Forum	Title	Content	Member	Sex	Country	Date/Time
Middle East and North Africa	Home Visits in Cairo	You're one of the ones I keep my eye on, Becky..... hope that doesn't freak you out. HHEHEHEHEEE I try to keep a watch on the cases similar to mine. I think Wael & E&M are the only other cases that I look at frequently. I hope you have some movement soon !	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2007-11-26 13:59:00
Middle East and North Africa	Home Visits in Cairo	I know, Sarah. I think they finally start shaking a leg around November. I hope that's a good sign for everybody !!! Hurry up the cakes, Cairo !	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2007-11-26 13:53:00
Middle East and North Africa	Home Visits in Cairo	GRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!! I typed this whole story out and then lost it with my #$% connection. Anyway, here I go again. We had a home visit today from the embassy - which is promising considering we haven't heard anything from them in over 3 months. A guy came to our building and talked with the owner of the store downstairs. He showed him a picture of Mina and asked if he knew him. Store owner: Yes. Officer: Is he married ? Store owner: Yeah. He's married to an American. Officer: Where do they live ? Store owner: In this building on the 3rd floor. Officer: Thanks. As the investigator? was entering the building, the store owner called my husband. My husband called my FIL (in the office next to his). My FIL called our upstairs neighbor (who is also FIL's cousin). She came downstairs and found the officer/investigator knocking on our door. (No one was home.) She handed him the phone and let him talk with my FIL. He asked my FIL's name and asked him about our marriage and why we were not at home. He said that we were working and that we had been married for over a year. He told the officer that we live in the flat with the rest of the family, that I am their daughter, and that he hoped there were no problems with our visa case. The officer said that the visit was just part of a final security clearance and said that everything looked fine so far. After he hung up, he spoke with our neighbor/cousin for a little while. He asked her where Mina was working & she told him. He asked if she was a relative of ours and she explained her relation. He asked if she was in favor of our marriage, and she said YES! 3 times over ! (or some equivalent to that in Arabic. I don't know exactly what she said, but that was how my husband translated it to me.) He asked if the rest of the family was in agreement, and she said the same thing about them. He thanked her and left. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ So, I was just wanting a reminder about people's home visits in Cairo and how long they had to wait afterwards. I did a little bit of searching and found some people's info, but I wanted to get a better picture. This is the latest tidbit of information that we've received from the embassy... they make me feel like that song "Get out my life, why don't you babe ! You just keep me hanging on..." Just when our patience had hit rock bottom, we get a miniscule pick-me-up ! I hope you guys will remind me when your home visits were and how long you waited for the visa. Thank you so much !!!!!!!!!!!!!!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2007-11-26 13:33:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy Thursday!	Awwwwwwwwww. So sweet !	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-17 14:50:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy Thursday!	I'm sorry, Olivia. I hope the time flies for you and I hope the same for him. YAAAAAAAAY for Water.... !!!!!!!!!!!! Yipee ! What I would look like as a doggy ! Dog Day - What a cool idea !	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-17 14:18:00
Middle East and North Africa	FRIDAY'S THREAD	Ha ! Water, that reminds me of a message/forwarded mail I got the other day from a friend. Not all of it's funny, but it has it's moments. I'll repost it for you. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ..CALIFORNIA:.. - I can wear sandals all year long - I go to the Beach - not "down to the shore" -Our chicks are WAYYYY hotter than yours. Well...Miami can hang. - I say "like" and "for sure" and "right on" and "dude" and "totally" and "peace out" and "chill" and "tight" and "bro" and I say them often - I know what real cheese & avocados taste like -Everyone smokes weed and its no big deal -We'll roll up 40 deep when something goes down. - I don't get snow days off because there's only snow in Mammoth, Tahoe, Shasta, and Big Bear - I know 65 mph really means 100 - When someone cuts me off, they get the horn and the finger and high speed chase cuz we dont mess around on the road - The drinking age is 21 but everyone starts at 14 (legally 18 if you live close enough to the border) - My governor can kick your governors #### - I can go out at midnight -You judge people based on what area code they live in, and when asked where you're from, you give your area code - I might get looked at funny by locals when I'm on vacation in their state, but when they find out I'm from California