cjgator

The people that you hear say they are processing june and july are feeding you a line of BS. If someone with those dates is getting processed it is because they got blindly lucky and slid into the system. Both national and VSC have agents have reported directly to me on the phone over numerous discussions within the last 10 days that they are presently processing March, and all you have to do is look at the numerous posts of people waiting on this website, or go to Igor's list to see who is waiting and who has just been approved and you will see where the timeline is at. My NOA1 for my I 129F was 4-4, and my case was just sent to an officer on 11-1. Another guy, CJ Vasani, has dates very close to me also and was just assigned an officer on 10-28.

Unless you get really lucky (which is always a possibility), you should probably be planning one, or two more trips over. VSC is still mid-way through the march filers, and they are just beginning to get to the april filers now. Their processing time, although they show on the wbesite now as 6 months, is really somewhere closer to 7.5 - 8.5 months. And there are some who are even outside of that timeline. You should consider yourself a very fortunate person if you are approved before March 2009.

I have been following the processing timelines shown for Vermont

as they have changed from May to April and then to March. Are they really

working? My petition date is August and I am wondering if I should be planning

another trip to visit my wife or if Vermont is actually going to do something

to process the petitions they receive, or if we need to ask if USCIS will

consider transferring the massive workload these people suffer, to

California who seems to be either performing or they have a light

workload. Any ideas?

I was just wondering how you know its going to take 7-8 months? Where did you find that out? Cause there are peopel on here saying they are processing June and July? So im just very confused and not sure who to believe

Rock on, MM.. great stuff.

Hey CJ-Vasani - when you read this. It's CJgator. Any new word? I've had nothing on mine either since the notice that it was sent to an officer on 11-1. I am seeing now that the agents at VSC and National are becoming more and more of a pain in the a*s and not willing to divulge anything. I have run into brick walls for the last 2 days, after a successful information gathering day on Monday.

MESSAGE TO ALL OF US - WHETHER YOU LIKE OBAMA OR NOT (AND I VOTED FOR MCCAIN, BECAUSE OF TAXES, AFTER A LONG STRUGGLE ON ON THE DECISION), I HAVE GREAT CONFIDENCE HE IS THE BETTER MAN TO HELP ADVANCE OUR CAUSE ON THIS WHOLE IMMIGRATION ISSUE.

Take it easy.

-CJ

I'm so scared and happy. Finally, we received our approvals ! It's hard to believe. Please update on the time line (11/3--APPROVED for both I-129F & I-130. Ironically, this notice came a week after I sent letters to the Comgressional members of the USCIS Oversight Committee--nine senators & my state's Rep. Do you guys remember the letter I posted here for others to use? I think that had something to do with our positive response after this long period. I don't know what to do next. Good luck to you guys and read the letter; it's with my posts. All the best--Amor1

Unless you get really lucky (which is always a possibility), you should probably be planning one, or two more trips over. VSC is still mid-way through the march filers, and they are just beginning to get to the april filers now. Their processing time, although they show on the wbesite now as 6 months, is really somewhere closer to 7.5 - 8.5 months. And there are some who are even outside of that timeline. You should consider yourself a very fortunate person if you are approved before March 2009.

I have been following the processing timelines shown for Vermont

as they have changed from May to April and then to March. Are they really

working? My petition date is August and I am wondering if I should be planning

another trip to visit my wife or if Vermont is actually going to do something

to process the petitions they receive, or if we need to ask if USCIS will

consider transferring the massive workload these people suffer, to

California who seems to be either performing or they have a light

workload. Any ideas?

D & L:

I saw your timeline. You are definitely within the timeframes to submit the inquiry request. Do it at national, not VSC, and keep trying until you get an agent who will help you. If you do do not get any help, I would suggest calling an immigration attorney. It sounds like you are being shafted by people who are not willing to take the time to see where you are in the approval process.

How were you able to submit a request for status or formal inquiry? I am at 7.5 months (I-130 3/14, I-129F 3/20). I called the VSC and tried to submit a formal inquiry. I was told by an agent that they do not do this at VSC and that I had to call the NSC. I told the agent that I tried that already and they would not accept my request because (according to the NSC) I was not outside the normal processing time. The agent said there was nothing they could do. I asked what is the unofficial status of my case. I was told it is still in the queue waiting. So I asked the agent, "How is it that my case has not been assigned, whereas cases with later receipt dates have been assigned and approved?" The agent said that she had no idea why and that there was nothing she could do. So I asked what are my options. The agent said to call back again in 2 weeks. They act like they are doing me a favor just talking to me. I pay taxes and processing fees and get crappy services. I guess my next move is to begin contacting senators and congressman.

