Wed. June 30, 2021: Deadline Today

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Today is it. We have to be out of the house, whether we’ve gotten it all done or not. Hold a good thought for us, please.

Tues. June 29, 2021: Life in DumpsterLand

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If all went to plan, the dumpster arrived yesterday afternoon and is getting a workout.

At 1 PM today, the guys arrive to cart the rest of our stuff to storage. Let’s hope I have it all sorted and packed.

Yesterday and today will be very long days.

Mon. June 28, 2021: The Uphill Battle to Clear Out

image courtesy of Mohamed Hassan via pixabay.com

Monday, June 28, 2021

Waning Moon

Pluto Retrograde

Saturn Retrograde

Jupiter Retrograde

Neptune Retrograde

Hot and humid

We’re still going back and forth, in moving hell.

The movers showed up on the 22^nd. They got the truck loaded in 3 hours, and off they went, which was great. We did a little packing and sorting otherwise, but were wrung out. I packed the car, except for the cats.

The cats were a little confused by the empty rooms, but as long as we were there, they weren’t too upset.

They were not happy to be caught and boxed the next morning, but we managed to be on the road a little before 4.

The trip was relatively smooth, although Tessa frequently demanded to see the manager, because she had a COMPLAINT.

Tessa took over in the empty apartment. Willa and Charlotte were unsure, but Tessa was fine.

However, when the movers finally arrived (an hour late, thanks to road construction), Tessa was unhappy again. We kept the cats in their playpens on the front porch while the movers unloaded – also very fast.

They did not add a bunch of extra charges, which was great.

We spent the afternoon resting and puttering. Charlotte is delighted by the new space. She just adores it.

We set up the back balcony to be a version of our Enchanted Garden. It’s quite lovely.

I broke one of my own rules, and we went to Walmart. Now, I will usually drive 150 miles out of my way not to shop at Walmart, and I have, but I had no capacity for anything left, and we needed a few things. So we went to the Walmart down the road, which looks new and clean.

What an awful store. We got a few things, but, really, don’t ever tell me people shop at Walmart because it’s cheap. Target’s prices are better, and so it their quality. Hell, Stop & Shop’s prices are better, and so is their quality.

But I sucked it up and we got what we needed. I cooked our first meal, and we ate out on the back balcony, at our little bistro table.

Heaven.

Went to bed early. Slept well for the first time in months. Tessa and Charlotte both want my room to be part of their territory, although Tessa has claimed the front porch.

Thursday was about resting, unpacking a little, and puttering. The difference between me and my mom: she has to unpack her room first; I started unpacking the kitchen. I unpacked the pantry goods I’d accumulated during the pandemic – we will not have to shop for staples for a good, long time.

I picked up my Spectrum internet equipment (it was just down the street). Their constant upselling drives me crazy. ALL I WANT IS INTERNET, LEAVE ME THE F ALONE!

The self-install took two hours and six different technicians, but it works.

Then Comcast argued with me about the cancellation, because they “plan” to have coverage in the area “soon.” Honey, that doesn’t help me NOW with my work, so shut the F up and cancel the account.

Put together what we needed to take back to Cape. Up very early on Friday, on the road by 6:30 to miss the worst of the traffic around Worcester. We were back on Cape around 10:30, ran some errands, and back at the house by 11.

We spent the afternoon packing/purging, and I just ran out of steam by 8 PM. Couldn’t do any more. I finalized the dumpster and hired a couple of guys to help with a storage run on Tuesday. Got dinner from Osterville Fish Market – my mom craved their fish & chips, and I had the fish tacos. Delicious!

But we slept well, even on our little pallets.

Up early Saturday. Did a storage run. Did a dump run. Dropped off hazardous wastes. Dropped off more donations at the library. Mailed a few boxes to myself.

Finished packing the stillroom, which took more time than it should have. It’s hard to put all that stuff in storage, because I use it regularly. It’s also amazing how much we saved of things like glass jars and plastic containers. Tossed a lot.

A friend came and loaded his car full of Christmas decorations, which he will bring up to us later in the summer. Very kind of him.

Packed some more out of my closet, cleaned out the front closet. We will have to put the winter coats into storage. There’s no room in the car to get them up.

