March 2007, applied online for Foreign Service Specialist position with State Department
August 2007, passed oral exam
January 2008, passed top secret security clearance and medical clearance
February 2008, invited to the 100th Class of Specialists in Washington DC
March 2008, packed up the house, sold junk, gave away goodies, got in the car and DROVE cross-country with Laura from Austin to DC. Arrived tired, hungry, exhausted.
The first day of class we were "sworn in" in the Woods room of the FSI complex. You quickly learn to live by acronyms. Believe me, three letters can stand for everything in the world. We promised to "preserve and protect and defend the constitution of the United States, to protect our country against all enemies, foreign and domestic." And a bunch of other things I forgot in the emotional moment of raising my right hand. The remainder of day one was a blur due to lack of sleep due to high anxiety of what to wear on the first day!
Memories of the first day...
*About 67 people in my class. We call ourselves "Foreign Service Specialist Candidates." There are about 10 different Specialities; including mine: Office Management Specialist.
*Everyone seems so capable, smart, intelligent. Then I think, "wait a minute, I'm in this group!" If finally hits me that I was specially selected....just like all these other talented people in the room.
*All the men wear suits and ties. It's great to be in a room with all these handsome, clean-cut guys. I feel like I'm surrounded by FBI or Secret Service!
*We get a tour of the facilities and I feel like a kindergartner being led around....where is the rope we hang on to? The mention the bathrooms more than once, so I guess that's important?
*We get our list of possible countries of assignment at 4pm. Everyone pours over the list and hopes to get a good country. We have a week to research our choices and then we rank them in the order we want them. So far I'm leaning towards Africa, but who knows where I'll end up.
Here is the list of possible places I could be sent to:
Abidjan, Ivory Coast, AFRICA
Abuja, Nigeria, AFRICA
Freetown, Sierra Leone, AFRICA
Guatemala, GUATEMALA
Istanbul, TURKEY
Kinshasa, Congo, AFRICA
Manama, BAHRAIN
Monrovia, Liberia, AFRICA
Nassau, THE BAHAMAS
Paris, FRANCE
Port-au-Prince, HAITI
Seoul, KOREA
Stockholm, SWEDEN
Tegucigalpa, HONDURAS
Tel Aviv, ISRAEL
Tokyo, JAPAN
Washington, DC
I miss everyone and will try and keep you updated as much as possible. So far....."I'M LOVING IT!!!"
Becky Boo
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7 comments:
Wonderful first update - thanks for putting this blog together. I look forward to keeping up with your adventures!
Looks like if you want Africa, you have a great chance! Follow your heart =) And thanks, mom, for your undying support of me.
Thanks! This is a great idea. I will check back often to be informed of your adventures! Good for you Becky! I'm so happy for you.
I vote for Bahamas! Easy and fun for us to visit you :-)
What a great blog! This is a wonderful idea - your new job sounds so exciting, and I will be checking your blog frequently to get all the juicy updates... :) I hope you figured out how to use all your digital cameras so you can share photos with us! Or, can you use your crackberry?
Good job on the blog...I am proud of you for following your dream. I hope you find all the joy a job can give. I almost find it a bit wrong to wish you luck, as luck had very little to do with where you are now. Perservance, hard work, and sacrafice are what you have done to get where you are, not luck, but your own ability and hard work...but, what the heck, a little luck can't hurt. Good luck baby.
What a wonderful... its a nice blog. I find this blog by google. may I put a link of your blog in my blog? if you have a time, visit my blog pls..
nice to know you
thank you
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