I turn into a Greek GOD - We don't stop at stop signs... we do a "California roll" No cop no stop baby! - I can get fresh and REAL Mexican food 24 hours a day - All the TV shows you "other" states watch get filmed here - We're the Golden State. Not the Cheese State. Not the Garden State.....GOLDEN!!! - We have In-N-Out (Arizona and Vegas are lucky we share that with them) - I have the most representation in the House of Representatives, which means MY opinion means more than yours, which means I'm better than you [geez.... hahaha] - The best athletes come from here *******IF YOU'RE FROM CALIFORNIA, REPOST THIS*************IF YOU'RE NOT, GO SIT IN A CORNER AND CRY****** ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ South Carolina: Ahem... So.. Um.. yeah... I read this, and thought I would reply... Hey... California listen up... South Carolina is where its at! - I too can wear sandals all year long... plus I can put on steel-toe boots to stomp your feet and I won't even stick out. - You may be able to go to the "beach" instead of the "shore"... but can you go to the drive thru "Beer Barn?" What now, surfer boy? - You're chicks aren't way hotter than ours...yours just have silicone, saline, botox, lasers and hair dye... We have the real ones and they can beat yours up. Plus nothing is sexier than a country girl driving a 4 wheel drive truck, who can saddle up a horse, who isn't afraid of getting muddy on a 4 wheeler or dirt bike...who arm wrestles your friends, and sometimes wins, who makes their own money, and don't rely on daddy's credit cards, who can cook a real homemade meal, Who loves fishing, camping, hiking.Our girls know how to have fun....What can your girls do, besides go get there hair did, and nails? - We're taught to say "Yes Sir" and "Yes Ma'am" and respect our elders because of it. We also say "Howdy" and "fixin" and "Yinz" are pretty much recognized right away anywhere in the world We're famous - You may know what real cheese and avocados taste like... but I know what 100% Grade A Angus Beef tastes like. Who wants avocados and cheese when you can have steak and potatoes? - Haha... who do you think grows the weed and sells it to you? - Why roll 40 deep when something goes down, if 5 corn fed country boys can get the job done... - Why would you brag about not getting snow days off? We're chillin at home while your out working - - When someone cuts me off, they get run over by my big #### truck, then I give them the finger and tell them to go back to California. - The drinking age is 21, but if you aren't chasin the beer by 1 yr old... you're behind. And can you say...Hog Pickin PARTY in the corn fields in McDermott's Back Pasture, BYOB! ... Everyone find an adult to buy the beer! ...? Didn't think so! - You can go out at midnight? Thats nice, I haven't even come home by then. - Ok... you said,"You judge people based on what area code they live in, and when asked where you're from, you give your area code" and as hard as I try I have no idea what you're talking about... I think you're watching too much tv. In Hollyweird, You know... where shows are MADE? (which not all of them are...btw)Maybe that's why you have no idea what it is like HERE for real! And where do you think Celebs go when they aren't filming? Here to the south....just to get away from idiots like you. *** (Please Note: Die Hard: With a Vengeance, Forces of Nature, Forrest Gump, The Fugitive, G.I. Jane, The Longest Yard, The Notebook, Radio, Sleeping with the Enemy, Who's your Caddy, and the Nutty Professor II, the Klumps WERE ALL FILMED IN SOUTH CAROLINA) - Yeah, you'll definitely get looked at funny when you come to visit but we have another name for you pretty boys, and its not Greek, its French. - Of course you don't stop at stop signs... none of you can drive. - You can pick up Real Mexican food 24 hours a day huh... But can you still go to a Mom and Pop grocery and get fresh homemade baked goods made by the owner every morning? - In South Carolina, football means football, not soccer. - The South is the best! Heard of Jamestown, Charleston, Elizabethtown.. yeah that was here.. we started this whole thing.. lucky for you.. without us you wouldnt be here.. now respect ur momma! haha - In South Carolina, 65 MPH means 65 MPH, because here, the police actually give a sh!t, and have time to catch speeders because they aren't all out looking for Lindsay Lohan to hit a tree or busting gang bangers for drugs every 5 seconds! -"90% of teenagers say "holy sh!t" before they get in a car accident. The other 10% are from South Carolina they throw it in 4 wheel drive and they say "hold my beer and watch this sh!t" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ silliness !!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-18 12:25:00
