Lunch Report - Friday Dec 9th

[astutzmann]

Hi Guys:

I'll give it a try.

Its a snowy, windy, cold day in Niagara today, we got about 3-4 inches of snow and there were a number of accidents. I hear buffalo got dumped on.

For lunch today, I had a salad, lettuce, onion, heirloom tomatoes, with cheese and some cold cuts on top. Chipotle Ranch Dressing, yum

G&L QUESTION, sorta

Because of the weather I am a bit bored and just getting around to picking up the guitar and practicing. I have a rack with 5 guitars on it (3 G&Ls) and can't decide which one to pick up first?????
Does this happen to you, especially those guys with lots of guitars? How do you decide which one to play first? Is it your goto, or random?

NON G&L QUESTION,

I travel to the US alot and a couple of years ago, my passport went thru the washing machine because it was in the back pocket of my jeans. Its wrinkly and frayed, but both borders take it and can scan it fine, no issues with it.

I went on wed to renew it because it expires in august and the price is going up jan 1 for renewals so I thought I would get it done. The BITCH, yes, BITCH at the passport office, confiscated it, claiming its damaged and when I tried to argue, she started screaming and called security. WOW. I was told in no uncertain terms, that my passport was now "LOST" and I had to begin the process of getting a brand new one, not a renewal but a full application starting over.

So, I filled out all the paperwork today and went back..................you know where this is going.........they made me leave and go find a notary public, who could sign the form to say that I am me....................so, I did that. Then, I went back, she (different lady, very nice) goes thru everything and says I can't get it done because my birth certificate is laminated. I laminated it so it would last. I had to get it replaced 10 years ago and went thru hell, so I laminated it to keep it looking great. Since its laminated, they can't authenticate it??????????????????????????

So, they sent me away to go re-apply to get a new birth certificate. I do, that will take a month to get..............................................ok, now I'm pissed, can't go to the US for over a month............never had an issue and have had a passport for 20+ years...........

Anyone else with horror stories of government bs that they care to mention???????????

[suave eddie]

I moved from the U.S. to Canada 5 years ago. Just obtained my dual citizenship a couple weeks ago and got my Canadian passport yesterday.
I don't know how non-English speaking immigrants navigate the process ( I now know why so many of them hire agents to do it for them). I would sometimes call to get questions clarified and get three different answers on three different calls. The instructions are far from clear. That being said, my immigration was processed in record time--6 weeks from the date I submitted it to approval. I was prepared for anywhere from 6 to 18 months. When I landed, I was given landing papers stapled to my passport--this was a triplicate form--one copy to stay at the customs at the airport, one copy to be sent to Ottawa, and the other copy to stay with me. My PR card was to suppose to arrive within a week or two. After not receiving the card after this time, I called immigration and they informed that there was no record of my landing--I had the only copy of the form--the other two were nowhere to be found. Without the PR card I would not be able to return into Canada if I went back down to the States, Which I had to do since I was still wrapping up a house sale and my job. Luckily all I had to do was go back to the airport customs office and have another photo taken and show my landing papers to re-proccess the PR card, which did arrive quickly before I had to leave.

If you do travel frequently across the border, you should really get a NEXUS card. Not only does it shrink your wait times at the border crossings, but you could still be traveling now without your passport--you would only need the NEXUS card.

I'm really not surprised by your experience--Canadian Immigration and Customs/Border services are totally unpredictable and inconsistant.

[astutzmann]

thanks, the good news is I have applied for the nexus and gone thru it all, just waiting for it to show up. It may be my saving grace since I have to travel to the US right after new years.

[louis cyfer]

wow, canada seems worse than the us. bureaucracy at its worse.

[astutzmann]

everything here is socialized, like socialized medicine.

My brother had a stroke and spent 16 weeks in the hospital, its all paid for...... that doesnt mean its any good!

[suave eddie]

More inconsistencies..........

Both American and Canadian Passport agencies instruct you to make two photocopies of your passport when travelling--one to either email to yourself or carry separate from your real passport, and the other to give to a friend or relative to keep.

When I made my final move I was told by the moving company to give the driver a copy of my passport. When I met the mover at the border, the Canadian customs officer freaked out when he saw the photocopy--He told me that it was a felony to make a photocopy of a passport.

As I said above, both U.S. and Canadian governments instruct you to do just this.