This is for an I-129F K3. Looking for feedback from those who know!!

Any of you who may have some inside dope about this, I'd really appreciate your feedback. Today I called VSC and spoke with an agent. I'm at 7 months as of today, and I was granted my formal request for status last Monday (10/27). Today, the VSC agent followed up on my status confirmation number, and he told me that my case had been assigned to an agent. When I asked what that meant with regards to time, he said he could not be specific, but he said that it was a good thing and that I probably did not have much longer of a wait before I heard word. He said the majority of time a case is in the system, it is waiting to be assigned, and once it is assigned, the timeframe to an answer is relatively short.

If any of you have history with this, can you confirm what he's saying is legit, and if so, any guess on how long that "magic window" may be?

Thanks for the input, and good luck to you all.

-CJ

Desi based on what's going on with my case, I think the Visa Journey projection for my I-129F may be pretty good. The range they are projecting for an approval is between 11/10 and 11/25. Seeing how my case when to an officer at VSC on 11/1, that may be reasonable.

-CJ

Desiman i really hope we see something!! you and i have almost identical timelines!

Yep, I notice that. I am crossing fingers for approval by Thanksgiving, if not early. I wish the same for you, or of course, sooner!

How much to rely on the timeline for your individual case that we see on VJ?

I saw one guy say in the other thread that his came 11 days after he made a call to VSC and they told him his was in the queue to be assigned, but it hadn't been assigned just yet. That was a pretty recent approval too. That's what I was hoping we could find out from some others who have gotten that far. Maybe it's just a couple of weeks - I don't know, I sure would like to think it could come that quickly.

Well, Cj-V, as I think you know from our chat on the other thread, VSC and National told me today that my case got assigned to an officer on 11/1. The agent at national told me that they were not necessarily going to post the "touches" on our web accounts for interim movements like that, that more and more they are just updating when the approval comes, and sometimes that doesn't even get updated. Seems like calls may be an equal or maybe a better way to find out if the case is moving through the system - of course, that assumes one gets a helpful agent on the phone (which, as well all know, is far from a lead-pipe lock).

I'm watching the events of your case real closely now, seeing how you were assigned an agent 4 days ahead of me. Please share when you get the good news.

hopefully I will be able to post my approval soon... trying to remain positive!

Yes. According to my congressman, my I-129F was in an officer's hands on 10/28. Not sure how long it would take for an approval, but I am dying here with anxiety given this added uncertainty at the finish line. Like you said, there is no indication online whether my file has been looked at or not.

How long do you think the officer takes to adjudicate after a file has been assigned to them?

Well, Cj-V, as I think you know from our chat on the other thread, VSC and National told me today that my case got assigned to an officer on 11/1. The agent at national told me that they were not necessarily going to post the "touches" on our web accounts for interim movements like that, that more and more they are just updating when the approval comes, and sometimes that doesn't even get updated. Seems like calls may be an equal or maybe a better way to find out if the case is moving through the system - of course, that assumes one gets a helpful agent on the phone (which, as well all know, is far from a lead-pipe lock).

I'm watching the events of your case real closely now, seeing how you were assigned an agent 4 days ahead of me. Please share when you get the good news.

hopefully I will be able to post my approval soon... trying to remain positive!

For the record, when I made my follow-up call today to national to confirm what VSC told me, I asked the agent about the whole "touches" issue, and should we expect to see a change on our USCIS online accounts when the case is assigned to agent. Her answer was not necessarily, in many cases they are no longer reporting that sort of interim movement information on the electronic accounts. That answer seems to jibe with what I have heard a lot of people saying lately, that they just got their approval notice in the mail - or they found out by chance when they called in to talk to an agent. I guess the message there is, don't ignore reported info on a touch, but don't get too hung up on it if there's nothing new there. Callying and constantly annoying seems to be the best option.

This is for an I-129F K3. Looking for feedback from those who know!!

