My thoughts...

It's been 6 days since my kneee surgery...It appears to be healing well! I'm walking around with only one crutch now...but for some reason it seems like everyone is looking at me when I walk...LOL. I know its all in my mind.

I did a quick calculation today, after I return to work on April 11th, Ill have around 204 days left in the Air Force...Just a bit over 6 months. That's basically a deployment in military terms. Lots to do...so little time! Actually, I'm pretty excited to see what the future holds.

Here is another one of my random thoughts...

Sept 11th (NY) Jan 11th (Haiti) and March 11th (Japan).... Coincidence?

As always...thanks for sharing my Journey with me!

Sayanara

Earthquake with Tsunami...

Here in the Southern part of Japan there was no damage. I'm about 700 miles south of Tokyo. I've been watching Japanese News, and many of the videos they have are really horrific! My heart goes out to all those affected in Mainland Japan. The devastation looks like a mixture of Haiti disaster and Hurricane Katrina in some areas. Fortunately, Japan is a country with a strong infrastructure so what could have been a lot worse in another country...was minimized here in Japan.

As always...Just my thoughts.

Motivation

After nearly 20 years in the Air Force, I'm still passionate about what I do, and I'm proud to wear my uniform each and every day. However, my motivation has changed somewhat...I really look forward to whats ahead. I received a new email last week from DOS, once again letting me know that the process is a pretty slow one but be patient. I guess some things are worth waiting for. I also received an email from the Air Force about my retirement, I have to adjust my days by 3 days, which basically takes a letter to a few people stating why I want to retire 3 days earlier. Pretty funny...but I'll comply and move forward.

For all of you that are still checking out my Journey...Thank You! Often times it feels as if I'm on this journey alone...but thanks for your emails and support. It's sometimes needed and always appreceiated. Until next time...

Ciao!

DOS is Consistent...

Consistent in letting me know that they are still reviewing applications...

But at least I know I'm still in the running. I'm happy they took time out to send this email...

TO: XXXXXXXX

We are still in the process of comparing each application individually to the
vacancy announcement and making sure that the supplementary questions were
completely answered. This is taking longer than we had thought, but hope to
complete this task by the end of this month. The Qualifications Evaluation
Panel will, hopefully, meet in March. The Panel will determine who to invite to
an Oral Assessment in Washington. All results will be emailed; therefore, if
you change your email address, please let us know. Again, thank you for your
application and especially your patience.

This e-mail was sent Friday, February 11, 2011

Sunny In Okinawa

This week has been great! The weather has been in the mid 70's and sunny. I feel bad when I call and talk to my parents back in Illinois...WOW!! They have like 100 Feet of snow...LOL. Oh well...think I'll go enjoy the beach tomorrow.

No updates from DOS on my application. Did I tell you guys I have to have knee surgery next month...yah...hopefully It goes well.

Until next time

Ciao!

Tick-tock...Tick-tock...

January is nearly over!!! Great! It's funny, because it seems like I need to do more paperwork to retire from the Air Force than I had to do to join. I went to the office to apply for retirement the other day...and was told, I must first fill out an application of eligibility. LOL I guess once they determine if I'm eligible, then I can apply for retirement.

My supervisor asked me if I would like to go to Iraq for the next 6-9 months....I thought for a split second and said. No. I love it when they give me a choice. LOL.

Still waiting on word from DOS on the application I submitted back in Nov. From reading other posts, I guess it really is a slow process. Luckily for me, time is on my side...it would be great if everything actually worked out, I retire in November and get selected to start Specialist class in March. Never hurts to dream a bit.

Sayanara

Happy New Years!!

Yep...I can officially say that I'll start terminal leave this year. (Thats when you take leave from work and never return prior to retirement) I already feel like an old man...Grant it...I'm only 38, but I'll be retiring from the Air Force at the end of this year. I think I'm gonna buy a Retired-gone fishing hat just to see how many looks I get :)

New Years Eve here in Japan was pretty boring actually. I ended up staying home and watching TV and drinking Apple and Cranberry juice at midnight. Fun...fun...fun!

I did receive an email from DOS, saying that all applications for the General Services Officer position are still being reviewed and to be patient. It looks like they will start notifying people this month....Maybe. If I get a notification, I'll be sure to post. As always...thanks for sharing my journey with me.!

There really should be some type of rule, that after 19 years in the military, you should be exempt from early morning PT. LOL...just my thoughts!

South Korea

I'm back in South Korea for a couple of weeks. If you ever get the chance...take a flight on Asiana Airlines. There customer service is really good! I added up all the countries I've been to over my Career.....Drum roll..... Nearly 25. And the best part is..I have loved every minute of it.

I called the DOS the other day to check on the status of my application, and I spoke with this super nice lady that said it could be a couple months before I here anything. So, I guess I'll sit back, relax and enjoy the ride that I'm currently on. I know it will be over before I realize it.

Exactly 1 year to go...

Well, it's December 1st here in Japan. Still no word back from my application that closed out on Nov 3rd. I keep thinking that maybe I should skip a few days from checking the status of my application.

I have exactly one year to go in the Air Force, so it's time to schedule my Transition Assistance class. 9 bases in 7 countries in 19 years. I think that's why I really want to be part of DOS. Im so use to traveling, I think it would be hard to stay in one place for too long.

If your reading this cool...at least I'm not talking to myself :) Stay tuned!

The courage to take the first step

I'm about 12 months out from retirement from the Air Force.  So I decided to use my love of traveling and 20 years of experience to my advantage and apply for a 2nd career with the Department of State.  I saw an opening for a Foreign Service General Services Officer, so I decided to apply.  The close-out date was Nov 3, 2010.  I was able to complete my Federal Resume, and the lengthy application with about 12 hours to spare before ad closed out.  The first 3 days after the job closed out, I kept receiving notifications that my application was being reviewed.  After the 3rd day, I received an email saying that my application has been referred to a selecting official for hiring.  Well...it's been nearly 3 weeks...I'm stuffed with Thanksgiving day Turkey, and I guess my application is still being reviewed.  Wish me luck!