Visa

It's been quite a while.... Ever since I was diagnosed with latent tuberculosis on 25 March, a diagnosis that I still challenge against, I have taken 4 months of antibiotics - 600mg rifampin on a daily basis. Conscientiously taking my medications like an obedient child. And getting paranoid over whether I can pass my second round of medical checkup. Especially when they told me one of the lab tests result isn't out yet after 2 days. I got real paranoid....thinking over circumstances that would/ should not happen to me in the first place. Finally, after nearly 4 days, the day came when I got back all my medical tests. All clear! I remember I told myself I should be elated. At least now I am medically cleared, I should go for macs or something to celebrate(but I didn't, of course). Is everything going to fall in place now? 

Or so I thought. I hurriedly submitted my document, and couriered it to the Saudi Embassy on Washington DC on 3 July - a day before Independence Day. I was thinking to myself that the visa shouldn't take long this time. Alas, I received a voicemail on 6 July, informing me that I should have submitted in the entire employment contract, and not only the signed pages. Feeling awfully frustrated, I made my way down to the post office on Saturday to have the employment contract couriered over again, thinking that it should reach them on Monday. I spent the entire weekend attempting to track the whereabouts of my package, only to be pissed by the lack of updates on the system.

On Monday, after N times of checking the system, it notified me that the first delivery attempt failed because no appropriate recipient was there. WHAT? I thought to myself. How bad can this be? The second delivery also failed because the embassy was already closed by then. I remember feeling like this must be the suayest of all things. That anything that could go wrong would go wrong. Perhaps it's a sign? A sign that's telling me I shouldn't go to Saudi Arabia.

Finally, when I called in the next day, the admin lady told me I can simply fax the document over. GREAT, I remarked to myself. Why didn't they tell me earlier? And so I faxed it over, and the visa was issued after another 2 days. Perhaps it's my mentality - trying to push for everything to move fast, and only ending up extremely frustrated over how slow things move. I'm aware I ought to change my mentality. But it's hard to change the spots on a leopard.