The basement, laundry room, and storage over the garage are still overwhelming. How am I going to get it all done, even getting rid of a lot?

Worked until about 9 PM Saturday, when I ran out of steam. I physically can’t do the hours needed to get it all done.

Up early on Sunday. Ran a load over to storage. Back and packed the car, and we drove up to the new place. The Pike was, for all intents and purposes, closed for road work, so we took Rt. 2. Really pretty until the Alp-like driving for the last 30 miles or so. If I wasn’t so exhausted, I wouldn’t mind.

Unloaded and were all settled in by noon. The cats were happy to see us. The apartment hadn’t gotten too hot.

I sat down on the sofa for a few minutes, and woke up four hours later.

I hope I can pull it together and get my head in the game to get this last push done.

This morning, we are headed back to Cape again, for the final push. The dumpster arrives at 3-ish. Hopefully, once we get that loaded, it will feel like we’re making progress.

I have to work as long and hard as I can to get the boxes sorted for storage. The guys come at 1 PM on Tuesday, whether or not I’m ready.

Then, it’s the last stuff to storage and cleaning. We have to be out on Wednesday. I will be so relieved to be up here for good as of July 1.

I am exhausted.

I am also grateful for all the support, especially during the times I’ve fallen into despair.

Normally, I wouldn’t be so specific about the comings and goings, for security reasons, but neighbors are keeping an eye on things here, and anyone dumb enough to break into the house on Cape would run screaming.

Peace, friends, and hold stamina and good energy thoughts for me over the next few days.

Fri. June 25, 2021

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Depending on whether Plan A, Plan B, or Plan C is implemented, there’s a good chance we are cleaning. Somewhere.

Thurs. June 24, 2021: Full Moon

(image courtesy of Florian Kurz via pixabay.com)

Full moon, Mercury’s direct, hopefully the move happened according to plan, and we are unpacking. Hold a good thought for us.

Wed. June 23, 2021: Moving In Day

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This was supposed to be our recovery day, but with the adjusted schedule, this should be the day we are on the road with the cats before 5 AM and headed up to meet the movers to unload. Let’s hope they don’t come up with a lot of weird extra charges.

Tues. June 22, 2021: Revised Moving Out Day

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(image courtesy of Mohammad Hassan via pixabay.com)

This is the revised load out day. Fingers crossed it goes well.

Hold a good thought for me that it all goes smoothly.

Mercury goes direct today, which could make things tricky, although it will be great to have it out of retrograde.

Mon. June 21, 2021: Things Keep Changing (Update)

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Monday, June 21, 2021

Waxing Moon

Pluto Retrograde

Saturn Retrograde

Mercury Retrograde

Jupiter Retrograde

Hot and humid

Guess why I’m posting this? The movers pushed our load out day out by one day.

So we busted our asses until nearly midnight last night and collapsed. . .and no movers today.

It was a hellish weekend of packing, purging, feeling overwhelmed. Also, my main remote job is dragging their feet on payment. The last two payment cycles were early. This is now late. And this is the time I really counted on it. I specifically took on extra work the first two weeks of June because I knew it would be loony tunes for the last two.

But, anyway, there’s still a fuckton of purging and getting stuff to storage that needs to happen. So, we’re doing some of it today, instead of just waiting until we come back down later in the week to do it.

Although I’m bone weary and everything hurts, so I’m not moving as fast as I should.

At least Mercury goes direct tomorrow, once we’re loaded up, so, although the day could be chaotic, Wednesday should be better for driving and unloading.

Let landlords on both ends know what’s going on, rescheduled my Spectrum internet equipment pickup. Which took nearly an hour, because Spectrum might just be worse than Comcast, something I didn’t think was possible.

Headed out to storage; will do a dump run, and also pull some stuff up from the basement that’s going to the dump, and then work on some other packing/purging/organizing.

On the way back from storage, stopped in Mashpee at Asia for takeout. Yummy! I sat there, deconstructing it, so I can make it at the new place. There’s supposedly a good Asian grocery store in Pittsfield, and another good one in Hadley (the nearest Trader Joe’s is in Hadley).

Our lamps are packed, so as soon as it gets dark, off to bed!

Summer Solstice was yesterday, and we used the light as long as we could (all the lamps were already packed upstairs), and then kept packing downstairs, where there are a few overheads, and some lamps I didn’t pack until this morning – when I had to do an emergency run to Home Depot for the right size box.

