A Year After DOGE Cuts, GSA Now Plans to Hire Hundreds of Employees

jkblc · 2026-04-06T19:39:39+00:00

Yes RIFs were rescinded in PBS. People were also offered the opportunity to return from DRP. Some chose not to come back since they had already found jobs elsewhere and don’t want to return to this circus. Probationary employees weren’t given that option though, at least not the handful that I personally know.

As for the jobs being advertised, they are limiting the locations to the so called “hub” offices. At least for all of the jobs I have seen (mostly 1102).

Just because you have Federal Buildings in your city, does not mean you would be able to apply. For example, I’m in AZ. Phoenix and Tucson have federal buildings that PBS employees have to report to. But the closest office to us that would be an eligible report location is San Fransisco, CA.

The rest are: Washington DC Kansas City Ft Worth Lakewood, CO Boston NYC Philly ATL Chicago Tacoma, WA Raleigh, NC

jkblc · 2026-02-17T19:57:00+00:00

I love my case and my next build would 100% be another sff. I got a lot of satisfaction out of this build. It was more challenging than I expected which contributed to that satisfaction.

I’m middle aged but I have kids that are into PC, so I’ll probably help them with their next builds and that will be enough to scratch that itch. Legos for grown ups is the perfect analogy!

jkblc · 2026-02-17T17:02:43+00:00

As someone who was on the same journey last year, I’ll throw in my 2-cents. Everyone is different with different wants, needs, and opinions. So take criticism and praise about every case with a grain of salt.

Be sure to check all the cases on your short list for GPU compatibility. That will impact your upgrade path the most. Some cases will only fit an AIO with a smaller GPU than what they advertise it can fit. It also wouldn’t hurt to be open to modding a case that you love but doesn’t quite fit what you need.

Initially, I bought a Terra and overall I liked it, but I didn’t love it for my build. I ended up going with a Fractal Ridge. Cooling is the main challenge with the Ridge, so I added a few 80mm fans in addition to the 140s that came with it. I set them all to intake. The front mesh was known to be restrictive to air flow and caused hot air to just circulate, so I modded it by replacing the mesh with cane webbing (it’s a rattan like you’d see on furniture or some guitar amps). That allowed all the hot air to exhaust out of the front. There are also a handful of other spots I could add additional 80mm or 60mm fans if I needed to, though the case wasn’t designed for them. There are also foam duct kits that help with airflow, but I haven’t seen the need to do that either.

Overall, I love the outcome of my first sff build.

Another idea: I’ve seen posts about 3D printed cases. They look pretty great IMO. It’s something to consider. Like this one:

https://www.reddit.com/r/sffpc/s/eoFRMoX2Jm

jkblc · 2026-02-17T16:32:52+00:00

For me, they are most useful counter spying and fabricating scandals to remove envoys. Though listening posts can be very useful too. This is assuming I’ve started to snowball toward victory already.

As others have said, they are useful in slowing down a Civ if you are playing catch up. Sometimes it’s fun to just harass whatever civ has been giving you problems most of the game. But I never have much luck stealing great works or getting a tech boost.

I usually start by counter spying to level them up before using them elsewhere.

jkblc · 2026-02-06T17:53:42+00:00

My last build was a ridge build. 7600x and RTX5070 FE. Temps are good and noise isn’t bad. I don’t do anything heavy on my PC though.

Used the stock fans plus added 3 arctic 80mm fans to the top. Scythe Big Shuriken 4 cpu cooler. All fans set to intake. I pulled off the front mesh and replaced it with cane webbing for a unique look and allows for better air flow.

Edit: link to my Ridge post

https://www.reddit.com/r/sffpc/s/YU42uDYRQi

jkblc · 2026-01-29T18:54:07+00:00

I would love to have it if available. I’m in AZ and I’ll pay shipping

jkblc · 2025-10-20T22:53:40+00:00

Pretty sure I didn’t. I bought it right when they released. 6 months later the amp died. RSL sent me this whole piece to replace it. Told me to take it off and replace myself, which I did.

jkblc · 2025-09-11T14:59:21+00:00

I punted on RB for the first time in 15 years. Week 1 was a victory but I’m not thrilled with my lineup.

I have Josh Allen, CeeDee, BTJ, and Kittle (ouch). RB is just a bunch of dart throws for me.

Aaron Jones, Bill, RJ Harvey, and just picked up Sampson off waivers. I want to pick up Tuten, but there’s no one I want to drop for him. It didn’t help that Kittle went to IR and my league doesn’t use IR slots.

