Packing out, Day 1

I read Erma Bombeck growing up, periodically. She made me laugh. Now I read other bloggers. That's where I realized we are all channeling Erma. It's true, and I haven't read Erma in at least thirty years, but then I'm not known for my sense of humor unless you're my kiddo.


I love the intimacy of reading, though lately I've noticed that I read less and look at pictures more, thanks to Pinterest. It is kind of like my library days in high school. I walked everyday to the public library, to look at magazines. I rarely studied there. I read all of the back issues of Vogue. Skip ahead ten years and my future husband commented on a date, "You know a lot about Eighties Super Models." He knows a lot about Led Zeppelin. These days, I flip through Pinterest like an image rich magazine at the Dentist's office.


Preparing to move means making a big mess. You sort your things into must keep, must go, and must ship home. Living with piles everywhere is no fun. This is all to say, I avoided some prep work to avoid ripping my house apart. Today, denial no longer worked. The packers arrived.


I'm exhausted, my feet hurt, but the thrill of finally packing our stuff, plus the efficient, quiet, yet friendly Japanese movers, made day one of moving a good day. It was strange too to have breakfast with my children and my husband, hopefully "retirement" means we will all be seeing more of him. Moving and retirement have the same meaning, for me.


We are burning our oil lantern so we can pack it tomorrow. We need more fire in our lives even if only a candle lamp. Why didn't we do this sooner?


You might want to rip your house apart every five years or so to keep it fresh. I realized there are some things stashed in awkward places for no particular reason except I never got around to it. The filth uncovered is another reason to move it all about. You'll need a bucket! Of hot sudsy water, a pair of gloves, and some elbow grease. Then put it all back together but try to leave more out this time. That's what we're going to do. More space, more room for life. Maybe we could burn the stuff? It is pleasant to watch the flames.

I read Erma Bombeck growing up, periodically. She made me laugh. Now I read other bloggers. That's where I realized we are all channeling Erma. It's true, and I haven't read Erma in at least thirty years, but then I'm not known for my sense of humor unless you're my kiddo.


I love the intimacy of reading, though lately I've noticed that I read less and look at pictures more, thanks to Pinterest. It is kind of like my library days in high school. I walked everyday to the public library, to look at magazines. I rarely studied there. I read all of the back issues of Vogue. Skip ahead ten years and my future husband commented on a date, "You know a lot about Eighties Super Models." He knows a lot about Led Zeppelin. These days, I flip through Pinterest like an image rich magazine at the Dentist's office.


Preparing to move means making a big mess. You sort your things into must keep, must go, and must ship home. Living with piles everywhere is no fun. This is all to say, I avoided some prep work to avoid ripping my house apart. Today, denial no longer worked. The packers arrived.


I'm exhausted, my feet hurt, but the thrill of finally packing our stuff, plus the efficient, quiet, yet friendly Japanese movers, made day one of moving a good day. It was strange too to have breakfast with my children and my husband, hopefully "retirement" means we will all be seeing more of him. Moving and retirement have the same meaning, for me.


We are burning our oil lantern so we can pack it tomorrow. We need more fire in our lives even if only a candle lamp. Why didn't we do this sooner?


You might want to rip your house apart every five years or so to keep it fresh. I realized there are some things stashed in awkward places for no particular reason except I never got around to it. The filth uncovered is another reason to move it all about. You'll need a bucket! Of hot sudsy water, a pair of gloves, and some elbow grease. Then put it all back together but try to leave more out this time. That's what we're going to do. More space, more room for life. Maybe we could burn the stuff? It is pleasant to watch the flames.