The Sun Is Shining. The Birds Are Singing ...

... and you know what that means, right?  My in-laws are going home today.  It's Halloween.  The kids are all FINALLY back in school!

Yup.  They've been stuck here at home for the past two days.  Wreaking havoc.  Causing mayhem.  Annoying the ever-loving cr*p out of me.  My very OWN perfect storm.

We weathered the hurricane just fine ... with only one major leak.  Of course, it's in the same spot as the leak I had LAST year ... that they apparently didn't fix.  Go figure!

It started when the water came in through the roof, in the front of the house above Sheridan's room.  It dripped out the vent from her ceiling as well as behind her wall, causing the baseboards and the carpet to become drenched.  It then made its way down to the first floor, where it did the exact same thing (soaking the ceiling, walls, and hardwood floor).  And then it went down one more level into the basement. 

Looking on the bright side, if there was ever a good thing that could come out of this ... it's that it's a recurring leak.  Which means that the builder is responsible to fix it, not my insurance company, since we are far past our one-year warranty.

Thank goodness for small miracles.

Send Us Love. Send Us Sanity. Send ME Wine!

We talk all the way to the airport.  About the kids.  About our time together.  About our next visit.  Though unlike last time, the drive is much shorter.  As we go through the Toll Booth, and on to the access road of the airport, I feel the first twinge in my nose.  I usually scrunch it up and pretend all is fine.  That is, until I make the final turn and drive up the ramp to the Departure area when the lump in my throat makes it difficult to swallow.

We've done this before.  Six times to be exact.  And while I would like to say it gets easier ... it never does.  How could it?  When you put the love of your life, the father of your kids, your best friend back on a plane to fly thousands of miles away while you virtually miss a year of your life together.  Or two if you're really counting ...

But the known IS better than the unknown.  You HAVE done this before.  Six times, remember?  You know that in a few days both of you will get back into a routine.  He will get over jet lag.  The kids will get back onto their schedule.  That despite the tears.  The sadness.  The longing that we all have for each other ...  we are all going to be okay.  Yes, we will eventually be okay ...


Of course, one might be a wee bit better when their in-laws, who have been here for 6 days (two of which were spent with their son, who they hadn't seen in a year) weren't stuck here, IN the house (due to canceled flights) for an additional three days thanks to hurricane Sandy.  Oh, and if their father-in-law didn't have a severe case of shpilkes in tuchis ... also known as "ants in the pants". 

We're laughing about this now ... but talk to us all in a few days.

Whoever Said That R&R's Were Supposed To Be Relaxing ...

... has probably never been on an R&R with three kids.  In fact, if up to Matt, I think he would probably re-name R&R to stand for Running & Ragged.  Or Ridiculous Routine. 

There has been absolutely no rest for the weary here since Matt surprised the kids two weeks ago.   In fact, he sincerely believes my weekly schedule is insane.  For the most part, I'd agree.  But I like keeping busy as it makes the time fly by.

To bring you all up to speed, here's how we've whiled away the past fifteen days ...

* Matt got a haircut
* Grady got a haircut
* Matt went to the dentist
* Carpooled to the kids activities ... softball practice (twice), dance for each girl (twice), Hebrew   School, Sunday School, gymnastics (twice), and Girl Scouts. 
* Two softball games & softball lunch
* Volunteered in Sheridan's class twice for Word Study
* Spent two mornings "greeting" at the elementary school
* Had Riley's parent / teacher conference
* Schlepped Matt to a teacher appreciation committee meeting and various PTA meetings
* Had lunch with each of the girls at school
* Went to a doctor's appointment with Sheridan
* Took both girls to their orthodontist appointment
* Went to the mall and bought Matt new clothes (as he only came with 3 shirts and 1 pair of pants!)
* Hosted a cocktail party for Sheridan's teacher, principal, and 3rd grade parents
* Hosted a DS Spouse get together
* Hosted a dinner for friends from previous posts
* Got a babysitter and went out to dinner three separate times
* Went apple picking
* Hired a professional photographer and took family photos
* Sent ALL the kids to a friend's house for a sleepover
* Drove to DC where Matt and I both had meetings at State Department Headquarters

On the fifteenth day we rested.  Almost ...

