07.14.26 Piece of Cake for the win...

     Utter exhaustion. That's what we're feeling, and we didn't even do the hard lifting. One thing I can say, well there's a bunch, is if you ever need to be moved, across the city, across town, or across the country, I strongly recommend Piece of Cake Moving & Storage. Not only was the company solid in every way, but the three guys they sent to handle our move were top notch. So a big shout and thanks to Nikola, Bato, and Dimitrige. They all have a great story coming to the United States from Montenegro, which I now know is country in Southeast Europe.  

     I started the day at 0130 am and headed to the attic. Some advice I might give if you downsize and move, start from the top of the house and work down. Like they say, "Out of sight, out of mind", and we underestimated how much we had up there, so it was a four hour grind picking through, packing, and lugging it down to the outside of the house. 

     Another tidbit I might add when it comes to moving and moving companies. While it's easy to come up with an estimated number of items you'll move, and with that comes an estimated cost, it's not until the boys are standing in your house where the actual numbers, in boxes and cash, becomes reality.

     The above was my guesstimate that I kept updating with the sales office from Piece of Mind. But when the guys showed up it dint take long for the count, and the cost, to go up. And this wasn't a bait and switch move on their part, they are a well oiled machine.

     Each piece is stickered and skewed for tracking purposes. So while my estimate was 100 items, the final count was just shy of 200. That's was an extra lot of bins, boxes, and stuff. They took it in stride as they are used to people going though what we went through. Our initial estimate was about $2,300, then it rose to $3,700, and the final add on today was an additional $1,300, so in the end it ran about $5,000, plus a well deserved tip for each of the boys.

     With each box we filled we were asked, "Do you need any more boxes?", and of course the answer was yes. And of course the last boxes were filled, or stuff just poured in, from drawers, closets, and of course the attic. Was it stressful? Even though we weren't loading, well Theresa 

needed to hit the bottle at 1130 am. She was helping with the move, dealing with me and the movers, on the phone with the well water people, and sweating to death. So I get it. 

      The boys did an amazing job triple wrapping everything and taking care that nothing got damaged. When the truck was loaded up at the house it was time to hit the U-Haul storage unit. "How many things do you have over there?", "Oh, not much". 

     Since we so underestimated the amount of stuff we had the question wasn't the additional price but the room in the truck. It was trip after trip down the halls with more bins than I remembered. 

     And five hours later we were, well they, were trying out how to get our stuff last stuff in the truck and close the rear doors, but somehow they did it. Every single last bit.

     Just after the doors were closed and we finished up the paperwork I grabbed a picture of the guys. If you're lucky enough to get this crew count your blessings. 

Now the truck and our stuff will go to a temporary storage area before it heads down to South Carolina next week where we'll unload, well three new guys will, all that into the two car garage while we get some work done before we move stuff inside. So it'll be a dump and run back to Cape May for the closing up there. 

     After it was all over I gently lowered myself to the ground in the living room because we have no furniture to sit on anymore. I guess the day caught up with me because I woke up to Theresa saying, "Annie, Annie are you okay", like she was checking for a pulse during a CPR recert.

     It's Monday night and the final walkthrough is 0800 AM on Thursday morning. The final dumpster arrives tomorrow morning and it'll be a long day doing last trips around the house where it'll be brought somewhere to donate or tossed into the dumpster. Oh yeah, I still have to install the butcher block countertops in the kitchen...nothing like the last minute. 

07.13.26 It's moving day....(vomit)....

     It's 0108 AM and I'm about to start the process of one final sweep throughout the house to make sure what the movers are taking is ready to go. Yesterday we loaded up the Suburban with the fragile items and things that are too small for the movers to handle. This isn't a move across town were you can make several trips, nor local where we could load up a storage unit. 

     I started the day loading up the boat which will serve as another moving vehicle. Luckily the boats stripped down and the compartments empty which are filled to the brim with things that need to make the trip. 

     By days end she was loaded and strapped down and is ready to be hooked up and towed. When we first started packing the bins and boxes were well thought out and organized, but as we're hours away it's become, "Just throw it in a box", which, in the end just makes more work later, but there's no time for any more editing and getting rid of stuff. 

