It is finished. Sort of.

I had my Meeting of the Creditors (MOC) today.  Turns out the thing I most feared (having to face the credit card company representatives) was not the thing I should have been worrying about.  Turns out I should have been more concerned with my choice of lawyer.  I found him by looking up bankruptcy lawyers on the Better Business Bureau website.  He had an A rating, so I called him right up. 
I don't know if you saw the news report on the BBB recently.  Turns out, you can BUY a good grade.  That's right.  Even the company whose sole purpose is to protect the consumer has gone astray.  Buying a membership for several hundred dollars guarantees you a good grade.  I was so disappointed.  I hope they can feel my displeasure.
I have a very strong feeling this is what Mr. Macavity did.  For starters, when I showed up for my initial meeting with him, I had to climb the stairs over an ethnic tea shop to get there.  Hippyville, USA.  His "office" consisted of 2 rooms.  The outer one had his paralegal, Sara.  She was wearing a sleeveless shirt and low slung pants, her hair a tangled twisty affair.  The back office was the big boss's.  He had a desk, and several chairs stacked piled high with folders.  He was wearing cargo shorts, tennis shoes, a short sleeved un-tucked button down shirt and some sort of puca shell necklace.  SO not what I was expecting.  But I told myself it didn't matter what they looked like or the laaaaaid back vibe of the office as long as they did a good job.  Plus the BBB said they were a good firm.
At the first meeting he asked me lots of questions and filled out the forms on his computer.  After I left they requested 2 different batches of specific forms and financial data be faxed to them.  I gave them everything they asked for quickly as I wanted to speed this along as fast as possible.
They informed me all I needed to bring to the MOC was my driver's license and social security card.  I had given them everything else they would need for the meeting. 
One thing I haven't mentioned yet is the slow or non-existent response time they had anytime I asked them a question or to clarify something.  I finally stopped emailing Sara and sent my questions right to Mr Macavity.  And was given the same high quality of service.
This left me with an uneasy feeling, like maybe they weren't on top of things.  I was reassured by The Duke and other friends that lawyers, ALL lawyers, are known for not getting back to you and for taking their time. 
As I was preparing for my MOC today, I decided to play it safe and take along the stack of forms and statements I had faxed to them.   I didn't want to get there and not have something I needed.
THANK GOODNESS I did!  I was 1 of 3 clients they were representing at the MOC.  They had not submitted the paperwork on any of us.  I couldn't believe it.  The firm is a BANKRUPTCY firm.  That's all they do!  How was it possible for them to get it wrong???
Luckily I was able to provide the information they needed, but then the trustee (the person presiding over the whole lovely affair) noticed that in the filing they had said my house was paid off.  Bwahahahahahah. Yeah right.  He then started grilling me on whether I had actually read the forms before I signed them.  I explained that yes, I had and that I had to read the forms off the computer screen and must have missed that part.  Um hello?!?  Truth is I had NO idea what to look for in the 20+ pages of information.  Isn't that what I hired the lawyer for?
To sum it up, the law firm has to go back and amend the mistakes.  My case will then be discharged in about 60 days.  But it won't actually be closed until after I file my taxes and they decide if it's worth it for them to seize my returns.  Lovely.  More good things to look forward to.  The trustee also STRONGLY urged me to file for divorce before the bankruptcy was done.  He kept telling me to get a "Release of State".  But couldn't seem to explain to me what that was or why I needed it.  He sure did think it was important though.  I googled it and didn't find any answers.  If anyone out there knows anything that can make things clearer I beg you to let me know! 
A friend of mine is a representative for a company called Prepaid Legal.  Evidently you pay a yearly membership and you have access to a whole board of lawyers to help with whatever your legal woes are.  I am getting together with her Monday evening to see if that is something I can use for the divorce.  Maybe save myself a couple grand.  (The retainer on at least 3 of my coworkers divorce lawyers was over $2000. yikes.)
I feel like the tone of the last few posts have had a whiny quality to them, and I apologize.  That isn't how I want this to come across at all.  I am trying to navigate these treacherous waters and it seems like more often than not things don't go smoothly.  I bet I have so much character!!
So there you have the update of the MOC today.  Now I will put it all behind me and enjoy the weekend.  Christmas shopping! WoooHOO!!