 

 

 Well, at least we got pedicures!  Matt chose purple.  He wanted to surprise his girlies.  

He'd do ANYTHING for his girlies.

And a few more gratuitous photos of our insanity over the last few weeks ...

  

 

 Apple Picking in Purcellville

 Pictures taken with my iPhone in between takes with the professional photographer.  

Let's hope hers come out even HALF as cute as mine did! 

I told Matt that by the end of his visit I wanted him to appreciate all that I do and acknowledge that I'm not sitting around eating bon bons.  Thankfully it took him only a few days to concede that it's FAR easier to protect his post from terrorists than it is to be a SAHM. 

I'm sure he's looking forward to going back to Afghanistan for a break ...

Everyone Needs One Good Surprise In Their Life ...

... and today was the day for my kids.

It's been twenty weeks since Matt left for his training in Indianapolis and then his tour in Afghanistan.  Twenty relatively easy (but busy) weeks.

Based on our last unaccompanied tour, we decided again to have Matt settle in and stay at post as long as possible before his first R&R.  This way when he'd return back to Afghanistan he wouldn't have more than 8 - 10 weeks away from us in between his second and third R&R or his final move home.

While the girls knew that Matt was due sometime in the near future for his R&R home, we never told them exactly when he was coming. 

So imagine their utter and complete surprise at seeing Matt sitting at the breakfast bar this morning when they woke up ... which of course, I captured on video.  Simply.  Priceless.

Quality family time going on in our house for the next few weeks.  Don't mind us if there's a bit of radio silence.  We've been looking forward to this visit for a long time!

Webster's Definition of DISGUSTING ...

He hopped on the potty.

Grabbed both sides for dear life and pushed out the poopies.

Before I could even wipe his butt, he sat up and popped that thumb right in his mouth.

In the PUBLIC restroom.  The grocery store restroom.

And yes, I took a picture.  He's finally sitting the "right" way! 

But, who has a vat of sanitizer to lend me for the future?

FS BRU ... Where You Show Us Your John Hancock

In every Foreign Service chat group I belong, there's a specific way we sign our names to our messages ...  first and last name, along with our current and previous posts.  I love it!  Because you can see where everyone is and has been ... and decide, based upon where someone lives, whether their question, answer, or opinion really pertains to you.  

As many of us are in the midst of bidding season, preparing for holiday vacations, and attempting to reach out to our friends who are in high threat posts, I thought that now would be a good time to publish our FS Bloggers' signatures.  Most of us know where each other currently reside.  But some of us have been in the Foreign Service FAR longer than we've been blogging ... and our previous locations may not ever have been discussed. 

With this handy guide you can now reach out and ask someone about a vacation spot, future assignment, or check that a favorite restaurant from 10 years ago is still open!  You also know whether or not to take what someone says with a grain of salt ...

My request in the previous FS BRU, was to send me names / links of your blogs, how you wanted to be addressed (or if you wanted to stay anonymous), and your previous postings along with the years you served. 

And here's what we all said ... along with a mini acronym guide:


* UT = unaccompanied (without your family) tour
* ISMA = Involuntary Separate Maintenance Allowance (one gets this when their family is at an unaccompanied tour)
* SH = Safe Haven (when one stays at their overseas location while their spouse is on a UT)
* Bidding = the painful, stressful, ridiculously long wait to find out if you've kissed enough tushies and where you will arbitrarily hopefully be sent ...


The Perlman Update
Jill Perlman
NYFO (2000 - 2003), Muscat, Oman (2003 - 2005), Tel Aviv, Israel (2005 - 2008), Chennai, India (2008 - 2010), Baghdad, Iraq / ISMA in CA (2010 - 2011), DC Headquarters (2011 - 2012), Herat, Afghanistan  / ISMA in DC (2012 - 2013) and bidding ...