Our lovely next-door neighbor is making dinner for us tomorrow and dropping it by once the movers leave. I was so grateful, I nearly cried.

But then, I’ve been a waterworks for the last few months.

Anyway, I’m at the state of exhaustion where I’m about to become babbling and incoherent, so I’ll stop now, and update when I can.

Peace, friends, and hold a good thought.

Mon. June 21, 2021: Moving Out Day

im

(image courtesy of Fabianne Sibbio via pixabay.com)

Today is the day we move out of the little red house in Centerville, where we’ve lived for just over a decade. I’m so exhausted and overwhelmed that I can’t even process those emotions.

My intent for the week is surviving the move.

Catch you on the other side.

Fri. June 18, 2021: The Saga Continues

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Friday, June 18, 2021

Waxing Moon

Pluto Retrograde

Saturn Retrograde

Mercury Retrograde

Sunny and pleasant

We’ve been really lucky these past few days, with driving and the weather. The trips to and from the Berkshires were relatively smooth. Some road construction delays, but, in general, not bad.

We are, however, exhausted. 1200 miles total, 24 hours in the car total. Even spread over three days, it’s a lot. With the packing and hauling and all the rest.

The past couple of days, the maintenance guys have come along to chat as we unloaded. Nice guys. We thanked the guy who cleaned the apartment and got it ready for us. He was delighted to see us moving lots of plants in. The painter is going to make sure there’s room for the moving truck on Tuesday. My new landlord owns a lot of properties in the neighborhood and keeps them working. So it’s all good.

And I like getting to know them. These are my new neighbors and colleagues. Yes, they’ll get cookies at holiday time!

We got the last carload of stuff up the stairs and tucked away, until the movers bring the big stuff. It was a motley assortment, and as I unpacked, sometimes I wondered what I’d been thinking when I packed.

So many of the books I wanted to bring up on the truck won’t make it. The separation anxiety from being disconnected to the books I regularly use is enormous, but I have to push that away and deal with it sometime in July.

The constant sense of failure that I’m doing a bad job on this move is eating at me, too. Again, I have to push it away to deal with what’s directly in front of me, and then handle it once we’re up there.

July will be about dealing with a lot of psychological fallout. Right now, I have to focus, push through the exhaustion, and get it done.

I’m so grateful to the people who donated to the GoFundMe. We’ve exceeded the goal. I’m going to take it down soon. The fact we’ve exceeded the goal gives us a bit of a cushion. The generosity and support from people (some of who’ve known me for years, others who never met me) humbles me.

I will find a way to pay it forward.

My only concern with the GoFundMe is the delay in receiving the funds. Even though I’m set up for daily withdrawals starting immediately, it can take up to a week for the funds to actually arrive.

And I’m still waiting to be paid for the script coverage job, which concerns me.

One thing I noticed – all the donors are women. Which makes me want to research whether there are funding organizations created by women who primarily fund women. There must be, somewhere. I’d like to do an article on them. If not, there’s a definite need.  The misogyny I faced in the loan process – for a little, bitty loan – was astonishing. If I faced that for a small loan, what kind of misogyny are other women facing for larger loans, home loans, medical loans, etc.? Especially with the way the pandemic forced so many women out of the workforce.

There’s also material for an article in the gap between what people actually NEED and what organizations who claim to help actually offer. And how organizations would rather just pass one along to another organization than actually DO anything.

I’m also tired of the pandemic excuse. Plenty of workers were forced to work through the pandemic, and the rest of us were forced back to work (here in MA) May 2020, when the stay-at-home was lifted (we were never quarantined, no matter how people moan). The mask mandate was lifted as of May 29 this year, and the state of emergency was lifted June 15.  Either these restrictions have been lifted and we proceed with caution, or we’re still at a standstill for ALL of us. These businesses and organizations playing both sides against the middle to force workers into unsafe conditions for a profit, while not delivering that for which they’re paid – no.

The pandemic is NOT over. The Delta variant is getting stronger. We’re still masking whenever we go inside a bank or a store. Yesterday, in line at CVS, I turned to the unmasked guy behind me who was hitting me in the back as he texted as told him to back up.

