Feliz Navidad!

Post by J

Noche de paz, noche de amor, 

Todo duerme en derredor. 

Entre sus astros que esparcen su luz 

Bella anunciando al niñito Jesús 

Brilla la estrella de paz 

Brilla la estrella de paz

~Silent Night in Spanish

Night of peace, night of love,

All around are asleep.

Among the stars that spread their light,
Beautifully announcing the baby Jesus,

Shines the star of peace,

Shines the star of peace.

Last night, R and I attended the Candlelight Christmas Carols service at the National Cathedral in Washington. The choir sang beautifully, the purity of their voices washing over us and seeming to linger in the rafters and the corners of the church. I closed my eyes a few times and sat with my hand in R's, his fingers warm against mine, marveling at this unexpected blessing, this feeling of peace.

We hadn't planned to attend the service; originally I had thought that we might go to a performance of Handel's Messiah at the Cathedral earlier in December. After searching for tickets, however, I realized that the December 23 Candlelight Service would fit into our schedules better. Ticket prices were nominal ($4 each), so I purchased two in early December, knowing that if our plans changed we wouldn't sacrifice too much if we weren't able to go. But I'm so glad we went.

We joined the other congregants and sang five traditional carols, the last of which by candlelight: O Come, All Ye Faithful; O Little Town of Bethlehem; Joy to the World; Once in David's Royal City; and Silent Night. The choir sang additional carols in between readings, and the Reverend Canon Gina Gilland Campbell delivered the homily, the main message of which was "deliver the love of Christ every day - not just at Christmas." Although I don't consider myself a religious person, I love tradition and the service was beautiful. We all need reminding of the possibility of fellowship and peace.

What could be a better Christmas gift (or gift at any time of the year) than peace? With so much craziness in the world, so much violence, sadness, and loss, peace almost seems like magical thinking. 

But Christmastime makes me believe it's possible.

Angel by Abbott Thayer, National Art Gallery Washington DC

Dreaming in Spanish

Post by J

I am overwhelmed by my resources!

I'm about to begin week 8 of Spanish school, which means I'll be one third of the way through my course by the end of the week. I go to sleep thinking of Spanish phrases and wake up conjugating verbs. 

I had my six-week evaluation on Monday of last week, and am exactly where I'm supposed to be: 1+/1+ (read more about what this level means here). This is a real relief to me, since F.S.I.'s approach to teaching a language is very different from what I had all those years ago at the Defense Language Institute, and I wasn't sure I was progressing at an adequate rate. It appears that I am - hurray!

It does seem that all R and I do is go to school and come home to study. We go to the grocery store on Saturday or Sunday, but really, we don't do much but study the Español. We've worked ourselves into a rut and honestly, it's getting a bit monotonous. So yesterday we trekked out to the National Portrait Gallery and enjoyed a few hours gazing at the art and reading about amazing Americans like John Eliot. Fortunately for us, the Italian Embassy here in D.C. was having a celebration at the museum while we were there, so we were exposed to a little culture from a foreign land, too.

Christmas is fast approaching and R and I are looking forward to celebrating a week late when H and L arrive for New Year's. It will be nice to take a break and get out into the real world again!

Milagro

Post by J

The last few weeks have been challenging. Not only am I learning a language from absolute zero (okay, I guess I did know how to count to 10 when I started), I received yet more bad news from home about a week after my uncle passed away.

My older brother called on Wednesday night (November 12) around 7:00. As soon as I saw the caller ID, I knew something serious had happened, because my brother never calls me. This is what he said:

My dad has had a bad cough for a few months. He's gone to the doctor at least three times because of it, primarily because he coughs so hard he loses oxygen and passes out. The doctor, unfortunately, did not seem too concerned. He listened to Dad's lungs.  An x-ray was taken. The doctor did not find anything unusual, so basically dismissed my dad and his complaint.

On November 12, Dad started coughing. He decided to stand over a trashcan and spit out whatever resulted from his coughing attack. The coughing became severe and my dad passed out. And fell. On his neck.

He regained consciousness and was in a lot of pain. He decided to try and tough it out and crawled to his chair where he thought the pain would ease. It didn't. Fifteen minutes later, he called my brother's girlfriend and asked her to take him to the hospital.

"Hang on," I interrupted my brother. "Shouldn't he have called an ambulance?"

"He said he didn't want the expense of an ambulance," was my brother's reply.

So, after an excruciating ride to the emergency room, the ER doctor ordered x-rays. One look and my dad was life-flighted to Denver. So much for saving the expense of an ambulance ride.

After more tests and an MRI, Dad went into surgery on Thursday morning. The surgery took hours, and my sister and younger brother and I were pretty much in the dark the entire time because HIPAA prevented the hospital staff from speaking to anyone but my older brother. And they weren't giving my older brother much information, either.

