Found it....

      I am really looking forward to this weekend. My cousin Brooke is getting married in Ohio. My mom and dad and a lot of the extended family will be there. I have always hated local weddings, most of your day (normally a Saturday) taken up by an event that is an "appearance" affair. Seems like you don't have enough time to do much in the morning, and then after the ceremony a long wait for photo's followed by a party where one should behave. By the time it's over, its too late to do anything else fun. Now this weekend's event is just the opposite of that. The wedding is at 5:30 in the evening (I like that) and it is out of town. (In Ohio). I will get there around three, leaving just enough time to dress up for the wedding. Then the event will take place, followed by time for me to see all of my favorite relatives. The event will be over early enough for me to spend a little quality time with my folks, before retiring for the evening. Sunday morning, enjoy a nice breakfast at my Uncle Bob's and Aunt Donna's house, then back on the road to home in the morning while traffic is still light. Should be a fun 16 hours in Ohio.

      Well the last time we visited, I still had no good update on Rodz's attempt to immigrate to America. Well the worm has finally turned. Last Wednesday morning, I once again phoned the U.S. State Department to try and get an update on our missing case file. Well I was fortunate enough to speak to an articulate pleasant employee of the State Department. After reviewing my file, she was empathetic to the frustrations that I was sharing about the time the case was taking to move through the system, and the mystery of where the file had wandered off to. She was alarmed that the Abu Dhabi American Embassy had not responded to either email that the State Department had written asking for an update. She told me she would personally follow up and that if I hadn't heard from her within a couple of days to feel free to call back. Well she made me think that I finally was going to get some answers. In an amazing turn of events, the next day in Dubai, Rodz got a phone call from our Embassy scheduling her homeland security interview for Monday, June 30th at 8am. Rodz also got the official appointment letter via email. My new buddy from the State Department called and left me a message to congratulate us upon arriving at the last hurdle for Rodz's Immigration. So keep your fingers crossed that Rodz will be able to join me in July.

     Let me apologize for the brevity of this update, I am fighting staying awake, and am not feeling clever or interesting. I am in the midst of making some serious career decisions that hopefully I can share with you in just a couple of short weeks. Thank goodness that we have emerged from such a harsh winter, I feel like things are starting to pop up like Roses....