Say Cheese!!!

Well lots has happened since my last blog. We celebrated flag day last week. This is a ceremony where everyone is presented with the flag of the country where they will spend their first assignment. Luckily they tell you what the flag is before your name is called or you may not know where the flag is from!! I have to say it is not as exciting when you know where you are going. As most of you know I will be going to the Hague in the Netherlands. When I was presented with my list (list of one!) you could have knocked me over with a feather, I would have thought I had a better chance to go to Toronto then to Europe. I have to admit I was a little disappointed at first-I was hoping for a country that didn't have a McDonalds, but I have given it much thought and how can you be disappointed in a country that has cities named for cheese? Gotta love being able to stop off in Gouda on the way home from work.

Last Friday was our swearing in at "Main State" Oklahoma was well represented with three Oklahoma friends. Ambassador John D. Negroponte was our guest speaker and swore all of us in-I must say I was a little teary eyed and I am not ashamed to admit it. This week I have been in security training will have medical training tomorrow and start HR training on Feb. 25th.

I am very excited about my trip to NYC. I have made reservations for a massage Saturday night and for a pedicure on Sunday morning at Bliss spa (the spa is in my hotel). My reasoning behind this is now I get to go the sauna, steam room and (this was the point that solidified my decision) and BROWNIE bar both days. I also have tickets to the Butterfly conservatory at the American Museum for Natural History (unfortunately no brownie bar there).

I hope everyone has now located the Hague on the map and is making plans to come visit over the next two years!!!

All is Well!!!

I have managed to survive into week 3 of our training. I will begin my Human Resources training on Feb. 25th which will last 7 weeks. Next week will be an exciting week. We have flag day on Tuesday, this is the ceremony in which we will be given the flag to represent the country that we will be starting our career in. The big deal is now making sure you know what the flags from your list look like (of course since I have one choice on my list it SHOULD be rather easy). On Friday we have our final swearing in. So that means I have to be on my best behavior twice this week. Our past two weeks have consisted of a team building exercise, taking the modern language aptitude test (don't even ask.....), choosing our insurance (it was not easy with a choice of 538 plans) and a day discussing culture. One of the big stresses was that they moved our name plates around after class on Friday, this meant mass confusion on Monday (it also meant two new people I had to be nice to!). The big excitement was that on Friday when we were discussing crisis management an unexploded ordinance from WWII was found on the grounds when they were doing construction. This meant that we were evactuated and got to go home at 12:00!

The first two weeks the main excitement were evening excursions to Trader Joe's (two within driving distance) and Target (two within driving distance). I kept thinking that I had heard there was more to do in DC than Target and Trader Joe's so this weekend 3 of us headed down into DC to expand our horizons. We went to the National Portrait Musuem, the Archives to see the Declaration of Independence and then on to the Natural History Museum! I saw the Hope Diamond-which I think means man I hope I get a Diamond that looks like that some day!!

I am going to New York City for President's Day weekend (surely they have Target and Trader Joe's!) to go to some museums, have some spa time and visit the mecca that is Tiffany's.

More this week after Flag Day!

I survived day 1!!!!

Yesterday morning I woke very early to start getting ready-I was very fashionable in my black and white checked blazer and pink button down. I met some other nervous but very nice Foreign Service Specialists on the shuttle to the Foreign Service Institute. We all gathered (about 65 of us) in the lobby for our swearing in service. I began looking around and realizing that the State Department "uniform" does not include pink shirts much less black and white checked blazers, it is much more of a muted dark suit, white shirt "uniform"! I stood out like the only Human Resource Officer that I was, my fears were substantiated when the speaker stated he always liked to see a class of dark suits, then he knows that the evaluators have done a good job of recruiting the best and the brightest! I could only imagine what he that of the fashion don't in the back of room in her checked blazer. Needless to say today I am wearing a lovely dark brown suit-but I still have a little bit of fashionista in me and I am wearing (gasp) a light blue button down!

There are a number of Foreign Service Agents (Security) a couple of Diplomatic Couriers and quite a few Office Specialists. Everyone is very friendly and we are al in the same boat which makes for some bonding.

Well I had better go-I have to make an introduction of an ambassador today-no pressure (but hence the brown suit!)

The Adventure Begins.....part II

Well I have made it to Washington DC and I start training tomorrow. I must say that I have the "first day of school" butterflies: will I be able to sit at the cool table at lunch, will I be wearing the right clothes?

I am moved into my studio apartment. The State Department has a contract with a complex called Oakwood. It is very interesting, it is one big room with a couch, sitting chair and 2 tvs! (Plus the bed taking its half out of the middle of the room!) there is also a small kitchen fully furnished. A maid is provided one day a week, for those that know my housekeeping skills (or lack thereof) know that this is a benefit that has no equal! The other benefit is that there is a Target 1.3 miles away.

All of my worldy possessions were packed up and are currently stored in Maryland. I must say it was a little sad to pack everything up when I have no idea when or even where I will see all of my things again. I figure one of two things can happen: 1)it is so long until I am settled an can unpack my clothes that they are out of style or 2) it is so long until I am settled an can unpack my clothes that they have gone out of style but have made it BACK into style!

I had better get go over my check list for tomorrow again-I want to make sure I don't forget anything. I should have my list of choices tomorrow so I will update soon.

The Adventure Begins.....

I am new to the world of blogging (I know that comes as a surprise to many of you..) but I decided this would be a great way to keep in touch as the adventure begins (truth be known I just want something to come up when I am googled!).

For those of you that don't know, after 2 long years of waiting and worrying the chance of a lifetime is here. I will be leaving Stillwater on January 17th to head to Washington D.C. and begin Foreign Service Specialists orientation at the George P. Schultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center. Upon arrival in D.C. I will be staying in a furnished studio apartment provided by the State Department. During the first week of orientation I will recieve a list of upcoming vacancies from which I can request my choices. I will have an opportunity to research my "bid list", hopefully that research will provide information on who has ESPN reception and if there is a local branch of Tiffany's (could I be THAT lucky). Keep in mind that one of my conditions of employment is worldwide availablity so I am prepared for anything and everything. I have to say the more exotic the better! But then again what could be more exotic than Stillwater? After orientation I will have HR training at least until April 28th (which means I will Stateside for March Madness which is of great importance). Depending on where I will be going I may stay in D.C. to learn a language. That is everything I know for now, when I get to DC and I have more information I will continue to update.