Sadie Abroad
Sadie
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (2010 - 2012), Kampala, Uganda (2012 - 2014)

Rambles and Ruminations
Linsey Crisler
Lima, Peru (2006 - 2008), Caracas, Venezuela (2008 - 2010), DC (2010 - 2013), Beijing, China (2013 - 2015)

Fabling
Sunny
Manila, Philippines (2008 - 2010), Brussels (2011 - current)

Email From The Embassy
Donna
Moscow, Russia (1999 - 2001), Yerevan, Armenia (2001 - 2002), Almaty, Kazakhstan, (2002 - 2004), DC (2004 - 2007), Beijing, China (2007 - 2010), Amman, Jordan (2010 - 2013), bidding ...

Well, That Was Different
Kelly
Africa, Latin America, one UT, Prague, DC, currently in Vienna

Our American Family
Lisa
Manila, Philippines (2004 - 2006), Santo Domingo, DR (2007 - 2009), Taipei, Taiwan (2010 - 2014)

wife-mommy-woman
Sara
San Jose, Costa Rica (2010 - 2012), Manila, Philippines (2012 - 2014)

Just Us
Melissa
NHSO (2007 - 2009), Baghdad, Iraq (UT) (2008 - 2009), Jerusalem Israel (2010 - 2013), Kabul, Afghanistan / SH in Jerusalem (2012 - 2013), bidding ...

Tuk & Tam
Daniela
DC (2010 - 2011), New Delhi, India (2012 - 2014)

The Globehoppers
Michele
Manila, Philippines (2003 - 2005), Lome, Togo (2005 - 2006), Chennai, India (2006 - 2009), DC (2009 - 2012), Amman, Jordan (2012 - 2015/6)

The Briden Bunch
Crystal
Kuwait City, Kuwait (2009 - 2011), Bamako, Mali (2011 - 2012 authorized departure), Santiago, Chile (2012 - 2014/5)

Like Nomads (but with more stuff)
Lynne
Valletta, Malta (2007 - 2009), St. Petersburg, Russia (2009 - 2013)

Sherwood Family Nonsense
Ashley Sherwood
Cairo, Egypt (2009 - 2011), Baku, Azerbaijan (2011 - 2014)

kitchen cables
Sarah
Tashkent, Uzbekistan (2011 - current)

Mom2Nomads
Heather Harper-Troje
Guinea (2005 - 2007), Malta ISMA (2007), Dublin, Ireland (2007 - 2010), Baghdad, Iraq / UT (2009 - 2010), DC (2010 - 2011), San Jose, Costa Rica (2011 - 2014), bidding ...

The Wandering Drays
Heather
LAFO (2009 - 2010), Baghdad, Iraq / ISMA in Ohio (2010 - 2011), Cairo, Egypt (2011 - 2013), bidding ...

The New Diplomat's Wife
Ania Krasniewska Shahidi
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia / ISMA in DC (2006 - 2007), Vienna, Austria (2008 - 2011), DC (2011 - 2013), Copenhagen, Denmark (2013)

Where in the World are Luca & Juliana
Nicole
Sao Paulo, Brazil (2010 - 2012), Vienna, Austria (2012 -)

The Dinoia Family
Jen Dinoia
WFO (1998 - 2000), Caracas, Venezuela (2000 - 2002), DC (2002 - 2005), Reykjavik, Iceland (2005 - 2008), SFFO (2008 - 2010), Bagdad, Iraq / ISMA in DC (2010), DC (2011 - 2012), Kabul, Afghanistan / ISMA in DC (2012 - 2013), Managua, Nicaragua (2013 - 2016)

Pryor Adventures
Vientiane, Laos (2011 - 2013)

Something Edited This Way Comes
Zoe Friloux
Port of Spain (2007 - 2009) Milan, Italy (2010 - 2012), Kabul, Afghanistan / SH in Milan (2012 - 2013), London (2013 - 2016)

Novakistan
Sarah Novak
Manila, Philippines (2009 - 2011), DC (2011 - 2012), Lima, Peru (2012 - 2014)

FiveGs
Narra
Guadalajara, Mexico (2011 - 2013), DC (2013 - 2014), Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina (2014 - 2016)

Cyberbones
Shannon Mullins
Jakarta, Indonesia (2006 - 2008), Frankfurt, Germany (2008 - 2010), Lilongwe, Malawi (2010 - 2013) bidding and praying ...

