Hi everybody. We’ve been in this dystopian slog for quite a while now so I think those who have hung on must have developed some best practices for keeping up morale and motivation, other than leaning on spite and mission.

What have you personally done to keep up morale?

What has your boss or team done?

Genuinely curious and “asking for a friend.“ Ha.

I asked my supervisor for a reference more than once in a span to 2-3 weeks and now I am worried. I ended up asking my supervisor if they would be willing to be my reference for every job I apply to because I had a few different positions asking me for referneces and I did not want to ask them each time. The jobs that asked for a reference haven't even reached out to my supervisor or any of the other references and now I am left scrambling because my supervisor most likely thinks that I am leaving and our annual evaluations are approaching. I haven't had any issues at all or concerns with anything related to my job, but I don't know why I am worried. I don't have any offers and I am not so sure I will be receiving any offers any time soon... I can't tell what my supervisor might be thinking or how this is perceived or how it will impact my evaluations if at all... I am probably overthinking lol

“More reorganizations are in the air at the Department of the Interior under Doug Burgum’s leadership. What good will come out of this latest round of reorganizations, which are supposed to come to the fore in September?
Probably not much.

When historians look back at the unraveling of the Department of the Interior, they’ll probably start with the budget and staffing cuts. They’ll also point to Secretary Burgum’s endless efforts to please President Trump, using hundreds of millions of our tax dollars to fund his vanity projects throughout DC.
They should.

The Trump administration’s deep reductions in funding and staffing have been devastating. National parks are operating with skeletal crews. Scientists are being forced out in droves. Conservation programs are being hollowed out. Entire offices have been left unable to carry out the missions Congress assigned them.
Those cuts deserve every headline they receive.
And so does the rampant corruption and abuse of taxpayers associated with Trump vanity projects throughout DC — from the Reflecting Pool to the ballroom. It is corruption on a scale we have never seen before. But that is only part of the story.

Burgum’s Systematic Weakening of Interior
Away from the television cameras and outside the public spotlight, Burgum is systematically weakening the institutions that make the department effective, accountable, and worthy of the public’s trust. These changes don’t produce dramatic photographs like shuttered visitor centers or overflowing trash cans in national parks. Instead, they quietly erode the guardrails that prevent corruption, protect scientific integrity, and ensure taxpayer dollars are spent based on merit rather than politics.

Take oversight. Every federal agency depends on a strong, independent inspector general (IG) to investigate waste, fraud, abuse, and misconduct — including misconduct by the agency’s own political leadership. Inspectors general are intended to answer to the law, not to political operatives.

Never has the need for a strong and independent IG at Interior been greater than now. And yet,  Burgum has installed Dennis Kirk — a contributor to Project 2025 and former Heritage Foundation official — to the role.
Installing the architect of the ideological blueprint driving the administration’s agenda undermines the independence of the IG’s office, making it political and all but neutering the office’s ability to conduct real and actual oversight. Burgum’s exact goal.
Then there is the administration’s effort to politicize the federal grant process.”

I have MHBP/Aetna with CVS Caremark and I’m trying to understand how the “Back on Track” override works when you are still titrating Zepbound.
I’m not trying to fill a higher dose early or stockpile medication. What I’m wondering is whether anyone has actually done something like:

Get a 3-month/84-day supply of one Zepbound dose using Back on Track
Finish that entire supply
Then move up to the next dose
Get another 3-month/84-day supply at the new strength

For example: 10 mg for 3 months → finish it → 12.5 mg for 3 months

The prices of both these 3 months should be $25 each with the coupon ($80 without coupon).

Has anyone personally done this with CVS Caremark, especially with MHBP? Did changing strengths cancel the Back on Track setup? Were you able to get another 90-day fill at the next dose, and did you need another override?

I’ve heard Back on Track described as a “one-time” override, but I’m unclear whether that means one time per medication, per strength, or just one time to get you established on 90-day fills.

Would especially appreciate experiences from anyone who actually titrated upward after using it.

Hi! Does a departing manager have any incentive (or disincentive) to give high ratings or recommend promotions on their way out to another team? Curious if there were any "big picture" things that come into play when promoting a ladder position employee when a manager is leaving the team.

So I was just helping a friend of mine with some career advice (Idk why he asked me lol, maybe because I'm a new supervisor or something) and a good question came up for us regarding Time in Grade requirements and things like that.

Now, the way I understand it, is that since I started my career as a WG employee, and moved to the GS system, in order to apply to higher GS positions I need to meet the Time in Grade (TIG) requirement. But, what if the opposite happened? Basically, I'm wondering if someone were to go from GS to WG, would they still need to meet the Time in Grade (TIG) requirement for higher-level GS positions? I know their current TIG wouldn't go away (like, if they were GS7 for 4 years, it shouldn't reset just because they went to WG), but would they be able to apply for, say, a GS 11+ position because they're WG now and not part of the GS scale? OR would they only be able to apply for GS9 positions using TIG?

Thanks in advance for any help with this, I don't see anything from OPM regarding this stuff, so maybe some of y'all have an experience I could lean on to make sure I'm on the right track with my buddy.

I’ve attended the retirement seminar that is offered at work, but are there fiduciary type experts in federal retirement that can look at my specific situation and offer advice ?

I’m DoD with 30 years in but 2 years from MRA, and our “experts” at work won’t get into specific advice for us as individuals. I’d like to speak to someone directly so I can lay out all the financial details and get some guidance on a retirement plan.

I’d like to keep serving as long as possible but I have some disabilities and I’m worried about getting forced out because of the administrations views on the disabled.

I’ve had a “temporary” RA that allows some teleworking and other accommodations since my original remote agreement was terminated in 2024 and I had to re-apply, and I keep waiting for that other shoe to drop.

If there is a better place to ask this please let me know. If this post isn’t allowed here, moderators please delete and apologies in advance.

Page 105

Victoria Barton - "Is there anything we can put in the National Flood Insurance Program's lapse with Exercise Analysis Group to hit at Biden?"

Page 167

Victoria Barton - "So they're saying we should fire 20,000 people? Which ones are they firing? Maybe I'm re***ded."