     During a box and tape run over to U-Haul we stopped by our storage unit to check and make sure things are organized and ready for one of the movers stops today. One will be the house, the other the storage unit. 

     One of the last things to do was take down the 1214 Archer sign. I made it years ago with letters and numbers I bought from Hobby Lobby. It served us, and our visitors, delivery drivers, yard salers, and potential home buyers well. No it's time to remove our name and let it serve the new owners. 

     The letters and numbers aren't even made of wood but of a compressed cardboard. They come off easy enough but to replace our name with theirs is impossible because they both carry their own last names and there's just not enough space. 

     I had to chuckle when I looked into the Suburban and Mr. and Mrs. Claus were staring at me. These were planted on the foot of the Christmas tree at my parents house for decades, and now they're heading south. Several people, who tore down the masking tape blocking the attic during our estate sales, inquired about them, and it's just an item I couldn't let go. 

     And speaking of letting go, after having it stored in a box since she wore it in 1992, was Theresa's wedding gown. While many people have them repurposed as Christening gowns she felt it was finally time to let it go, so off ton the local church's thrift store it goes. I joked with Theresa that the only person who would want it is someone a costume for Halloween. 

I can't tell you how many things, like hundreds if not thousands, we've have sold, donated, and dumsptered since we began this process in January. It's all over now and there maybe one more Goodwill run or dumpster toss left in us, but today the rest of it all will be in hands of the movers. 

07.12.26 One day till movers, five days till closing...

      Moving sounds similar to Major League Baseball when they announce the time before pitchers and catchers report for the season. Well, it's here. Tomorrow the movers come, and, we're not ready. But they're coming either way so it is what it is. They emailed and called me to 

confirm what, when, and where, and most importantly how much we're moving. Can you ever really know how much yo have until it's all boxed up and sitting at the door?

     I went and ordered a 10-yard dumpster for Tuesday morning, "Just when I thought I was done, they dragged me back in". I just know we're going to have a bunch of stuff that didn't make the move or to the donation centers. We also took the final drive with the dump trailer over to my brother's where he'll take up use of it.

     If you ever eat to challenge the strength of a marriage all you have to do is try to downsize and move in relatively short order. The stress levels are high, and coupled with the heat and humidity, 

we act more like hyenas on the Sahara Desert in Africa. We need to stick to the plan, get her done, and know that in two weeks it'll all be over. 

     And after several years sitting in the yard without being registered and stickers up I went and finally took real and legal ownership of Jim's boat. While trips to the DMV, especially registering out of state boats and trailers, are enough to crack anyone, this one went pretty easy, but long. 

     Wish us luck heading into tomorrow morning when the big straight job truck pulls into the driveway. I know this is going to be a long, long day. 

07.11.26 For the love of God stop growing...

     My neighbors can't understand why I'm working so hard around the house. Well, to me, the buyers bought the house with an expectation that when they take possession, like in six days, it'll pretty much look like they saw it when they agreed to purchase it on May 13th. May 13th, that was 58 days ago. Since then I have mowed the grass 13 times. That's once every 4.5 days. That's a lot of mowing. That's a lot of trimming. and that's a lot of picking up twigs and branches. 

     And why so much? Well this late spring and early summer have been nothing short of Bipolar weather. Either it's 110 degrees out or it's raining 6 inches in two hours. And when it rains hard, then the sun comes out, the grass, hedges, and weeds grow like mad. Add in the humidity and dew point and it feels like Jurassic Park out here. And one thing I've learned in eight years, don't let the grass get in front of, or behind you, miss a mow and it quickly becomes overgrown. And one thing you don't want to do is keep raising the blade height on the lawnmower to accommodate missed mows. 

     We have just about and acre and most of it is covered in some kind of green. While I had a tractor I could never get the mower deck on it and leveled right so it always came out screwed up. So I have relied on my trusty Toro 30 inch Yardmaster. And to it I owe a great deal of gratitude. 

     We purchased it around 2015 and it's been in the shop for everything just short of a motor replacement. Soon I will turn over the pull start to the new buyers. I have a feeling they have no idea what keeping up with this lawn, and property, entails. Thatching and aerating it in the fall, reseeding in the fall and spring, rounds of preventer and fertilizer, all to keep it in check. During the hot summer months we've been having it's hard to keep it from getting burnt and going into hibernation. 

