NEW ZEALANDers heading to the US and their USC spouses - POST HERE!

[kiwiana 2]

OMG Ana .........what an experience at the DMV!!!!!! I can't believe it. You see all this awful stuff on tv and in the movies but the thought of being involved in any of it yourself is totally terrifying. Shows how badly you need the state ID!!! I can't believe you have to wait that long to get it, they gave me mine on the spot, but that's the difference between big and small town I guess. Where are you in California?

My hairdresser (where else would you get all your information from.....lol) was telling me that I shouldn't have too much trouble finding something as no-one here really wants to work (in this town), I'm sure she was generalising and there's plenty who do, but still, she said they have a devil of a job getting people who actually turn up. And it took 3 days for a plumber to come out on an urgent cal, apparantly they all bunk off to go hunting.....lol, can you believe it.

Have you tried looking on Craigslist for a job? They have plenty for Little Rock, being alot bigger than here, but they do have a few for Searcy still. I check there from time to time. They may have some for your area. It's funny Little Rock is only 35-40 mins away, no different than going from Waiuku to Manukau but here they all think it's a long way away.....lol

Anyways, I'm off to make low carb cheesecake

It wasn't until i saw all the people at the DMV that i realised just HOW many people there are in this area! ( I live in the orange county area) Crowds/lines like that you just wouldn't see in NZ.

It's weird because normally if someone had started shouting like that in a department in nz i probably wouldn't have given it a second thought but because you hear of people going crazy over here with guns etc, the first thing that entered my head was.. 'omg!! hope the guy isn't going to mow us all down in anger' And obviously i wasn't the only one thinking that as the whole place went dead quiet when it happened!

When i told my father-in-law afterwards about the lines and the long wait, he told me that apparently the DMV is closed on Fridays here due to saving money as the state is in so much debt so maybe that is the reason why it was so crowded on the Monday. I sure as heck hope thats the reason, as i don't think my nerves could stand waiting there again for an hour and a half when i eventually go and sit my drivers test!!

Also, I don't know if its just me/an illusion or what but i find that drivers seem to drive must faster here than in NZ. Not sure if it is because most of the roads are in straight lines thus not the need to drive more slower to manouveure round tight corners etc or if its because they don't have to worry about wet slippery roads as it doesn't rain alot but that is defintiely one thing that i do notice.

what a great idea about craigslist and jobs!!! The silly thing is...is that i have been looking on craigslist for used cars without even thinking that they would have a job listing too!! duh!! I will definitely take a look!! thanks!!

It sounds really lovely where you live. And sounds like it shouldn't be a problem getting a job, which is great!!

There are a lot of people here in this area and i believe the unemployment in california is around 9-11% ??? or something like that.

My inlaws try to make me feel better when i get a bit down about not having a job. They say.. " don't worry, employers will jump at the chance of hiring you as you have such a lovely accent!!!" LOL!!!

enjoy that low carb cheesecake!! mmmmm!! cheesecake!! delicious!!

[cdneh 3,112]

Application Type: I485, APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS

Current Status: Case Transfered to Another Office for Processing

On July 17, 2009, we transferred this case I485 APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS to our CALIFORNIA SERVICE CENTER location for processing and sent you a notice explaining this action. Please follow the instructions provided on the notice.

[ivannnaloveskiwi 0]

