August 2010
1 post
Speculating on why people speculate (the...
So there is this whole subculture of people waiting to get hired into the Foreign Service. I guess I am now part of this group.
THEY ARE A LOT OF CRAZY.
There are message boards and blogs and other communication devices where they whine and pout and ask questions they already know the answer to. Mostly they do this because they want quite badly to get hired, and I suppose, are looking for ways...
July 2010
2 posts
That's why I didn't get that intern gig for... →
Just a great little look at how the powerful hobnob with the powerful, and how their offspring will one day be powerful too. Because it’s set up that way.
Also, Luke Russert, earn it. Yourself.
Eeek. Keeping posts coming is hard
So it’s been a month, Tumblr.
Sorry.
I can tell you that I’ve been to Europe —- Croatia, Austria and Italy (try the deer goulash, the wine of any color and the gelato).
I also relented and signed up for Pandora. Why I resisted this, I do not know.
June 2010
1 post
More on the Euro/$$$ grudge match
Caution: boring currency discussion. The Euro is down under $1.20 today. I like that my European vacation is getting cheaper by the minute, but it’s time to chill out Euro. We don’t a major worldwide economic collapse. This is the lowest the Euro has been trading since March 2006. For those keeping score, $1 hasn’t equaled 1 euro since Dec. 2002. When the Euro entered circulation...
May 2010
9 posts
So, I'm applying for the foreign servce
You should know this about me. I’ve applied to the foreign service. What follows is foreign service speak. I passed my FSOT in October 2009, my PNQ in November, my OA in April and am now dealing with my security and medical clearances.
For non foreign service types. Basically, this thing takes a while, and may never happen despite all the good news so far.
A lot of this blog is going to be...
Passport fees are increasing. Should I renew now? →
So my passport won’t expire until June 2011, but I read today that the cost of a renewal will be rising from $75 to $110. A renewal is good for 10 years. So the question becomes, is losing a year off my passport worth saving the $35? Really, based on interest rates, it’s a much better bet to renew now since I can’t make that money up in interest over such a short period of time...
Euro vs. Dollar: Two currencies enter, only one... →
So I’ve been following the currency market a lot in the last few weeks. Not cause I’m a nerd, rather because I’m heading to Europe for 12 days in July. I was in Italy when the Euro replaced the Lira on Jan. 1, 2002. Back then, if I remember correctly, the dollar got you something like 1.20 euro. In 2008, I spent two and a half weeks in Europe when the same dollar translated into...
The importance of being earnest
By way of background, I’m a Florida journalist who grew up in the Northeast and went to college in the Midwest.
I love Election Days, and baseball, and my Trek 1.2.
I have a cat who gets into fights and loses. I avoid fights.
I’ve been stranded at O’Hare, once, and have seen the movie Center Stage 14 times.
I got a Nook for Christmas. I gave Pumas.
I just got an e-mail from...