Any of you who may have some inside dope about this, I'd really appreciate your feedback. Today I called VSC and spoke with an agent. I'm at 7 months as of today, and I was granted my formal request for status last Monday (10/27). Today, the VSC agent followed up on my status confirmation number, and he told me that my case had been assigned to an agent. When I asked what that meant with regards to time, he said he could not be specific, but he said that it was a good thing and that I probably did not have much longer of a wait before I heard word. He said the majority of time a case is in the system, it is waiting to be assigned, and once it is assigned, the timeframe to an answer is relatively short.

If any of you have history with this, can you confirm what he's saying is legit, and if so, any guess on how long that "magic window" may be?

Thanks for the input, and good luck to you all.

-CJ

My date are the same as yours. I call a week ago and spoke to an agent who stated that if should be reviewed soon. So far nothing on line. We just wait.

Robbyrob:

Ok - first, if you have been able to request with USCIS a request for status inquiry, I think it helps with them. This is that inquiry you can make when you are outside of the USCIS posted processing times. You can make that request at that national service center #, if you are past time and have not done it yet.

Once they accept that request, they will give you a confirmation # for that request. A few days after you get that, call VSC, get an officer on the line, tell them you are outside the normal processing times, you received a confirmation number for a status inquiry, and you were checking to see if the VSC office had received the request. At that point, they should be able to tell you. VSC told me (and national later confirmed) that my case was assigned to an officer this past Saturday 11/1.

The phone # sequence to VSC is:

800-375-5283

Option 1

Option 2

Option 1

Receipt #

Option 3, wait for "if our system"

Option 4.

This will connect you to VSC. Good luck.

I was told that my case was assigned to an officer last Tuesday. I have not seen any updates online nor have I received the precious NOA2. I wrote to my congressman again. I bet he his sick of me by now.

What did you guys ask to get this info. I usually get we can't give you that info or theres no further detail, this is from vsc officers. i'm getting worried, thanks.

Good stuff. Thanks for the update.

-CJ

I was told that my case was in the queue to be assigned (it was not yet assigned at the time) My approval came 11 days later.

No, I thought about that also, but I have seen several on this site who said they got their approval in the snail mail without ever seeing any e-mails or USCIS website data about touches, or even getting their approval notice electronically. After the officer told me the info, I checked the case status again online, no reports of new touches. Yeah, I don't know what to make of that fact either.

When your case was assigned, did you see an update ("touch") on your online USCIS case number?

I hear ya, I know I need to temper my enthusiasm, this is the first time I've heard anything specific about it since the first week of May, so I guess anything is better than nothing. At least I have something to tell the wife. Thanks Diana.

It could be true but then again who knows how efficient or how backed up the agent may be. You still have to be patient and wait for them to work on your petition.

Diana

This is for an I-129F K3. Looking for feedback from those who know!!

Any of you who may have some inside dope about this, I'd really appreciate your feedback. Today I called VSC and spoke with an agent. I'm at 7 months as of today, and I was granted my formal request for status last Monday (10/27). Today, the VSC agent followed up on my status confirmation number, and he told me that my case had been assigned to an agent. When I asked what that meant with regards to time, he said he could not be specific, but he said that it was a good thing and that I probably did not have much longer of a wait before I heard word. He said the majority of time a case is in the system, it is waiting to be assigned, and once it is assigned, the timeframe to an answer is relatively short.

If any of you have history with this, can you confirm what he's saying is legit, and if so, any guess on how long that "magic window" may be?

Thanks for the input, and good luck to you all.

-CJ

Hey, this is CJ-G (there's also another CJ who also posts on K3 items). I'm wondering how many of you long-suffering souls are at (or very close to) 9 months in waiting for I-129F approval for a K3. I know from looking at the posts and statistics that more than a few of you unfortunately exist. I am only at 7 months (as of Tuesday), so my thoughts are with you, you don't deserve this stress, but I was hoping I could read some feedback from some of you who are at this point, and give you the opportunity to share what you have gone through, and what information (if any) you have been able to receive from USCIS about your case.

Please feel free to vent, also. I wish you all the best, and an overdue (and well-deserved) approval. It seems more and more like many of us in the pipe may well find ourselves in the same boat you are in at this point.

-CJ

Amen, I agree with that. I plan on doing some first class annoying of them up there this week - not that it will help, but ya never know.

