Thursday, September 07, 2006

Conséquences d'un accident de vélo

The consequences of a bicycle accident


Okay, I had to post this title "en Français " since MVG and I are in Montréal to get our Green Cards (that story will be another post).

So, as you may have guessed, there has been ANOTHER accident involving MVG and a bicycle. (It seems that she is a magnet for accidents this year) This time, however, MVG was actually not riding a bicycle. We were out for a run in the early morning along the Lachine Canal when out of nowhere (well, along a street) a dude comes flying along on his bike THROUGH A RED LIGHT and hits MVG. I saw the cyclist coming in my superior peripheral, but unfortunately MVG did not. It was kind of slow motion, as she tumbled over the front wheel and down to the pavement.



Thankfully, she was not hurt, and the cyclist was able to slow down enough to cause only a minor scratch. The cyclist was apologizing profusely (in French) to MVG, and she was saying "It's ok" back in English... I'm not sure either one knows what the other said.

Anyway, MVG insists that THIS is her last bicycling accident EVER.

Tuesday, September 05, 2006

Part I: How do you "Measure Up"?

Are you "Man Enough"?


So, here we are (MVG and I) in Montréal going through the process of getting our Green Cards. Here is the gist of what takes place:

  1. You go back to your country of origin
  2. In that country, you have a medical exam by a doctor specified by the US Consulate
  3. You get your results (at some point)
  4. You take the results to the US Consulate at a specified time and date along with the GC forms
  5. You go back to the US Consulate the next day to get your "Immigrant Visa"
  6. You go to a "port of entry" to the US, and meet with Homeland Security to exchange the Immigrant Visa for the Permanent Residence (Green) Card.


This post is, of course, about item number 2 (as a result of completing item 1).

It was a LONG day getting our medical exam. We had to give urine samples, fill out forms, get vaccinated against everything, have our eyes checked, have blood tests, get X-rays taken, and meet with a Doctor. It was a full day of fun and frolic. So, without going into boring details, here are the highlights:

  1. MVG is now a pin cushion - The nurse claimed that MVG has 'fragile veins', a.k.a. the nurse was unable to get blood from her.
  2. The US Consulate is chock full of perverts - The doctor, when we were in her office to meet with her, told us

    The US Consulate would like us to VIEW your genitals

  3. Someone may be following us - We aren't typically paranoid, but the doc also asked us if we were currently being followed by a doctor. After she said that, I realized that there have been strange people nearby, they may be doctors, I'm just not sure...


So, getting back to the "Genital Viewing", this one nearly caused MVG to burst into laughter (also, had her a bit worried... not sure what the doc meant by it). We were quickly going through all kinds of scenarios in our heads such as:

  • Perhaps there is a requirement for a person to "measure up" to get admitted to the U.S.
  • The doc just likes to see genitalia
  • The doc had a tiny spy camera, and now our genitals are on the web somewhere
  • Perhaps we'll have to parade around so everybody gets to 'view' our genitals

After the viewing, the doc just said "No lesions", and that was it... in all, it was an 'experience', I feel like a lab rat or something now.

Stay tuned for more...