Disclaimer

This website reflects my own personal views and not that of the U.S. Government nor, more specifically, the Peace Corps.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

When I'll Be Coming Home or Why I Feel Relived to Hear Bad News

So, I could put the date of when I'm headed home for a little R&R, but that would just make reading this post oh so easy, wouldn't it? Also, when have I ever gotten straight to the point? You should know better by now. So, first thing's first: I'm going to start with the latter part of this blog post's title.

I was up late the other night, and while it was late, I decided to check my e-mail one last time before heading to bed, because, hey, you never know. It was 11a in D.C., so it was plausible that I could have received an e-mail regarding the Foreign Service Officer's Test (FSOT). As I mentioned before, I had passed the initial written test and essay but had yet to hear back on my Personal Narratives and the results of the Qualitative Evaluation Panel (QEP). Lo and behold, there was an e-mail from the Department of State. There was definitely a bit of anticipation as I read the response, which went something like this:

"Dear Garrett,

...because this year, there have been an influx of applicants taking the FSOT and a decrease in the rate of acceptance...After much evaluation by the QEP, we regret to inform you...

Sincerely,
Copy and Paste"

So, that was that. No cushy job waiting for me when I finish my job in the Peace Corps. However, more positive outcomes prevail over the (hardly) negative ones. My dreams of being a Peace Corps Field Recruiter can still be chased. Grad school doesn't necessarily have to be put off for 4 or 10 years while moving around every 2 years to another country (but who knows, I might end up getting a job that requires me to do that anyway!). Best put, I think, as I was discussing this with someone earlier today, is that if anything, I would have had a much more difficult time enjoying what I have going on in the present were I to be constantly wondering about two years from now. Many of us would like to have "Five Year Plan(s)", but I'm going to be here for another 16 months, and what a waste that would be to not be able to fully focus on what I have at the present moment. Do I have ideas of what I might like to do in the future? I do. They might be a little vague, but they exist. For now, though, I plan on enjoying the next five months and five days until I come home. <---did you get that? (9+7)*3/47x-2H =....

Saturday, October 27th

I'll be home and plan on traveling between Phoenix, Tucson, SoCal, and D.C. until

Sunday, November 25th

when I return back to Phnom Penh.

Talk to you soon,
Garrett

2 comments:

  1. Sorry to hear about FSOT, but glad you're living in the moment!! Stay safe, and plan on a coffee date when you're in Phoenix!! :-D

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