#newuscitizen

El Servicio de Inmigración y Ciudadanía (USCIS, en inglés) celebra el Día de la Independencia Estados Unidos este año con la naturalización de alrededor de 11.000 extranjeros en más de 195 ceremonias de naturalización realizadas esta semana en todo el país. En lo que va del año fiscal 2024, EE.UU. ha dado la bienvenida a 589.400 nuevos ciudadanos y ha logrado avances significativos en la…

So much has happened in the last two months: I got vaccinated, Sparky turned 14 years old, he hurt himself (not too bad, sprained one of his ankles I think), and oh yeah, I got my interview for US citizenship last month and passed! So tomorrow, Thursday, June 24th at 8 am Denver time, there will be the oath ceremony where I’ll be sworn in as a US citizen. Woo-hoo!!

It’s been a long time coming, starting the whole process in January 2004. Since we’re not allowed to bring family and friends to the ceremony due to the pandemic, and I’m not sure that I’ll be allowed to video or take photos during the ceremony, I’ll be doing before and after shots/videos, I think. I might even try to do Facebook Live before and after, so watch that space.

In the meantime, I’ve been decking out the house and even bought a US flag. Now I need to drill holes in the outside of my house as the bracket that is already there is too small for the flag I bought…

Sparky will be dressed up too. I thought about buying an outfit for myself in red, white, and blue, but the USCIS notice says to dress for the occasion, which is a solemn occasion. I found videos on YouTube of past ceremonies to prepare and no one dressed in red, white, and blue. So I’ll reserve that for the Fourth of July! (And Sparky)

Here’s a link to a YouTube video by the Rocky Mountain PBS shot about 4 months ago. It shows the location and a little bit about how the ceremony is held nowadays: https://youtu.be/Pot_2GK5QJY