One eye to the future, one in the present

Living and working in the Foreign Service is a tricky business. Things are always in motion. People moving in and out of your lives, you’re moving around, you’re planning around moves, you’re planning future moves, and you’re still doing your job on the ground in your current post, literally through to the day that you

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Shutdown Watch: Fakeout

Well, after weeks of republican infighting in the House and only hours to spare before what seemed like a certainty, cooler heads prevailed and both chambers and the President signed off on a 45 day continuing resolution, kicking the can to mid-November and avoiding a government shutdown. Whenever the government shuts down because congress cannot

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WHOOPS…Flag Day 2.1

Well, I have a little bit of egg on my face. Nearly 2 months after I was assigned to Peshawar, Pakistan, my career development officer called and gave me an option to serve in a different Special Incentive Post, and I am happy to announce I will now be moving to Rangoon, Burma (Yangon, Myanmar)

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London..errr Nottingham Calling

Earlier this month, I got to embark on a pilgrimage that was 5 years in the making. As some might recall, I am a giant nerd that plays a tabletop wargame called Warhammer, which is published by the British company, Games Workshop. This company is headquartered in Nottingham, England, with a huge facility called “Warhammer

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AMA: What is a SIP Post?

With my recent announcement that I will be doing a one year unaccompanied tour, I have been getting quite a few questions on the nature of the assignment, and why exactly someone would choose to do this. A Special Incentive Post or SIP for short, is any post around the world that due to extraordinary

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Summer R&R Part 2

Following 10 days of Iberian fun, both in Barcelona and on our cruise ship, we ultimately got off the boat in Southampton, England. From here, I decided it would be worthwhile to spend some time in the U.K., and take my family to one of my favorite cities in the world, Edinburgh, Scotland. I have

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Summer R&R Part 1

There is nothing like a nearly month long vacation to celebrate the 1 year mark of being in Mauritania. All the overtime, comp time, and work trips has afforded me quite a bit of time off to enjoy this summer, and with the embassy population at an all-time low during PCS season (it will be

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