Middle East and North Africa	FRIDAY'S THREAD	QUOTE (bridget @ Jan 18 2008, 04:46 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (monnik @ Jan 18 2008, 08:31 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Have a good Friday everyone. Btw, Sandy if you're out there, I don't know if you are fasting for the Baptism feast, but it started at 12am last night. We almost forgot, so I thought I would post a reminder for you. IT'S SO COLD HERE, TOO ! I'm typing with gloves on. Supposedly, the coming week will have record low temperatures for Egypt. I'm not looking forward to it since there are no heaters in the house !!!!! How cold is it truly? My husband said he felt like his face was frozen yesterday while walking and I was thinking if you think THAT's cold you've got some rude awakening comin' to ya! That's true ! I think he doesn't know how good he's got it. It's subjective though. People live 10 months out of the year very comfortably here and for about a month in the winter & a month in the summer, the temperatures are at their extremes. It's something to complain about. I think the temperature is around 40 degrees and there has been a lot of wind the past 2 weeks. So, it's possible to have the frozen face feeling. My nose and toes are so cold right now. The biggest difference/problem for me is that there isn't any central heat here. We have heat at the other flat, but it's just a blowing heater. It kind of feels like someone has left the door or window open and you have a cold draft all around your feet. The floors are that ceramic or tile and the walls are cement (I guess) so there is not a lot of warmth surrounding us. I am tempted to go into the kitchen and turn on the oven, boil some hot water on the stove and run hot water in the bathroom & kitchen to steam up the house. Would that work ??	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-18 11:40:00
Middle East and North Africa	FRIDAY'S THREAD	Have a good Friday everyone. Btw, Sandy if you're out there, I don't know if you are fasting for the Baptism feast, but it started at 12am last night. We almost forgot, so I thought I would post a reminder for you. IT'S SO COLD HERE, TOO ! I'm typing with gloves on. Supposedly, the coming week will have record low temperatures for Egypt. I'm not looking forward to it since there are no heaters in the house !!!!!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-18 08:31:00
Middle East and North Africa	Has anyone get the visa in 2008?	We got married before the marriage procedure was changed and we filed before the DCF procedure was changed. Sorry. I am no help. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-17 13:44:00
Middle East and North Africa	It's Caturday!	Fantastic, Jackie ! The princess has arrived. Your video was so cute, Jenn !! Has anyone ever seen the video of the evil cat on Youtube ? It was crying and hissing. Scary ! And, my husband loved the cat standing up. It's so adorable !	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-19 11:48:00
Middle East and North Africa	It's Caturday!	Here are some Caturday pics for Jackie & the crew :	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-19 11:24:00
Middle East and North Africa	JUST ANOTHER MENA MONDAY	The two threads isn't a big deal to me, but I just saw the same # of posts in each one, so I wasn't sure. I saw your response in the other one, though. Bridg, it sounds like he's on his way to either getting a visa or a visit !! Which one will it be ??	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-21 12:03:00
Middle East and North Africa	JUST ANOTHER MENA MONDAY	QUOTE wake up! AAAAARRRRRGGGGHH!!! I woke up to this message and I have no idea what this means because my husband's asleep and won't answer the phone!!!: "Goodmorning and good news embassy, they called now toke infor about me address sisters work last time we been together i told him i miss my wife he smiled an said soon i just got the papers so inshallah good" ####### does THAT mean? How can he smile over the phone???? What papers??? OMG I"m gonna kill him for takin' a nap!!! hmmm. are we posting here or the other thread ? anyway, bridget... maybe just got the papers means must get the papers ???!! who knows? and "smile" & "laugh" always get confused in this house. so, maybe either he means laughed or that there was an implied smile.... Happy big day , Gabi ! Thanks for the lovely pics, WOM. They give me chills. I love it.	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-21 11:36:00
Middle East and North Africa	Arabic Food	Thanks so much, Sand !!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-23 01:30:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy Tuesday, Mena	QUOTE (yassmine2878 @ Jan 23 2008, 08:05 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hey, dont you know baby JP's like donuts? = Happy baby !!!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-23 05:24:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy Tuesday, Mena	QUOTE (bridget @ Jan 23 2008, 01:54 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (?JP? @ Jan 22 2008, 04:06 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Wow Egypt is crazy....I never realized they put people thru so much #######. It's so cold here today, I'm a Cali girl and I'm just not used to this weather at all! Its supposed to dip down into the 30's tonight I hope all of you guys and gals are doing well. I don't post that often but I do read everything, I'm just too lazy to type most of the time Happy Anniversary Jenn! This weather is crazy!!! It's cold and rainy in Cairo too! They don't know what to do over there 'cause a lot of people don't have heaters since it's usually not THAT cold you know? BTW here's some cookies for the baby-to-be from auntie bridget It drizzled for hours yesterday. The streets are all muddy and yucky and it's so icky here. Is your husband in Cairo right now, Bridget ? I thought they lived in Alex. If that's being nosy, please excuse me. I can't imagine the weather in Alex, though, if it's so rainy here. My MIL broke out the 10 extra blankets that she keeps stored under the beds !! We use about 3 at a time because there is no heat...	