When you get your NEXUS, don't forget to update your profile with the new passport information. This can be done online.

Did you get your Iris Scan? I've used one aiport kiosk so far with the irs scan technology--it's kind of cool and kind of creepy at the same time.

[blargfromouterspace]

Sounds horrible Alf. Hope you get it sorted out before your blood pressure gets too high! My brother is currently traveling through Europe and both of his passports (we have both Australian and British passports) were stolen. It's a real PITA to get that stuff done overseas. I once had to renew my passport while I lived in Germany, it required several trips into Frankfurt to the embassy. There was a really cute chick working there so there was a good side.

I tend to have a different go to every month. Right now it's my '97 Classic.

[astutzmann]

thanks for the tip. Haven't had the iris scan yet.

I have a friend who has his NEXUS card. His drivers license expired and was renewed no issue. Later Nexus did a routine spot check and when they found out his drivers license had different dates on it and he hadn't phoned it in, they disallowed him from entering the US for 4 months and put him on a blackball list and took his nexus away......................

[suave eddie]

Exactly.......you have to make sure you notify them of any changes in your profile ASAP.

Have you gone for your NEXUS interview yet? That's when they do the iris scan if you elect to do so. If you haven't had your interview yet, and it gets scheduled before your new passport arrives, that will probably cause more problems for you..................................................(sigh)

[gitman001]

Hey Alf,

I live right near the border (near the Thousand Islands Bridge) and use my Nexus to cross all the time. It was a pain in the ass to get but ever since having it border crossings have been a breeze. My wife and i originally got ours to cross in to the US on our boat and when both kids were born we got a nexus for them as well..... it is hilarious seeing my little babies pictures on these official documents especially now that they are 5 and 3 and look nothing like they do in their Nexus photo!

My government BS story happened a few months ago..... Every year i get a criminal records check so i can teach within the school board. Just before school is about to begin my wife and i go ( as we have for the last 12 years ) and i get called back up to the booth. The lady tells me i have been flagged and the criminal record check cannot be completed!!!! I stood there for a minute with a dumfounded look on my face not knowing what to say.... i totally need this check to be allowed to teach!

It turns out the RCMP have changed their national system for registered offenders and if you share the name or birthdate of an offender somewhere in canada you are flagged! So i had to go back to the police station, get fingerprinted (which costs $35.00 to have some mean ass lady treat you like a criminal), have those fingerprints sent to the RCMP for analysis (which costs an addition $35.00) then the record check could be completed..... This happened in August and i just picked up my completed record check this week!!! Over 3 months of waiting.... Thank goodness the school board was aware of this RCMP problem and allowed me to still teach. Government BS.

G & L's

I have all mine out and i try to play a different one every day, but it is kinda random. I just make sure i don't use the same one on back to back gigs!

Have a great weekend all,

Scott

[suave eddie]

It turns out the RCMP have changed their national system for registered offenders and if you share the name or birthdate of an offender somewhere in canada you are flagged! So i had to go back to the police station, get fingerprinted (which costs $35.00 to have some mean ass lady treat you like a criminal), have those fingerprints sent to the RCMP for analysis (which costs an addition $35.00) then the record check could be completed..... This happened in August and i just picked up my completed record check this week!!! Over 3 months of waiting.... Thank goodness the school board was aware of this RCMP problem and allowed me to still teach. Government BS.

Especially ironic when you consider that as a NEXUS "Trusted Traveler" , you have to submit your fingerprints to the government.

[zapcosongs]

Oh man, Alf.

I almost feel guilty having no passport problems to report. Heck, when I was a kid, I remember just driving across the border. Guess the terrorists may have already won...

As far as selecting guitars, my method is choosing the one with the freshest strings. Works for me!

Have a great weekend. Thanks for stepping up! - ed

[Ahryn]

Mmmm that sounds like one tasty lunch.

Which guitar do I take?

In short, the closest one

I have a few guitars strewn around the house in their perspective cases (I am a little paranoid like that) so if I wanna play and I am in the living room I dig out my Epiphone L-00 If I am downstairs by the laundry room I dig

out my Yammy 12 string (it's in open G right now, slidey goodness ) near the amps the squier classic vibe or G&L ASAT (lets face it, it's the G&L ASAT ) and if I'm in a dread type mood, The Norman.

Passports another reason why I dread the prospect of crossing the border.