A Sojourning Life
CC
Recife, Brazil (2012 - 2014)

La Vie Overseas
Natasha Padgitt
San Salvador, El Salvador (2012 - 2014)

AdventuresIn
Dhaka, Bangladesh (2010 - 2012), Seoul, South Korea (2012 - )

Carla Runs the World
Carla Reinisch
Manila, Philippines (2011 - 2013), DC (2013), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2014 - 2016)

Schlink Attack!
Emily Schlink
Bucharest, Romania (2011 - 2013)

Here, There and Everywhere
Lydia Penrod
Cairo, Egypt (2005 - 2009), Baghdad, Iraq (2009 - 2010), Manama, Bahrain (2010 - 2013), bidding ...

Hot Pot
Dani
Chengdu, China (2010 - 2012), New Delhi, India (2012 - 2014)

SubjectVerbObject
Theresa Sondjo
Freetown, Sierra Leone (2012 - 2014)

A bit of trip
Becky
Nuevo Laredo, Mexico (2009 - 2011), DC, (2011 - 2012), Taipei, Taiwan (2012 - 2014), Beijing,  China (2014 - 2017)

Erica J Green - Navigating Wonderland
Erica Green
Belfast, Ireland (2000 - 2002), DC (2002 - 2006), Adana, Turkey (2006 - 2009), Moscow, Russia (2009 - 2011). Reykjavik, Iceland (2011 - current)

from the back of beyond
Eve Josar
Luanda, Angola (2011 - 2013), Santiago, Chile (2013 - 2015)

Bfiles
Santo Domingo, DR (2011 - 2013), DC (2013 - 2014), Guangzhou, China (2014 - )

views from a yoga mat
Tiffany
Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina (2012 - 2014)

Pulling Stakes
Kate
DC (2010 - 2011), Brasilia, Brazil (2011 - present) 

Peeps From Abroad
Jessie Bryson
Guangzhou, China (2010 - 2012), DC (2012 - 2013), Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (2013 - )

3rd Culture Children
Raquel Miranda
Maputo, Mozambique (2006 - 2008), DC (2008 - 2010), Recife, Brazil (2010 - 2012), La Paz, Bolivia (2012 - 2014)

inAnkara
Miranda Zolot
Ankara, Turkey (current)

Poppies and Polka Dots
Angela
Bujumbura, Burundi (2008 - 2009), Baghdad, Iraq (2010 - 2011), Madrid, Spain (2012)

Wanderings of a Cheerful Stoic
Meredith
Conakry, Guinea (2011 - 2013), Dublin, Ireland (2013 - 2015)

Where in the World Am I?
Stephanie
SFFO (2006 - 2008), Bujumbura, Burundi (2008 - 2010), Hyderabad, India (2010 - 2013), UT (2013 - 2014)

Life After Jerusalem
Digger
Baku, Azerbaijan (MOH 2002 - 2004), A-100 (2004), Jerusalem, Israel (2005 - 2007), DC, DC, DC (2007 - 2011), Tallinn, Estonia (2011 - 2014)

Stumble Abroad
Ana Gaby
Frankfurt, Germany (2007-2009), Bangkok Thailand (2009-2011), Jakarta, Indonesia (2011-2014), Pleeeaseeeee somewhere in the Western Hemisphere next! ;)



If I've left you off the list, email me at thefsroundup@me.com with your information. 

The next edition of the FS BRU will be out on Friday, October 19th.  The optional talking point is ... your "dream" post.  Just as I dream about winning the lottery, most of us have also dreamt about one place we've always wanted the State Department to send us.   What's yours?

Of course, the optional talking point is just that ... optional.  Feel free to send along anything you'd like linked.  Just do so by Monday, October 15th.  Don't forget to include the one sentence blurb about your link as well.  Send it to me at thefsroundup@me.com.

Until then ...

And So, My Fellow Americans ...