As a result of the surgery, my dad has two fused vertebrae and two wounds, one in the front and one in the back of his neck - a testament to the extent of the surgery. Amazingly, after only a few days, he was released from the hospital on Sunday, November 16. He is in a neck brace and is expected to make a full recovery.

The surgeon said he couldn't believe Dad had walked to the car and had been driven to the hospital without sustaining further injury. He also said that Dad missed being paralyzed by a millimeter.

Milagro is the Spanish word for miracle.

Me and Dad, August 2014.

No Words

Post by J

Life was moving along at a predictable pace until this past weekend. R and I spent a Saturday in Annapolis with good friends whom we hadn't seen in many years. We moved from our apartment into a larger unit in a different complex closer to downtown. We completed our first week of language training. I was starting to establish a routine that I expected to continue for the next several months.

And then this past weekend. I received a call from my close friend back in Wyoming, telling me of heartbreaking, incomprehensible news. Our friend's son, in college studying art, was at a party on Halloween and tried to break up a fight. He was punched in the head, fell and hit his head on the street curb, suffered a traumatic brain injury, and died. He was 21.

I didn't know him well. I had met him a few times and knew him mostly from hearing his mom talk about him. Through her, I know he was kind. I know that he was loving and giving and good to his parents and his brother. I simply cannot make sense of this and my heart aches for this family. They were close and supportive. They loved each other. And now there will be a perpetual absence that this boy should have filled with his life. There are no words that will comfort, no words to console. I'm crying and praying for them, but I feel so inadequate and powerless.

And yesterday, I learned that my uncle had passed away. My dad's older brother (by 14 months) had gone into the hospital a mere three weeks ago, unaware that he even had the cancer that would take his life. The consolation is that he didn't linger in a state of suffering.  He was nearly 80, but speaking from experience, it's never easy to lose a parent - at any age - and my heart goes out to his children. He was always kind to me, always interested in what I was doing, in what was going on in my life. Of my dad's seven siblings, this man was the one he was closest to. I will miss him, but I know my dad will miss him more. And this means that my dad has lost three siblings this year.

So. Two deaths in two days, at opposite ends of life. By some measure, one makes sense, while the other never will.

Certainly, any problems I think I have pale in comparison to what these families are suffering. I have no right to complain. What I have is an obligation to honor them by living my life to my best, highest self. To never take for granted the opportunity I have to live in this world and try to make it a little better for others. Because life is tenuous; it can be snatched away - little by little, or in one cruel yank. You just don't know.

All you can do is to tell your loved ones how important they are to you. Call your daughter just to hear her voice. Call your son to listen to his troubles, even if you've heard them all before. Visit your uncle or your mom or your grandma and hold his or her hand. Connect with a friend who may need you. It's all you can do and somehow, it has to be enough.

Harpers Ferry

Post by J

Last Saturday, I thought I'd drive to West Virginia to see Harpers Ferry - I was looking for fall colors and wanted to get out of the city. I picked up my keys, grabbed my camera and headed for the door. I checked my text messages as I was turning the handle, and found a message from a friend I hadn't seen in over 15 years. It read, "I'm thinking of going to Harpers Ferry today; want to go along?" I love me some coincidence.  :)

So we drove up and had a really nice day, including a yummy lunch and a couple of beers.

I remember a little of the history of the area from high school - about the abolitionist, John Brown, and his raid on Harpers Ferry, and his subsequent hanging.  Mostly, though, I was thinking of Stephen Vincent Benet's epic poem about the Civil War, John Brown's Body. When I was in high school, I competed in speech meets with excerpts from this poem and I still remember quite a bit of it.

But I especially loved being in a rural area taking photos:

Area Studies

Post by J

This may be proof that I was sleeping during Geography and/or History in high school, but the following information was brand new to me during the first week of Western Hemisphere Area Studies:

