The Old Folks Home

[microchick]

The last time I moved to a new place I was 39--It was across town but was still a beat! Moving from Corning to Woodland was terrible though. We did it over a couple of weeks using a pickup and a trailer. The oldest daughters were toddlers too. I had to do most of it because my Wife had started her new job teaching.

Yep, been there done that. We used our Econoline cargo van and 12 foot dual axle trailer and with the exception of one motorcycle, did it all without help. DH is two years older than I am so it was rough. Our mailman happened to see us struggling to push the motorcycle up the ramp, stopped and helped us. I felt like hugging him. It was amazing how every friend we had ever helped moved disappeared into the woodwork when word got out that we were moving. It took us 2 years to complete the move. And get the properties sold. We can't bring ourselves to cross the Mississippi river still to this date, LOL and go back to IL. Once we finished up, that was it.

We had one couple, bless them, who had a meal waiting for us every time we came into town to load up the van and trailer. The husband has progressing Parkinson's Disease from agent orange exposure in Vietnam. Isn't it amazing how those who need help themselves are always willing to be the first to help others?

 

[dsqard]

Completely agree that moving sucks. I am very grateful our company pays for the move so the moving company did most of the packing and moved the furniture out of the old house and into the new house. I did manage to get every box unpacked in about two weeks. I still have to finish getting the office set up (stuff is still sitting on the floor in there) and our downstairs isn't set up yet other than my sewing area. Not exactly sure how I want that room to be set up which is why it isn't. Not a lot to organize but not sure what I am going to do with the space. The only other thing that needs to be organized is a table in the garage. Left that for DH to do and I would bet money (don't bet against me, I ONLY do sucker bets) that table will sit unorganized until I get tired of looking at it and organize it myself. DH is not the best at organizing stuff. I will say after moving four times in the last fifteen years has taught me how to get things set up fairly quickly unless you want to live out of boxes. I do need to downsize some stuff though. I have to decide what I am going to do with all my horse gear (saddles, bridles, halters, etc) and need to go through my clothes. I want to lighten that load a bit. BTW I came up with what I think is a great way to organize gloves during this move. I bought a shoe organizer that hangs on a door and put pairs of gloves in the pockets instead of shoes. It works great, all the gloves stay together as a pair and they are not shoved on a shelf where they keep falling down.

 

[Wickedchicken6]

I haven't moved since I was 19 when I got married and I moved from home to our house, which was only a car full of stuff. But we've helped my Mom move (she moved a lot) and a friend move. Kudos to those of you who've done it!

I totally agree about cleaning out stuff you know you won't need and can get rid of before hand. We're starting now to try and lighten the load because I'm sure it will take about 20 years to get through all the stuff we've accumulated over the last 20 years.

Microchick, your comment about those who need help are the first to help made me think of this quote I keep:


“The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.”
- Elizabeth Kubler Ross


I love that quote, it's so true! I think if someone's needed help they recognize how important help can be to others. Hubby and I might make one good person out of the two of us...lol. We've worn ourselves out physically, we actually were at his knee surgeon in the city yesterday. But we recognize how important help is...even something as simple as holding a door for those requiring assistance. Many people our age who haven't hit this stage or haven't had parents that need assistance yet don't recognize or go this extra step to help someone else.

We offered our truck and trailer and helped my best friend move items from her parents house (they retired and were liquidating everything that didn't fit in their apartment) to her house. (3 hours away)
I can't lift anything more than lamps, but my husband and son could help lift at least. It was funny how the other people who were able bodied didn't make it in time to assist. They just got there at the end when we were done.

 

[pennyJo1960]

With the closing in my spinal column I am not suppose to lift my BF turned 70 this month so
he was 69 I was 55 and his son is 33, James the son has very hard time moving flat feet
spending his 20 years working in retail not with out major heart murmur.
the three of us did it.. the two of them had been in the same house since James had been born

 

[Latestarter]

Well, I have a two wheeled hand truck and a "4" wheeled one. The kind that has the capability to lower down to a "flat bed" hand cart that you can stack like boxes on. Neither one a "heavy", like one of those refer moving hand carts with the straps to secure the load. I've had to do 4 times as many trips from the house to the trailer, but it's all good. I have two more items that it will be difficult for me to move by myself, my "L" shaped computer desk with top storage, and my recliner. I CAN remove the back from the recliner so even that won't be much of an issue. I moved the chest freezer and old side by side refer into the trailer then hand carried all kinds of stuff to load inside each. No sense wasting all that space. I'll do it all again in reverse when it's delivered to TX. I may ask the neighbor lady to help with the computer desk. I've been very helpful to her since living here, and she'll help me. I just gave her my reclining sofa and reclining love seat and helped move them from here to inside her place. Other than that, it's all on me.

I expect this will be my last "move" of this type. If I leave this next place it will be to a motor home and virtually zero possessions except those required to live on the road.

 

[perchie.girl]

My last move was to the place I have now.... fourteen years in my previous house as a hoarder.. I threw away alot like two dumpsters brought in by semis. Yep that was alot.

went from three bed one bath on a sixty by seventy lot, to one bed one bath. and 18 acres. It was like a sigh of relief to have some space inside the house and out. I vowed to not hoard again and still havent. My stuff I chose to move is still in a storage container on my property.

Very little went into the house.

deb

 

[Peep_Show]

I am convinced the Seventh Circle of Hell is full of cardboard moving boxes.

In 2013 Mom passed away and we decided to move... That meant clearing out and packing up 3 houses and prepping the properties for sale, plus rehabbing the one we were moving into. Never again. I am a barnacle. You can scrape me outta here when I'm dead. The large living room of the house we moved into looked more like a warehouse or a canyon of boxes as it became the repository for the other places. It took months to unpack it all and it wasn't until the threat of relatives coming for the holidays that we finally reclaimed our living space. And -- this is kind of funny -- I do now have an aversion to cardboard boxes. Stuff arrives and if I set it aside I have a hard time bringing myself to open it and deal with what's inside. Possibly some mental block from having to pass judgment, pack and unpack.

 

[Peep_Show]

BTW, I did all the packing and moving myself. DH was working. Some of the stuff (Mom's furniture) traveled from Nor-Cal to Albuquerque with Yours Truly at the wheel. Had help loading the heavy furniture, but all the boxes were on me....literally and figuratively.

 

[perchie.girl]

I am convinced the Seventh Circle of Hell is full of cardboard moving boxes.

In 2013 Mom passed away and we decided to move... That meant clearing out and packing up 3 houses and prepping the properties for sale, plus rehabbing the one we were moving into. Never again. I am a barnacle. You can scrape me outta here when I'm dead. The large living room of the house we moved into looked more like a warehouse or a canyon of boxes as it became the repository for the other places. It took months to unpack it all and it wasn't until the threat of relatives coming for the holidays that we finally reclaimed our living space. And -- this is kind of funny -- I do now have an aversion to cardboard boxes. Stuff arrives and if I set it aside I have a hard time bringing myself to open it and deal with what's inside. Possibly some mental block from having to pass judgment, pack and unpack.

Oooh I just had an AHA momennt.... thank you

deb

 

[microchick]

Welcome to the club, Peep_show. And thank you for the laugh.

Our home has an attached shop as it once upon a time was an Amish carpentry business. Several times there were so many plastic totes stacked there up that I said I felt as though I was being held captive in a PacMan game. DH would say that we needed to make another run back to IL and I would just motion around me at the stacks of totes and say "And put it where?" The house was full, the shop was full and overflowing into the barn.

We took time off to build closets and a room to store office equipment then hit the road again.

We kept praying for a selective tornado hit but we never got lucky.