We live in an insular society. Our faces, forever shielded behind our laptops, our iPads, and our smart phones. In our free time, we scroll through the news feed on Facebook hitting "LIKE" on our friend's pictures and status updates, to show our support, yet absolve us of the obligation to write a quick comment. When we do comment on something news worthy like ... a birth, new job, an illness, or death, we spend as little time as possible offering up our congrats, prayers, and blessings. Because, the reality is that we're so absorbed in our own lives that we don't notice what's going on in the world around us.

We spent the entire day Monday pontificating about 9/11/01. We remembered those who had fallen for our great Country. We told our stories about where we all were ... for most of us remember exactly what we were doing when we heard about the planes hitting the World Trade Center, or when the buildings collapsed. We can articulate how it affected us. As individuals. As a nation. It changed who many of us were.

But it's tough to care. To care means you need to put forth an emotional investment. And there's only so much benevolence to go around. We're so busy providing compassion for family for friends that to try and empathize with people we don't know in a far off land is difficult. It's overwhelming. And it's probably the reason why State Department families congregate towards each other. Like minds ...

The Mission of a U.S. diplomat in the Foreign Service is to promote peace, support prosperity, and protect American citizens while advancing the interests of the U.S. abroad. And while we all expect a certain modicum of increased security for those folks serving like my husband in places like Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan, the other personnel, sworn in to uphold our Constitution in almost every other country in the world, well, are no less important. And as we know, in countries any less dangerous. These folks, paired with The Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS), are on the front line helping other countries while promoting America's ideals. But unlike DS agents, the FSO's are the unarmed warriors. They're diplomatic soldiers, who understand that there are inherent risks associated with the job, yet who still go out into their foreign lands to interact and try to make the world a better place.

It's been a difficult week for the State Department. From the suicide bombing in Peshawar, to the death of a DS agent's son, from the chaos in Egypt and Yemen, a recent cancer diagnosis for a colleague, to the senseless attacks and deaths of the American Personnel in Benghazi, Libya. These tragedies hit home. They affect me. They effect us. I'm mad. And I'm struggling with the knowledge that nobody else cares. Sure, those of us in the State Department do. Officers and EFM's (Eligible Family Members) alike. But if you aren't disturbed by a lockdown in your house, a revolution in your country, if you don't have that personal connection, it just doesn't mean the same thing. Despite the irony that these are the folks fighting to uphold your freedoms and civil liberties ... which would be noticed if they were taken away.

For those of us who do this for a living, we don't do it for the recognition. In fact, most people look at us like we're crazy for living and working in some of the places we do. But we do it anyway because it's a calling.

Tomorrow, when the media headlines again return to political infighting, the chatter on Facebook and twitter dies down, people go back to pinning recipes and art projects on Pinterest and watching their reality TV, please remember and appreciate those of us serving in virtual anonymity in some of the farthest corners of the world, away from our family and friends, representing our country and its ideals. We do it so you don't have to ...

"Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man." ~ John F. Kennedy, Inaugural address, January 20, 1961

The FS BRU ... The Submissions Were Few. But The Stories Were Grand. And Yes, There WAS Vomit!

I MUST be longing for a little bit of travel as it took me three weeks to realize that the optional talking point for today's edition of the FS BRU is quite similar to one from many months ago. I'd say, "oops", but I actually enjoy reading everyone's adventures, and living vicariously through my friends abroad ... so we'll just chalk it up to summer insanity and my head being in the clouds after my daughter's surgery.

If you've been here long enough, you know that a majority of my family's travel stories include an over abundance of pictures, utter chaos, and of course, vomit. Frankly, it wouldn't be a Perlman family vacation without it. In fact, the first question people now ask us once we return from a trip isn't, "Did you have a great time?" It's, "How many puke bags did Sheridan use?" Which, if you read my update from my latest trip to South Bend, Indiana, was only one ...

But this week, I'm going spare you my details. I'd much rather hear about YOU. And what you've been doing and seeing around the world. With this shortened edition to the round up, I hope you'll make a visit to these bloggers and enjoy a good laugh, a good cry, and a lot of head nodding ... as we can all probably relate to their stories!


