Sunday, November 26, 2006
My DV2007 story
This is quite a long entry so you’d better sit down, and maybe grab a drink of your choice before you continue to read.
For as long as I can remember I have been interested in the USA. Maybe it’s because of my dad’s and grandparents’ stories about living and working in Los Angeles in the 50s. Their pictures and home made videos made it all so real. I really don’t know. All is know is that when I went to the USA for the first time when I was about 14, everything just clicked. Even though we went to Orlando, and not LA, it was exactly as I had imagined it from all the stories I was ever told. In a way it was a bit scary how it all just seemed to fit. I mean it was nothing short of being exactly as I had pictured it.
The one thing that made it really special for me during that very first trip was the realization that I could be myself in the US. What made me realize this was a certain pop band that was popular at that time called New Kids on the Block. In the USA it was totally ok to be a fan and to admit that you like them. In Holland it was not…And not only that one of the guys was/is totally into US history. So was I but I never really had a real history book so naturally I had to go out and get a US history book and study J
The most important however was the feeling that in the USA I could be myself. And every time when I am in the US I just get this “It’s OK to be me” feeling over me.
When I was younger I had already decided that I wanted to do an internship in the USA. So when I got to do both an exchange and an internship in the USA when I was in college that was really a dream come true.
After my exchange and my internship the only thing I wanted was to return to the US one day. Temporary work visas are relatively easy to get for internship and the likes, but getting a work permit for a steady job is much, much more difficult if not impossible.
I had already been participating in the Green Card lottery since I was 18 or so but of course to no avail. But the more I learned about obtaining work permits for the USA the more I realized the Green card lottery was my one and only option. With a success rate of like 1% or something it was not a very realistic one. However if I would not participate in the lottery my chances of ever getting a permit would be 0%. So for years on end I entered but never succeeded.
Until DV2007 that is... And it might be hard to believe but I almost had not entered last year. I had just landed a job as Restaurant General Manager and ‘my’ restaurant had just opened its doors and it was extremely hectic. Normally I would start thinking about the DV lottery again as soon as September and it would become a main priority. But for some reason last year it just slipped my mind. Well not completely I did think about it but more in the sense of “I’ll get it done eventually”. It was not until mid November I think it was that one of my assistant managers were talking about the US and all of a sudden he mentioned the Green Card lottery and that a friend of his had mentioned it once, and if I had ever participated. I told him I had entered every year since I was 18 (except maybe for my US internship year). He asked me if I had entered this year as well and I told him that I had forgotten due to all the hectic times at the restaurant. He pretty much told me I had better hurry up and find out of I could still participate then. He mentioned something in the likes of “You’d better act soon because you don’t want to miss out on this opportunity. I’m telling you’d better enter soon.” And he basically left me flabbergasted and astonished. I went home that night, got on the internet, found the information and I entered the DV2007 lottery.
I did not really think about the lottery anymore after that. Work was way to busy or maybe I was coming to terms with the fact that I’d probably never win.
And then it became April. One day I opened my mailbox and found a stack of mail. One envelope said something about “Kentucky…” Being in the fast food industry I first wondered why Kentucky Fried Chicken would be writing to me, and second why they would not use their company logo on the envelope. A split second later it dawned on me that maybe this could be The Letter…I removed the mail blocking the rest from the envelope and…what do you know…”Kentucky Consular Center” appeared in the top left corner.
I was selected to begin the application process for a Permanent Resident Visa (aka Green Card). That is me and about 99,000 others. Only 50,000 of all these selected individuals will actually get a Green Card.
I filled out all the necessary forms and returned them to Kentucky and started obtaining all the necessary paperwork and certificates.
Only a little over 5 months passed (but it seemed forever) when I found out I was going to have my medical exam and interview at the consulate in November.
The medical exam was a breeze. I had to go to this one medical clinic in Amsterdam to get a chest x-ray and than I had an appointment at this G.P’s office in Amsterdam. I was asked some questions about my general health, received an additional shot to complete all the ones I had in previous years and was presumed a healthy individual. Always nice to know.
