How to pass the time?

[Yensid 0]

I129-f is sent... how can my love and I pass the time without going completely nuts? Just looking for some advice from others. Any suggestions?

[redglasses 1]

Work and save $$$ for AOS and condition removal!

[Guitarlo 2]

I129-f is sent... how can my love and I pass the time without going completely nuts? Just looking for some advice from others. Any suggestions?

Well, I spent nearly two years talking to my spouse on a web cam up to 2x per day. Once in the evening and once in the morning. Due to the 12-13hr time difference it felt like we were not only on opposite ends of the world but time to. Many times we simply got bored. I suggest trying to play online games to help pass the time and I encourage your spouse to study American culture.

Good luck!

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

I129-f is sent... how can my love and I pass the time without going completely nuts? Just looking for some advice from others. Any suggestions?

I bought an old house and remodeled it completely. PLUS worked lots of overtime to sack up bonuses to pay for travle to visit her, AOS fees, her travle and the endless list of stuff you need to buy when a single for many years guy gets married with children. And I would need THREE huge frying pans with covers for WHAT???? I swept the last of the mess off the porch on my way to the airport to get Alla

[Krikit 1,164]

Moving from K-1 Process to K-1 Progress.

[kizza 1]

On my own, I try to do things that feel constructive towards my move there (like sorting through my stuff). Also I take classes with activities that truly distract me. While Im so focused, I stop thinking about how much I miss my fiancé and about all the stress that comes from the process. Great escape...

Matt finally got a webcam, and it has changed everything. We get to actually hang out together. Often at night he will watch tv while I read my book, and we both have our computer next to us. I love hearing his tv in the background or his silly laugh when there is something funny on tv.

We've had drinks together on Friday nights (it did feel silly at first to be toasting to the computer, but it's such a fun night!).

We've also tried to watch movies together, by renting the same film... but it is tricky to sync so you don't hear an echo.

Of course it not the same as being together and holding each other, but I love our evenings together. There's something really comforting about them.

[Leenie 15]

Assuming you two probably already talk a lot, the next best thing is seriously having a job. What a great way to make 40 hours a week go by! And to pull in the cash for your lives together! You might also try joining a gym or taking some classes!

[FrostyMist 1]

The first months after we sent off our I129F in March were hard. We'd been lucky enough to spend six months together prior to sending off the petition, and it was very difficult to adjust to going back to distance. My fiance came over here in June, and we spent three months together. Since he went back, we seem to have fallen into a routine and are coping better. I miss him so much that I can't even bear to think about how much I miss him, but as long as I keep myself busy(or at least distracted!) when we're not talking online, and we try NOT to stress about the visa too much when we do talk, then we're managing to pass the time fairly well.

Since September (when he went back to the US) my fiance has been keeping himself busy by preparing for my move over there. His family is renovating his mother's basement into a seperate apartment, where he and I will be living for a few years once we get our visa. The rest of the time, he just tries to keep as busy and productive as possible. As do I.

When we're together online, we talk. Sometimes, when both of us have had a slow day, it can be a bit difficult to find things to talk about. Then we watch something online. There are a lot of British shows that my fiance got to watch whilst he was over here, and discovered he really liked. So we watch many of those. Just finished watching old seasons of The Apprentice and Britain's Most Disgusting Foods on YouTube. We had great fun doing this together.

Edited November 22, 2009 by FrostyMist

[AandD 20]

In addition to all the great ideas mentioned we like to read the many funny and amusing threads in the VJ forum...

Edited November 23, 2009 by AandD

[Carolina+James 1]

Exercise yourself. You produce endorphin while doing exercises, and that hormone is "the hapiness" hormone. Believe me, sometimes a 30min walk can "solve" your problems. What I do is walk from my house to downtown and back, so I save the gym money. Don't let the rain shoo you away, go everyday! And good shoes are your best friend here.

Read to each other and play online games is the closer to do something actually together that we found, and helps very much!

The other ideas are also very good. Skype is a good program to do things together, since the computer to computer calls are free, with video and both have good quality.

