our Turkish writing on each other. See ya

[Jenn and Fuat 2]

Wow, how lucky you are to be able to do something like that Sometimes Necmi asks me to go to him. I would love to, but I can't even get away from my job in time to get to Turkish class on time!! Tonight we decided we will have class the 21st and the 28th. If you are up here let me know, maybe we can have coffee if nothing else:) I will email you my number this week.

My job is a huge stressor. I have been on the unit for not even two weeks as a graduate nurse and i am passing meds to the entire unit! It is really cutting into mine and Necmi's MSN time Which is probably a good thing, becuase I have been so stressed out at work I can be a bit snappy. I think spych nursing is going to cause me to go inpatient one day! I have been required to stay over two nights, which sucks for making plans. I need to look on the bright side...without this job there is NO way I could sponser Necmi with all 5 of my kids.

I hope you are having a great time. Hey, when you get back maybe we can practice our Turkish writing on each other. See ya

In the hotel, waiting for Fuat to get off work.. still have another hour to wait and just trying to stop the waterworks before he gets here. He hates when I cry when I am leaving... not flying out until tomorrow morning, but trying to get it out of my system now so he won't see it

Spent the last three days with his family, none of whom speak English, and he was at work until about 9:00pm every night. Very interesting, but it did help my Turkish to improve a bit. I actually understood an entire 3 minutes of a soap opera I watched with his mother

Mindy, I will be in Michigan the 19th -29th... then flying out to Vegas to see my Dad and spend New Years with him. Would love to go with you to the class on the 21st. Won't be able to go the 28th.

So many nurses here! My mother is a nurse, and my sister was in nursing school before she became ill ( We lost her two years ago).. they always wondered why I didn't want to follow in their footsteps, but I can't even watch when someone takes a sliver out of my fingers.. so nursing was out for me:) Amusement parks are more to my liking!!

I give all of you a lot of credit for choosing such a profession! I know it's not easy. When my sister was ill, and finally able to leave the hospital and come home, I learned how to change IV's, tube feedings, bed pans, catheter bags ( I think that's what they are called) and give meds. I know how draining it can be to be a caregiver, even if it's for someone you love, and since that time I have made sure to treat every nurse who has had to care for me with the utmost respect!

You are all truly angels!

[Der Bücherwurm 1]

Good luck Der Bücherwurm ! I wish you a quick and easy interview ! hopefully you won't have to through AP !

Thanks. Unfortunately we were put on AP. They were in an APish kind of mood this morning. There were loads of Iranians in line ahead of us and all of them either got AP, an RFE or denied altogether. My mother is crushed. She was hoping we might be able to make it home for the holidays. I hope it won't be a long AP.

[Melinda&Necmi 0]

Wow, how lucky you are to be able to do something like that Sometimes Necmi asks me to go to him. I would love to, but I can't even get away from my job in time to get to Turkish class on time!! Tonight we decided we will have class the 21st and the 28th. If you are up here let me know, maybe we can have coffee if nothing else:) I will email you my number this week.

My job is a huge stressor. I have been on the unit for not even two weeks as a graduate nurse and i am passing meds to the entire unit! It is really cutting into mine and Necmi's MSN time Which is probably a good thing, becuase I have been so stressed out at work I can be a bit snappy. I think spych nursing is going to cause me to go inpatient one day! I have been required to stay over two nights, which sucks for making plans. I need to look on the bright side...without this job there is NO way I could sponser Necmi with all 5 of my kids.

I hope you are having a great time. Hey, when you get back maybe we can practice our Turkish writing on each other. See ya

In the hotel, waiting for Fuat to get off work.. still have another hour to wait and just trying to stop the waterworks before he gets here. He hates when I cry when I am leaving... not flying out until tomorrow morning, but trying to get it out of my system now so he won't see it

Spent the last three days with his family, none of whom speak English, and he was at work until about 9:00pm every night. Very interesting, but it did help my Turkish to improve a bit. I actually understood an entire 3 minutes of a soap opera I watched with his mother

Mindy, I will be in Michigan the 19th -29th... then flying out to Vegas to see my Dad and spend New Years with him. Would love to go with you to the class on the 21st. Won't be able to go the 28th.

So many nurses here! My mother is a nurse, and my sister was in nursing school before she became ill ( We lost her two years ago).. they always wondered why I didn't want to follow in their footsteps, but I can't even watch when someone takes a sliver out of my fingers.. so nursing was out for me:) Amusement parks are more to my liking!!

I give all of you a lot of credit for choosing such a profession! I know it's not easy. When my sister was ill, and finally able to leave the hospital and come home, I learned how to change IV's, tube feedings, bed pans, catheter bags ( I think that's what they are called) and give meds. I know how draining it can be to be a caregiver, even if it's for someone you love, and since that time I have made sure to treat every nurse who has had to care for me with the utmost respect!

You are all truly angels!

Thank you so much Jenn. Nothing I have ever experienced as a nurse has come close to that of helping a loved one on this journey. It can be the most rewarding yet exhausting and painful time. I commend you for helping your sister in this special time in her life.

Oh, how I know those last nights:( I don't even try to contain, you rock for the effort:D Have a safe and tear-free flight home. I can't wait to see you on the 21st:) OH NO, now that I think of it, I pray I don't work that day!! If I do, come hell or high water..or mandated overtime...I will do my best to be there on time. I think I will still be on 8 hour shifts at that time though:)

[Gil + Pel 2]

Good luck Der Bücherwurm ! I wish you a quick and easy interview ! hopefully you won't have to through AP !

Thanks. Unfortunately we were put on AP. They were in an APish kind of mood this morning. There were loads of Iranians in line ahead of us and all of them either got AP, an RFE or denied altogether. My mother is crushed. She was hoping we might be able to make it home for the holidays. I hope it won't be a long AP.

