Movin' On Up

Moving is one of those "if it doesn't kill you, it makes you stronger" types of experiences. It brings out personalities, endurance, conflicting strategies and shows you who your true friends are. When you're moving, there are always those people who say, "If you need any help, let me know," but they don't really mean it. There are those people who say, "I'd love to help you move, but man, I really have to wash my hair that day." And there are those people who just show up and do what they can. For that, I send a huge thank-you to my parents and Dave--and Kevin of course.

I've moved several times--mostly in and out of college residences. EVERY time, my parents always joked about how much "stuff" I had. Meanwhile, I didn't have a lot of stuff. I mean, how much "stuff" can one store in a dorm room as big as a closet? Tons of shoes? Girls love shoes. Clothes still with the tags on them? It's NORMAL, ok? Craft boxes? Who doesn't have at least one? Right? Right?

Well, moving out of a house takes "stuff" to a new level. Multiple bedrooms and bathrooms, a full kitchen, garage, basement, etc. bring tea kettles, hundreds of books (that are really heavy), dozens of pieces of art work, albums of photos, cleaning supplies, light bulbs, guitars, lamps, candles and TONS of furniture (oh, the price of buying good, solid, expensive heavy furniture)and clothes... It took a lot of time and energy just getting the large pieces of furniture on the UHaul.

My mom and I let the engineers plot out the best way to piece-in the furniture, and they did a great job. After round one, my parents stayed to pack up some boxes while Kevin and I took a truck load to his house. Now, this is usually the fun part of moving--unpacking and deciding where things should go. It's not as fun when there is a whole other houseful of furniture waiting for you. Luckily, Dave is a good mover and not only were we able to move everything out of the truck, but we moved stuff out of Kevin's, around Kevin's, outside of Kevin's. Did I mention the day was around 99.9% humidity?

Today my mom and I packed and cleaned some more. There's a lot of clothes and small stuff still left in the house, so there will be some late evening commutes from Bridgeville to Shaler this week.

I am proud that Kevin and I handled the move so well together. Besides scratching some furniture and Kevin almost tipping the moving truck, I'd say it was a successful experiment. We compromised, debated and laughed. A small, positive glimpse into the future, I hope.