HI,

HIS FLIGHT IS SCHEADULED FOR AUGUST 9TH, HOPEFULLY HE CAN GET EVRYTHING SOLD AND ANY FINES HE HAS ,TAKEN CARE OF SO HE CAN LEAVE THE COUNTRY WITHOUT ANY TROUBLE...( LOL SEEMS HE GOT SOME TICKETS AFTER RETURNING FROM THE STATES... BAD BOY!!)..THEN WE HAVE A WEDDING TO PLAN..SOMETHING SMALL , QUICK AND EASY..OUTSIDE WE HOPE..AND THEN WE'LL BE ALMOST CAUGHT UP TO YOU ALL...LOL... AT LEAST I KNOW I HAVE YOU ALL TO HELP WITH THE AOS..HE ASKS ME ALL THESE QUESTIONS AND I HAVE NO ANSWERS.. I HAVE READ THROUGH THE THREAD AND HAVE PICKED UP ON A FEW THNGS. BUT I'LL WAIT ON THE QUESTIONS..HAHAHAH FOR NOW!ITS BEEN EASIER THIS TIME BEING AWAY FROM EACH OTHER KNOWING IT WON'T BE LONG BEFORE WE'RE BACK TOGETHER. I THINK WE WERE VERY LUCKY THAT EVERYTHING WENT THROUGH..AFTER READY UP ON THE HARDSHIP IT SEEMS MANY DIDN'T GET APPROVED.. MUST BE A SIGN THAT WE ARE MENT TO BE TOGETHER!!! HE'S SO WORRIED ABOUT THE DRIVING TEST..I CAN UNDERSTAND AFTER BEING IN NZ AND DRIVING MY SELF...LOL I DONT KNOW HOW MANEY TIMES I LOOKED THE WRONG WAY, THEN PULLED OUT ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE STREET..I HAD TO SERIOULY THINK ABOUT WHERE TO GO. I LOVED HOW YOU COULD NEVER GET LOST, EVERY STREET CORNER SHOWED YOU WHICH WAY TO GO..( AS LONG AS YOU KNEW WHERE YOU WERE GOING!)I NEVER IN MY LIFE SEEN SO MANEY ARROWS AND NOT ONLY FOR TOWNS BUT EVERYTHING, I THINK ONE SIGN POST I COUNTED LIKE 10 ARROWS..WE DONT HAVE THAT HERE.. ITS " HEY GOOD LUCK, HOPE YOU FIND IT" I LOVED NEW ZEALAND, I'LL MISS THE BLUEBIRD KIWI STYLE CHIPS AND THE PIES..BUTTER CHICKEN..MMMMMM.

[Kim & Chris 0]

Application Type: I485, APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS

Current Status: Case Transfered to Another Office for Processing

On July 17, 2009, we transferred this case I485 APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS to our CALIFORNIA SERVICE CENTER location for processing and sent you a notice explaining this action. Please follow the instructions provided on the notice.

Wahoo.....Congrats Cdneh, the gods must have heard you saying you'd already had your delay......that was super fast...lol

Ana if I had 5 bucks for everyone here who has said "I love your accent" I wouldn't be looking for a job.....lol Oh and the cheesecake was yum by the way

Ivannnaloveskiwi - not long to go now for you two, further down the track you'll wonder what all the fuss was about......lol and when you're doing AOS ask as many questions as you like, we'll only be too happy to help out if we can.

Honestly I don't know about arrows here, but I've never seen so many blimin stop signs in my life. When I first got here I wondered how the hell a 4-way stop sign would work, but amazingly enough they do. Ana it may be because we're in a smaller town, (about 20,000), but all the drivers are really curteous here and they don't speed by any means, mind you for a small place there sure is alot of cops here, state troopers, county sheriffs, city police.....it's all very confusing, and apparently some can nab you in one place but not others ......lol

[cdneh 3,112]

Ivanna ...what great news! I am happy the consulate treated you so well given what they put you through there, and wow! August the 9th looms!!!

Driving here is less of a shock for me, I am Canadian, so driving on the right is how I learned. I rented a car every year I went home on holiday, and sort of kept it up that way. However..I like driving on the left better

Still hot here, and no rain for ages. The lawns are getting all brown and bedraggled looking. Like me

[kiwiana 2]

Application Type: I485, APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS

Current Status: Case Transfered to Another Office for Processing

On July 17, 2009, we transferred this case I485 APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS to our CALIFORNIA SERVICE CENTER location for processing and sent you a notice explaining this action. Please follow the instructions provided on the notice.

Wow! Congratulations!! That was fast! They must be making up for all the hassle and hold ups they caused you during K1 process!

I can't quite understand the logic of the process of AOS. Some people get AOS without sending in I-693 or TB skin test and some get RFE for it.

I sent in I-693 but not the tb skin test (had the xray done in nz) so I am kinda worried about will happen at the interview.

If they say i do need a tb skin test, will they deny me at the interview because i didn't do one? And in all honesty i really don't want to have one done. As i read that some peoples results turn up positive if they got vaccinated against TB as a kid.

