The List Keeps Growing Longer

We just heard an update to the Political Register. Remember that Dave has a 5.6. Someone with a 5.5 just added the register at 109 out of a total of 222 people. Such a long list! She passed the Mandarin language test, and receiving her extra 0.4 points. That brings her up to 5.9, and makes her #13. Each class brings about 20 people off of each register, so her 5.9 practically guarantees her an invitation to the next class.

Should Dave pass the Mandarin language test, he will have a 6.0 and be right near the top of the list. However, at this point he's not feeling good about his chances. He doesn't feel able to begin meeting with a tutor again until his job falls into a routine - probably in about 2 more weeks. He plans to take the test at the end of November, and that leaves around 6 weeks of study. Looking forward, that test could go either way.

The other option would be a great score on his interview in December. He will receive that score in the Economic Register, which is shorter and less competetive than Political.

A friend recently asked me if waiting for the Foreign Service is like always waiting for the last show to drop. Its not quite so unstable, as it has been clear so far that we would not be invited to an upcoming class. But all the same, I would love to have this waiting period fall into our past. Then we can focus on waiting for Mei Mei - another crazy uncertainty with major implications on all of our family choices. Every family goes through different seasons of life - and this one sure is a whopper!