• Haiti was once the richest and most prosperous colony in the Americas (even richer than the United States), and was known as "The Pearl of the Antilles."
• Haiti was so desirable that Britain offered to trade all of Canada for it (France's response at the time was essentially, "In your dreams").
• After the Haitian slave revolt in the late 18th century, Napoleon sent over 20,000 troops to contain the insurrection, but was unsuccessful. This impacted the U.S. because Napoleon decided if he couldn't have Haiti he didn't need Louisiana (besides, he needed money to fund an ongoing struggle with the British Empire) and, rather than agree to the original treaty that Thomas Jefferson was proposing regarding allowing a passageway for American goods via the Mississippi River, he offered to sell the entire Louisiana Territory. Jefferson, of course, jumped at the opportunity, doubling the size of the United States in one fell swoop.
• Paraguay is the only country in the Americas where an indigenous language (Guarani) is one of its nation's official languages.
• In fact, although only 5% of Paraguay's population is indigenous, over 90% speak Guarani.
• In an effort to combat illegal wildlife poaching, the U.S. government symbolically crushed six tons of ivory in 2013.
• Argentina declared war with Japan one week after the U.S. bombed Hiroshima, so that they would be considered an ally and be eligible for membership in the United Nations.
• The reason that some areas in South America speak Spanish while others speak Portuguese is that in order to keep Catholic nations from fighting each other Pope Alexander VI established a line of demarcation (which stretched around the entire globe), with those areas falling west of the line belonging to Spain and those east of the line belonging to Portugal. The line was revised a few years later in a treaty at Tordesillas, Spain, and the line became known as the Tordesillas Line. 

What gems will next week hold?

Sunday in the Museum with J

Post by J

It makes me proud that all the Smithsonian museums are open 363 days a year and admission is always free. I know I'll be making multiple visits during my time in DC; the museums are so big and comprehensive I can only absorb about 2 hours' worth at a time.

On Sunday I took the Metro to the National Mall and walked the five blocks to the National Gallery of Art. Along the way, I enjoyed the crisp fall air, and under the looming edifice of the National Archives building, I stopped a moment to listen to an elderly black gentleman playing Amazing Grace on his trumpet.

I was too shy to take a photo of the trumpet player, but a squirrel posed for a portrait.

When I got the gallery, I checked my backpack and plotted my course through the West Building, Main Floor. I had come primarily to see the Andrew Wyeth exhibit, but there were many other works that captivated me along the way. Surprisingly, photos are allowed in the gallery, even with a flash.

Ginevra de' Benci, by Leonardo da Vinci

Green River Cliffs, Wyoming, by Thomas Moran

Still Life of Flowers, by Adelheid Dietrich

I loved the still life, even if it was painted by an artist who is completely new to me. Gorgeous. And of course the Moran is of my home state, so I love it by default.

I enjoyed the work of Monet, Manet, Pissarro, Cassatt, Cezanne, Rembrandt, Seurat, and countless other talented artists whose names I did not recognize. All for the price of making the effort to walk through the door. Amazing.

Although you can take photos at will throughout most of the gallery, you are not allowed to photograph the special exhibit. Thank goodness for the Internet, where you can find nearly anything.

Seed Corn, by Andrew Wyeth

Wyeth's art seems so austere. It's lonely and sad and evokes such a feeling of isolation. I admire it and think most of his work is beautiful (although perhaps his most famous work, Christina's World, has never been a favorite). I walked slowly through the multiple rooms of monotonal, simple renderings of everyday life. I thought of how the world can be so frenetic and glittery, and appreciated the small respite these paintings offered.

I made my way to the exit, stepped outside into the sunshine and took a deep breath of autumn air, for while I enjoy lonely and sad images, I also enjoy being out in the world. I bought a hot dog from a nearby street vendor and ate it sitting on the low wall outside the gallery, watching the people walking by.

And as I walked back to the metro, I took my own version of a still life:

Flowers with Bench, by J

By the Numbers

Post by J

The first post-A-100 week by the numbers:


2          days of security briefings

3          online courses completed

2          Houses of Congress visited (they weren't in session, but it was still cool)

1          small Leatherman surreptitiously buried in a flower bed in order to visit Houses of Congress

1          small Leatherman subsequently retrieved from temporary burial plot

1          trips to the Medical Claims office at Main State to deliver the 3rd set of duplicate documents in an attempt to resolve my medical claim first submitted back in July

0          medical claims successfully resolved

1          international potlucks attended with my class (I contributed Caribbean rum)

4          movies watched (including two of my favorites: Forget Paris and Return to Me)

3          cups of Earl Grey tea consumed while reading America's Other Army (thanks, L!)

29        See's orange cream chocolates consumed (thanks, H!)

1          birthdays celebrated (!)

Swearing In

Post by J

Yesterday was the last day of A-100, and the culminating event was the swearing in ceremony. Secretary of State John Kerry did the honors in the Dean Acheson auditorium at the Main State building in Washington, D.C.

Secretary Kerry addressing the class.

The Groundbreaking 179th A-100 class.

Wyoming Senators Enzi and Barrasso couldn't attend, but sent representatives (Coy Knobel from Enzi's office and Amber Bland from Barrasso's) to the ceremony to witness the swearing in. It was really nice to have fellow Wyomingites in the crowd cheering me on.

I learned a lot in the last six weeks, and I'm sure there are things I won't even realize that I learned until later. We had terrific instructors and, although some of the sessions were long and/or dense, I know I got at least a little out of each one.