[garfield529 47]

One thing that is not really a coping mechanism, but it is a creative idea for your relationship, is for one of you to have a small notebook to write in. I sent Yi a notebook (a small red Moleskine) back in february to use as a journal, but instead she has used it to keep track of the various topics we discuss. Over the summer we used it to create a list of things that we wanted to do on my next trip, and when I went earlier this month it was so great to have. I think when you are in love and not able to see the other person for long periods of time it is easy to have a kind of tunnel-vision and become forgetful. We had a check list to keep us organized and it also kept us from just hugging all the time....we had "chores" to do! haha And we are also making lists of things for the US: cities to visit, foods to try, new experiences. This may also help with some of the previously mentioned "boring" conversations....pull out the book and find something to add or think about. And at some point down the road when this whole "visa journey" is behind you...there are some great memories recorded and a point of reference for the couple that you have become. Anyway..just adding to the conversation.

[mitch.snyder 0]

On my own, I try to do things that feel constructive towards my move there (like sorting through my stuff). Also I take classes with activities that truly distract me. While Im so focused, I stop thinking about how much I miss my fiancé and about all the stress that comes from the process. Great escape...

Matt finally got a webcam, and it has changed everything. We get to actually hang out together. Often at night he will watch tv while I read my book, and we both have our computer next to us. I love hearing his tv in the background or his silly laugh when there is something funny on tv.

We've had drinks together on Friday nights (it did feel silly at first to be toasting to the computer, but it's such a fun night!).

We've also tried to watch movies together, by renting the same film... but it is tricky to sync so you don't hear an echo.

Of course it not the same as being together and holding each other, but I love our evenings together. There's something really comforting about them.

When you got to watch a movie or TV show together what I've found helpful is use Skype, but then plug in headphones... so you can still hear the show and each others reaction but you don't have to be 100% perfect when it comes to syncing the timing... every week we watch the shows that we have in common, this is some good quality time where you don't have to worry about coming up with new topics of conversation, you just relax and watch TV together (we have a website we go to, www.surfthechannel.com for all of our TV shows) it's wonderful!

[Beth wa Salim 0]

You can also start indexing all of the data you'll need to have compiled for the interview: copies of phone bills, chat logs, emails, photographs, forms, etc. Imagine having all of that organized and ready to go once you get your interview date. By that time you ought to be feeling like a cat on a hot tin roof, so doing it now while you are relatively calm could be a good diversion.

[kizza 1]

On my own, I try to do things that feel constructive towards my move there (like sorting through my stuff). Also I take classes with activities that truly distract me. While Im so focused, I stop thinking about how much I miss my fiancé and about all the stress that comes from the process. Great escape...

Matt finally got a webcam, and it has changed everything. We get to actually hang out together. Often at night he will watch tv while I read my book, and we both have our computer next to us. I love hearing his tv in the background or his silly laugh when there is something funny on tv.

We've had drinks together on Friday nights (it did feel silly at first to be toasting to the computer, but it's such a fun night!).

We've also tried to watch movies together, by renting the same film... but it is tricky to sync so you don't hear an echo.

Of course it not the same as being together and holding each other, but I love our evenings together. There's something really comforting about them.

When you got to watch a movie or TV show together what I've found helpful is use Skype, but then plug in headphones... so you can still hear the show and each others reaction but you don't have to be 100% perfect when it comes to syncing the timing... every week we watch the shows that we have in common, this is some good quality time where you don't have to worry about coming up with new topics of conversation, you just relax and watch TV together (we have a website we go to, www.surfthechannel.com for all of our TV shows) it's wonderful!

Nice, thanks! I'll check out that site, since I dont get tv and do miss watching some shows.

I dont think I can put headphones while watching movies... I'd have to plug them in the tv, across the room!

[Chris_Жанна 11]

Take up Heroin, I hear it takes up hours of time I hear.

But, I personally like crossword puzzles

Congrats on filing. Don't do drugs.