I am sorry you guys are in AP now like you said, hopefully it will be a short one !

Good luck!

[ErikaAndHamit 73]

Oh damn it for AP!! I am so sorry. Thanks Jenn about the nursing speech thing above. Did your sis have cancer?

[Jenn and Fuat 2]

Oh, I am so sorry to hear about the AP! I am terrified this is going to happen to us.. My friend who works in the Turkish Government has assured me he checked and his name is not red flagged, but his name is the same as several people with Criminal records.. so I am really worried about this. I hope you won't be in AP long.

Wish I could say the trip home was tear-free.. but it wasn't. Today is worse I think. Waking up and knowing he's not here in the house really sucks..

Erika, yes.. my sister had Leukemia (AML) and there were several complications. Do not want to get everyone in a depressed mood, so won't give all the details.. but turns out she had a clot in her brain that was missed when we were getting ready for the bone marrow transplant ( I was her donor). She had really bad headaches, but they kept assuming it was because of the chemo, or the spinal tap or the countless other things that had gone on that week.. she had two strokes a week after the transplant. Lost all mobility on her right side and the vision in her left eye. Lost her speech, for a while, and couldn't remember our names for a long time. I lived in the hospital with her for almost a year. We were able to take her to my mom's house almost a year after the transplant. She had been going through physical therapy, had gotten her speech back and memory was improving, was learning to walk again and we were pretty hopeful.. but then the AML came back. She passed away 54 weeks after her original diagnosis.

We always wonder about the "what if's" if they had caught the clot.. but then she wouldn't have been able to have the transplant, so either way the result would have been the same.. but maybe the quality of life would have been better.

Now that anyone reading this is depressed, I will tell you a story that may put a smile on your face. I truly believe my sister led me to Fuat somehow. When she was living in the hospital, before the strokes, she had a beautiful, green butterfly that hung in her window. One day we were talking about how much she loved butterflies and she told me that if anything ever happened to her she would send me a butterfly and I should watch for it. I told her to stop talking like that and that everything was going to be fine. She just said "Jenn.. watch for it."

I met Fuat 7 months after she passed away. One day, we were talking on the computer and he said "I am sending you a butterfly". I had goosebumps all over and could barely breath and I asked him why he would say something like that. He said he didn't know.. just had this really strong feeling that he had to tell me he was sending me a butterfly.

I had been having some doubts about the whole, crazy getting involved with someone on the other side of the world idea... but took that as a message from my sister that I was doing the right thing..

[Der Bücherwurm 1]

Awww, so sweet about the butterfly.

Hopefully, none of you will get AP or that the AP will be short. Maybe Santa will be dropping lumps of coal in certain CO's stockings this year.

[ErikaAndHamit 73]

Wow Jenn..that was some story...how difficult...doesn't get any rougher than that...and you were her donor, what a great sister you are! what got me is that butterfly story...gave me goosebumps...wow! I do believe in the supernatural...wow how cool! Thanks for sharing!

I know it's a long way off from Feb 23rd! How sad...I know the feeling Jenn...but once he is here as long as you remember these times apart and are grateful all other problems seem to fall to the side!

[Gil + Pel 2]

I am sorry for your loss Jenn... I think it does not get any easier... May God bless you and the rest of your family.

butterfly story really got me too! wwwwooooowwww!!! I don't think there is a better way to show that you guys are meant to be together since he did not even have the slightest idea about what butterflies mean to you!I know I will sound like repeating you guys but I really had goosebumps too!

Hopefully you guys will have a smooth interview experience!

[Der Bücherwurm 1]

So what is everyone that can't be with their family for the holidays going to do on Christmas? I'll chat with my family on webcam to cheer them up. My mom says she'll keep the tree and decorations up til February if she has to so we can celebrate Christmas whenever we do arrive. They're even keeping some turkey, sweet potato casserole and asparagus casserole in the freezer to make for us so we won't miss out on the traditional meal. My husband plans on making me my favorite Persian dish, Fesenjun, with turkey instead of the usual chicken Christmas Day. Then I'll treat him to the movie, 'Avatar', since he wants to see it. The next day is our 1 year anniversary so we will eat out. We will probably go to the Ikea restaurant and share a plate of Norwegian salmon and Swedish meatballs with potatoes, etc. I used to live in Norway so I miss some of the foods from there and he's acquired a taste for it too. And of course there will be lots and lots of pistachio baklava. Yum.

Edited December 20, 2009 by Der Bücherwurm

[tanyakaraman 0]

Wow Jenn, your butterfly story gave me goosebumps too! Such a beautiful thing to come out of a tragedy. That is a story to tell your kids & grandkids for sure!!

Tanya

[tanyakaraman 0]

Merry Christmas Everyone! Just thought I'd share a pic of Ozzy and baby Defne

[Jenn and Fuat 2]

Merry Christmas Everyone! Just thought I'd share a pic of Ozzy and baby Defne

The picture is so cute!!!!!

[nicole&efe 0]

Hi Everyone, I just wanted to introduce myself to this forum because VJ seems like the best support out there for this whole process. I'm a USC and my fiance is from Turkey. We met 2 years ago when we were both exchange students in Spain and we've been best friends ever since. For the past few months I was in Turkey (Kusadasi to be exact) and before I left, he proposed! I couldn't be happier. But unfortunately Efe just began his military service (short term, he'll be out in May). Before I left Turkey I told him that I could handle most of the visa forms on my own. Little did I know how overwhelming this would be, especially doing it completely on my own (+ the help from VJ). That's it! Has anyone attempted to start visa process while their fiance/husband was in the army? Anyone from the Philadelphia area?