A new A-100 class. A new bid list.

(Actually the bid list is a week or two old, but I’m just now getting around to writing about it. So sue me.)

You would think we’d have learned from last time and just not look at it, but alas, we’re not that wise. Again we looked, and again we coveted, and again we stewed. (Cyprus and Fiji inspired the most envy.)

Let me repeat Andy’s earlier sentiment: Grr.

The good news, though, is that when those emotions passed, we realized something very important about foreign service life: bid list lust is okay.

Here’s how I see it: no matter how happy you are with your current or impending post, you simply can’t look at a list of other places in the world you could be without feeling at least a twinge of jealousy. Nope. Not possible. I dare you to try. There are just so many cool places out there, and our desire to explore them is a big part of what led us to this strange but very cool career.

Bid list lust is a sign that you’re in the right business.

It’s also good research. I’m definitely keeping mental track of the posts that inspire the most envy, because I’ll be bidding again before I know it. And I have plenty of posts waiting in my Foreign Service future. If I stay until the mandatory retirement age of 65, I’ll get to live in at least 11 or 12 more cool places in addition to Benin. And even if I decide to retire at the earliest possible age of 50, I still have at least 6 or 7 posts ahead of me. Not bad. Not bad at all.

Although listen up members of the 154th: whoever gets Fiji, I hate you.