hello again...

Hi all, Sorry I haven't had much to say lately. Erin's been doing most of the informing on her blog. Fact is, I just haven't had that much to say because not much has really changed. Though they have given us a few whiffs of hope over the past few weeks, most of those hopes have only been dashed on the rocks yet again. The latest lie (intentional or not) was that the contact in Guatemala was actually on her way to submit our case to PGN when they spoke with her. Well, yesterday, her cell phone was apparently on the fritz, so no confirmation then. (Never a good sign). Then today, of course, the story becomes our attorney (who has been MIA for weeks now) is going to submit us today or tomorrow. Apparently, they had to certify the social workers report or something. Not sure if they found this out before or after she was taking it, or maybe she was never on her way to take it at all. Who knows...

This was the last straw for me. I'm not even all that upset that it didn't go in, I'm just upset that once again they've lied (or at best misinformed us due to their ignorance). So I pretty much sent them an e-mail saying I was disgusted by their constant misinfo and that it must stop. In my heart, I really do like my agency that I speak directly to. My social worker is actually awesome. Trouble is, she doesn't have much more control over anything than I do. She's not in any direct contact with Guatemala either. However, I'm not sure what's going on beyond her.

In the middle of my e-mail, I actually did get another update that the atty was going at 4pm today. However, I sent the e-mail anyway, because, as I said in it, they were supposed to have been going Monday. Until I get the receipt in hand, I'll hold my applause. Even then, there's no guarantee we'll be done. PGN could still want more. There's just no way to know.

The international program director did call me this afternoon. They like to say that the problems (not that they think of it as a problem) is just cultural differences. I really don't believe that lying is a cultural thing. To me, that is as racist as any remark you could make to say that there are no Guatemalan attorneys who are honest.

They always act like they can't push too hard or even question the Guatemala contacts. It might hurt the relationship or cause them to become angry and not work on our case. I really wonder how great a relationship it can be if constantly failing to do what they say is the norm. As far as not working on our case, if you look strictly at results, how different would that be???

Anyway, as I left it with our agency director, he's asking the other agency whether they're willing to do what it takes including pushing where needed to complete this adoption. Crazy that I have to ask, but I really feel as if I do. I assume they'll say yes, and if not, I guess we'll be seeking outside help who will do what's needed. It does exist, but it's not cheap, so we've tried to avoid it. That and they always tell us they're so close...

Sorry this is so long, but thanks for caring enough to read. Maybe one day I'll have some actual good news to post...