     When we bought the house it was some time that the lawn and landscaping had seen some regular attention. The grass was overgrown and full of weeds, the shrubs were out of control, and there were several large trees, some dead and still up, and some dead and down on the ground, around the property. 

     I think we were out $6,800 to get the above California redwood taken down and the stump ground away before we even moved in. I have worked that land hard over the years but am now ready to pass it all on and enjoy paying the HOA fees that cover landscaping. I'm also looking forward to having a garage, a two-car garage at that. That'll be a far cry from the Tobacco Road set-up, that's what Theresa called it, that I kept for years. 

     My neighbor's must have really loved me because looking at the above picture I don't know how they didn't call the town on me, and the two boats aren't even in the picture. But now that space is cleaned up and ready for the next owners. 

     Back in the day there used to be a cool garage covering that concrete pad. I wish, and I'm sure my neighbor's did as well, I had that structure to keep things high and dry and organized. Below is a picture I received from the previous owners from years back.

     Maybe the new buyers will get one of those Amish built garages put in its place to store all of the tools and equipment it takes to run this house and property. Maybe finally that old lawn mower can spend bad weather days and seasons in a garage and not under a tarp. Or maybe they'll just punt and contract with a landscaper to handle it all. That would be a good move, kinda like paying an HOA fee, so they aren't slaves to at least the grounds around the house. When it was built back in the 1920's there were house staff that lived in the house. And after eight log years here I understand why. 

07.10.26 It was time to call in for some help...

     The old family dump trailer. It's been a staple during our time here in the country house. Between the leaves and downed branches that had to be trucked to the dump and soil and mulch that came home it has been an invaluable tool we had access to. It was also a must have for those basement flooding monsoons we've had during our time here. Below is a picture of it put to work after a basement flood we had in 2021, just one of several over the eight years. 

     It was always pulled with whatever beater pick-up truck I had owned at the time. And then there are the tools that are needed to go with it, chainsaws, hedge trimmers, shovels, rakes, pitchforks, trimmers, and leaf blowers. I don't think our young buyers have that, and don't even know that they know they will need it. You know you need a beater, and a dump trailer, when you have an old house, right?

     So as we get real close it was time to call in the reinforcements, and today that meant my Dad. Age isn't a factor, but I'll tell you my 80 year-old Father broke his ass helping me out today. First it was a ride to Home Depot to pick up butcher block countertops, which I have to install by Monday. Then it was weatherproofing the wooden basement doors from the outside. And then my final trip 

to the dump where I paid my last $30 dumping fee to get rid of stuff from around the yard. Going forward I'll have no need for a pick-up or a dump body down in Cape May or Bluffton. But I did 

find this little beauty while searching around the country on Facebook Marketplace. It's in St. Petersburg, Florida, only a few towns from my Mom in Bradenton..... I have a plan, and a mental disorder. But wouldn't she and the Suburban look nice parked next to each other at The Shrimp Shack. Oh yes, The Shrimp Shack, more on that, and the name coming soon. Now back to reality, and working around the yard anymore, I'm now all about having another people handle landscaping type things for us, for the rest of our lives. 

     We finished just before the heavens opened up and deluged the area. I was then off to New Egypt to have the new trailer hitch installed on the Suburban and to pick up the boat and trailer. While I like to think I can do anything, it just felt right having a professional do something for once 

in my life. I know I could have serviced the wheels and axles on the trailer myself. All the guy did was remove the wheels, and the axles, replaced the ball bearings and hubs, no big deal, I could have done that...yeah right. But the thought of the wheels coming unglued and falling off somewhere between here and South Carolina made me think that just paying the bill and having it done right would leave me with some piece of mind, and my life. 

     And I know I could have ran new wires and installed the new lights on the trailer, including those side yellow marker lights that have been holding on by a thread. But truth be told I could have never had the patience to run the wires through the inside the rails and forget about doing all the connections properly and having them be water tight. In the end it was $475 for the trailer work and $175 to have the hitch and connector bracket installed. The Curt Trailer hitch ran me $490, so I'm into this portion of boat and moving expense around $1,200. But at least I feel confident now, and safe. 

