Yes!

The bid list came out yesterday!  Since I will be spending the next week or so poring over the list and conducting endless amounts of research, I will be largely unavailable.  However, if you can manage a *short* conversation, feel free to call me and discuss.  :)

Southern saying of yesterday

Totally got home late and then ran around like a chicken with its head cut off last night until after midnight...AGAIN.  Must be a little more "with it" in the future.

Anyway...

If you want to compliment a man on his choice for a wife, you might say...
You sure didn't pick up no crooked stick!

Another day, another few hours of sleep I'm missing

I am still trying to accustom myself to the life of a working woman, but I will admit that two years of unemployment have made me soft.  Getting up at 5AM hasn't happened for me for as long as I can remember and now that I'm trying to do it on a regular basis.  Needless to say, I am pretty tired most of the time.  And since much of what we do is administrative, it's tough staying focused.

But life continues to move forward and I should be bidding soon - only a few short weeks before I know where my first post will be!

Today I also (stupidly) volunteered myself to co-chair the social committee, so I am on schedule to totally run myself down in the next 5 weeks.  Good times.

Anywho, the Olympics are on and I want to watch so I'm going to keep this short and sweet.  I will try to be more verbose tomorrow.

Southern saying of the day

Anxiety
He's as jumpy as a cockroach in a fryin' pan.

Southern saying of the day

If you're referring to a friend who came into wealth, you might say...
Now there goes a man who broke out in money.

And in a few weeks, when I get my first paycheck, you might be able to say that about me.  Unless, of course, you're a doctor, lawyer, or a prince of Wall Street.

The first day of a new life

I got into Washington, DC, all safe and sound last night, and right on time.  As promised, my friend Jan was there to pick me up, be my errand boy at the grocery store (and my sherpa by carrying all the groceries through 3 blocks of snow and up two flights of stairs), and pacify my inner demons with a late meal at Raku.

It is, admittedly, a little weird being here in this tiny apartment in DC.  After spending five years making Anthony and my three furry children my home, it is a new and disconcerting experience to be in a space so clearly my own.  There is no barking or whining or end-of-day discussions or yowling or furry paws and claws pushing me to the far corners of the mattress at night as I sleep.  It is just me.  And it is going to take some getting used to.

The other adjustment is going to be shedding my pampered status as a Foreign Service hanger-on who has somehow become accustomed to hundreds (if not thousands) of feet of extra, un-needed space.  The footprint of my new apartment is so tiny.  It is a good space for one person, particularly in the city, but, again, an adjustment will be necessary. 

Overall, I think I will feel more at home after my UAB arrives (the 250lbs of unnecessary crap that State so willingly packed and shipped to me) and the apartment takes on a little more of my flavor.  It is also going to take some time before I am accustomed to not having Anthony, Grace, Maggie or Pookie surrounding me at all hours of the day.  My time is once again my own and I again have to redefine things like "home" and "me."

Of course, I have also started a new career, which is a big step in rediscovering my independent self.  Today was my first day as a Foreign Service Officer.  Well, technically speaking, we don't get sworn-in until March 19th, but for all intents and purposes, I am a member of the FS...again.

Today was entirely administrative, with lectures on health insurance, life insurance, pensions, and security, and the slow-as-molasses in-processing for our official IDs.  But we did have ample time to meet some of our fellow incoming colleagues, which has certainly proved interesting.  Every FSO I have ever met tells me that some of the strongest friendships they've made in the FS have come from their orientation class, so I am trying hard to be friendly and make decent, if not good, impressions.

It was a little difficult since I hardly slept last night.  I was so on-edge about what I should do when I arrived - between grocery shopping and packing and missing my family in Mexico, I was all in a tizzy last night, staying up well past midnight, fretting and worrying and basically getting nothing done other than losing much-needed sleep.  So I woke up at 3:30AM, according to Senior Blackberry (who was still set on AZ time), and zombied my way through my morning, drinking at least 2 black teas and a cup of coffee.

And pretty much the only thing I needed to be semi-aware for was the badging process - gotta smile and look pretty!  So I did that, and then immediately turned my brain off again.

And now I'm on my way back out the door to go pick up some more foodstuffs so I can cook me a dinner.  A very tasty, tasty dinner.  Because I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me...

Southern saying of the day

The Boss
He's the big dog in the meat house.

And with that, I'm grabbing my bags and headig to the airport!