EAD (WorkPermit)

Dear all,
since following silently the many stories shared on this forum really gave me hope (and often more info than USCIS), now is my turn to share my experience:

Application received: 10/23/17
First service request: 01/10/18 - in line to be processed
Second service request: 01/24/18 - copy paste from the previous one
Contacted Ombudsman: 01/24/18 - online form
Contacted Congressman: 01/25/18 - online form
Ombudsman contacted me: 01/25/18 - they accepted to do an inquiry on my behalf
Congressman contacted me: 02/07/18 - they called me and since I had a job offer they tried to expedite. The motion has been denied because according to USCIS a job offer does not suffice: you gotta be broke showing you have almost $0 on your bank account and you cannot pay your dues.
Third service request: 02/13/18 - file under review by an officer
Approval notice in mail: 02/20/18
Card in hand: 02/22/18

Online status STILL "Received"

In addition to that, the times I spoke and chatted with USCIS are countless (I do believe they blacklisted me at the end cz I didn't have anymore the option for customer service by phone).

Personal takeaway - Anyway, just to conclude this long and annoying post, I would just like to share my disappointment and frustration towards USCIS whose luck of communication and biblical processing time made me feel so useless, powerless and scared of losing the job I found, during these months of wait. I do not know if they do it on purpose to slow down the immigration flow or not, but for how I felt, after living here for two years and jumping from a visa to another one, I would really like to say that this became "the home of the scared", and next time I hear someone praising "the land of the free, home of the brave" I will just tell him to talk about kim kardashian and tacos which are far more current.

Good luck to all of you still waiting and keep calling and annoying them: make'em earn those salaries!