She Said: Intro. to Foreign Service Community

Hi all,
This week will be a whirlwind. They are coming to pack 250 lbs. of Brian's "stuff" on Friday for his move out to DC. He leaves on Sunday. It is going to be a crazy week, so even though it's late I thought I would take the time to post tonight.

Tonight we had the opportunity to meet one of Brian's new co-workers. They will both be starting training in DC together. He and his wife live here in Roseville and they are going through a lot of the same process that we are. It was really fun to be able to chat with someone who really understands the stress/excitement of this whole process. They were very interesting people and we found ourselves wondering out loud in the car about how we got to where we are and feeling a little inadquate in contrast to someone who speaks SEVERAL languages and has lived all over the world. I'm sure this will not be the last time we feel that amongst a group of 80 or 90 high achievers who are interested in representing our country abroad. Oh well, we'll get over it. In any case, I was reminded tonight how much the foreign service really is a community. We exchanged phone numbers and emails and Kristina and I agreed to stay in touch. She is not going to DC for spouse training, so I promised to bring back any important materials for her, and I'm sure at some point in the future, she will be a resource for me. It is really strange how this one small common thread can weave you together like friends so quickly. It made me feel very excited to meet the other members of Brian's class and their families. Can't wait for the first week in March to be able to share with all of you.

We were able to get a "subscribe" feature added to our blog tonight. You probably noticed it in the top right corner. It is run through feedburner, but I don't think you have to have an account or that they'll spam you. I signed up for it myself so that I can monitor. I already subscribed immediate family. Feel free to add yourself via feedburner if you would like to get an email when we post new entries.