Hi, did you get a response to your expedite or was it the approval just happened around the same time? Thanks

I did not receive a response on the expedite. My congresswoman told me that my case was in the queue to be assigned to an officer about two weeks before i received the approval. I can't say that the congressional inquiries or expedite requests helped to speed things along. It's hard for me to view 7+ months of waiting as any type of expedite

Oh, sorry..My bad. I guess I read it wrong. Well, I am still pulling for ya, and all of us who have been waiting too long.

Robbyrob, big congrats. Score one more for our side. Best of luck to you all.

-CJ

OK Good to see some approvals.

I'm still here waiting, I was congratulating 'msnoob'

Robbyrob, big congrats. Score one more for our side. Best of luck to you all.

-CJ

OK Good to see some approvals.

Yeah, I think going the congressional route, while an option, is something that one should probably not get too optimistic about. There have been a couple of posts from people who seem to get a little traction when they take that route, but a couple of things to keep in mind - one, the relative level of effort your congressman puts out is influenced by whether or not they campaigned on a pro- or anti-immigation stance. I wouldn't expect a lot of help from the hardliners. Second, much of the reason congress can't do much in the post 9-11 world is because the USCIS administrative process is now almost immune to legislative or legal influence. It's much of the same reason why an immigration lawyer's only benefit to the client is to explain the rules and file your forms. Any governmental activities which fall under the umbrella of "national security" (which USCIS activities do) are almost immune from influence by anyone except the executive branch (the Preident).

Also, one thing I wonder - If USCIS agents can deny an application for any BS reason, and leave little recourse for the petitioner to challenge the denial, I wonder if the Service Center agents don't look a little more closely at applications that have been questioned by a congressman, and search for reasons to deny it.

Congressman's office had told me that prior to 9/11, they could influence the applications greatly in terms of faster approval but now, they can't do much except a general inquiry. I do not have high expectations from congressman's office. I only have faith and hope on God. I am hoping to see that day soon when all of us who are late Feb and March filers flood this forum with approvals.

Charisma I've seen a lot of debate on both sides about this, and I think there's truth to both arguments, depending on what the person is talking about. Let me explain what I mean.

USCIS uses the I-129F NOA 1 as the judge of estimating whether or not your application is "inside" or "outside" of the normal processing times for a K3. This I know for a fact. The representatives at USCIS national customer service and VSC have told me on numerous occasions that their computers will not accept a petitioner's formal request for status information on the application until it passes the time reported as "normal processing time", which is calculated from the date of USCIS's acceptance of the I-129F, plus a period of 30 days beyond that time. Now, with the extra 30 days, there is a little bit of leeway with that, a rep can override the computers if you are "close" to that extra 30 day window. In my case, the magic "6 month" window passed on 10/4, and I was told several times that the computers would not accept my request until 11/4, but I was finally able to get a rep to override the system and issue a formal status inquiry for me on 10/27. I know a few other people who have been able to accomplish the same thing. All of this info was also told to me by my attorney, who used to work as USCIS/INS immigation judge.

Now - the other side of the argument. Just because those NOA1 dates are used to determine when you can qualify for a status request, the reality is they mean little to nothing as to when USCIS actually processes your request. Placing a formal inquiry doesn't necessarily do a thing to speed up your approval, it just means USCIS has to send you a letter within 30 days of your request with some report about what is going on with your case. The practical reality appears to be that many of the I-129F's are getting simultaneously approved with the I-130's when the K3 approval comes. And, seeing how the I-130 gets sent first, your actual approval may have more to do with when you sent in the I-130 then the I-129F, if there is a major difference in time between the two. My I-130 and I-129F NOA 1's are only a week apart. Of course, if that is what is happening, it sort of defeats the whole purpose of the I129F component of the K3 process, which is to get the person into the country faster while they wait for the I-130. I think, more than anything, what determines when you get approved is where those clowns place the application in their stack. I went to dinner with my two freinds last night, husband and wife, who felt compelled to buy my dinner, because they feel badly about my and my wife's 7 month wait, when they were approved in a mind-numbing 58 days. Of course, theirs was an I-129F for a K1.

I've seen your posts before, so I know you're very knowledgeable about all of this stuff; I am sure I explained a lot of things you already knew, but, that is why I think there is a difference in opinion when people on here debate about the relevant dates. Plus, writing all of this mess helps me pass the time during this unbelieveable wait.