After reading LisaandTims experience at the interview, I am not looking forward to the interview at all.

Ivannaloveskiwi: You will both be together again very soon!! I bet August 9th can't come fast enough!!

kim&chris: Those 4 way stop signs look mighty confusing. But everyone is courteous and we all get through unscathed I think the drivers here are much more well behaved than in nz. I think people in nz suffer from road rage alot more which can be quite scary. They could learn a thing or two from the drivers here lol!

Another thing that i haven't figured out yet is converting mph to kms and the weather temperatures.

[kelzm 0]

Congrats Ivanna, glad to hear you're finally through that part of the process!

Ana - thanks for sharing the stories, made me smile. I live in a town of only 50,000 so the DMV wasn't too awful, there was still a queue of people though, but only about 20 of us in all. My driving test was simple. I do agree people seem to drive fast here. When I'm on the freeway most people seem to be driving at around 80, which is faster than I ever drove in NZ, even when I was speeding! But here if you aren't doing 70 (which is over the speed limit) you seem to be just holding everyone up.

I've found the opposite thing about commuting though. I live in a 'commuter' town and most people don't think anything of driving an hour for work. Unfortunately I'm coming up on being here a year and I've yet to find a job. I've had quite a few temp jobs, and now have some really good US references but I'm competing for every single job with 100's of people. It saddens me when I get interviewed for a job that pays $10 an hour, no benefits, and they tell me they got 400 applications for it.

Ah well, all you can do is smile and think that it can't get any worse. In fact, I'm pretty certain we're hitting rock bottom now and things are about to improve.

I did have good news in that I finally got an interview for a job in my actual field. Apparently 150 eligible people applied, which is huge in an industry that used to have trouble finding qualified candidates. But I've made it through the first lot of interviews and am scheduled for a second. So fingers crossed I've promised myself if I land a job I'm going to make a trip home sometime next year.

[cdneh 3,112]

Application Type: I485, APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS

Current Status: Case Transfered to Another Office for Processing

On July 17, 2009, we transferred this case I485 APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS to our CALIFORNIA SERVICE CENTER location for processing and sent you a notice explaining this action. Please follow the instructions provided on the notice.

Wow! Congratulations!! That was fast! They must be making up for all the hassle and hold ups they caused you during K1 process!

I can't quite understand the logic of the process of AOS. Some people get AOS without sending in I-693 or TB skin test and some get RFE for it.

I sent in I-693 but not the tb skin test (had the xray done in nz) so I am kinda worried about will happen at the interview.

If they say i do need a tb skin test, will they deny me at the interview because i didn't do one? And in all honesty i really don't want to have one done. As i read that some peoples results turn up positive if they got vaccinated against TB as a kid.

After reading LisaandTims experience at the interview, I am not looking forward to the interview at all.

Ivannaloveskiwi: You will both be together again very soon!! I bet August 9th can't come fast enough!!

kim&chris: Those 4 way stop signs look mighty confusing. But everyone is courteous and we all get through unscathed I think the drivers here are much more well behaved than in nz. I think people in nz suffer from road rage alot more which can be quite scary. They could learn a thing or two from the drivers here lol!

Another thing that i haven't figured out yet is converting mph to kms and the weather temperatures.

All I sent was the vaccination record I got from the consulate...so I am hoping they don;t want the darn thing transcribed

[Kim & Chris 0]

I can't quite understand the logic of the process of AOS. Some people get AOS without sending in I-693 or TB skin test and some get RFE for it.

I sent in I-693 but not the tb skin test (had the xray done in nz) so I am kinda worried about will happen at the interview.

If they say i do need a tb skin test, will they deny me at the interview because i didn't do one? And in all honesty i really don't want to have one done. As i read that some peoples results turn up positive if they got vaccinated against TB as a kid.

After reading LisaandTims experience at the interview, I am not looking forward to the interview at all.

Ivannaloveskiwi: You will both be together again very soon!! I bet August 9th can't come fast enough!!

kim&chris: Those 4 way stop signs look mighty confusing. But everyone is courteous and we all get through unscathed I think the drivers here are much more well behaved than in nz. I think people in nz suffer from road rage alot more which can be quite scary. They could learn a thing or two from the drivers here lol!

