RIP computer :(

Shortly after writing the most recent post my beloved laptop Hank the Rockstar died. I turned him off one last time and that was it. Buying and shipping a new computer took time but within the last month, Lil' Percy arrived.


And of course there's still a month gap from when Lil' Percy arrived to now...Oops!

I have been furiously studying for the Foreign Service Officer Test. I took it March 5th in the US Consulate in Osaka. I'd like to work in embassies one day as a Foreign Service Officer. This is the second step after submitting an application in a process that usually lasts awhile...sometimes a couple years-while. But after talking with the extremely friendly Foreign Service Officers after the three hour test I am more confident than ever that this is what I'd like to do. They just about talked my ear off! They are my people.

The test is, as one current consulate employee described it to me, kind of like a game of Trivial Pursuit. The questions are about management philosophy, economics, US government, US history and culture, as well as world history and geography. I was asked to answer questions ranging from the history of England to the location of certain countries to the proceedings of Congress to the appropriate way to handle employee reviews. On top of the breadth of knowledge, the test results mean different things at different times and are mostly dependent on job availability.

So, though this job looks to be in my future, how far in my future we'll just have to wait and see.

Some Perspective as the Economy Rumbles

A couple weeks ago my school gave me a recontracting form. This misleadingly simple-looking document represents a big decision. One that I won't have to make until February 6th, thankfully. I had always intended on this experience being a one year deal but am now on the fence in a big way. As I told someone recently, I'm going to put the thought of another year in Japan away in my mind and see if time persuades me to either side.

Recontracting was a major topic of discussion as I hung out with other ALTs this weekend. Many have decided "yes" or "no" but equally as many are in my position. Though this is not a major factor (as it shouldn't be) the economy in our respective countries and how much money we're making now has been brought up many times. The fear of a recession, another Great Depression, loom in most of our minds. With these conversations fresh in my mind I stumbled upon a news story today at school that was ironic and prophetic in many ways. The story takes place as the economy rumbles, stops and starts.

A contractor was working on a house and found a stash of money hidden inside a wall dating back to the Great Depression. $182,000 to be exact. At a time when banks were drowning, families homeless and starving, a man hid almost $200,000 in the walls of his house for a rainy day that I guess never came for him.

As if that measure of greed and lack of compassion wasn't prophetic enough to give us some perspective on our present condition, the reason this find is even making news is because the contractor and the homeowner were never able to reach an agreement on how to split the money. This feud went on so long and was so heated that a newspaper picked the story up. Once it appeared in the news, the descendants of the Depression-era hoarder wanted in on the loot.

The home owner, who owns at least one other property that was recently foreclosed, spent or lost much of the money. The contractor has lost business, he says, because of the negative view many clients now hold of him. (Click here for the full story).

Wow. The contractor said it best when he explained that finding the money "was a neat experience" and "something that won't happen again." The rest that followed, though, was regrettable he said. That's a good reminder to relish in the simple, extraordinary moments that grace our days.

It's a good reminder to keep some perspective on the value of money as the economy rumbles.