Or, for that matter, how do you spell rude, incompetent, red-tape-hoop-jumping jackasses? Oh, wait a minute. I thought I had calmed down....maybe not.
You guessed it. My fingerprints rejected again. Not surprising since I don't have any!!! So, I received a letter from my friends at USCIS that I needed to appear again and sign a "Rejected Fingerprints Sworn Statement". No problem. Wednesday morning Tony and I headed downtown so I could sign the form and get the ball rolling for our I-600 renewal. By the way, Tony really doesn't need to come. I think he views these trips to USCIS kind of like if I was pregnant and he went with me to the doctor.
So, after a two hour wait in a room with way too many people in it they finally call my name. Yippee! I thought I'd go in the back sign a form and be on my way. Silly, silly, me.
Here's the Reader's Digest condensed version of what happened:
I go into an office with an Immigration Officer that appears to be friendly (but is really a witch in disguise), raise my hand, swear to tell the truth and then sit down. The first thing the officer asks me for is my Passport. Um....yikes! I explained that I didn't have my Passport with me but I do have my driver's license. The letter I received from USCIS requested I bring several things with me but didn't mention bringing my Passport. My answer was met with a huge sigh. Strike one for me.
Officer Nasty then asks me if I brought my original "Gold Seal" letter from the state. Yeah, score one for me! I had the letter. She told me she needed to keep the original. Ut...oh. The letter stated I needed to bring proof that I had received a Gold Seal from the state but it didn't state that they were going to keep the original. I didn't like the sounds of that and asked if she would mind when she made a copy of my driver's license if she could make a copy of the Gold Seal letter for me, too. To which she replied, "We're not Kinko's". At first I thought she was teasing...but nope...dead serious. Officer We're not Kinko's told me she was not allowed to make copies. I asked if it would be okay if I called my agency because I didn't know if I could give up this original. At first, the answer was, "Fine" and then as soon as I got the Coordinator on the phone she told me I would have to hang up and if I wanted my I-600 to go through I would do as she instructed.
Much to my credit, I believe, I didn't reach across the desk and strangle her. I hung up with my agency and looked at the document Officer Suzy Sunshine had placed in front of me. The document was titled "Record of Sworn Statement - Good Moral Character". Obviously she wasn't able to read my mind or she would've known at that moment my moral character was a bit shaky! I asked if I also needed to complete a "Rejected Fingerprint Sworn Statement" since that was the name of the document stated in the letter I received from their office. To which she answered, "If you're going to have so many questions you will need to hire an immigration attorney and reschedule your appointment for a later time." What?!?! Well, that was it. I truly needed to use every ounce of self control not to blow my top. Instead, I politely asked to see her supervisor. Officer Friendly said, "No problem. As soon as you finish the paperwork I will get a supervisor." I calmly (or not so calmly) explained that I was finished dealing with her and her utter rudeness and I didn't intend to do another thing until I saw a supervisor. I was so angry my voice was shaky and I was trying desperately not to cry. I mean...really....why was this necessary? Why can't people just be nice? I find it interesting that with some people if they are given a little bit of perceived power they turn into complete asses!
Officer Power Trip got on her broom, left the office, and in a few minutes came back with a supervisor. The supervisor was very cordial, shook my hand, asked what was wrong, and how he could help. I briefly explained what had happened and that I was unwilling to continue to work with this officer. The supervisor took over and offered to make me a copy of my Gold Seal letter and explained that the "Record of Sworn Statement - Good Moral Character" was now used in place of the "Rejected Fingerprint Sworn Statement". Wow....two minutes to answer a few questions, offer a little customer service, and no immigration attorney required!
The supervisor also helped me with how/where to answer questions on the Good Moral Character form. The form has about 20 questions on it and most of them ask the same thing worded in different ways. For example:
- Have you ever been cited for breaking or violating any law or ordinance?
- Have you ever been charged for breaking or violating any law or ordinance?
- Have you ever been fined for breaking any law or ordinance?
You get the picture. I simply wanted to know where I should answer that I have had a speeding ticket in the past. He told me where to include that and said that really isn't the kind of thing they are interested in. By the way, the supervisor also made me a copy of the signed "Record of Sworn Statement - Good Moral Character". Maybe they are Kinko's after all.
When I left the office I was still fuming. Tony was waiting for me in the overcrowded waiting room and knew something was wrong the second I came into the room. On our way home I relived what had happened. While I was driving Tony looked at the Good Moral Character form and noticed I didn't answer the "Date and place of birth question" completely. I only included my place of birth not the date. I have a sick feeling this form will be rejected, too, and I will have to go back to that awful place again.
Okay, so that wasn't much of a Reader's Digest condensed version. Sorry about that and don't get me wrong....in the grand scheme of things I know this is not a big deal. I know that there are people that face real injustices and hardships every day and would laugh at my little bit of inconvenience. Trust me. I get it. It just feels good to get it off my chest!
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