Monday consisted primarily of in-processing: paperwork, briefings on retirement, medical coverage, and badging, and many welcome speeches and introductions.
Tuesday was our first day at the Foreign Service Institute (FSI) in Virginia, a very cool campus where foreign service officers get their training, from orientation to area studies to languages. In orientation we are required to wear business formal clothing - for men, this means suit and tie; for women, it means a jacket with slacks, skirts, or dresses - but we're the only ones dressed that way, so we're easy to pick out as newbies. The other folks on campus remind me very much of college students: studying in the halls, listening to headphones, schlepping books and papers from here to there. There's a "quad" area outside with pathways through small grassy hills. The cafeteria offers a nice range of hot and cold, healthy and not, and for many different dietary types. The auditoriums are named "Kennan" and other famous diplomats and Secretaries of State. There are rooms lined with computers and halls lined with comfy chairs sit in while studying.
On Wednesday we got our "bid list" which shows a list of all possible posts with language requirements and approximate start dates. We have a surprising number of Western posts available: Toronto and Vienna, for example. And then there are the Asia/Africa posts: Mali or Burma or China, to name a few. And in South America there are several too, many of which are in Mexico. There are some surprisingly (to me, anyway) "nice" posts, like Auckland and Bern. We have to submit a 'preferences' worksheet by this coming Wednesday, which gives our Career Development Officers (CDOs) an idea of what factors we consider important. Then we have to rank each post as high, medium, or low, and submit that list in a week and a half. Whew!
Thursday and Friday we learned about various resources at FSI for researching posts, received history and organization lessons, and got to hear speakers from each of the regional bureaus in the State Department.
Although our days consist primarily of receiving information, by each evening I'm exhausted and go to bed early. On Friday I found out at a happy hour that many of my new colleagues are feeling the same way.
The hardest part for me in all this, I think, is the idea that I need to pick which countries I want to live in, while having no real idea yet of what it is I'll be doing, day in and day out. More than I expected, I miss my routine of work at NOAA, and the cadre of people that I would work with. Now each day is a surprise and a huge mish-mash of meeting new people (it takes awhile to meet 75 new people, all as confused and excited as me) and trying to make sense of the new information being fire-hosed at me. I also have to keep straight all the usual, personal stuff: what bills need paying, grocery shopping and laundry and correspondence with friends and family.
It's incredibly overwhelming! There are days when I don't feel in the least excited about the upcoming prospects, when I feel emotion-les and tired, and this is weird for me. I'm generally a "feelings" kind of person and take my cues from what emotions are within me at the moment. The only thing I can figure is that the unknown is making me a bit scared and apprehensive, and once February 13 is over, I'll lighten up a bit. Friday, February 13, is the date when I get my assignment, training requirements, and ship-out date.
It can't come fast enough for me! In the meantime, I will be learning as much as possible about the State Department, the Foreign Service, and really, about myself in this new role of diplomat.
--Z
Hi embryo FSO! have a splendid 3rd week of A-100.
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