Just find a place where no one knows of your redneck past - Ben Folds

Security clearance interview.

My security clearance investigation kicked into gear about three weeks ago.  I got an email from a friend at an old job.  She said that an investigator had shown up, without any warning, and asked to meet with HR to ask questions about me. 

A few days later, I got calls from two different investigators.   The first was actually calling for my roommate, who wasn't home.  He asked me to take a message, and started to explain that he was a special investigator for the State Department and that he wanted to ask some questions about.....me.  At this point, I let him know that he was currently talking with the subject of his investigation.  He didn't miss a beat.  He asked me to give him some cell and work numbers for a few of my references.  Half an hour later, I was getting emails from those references telling me they'd been contacted.  The second caller was in charge of interviewing me, and set up an appointment for a few days later.  He gave me some homework to do on items where he knew he'd need more information. 

I had my security clearance interview about a week ago.  It lasted three hours.  An investigator came to my house.  He began the interview with a warning about lying and how bad that would be.  I wasn't planning on lying, so it didn't really change things, but the message was still somehow intimidating.  I was very concerned that I'd answer "yes" to question 12 and then "yes" to question 63, and be told that I had been caught in a lie because my answers were inconsistent.  I kept asking him to repeat questions to make sure I got the wording right.  After a bit of this, he told me to relax, and that he wasn't trying to trap me.  I was able to relax a little, but I have a very suspicious nature, and wasn't able to completely let go of the concern until the whole thing was over.

In preparation for this interview, I had to fill out the SF-86, the government's long questionnaire that basically pulls out information on anything that you've done in your life that you are now embarrassed about and wish would go away.  The investigator then had a 13 or so page list of new questions to ask me in person in case they'd missed anything on the SF-86.  It is counter-intuitive to speak openly about the things that you're ashamed of, but I managed to make it through. 

So far my investigators (at least three) have contacted seven friends and a few neighbors too.  The investigators have three more names and numbers that I know of.  I'm guessing it will take another week or two to schedule and complete those meetings.

I don't know what else they'll do to investigate me.  I imagine they have done or will do things like confirm my educational claims, and ask the FBI and local police if I've got a criminal record.  I checked my credit report recently and saw an entry for an inquiry run by "On behalf of CP DEPT OF STATE", so they've checked that.

There are some real horror stories out there about the length of the wait.  For some it goes quickly (few months), and for others it can take much longer (a year).  The average seems to be about four months from the date of the oral assessment, which for me would be the end of November.

Not much to do now but wait.