I’m nervous that the movers will screw me next week. I don’t trust them. Especially since I have to pay t hem in cash.

I trusted my other guys, the ones who moved me up here, because I’d used them before and because they gave me a binding quote.

Also, I don’t want them dicking around. If I could fill a 12-foot truck by myself in 3 hours, and, with the help of two other WOMEN get the big pieces in over 30 minutes, and the 3 of us unloaded in 40 minutes – I don’t want any of this 6- or 7-hour loading crap. We don’t have much furniture. The only heavy piece is the sofa bed. I want that truck packed FAST.

I’m glad Juneteenth is a holiday, but the feds celebrate today and the state on Monday, and I’m worried that will screw up the move and the banking and all the rest, too.

This weekend, we’re packing and prioritizing what goes on the truck, and doing more runs to storage. The only things left in the main portion of the house are what’s going on the truck.

Stuff for the dump run/dumpster will be in the garage. There will still be a lot o do in the basement and the storage area. But what goes up immediately will be sorted and organized and ready to load.

There will be long days, and it will be difficult to pack at night, because we took most of the lamps up and there are few overhead lights here.

But we will get it done because we have to.

Monday, the movers come up and load. We clean as we can.

Tuesday, they unload up at the new place. We are leaving between 4 and 5 in the morning, and should be able to meet them in time.

Later next week, we have to come back here and finish. Trust me, no one will want to break in and steal what’s left. Most of it is headed for the dumpster.

I have posts scheduled for next week, some of which might change as the situation changes. But this will be the last substantial post until sometime at the end of next week.

I have to finish a script coverage writeup this morning, and then, I don’t see how I can do any more until the end of the month. Which is a hit to my earnings. But I’m at my limits.

Thank you for all your support. I’m sure I’ll be posting on Twitter throughout.

Peace, friends, and see you on the other side.

Thurs. June 17, 2021: Third Road Trip

image courtesy of Rudy and Peter Skitterans via pixabay.com

Thursday, June 17, 2021

Waxing Moon

Pluto Retrograde

Saturn Retrograde

Mercury Retrograde

Sunny and pleasant

My 96-year-old mother didn’t sleep at all Tuesday into Wednesday. She fretted, and finally got up and packed, followed around by the cats.

I was out like a dead thing, and staggered around when I woke up at 3:30 AM.

We were on the road by 4:30, and made excellent time until we hit the road construction in Lee, and were sent on a detour without signs. But we figured it out.

Got to the apartment at 8:30, unloaded, made some placement decisions, had tea and a snack, and were back on the road just after 10.

Meanwhile, the loan people were trying to argue with me because I called them out. And refusing to deal with the misogyny. They pretend to “do good” but they’re just as corrupt as any other financial industry. Not to mention (again) their misogyny.

I am gathering all kinds of evidence for a blistering article once we’re moved, about non-profits that are more interested in getting intake numbers for their annual reports/funding grants than actually helping those they claim to help.

The GoFundMe is going, and here is the link. If you can toss in a few bucks, or share it, it’s greatly appreciated.

Came back, had to do some paperwork at the bank that we’d sent at the start of the pandemic, and which they’d ignored.

Came home, ate a pallid Lean Cuisines (my mother said it was “old lady food” and she preferred my cooking). Then started packing the weird assortment of stuff we’re taking up today. And cleaned out the fridge. The freezer’s next on the list.

We have the most awesome, enormous fridge/freezer unit at the new place. I’ll be able to make batches of dumplings and freeze them on trays before bagging them in batches.

Today is our last RT pre-move. I’m pretty wiped out, and barely holding on, but I’m doing it. I try to use the drive time as moving meditation and stress relief (in spite of all the bad drivers).

We’ll head up with this load, head back, and pack, sort, purge, and haul stuff to storage like maniacs for the next few days.

My big worry is that the movers will screw us next week, with extra charges. Deal with that as it happens, right? Once they’re paid, I’ll know how much I have for the dumpster and if I can get a little help for the last storage runs. The loan people really, really screwed me.

I’m also waiting for the script coverage payment. Figures the one time I need it to be at the early end of the window. . .it isn’t. The last two cycles, I was paid the day after the pay period ended.

Fingers crossed, and hoping for the best.