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-23 01:34:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy Tuesday, Mena	Olivia, that super sucks ! I hope he gets to come home soon. Happy (what day is it again ?) , everybody !!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-22 15:04:00
Middle East and North Africa	Hubby made it home!!!	QUOTE (Lost in NY @ Jan 23 2008, 06:49 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Congratulation on the happy reunion !!! P.S. What's the difference between these two visas? I believe the CR1 is a conditional permanent residency for the beneficiary of a spousal visa that has been married to the US citizen/resident for less than 2 years. They have to file for a lifting of conditions. Differences in filings, paperwork, etc. ... I have no idea. Maybe someone else could answer that. But, I think she was just saying they gave him the conditional visa.	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-23 12:01:00
Middle East and North Africa	MENA timelines	You're probably not talking about me, bridget, but my case doesn't have all those dates & approvals (that I know of). I can't even check on my case online because we don't have a receipt number. But, if I'm missing anything, let me know... I have no idea if my information is right or not.	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-22 15:27:00
Middle East and North Africa	camel day	Every search I do for camel pics keeps giving me pictures of Jessica Simpson or Lindsay Lohan ! Pimp My Camel-Ride Weather update for Cairo: it's nice and sunny today. I hope our cold front is over !	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-23 11:50:00
Middle East and North Africa	Its Friday, right?	Hey, Maggie ! I'm here. I might be the only one awake, but I'm ready for some news. Good or bad ??? I take that back--- Good or Great !??!??!?!!!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-26 04:45:00
Middle East and North Africa	In Jordan!!!!!	Wow, Lisa ! How exciting for you two. Thanks for posting your pics for us. Enjoy your visit !!! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-23 11:51:00
Middle East and North Africa	Caturday!	OMG ! Happy Caturday! Those pics are so funny.... the Mythbusters made me laugh out loud. I love all of them.... This is the funniest one I have found so far. and a cute one before I go.	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-26 04:02:00
Middle East and North Africa	SO nervous	Congratulations, and here's to a speedy AP !!!!!!!!!! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-27 18:43:00
Middle East and North Africa	Where in the world is the Sunday thread ?	Awwww......... Gabi, I'm so sorry! Charlie looks like a sweetheart......	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-27 18:06:00
Middle East and North Africa	Where in the world is the Sunday thread ?	What's up , bridget??	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-27 17:29:00
Middle East and North Africa	Where in the world is the Sunday thread ?	I was searching for a daily thread to post an update and a quick hi to you guys, but I couldn't find one. Hope everyone is having a lovely Sunday. The rain finally stopped in Cairo, and the sun is in the process of drying up the mud. How is Sunday going in your neck of the woods? UPDATE : Mina went yesterday to have bloodwork done & the updated medical exam. They didn't need his passport- thank God.... because of the freaky Cairo rainstorms, he couldn't go to the police station this morning. He will go tomorrow. He will have all of his results & reports by Thursday (we hope) and we will send them in to the embassy.	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-27 09:31:00
Middle East and North Africa	Just to say	May God bless you and your family during this most difficult time, Tammy ! You are very lucky to have shared so much with your mother and I am sure you will cherish your time with her always. God's eye is on the sparrow..... he is most definitely embracing your mother as well as watching after you and your loved ones while you grieve. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-11 17:41:00
Middle East and North Africa	Status of Hicham's final processing	Isn't it funny how it all works out ?? It's wonderful that you planned the trip before you guys knew about the approval !!! That's why I feel like things should be moving for us soon. I'm happy with my job, I'm comfortable where I'm at right now. It's probably time to be uprooted !!! CONGRATULATIONS , alli !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-18 11:44:00
