March 31, 2019
by Ben
2 Comments
I was on the fence about whether or not to run this race. After I ran Boston in 4:52, I swore to myself that I would not do another marathon without an appropriate cycle of training leading up to it. … Continue reading
June 9, 2017
by Ben
1 Comment
A week ago or so I received an email inviting me to the Swearing In Ceremony for the newly confirmed Deputy Secretary of State. I initially thought that it had just been sent to the whole Department, and planned not … Continue reading
June 5, 2017
by Ben
0 comments
Everyone in my A-100 has been very excited to be receiving our first Black Passports, and mine arrived recently. I sure am proud to have been issued this, complete with an endorsement from which this post takes its title. Unfortunately … Continue reading
April 24, 2017
by Ben
0 comments
Lagos, Nigeria!
March 19, 2017
by Ben
1 Comment
It has been a busy 2 weeks. The orientation course for new Foreign Service Officers (informally known as A-100) is jam packed with info from HR, policy briefings from the leadership of the Department of State’s Regional Bureaus, researching … Continue reading
February 14, 2017
by Ben
0 comments
Secretary Tillerson has signed a memo exercising his authority under the Hiring Freeze Executive Order to exempt my incoming cohort of Foreign Service Officers from the freeze, thus taking a significant step toward making him my favorite Secretary of State … Continue reading
February 7, 2017
by Ben
0 comments
Potential Foreign Service Officers are evaluated on a wide variety of criteria. I’ll write a more detailed post about the application process in the near future, but I am getting the opportunity to demonstrate one characteristic in particular, in spades. … Continue reading