A little more than a week later was my interview at the consulate. I was so extremely nervous. I had heard all these stories about how people that do not have their paperwork in order, get send home and they are even picky when it comes to the photographs that have to be handed in. So I was nervous…and I mean nervous. Luckily I was in Amsterdam about 3 hours too early as for once traffic was quite alright. So I decided to have a coffee and lunch at this nice restaurant at the PC Hooftstraat in Amsterdam. This is sort of like the Rodeo Drive of Amsterdam so expected lunch and coffee to be quite expensive but it wasn’t. And the people there were nice and just let me be. I had told them when I came in, that I had an appointment and that US Consulate at 1.30pm and that I would like to stay here until it was time to leave if that was ok with them. As long as I ordered something they were ok with it. So that was good because I was thirsty and hungry despite the nerves.
I left the restaurant at 1.00pm and walked to the consulate. I got there at 1.10pm. As I was the only one and it was raining I decided to walk up to the nearby supermarket and wait in the hall.
I was at the consulate gate at 1.20pm, with another couple. And we were allowed in almost immediately. It might have been the rain though because as far as I know they don’t normally let people in ahead of the scheduled appointment time.
I checked my bag with the security guard and took all my necessary paperwork with me.
Then I was off to window 1. Unfortunately the couple in front of me was having a problem with one of their certificates and made quite a fuss about it. Not really helping to ease my nerves. And then it was my turn…
Well, the interview could not have been easier. Yeah ok that’s 20/20 hindsight. All the people I met there from the security guards to the employees I talked to at the consulate, they were all extremely nice.
The gentleman behind the first window was very nice to me. I brought a whole stack worth of paperwork with me. I just wanted to come as prepared as possible so I had brought everything I could think of. Of course I brought way too much but me bringing way too much also brought a smile to the man behind the first window. Which instantly made me feel a lot better about the whole interview thing. I handed in all the necessary paperwork.
Then I was told to go to the second window and pay the fees. After paying I waited for about 20 minutes and was then called to the third window where I was met by this very friendly guy. He spoke Dutch with an American accent but insisted on doing everything in Dutch. The only thing he did in English was the oath. He asked me some more questions which I answered, took my fingerprints, had me take the oath and the told my my application was “Approved” and welcomed me to the USA. That was it? Yes that’s it…
I will finally be moving to the USA permanently. Words could never express how happy this makes me.
For as long as I can remember I have been interested in the USA. Maybe it’s because of my dad’s and grandparents’ stories about living and working in Los Angeles in the 50s. Their pictures and home made videos made it all so real. I really don’t know. All is know is that when I went to the USA for the first time when I was about 14, everything just clicked. Even though we went to Orlando, and not LA, it was exactly as I had imagined it from all the stories I was ever told. In a way it was a bit scary how it all just seemed to fit. I mean it was nothing short of being exactly as I had pictured it.
The one thing that made it really special for me during that very first trip was the realization that I could be myself in the US. What made me realize this was a certain pop band that was popular at that time called New Kids on the Block. In the USA it was totally ok to be a fan and to admit that you like them. In Holland it was not…And not only that one of the guys was/is totally into US history. So was I but I never really had a real history book so naturally I had to go out and get a US history book and study J
The most important however was the feeling that in the USA I could be myself. And every time when I am in the US I just get this “It’s OK to be me” feeling over me.
When I was younger I had already decided that I wanted to do an internship in the USA. So when I got to do both an exchange and an internship in the USA when I was in college that was really a dream come true.
After my exchange and my internship the only thing I wanted was to return to the US one day. Temporary work visas are relatively easy to get for internship and the likes, but getting a work permit for a steady job is much, much more difficult if not impossible.
I had already been participating in the Green Card lottery since I was 18 or so but of course to no avail. But the more I learned about obtaining work permits for the USA the more I realized the Green card lottery was my one and only option. With a success rate of like 1% or something it was not a very realistic one. However if I would not participate in the lottery my chances of ever getting a permit would be 0%. So for years on end I entered but never succeeded.