Before the swearing in ceremony, our class decided on its motto: Laying the foundation for a life of service. I love this motto! After all, service is the reason I joined the State Department.

I'll be in training for quite some time; I start on Spanish at the end of October. Language training is the bulk of the months ahead for me and I'm excited to get started!  I'm really looking forward to learning to speak and read a new language that's so useful. Plus, R will join me in Washington to start the abbreviated Spanish course the same time I start the full course.

It's official: I'm a Foreign Service Officer.

Links to the State Department's photos of the event on Flickr:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/statephotos/15244209408/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/statephotos/15427615781/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/statephotos/15407738346/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/statephotos/15430797915/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/statephotos/15430796465/

Flag Day!

Post by J

Flag Day!

Dominican Republic!

Yes!  We're thrilled to be going to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic in August 2015. I have quite a bit of training before we go, including Area Studies, the Consular course, and six months of intensive Spanish.  So exciting!  Hurray!

R and H and L all flew in for the big day, and we had a great time during the ceremony, eating cake/drinking champagne after the ceremony, stuffing ourselves at Mark's Duck House (and having enough leftovers to feed half of the Dominican Republic), and touring around DC on Saturday and Sunday.

R and me - before the Flag Day ceremony.

The whole family, celebrating after the Flag Day ceremony.

H and L and me.

The Washington Monument.

In front of the Capitol.

The ceiling of the Library of Congress.

R, L and H in front of the Library of Congress.

The fam in front of the Lincoln Memorial.

L and H at the Lincoln Memorial.

Me and R and the Washington Monument.

The Viet Nam War memorial.

Six Days To Go!!

Post by R

As I write this I am multi-tasking.  The University of Wyoming football team is playing the Florida Atlantic University football team at War Memorial stadium in Laramie and I'm listening to it on the radio.  Radio?  Yes, it's very old school, but even before we ditched cable you couldn't find it on television, unless you opted for some sort of premium package.  J and I have never hesitated to spend money on things we consider worthwhile, but premium cable has never been one of those things.  I've actually grown fond of listening to those Cowboys radio broadcasts in the fall.  The radio network has a great play-by-play guy and your imagination does the rest.  It's straight out of the 1940's and it's one of those little things I'll miss about Wyoming.

I finished my electrical project today.  The electric line from our house to the shop was a 70 foot overhead line that was only about 8 feet off of the ground for much of its run.  That's a major code violation so I decided to put it in underground conduit.  Only about 20% of the job actually involved electrical work; the rest involved moving dirt.  I'm glad it's done.

I've been filling up the trailer with things that need to go to the landfill.  We've been in this house for 13 years, and the longest we ever lived anywhere prior to that was three years.  Between packing, unpacking, and space limitations, all of those military moves forced us to cull unneeded items.  Now I'm dealing with 13 years of storing essentially unwanted things in the shop, the basement, the garage, the corners of closets, the dark recesses of kitchen cabinets and drawers, etc. - just in case we might need or want them in the future.  Now I'm realizing that after 8 or 10 years of "out of sight, out of mind" we have a lot of assorted "stuff" that we have no use for.  Obviously, much of the excess isn't going straight to the landfill.  Some is yard-sale material, and some, of course, has sentimental value to our daughters, so it will not be tossed.  Bottom line:  It's time to simplify and reduce.  I remember when J and I first got started, and how we couldn't wait to own some furniture and accumulate a few things.  Of course, we started with next to nothing, so owning more "stuff" was a good thing back then.  Now?  Not so much.

Enough about boring Wyoming updates.  The big story is that J and I have less than six days to go before we find out where home will be for a few years.  It's difficult to make any decisions on the house/furniture storage until we find out where we are going.  At some posts we ship our own furniture, but in others furniture is provided.  More important is the issue of language training.  We would both be very disappointed if J received an assignment that had no foreign language requirement, but that is only a remote possibility.  I fully expect to be heading to northern Virginia in October to go through language training with Jackie.  Fortunately, spouses are almost always permitted to attend language training.  J and I met at the Defense Language Institute, and the opportunity to go through language training again at the Foreign Service Institute is a wonderful opportunity.  It will take a lot of work and dedication, but we know first hand what it takes to succeed.

In just a few days, I will join our daughters in the D.C. area to spend some time with J.  I am very much looking forward to it.  There will be excitement and anticipation both before and after J receives her assignment, and we will be able to spend some time together as a family.  We'll enjoy it and have a great time, while always being cognizant  that we are just visitors, J included.  We are very much defined by wide open spaces, even though big cities might be in our future.

A-100 Week Four Recap

Post by J

Week Four.  Oh, Week Four.

