My personal opinion is similar to you--calling USCIS is not very useful. I called in August,2005 when my case was out of process time. They sent me an mail saying the case was pending. It looks like this time the response is more promising to me. Calling USCIS is not very useful, but better than doing nothing. I will try your other suggestions! Thanks a lot!
Thank you for your comments on my name. You name is also a good one. My favorate song is "colors of the wind''---chinese version.