Middle East and North Africa	TGIF	Hang in there, Cheryl. The connection should be back very soon !! Shopping for wedding things will keep your mind at ease and you will have so much to talk about when he gets the internet back. Congrats on the interview, by the way. Exciting !	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-02-02 05:12:00
Middle East and North Africa	Undersea cable network disrupted Internet links to Egypt	Hey ! What is this ? Everyone is affected by not being able to talk to their husbands, but no one cares that I'm not able to post !!!! Just kidding. But, anyway....the internet at our house is muuuuuuuuch faster and seems to be connected well right now. We noticed that it was fast around 2am. For the past 2 days or so, only Egyptian websites were available on our computer!!! Happy Saturday, I mean, Caturday..... I hope the connection comes back for everyone!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-02-02 04:59:00
Middle East and North Africa	visa in hand !!!	QUOTE (melly @ Jan 28 2008, 12:31 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> It's wonderful news that he got his visa, even stamped wrong!! They should be able to fix it in a short amount of time, and at least you know he's got it, no more wondering when AP will end. Congratulations. And let us know what they say about it! These are my sentiments exactly!! Good luck, water & Ayman!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-27 18:18:00
Middle East and North Africa	OMG!! HE GOT HIS VISA	Sorry it took me so long to post my congratulations, but the internet here has been..... well, you know ! CONGRATULATIONS !!!!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-02-02 05:50:00
Middle East and North Africa	Being Kind over being right	I'll be back. *grabs soap opera scriptwriting supplies & runs with crowd of paparazzi over to sub-sahara*	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-26 09:25:00
Middle East and North Africa	Being Kind over being right	I agree, MK. There are some great thoughts and beautiful sentiments in many of the posts here. Thanks for spreading peace. Ganja, the people here can let you all know that the best thing to do is ignore the people who take jabs at you. I hope you have a peaceful journey here and I hope that we can keep these things in mind. Edited by monnik, 26 January 2008 - 04:14 AM.	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-01-26 04:13:00
Middle East and North Africa	Guess What????????!!!!!!!!!????????????????	WOW !! That news is spectacular ! Don't you always forget your phone or to check your email on the most important days?? Congratulations to you and your son & your WHOLE family!! (and I hope the little man's finger is feeling better. soon, his daddy will be able to kiss it and make him feel better ) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-02-03 18:44:00
Middle East and North Africa	My very own Caturday thread	Good morning and happy Caturday, peeps! I thought I would get a heads up on you guys since it's still very early where you are. Here are some new Caturday pics. I hope you like them..... This one made me laugh. I wish it had the caption "GET ON THE GOOD FOOT !" In daily thread news, my husband sent his medical records and his police report to the embassy Wednesday evening and they were received by the embassy on Thursday. Now, we are waiting to hear from them and I will email them one day next week. I can't wait for the email that says your husband's visa has been issued and you should receive it in 2 weeks. (Even though I know that it will be longer, but at least we can start our gift-shopping for my family and I can let my job know.) Have a good day, everybody !!!!!!!!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-02-02 06:33:00
Middle East and North Africa	contacting us embassy in cairo...	I received an auto reply from them on January 28th or 29th that they were closed, but I haven't received anything after the problem with the internet cables. They'll get to it eventually.	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-02-03 14:05:00
Middle East and North Africa	Wedding Plans	QUOTE (Ahmed N Cheryl @ Feb 3 2008, 07:50 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (monnik @ Feb 2 2008, 04:07 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I like that dress, too !!! I hope you like it when you go for a fitting. You're right. It's simple, but very beautiful and it would work nicely at a garden wedding. Weddings are so beautiful !!! Thanks Monnik....I changed it a little today. I bought one similar just with a halter neckline instead of spaghetti straps. Wedding dress I bought Thanks for your input and kind words. Cheryl I love the new one, too !!! I think it will look very pretty ! P.S.- I bet David's bridal has gotten a bunch of extra hits on their website today!!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-02-03 18:25:00
Middle East and North Africa	Wedding Plans	I like that dress, too !!! I hope you like it when you go for a fitting. You're right. It's simple, but very beautiful and it would work nicely at a garden wedding. Weddings are so beautiful !!!	monnik	Not Telling	Egypt	2008-02-02 05:07:00