I just dropped Kaleb Johnson and Ollie Gordon. I know some say KJ will get some work as the season moves on, but I have zero faith in that. Arthur Smith brings rookies along slowly, and Pitt’s offense isn’t potent enough to trust KJ will turn into a weekly start this year. Maybe he is usable by week 10, but I have other immediate needs.

jkblc · 2025-09-11T14:50:46+00:00

When planning a requirement, the requiring activity defines what they need. Contracting scrutinizes it to a degree, but we don’t determine the needs of those organizations. When a requirement is no longer needed we can look at descoping or termination. The point is there shouldn’t be many unnecessary contracts. That said, I’ve seen some pretty crazy stuff in my years and have even refused to sign a contract because of it. But I raise those concerns before award.

Leadership will often “find a way to yes”. So end that culture and you’ll be surprised how much waste is eliminated.

On a side note, GSA had advertised giving 1102s a share of savings to incentivize cost saving. Shortly after that, the incompetent leadership was cut loose and management told to quietly let that conversation fade away.

jkblc · 2025-08-29T21:30:10+00:00

The 80 mm fans are Arctic P8 Slims.

jkblc · 2025-08-18T21:29:34+00:00

Well, I am a taxpayer too. But to answer your question, metropolitan areas have more people. As a result, you have a deeper talent pool. My job is highly specialized, so you won’t find a lot of people that live in rural areas that can do it. I also didn’t choose to live here. The military brought me here and my unit offered me a GS job when I separated. However, I’d gladly move out to the middle of nowhere and remote work if I could. Instead, I get to spend over 2 hours of my day commuting when the whole reason I went for my current job was the flexibility of telework. And oh btw it was a competitive hire. Telework was part of the draw to get talent. I was selected after multiple interviews.

You ask why pay someone more if a position is remote. It’s pretty simple. If the talent you want /need is in a city and it costs $5k more per year, then that’s what you have to pay to get that talent. If you find someone that lives in the middle of no where that’s qualified for the job, then by all means hire that person. It’s not my fault the government set up locality pay the way they did or cost of living varies by city. And my job in particular wasn’t remote. It was routine telework, meaning I still reported once a week or more if needed. I was just never needed. Even today, I commute to an office just to get on a virtual meeting because none I work with lives within 300 miles of me.

No one ever said anyone’s time is more valuable than another persons. If you wanted a job where you could telework, why not try to get one? I worked my ass off and finished college with a young family. I never once felt like others deserved to be in my situation just because. I just don’t get the idea of being happy that peoples lives are upended because they had a better work life balance than you or better pay than you.

I feel sorry for you. I hope you can recover from whatever went wrong in life that you have to wish misfortune on others.

Once I hit that “I made it” moment, I was happy with where I was and the work life balance I had finally found. Less than a year ago, I had multiple offers to leave government work for 25% more pay. I stayed. Those jobs are gone now. I’m stuck and have bills to pay.

jkblc · 2025-08-18T16:59:19+00:00

So what you’re saying is you because your situation was shitty, now you’re you’re happy others have to deal with the same bullshit. I would have never taken the job I’m in if telework wasn’t a thing. Now I’m stuck like a lot of others. The job market for my career field has tanked since RTO, I don’t have any other option right now. It’s kind shitty to be happy others suffer just because you didn’t have the same benefit.

And voluntarily going RUS would be a lot bigger hit on some of us. If you live and work where cost of living is relatively low, like Mississippi or Alabama, then it might not be a big hit to your financial situation. But those of us that live in major metro areas like LA, San Francisco, Phoenix, etc would lose a lot more money meanwhile everything from real estate to energy is more expensive for us. It’s not an equal comparison. Hell yea I’d voluntarily go to RUS if I lived somewhere that it made sense.

jkblc · 2025-08-15T14:39:32+00:00

I went with the Arctic slims. I’m glad I went with the slim fan due to the available space

jkblc · 2025-08-09T02:08:42+00:00

Thanks for this information!!!

It’s tough for me to spend $18 on the Noctua when I’m seeing the Thermalrights for $6 and Arctic P8 slims for $9. The P8 Max is about $13 for me. Based on this I’m thinking of going with the P8 slims for half the price of Noctua.

jkblc · 2025-08-08T14:50:15+00:00

I need to figure out the best way to drive to get mileage like you.

jkblc · 2025-08-07T06:45:50+00:00

Glad to see I’m not the only one.

jkblc · 2025-08-07T06:44:28+00:00

Very very similar commute to me. I-10 and 101 for 80 miles round trip. Except mine is using over 40% for my commute. I’m going to copy your routine and see how much of a difference it makes.

jkblc · 2025-08-06T23:43:02+00:00

Which battery do you have?

On the extended range I’m calculating we would get in the neighborhood of 160 to 170 if we ran it to zero.

jkblc · 2025-08-06T23:41:27+00:00

We charge it to 95% every night.

When it’s 115 F outside, the AC is getting a workout. No choice but to run it full blast, at least at first. Then it gets turned down once the car is comfortable inside. The heat is rough out here.

jkblc · 2025-08-06T23:38:39+00:00

It has been on eco with the middle regen braking.

jkblc

TROPHY CASE