Until DV2007 that is... And it might be hard to believe but I almost had not entered last year. I had just landed a job as Restaurant General Manager and ‘my’ restaurant had just opened its doors and it was extremely hectic. Normally I would start thinking about the DV lottery again as soon as September and it would become a main priority. But for some reason last year it just slipped my mind. Well not completely I did think about it but more in the sense of “I’ll get it done eventually”. It was not until mid November I think it was that one of my assistant managers were talking about the US and all of a sudden he mentioned the Green Card lottery and that a friend of his had mentioned it once, and if I had ever participated. I told him I had entered every year since I was 18 (except maybe for my US internship year). He asked me if I had entered this year as well and I told him that I had forgotten due to all the hectic times at the restaurant. He pretty much told me I had better hurry up and find out of I could still participate then. He mentioned something in the likes of “You’d better act soon because you don’t want to miss out on this opportunity. I’m telling you’d better enter soon.” And he basically left me flabbergasted and astonished. I went home that night, got on the internet, found the information and I entered the DV2007 lottery.
I did not really think about the lottery anymore after that. Work was way to busy or maybe I was coming to terms with the fact that I’d probably never win.
And then it became April. One day I opened my mailbox and found a stack of mail. One envelope said something about “Kentucky…” Being in the fast food industry I first wondered why Kentucky Fried Chicken would be writing to me, and second why they would not use their company logo on the envelope. A split second later it dawned on me that maybe this could be The Letter…I removed the mail blocking the rest from the envelope and…what do you know…”Kentucky Consular Center” appeared in the top left corner.
I was selected to begin the application process for a Permanent Resident Visa (aka Green Card). That is me and about 99,000 others. Only 50,000 of all these selected individuals will actually get a Green Card.
I filled out all the necessary forms and returned them to Kentucky and started obtaining all the necessary paperwork and certificates.
Only a little over 5 months passed (but it seemed forever) when I found out I was going to have my medical exam and interview at the consulate in November.
The medical exam was a breeze. I had to go to this one medical clinic in Amsterdam to get a chest x-ray and than I had an appointment at this G.P’s office in Amsterdam. I was asked some questions about my general health, received an additional shot to complete all the ones I had in previous years and was presumed a healthy individual. Always nice to know.
A little more than a week later was my interview at the consulate. I was so extremely nervous. I had heard all these stories about how people that do not have their paperwork in order, get send home and they are even picky when it comes to the photographs that have to be handed in. So I was nervous…and I mean nervous. Luckily I was in Amsterdam about 3 hours too early as for once traffic was quite alright. So I decided to have a coffee and lunch at this nice restaurant at the PC Hooftstraat in Amsterdam. This is sort of like the Rodeo Drive of Amsterdam so expected lunch and coffee to be quite expensive but it wasn’t. And the people there were nice and just let me be. I had told them when I came in, that I had an appointment and that US Consulate at 1.30pm and that I would like to stay here until it was time to leave if that was ok with them. As long as I ordered something they were ok with it. So that was good because I was thirsty and hungry despite the nerves.
I left the restaurant at 1.00pm and walked to the consulate. I got there at 1.10pm. As I was the only one and it was raining I decided to walk up to the nearby supermarket and wait in the hall.
I was at the consulate gate at 1.20pm, with another couple. And we were allowed in almost immediately. It might have been the rain though because as far as I know they don’t normally let people in ahead of the scheduled appointment time.
I checked my bag with the security guard and took all my necessary paperwork with me.
Then I was off to window 1. Unfortunately the couple in front of me was having a problem with one of their certificates and made quite a fuss about it. Not really helping to ease my nerves. And then it was my turn…
Well, the interview could not have been easier. Yeah ok that’s 20/20 hindsight. All the people I met there from the security guards to the employees I talked to at the consulate, they were all extremely nice.
The gentleman behind the first window was very nice to me. I brought a whole stack worth of paperwork with me. I just wanted to come as prepared as possible so I had brought everything I could think of. Of course I brought way too much but me bringing way too much also brought a smile to the man behind the first window. Which instantly made me feel a lot better about the whole interview thing. I handed in all the necessary paperwork.
Then I was told to go to the second window and pay the fees. After paying I waited for about 20 minutes and was then called to the third window where I was met by this very friendly guy. He spoke Dutch with an American accent but insisted on doing everything in Dutch. The only thing he did in English was the oath. He asked me some more questions which I answered, took my fingerprints, had me take the oath and the told my my application was “Approved” and welcomed me to the USA. That was it? Yes that’s it…
I will finally be moving to the USA permanently. Words could never express how happy this makes me.
# posted by USA2007 @ 9:16 AM 
