webcowgirl

I am in the middle of a completely unpleasant cold. Well, actually, guess it's a fever, given that colds aren't usually accompanied by body chills like this one was. There I was last night, in my polartec pyjamas, under five blankets ... and it's June. Now, truth be told, it's a bit cool in London, but not cold enough for me to pull out all the stops like I would in the winter. I didn't turn on the heat, though, figuring it was all mental and next thing, I'd be overheated and unable to cool down. I was up every half an hour, parched, uncomfortable. Some time around three AM I finally got some aspirin in me - I was just too tired to look for it.

Anyway, so I didn't go into work today, and I did my best to work from home, but I kept just falling asleep. I look forward to having sick time again.

By the way, I figured out that I can apply for ILR (indefinite leave to remain) after 5 years instead of 6 like I thought - so in two Augusts, I'll be filing my paperwork. I'd best save up some dough, too, as the cost is 1000 quid. Anyone who wants to visit me, come August 14-September 14th 2011, I'll be stuck in town and looking for company.

Also, I went to the Pixies last night, and between the ankle and the cold, I was kind of checked out. For a lot of people it seemed to be a religious experience, but it just wasn't hitting me that way. Ah well, age.

I just came back from Putney, where the post office was holding ... our letter from the UK Border Agency.

We are legal! Three more years!

This is very good news indeed. It also means everything is under control for the trip to Italy with my sister. AND ... apparently I can apply for indefinite leave to remain at the end of this time, instead of needing to wait for another year more.

YAY!

I had a very nice night last night and slept like a rock. Before I went to bed, I managed to read my Jo Clayton book (for a bit), watch the David Attenborough "Deep Sea" episode (the worms that live at 80C on the sides of the sea chimney! the dumbo octopus! firefly squid!), and update my review of "Wink the Other Eye" so that it looked a bit more like something suitable for the public. Admittedly all of my cheer can't be blamed on doing so well on my exam yesterday, but it was a huge relief to have it over and NOT have bombed it like I was afraid I might.

Oh, I also handed off my/our visa/work permit papers to the lawyer yesterday. Here's hoping everything gets finished well in time for my sisters arrival - this would mean I have it back in my hot little hands by October the third, which I think is very doable at present, even with a six week delay in processing times.

And look, it's the day before payday and for once I'm not trying to stretch my last two pennies to last until tomorrow, AND I'm going to see Wizard of Oz tonight with wechsler. So hey, maybe I do have a lot to be happy about, all things considered.

I decided to count swimming with spikeylady as my first trip to the gym and bunked off today in favor of a nice lunch with shadowdaddy at Hare and Tortoise in Brunswick Center today. That said ...

So it's not just enough we get copies of our bank statements signed and stamped from Group Health ... we need to do more. (I did mention that we now need to prove that my "dependent" also had access to assets of £533 for the last three months? Since I can't go back in time and put money in the bank for this requirement that I believe did not exist at the time, I'm having to use bank info from the US to cover this.) I quote:

With regard to the US funds, the letter from the bank will need to be original, on the official letter-headed paper or stationery of the organisation and bearing the official stamp of that organisation. It must have been issued by an authorised official of that organisation. The letter should state:
• your name
• the account number
• the date of the letter
• the financial institution's name and logo
• the funds held in your account
• that the funds of £533 (assuming we are using this for your, rather than Jason's, maintenance evidence) have been in the bank for at least three months and the balance must always have been at least £533. Letters which simply state the balance in the account on a particular day or an average balance over the three-month period are not sufficient.

*****
What's funny is that because of the fact the money must not have gone below £X and also it must have all been accessible (which isn't true of the account we pay our mortgage out of, it has to have a minimum $2500 balance but aren't allowed to access it, so last month when it dipped below $2500 plus £533, we are screwed), we are having to use the account where we keep the deposit our tenants (hi guys!) paid in order to prove we've had the money and that J can be here. And the account I opened here to cover me to the tune of £800, well, it's not right either because it wasn't opened as a joint account and thus my name isn't actually on it. I think I can change that soon enough, but ... I really just can't believe all of this crap. With so many hoops to jump though, I should be a poodle in the circus. Which inspires me to change icons; I will use this one to talk about this process from now on.

It's all really just ludicrous. jillzilla is right, a visa application is the informational equivalent of a cavity search.

