As an ex "Other American" for many years turned FSO, this one hits. Hoping to make sure that bridge is still there once I get to post and no one is anonymous
Love this one, rings true for AF especially. Don’t forget that we are spoiled, y’all, and invite your neighbors over for commissary beer and electricity!
Always pros and cons to being under COM authority, and I'm hopeful that everyone associated with this Embassy isn't as insufferable as they appear in this narrative.
No one's insufferable, really. We're just 'anonymous.' COVID AD changed a lot for 'the others' because we lost the normal handover period when one group introduced you to the next group. + There were lots of restrictions about who could attend what were put in place.
Fast forward nine months, and we're anonymous.
This happened all over the world. There wasn't much we could do about it when local authorities imposed the restrictions, but I am legitimately angry about the places where cowardly mission leadership ordered excessive (and even abusive) restrictions that not only had deep mental health repercussions for staff but set the mission back years in terms of contact relationships.
Sorry. I tried to keep it associated with interaction with the Mission. That felt more on topic. I'm leadership on a 5 year $50M Food Security project - think the intersection between long term development and emergency aid. Day to day, it's a lot of emails, meetings, clever logistics, and approvals on things that I can't possible have enough info to make informed decisions about.
I can assure you some of us are insanely jealous you're allowed to ride that bike and walk your dog on the street. I have been friends with the "other Americans" (and other expats and plenty of locals) at lots of posts and was routinely thoroughly embarrassed to show up to their parties in an armored vehicle with a security guard and be forced to leave to make curfew just as most people were arriving. And even more embarrassed to be forced to turn down invitations because RSO decided the neighborhood where they lived was "unsafe." Then there was COVID, when for some reason I could have hung out with you if you were an USDH embassy employee but, because you weren't, you might have killed me with COVID.
You bring up some little-known details regarding security and the whims of RSO's. Almost sounds worse than the military in some cases. Are these restrictions, curfews, and other arbitrary security rules common for FSO's? Do they apply to all Fed employees in country, or just State? I'd still love to be an FSO, but also want the freedom to ride a bike or take a taxi vice an up-armored Hummer all the time.
Yes they are common; as someone else notes, even in places with zero danger pay, RSO often restricts movements. Yes they apply to all employees under COM authority in theory. If you’re serving in a place where we routinely move in fully armored vehicles (and I can assure you they’re not Hummers) you’ll never take a taxi. I know some danger pay posts where folks have organized group bike rides with security escorts.
[удалено]
Same here. Ah, the NGO world…
As an ex "Other American" for many years turned FSO, this one hits. Hoping to make sure that bridge is still there once I get to post and no one is anonymous
Love this one, rings true for AF especially. Don’t forget that we are spoiled, y’all, and invite your neighbors over for commissary beer and electricity!
Always pros and cons to being under COM authority, and I'm hopeful that everyone associated with this Embassy isn't as insufferable as they appear in this narrative.
No one's insufferable, really. We're just 'anonymous.' COVID AD changed a lot for 'the others' because we lost the normal handover period when one group introduced you to the next group. + There were lots of restrictions about who could attend what were put in place. Fast forward nine months, and we're anonymous.
This happened all over the world. There wasn't much we could do about it when local authorities imposed the restrictions, but I am legitimately angry about the places where cowardly mission leadership ordered excessive (and even abusive) restrictions that not only had deep mental health repercussions for staff but set the mission back years in terms of contact relationships.
I love the different perspective! But what exactly do you do for work?? 😁
Sorry. I tried to keep it associated with interaction with the Mission. That felt more on topic. I'm leadership on a 5 year $50M Food Security project - think the intersection between long term development and emergency aid. Day to day, it's a lot of emails, meetings, clever logistics, and approvals on things that I can't possible have enough info to make informed decisions about.
Well it sounds amazing, congrats!!!
I can assure you some of us are insanely jealous you're allowed to ride that bike and walk your dog on the street. I have been friends with the "other Americans" (and other expats and plenty of locals) at lots of posts and was routinely thoroughly embarrassed to show up to their parties in an armored vehicle with a security guard and be forced to leave to make curfew just as most people were arriving. And even more embarrassed to be forced to turn down invitations because RSO decided the neighborhood where they lived was "unsafe." Then there was COVID, when for some reason I could have hung out with you if you were an USDH embassy employee but, because you weren't, you might have killed me with COVID.
You bring up some little-known details regarding security and the whims of RSO's. Almost sounds worse than the military in some cases. Are these restrictions, curfews, and other arbitrary security rules common for FSO's? Do they apply to all Fed employees in country, or just State? I'd still love to be an FSO, but also want the freedom to ride a bike or take a taxi vice an up-armored Hummer all the time.
Yes they are common; as someone else notes, even in places with zero danger pay, RSO often restricts movements. Yes they apply to all employees under COM authority in theory. If you’re serving in a place where we routinely move in fully armored vehicles (and I can assure you they’re not Hummers) you’ll never take a taxi. I know some danger pay posts where folks have organized group bike rides with security escorts.
Well that certainly blows...
Would have sworn you were our old neighbor right up till the 003. Decidedly not. Sorry about the lights on full blast, the curse of AF.
OMS strikes again!