It still isn't over, not by a long shot. Yesterday we returned to Titusville to pick-up the last remaining "stuff" we had in one neighbors garage and the other's basement. As soon as I opened the door to the truck Luke bolted to the back door of the old ranch and wouldn't budge. That dog is a good dog and I know is confused as hell because everyday he wakes up he's coming or going to a new place. In a few weeks he'll be taking his first 11-hour drive to South Carolina, and he hates car rides.
We met up the new owners, who moved in last Saturday, a day when it was about 200 degrees and then monsooned until the water came through the ceiling in the breakfast room and poured into the basement. They told us, "We wanted to cry", well, welcome to the world of living in a 100-year old house. But they are happy and have already done good work there like updating both electrical panels in the house and having the outlets and switches redone. It's still weird walking around there and we truly felt like we were trespassing on someone's else's property.
We took both vehicles up to Mercer County and filled them to the roof. It's a mix of tools and last minute boxes which are a mish-mash of everything from underwear to utensils to remotes to silverware. It'll have to go through one more hard edit before it either hits the Cape May thrift stores, the dumpster, or takes the trip south.
In other move related news it was a day to surrender. It was time to surrender our license plates to the NJMVC drop-off box. In my old life I would have tucked these away in the corner, for years, before either cutting them up or dropping them off. Luckily I had these in my Suburban when I saw the Motor Vehicle place down in Cape May.
And then there's Piece of Cake moving. They did a great job with the initial load, and then so-so with the transfers and ride down. Somehow they lost my 24-foot extension ladder and lost or
broke a large ceramic planter. When they located the ladder they asked if they could drop it off at Sun City, which would have meant it would be leaned against the house, which would be a huge HOA violation. So luckily I have The Boat House in Ridgeland where they were able to leave it.
While we were up north we were able to connect with our ex-neighbor Lynn. We both decided to sell our homes at the same time using the same realtor but we went and blew up that plan by selling it on our own by chance. Her house is spectacular and is officially now on the market, HERE. After we loaded up the cars I had a couple of Guinness before we hit It's Nutts for some lunch and then her couch for a much needed nap.
We pulled into Cape May around six and just left everything where it was. Today will be the day to head over to the storage units and devise a plan for the first run down to Bluffton, with both cars carrying the load. We'll be back up in the fall and the balance of what's left will make the trek then. Luckily I don't think we need to rent a U-Haul trailer to get the stuff down, which I think the Suburban is grateful for.
My advice to all of my friends and readers here....start the process now! Get rid of it all. I think in the end we could have edited down even more when we had the chance up in Titusville but just didn't or couldn't at that time. In some way I think all the stuff and bins and boxes are somehow like a security blanket, we just feel good with our stuff, and not so good stripped away standing there naked. But in reality all that is more like a weighted blanket, which is heavy, like an anchor, which keeps you stuck in one place. And not just physically but emotionally and mentally as well.