This week was all about public speaking and keeping your composure in difficult circumstances. We had lengthy workshops on how to deliver a speech and how to maintain our equilibrium when being peppered (okay, perhaps "lambasted" is a better word) with difficult questions from a hostile audience.

I'm not really thrown by speaking in front of a group; I've done it a lot. If I know my subject and I've come prepared, I'm just fine. We were given a few days' notice to decide on a relevant topic specific to our cone (mine is consular) and develop a five-minute speech. I delivered mine on Thursday afternoon and was given feedback by 10 of my colleagues. I'll now revise and practice, and deliver the speech again on Monday. Done and done. No problem.

I'm not a big fan of extemporaneous speaking, however. I like to know what to expect. Unfortunately, the whole idea behind this week's exercise, "Composure under Fire" or "Grace under Pressure" is to practice reacting appropriately when you don't know what's coming. What is the appropriate response to a very difficult question regarding U.S. foreign policy, especially when the foreign audience is surly and in your face, for example? Perhaps they should have called this session, "Deer-in-the-Headlights in the Face of an Oncoming Mack Truck."

This situation is something for which you can't really prepare, and the Myers-Briggs ISFJ in me hates that. You just have to breathe and focus. Easier said than done.

Before I had my turn in the hot seat, I promised myself that if things really went south I'd just mentally go to my happy place and weather the storm. I sat there at the beginning of the day thinking, "Well, it's not likely that I'll be called on first. My name is not first alphabetically, nor is that of my assigned country. I won't volunteer to go first. I'm not sitting in a place in the room that looks like a reasonable starting place. I'll observe the first few classmates and learn from their experiences."

"Hmm," said the session leader as we settled into our seats at 8:30 this morning. "Let's start with...," and he named my country.  Seriously?

When push came to shove, though, I didn't have time to go to my happy place. But I didn't really need to, either, because - hallelujah, thank-ya-Jesus - I was able to hold my own against the barrage of questions. And it was actually a blessing that I went first, because my class hadn't yet settled into its role as a belligerent, critical, anti-American crowd. Sure, their questions were tough, but not as tough as they could have been. The whole experience cost me a lot of mental energy, though, even if I'm able to retain something that I can use in the future.

Yes, I made it through. But I'm glad Week Four is over and I never have to see its annoying face again.

A-100 Weeks Two and Three Recap

Post by J

Time seems to move quickly when you're busy. Case in point: How is it possible that I'm now half-way through A-100? Week two? Gone. Week three? History.  Crazy.

We've been busy learning about what a foreign service career might hold, how to face the challenges that are sure to arise, how to juggle work/life balance, and how to write reports (cables in FS speak). We've talked about generational differences and taken the Myers-Briggs personality assessment. We listened in rapt attention as bureau chiefs gave an overview of the six different regions in which we might serve in our careers. We met with our Career Development Officers to discuss our bid list priorities, and we traveled to the "Woods" where we participated in team-building and leadership exercises.

Of course, the main focus of week two was meeting with our CDOs. I met with mine on Friday of that week, and we were able to include R via speaker phone. The primary reason for the meeting was for our CDO to get to know us and understand our priorities in bidding. I think it's safe to say that this meeting is extremely important and will ultimately play a big role in where I'm assigned. I submitted my final bid list on Tuesday of week three, so where R and I end up is now completely out of my hands. Because of that, I'm no longer devoting any mental energy to it.  After all, I have plenty of other things to do.

The last two days of week three were dedicated to the off-site (the "Woods") event.  We traveled by bus out of Washington on Thursday and returned on Friday. There were multiple exercises that stressed working as a team to accomplish a goal. Although I've read that others find these two days stressful, I had a great time. I think I got to know a few more of my classmates a little bit better, and we had fun, particularly during the "Follies" - a performance that a committee of my classmates put on Thursday evening. The Follies were fun because we had a chance to loosen up and laugh.

I have to say that the 84 other members of my class are an impressive lot. They have varied educational backgrounds, speak myriad languages and can call on unique experiences to add value to nearly any conversation. I've found that they're very accepting, too. I'm an outlier in the group (I'm quite a bit older than most of my classmates, and my life experiences are different), but I definitely still feel that I belong, and that I have something to contribute.

Three more weeks (and 12 days until Flag Day)!

Arlington National Cemetery

Post by J

Last week I drove over to Fort Myer, an Army post in Arlington. The primary reason was to visit the commissary and the post exchange and stock up on groceries and other sundry items, but while there I noticed that it was directly adjacent to Arlington National Cemetery. I made a mental note to return and wander among the rows of stones that mark the final resting place of so many fallen to whom we collectively owe so much.

I did that today.

