Excuse Me, USCIS, Who in the World Is Antonio Orlando?

The awaited letter has arrived. Today I received the letter in response to my request for naturalization documentation on my grandfather, Elia Carmelo Orlando.

As I approached my mailbox, I could see the return address on the white envelope. My heart rate increased. I kept my composure outside the house and retrieved the mail while holding my briefcase, lunch box, and purse.

I no sooner stepped through the threshold of my front door, and I dropped my bags, except the laptop... I took a deep breath, told myself to be prepared for whatever, and I ripped open the envelope.

The first line read,

"Your request was received in this office on 12/24/2008 regarding Antonio Orlando. "

Antonio? I think you have the wrong granddaughter. I mean, I think you have the wrong grandfather. Was this a clerical error in composing my letter, or was it that they actually searched for the wrong man? They couldn't have. I was very clear in my request, completed online by the way, that my grandfather's name was Carmelo Orlando. In fact, I think they asked for variations in the name or spelling. I provided Carmen as a back-up.

Surely this must be a clerical error, right? They typed the wrong name, but they looked for the right guy. It took them three months to respond, a whole 4 weeks after what they say is the typical wait time for processing a document.

Well, I guess it's back to the drawing board. I will have to do a few things now.

I will have to contact them regarding this letter to see if they mistakenly typed the wrong name or if they actually searched for the wrong man.

I will also have to follow up with the National Archives and Records Administration as they instructed me to do for both my grandmother and my grandfather.

Sigh...

I have to laugh. Both of the letters I received had errors. The letter for my grandfather got his name totally wrong, and the letter for my grandmother had at least two spelling errors.

Humm.... This is where the plot thickens, I guess.

This is where I get to exercise patience, once again.