That's the only advice a patent atty could possibly give. OTOH, I'd say there is a non-zero chance that some HN user might see this and be able to reply someth

That's the only advice a patent atty could possibly give. OTOH, I'd say there is a non-zero chance that some HN user might see this and be able to reply something to the effect of "Yeah, went through a similar problem with that same firm last year. Contact me by email and I'll tell you how it went down."