My Memory Lane To USA

During my years living in the USA, there had been a lot of things that really shocked me.  Just when I thought I knew everything about the USA before I moved here, I realized I actually knew so little.  Now looking back, I see how naive I was.  But it was a good thing because being naive kept me optimistic and happy.  Ignorance is really a bliss!  When I was growing up, I heard so much about the USA, and I heard how not only was USA the super powerful world police, but was the "richest" country in the world.  The international brand of America has always been: America is the land of opportunities, the land where dreams come true, the land where everybody can get rich and have a wonderful life. So the first time when I encountered homeless people in New York City as a teenage tourist, I was shocked.  I remember calling my father back home asking why there were so many homeless people in New York City.   My dad was also surprised to hear th...

One of the prototypes of social security card shown on the Social Security Administration website.  I haven't updated my new U.S. citizenship status with the Social Security Administration yet. I'm still having the old social security card with my old name. (Yes, I changed my name during the naturalization process.)  I was told at the oath taking ceremony that I must wait at least 30 days before going to the office of social security to update my new citizenship status.   Like most new citizens who are always overthinking about how to follow the U.S. law to the T, I'm starting to question, is it really 30 days? Is it really that long?  Is it even reasonable it takes this long?  Did I hear it wrong at the oath taking ceremony?  Now, I'm starting to go crazy.  Is this sad?  I think this has to do with the trauma of waiting in line for so long  to become a U.S. citizen. The many years of feeling insecure about  my future in the USA h...

As a new citizen, I learn quickly that New York Times seems to  have an agenda.  When I was growing up, my grandparents who fled a very brutal communist regime in the 1950s always told me that the communist dictator back in their home country always commanded all kinds of "scientific" studies to specifically meet his "expectation". Any scientists whose studies showed results that deviated from the dictator's political agenda were sent to labor camp if it was a lucky day, or they were quickly executed if it was just a regular day.  As a result, all newspapers back in my grandparents' home country were always reporting studies that showed skewed statistics. Yes, this is what having no free-press is all about!  This is why my grandparents fled their country they loved so very much.  No, they didn't flee here to the USA. If only they did, my life in the USA would have been so much easier. Why I came to the USA as an immigrant belongs to another post. Let ...

This is the welcome video I saw at the oath taking ceremony.  There was a lot of applause from the thousands of new Americans at the end of the President's speech.  So to all the Americans who don't like Donald Trump and who want to leave the USA because of him, you won't be missed.  For every American citizen who doesn't like Donald Trump, there are a lot  more new Americans who like him. Applause from thousands of new citizens happen almost every month in my sanctuary city.  The more Trump hating Americans "actually" leave the USA, the more room for new comers.    I was surprised  that there was so much applause during the introduction of Donald Trump as the President and at the end of his welcome speech.  TV shows like "The View" and others make me think that I can be among the few immigrants who aren't Trump-haters. It's not the case in reality. As to why the mainstream media under-estimate Donald Trump's appeal to naturali...

Finally, my life as an immigrant in the USA is ending. I will soon begin a new life after I complete my citizenship application process.  No, I'm not one of those whom the media would like to interview as a soon-to-be deportee under the "Trump Administration".  So I don't get to go on TV to shed my tears. But still, it doesn't mean my journey as an immigrant was without my share of distress, heartbreak and tears. Immigrant or not, everybody has lots of sad moments in our lives to talk about.  Some of us get to tell our sad tales and cry on American TV, others can write a book, a diary or a blog about their sad stories, while some just live in silence, prefer to not talk about their heartbreaking experience and relive it. (Okay, now I'm feeling I'm starting to drift off to a topic that belongs to another blog....) So, back to my story, after more than 7 months since I mailed out my application (Form N-400) and the  $725 ($640 application fees +$85 bio...