-CJ

How do you know they go by K-3 NOA1 date?? We don't know that..

at least you guys have more hope than i do because they are processing by K3 dates and even though my I-130 says March 5 my I-129f its June 12 so i still have to wait 2 more months!! if not more

Not to be a downer, I seriously wouldn't anticipate any "speeding up" of the processing times, if anything the trend is headed in the other direction. When I first submitted in late march, the word was "probably 4 to 5 months". Then, by late this summer, it became "possibly 6". Now the processing time more and more seems like it's in the 8 to 8 1/2 month range. Save your pennies for plane tickets (to go see your SO), and settle in for a long wait. And, despite everything you read to the contrary on websites like this, there really is very little you can do to influence or speed up the process.

Anything is possible, and you could get it quickly (like my friend got his fiance's I-129f K-1 approval in 58 days), but, the odds are against it.

Sorry to be such a bummer, but I think preparing for the reality is heck of a lot better than continually being let down from a false sense of hope.

Good luck.

-CJ

Hey all

I wonder if anyone can shed some light. I see you are all very early filers and still waiting for approvals. im only an August filer but i havent recieved a touch or update since 20 August 2008. Im a litlle worried. My husband an i have been apart since April and i just dont know how much longer i can take this. Does no touches mean a bad thing? Has my application been over looked? Im freaking out just a little here!!! Anyone have some advice? Are there any August filers that have recent updates?

Thanks all. And Good luck

Hey

We're August filers too and no news of approval yet...I saw other people called I don't know if that helps. I wonder what's gonna happen in some days with the president elections, maybe they use it as an "excuse" to delay our waiting more... . Let's hope not

Anything can be an excuse for VSC: the large number of petitions received more than a year ago, the large number of naturalizations that had to be ready by past September, the presidential elections due next month, the bad weather any day... Why CSC is so different from VSC? (Just to think about it...)

Do you guys think that maybe processing times might speed up now that all the applications for the elections are over? i hope so cause when i first started this process the processing times were were like 4 months. i cant wait another 4 or 5 months!!!

its seriously crazy!! the long wait is just unacceptable! how can they keep spouses appart for so long. i see that there have also been more K1 approvals than k3! why is that?

i have so many questions!! lol sorry im also just frustrated like everyone else is im sure. thanks all for the help so far.

Sorry. I said I hit 7 months on 4/4, I meant 11/4. 4/4 was my NOA 1 date.

B-B:

Interesting. I called VSC on Monday, and was told the same thing you were. Also, USCIS National cust. serv. let me put in my inquiry for status on Monday as well, although I don't hit 7 months until 4/4.

Now - back to the "expedited request" thing. I called national customer service today, and told them that the VSC agent had told me to call national back with an expedited processing request. the agent at national asked me what the name of the agent was at VSC who gave me that info, and I told him I did not know. I have now learned that you should always ask the VSC agents to pronounce their names at least once, because most of them, when they answer the phone, say their name so quickly it is almost impossible to understand - which I am sure they do on purpose.

Anyway, the agent at national said thatfalling outside the normal processing times did not meet one of the key criteria for expedited processing, at least not for an I-129f K3. He did say it was possible that VSC may have made a decision very recently to allow expedited processing of I-129f's that were outside normal processing times, but they were not aware of it at national. He said he would check into it.

Anyway, please report on whether or not you have any luck on this. I am going to call back to VSC tomorrow and see if I get the same answer, and this time I will make sure I get the name of the agent I speak to.

Good luck.

-CJ

Congrats on your approvals guys............

I called VSC today and got a young guy who didnt seem to sharp, but he didnt read from a script, actually looked at our case numbers and said the I-130's were on feb. 4th. Since we reached 6 months, this past saturday, I wanted some answers. He told me that on Nov. 12th, the I-129f will reach 6 months and then to call VSC and request expedite. He even gave me the right options to choose to get there.....

Obviously a new guy and even wished me good luck......I was all prepared to tell him to dont bother reading rom a script and to save his breath if he was going to go that route......didnt get the chance...

Well, 2 approvals so far this week. THats great....maybe a last push here for October?

B-B:

Interesting. I called VSC on Monday, and was told the same thing you were. Also, USCIS National cust. serv. let me put in my inquiry for status on Monday as well, although I don't hit 7 months until 4/4.

