Packing and Prepping for the Road

It was pretty cool to watch how they moved this thing.

I am unbelievably exhausted, and I'm pretty sure my Dad, who reminded me today that his next major birthday milestone is 60, is even more pooped. Today (with beautiful weather - a real rarity in these parts), we loaded about half of a 8'x16' PODS container.

Dad also reminded me that this is the first time since high school that everything I own is in one place, which is crazy. Not only is everything going to be in one home since they are - shall we say "encouraging" - me to take anything of mine I don't want thrown away, I'm also taking quite a few things that they're simply trying to get out of the house in preparation for their next move.

But beggars can't be choosers, and a beggar I am because moving is expensive! My company will be reimbursing me for some of the costs, but it's killing me now since it's all upfront. The PODS container alone is $2,200, not to mention the gas to get out there, food, places to sleep since it's a 24+ hour trip, etc.

But John and I have decided to make the best of the trip out. We're leaving Monday for Memphis, Tenn. and staying an extra day for site-seeing, staying with my Grandpa one night, and spending a few nights in Shenandoah National Park. While I hate long-distance driving, I'm looking forward to the fun we'll have :-) We haven't decided what all we want to do in Memphis, but the Memphis Zoo, the Rock 'n' Soul Museum, Sun Studio, Stax Museum of American Soul Music, and Beale Street are all on the list of potential places to visit. Tell me what you think we should do by voting (sidebar to the right on the blog's homepage).

Dad is the master of Tetris. That's why
he broke out the sweatband.

So besides packing constantly and making phone calls for arrangements (from hotel reservations to switching over my utilities), I'm also trying to see friends before I take off. Last night, Laura (my college roommate and hair cutter extraordinaire) introduced me to the very awesome Anvil Bar in the Montrose area of Houston for finely crafted drinks. I also got to meet her sweet, 70-pound Labrador retriever Brujo, which of course made me miss Paparazzi (he's staying with John while I wrap things up in Houston). I'm hoping to see a few more people this weekend yet!

In the mean time, real-life Tetris will continue, but since the storage unit is all but empty (only my unneeded washer and dryer remain), I'm hoping it will move swiftly.

I finished up today with an Elk burger from Fuddruckers (oh yes, I said ELK!) and a little more repacking magic, and now my brain is shutting down. I'm going to get some shut eye so I can get up early tomorrow to finish up and get back to my boys!

P.S.
Did I mention that moving is hard and expensive? Just wanted to make sure that got in there.