Erica's work trip through a travel restricted area of Uganda did not end as expected. Ironically, it wasn't the AK-47 wielding Karamajong that were the issue. Their failed trip left her and a group of Pokot girls who had escaped a horribly cruel tribal practice extremely disappointed.

Spectrummy Mummy is going on R&R soon and hopes that they have better luck than this! For anyone flying with children, this is a MUST read ... with tissues!

Yesterday a VERY kind US Postal worker allowed my 3 year old to use the employee bathroom after witnessing him dancing and prancing around the lobby screaming, "I have to make a doody!!!" He even shut down his window (at the Dulles USPS facility, where a lot of the pouch mail is processed) to escort us. Reading this from In Flight Movie, after our experience yesterday made me crack up!

While I love my Wegman's, just looking at this grocery store in Austria has me salivating. And it isn't JUST for the espresso bar. Hello gorgeous! As The New Diplomat's Wife shows us, sometimes you CAN go back to a previous posting ...

Chela heeds her own advice while traveling through Europe with kids in tow.

And Alexis reminds us that those with kids SHOULD at some point travel solo ... to which I loudly scream, "Amen Sista!"

Being out of India for a few years helps me appreciate Daniela's travels to Jaipur ... what fun little trips down memory lane!

Kristin's list of great FS travel stories is short (uneventful), but since she grew up a bit of everywhere, her career travel story (issue) list is long!

Ever fear of being THAT ugly American? Um ... Nomads By Nature did too. And then it happened!

Traveling with kids in the FS can often be a headache ... but as we know, traveling with animals has become quite the challenge. Thankfully Sarah's dog Scarlett made it back here relatively unscathed ...

The Foreign Service sure is a small, SMALL world ... as Lynne at Like nomads, but with more stuff quickly finds out!

Kids are resilient ... and Sara at wife-mommy-woman recognizes how lucky she really is!


The next edition of the FS BRU will be out on Friday, September 21st, and the optional talking point is ... your "signature."

While many of the participants of the FS BRU are new bloggers, it doesn't necessarily mean they're new to the Foreign Service. I thought it would be fun to see where people are located now as well as where they've previously been.

Here's what I'm looking for. Send me ...

* Your blog name (and link)

* The name you want me to use in your blog. Some people are anonymous and only want their blog name, some are okay with just their first name, and some are okay with their first and last name. However you would like me to refer to you ... be specific and let me know.

* Your current and previous posts ... with the year(s) you were there

Send this to thefsroundup@me.com by Monday, September 17th.

Until then ...

I Thought This Day Would NEVER Come!

It's the first day of school for ALL three of them ...

Hello my 4th grader, Preschooler, and 3rd Grader

AND, the first day of peace for me since June 8th ...

DO NOT DISTURB!

It's Been Rough ...

I'm in the final stages of loading up the family truckster for the LONG drive out to South Bend, Indiana tomorrow. My 3rd visit in the past eight months. To attend the most gut wrenching funeral ... for my dad's younger brother. A young man taken FAR too soon.

To say I'm in shock would be an understatement. Which is nothing compared to my aunt and my cousins. Or my father and the rest of his siblings. Our family has truly been blessed with living long lives ... I'm at a loss for words.

My uncle's passing, coupled with Sheridan's recovery from her tonsillectomy, adenoidectomy, and turbinate resection (also known as the week from hell), along with the bevy of workers who have traipsed through my house over the last week, have left me drained. Exhausted. Pooped. Sheridan had a hard week with the pain, the excessive vomiting, the nausea, not sleeping well, and the mom who's insisted she stay hydrated and medicated. There were moments that were quite difficult to bear ... for seeing your kid in that much agony is not easy.

We've had a busy summer. And Matt's absence has left me wearing many different hats ... such as sole parent, friend, schlepper, disciplinarian, maid, cook, shower giver, dishwasher emptier, laundry folder, play-date organizer, and toilet trainer extraordinaire. I've also been busy with the PTA, the softball team, the swim team, swim lessons, summer camp, hosting parents and in-laws and friends, working with the State Department, my Stella & Dot business, and attempting to not lose my marbles.

