AmbersWay wrote: »

I’m at the gate waiting to board. A lil one is already kicking my seat. I’m laughing this off. I’m determined to just get on my flight and sleep. I need to hit the road running there.

I read up but will be back tomorrow to catch up.

Have a lovely Thursday!

Oh and all our carry ons were heavy. That was fun😩

Safe flight,!!! ✈️

My daughter heads to Istanbul on Sat 🇹🇷

@Katmary71 - (((HUGS))) Your situation sucks.

I typed this for another group, but I thought I'd share it here too 💖

(Photo = me stalking, then catching!, the UPS truck! 🥳 🤣)



Btw, nice blue sky! 🟦💙

It's not raining today!! (Rain returns tmo 😝)



So, I had a crazy morning 🤪. First of all, my daughter has fallen in love with her Turkish spice boy, who she met in December, and has traveled to Turkey once a month to visit 💕.

It's almost impossible for him to get a visa to visit her. He tried in March, he was going to meet my daughter in Barcelona, when Katie (dd) was going to visit my niece who spent a year in Spain teaching English. Murat (spice boy) put on a suit, went to the Embassy for his visa interview, thought he was going to get it, but got denied bc he has no bank account.

(Turkish lira has been in free fall since '20/'21 - their central bank is not independent, and their president dictates monetary policy. Turkey has had massive inflation for years ... 40%, 89%, other crazy numbers. So the Turks keep their money in euros if they can, not in the bank in local liras.)

Anyway! they've decided to marry in a courthouse in Turkey 💕, and apply for a marriage visa (which can take a yr). Then have a real wedding ceremony next summer. There's a tonnnnnn of paperwork. She has a lawyer here, a lawyer there, they're rounding up all the documents, dotting the i's, crossing the t's ... and then they hit a snag. Her birth certificate needs not just the state seal, but a special type of notarizing that's done by the state, for international purposes, called an apostille.

She requested (she thought) an apostilled birth cert from MA (she was born in Boston), two copies! just in case .... But when it arrived in Turkey, no apostille. 😬

So, she requested overnight delivery if three more copies - the kind that are 'to be apostilled), at $150 each or some ridiculous number. Then found out last night they were 'signature required', and she was going to be at work. So I drive up to her place to meet the UPS truck and sign for it. Got there just after 1p. UPS tried to deliver st 12:28p 😩😩😩😬.

"Oh noeeesss!"

Okay, so she's flying to Turkey tmo, needs to have the thing, so I look around, what to do? Try to call UPS, ofc get the automated "push this number for ..." menu. That's not gonna work! 🤔

Ok, fine! So, I drive out the driveway, to the downtown, and start looking for the dsm UPS truck. 🤣 Drive awhile, down past Bowdoin college, a bit more ... realize I'm too far, not gonna find the truck this way. And I turn around. Three blocks back towards town - 😱😳 I see the UPS truck!!! It's stopped, guy in it, hazards on, on the other side of the street!

I turn around, go down side street, try to park - nothing. Pull into a church driveway, and leave it there, blocking the long driveway lol. I figured - it's not Sunday 🤷‍♀️

Trot back up the block, UPS truck still there. Guy inside now, getting pizza and Arizona Tea. So, I casually saunter inside, walk slowly but with a friendly smile 🙂 up to the guy, and ask if I could interrupt his lunch. He says ok, and I go through my story. He says, he's not the guy for that area, doesn't know the guy who is, said he might be at lunch now, but doesn't know. I thank him, and pay for his lunch (we're at the register now, lol,). So, he tells me a few places to check. Says he'll be doing pickups, check this place, this place, Bowdoin College mail room, Gelato Fiasco, Cool As A Moose, UPS store on Main St, etc. 😁😁😁

I thank him, and off I go. I'm looking ... I'm looking ... see nothing ... drive a bit through Bowdoin campus - nothing. Head down Main St. Looking ... Looking .... O. M. G. there's the truck!!! Other side of the street! Guy in it! By Bank of America!

I make a 'questionably legal' U turn, lol, and follow the guy. He turns down a side street, I follow at a distance, slowly. He pulls over at a Real Estate agent. I park behind him, get out and start to walk towards him ...

... He's talking to himself (no one else around, he doesn't see me yet). He's saying "Uhhhgh I'm so tired!" He rang the bell, door locked and no answer. I speak up - "Hi! I'm sorry you're tired, I hope you don't mind if I bother you .... "

Lol He turns around, smiles at my story, says, "Sure! That's me! I have the letter in my truck. I heard the dogs barking (at dd house), but no answer." 🤷‍♂️

I thank him profusely! Take the letter, send daughter a pic, she's SO happy! Can't believe it! Over the moon!

Okay, now I have to get to Augusta, the State Capitol, to get the thing apostilled. Drive another 45 min north, arrive in plenty of time, a little confusing finding my way through the campus maze of state buildings, but I find it. Only one person in line! Great!

Get to the window, take out all my stuff, the lady at the window gets the lady who does apostilling ... and she can't do it! It's an out of state document. Has to get apostilled in MA! 😱😩😓


Mumblemumblemumble

Reach daughter on phone after some doing, tell her what's the what. She is obvs disappointed.

But, lawyer in Turkey says they will send over everything they have, get the translation process started, get her appts set for next week (has to get a health exam, and a bunch of other stuff), and hopefully if I can get to MA Monday morning, get the thing apostilled before 11a ET (which is 6p Turkey time), send them an img, hopefully it'll be ok. (Follow up digital img with FedExing physical document.)

So. That was my day. Monday should be interesting! She'll already be in Turkey, so I hope I can get everything done in time. 🤞

Okay, I was going to post this on the weekly chat, but I feel like there will be a follow-up here on Monday, so imma put it in a new post 😉

@mkksemail - your crazy day made for some very amusing reading here on the Slims chat! With governments and documents, it's so difficult to get all the t's and i's done right. It seems like they make it intentionally difficult. It will make for an amusing story when they tell their children about how they got married.

-Mica

Kat,ica, lol .... TY! It was tooooo much, 😂🤣, def had to share. Lol

Kat, have fun at your potluck today! 👏 Mica, your 4th of July challenge inspires me. That's something I'm def long overdue in adding to my life ...

Happy Saturday, Slums! 🙋‍♀️😎. Raining (AGAIN 😝) here, but .... 🤷‍♀️🌂😄.

Cheers!
- mk (Maine)