Between leaving and leaving

So, I had to be out of my apartment, heretofore known as the apartment, by July 31. And I had a plan! When I got back from Greece, on a Thursday, I would have a full week and planned to move everything I planned to keep to storage the following weekend. Saturday July 16^th, to be precise. Then I was going to have an ‘estate sale’ (aka a garage sale inside your apartment where it’s all fair game) on the 23^rd, and donate what was left on the 31^st.

I’m really, really good at making reasonable plans, I’m just not so great at executing them.  For starters, the space I’d reserved came with a free truck rental, but I hadn’t found out how that worked. Awesome.

So, on Sunday the 9^th I went to the storage place … the office was closed. I’d have to come back during the week (ha) or on the weekend, though at least I was taking a 3 day weekend. I made it there on Friday, signed the papers, requested the truck info … it was a voucher for 1 hour, and it was being mailed to me. Awesome. Except it took 2 days, making it Sunday the 16^th and no moving in sight.

Well. Okay, in the interim I actually sold several pieces of furniture to friends and neighbors, which was nice. Anyway. Moving postponed a week. Then I started getting close and couldn’t help thinking …. I can rent a truck for a LOT less than it would cost to pay for the other 2 hours a typical move takes. So I re-begged a favor from my friend Peter who was going to help me move, then wasn’t because I had movers. Fortunately he’s a good sport.

So, Saturday the 23^rd became moving day. No problem, except what was ready to go was the big stuff and maybe 1/3 of everything else. Maybe. Despite much taunting from my help, I was confident I could get what I needed done over the course of the coming week. Because I plan well!

So, yeah, I packed some that week, and packed like an insane person on Friday (another 3-day weekend) … and begged Peter to help, again, to move the recliner I’d decided to keep at the last minute, since there was so much space in the storage locker. And he obliged, thankfully, and agreed to come that Sunday.

Saturday was packing. I think it may have been a trip to the storage place, too? Possibly. It was also the other packing. The packing for Germany. Because it’s really, really, really hard to pack for storage for a year until you have first packed everything you’re planning to take with you. Or even thinking about taking with you. Saturday evening around 8 I decamped to Club Deb (a friend’s fabulous and welcoming house) with luggage and boxes. OMG luggage and boxes. I had my two giant suitcases, a carry-on bag, a box to ship to RI, TWO boxes to ship to myself in Germany … and assorted other stuff. I was, thankfully, treated to a delicious dinner and good conversation before eventually staggering upstairs to shower and bed.

Sunday morning was my first attempt to live out of what I’d packed. I have no idea who did the packing (yeah, yeah, it was me), but that person should never be allowed to pack anything ever again. No shampoo / conditioner / hair product. No soap. No deodorant. No face stuff. No hairbrush! Just … bad.

So, back to the apartment to finish the packing / moving / cleaning and, now, to figure out what on earth I’d done with all my stuff. I did find it, fairly quickly … and filled 2 messenger bags and a storage cube. Um. Hello, overpacking?

My moving friend came, went with me to get the van, helped, followed me to the storage center, loaded it in and left. I went back to moving.

I don’t move out well. By now, it could reasonably be called a thing. Anyway, at 10:15pm I’d taken everything I was keeping to storage, had a couple more boxes of crap to deal with at Deb’s, the remaining trash was reasonably corralled … and I called it good enough and left. So much for cleaning.

So then I was homeless! I was living in Deb’s upstairs bedroom, crammed full of my crap, stressing over re-packing. Which I did. Repeatedly. In that transitional week, in addition to working until 7 most nights (during my last week! After coming in at 8 every day! SO not right!!), I revisited what I had packed. I emptied the suitcases, stacked, sorted, removed and repacked. Three times.  In between, of course, spending the night at a friend’s house who I wouldn’t otherwise be able to say good-bye to, dropping my car for service and getting it back, having a happy hour AND having a going away / last day of work party!

And that’s what I did between leaving and leaving.

All and all, it’s been a stressful few days, but everything is smoothing out now and, hopefully, will stay that way. It is starting to sink in that I’m here for a long haul, I think. I’m having less and less trouble thinking of work as my former-work, and the people there as former co-workers. It still makes me a little teary, as it was a good time in my life, but … here’s to the future. Prost!