Another thing that i haven't figured out yet is converting mph to kms and the weather temperatures.

I sent in the copy of the vaccination sheet we were giving from the Auckland medical and I didn't have a TB test done. The only RFE I got was for hubby's evidence of employment information. I'm assuming they flick through all files upon receipt and send out the RFE's then if there's any.

I wouldn't worry about the TB test Ana, the interviews are the final thing before giving out GC and I'm pretty sure they don't schedule the apts for them until they're satisfied all your paperwork is in order. There would be no point otherwise

I can still remember mph ... just.....lol.... 30mph=50k, 50mph=80k, 65mph=100k or thereabouts, but I decided not to bother trying to convert it, they've got so many speed limit signs all over the place and they change all the time and they're in miles and the car speedo is in miles so there's really no need to convert I don't think.

As for the temperature, I still talk in celsius....lol drives them nuts but i have a widget thing on my desktop that shows the temps here for the next 5 days and you can quickly click on it to change it from celsius to fahrenheit and back again so I'm slowly picking it up and they slowly picking up celsius at the same time.......tis only fair.....lol It's funny because we were still in imperial when I was a small child, and some things like height measurement I still think of in inches and feet so it's really no biggie. They talk of weight in pounds though and when I mentioned stones and pounds they looked at me like I was talking a foreign language, they'd never heard of stones........lol

Edited July 19, 2009 by Kim & Chris

[kiwiana 2]

I sent in the copy of the vaccination sheet we were giving from the Auckland medical and I didn't have a TB test done. The only RFE I got was for hubby's evidence of employment information. I'm assuming they flick through all files upon receipt and send out the RFE's then if there's any.

I wouldn't worry about the TB test Ana, the interviews are the final thing before giving out GC and I'm pretty sure they don't schedule the apts for them until they're satisfied all your paperwork is in order. There would be no point otherwise

I can still remember mph ... just.....lol.... 30mph=50k, 50mph=80k, 65mph=100k or thereabouts, but I decided not to bother trying to convert it, they've got so many speed limit signs all over the place and they change all the time and they're in miles and the car speedo is in miles so there's really no need to convert I don't think.

As for the temperature, I still talk in celsius....lol drives them nuts but i have a widget thing on my desktop that shows the temps here for the next 5 days and you can quickly click on it to change it from celsius to fahrenheit and back again so I'm slowly picking it up and they slowly picking up celsius at the same time.......tis only fair.....lol It's funny because we were still in imperial when I was a small child, and some things like height measurement I still think of in inches and feet so it's really no biggie. They talk of weight in pounds though and when I mentioned stones and pounds they looked at me like I was talking a foreign language, they'd never heard of stones........lol

Thanks for the reassurance with the interview! My SO keeps telling me that everything is going to be fine but still can't help but be nervous....

Speaking of temperatures etc..... I too know feet and inches in height but nothing about miles (maybe when a kid the feet and inches sunk into my brain when we were in imperial for a short while but not the miles part)

The worst one i get stuck on is the weight of a person here in pounds. when people talk about it. i am like what the heck is that?

When i applied for the state ID card last week, i had to write my weight down on the application form.. I looked at my SO for help and he said..'hmm I don't know how much you weigh... 140 pounds'??

i looked at him rather offended by this large sounding amount in weight as i used to be around 56 kilos when i lived in nz and 140 sounds way too big a number!! I said to him.. 'i know i have put on weight but that sounds way too much!! LOL!

so i wrote 130 pounds!

The saga of looking for used cars continues.. today i inquired about one for sale. the pics in the ad looked pretty good.The guy on the phone said that the car was in great shape..nothing wrong with it at all!

so we decided to go and look at it. when we got there we found that half of the door handle on the drivers side was hanging off (the other half of the door handle was missing) and you couldn't open the door from the inside. A huge speaker in the door was dangling out, held on by a thread. so you had a gaping big hole in the side of the door panel. The air conditioning didn't work and it was a scorcher of a day today too! so an A/C is vital here!! I didn't stick around to see what else was wrong with it.

