I made a comment a while ago about the list I submitted to the department and how I didn’t want to jinx things by disclosing the list. I shouldn’t have worried. My list was:

1. Kathmandu, Nepal, GSO, Jan 2009
2. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, GSO, Feb 2009
3. Port au Prince, Haiti, POL, Oct 2008
4. Kingston, Jamaica, GSO, Aug 2008
5. Frankfurt, Germany, POL, Jun 2009
6. Accra, Ghana, ECON, Sept 2008
7. Chennai, India, GSO, Oct 2008
8. Sarajevo, Bosnia, GSO, Jan 2009
9. Kyiv, Ukraine, ECON, Feb 2009
10. Maputo, Mozambique, POL, Mar 2009
11. Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, POL, Oct 2008
12. Dubai, United Arab Emirates, GSO, Mar 2009
13. Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, GSO, Apr 2009
14. Lilongwe, Malawi, GSO, Jan 2009
15. Bamako, Mali, ECON, Sept 2008
16. La Paz, Bolivia, GSO, Jan 2009
17. Port au Prince, Haiti, CONS-ECON, Nov 2008
18. Bangkok, Thailand, POL-CONS, Mar 2009
19. Bujumbura, Burundi, POL, Feb 2009
20. Toronto, Canada, ECON-CONS, Aug 2008

Note: Each of these is a 2-year tour, and those jobs with a “-” between two descriptions indicate one year in each embassy section listed. Key to section abbreviations: GSO = management, i.e. real estate, motorpool, repairs and maintenance, logistics; POL = political work, i.e. your stereotypical diplomat; ECON = almost like political work but focused more on economics - also kind of a stereotypical diplomat; CONS = consular work, i.e. visas, visas, visas (like i’m doing here), and dealing with U.S. citizens who get into various situations abroad. You’ll note that I specifically avoided bidding on any 2-year consular tours at all, no matter how nice the location might be, because the job really does not suit me.

What they gave me:

Kingston, Jamaica, CONS, Sept 2008

No, it was not on my list.  I hadn’t even considered it as an option for my list.  Also, still no guarantee that my husband will be able to be posted with me (they tell me, “but the commute from Kingston to D.C. is at least shorter”).

I’m, um, not elated.

This is the second time in a row that something similar has happened to me in the assignments process, and I can’t help but compare my experience unfavorably with that of most of my colleagues. I feel evil for feeling resentful, but every time the assignments people try to tell me about “equity” (this being based exclusively on the perceived hardship of where you are, not whether it was a job or place you wanted), I want to throw things.