Friday Five!

I did notice that about the cell phone rates. My husband told me how much he pays and I couldn't believe it. When I told him how much I pay, he thought I was crazy! I probably am! LOL! I've got Skype and WhatsApp... but I'm just not ready to let go of my US phone number yet. Maybe after a year I'll feel differently. I know, it's silly.

I wasn't sure, either. I still have my US number, which is handy. I ported it to a service called Callcentric that allows me to get and make calls as if in the USA. It costs me $3.95 a month (because I also have the optional sms on it - I will be notified if someone texts me and can log into the Callcentric site and read/reply to them. Right now they don't forward SMS messages to another out-of-country phone, but I believe they are working on it.) 

Been with them for several years now - I used to use them for my landline back in the States.  I have a VOIP adapter hooked to my computer here and can accept and make US calls directly - brought my USA handset - for literally pennies. It's comforting to hear a "US" ring, whereas our UK house phone (service came free with the internet connection) does the UK double-ring.  Callcentric.com

I wasn't sure, either. I still have my US number, which is handy. I ported it to a service called Callcentric that allows me to get and make calls as if in the USA. It costs me $3.95 a month (because I also have the optional sms on it - I will be notified if someone texts me and can log into the Callcentric site and read/reply to them. Right now they don't forward SMS messages to another out-of-country phone, but I believe they are working on it.) 

Been with them for several years now - I used to use them for my landline back in the States.  I have a VOIP adapter hooked to my computer here and can accept and make US calls directly - brought my USA handset - for literally pennies. It's comforting to hear a "US" ring, whereas our UK house phone (service came free with the internet connection) does the UK double-ring.  Callcentric.com

I'll have to look into that. I definitely like options! Plus, I'm old school. I really prefer a chat on the phone versus tons of texting. But I think I am a part of a dying breed.

Amended - Well bummer. Came back from shopping to find a "Something for you" note from the Royal Mail. Origin of post is Ireland. Checking the tracking, it was sent out the afternoon of the day the Daughter's application for naturalization was delivered there to Tipperary. Which means they've bounced the application.

There are two possiblities why: 1) the stupid bank draft with the payee name botched up is not acceptable to them; or 2) the application has been refused out-of-hand.  If it's the former, I can take the draft back to the bank and get it re-issued, then send everything in again. If it's #2, then that avenue has closed to the Daughter. For now.

It being Friday, we won't know which it is until Monday, when it's re-delivered.  We knew it was an incredibly iffy chance, so if it's that it's summarily been refused, well, at least we know that option is off the table.  She's still out, and I'm wondering if I should say anything to her at all or let her have a nice, hopeful weekend. Probably should tell her, as there's another package to be delivered as well and I don't know what that is - there's no tracking on it.

Well, wonders never cease.  The letter was delivered today. It was the Daughter's passport back, a receipt for the check, and a request for Police Clearance Certificates from the UK and the USA. They need to be there in Ireland no later than 28 days from the date of the letter (3 weeks from today). So I guess it's not "dead" after all!   

And now we are scrambling like mad as we only have 21 days to do this in.

We have requested the UK  letter today, and it should hopefully arrive in the next 10 days. It will then go "next day" to Ireland on arrival.

We started the FBI clearance request today, but have to get the Daughter fingerprinted and send the hardcopy fingerprints to the FBI in the USA. We are going to try the copshop tomorrow. We'll send them to the USA overnight mail (ouch!) and then they say they should issue the letter within a few days.  It will come back to us first class, so that will be another week.  It'll be close.

We were given the option to request an extension of the 28 day deadline, so I think we are probably going to do that when we send the UK clearance letter in, or next week, whichever comes first. With a copy of the request to the FBI showing we did request it ASAP.

Our other option would be to get a clearance cert from San Diego, I guess. But to do that, according to the SD Sheriff I have to go to a notary here, get a power of attorney signed, send it to a friend in San Diego, who would then have to go to the courthouse with it, drop it off, and then go back and pick it up and FedEx it to us. Freaking expensive there, and time consuming, and slower than the FBI. And it would only show local records. So I think the FBI is probably better?

I'd do the FBI if it was me.

Can you pay for next day (or two day) return of the info from the FBI?   Just cuz Royal Mail and USPS suck and your timeline is super tight.

