The Drama of Moving

Change is never easy and moving is probably one of the most intense changes you can make…outside of the transition from physical to spirit.

First
I decided last summer to sell the house. With my mother now in a nursing home, I don’t need a raised ranch. I contacted my realtor and we talked about what price I’d start with, and all the work I needed to do before the sign went up in front of the house.

I washed all the windows and planned and executed the tag sale. Unless you are into self-deprecation and pain, don’t bother with a tag sale. You can donate all that junk to various organizations and make more in tax reduction than you can trying to sell the stuff. I had to do the windows myself because there was no money to have them done.

Now the house is spic and span; furniture rearranged to make the rooms look their best; contract signed; FOR SALE sign goes up. The house should sell in a matter of a few days.

And so I waited
The house was on the market just short of 7 months. Had a ton of people looking at it, but they all didn’t like things I could do nothing about: too many trees (surrounded by woods), a corner lot, busy intersection, no hardwood floors.

Before the successful offer, I had one ‘almost’ offer and two offers that were whipped off the table almost as soon as they were made.

Now
I am surrounded by boxes even though my kids came over last Sunday to move boxes into the garage. The boxes that remain in the living area itself cannot be sealed yet. I have found that if you tape a box shut, what ever is in that box is something you will need. Pack it. Tape it. Need it.

I have run the last load in the dishwasher and am now ‘camping out’ in my own home. What ever I need for the next couple of days is used and washed…to be used again. Today I will use the microwave for the last time so I can wash and pack the glass tray. I have stopped using salt and pepper…because the shakers are packed.

I have one box set aside for my ‘survival kit’, which will contain my daily supplements, coffee pot, filters and coffee, toaster, and personal hygiene items. That will go in my car along with the stuff already there…3 lamps that are very old and dear to me…one is fragile. Also going in my car will have to be the cooler, which will hopefully keep my food frozen until I can put it into the freezer at the condo.

SNAFU and FUBAR
So we are all set to close on May 18th. Everything has been going along very well up to now. THEN! My buyer’s lender started to screw things up. They kept changing their story about what the hold up was and kept telling us the buyer was all set, the mortgage was assured but they had to get this one last piece of information. That one piece kept changing.

It wound up that the buyer had given the lender all the necessary information for contacting his employer(s) in another country. The lender was not successful using that information but DID NOT TELL THE BUYER. Once the buyer found out what the problem was he gave the lender an international phone number (which he could have given them to begin with, but he didn’t know it was a problem!). By now, it’s too late to close on the 18th. My mover was not happy about having to reschedule. Now that we have settled on Friday, May 21st, my mover is desperately trying to get a crew and truck for Friday morning. If all else fails, they will load me up Thursday night…which will cost me more $$.

If they load up Thursday night, I will sleep at a friend’s house and go to the airport Friday morning to pick up my daughter, who is flying in to help me settle.

If they load me up Friday morning, I will have to find a way to get my daughter from the airport, do a walk-through at the condo at noon and get to the closing on the condo at 3 pm. The closing on the house is at 1:30 pm but I will pre-sign and not have to attend.

Gives me a headache
I like everything to be orderly and happen when it’s supposed to happen with no hitches or delays. Life is not like that and moving, for sure, doesn’t come close.

I swear I will never move again…at least not in a conscious state! ☺☺☺

What’s next?
Moving into a townhouse in a complex that hopefully is quiet AND it has an indoor, year round pool. Speaking of quiet, one thing I look forward to is hearing the trains that are maybe a half mile to the west and between the complex and the CT River.

Of course there will be days of chaos to come until I have placed all the furniture to my satisfaction. It may mean getting rid of some of my stuff…that’s a decision for ‘down the road.’

It will be nice to have lamps again…right now I have one floor lamp with a bulb in it.

And so, I sit and I wait, because I still don’t know when the van will be here. Gives new meaning to Poe’s The Raven. NEVER MORE!