Thanks for the tip too Kim about jobs on craigslist. I had a look today and theres certainly more in my area on there then any other online job sites

[kiwiana 2]

Congrats Ivanna, glad to hear you're finally through that part of the process!

Ana - thanks for sharing the stories, made me smile. I live in a town of only 50,000 so the DMV wasn't too awful, there was still a queue of people though, but only about 20 of us in all. My driving test was simple. I do agree people seem to drive fast here. When I'm on the freeway most people seem to be driving at around 80, which is faster than I ever drove in NZ, even when I was speeding! But here if you aren't doing 70 (which is over the speed limit) you seem to be just holding everyone up.

I've found the opposite thing about commuting though. I live in a 'commuter' town and most people don't think anything of driving an hour for work. Unfortunately I'm coming up on being here a year and I've yet to find a job. I've had quite a few temp jobs, and now have some really good US references but I'm competing for every single job with 100's of people. It saddens me when I get interviewed for a job that pays $10 an hour, no benefits, and they tell me they got 400 applications for it.

Ah well, all you can do is smile and think that it can't get any worse. In fact, I'm pretty certain we're hitting rock bottom now and things are about to improve.

I did have good news in that I finally got an interview for a job in my actual field. Apparently 150 eligible people applied, which is huge in an industry that used to have trouble finding qualified candidates. But I've made it through the first lot of interviews and am scheduled for a second. So fingers crossed I've promised myself if I land a job I'm going to make a trip home sometime next year.

wow that is a lot of applicants for one job!! But it is great news that you made it through the first lot of interviews! hope you get the job!!

when you had the part time jobs. was it through a temping agency? if so, how does that work exactly? does the temping agency pay your wages directly to you or does your employer give you your wage? Does the agency take a cut of your wage? or do they charge your employer a fee?

[cdneh 3,112]

*insert sound ...pin dropping*

Where is everybody?

[kelzm 0]

Hey Ana, I've signed up with several temp agencies and have never received a single contract with them. My understanding of how they work is that they charge the company a certain amount ie $15 an hour, then they turn around and pay you $10. So they take their cut there. Which doesn't sound that appealing but a lot of places only offer their temp jobs through these services.

I have had all my temp jobs simply because I 'knew someone'. I kept getting told that's how things work around here, and it really seems to be true. I got a temp job for the county because the neighbour is in HR. That was only for 2 weeks, but now I'm on their temp list and they don't use temp agencies.

My semi permanent temp job I actually got after I'd gone in to volunteer at the local library. They offered me some part time hours instead. I recommend doing some volunteer work if no paid work turns up as I've found people want US references.

[Kim & Chris 0]

*insert sound ...pin dropping*

Where is everybody?

I'm here ......just been busy looking for jobs and babysitting the grandson while others are working etc

Have got another job interview tomorrow for an office admin job. Will let you all know how things go.

I asked someone about a job agency here and apparently they take money out of your first paycheck as payment.......is this how they work at home??? I thought they were free and charged the companies wanting the jobs filled.....beats me, Ive never used one before.

I think my I-485 was touched today, (sounds a bit rude), the dated changed to todays date but the status is still the same....Pending!!

The temp has cooled off a bit in the last few days, and it's been quite pleasant outside for a change....been able to sit out on the porch and have a coffee and watch the world go by....quite pleasant.......oh in saying that, one night last week there was a drive by shooting a couple of doors up...lol....... sounds bad i know but it really is generally a quiet pleasant little street here, during the day all you can hear are the locusts and birds outside. Seems it was a grudge against the mayor who lives there by some young guy. Was one shot only and thankfully no-one was hurt. Didn't hear a thing here though.

[kiwiana 2]

I'm still here too cdneh! It's been pretty hot here the last few days! Thanks Kelzm for the info on the job agencies. I was just curious about them but don't think i will enlist with them just yet. The volunteer idea is a very good one. I may consider that soon if nothing turns up in a few months time.

Like Kim&Chris, I have been looking for jobs but haven't applied for any more yet. Good luck with the job interview tomorrow Kim! That's good that your file was *touched* hopefully it will say 'approved' very soon!

Apart from the drive by shooting it sounds like a very peaceful place to live, with the sound of locust and birds! very relaxing in the evening. It sounds lovely