I'd do the FBI if it was me.

Can you pay for next day (or two day) return of the info from the FBI?   Just cuz Royal Mail and USPS suck and your timeline is super tight.

Oh, yeah, it's going overnight express as soon as we have them. I've already phoned the copshop to make sure they can do them, and we'll be headed out shortly. FBI says they'll process and send the letter within 5 days of receipt of the fingerprints. So unless that letter from them (shudder, I shouldn't even think this) gets lost in the mail, we could have it by next week. If all goes well. And then it will be overnighted to Ireland.


[EDIT: And thank goodness I phoned to check to see if a different station could handle it, a closer one. Only to find out that the one we were told could take the prints actually cannot. So that would have been a few hours, a round-trip bus ticket, and a lot of aggravation wasted! We now have to go to HQ.]

FRIDAY!  FRIDAY!  FRIDAY!!

1.  Today is our 6th wedding anniversary.  Big deal to me - first marriage made it to 5 years but not 6.     The theme is Iron & Sugar.  I bought my husband a cast iron water pump for the garden (which we've been working on all summer) and going to get him some Cadbury's chocolate.  Off to a swanky restaurant tonight (not normally our thing but doing something fancy for once).  We've even booked a taxi so we can drink.  FIRST TIME in the 7.5 years we've been together we've booked a taxi.  I have to teach dance in the morning though so can't go wild.  And husband will have two kids on his own in the morning.  But still, we can split a bottle.

2.  The day started with a bang - from the baby's room.  He did a front flip out of his cot.  I've been asking my husband to lower it for a couple of months - most recently on Tuesday.  Baby is fine but do wish it was my husband that had to hear the fall out from the tumble.  I do not know how to lower the cot or I would have done it long ago.

3.  I've been in the mood to book lots of extra activities and holidays lately... dangerous territory.   

4.  Sobe (the cat) has been back and forth to the vet about a hundred times the last week (okay, he's been 3 times, I've been 5 times).  He had his regular check up last week and had lost a decent percentage of weight.  Vet wanted to run bloods.  Couldn't get blood that night.  Went back Tuesday to get the blood.  Wednesday got the results that he had elevated kidney levels which is likely early signs of kidney disease.  Then we did a urine sample.  Found out yesterday that he has a UTI - which is actually great news.  Possible he does NOT have kidney disease!  Went back to get him a shot of antibiotics last night instead of two weeks of tablets.  We are still putting him on kidney friendly food (he is 18 this month after all).  We got the two different options so are now conducting a cat food taste test to see which he prefers.  LOL!  Oh, the excitement at our house.  The 4 year old had to go downstairs this morning to check which bowl had less before she'd get dressed this morning.  LOL.  We do like our cat.   

5.  Engagement ring was dropped off at Tiffanys on Saturday about the small diamond that had fallen out.  Only £200 to have fixed!  I was so pleased, I thought it could have been an expensive fix.   So not having to go through insurance and I'll have it back within two weeks.  Yippee!

Happy Anniversary KFDancer! Have fun!

1.) Can't wait to march in our local Pride parade tomorrow!     

2.) Need to do a final cut of the grass for 2018 tomorrow. Last few weekends have been too wet, but should be dry enough tomorrow to do it. 

3.) Been an interesting week at work with new owners and lots of change ahead. Hopefully will turn out for the better. Can't get any worse. 

4.) Made fish tacos last night. Came out so yummy! 

5.) Desperately wanting a holiday. Hubby and I can't agree on a holiday. Can't agree on what we're willing to spend on a holiday. Can't agree on when to take it.  Can't agree where to go.  Sigh.   

Happy Anniversary KFdancer!


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It's noon, and I only just realized it's Friday when I clicked to see what new activity was in Chit Chat and saw the "new" tag next to Friday Five.  This week was weird, and I'm all mixed up!

KF:  UGH! about the baby's fall!  That sort of thing is why I can't have kids.  I'm constantly on edge around tiny people, seeing about a billion ways for them to injure themselves, but you have to let them do things (within reason) so they can learn.  Climbing out the cot = learning.  Keeping the cot elevated when he's started doing that = higher learning!    Congrats on your 6th wedding anniversary (and getting your ring repaired... does £200 include a replacement diamond, or did you find the one that fell out?)!  And happy news about Sobe. 