Never been to the states but I wish the border was just a bit more welcoming, on both sides.

[KenC]

Passports and such:
My wife and I were traveling to Europe every other year until the kids came along. They're getting old enough to travel, so we will need to renew our passports soon. The first ones were a breeze to get, so I'm sure the next will be payback.

We just moved from Ohio to Maryland. The move was smooth for me, but my wife had a terrible time registering her car and changing her driver's license. The car registration wasn't a problem on the Maryland end, but it took multiple notarized forms from our credit union to the registrar in Ohio before she released our certificate of title. It wasn't a matter of sending the wrong forms, but rather that each form led to another one that also needed notarization. The driver's license was similar to Alf's situation. Her official birth certificate was deemed invalid because it was laminated. I thought it was a dumb rule, but we eventually got a helpful clerk who explained that lamination made it pretty easy to pass off forged documents. Apparently there was a ruling several years ago (in the US, at least) that prohibited states from accepting laminated documents for anything that could be used to verify residency or legal immigration status.

The guitar rotation:
I tend to rotate guitars every couple of weeks, usually between an ASAT and the S-500 or Skyhawk. The current favorite stays in the living room unless company visits, and the swaps are usually after company leaves and the equipment comes back out. The style of music I'm playing at the moment comes into play too, with distorted stuff going to an ASAT. The Superhawk is in an alternate tuning, so it only comes out when that mood strikes. For some reason the F-100 and SC-2 haven't found their way into the rotation on a regular basis, although they both feel and sound wonderful.

Ken

[louis cyfer]

Passports and such:
My wife and I were traveling to Europe every other year until the kids came along. They're getting old enough to travel, so we will need to renew our passports soon. The first ones were a breeze to get, so I'm sure the next will be payback.

We just moved from Ohio to Maryland. The move was smooth for me, but my wife had a terrible time registering her car and changing her driver's license. The car registration wasn't a problem on the Maryland end, but it took multiple notarized forms from our credit union to the registrar in Ohio before she released our certificate of title. It wasn't a matter of sending the wrong forms, but rather that each form led to another one that also needed notarization. The driver's license was similar to Alf's situation. Her official birth certificate was deemed invalid because it was laminated. I thought it was a dumb rule, but we eventually got a helpful clerk who explained that lamination made it pretty easy to pass off forged documents. Apparently there was a ruling several years ago (in the US, at least) that prohibited states from accepting laminated documents for anything that could be used to verify residency or legal immigration status.

The guitar rotation:
I tend to rotate guitars every couple of weeks, usually between an ASAT and the S-500 or Skyhawk. The current favorite stays in the living room unless company visits, and the swaps are usually after company leaves and the equipment comes back out. The style of music I'm playing at the moment comes into play too, with distorted stuff going to an ASAT. The Superhawk is in an alternate tuning, so it only comes out when that mood strikes. For some reason the F-100 and SC-2 haven't found their way into the rotation on a regular basis, although they both feel and sound wonderful.

Ken

why does all the equipment get put away when company visits?

[Michael-GnL-Michael]

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Just munched on granola bars and multi-grain crackers all day until dinner which was mandarin chicken over rice.

It has been at least an invalidation to laminate driver's licenses, ID's, and passports for 20+ years at least where I have been. I suppose you could laminate one that had expired but you cannot present it as a valid document. The US Department of State recommends making photocopies of passports for several uses. Some things can be photocopied in black and white but you cannot make color copies.

Had written out a Govt. BS story but took too long and lost it. The Back button remedy doesn't seem to work with the Quick Reply.

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[glvourot]

Mandarin oranges. Lots of Mandarin oranges. When the current box is finished I think I'll lay off the Mandarin oranges. I have a guitar stand that has my S-500 in it at the moment. I always have one of them out of the case for easy reach, ( except my AJ, it stays in its case unless I'm playing it ).
I don't really have any Gov BS stories. My passport processes have been seamless, I never get hassled at the border ( never lie, declare everything ). My wife and I have NEXUS cards, but we haven't used them yet. We went to our interview together, she got her NEXUS in 8 days, and mine took 8 weeks. I guess they thought she was cute or something ( she is ). FYI about the iris scan, if you do this at an airport coming back to Canada it will automatically charge you duty and or tax on what ever you declared ( if you are over exemption ) but the border officers will almost always wave you through. You may not want to bother with the iris scan coming home.