I parked on post near the Fort Myer chapel and walked through the Miegs Street gate. I was surprised by how many unique grave markers I immediately saw; all of the photos you ever see of ANC show rows and rows of identical white stones. There were plenty (sadly, far too many) of the expected kind, but there are other types as well.

I wandered around over the paved pathways, a bit overwhelmed by the acres and acres of lives represented by all that marble. "Thank you for your service" seems a pitiful salute to the men and women laid to rest in Arlington, or to those buried in hometowns and in cemeteries abroad, or to those in unmarked places that no one ever visits. It's an inadequate expression to the living men and women who have served or are currently serving in the U.S. military. I texted a picture to R, and his response captured how I felt: "May they rest in peace," he responded. "It should be a mandatory field trip for all new Federal employees and elected officials."

I was in time to see the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which brought me to tears. There was a large crowd, over 100, I think, and no one made a sound as the guards changed and a soldier played Taps. This is from the ANC website:

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is guarded 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and in any weather by Tomb Guard sentinels. Sentinels, all volunteers, are considered to be the best of the elite 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), headquartered at Fort Myer, Virginia.

In fact, a video in the building next to the Tomb indicates that becoming a sentinel and serving honorably for nine months will merit the soldier being awarded a special Army decoration: The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Guard Identification Badge. This is the 2nd rarest award in the U.S. Army.

And then, of course there were the rows upon rows of headstones:

I really appreciated that on the back side of some of the stones was the name of the service member's wife (or possibly husband, although I didn't see one). Families - wives, husbands, children, parents - also sacrifice when a soldier serves.

After spending some time thinking on a bench overlooking a wide expanse of the cemetery, I slowly walked back to my car - a little more thoughtful, a little more grateful.

The U.S. Diplomacy Center

Post by J

Secretary of State John Kerry and five former Secretaries of State - Henry Kissinger, James Baker, Madeline Albright, Colin Powell, and Hilary Clinton - spoke at the U.S. Diplomacy Center groundbreaking ceremony this afternoon. Our FSO orientation class was invited to attend, and comprised 85 of the 250 attendees present. We were delighted to be included.

Each Secretary spoke for a few minutes, and I was particularly struck by Secretary Powell's comments. Basically, he said that while Washington, DC boasts many monuments dedicated to military services (the Viet Nam War Memorial, the Korean Memorial, World War II, etc.), there is not a monument to those Foreign Service Officers who gave their lives while serving America abroad (there are over 200), nor is there a place dedicated to telling the story of the Diplomatic Corps. The U.S. Diplomacy Center will serve this purpose.

My classmates and I were a little starstruck, given the status of the speakers. We're all a little geeky and the Secretaries of State are the equivalent of rock stars in our world. Of course we shamelessly snapped photos with our phones.

And here's a little random addition to this post that has nothing to do with the Diplomacy Center:

Last week while searching for a place to sit at lunch, a classmate and I walked outside to the courtyard at the Main State building. All the tables were occupied, unfortunately, but we spied a table that only had one person sitting at it. We approached the man sitting there and asked if he'd mind if we joined him. He said no, and we sat down. Small talk ensued.

"Do you work here?" we asked. We ask this question of everyone, assuming that they're an FSO who might have interesting stories from the field, or insightful advice that we couldn't get anywhere else.

"No," the man replied. "I'm a reporter."

We hesitated, not knowing exactly what to talk with him about.  

"Which paper do you work for?" I asked.

"Not a paper. I work for Fox News."

Aha.  A television reporter.  

Turns out, we had lunch with James Rosen, who was quite a hot topic a few years ago. Rosen was the subject of an investigation, a pretty aggressive one in fact, conducted by the Department of Justice. Some believe the DOJ went too far, using intimidation tactics to squelch Rosen's free speech. The reason that some were on Rosen's side is that if investigative reporters are prevented from digging too deep (the DOJ was trying to intimidate Rosen by conducting their own investigation), it limits the media's role as a "watchdog."

It just goes to show, you never know who you're going to see from one day to the next in this job!

Monticello

Post by J

Since Thomas Jefferson (affectionately known as "TJ" to R who, by the way, also refers to Teddy Roosevelt as "TR" and William Shakespeare as "Billy the Shake") was the first U.S. Secretary of State, I thought it only fitting that I visit his home and pay my respects.

It takes a little over two hours to drive to Charlottesville from here, so I started out around 8:30 this morning. I enjoyed traveling through the rolling hills of Virginia, picturesquely hemmed in by tidy white fences, and didn't even mind the slower pace that was required because of the curves. I narrowly missed flattening a turtle with a death wish as it neared the end of its ponderous trek across the asphalt, however. I made good time and finally arrived at Monticello - the only home of a U.S. president that is a UNESCO world heritage site.

