State Department Housing Office AKA Supercilious Dissolute Housing Office

Let me admit one thing right off the bat. I have finally realized I am not Foreign Service Spouse material. I cannot sit back, shut up and accept what is dished out to me by the State Department. Kris does not work for the State Department, he works for Department of Homeland Security and while overseas we basically get all of the cast offs from the State Department and ignored...but we depend on them for just about everything.

We are still living in a hotel. I have tried every day to get us into a furnished temporary apartment. We have been told twice that there are apartments available (mind you we can only live in State Department approved housing) in one of the few suites whose cost falls into our per diem rates. And twice have we been told a few days before "Sorry, we no longer have them available to you even though you have reserved them" Turns out, Dominion Apartments have an agreement with State Department that they take State people as priority. So we sit in this hotel room, into our second month.

Did I mention we moved out of the previous Sheraton hotel that was located in Centro Historico to the Sheraton Maria Isabelle that is right next door to the embassy. The reason for this was that the school bus would not go to Centro Historico to pick the kids up. So we are next door to the embassy now. Nice for Kris to walk to work and for me to visit for lunch.

In August, the State Department Housing Office recommended a home which the Inter Agency Housing Board voted on and assigned us. We come to find out that 2 weeks ago, after a rain storm, the house flooded with raw sewage...and it isn't the first time. How did we find this out? Well, because of Kris' unbelievable interrogation talent, he pulled it out of the housing manager and she was less than thrilled that he had done so. They weren't even going to tell us about this! She let it slip that they had to evacuate the family that was living there and it would be available for us to see...Kris asked "evacuated? " and before you know it she was guilt tripped into spilling the beans.

Kris tells her that we don't want this house, it shouldn't even be a consideration and to assign us another home. She says "well you can appeal it" which is a very long process. If I were Foreign Service Spouse material, I would do what I'm supposed to do and take the house without any lip. As it stands, Kris and I are refusing and so, the housing office has retaliated against us...supposedly this causes more work for them and they don't like people who tell them no.

So Kris went ahead and wrote a letter of declination refusing the home that is suceptable to flooding of raw sewage when it rains hard. Since we have challenged the home they have assigned us, we are now personas non grata. This means phone calls are ignored, the process is delayed on purpose and basically we are labeled with the scarlett letter "P" for Problem family.

We have been embraced by others who are not State Department employees. The FBI Legatt (highest ranking FBI guy) has been going through a similar nightmare. He is an SES grade (basically on the same level as Generals) with a family of 7. Two of that 7 are his elderly parents who are his dependents. He has been assigned a 3 bedroom home and was told to put his parents in the maids quarters. They happen to go to church with us so have had time to sort of team up. Kris' boss (also an SES grade) is flying into Mexico City tomorrow to specifically meet with the housing office and their attempts to force him into substandard housing. Meanwhile, there are homes available that are reserved for State Department employees. We are told this is the norm and to expect nothing different...unless we want to get PNG'd; thrown off post.

So I repeat, I am obviously not Foreign Service material and I see that now.

On another note. I will post lots of pictures and things that the boys have been doing...I know you are more interested in that kind of stuff anyway!