But the new place already feels like home and embraces us, and I’m trying to do a release ritual here to make it easier for us to get the heck out of dodge. I did so much work early on to put down roots, I’m having trouble getting free.

We’ll deal with the psychological fallout later.

Wish us another good trip, please. I’m so tired I can barely function. But we’ll do this, rest tonight, and dig in tomorrow with storage and dump runs and packingpackingpackingpackingpacking. . . .

Wed. June 16, 2021: Another Road Trip

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Wednesday, June 16, 2021

Waxing Moon

Pluto Retrograde

Saturn Retrograde

Mercury Retrograde

Sunny and pleasant

Most of yesterday was great, in spite of me being up by 2 AM.

Since we’d packed the car the night before, we were on the road at 5 AM. It was raining a bit, but traffic wasn’t bad. Except for the roadwork in Adams, we made decent time and were there by 9.

We got the keys and unloaded. The place is even more delightful than we remembered. The windows are huge, there’s so much light. A bunch of rooms and nooks and crannies, and I am seriously in love with the kitchen.

The bedrooms are about a quarter the size of the ones here, but hey, we’re in there TO SLEEP. I’ll have an office AND a sewing room. We love it.

We brought in the salt, bread, and wine first. Start off right! We unloaded and tucked things away so they wouldn’t be in the way when the movers unload. We sat in our little camp chairs by the (fake) fireplace, nibbling on bread and tea and looking at measurements and deciding where to put things.

And, for a few wonderful moments, were happy and stress-free.

Unloaded, headed back down. Traffic was worse the other way.

Found out a relocation loan we’d been promised would be in the bank yesterday has been rescinded because they don’t believe a daughter can be named for her mother. We have the same first name (and surname) with different initials. Different social security numbers, drivers license numbers, etc. But the loan people say it “doesn’t match” and doesn’t believe there can be two of us. I pointed out that if I was a man with my father’s name and “jr” it wouldn’t be an issue. It’s misogyny, pure and simple. Red flags were already up when I had to send them the same information three or four times, and they’d say the application was complete and the money would be transferred in 2-4 days, and then, after those days passed, asked for the exact same information I’d already sent.

It’s not even that much. They’re acting like it’s the GDP of a small country.

Anyway, I had to set up a GoFundMe, which makes me feel, yet again, like a total failure. The link is here, and I’m hoping people will just toss in five or ten bucks and it will add up.

I descended into the depths of Lean Cuisine Hell because I’m too damn tired to cook. It’s edible. Not brilliant, but edible, and gets us through the next few days.

Repacked the car, and to bed early. We hit the road for another RT today.

Peace friends. If I can just get the hell off Cape, all will be better.

Tues. June 15, 2021: On The Road

(image courtesy of Pexels from pixabay.com

Tuesday, June 15, 2021

Waxing Moon

Pluto Retrograde

Saturn Retrograde

Mercury Retrograde

Supposed to be a little rainy

I’m scheduling this to post. I used to have a VW beetle like the one pictured, but it was red. My VW rabbit is about this shade of blue, though.

Yesterday went much better than expected. Picked up the rental truck at Cape Cod Auto & Transport. They were Soooooo nice – told me not to worry about when I dropped it off, just leave the key in the drop box. So the “reservation assistant” caused me a day of stress for no reason.

Truck was easy to drive. Even got it backed into the driveway (with my landlord’s help).

I spent the morning loading in all the boxes by myself. It wasn’t that bad. I’d staged a bunch in the garage – and had them packed in 15 minutes. So I’d bring a stack up to the garage from the basement, take a 5-minute break, load them into the truck, take a 5-minute break, load the next stack, etc. I had all the boxes in before my neighbors showed up, and it was just a few pieces of furniture.

We drove to Bourne, and had it all unloaded and packed in the storage unit in 40 minutes.  And there’s plenty of room for everything else we need to put in. What a relief!

Drove back, filled the truck with gas, dropped it off. Loaded the car with our first batch for the new place.

This morning, we hit the road by 5 AM, get our keys, unload, take some measurements, drive back down, and reload the car.

I’m looking forward to it! Let’s hope today goes smoothly. Lots of driving, but getting the keys to the new place is a big step.

Peace, friends, and thanks for all the support. It truly makes a difference.