     And then Theresa asked me a reasonable question, "Do you really need to tow that boat down to South Carolina?", oh, the blasphemy. The idea of starting anew, and getting rid of everything and anything we had, well, duh, applies to anything but old boats of course. 

     The above picture was taken on September 21, 2000, the day I proposed to Laura about the possibility of me buying Jim's boat. Theresa were out for a visit and it just seemed like a good fit. I brought her home a month later and gave her a good cleaning and a once over. The once over became many once overs as I tried to figure out all the things Jim had added and modified. Boat mechanics even shook their heads trying to figure it all out, and most just passed on the opportunity to help. 

     While I was able to use it a handful of times most of her tenure has been sitting in my yard waiting for the moment to get her restored, and that time is coming soon, or at least a little closer. I made a promise to Laura, and Jim, and myself, well Theresa as well, that one day the boat will be back to her original condition. 

      And the picture above shows Jim shortly after he purchased the boat in October of 1996, and that's the way I want to return it to. Stripped down, simple, and easy. Interestingly the boat, above, came with a 130 on it, shortly after they came with 150's, and there's no poling platform. That's why I couldn't find one in Jim and Laura's pole barn, and the one that I did find Jim had designed and built himself. My plan was to grab the one Paul Eidman has in his yard but for some reason he's emotionally attached to it at the moment. In the end I'll probably have to get one from Jones Brother's down in Moorhead City, unless he reads this and changes his mind. 

     So in the next few days I'll be loading up the boat with stuff that won't fit in the Suburban or that the movers aren't taking. Next Wednesday or Thursday we'll leave for South Carolina to drop it and some stuff off before heading back north to Cape May. 

With the boat and trailer checked off the list it's time to move onto other last minute things to do. We're still not out of the woods, and things can always go sideways, but there's light at the end of the tunnel. 

07.09.26 Well we did our part for the closing...and who knew?

     Gettin' real close...and still lots to do. We started off the day heading down to our new house in Cape May. We bought stuff the movers won't be taking and dropped off Theresa's car. It's not officially ours yet as the closing will be after we close on the sale of our home in Titusville next week. 

     And then we drove back up to Lawrenceville to the Lenox Law Firm where we signed the closing papers our attorney Bob Casey and his paralegal Stella had prepared for us. Interestingly our neighbor Lynn, who grew up in our house, has a history with that firm as her late-husband was a partner and she herself worked there with him. 

     So at one point as Theresa and I sat there sweating at what we were signing Bob said, "I heard you're a fisherman", and he added that he was as well, a fly fishermen. Through the process of selling the house we talked and been back and forth a bunch of times never knowing we both love fly fishing. So then I let out a sigh of relief and the conversation became more about striped bass, the Delaware River and the Jersey Shore, and for him, travel trips to overseas destinations.  

     As Stella fed us papers to sign Bob motioned for me to follow him. Above is a shot of an Atlantic salmon that he caught on a recent trip to Iceland. But what got my attention was the photo of him with a nice redfish caught while on his annual trip to Louisiana. When I catch up with Captain Joe "Mazman" Mustari, who runs charters around  the Raritan Baybass, blues, and albies, he always talks about how good the redfishing is down in The Bayou State. He too makes annual trips down there for that bull red bite. I can't wait to one day learn and fish the waters down in the Lowcountry for redfish. 

     Ironically he spends a good part of the summer down in Cape May so we exchanged numbers and hope to meet up in the next few weeks down there after we settle in. Last week he caught a schoolie bass and a fluke so there's fish to be had, probably at first light before the beaches fill up with people. I remember those summer days in Monmouth County, before Sandy and beach 

nourishment, where you could always pop-up a resident bass at first light or get them to eat a mole crab fly on the lip. Sadly, those days have passed.

     So the docs for closing are all signed on our part now we have to finish packing and finishing up some projects around the house. The. movers come Monday. The kids (the buyers) are coming in the afternoon to get a tour on the house, and then it's the closing on Thursday. And then we're off to Cape May.

Soon this blog will return to being all about fly fishing once again.