Good News and Bad News

The good news is that I received an email from the Brasilean consulate in Los Angeles informing me that my application for a permanent visa has been approved. The bad news is that bureaucrats are in charge.

I assumed, silly me, that all I would have to do, after the approval was go to the consulate with my passport and have the visa inserted, along with paying the necessary fees etc. But no, I have to leave my passport with the conulate and wait "at least 10 working days." (Which makes me, cynically, wonder what they consider a working day.)

The approval took me by surprise and has caused some problems. Since my tourist visa is only good for 90 days per visit, I have already booked a return to the U.S. on Nov. 13th, and my return to São Paulo on Nov. 28th. That doesn´t give me enough time in the U.S. to fly out to Los Angeles and wait for two weeks (More than two weeks actually, because Thanksgiving isn´t a working day at the consulate. I already know that they are closed for both Brasilean and U.S. holidays.) So I will have to pay some penalties and change my flight schedules in order to get this thing, and impose on friends and relatives while I wait.

A reasonable person might wonder why this visa couldn´t be picked up here in São Paulo, or maybe in Brasilia. (I would love an excuse to see Brasilia.) I asked that question in July when I made the application. Bureaucrats don´t ever have to answer the question "why," so I only know that it can´t be done, no way, forget about it.

One last item, and then I´ll move on and let my blood pressure go down. There was a story in the NY Times this week about an Amazonian town with something like 45,000 people and 15,000 motorcycles. The town is situated on the border of both Columbia and Peru, and it is an open border. There were two things about the story that resonated with me. First, Japanese motorcycles are twice as expensive in Brasil as are the same bikes in Columbia. Second, the city doesn´t require the bikes to be licensed because "the process of applying for a license plate and insuring a motorbike is laden with bureaucracy, and costs about $500, more than most residents can afford."

Having gotten that off my chest, I will try to focus on the good news...namely, that the visa was approved.

And I am focusing on the good news that Obama was elected and not on the bad news that Prop 8 passed in California, or that Norm Coleman may still be a senator from Minnesota. Because my Republican friends who read this are dear to me, I will ask their indulgence this once and say no more about U.S. politics for at least a while.

The doctor calls his patient and says he has good news and bad news. "The good news is that your test results came back and you only have 24 hours to live. The bad news is that I meant to call you yesterday."

Tchau.