I tried ... but I just don't know if I succeeded.

If you have any extra bottles of energy, sanity, or clarity laying around, please forward them my way ASAP. I'll need them tomorrow as I make the 12+ hour drive. I'll want to pass them out to my family members as we cry and mourn together. Unlike my grandfather's passing just a few short months ago, these next few days won't be as easy.

My only saving grace in all of this insanity ... what is truly getting me through this awful, no good, very bad week ... is that early Monday morning (regardless of what time we get home on Sunday night) is the kids first day of school!! And you can bet your sweet bippy I'll be popping open a bottle of champagne at the bus stop.

After a summer like this ... I know I've earned it.

The FS BRU ... Is YOUR Next Home On This List?

As the end of summer draws near, bidding season has once again fallen upon us. You know, the time when emails start flying, noses turn brown, and the Foreign Service message boards are lighting up with requests for information on every post from Athens to Paris, Hong Kong to Buenos Aires ... and everything in between. It's these next few months when we start to see an influx of reviews of overseas life at Tales from a Small Planet. With friends sending out email messages on Facebook asking if we know of someone who's been posted here or yonder. And tail feathers raising and flaring as people become territorial over positions that they want ... though may not necessarily get.

A foreign service friend once told me, "Bid lists are for people who don't have friends." A bold statement, that probably has far more truth than tale, the higher one climbs in their career.

I never paid too much attention to the Embassies / Consulates people were asking about, primarily because until recently, nobody seemed to want to go to the places we'd previously been posted. We were "directed" to the New York Field Office for our first assignment, and three years later it took 37 bids (for those who aren't DS, that's 3 rounds of bidding) to get to our first overseas post. In Muscat, Oman. Where at that time, nobody (including me) even KNEW where it was, nor that it was such a jewel of an assignment.

Bidding IS different for each and every section within the State Department. For some folks, they'll spend their entire career overseas, with their only time in DC devoted to language training. Others, will opt to do an unaccompanied tour with a linked assignment afterwards (unlike those of us in DS). Some people take their bidding VERY seriously and truly exemplify worldwide available. Others take a look at the list and cross off anything that ... has a "-stan" at the end of it, is in the Middle East, has tropical weather, is a consumables post, doesn't have an APO, has an animal quarantine, makes you dress conservatively, doesn't let you import a left-side vehicle drive, is at altitude, has no high school at post, is an unaccompanied post, is in Africa, is in Europe, is in Asia, is in Central or South America, is domestic, is in a country with high every-day crime, is in a country with high terrorism, is in a country with a high COLA (cost of living), is in a country with danger pay ................ etc, etc, etc.

As a somewhat seasoned bidder, I've seen it all. And I can say with absolute certainty that bidding is like a box of chocolates ... you just don't know what you're going to get!

Last week Matt and I turned in our list for our next post. Our eighth tour ... and fourth consecutive bidding season. So I've been anxious to see the below links and what people thought of their current postings. As you read them, take note of the author's marital status, familial situation, number of pets, kids, and previous postings, to gain a broader depth of these bloggers opinions. Don't forget these ARE but one person's opinions. And you know what happens if you make any assumptions ...

Although called the Pearl of Africa, Uganda has not always been the perfect jewel of a post. Life in Kampala, a post with 25% hardship differential, has it's happy moments and not so happy times.

Naoma, blogging in Kenya, at Lees On The Go, shares her list. But let me spoil it for you ... she actually couldn't come up with 5! Though I'm not going to tell you which direction.

Spectrummy Mummy in Johannesburg gave us 10 of EACH. I was actually surprised with a few of these too.

Hannah is in Tripoli watching and living history in the making.

Alex got a negative comment after her review of living in Benin. Um ... hello. It's in Benin! As in ... in Africa. Negative comments not accepted!

Shannon and her son Alonzo BOTH wrote posts about Malawi. Let me just enlighten you. Unlike her son, spiders are in HER cons list!

Hooray for Half-Breed Outlaw to submit her take on living in Botswana. I didn't see any spiders on her list. So could it be your possibility?