I paid the entrance fee and took the shuttle up to the top of Jefferson's "little mountain," which is what Monticello translates to in Italian. I was just in time for the next guided tour of the house, and our knowledgeable guide shared some amazing facts about Jefferson during the tour including:

• Jefferson had read every book in his father's library by the age of 6
• Jefferson could read in seven different languages
• Jefferson taught himself Spanish during a 19-day sea voyage by translating a copy of Don Quixote using a Spanish/English dictionary
• Jefferson was nearly a vegetarian, using meat only as a "condiment" to enhance the flavors of his vegetables
• Jefferson's favorite vegetable was peas, and he grew six different varieties on the grounds of Monticello
• Jefferson was an inventor, collector of fine art, and founder of the University of Virginia

In short, TJ was amazing.  But he suffered tragedy: his father died when he was 14; his wife, Martha, died after only 10 years of marriage, and only two of his six children lived to adulthood.

Monticello is beautiful, and the grounds and gardens are impressive.  I thoroughly enjoyed the three hours I spent there, and came away with new respect and admiration for our third president.

A-100 Week One Recap

Post by J

Week one of A-100 is in the books.  I don't remember being this tired since Basic Training back in my Army days, I kid you not. There's a lot of information to absorb, all of it relevant, all of it important.  Plus, I've been getting up at 5:00 each morning to run (there are treadmills in the apartment complex's small  fitness center), so by the time I get home around 6:00 p.m. I'm justifiably exhausted. Hello, three-day-weekend! Am I ever glad to see you!

The sessions this week varied from "mission statement and structure" to explanations of how to complete a travel voucher. We learned about global health issues, diplomatic history, and the National Security Council. We explored State Department priorities and the interagency process. We received an overview of the Transition Center, which includes the Overseas Briefing Center (OBC).

The OBC is of particular interest this week because we received the bid list for our class on Wednesday. The list consists of 105 possible posts that we each must rank high, medium, or low, depending on our self-determined priorities. The list encompasses 51 cities in 44 countries. This is where the fun comes in: all of my 84 fellow FSOs and I are busily poring over the vast array of material that the OBC keeps on each post, trying to decide what is best for us. We have been told we can rank no more than 25% (about 26 posts) low.

We are not able to publicly share the list, but our families are directly affected so can be "in the know." R, H, L, and I have been looking up countries and sharing information we find, trying to begin the process of weeding out and ranking. It's fun, but it does take a lot of time.

On top of all of the information during the day and the lengthy telephone conversations with Ross regarding possible posts, I have homework to complete. I'm usually in bed sawing proverbial logs by 9:00 p.m.

Today the OBC had special weekend hours (something that only happens once a month), and I took advantage of that and drove over to FSI (Foreign Service Institute) to do some more reading on potential posts, and to check out a few post videos. While there, I had a very interesting conversation with two "seasoned" FSOs who are in between tours. They were on hand just to talk with us newbies, and I found their advice very helpful in getting a handle on how to proceed when I talk to my Career Development Officer (CDO) next week about my preferences.

Just to remind myself that I am making progress toward Flag Day (the day my class finds out to which post we've actually been assigned) I've included a countdown widget on the right side of this page. Time is ticking!

A-100 Day One

Post by J

I have officially taken the oath:

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter.  So help me God.

I will take this oath again, at the completion of my orientation training.

I just want to say here that I take this oath seriously. These words stand for my belief in this country and its ideals, and I don't take that lightly. It's an honor to serve my country in an official capacity, and I look forward to the challenges this profession will bring.

Today's agenda included a number of briefings on logistics: travel orders, health insurance options, housing. The real training begins tomorrow.

Pre-Diplomatic Cross-Country Tour, Day Five

Post by J

I took a slight detour today and drove through Shenandoah National Park via Skyline Drive on my way to my new apartment. I wove in and out of the rain and mist on a mostly empty road, listening to Handel's Water Music (appropriately enough), and enjoying the scenery:

Throughout the drive I kept thinking of the Civil War - probably because I kept thinking of the Jimmy Stewart film Shenandoah. Virginia is thick with battlefields: Appomattox Courthouse, Spotsylvania, Manassas, Fredericksburg, and so many others. The unspoiled beauty that is the Shenandoah Valley seems removed from modern life and I could easily imagine Union and Confederate soldiers lurking among the trees, tired of fighting, just wanting to go home.

After a couple of hours of of misty melancholy, I headed to Luray to check out the famous Caverns. It's a popular destination, apparently, because the parking lot was full when I arrived at about a quarter past two. After I spent an hour on the tour, I understood the appeal - it's pretty spectacular. Read about the caverns here.

