A-100, week 2

I have been trying to update this blog for days, but things are kind of chaotic around here. As many have said before me, A-100 is intense. There is homework for upcoming classes, online tests to complete, committee work to do, lots of socializing going on, and of course, the bid list to research, over and over again. And there is, of course, my family. It's fun and exciting, but very busy.

My husband has been totally amazing and I am really grateful to him. He has supported me and put my work first these last few weeks. He has stayed home with first L and then M when they spiked fevers, since missing A-100 is not an option for me. He has talked with me about the bid list non-stop for a week.

The kids are doing very well at FSI daycare. I feel a little left out, since my husband was the one to help them adjust the first 2 days and I don't really know what's going on there (a first for me). Now that I have the lay of the land at FSI, I'm mostly doing drop-off and pick-ups, but my husband helps a lot. I've taken them a few times on the Oakwood shuttle, and they love that. The A-100 schedule is diverse - some days you are at Main State (or start one place and end up at another) or another location downtown, so it's tricky to coordinate kid transportation.

And then of course, there is the bid list. For those who don't know, we received a list of approximately 70 posts. Each one has an ETA, language level required (some have none), and type of job indicated (Political, Economic, Consular, Public Diplomacy, or Management). We have to bid each post high, medium, or low, according to a list of 3 priorities. Here are ours:

1) Family friendly: relatively safe, affordable cost of living, adequate schools
2) Timing: we'd prefer a post that leaves after June, though there are a few irresistible early posts (in many cases, this means I'd be learning a new language, except for the Spanish posts for which I'd get a little more training)
3) Job: I prefer a Consular or Management job

Bidding is really a challenging exercise. I'm glad they ask us to identify our priorities and form a bidding strategy around them, as that practice really does help you flesh out what is important and helps you consider posts you may never have thought about before. Before I joined, I thought of bidding in regions- I'm really going to focus on Latin America, or I'd like to explore East or Southern Africa. But the list required me to think differently, which is why I think I was disappointed at first. The timing and job type really make a difference, and the posts are quite diverse.

Since I received the bump-up points for Spanish, I was automatically scheduled to take the full Spanish test. I scored a 2/2, which means I need about 12 weeks to get to a 3/3, according to FSI. I think this assessment is just right- I need some work, especially in reading comprehension, to get to a 3/3, and I definitely don't want to go to post and be expected to do Pol/Econ work without a better professional grasp of the language. So I look forward to learning more, if applicable.

I also took an informal French assessment (a quick test) and did well enough that they are scheduling me for the full test. That will be painful, as my French is extremely rusty.

There is so much more, but it's late and I need to get some rest. More this weekend, I hope, with photos, too.