PB!  I've only had fish tacos once, after being dubious about them for years (I can't help it... the name sounds doubly sketchy to me!), but I loved them!  What fish did you use?  How did you season it?  Recipe?  I hope things sort themselves out at your job and you are happier for all the changes.

My Five:

1. The week after Birthday Week was okay, but after the awesomeness that was Birthday Week, how could anything ever compare?  Ho hum.

2. My inlaws came to see us last weekend.  It felt weirdly... rushed?  Like we were all just going through the motions, or something.  I think my FIL expected us to turn down an invitation to theirs because my husband often does (my husband is a real homebody), so instead my FIL suggested they come to see us to bring me a birthday present.  Normally when they come to see us, we cook for them.  In the email, my FIL said, "If you book a restaurant, try to make it for before 7pm so we won't get home too late."  So my husband booked a table in Swansea (which is in the direction they would go to head home) for 6pm.  They arrived at our house after 3pm, and we visited for a bit, showed them progress in the workshop, then it was 5pm and we had to leave for the restaurant (we arrived at exactly 6pm!).  By 7pm, we'd finished eating and the waitress was asking if we wanted to see the dessert menu.  We looked at it, but nobody ordered dessert.  Then we paid and went outside... We stood outside the restaurant talking for a bit, walked to our cars (my husband had even suggested separate cars so they wouldn't have to go all the way back to our house after we ate, and could just get going), and we went home and they went home.  It was the strangest thing.  All very friendly and sociable, but weird.  I think they spent more time driving to our house and then driving home than they spent actually visiting.  I hope nobody was offended!  :/

3.  My inlaws gave me a snazzy Le Creuset enameled cast iron grill pan.  Now I want to make fajitas.

4.  My mother sent me a text message (via Line) two days after my birthday to say happy birthday and apologize for not sending me a birthday present, but she's been down in Florida at my sister's house and she ended up staying longer than expected, and she didn't have her computer with her.  I told her it was fine, and that my birthday had been great (subtling letting her know that my birthday was two days prior).  She said she would send me a gift when she got home.  Then I sent her some texts about the things my husband and I have been up to.  But, I mean, maybe she's still in Florida.  It's only been 7 days since her two-days-late text message.  I don't care about the lack of present.  I do resent that fact that I hear from my siblings how my mother feels like I don't communicate with her when this is how she fails to communicate with me.

5.  Ending on a happy note: Chick Fil A nuggets and pickled okra are husband-approved.  We will be making both in our future.  Since mastering egg rolls earlier in the year, I think I might have tackled all the big ones.  Oh, and donuts!  We made some mean donuts last week for my birthday.  And the leftover dough that we used up on Sunday was even better.  A nice long prove in the 'fridge made for some flavourful donuts, even better than the first batch.  Plus, I had mentioned cider & donuts to my husband, and he took that idea and ran with it.  Sunday was awesome.  *grin*

Happy Anniversary, KFDancer .

My Friday Five:

1. After a 3.5-day delay, I am (fingers crossed) finally flying home today! I have to be at the terminal in 3 hours and the flight leaves in just over 6 hours

2. Didn’t get much sleep last night though as I was in a temporary transit room I got woken up at 2am by a load of really loud military personnel moving into the corridor (they had just arrived on the flight from the U.K.)

3. I am very fed up and cold this week. I was supposed to be in nice, warm UK weather yesterday, but instead I braving snow showers and freezing gale force winds (the wind chill must have been about -10 Celsius)

4. My flight is going to be packed today . The flight I was supposed to be on only had 80 passengers (on an A330) and I would have had 2 seats to myself, but they have combined our flight with the already booked one for today, which means about 200 passengers instead... and it’s a 19-hour journey (10 hours, 2-3 hours refuelling stop in Cape Verde, then 6 hours) .

5. When I get home tomorrow, we’re going out for a family meal to celebrate my brother’s birthday... on the plus side, it’ll be good food after 2 months of mess food. On the negative side, I will be going straight there from the plane and will be knackered and in need of a shower!