It's very quiet at work today. I'm going to be far ahead on my work when the day ends. I was good and went to the gym (did I really hit 172 BPM on the elliptical? I might have been feeling a bit dizzy afterwards ...) and had a lunch I brought in from home - reheated meat pie from the shop in York.

Somehow this has led me to spend a lot of time hitting Proust blogs online. I'm very much enjoying "Madeleine Moments," which is basically a Proust fan blog and thus very fun for me to read. This is where I heard about the book Proust Was a Neuroscientist (thence my lovely new icon) and Proust and the Squid (proving my interests can all overlap ultimately, given time). Who knows, maybe I should do a separate, all-Proust blog, but that seems like not as much fun as having it be a regular flavor item over here.

Today I feel like I'm really enjoying getting to work with my husband - we commuted in today, went to the gym together, and ate lunch together (in part because I'd remember to bring lunch and he hadn't). It was all kind of fun, but it's probably for the best that our work areas don't really overlap.

For those keeping track, work has estimated the cost of my visa (for them) as something like £4000, half of which I will be liable to repay if I find a new job within a year of receiving the visa (this being double what it would cost me to do it myself). It all seems rather depressing - I'd rather my golden handcuffs were a purer karat and much thicker than these. Meanwhile, the fact shadowdaddy needs his passport at the end of the month so he can watch the end of the Tour has come into play, but the attorney isn't even in the office to answer my questions today, much less finish the application ...

My boss's boss's boss has said they'll cover my visa fees and provide serious, corporate-type legal assistance with my HSMP ( -> Tier 1 visa) out of this year's budget.

I can't tell you what this means in terms of the financial hit we've just avoided for the summer and the serious stress reduction factor. (I feel like every time I've looked at the site for work permits they've changed their requirements AGAIN.)

STOKE!

Okay, well, so my new Tier One work permit application is going to run £750. Ow. This is double what it cost a year and a half ago.

And then on top of that I'm going to have to pay to get my visa renewed. Futher leave to remain, £350. I'm not sure how much shadowdaddy will have to pay, though I'm trying to figure it out right now.

I've also found a brilliant bug where a search performed in simplified mode produces different, non-relevant results from a search performed in the advanced mode, so I've earned my monkey chow for today. Perhaps I'll be dropping those pennies in a rather large piggy bank in preparation for the big hit this summer. I'm certainly going to need it.

(PS: part of making this post is to help me remember where this information is hiding on the BIA website.)

Hmm. Prices have been raised and now I'll get to look forward to a £750 fee to renew my work permit this August. W00t. The points have gone up, though, so J will have to continue as my "dependent." 'tis a bit of a joke really but it does save us the extra money to just have one application.

On the other hand, my visa might now be good for 3 years instead of 2. I like that bit, although I can't find anything on the official site about it (or maybe the right page won't load).

Good news, eh? Or maybe for those of you who want us sticking around.

I must have ingested a quart of water last night. My feeling is that if I hadn't, I'd be feeling hung over this morning. (Er, well, this afternoon, as it just rolled into the noon hour.)

Latest re: job: they want me to submit the visa myself. There's some kind of "urgent" thing you can do when you have a job offer. This is all fine except I still have no idea when everything will be ready, and I also need to have a proper visa. I just worry they'll lose interest while I'm dicking around. I really need to get the letter from my boss and the letter from my former coworker. Aaargh. I'll ask the one I've been reliably in contact with if he'll write the letter for me instead. Wait, no, I'll send it back to Jim and then bug Cort.

Last night: xxxlibris and I had a great time at the ballet and a really good visit to boot. Carlos Acosta was a god and he blew my mind when he was dancing Vaganova’s "Diana & Acteon pas de deux " - there was some thing where he twisted in the air like a cat trying to right himself and I was positive that he was simultaneously defying the laws of gravity, human anatomy, and (possibly) space and time. I gasped, I had goosebumps. Wow. And the girl he was dancing with ... was positively ethereal. I felt like I was seeing all of the A-listers on stage at once and I just loved it. How will I spend my mid-year bonus (the one hopefully waiting for me when I get home)? With season tickets to the Royal Ballet. Oh baby.

I've already got my mind on stuff I need to take care of if I only have a month before I leave ... gum surgery ... year's supply of prescriptions ... kayak trip with shadowdaddy ... I have no idea what I would need to move over here or how I would handle things. It's enough to make my mind spin, though, truth be told, I think this is exactly what this little brain of mine is made for.