Theresa is often asked about raising a child in Freetown, Sierra Leone. I like her answers!

This continent needs no commentary. Just enjoy their links from afar ... especially if you're DS!


Sunny writes at Fabling in Brussels.

Well, That Was Different in Vienna, Austria gives us her top TEN.

Erica tells us what it's like for her to live in Reykjavik, Iceland.

Life After Jerusalem lives in Estonia. And LOVES it. Though she does have one complaint.

What DOESN'T make Chela, at the Mas Alla, happy about living in Amsterdam?

Poppies and Polka Dots in Madrid, gave us 25! AND she knows my husband from Iraq!

Zoe, in Milan, wants us to believe that there are actually cons on her list. Whatev ...

A Fisher out of Water, in Shenyang, China gave us her list ... and it's BIG!

Stephanie in Hyderabad, India gave us her highlights ... and lowlights!

Lynne, at Like Nomads, in St. Petersburg had trouble coming up with a cons list.

Kolbi, in Chengdu, China wrote a really thoughtful list about her experiences. If you're a DS family, I also urge you to read her post on bidding ... which is spot on!

It's hard to come up with a list when you've JUST moved to a new post. Emily, at Our Life, in Sri Lanka sure did try!

Carla Runs The World in Manila finally wrote about a few of her cons ... and may have gotten a wee bit carried away!

Sara is also new to Manila, but managed to give a thoughtful list as well.

And Diane, at Mobile Home, who just finished a tour in Manila, gives us her perspective as well ... and said that despite writing this over a year ago, she wouldn't change anything she wrote!

Daniela, who just became an FSO (woo hoo!), gave us her insight on Delhi, India.

I LOVE the Middle East. It's where I would live if given any opportunity. As it's summer time, many of the bloggers in the Middle East are on their R & R's and missed this round up. But check in with Heather in Cairo, and Donna in Amman to get their takes too!

My friend Michele, at GlobeHoppers, who I know from Chennai, just moved to Amman a month ago. Her list isn't long here ... but as she grew up overseas, she could give us a laundry list of pros / cons of other places.

Melissa, at Just Us in Jerusalem, gives us the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Sadie just left Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. But she gives her three cents on living there.

And finally ... North, Central, and South America ...

In-Flight Movie gives us the pros and cons of living in Belmopan, Belize

Adventures of a Misplaced Texan may have moved back to DC, but she gave us her list on her previous posting in Ciudad Juarez.

Oh The Many Places We Will Go WOULD have written about her highs and lows in Guadalajara. Instead, she wrote about her brand new baby. Congrats!

3rd Culture Children has the record of moving to a new post and submitting a pros / cons list. Here she is in La Paz, Bolivia. Dealing with the altitude. At first I thought she wrote attitude ... and I was about to say, "welcome to my world."

Mom2Nomads in Costa Rica barely got her list turned in since she was on vacation. But it's a good thing she did because I know this is on a lot of people's bid list!

Want to know what life is like in Asuncion, Paraguay? Life is a Zoo in the Jungle will tell us all ...

Lisa in Tijuana will be leaving soon ... and she's already anticipating missing the tacos! Living in Virginia, I miss them too ...

I love the pros and cons of returning to Washington, D.C. from The New Diplomat's Wife. She really nailed how several of us have been feeling after life overseas!

And bringing it all together from an unaccompanied tour perspective ... is my friend Jen. Who reminds us that the unaccompanied tour DOES have its pros! She writes a true list if I do say so myself.


The next edition of the FS BRU will be out on Friday, September 7th, and the next Optional Talking Point is ... Travel Stories.

Have a funny story. A horror story. A story that includes vomit? We're all with the State Department where we know that nothing is ever easy. Tell us your HR tech's travel order debacle. Let us know how United really screwed up your travel plans. Let's see if your kids vomit as much as mine.

Remember, there's never a need to write anything new. If you have something you want to share, send me the link. Of course, if you've recently come back from an R&R and had something hellacious to write about, get on it!

Send your links to thefsroundup@me.com by Monday, September 3rd.

Until then ... happy bidding.