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4. My flight is going to be packed today . The flight I was supposed to be on only had 80 passengers (on an A330) and I would have had 2 seats to myself, but they have combined our flight with the already booked one for today, which means about 200 passengers instead... and it’s a 19-hour journey (10 hours, 2-3 hours refuelling stop in Cape Verde, then 6 hours) .

5. When I get home tomorrow, we’re going out for a family meal to celebrate my brother’s birthday... on the plus side, it’ll be good food after 2 months of mess food. On the negative side, I will be going straight there from the plane and will be knackered and in need of a shower!

Are you allowed to get off the plane during the refuelling?

And nothing worse than not showering straight after a flight.  I feel like I have to wash the plane off me!

5. When I get home tomorrow, we’re going out for a family meal to celebrate my brother’s birthday... on the plus side, it’ll be good food after 2 months of mess food. On the negative side, I will be going straight there from the plane and will be knackered and in need of a shower!

But most importantly, you'll be home!

I share KF's question... can you leave the plane during refuelling?  That's a long time to sit around on the aircraft.

Friday!

I already forgot what I was going to respond to all of the previous posts so you can tell what kind of day I'm having.

1. I don't know if this has been shared here before, but it's the best thing I've seen in a while. 28 trombones playing bohemian rhapsody.

2. Pain meds and being depressed are an absolutely terrible combo. I really wish cannabis was legal, at least for pain (and seizures, cuz kids deserve a chance). I was really struggling and that put me over the edge when combined with PMS last night. Not good. And being on a visa I will not risk "self medicating", even though the studies on pain treatment and anxiety are all very promising.

3. I'm in the process of teaching myself python for ETL and data visualisation. I'm not great at learning for the sake of learning (vs having a task to do that involves something I don't know and learning it) but hopefully it helps my job prospects!

4. I had a bunch of yarn in different colors and wanted to use it up so I could justify getting some new yarn. The resulting blanket is actually turning out ok! Not the colors I would have picked to go together on my own as they were mainly scraps from old projects and sale finds, but I'm happy with it and it'll be nice and cozy. (to give as a gift to someone, at some point, cuz we already have too many blankets.

5. If you have any spare prayers, my friends back home could use them. Their baby was born very early, barely hitting 2lbs, and needs a surgery today to fix a hole in her bowel that didn't close up on its own. She's definitely a fighter, pulled out the ventilator when she decided she was done with it, so I have every hope she'll come through this OK too.

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Are you allowed to get off the plane during the refuelling?

Yes - we have to. All our belongings have to come off the plane too.

It’ll be a couple of hours waiting in the terminal at Cape Verde while they refuel... and it’ll be about 3am their time!

At least it won’t be as bad as the journey down, where we got stuck in the Cape Verde terminal for 6 hours (and there is nothing to do there).



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Happy anniversary KFD!

Happy Pride day PB!

Happy homecoming ksand!

1. I had an interview for a promotion at work today. Was not prepared at all. Physically sick to my stomach just before going in. But it turned out alright, and I feel like I did a lot better than I thought I would. I've been in two minds about this job since our team knew it was going up for interview, and I kind of reached this point today where I was like, "que será, será." Then they dropped this bombshell on us that a third person applied. They opened up the job posting after it had closed so this person could apply. So now I'm thinking I won't get it because they obviously want this other candidate. So shady. They can keep their promotion if that's how they want to operate. I'm quite happy where I am, anyway.

2. We are going to see two of my favorite bands on November 30. One of them announced a surprise show on November 25 and they'll be playing two of their most famous albums back to back. SO STOKED. And I always love a good reason to go to London, me.

3. Got a client on the phone today from Seattle! He was a Catholic chaplin for the hospital. So nice to hear a familiar accent sometimes.

4. Have been putting my glorious Excel spreadsheet to the test at work today (I have not been very productive, tbh, because I was stressing about the interview all day). It's a pain in the butt now because I have to do all the data entry, but once I get everything in its going to make my life SO much easier. My manager had the nerve to say she doesn't know why I'm wasting my time with spreadsheets that don't need making. Fine, you don't have to use it. But I will!

5. Ready for a weekend full of complete and utter nothingness! Except I am going to watch the Jumanji remake because I am borrowing it from a colleague. Have been wanting to see it for a while!

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