its now 9.15pm EST on Monday the 24th June and as sit here in the BA Lounge watching Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals, waiting for my flight to the UK I don't know when i'll be back in Providence with Laura and Aila. It has to be said that leaving your family behind is never easy, over the past 6 years I have become used to Laura crying when I leave and whist it pulls at the heart strings, its nothing compared to when your 5 year old starts to cry and then says "i'm going to miss you daddy" well suffice to say a large lump appears in your throat...
so why am I here, well back in November my passport and visa were stolen when the house was burgled, it was due to expire in February so I wasn't that worried, oh how little I knew. Despite my best efforts as to this date I don't have a new passport, which I now need more than ever as we are trying to complete the purchase of a new house. And of course for a family that likes to travel and for someone who travels for work a passport is really an essentiality!
with the help of some colleagues in the London office, I have managed to obtain an appointment at the uk passport office in London on Wednesday. Then the fun really begins, there is a 95% probability that I will receive the new passport on Wednesday, a 5% chance that it will take 6 days... in this instance it really needs to be 24 hours.
as I cannot apply with the US Embassy for an appointment for a replacement visa application until I have the passport in my hands. This would not have been an issue in normal circumstances, only it now occurs that there is presently a three week!! waiting time for appointments at the Embassy in London. When I discovered that fact on last Friday, it did take some time to pick my chin up off the floor. A quick phone call to the attorney though led to the development of the next twist in this tale, the Embassy in Ottawa has only a two day wait.
now July 1st sounds like a normal day and it is in most countries in the world, apart from Canada where it is Independence Day! which yes, means that the US Embassy will be closed, oh and just for good luck they are closed on Wednesday's as well. Are you still keeping up?
so now the plan is Wednesday UK Passport Appt, Thursday receive passport, Thursday book appointment at Embassy and hope like hell that I can get an appointment on the Tuesday or even better a cancelled appointment this Friday. It would appear that next Tuesday is the earliest I can fly home, if not then hopefully the Weds/Thursday of next week, until then, well I guess were stuck with each other.
for those of you who read this and are wondering why I have not yet confirmed plans to catch up with you, hopefully you now understand.
now back to that 5 year old, for some unknown reason (though I would be looking directly at Laura if she were here in front of me), we decided that she would go with her mum for a manicure and pedicure this weekend. it became one of those decisions that as we counted down the hours on Sunday morning I was beginning to regret. 3 hours of is it time yet, why is the shop closed til lunchtime, how do you know etc, etc.
Suffice to say she was slightly excited at the thought and it has to be said thoroughly enjoyed herself, being very pleased with the final outcome (see photo at the bottom of this post)
hopefully i'l be in such a good mood on Wednesday morning. Until then.
Paul
so why am I here, well back in November my passport and visa were stolen when the house was burgled, it was due to expire in February so I wasn't that worried, oh how little I knew. Despite my best efforts as to this date I don't have a new passport, which I now need more than ever as we are trying to complete the purchase of a new house. And of course for a family that likes to travel and for someone who travels for work a passport is really an essentiality!
with the help of some colleagues in the London office, I have managed to obtain an appointment at the uk passport office in London on Wednesday. Then the fun really begins, there is a 95% probability that I will receive the new passport on Wednesday, a 5% chance that it will take 6 days... in this instance it really needs to be 24 hours.
as I cannot apply with the US Embassy for an appointment for a replacement visa application until I have the passport in my hands. This would not have been an issue in normal circumstances, only it now occurs that there is presently a three week!! waiting time for appointments at the Embassy in London. When I discovered that fact on last Friday, it did take some time to pick my chin up off the floor. A quick phone call to the attorney though led to the development of the next twist in this tale, the Embassy in Ottawa has only a two day wait.
now July 1st sounds like a normal day and it is in most countries in the world, apart from Canada where it is Independence Day! which yes, means that the US Embassy will be closed, oh and just for good luck they are closed on Wednesday's as well. Are you still keeping up?
so now the plan is Wednesday UK Passport Appt, Thursday receive passport, Thursday book appointment at Embassy and hope like hell that I can get an appointment on the Tuesday or even better a cancelled appointment this Friday. It would appear that next Tuesday is the earliest I can fly home, if not then hopefully the Weds/Thursday of next week, until then, well I guess were stuck with each other.
for those of you who read this and are wondering why I have not yet confirmed plans to catch up with you, hopefully you now understand.
now back to that 5 year old, for some unknown reason (though I would be looking directly at Laura if she were here in front of me), we decided that she would go with her mum for a manicure and pedicure this weekend. it became one of those decisions that as we counted down the hours on Sunday morning I was beginning to regret. 3 hours of is it time yet, why is the shop closed til lunchtime, how do you know etc, etc.
Suffice to say she was slightly excited at the thought and it has to be said thoroughly enjoyed herself, being very pleased with the final outcome (see photo at the bottom of this post)
hopefully i'l be in such a good mood on Wednesday morning. Until then.
Paul
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