The visa progresses...

Time: Sunday afternoon
Music: Kasabian....  Test transmission

Taking a break from my 'Being a Ronin' series for a visa update.  My wife did the paperwork for the visa in Japan and submitted it on March 7th.  Of course, that massive earthquake hit a few days later and delayed it a little. She called back to immigration a few months later to see if there was any significant delay, but all they would say was that the Certificate of Eligibility would take approximately 3 months.  3 months and 1 week later, I have the COE in hand.  The next step was to drive to Atlanta, pay the fee, and do all the application work.  I took the time off of work a week beforehand and began to prepare.  It turns out all the information and forms are on the web.  I was trying to do things the same way I did them in 2001, but time progresses on.  I called the Japanese consulate in Atlanta just in case however and they told me that everything can be done by mail... but they told me a million times that they would not be responsible if it was lost in the mail.  So what I need to send is the visa application, 2 passport photos, a waiver of liability for sending things in the mail, and my COE.  They made it clear that its really important that I sign the passport, as that is a cause of a lot of denials.  To this I have to provide return postage as well. Fortunately, for a US citizen, there is no visa fee. 

Its great news since I dont have to make a 4 hour pilgrimage to Atlanta, hang out for an hour, and spend another 4 hours driving home.  Now... will I go into work tomorrow?  I doubt it....