And finally I arrived at my new apartment around six this evening. After schlepping all of my boxes up to the fourth floor, I made a quick trip to the supermarket for coffee and milk and eggs. Tomorrow I'll unpack, explore the neighborhood, and give the metro a trial run.  

Pre-Diplomatic Cross-Country Tour, Day Four

Post by J

This morning, after a run on the hotel's treadmill and a stop in their breakfast room, I was struggling to open my hotel room door with a bowl of oatmeal in one hand, a cup of hot coffee in the other, and my room key card in my pocket. A maid who looked to be about 20 was in the hallway outside my door and asked sweetly, "Can I help you, honey?" in a molasses-slow Tennessee drawl. I'm definitely not in Wyoming any more. Not that Wyoming maids aren't helpful - they are - but they definitely don't have the accent, and I've never been called honey by one of them, especially one young enough to be my daughter. I thanked that sweet, helpful girl and left a $5 tip on the desk when I departed. Because she was helpful, yes. But mostly because I'm a little in love with the accent.

It only took 3.5 hours to drive to Roanoke, and I was tempted to stop at three places I saw advertised along the Interstate:  President Andrew Johnson's home in Greenville, TN (because everyone should know a little bit about the presidents, even those who've been impeached ... I'm looking at you, Bill Clinton), Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park, also in Tennessee (because Davy's got a pretty bad-ass reputation, and looks good in a coonskin cap besides), and Hungry Mother State Park in Virginia (because who isn't curious about this one?). It was starting to rain, however, so I decided to keep driving. I have subsequently looked up the Hungry Mother State Park, though, because I just had to know. In a nutshell, a long time ago Native Americans destroyed several settlements in the area, but a mother (Molly Marley) and her child escaped. Surviving on berries, Molly eventually collapsed and the child wandered down a creek until he or she found help. All the child could say was "Hungry mother," though, and by the time Molly was found, she was dead. Note to the Virginia State Parks people: Molly Marley State Park is a much better name.

I pulled in to Roanoke at about 2:30 and promptly went to the mall where I found a really nice blazer for work - original price:  $100. Sale price:  $12.  Score!

Tomorrow I arrive in Falls Church. It's only about a three-hour drive from here and I plan to take in a few sites along the way, even if it's raining.

Pre-Diplomatic Cross-Country Tour, Day Three

Post by J

Kentucky, anyone? How about Tennessee?

With only 411 miles to cover today, I waved goodbye to the Land of Lincoln with Journey's Wheel in the Sky playing on the local oldies radio station. (May I just pause here to ask, "How, for the love of all that's holy, did enough time pass for Journey songs come to be considered "oldies"?)

I crossed the Ohio River and entered Paducah, Kentucky where I saw a billboard advertising the National Quilt Museum. I decided to stop.

You know how on Sesame Street each episode is brought to you by a number and a letter ("Today's episode is brought to you by the letter J and the number 8.")? The National Quilt Museum in Paducah, Kentucky is brought to you by the word, "Wow." Inadequate as it was, I said that word over and over as I spent an hour in awe of the amazing talent displayed by the quilters. Although it is against the rules to take photos of the quilts (something about intellectual property rights, blah, blah, blah - a bunch of hooey, especially because images of the quilts were being sold as postcards in the gift shop), I took a few:

Seriously. The bird looks like it's been painted, but it's all applique and quilted. Crazy talent.

I continued on my way down the interstate and crossed the Tennessee River. Then the Cumberland, then Lake Barkley and Stones River near Nashville. Then I crossed the Caney Fork River five times in the space of less than two miles. Then the Falling Water River, the Obed River and the Clinch River. Captain Obvious: Kentucky and Tennessee have a lot of rivers.

Outside of Nashville, traffic came to an abrupt halt. A heavy rainstorm had just passed over and it was still drizzling. Over the course of the next hour, I covered 10 miles, inch by inch. I grabbed my phone after about 15 minutes and looked up road conditions on I-40 eastbound and discovered there had been an accident around milepost 252. Sure enough, when I got to the accident site, a huge motor home was turned over along the side of the road, a damaged truck beside it. By my calculations, I would have been pretty close to that spot at the time of the accident if I hadn't stopped to ogle the quilts back in Paducah.  

The upside is that, while stalled in traffic, I was listening to Jim Gaffigan's Dad is Fat on my iPod that I had synced with the car sound system. Hysterical. I'm sure the other drivers in the gridlock must have thought I had just been released from Bellevue, if they chanced to look in my direction and saw me cracking up for no apparent reason.

I'm spending the night in Knoxville, and looking forward to a short day (only 259 miles!) tomorrow, when I arrive in Virginia.