Now - back to the "expedited request" thing. I called national customer service today, and told them that the VSC agent had told me to call national back with an expedited processing request. the agent at national asked me what the name of the agent was at VSC who gave me that info, and I told him I did not know. I have now learned that you should always ask the VSC agents to pronounce their names at least once, because most of them, when they answer the phone, say their name so quickly it is almost impossible to understand - which I am sure they do on purpose.

Anyway, the agent at national said thatfalling outside the normal processing times did not meet one of the key criteria for expedited processing, at least not for an I-129f K3. He did say it was possible that VSC may have made a decision very recently to allow expedited processing of I-129f's that were outside normal processing times, but they were not aware of it at national. He said he would check into it.

Anyway, please report on whether or not you have any luck on this. I am going to call back to VSC tomorrow and see if I get the same answer, and this time I will make sure I get the name of the agent I speak to.

Good luck.

-CJ

Congrats on your approvals guys............

I called VSC today and got a young guy who didnt seem to sharp, but he didnt read from a script, actually looked at our case numbers and said the I-130's were on feb. 4th. Since we reached 6 months, this past saturday, I wanted some answers. He told me that on Nov. 12th, the I-129f will reach 6 months and then to call VSC and request expedite. He even gave me the right options to choose to get there.....

Obviously a new guy and even wished me good luck......I was all prepared to tell him to dont bother reading rom a script and to save his breath if he was going to go that route......didnt get the chance...

Well, 2 approvals so far this week. THats great....maybe a last push here for October?

Well, thanks for asking, and for me, morale is OK, given that I have accepted the reality of what is going on at VSC. MY NOA 1 for the I-129F K3 is 4/4, and for the I-130 it was 3/28. Based on all of the info I have gathered in the last 2 to 2 1/2 weeks, from USCIS national to USCIS Vermont (countless annoying calls), speaking to boatloads of people in the system like us (those with and still awaiting approvals), what I have concluded is that the K-3 processing is taking about 8 to 8.5 months up there. USCIS actually let me make the request for status yesterday, even though I was a week shy of 7 months. As much as I want it to be over now, I'm thinking the approval is probably coming sometime between thanksgiving and christmas - of course, assuming anyone up there has any motivation to work between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

I think, for most of us, it's wishful thinking to assume anything under 8 months. It will happen for some of us, but I think for most, that's we're staring at. And, for some unlucky souls, maybe even longer.

Hope you're doing well also, and everyone else.

-CJ

How are all our march filers? How is the morale?

liza dear thanks for taking the time to share. My heart breaks for you, and you are a real friend to share that difficult experience.

-CJ

Wow jeca, I looked at your timeline, you even had to wait forever to get your NOA 1's back. Well, I'm rapidly approaching 7 months, so I am not as bad off as some of these poor souls, but it still stinks. Am starting to really regret that me and the mrs. didn't go the K-1 fiancee route. The people I know personally who went that way got through much faster, wickedly faster. I tried to convince my wife of that before we got married, but she had a lot of people around her in her home country giving her really bad advice. She got scared and thought I didn't want to marry her. Now, she's regretting the K-3 route, too.

Good luck to all. Keep the faith, it's about all we've got at this point.

-CJ

I'm so frustrated too, touched 8/5 and nothing since. When will this be over, I'm soooooooooo tired of waiting.

can't help but reply to this when i read it. if this is any consolation to you, we opted for k-1, instead of k-3 because we wanted so much to be together sooner. we exchanged vows last year here in the philippines but didn't file or register anything since we wanted to file k-1. and guess what? we filed feb. 4 and until now we are waiting for our NOA2. how is that??? i have seen some k-3's that have moved so fast ... faster than k-1s. it is really frustrating. so ... as you've said, we have to keep the faith. let's keep praying and believing. ~ liza ~

Robbyrob I'm curious about your situation - seeing how you are now at 7 months, have you requested an inquiry from USCIS? My "magic date" is a week from Tuesday (election day), 11/4. I'm just curious to see what response they gave you if you asked for that.

Yeah, there is no hope with VSC. I called again today and they told me the same thing that most of you all have gotten, wait another 30-45 days for a response from VSC. It doesn't matter what date it shows on the uscis website, they can fall back on many excuses not to give you a straight answer. Good luck to all. The wait continues.......