177 Days

Great news, folks. I've finally made my way through the quagmire that is Adjudications. After 177 days, I've been granted my Top Secret security clearance. That's .4849 years spent waiting for someone to say "yea" or "nay."

So, what have I been up to the last few months? I moved out of Massachusetts and came back to Austin, Texas, the place where I started this whole journey. I've got another meaningless job, doing customer service work as an inbound call rep. The work is monotonous and frustrating (if the people I speak to on a daily basis are any sort of representative cross-section of our nation's collective intelligence, I'm afraid for our country's future), but I needed a job and they hired me. This is exactly why I need to get in good with the foreign service. Without a bachelor's degree, I am going to end up doing menial jobs like this for the rest of my life.

I'm still going to school, playing floorball and hockey, and enjoying the amazing weather. It's been 80+ degrees for the last week...who can complain about that?

I'm hoping to be on the register within the next couple of weeks. I'd love to have an offer for the August A-100, assuming I end up on the register in the 40s.

Here's to progress and a speedy Final Suitability Review!