DNC'ing It?

So as a complete surprise, I am now on the Economic Affairs track register. As of this week, I was told by my DOS contact that I'm #32 out of 69 or so people on the list. That means I could get called soon. Real soon. Assuming everyone in front of me is not DNC-ing (DNC= Do Not Call), I could get an offer as soon as June/July for the August A-100. That's a heck of a lot sooner than I thought it would be.

After I passed the OA, I received my very first ever un-prompted email from my in-laws asking about when I might get a real offer. Sadly, not a congratulatory email as much as a how-soon-are-you-going-to-take-our-daughter-and-granddaughters-away-from-us-you-selfish-bastard email. Guesstimating on how things were at the time, I honestly thought it was a safe assumption that December of this year would be the earliest I could get called up. Apparently, the combination of my more boring than expected life with a more-efficient than expected DSS process resulted in my happy placement on the register.

But now, to paraphrase the greatest television show ever*, this is when the FSOWannabes stop being polite, and start getting real. As readers of this blog know, Mrs. FSOWannabe is supportive, but extremely conflicted with giving up her own career in this process, as well as what FS life will entail for her and the kids. She always regretted not spending time abroad, but now that it's literally within reach, it's a bit scary (and to be fair, her idea of living abroad was a year in Europe as a student, not living somewhere with a 30% differential and all the attendant issues that come with that).

And as helpful and supportive as all the FSOs, EFMs, trailing spouses/partners, MOHers have been in describing how life can be for a trailing spouse, it is not something Mrs. FSOWannabe is prepared to be. I fell in love with her ornery, feisty, red-headed drive to be the best, so her reluctance to give up her law gig is understandable and I can't say this is unexpected (and to be fair, she can't say that this situation is unexpected for her, either, since this has been something I've dreamed and thought about since my college days). Not that this is an immovable object/irresistible force situation - we're both lawyers after all, so we negotiate.

For now, the Mrs. and I are signing up for the June FSOT to see if we can be a tandem couple (and for me to open another career track to expand my options/timing). I have every confidence she'll pass. And then we'll see if she can get past the dreaded QEP (which held her up last June). In the interim, I'm seriously contemplating being a DNC until the end of this year in order to (1) see how the tandem thing goes, (2) give the in-laws some more adjustment time and (3) take care of some professional goals of my own. It's a gamble. State's budget could get curtailed. Other cones have been swamped with candidates so by the time December comes by I could be way back on the register. Even worse, Mrs. FSOWannabe could definitively decide that the FS life is not for her.

But I'm an optimist by nature. So let's see what happens.

*Not really. Everyone knows the greatest TV show ever was Buffy the Vampire Slayer.