Reaching for the Stars...'n Stripes

What does the Battle Book say about applying to prestigious fellowships, oh fellow MilSpousers? I was never that kid in college who was anyone's first pick for a Truman Scholarship or the Pickering Fellowship. I lacked the attention span, the savvy, and likely the grades, too.

No, I was always the kid who found out about the fellowship requirements the day after the winner was announced and thought, "wouldn't that be cool...if only." Can you picture the wistful inner monologue?

I discovered a paid internship opportunity at the Center for Defense Information (CDI) in 2004 the week before it was due. There was no time for bs or obfuscation. I told them who I was and why I wanted to work in security studies. I JUST DID IT. And I got it. And it was great. I learned. I wrote. I researched. I made friends with video news gurus, policy wonks, and supported experts in their research. I sat in on meetings with Fareed Zakaria from TIME Magazine and watched an intern from the American Heritage Institute get crushed in a debate with an intern from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).* I gained confidence and validation along with experience.

Working on Thanksgiving

Family separation is one of the most difficult aspects of military life, and during the holidays this is especially true.  After spending several decades being part of a military family, I speak from personal experience. 

Being together is important at Thanksgiving, it's important at Passover, it's important on St. Patrick's Day and it's important on birthdays.  Spending holidays in the same room is never a given for soldiers and their families, so you celebrate together as hard as you can, whenever you can.  Can you imagine what it would have been like to have had my dad home for Thanksgiving - JOY!- only to spend the meal staring at empty chairs because my mom and older brother were out doing their time working for $9 an hour?  I can because I've been there-  and it sucks.  I realize that when soldiers marry police officers, firefighters, medical professionals and other essential jobs that keep us safe and don't have holidays built in, families have an additional burden of separation.  It's understandable.  But empty chairs and uneaten meals are hardly justified by a day of sales at the strip mall...aka Black Friday.*  

"there are many like it, but this one is mine."  photo credit:  adam peck via ThinkProgress

This week I've gotten myself into a tremendous lather over the War on Thanksgiving- along with pretty much everyone else.  What is UP with Big Retail trying to cancel Thanksgiving for their workers?! 

As many military spouses work in retail, along with the highly visible Big Box efforts to recruit veterans and milspouses, I would argue that this may have a disproportionate impact on military families.  On a practical level, during deployment, many families function as de-facto single parent households, and military families are less likely to have relatives close by- which means that if mom is deployed and dad has to work at KMart, the kids don't simply celebrate with grandparents- the holiday just doesn't happen.  On the sentimental level (it is a holiday, after all) our time together is so limited. For many families, Thanksgiving is the only holiday they will spend together this year.  I could also argue that Thanksgiving's status as a uniquely American holiday contributes to its significance in military households.  In light of those factors, Big Retail's actions seem especially wrong.  Consider the financial stressors that many military families are facing- and the career limitations available for spouses, it is highly likely that thousands, if not millions, of military households will be directly affected by these greedy self-serving shenanigans.

Of course, there are counter arguments to be made about how cash-strapped military families depend on Black Friday sales for makin' spirits bright (lalala!), and that employees need the "extra" money they can earn with one more shift to work.  To the former, I'd question whether one could really "depend" on getting a flat-screen tv for $25 or whatever, and I'd also point out that retail has a knack for cutting hours elsewhere to avoid paying employees overtime.  Please tell me you've heard that before!

What do you guys think?  Are we accustomed to separation or off-calendar celebrations and thus take this in stride?  Or are we super-double irate and ready to boycott?

* Black Friday is so-called because retailers run in the financial red (at a deficit) for the whole year and then get back in the financial black (making their yearly profit margin) thanks to the bump in purchases that marks the beginning of the open Christmas season shopping.

*ECHO*

Transcript of a Job Search

"Do MilSpouse Jobs Programs Work" Photo Credit Jacey Eckhart

Document Based Question- am I a MilSpouse or a professional?
Because I'm pretty sure I'm a g*ddamn  professional here.


Let me be clear- I did not "follow" my dude to this place. I walked in as a partner on my own two feet. He moved back to Post and I networked my way into an interview and then pulled together a consulting gig and a fellowship to pay the rent. It worked well for a year. And now this cobbled together system, mostly due to some tight-wad Congressional shenanigans, is coming to an end.

Job Search Take Two Commences!

Hello! Married to the Military? Unable to easily access your established professional or business networks because you are a) living in a place where everyone leaves (and is happy about that fact), b) are nowhere near your alma mater or a thriving industry sector you are qualified to work in, c) unable to relocate to/back to a major hub or another urban center that would allow you to earn a real salary? YES, YOU! WELCOME to my job search.

Yes, now I really feel like a MILSPOUSE. Damn it, I hate job hunting. Doing this twice in the space of 12 months is very unpleasant.

In times like this it's good to have a friend like Echo. 

Echo: How are you?

Me: Chillin'. I've decided work is for the birds. 

Echo: In other words, you want to co-host a seminar on single-income households at the Army Kool-Aid Distribution Center? I have HAD it with our fellow Army spouses who subject themselves to predatory fake MLM businesses so they can drive gas guzzlers  and have extra guest bedrooms. 
F**k that consumerist propoganda bullshit. Cut some coupons and sit-out the consumerist Agenda!

Me: ...laughs my *** off.

I guess sitting here on my couch isn't really a vocational option, after all. But who am I kidding- if we were relying on DH's salary we'd be evicted, starve, and then hounded to death by creditors. ~Bravo

Ohh! Look- a bird! a plane! a MilSpouse Jobs Pinterest page!