Today I move into my little suite attached to my friends house. It's at the side, not a basement - so it won't be so dark and that is great as I tend to suffer from SAD. Another reason I need to live closer to the equator!
The move goes pretty smoothly considering I don't have a ton of help. My good friends, John and Erna, who have been there for all of my furniture moves this past year, are here for me again. Wayne, who also has been there for all of my moves, is the only other guy John could find who is available. My daughter and her hubby will come a bit late as she has a work event she can't get out of. And yesterday a friend from work texted to say she will be here. That's great because everything is gritty and covered in spider webs from the shed it was stored in. Not the best place to have my stuff for a year, but it was free and I am grateful. So as many women as possible to clean it all up as the guys drop it outside the suite is a good thing.
It goes really fast, even with just the two guys. The shed is down the end of a long drive to the place I am moving into so that is great. Another friend loaned us his truck, and the two guys make quick work of getting it all down the drive. We women clean everything off before it goes inside. A lot of stuff goes into another small shed right next to my suite. It's small but a lot fits inside and we fill it up with stuff I don't have room for in the suite. Ashleigh and Rob show up just as we're almost done moving stuff so Rob helps with the last load and then they dig into unpacking some of my boxes. By the time everyone leaves, most of the kitchen and bathroom is unpacked, and my bed is set up and made.
I get to sleep in my own bed for the first time in 53 weeks. Yep... more than a year. And does it ever feel fantastic. I have this amazing mattress warmer that goes between the mattress and the protector. I turn it on about half an hour before I plan to head to bed, and when I get there the bed is toasty warm. Ahhhh.... how I have missed you, bed.
Sunday I decide to stay home from church and unpack all my clothes. A lot have been in a suitcase since April. I have pared down my wardrobe considerably since first moving out of my place, and I pare it down some more today. Even though it doesn't look like I have a lot of clothes when they are hung up, it's more than I need even still. I would like to get it down more but not sure what else to get rid of.
I really like this little suite, although it's dreadfully cold. I have both baseboard electric heaters cranked up and my hands and nose are like ice. I am wearing long-john's under my jeans and I can still feel the cold on my legs. I guess it's because there hasn't been any heat on in here in a while and also, all the stuff we just brought in was very cold and damp. Hopefully it will all warm up and dry out soon and the temperature in here will rise. Also, the internet connection here is very faint and keeps dropping off. It's driving me crazy.
I don't have my TV and DVD player as my son was storing (using) them since I left for Florida. I am missing them. I am taking a screenwriting course online and some of the assignments involve watching certain title's commentaries. I really wanted to take this course, it's brand new and I found out about it through some reports I was sent. It is expensive and there was no way I could afford it. But then, I got an email saying there was still room in the limited enrollment and that, in the next two weeks before it started, the guy teaching it (it's his concept) would be hiring a proof reader and a videographer. A light bulb went on and I wrote and asked if he would be interested in trading a place in the course for my proof reading skills. He was and so we worked out a deal where I proof read each lesson as soon as it's ready, and also volunteer moderate the boards.
Today I got an email from the guy who I was debating between going sailing with him or the one I went with. He really wants me to come down and try it out and offered me six weeks at no cost to me, only airfare. Why couldn't that have happened a month ago? I would have gone for sure. But now, I can't because I need to work to keep this place and I already have plans for the holidays.
Ron Oliver, a director I work with and a good friend, has been pestering me to come down to Palm Springs for Christmas for two years. I haven't gone because the money wasn't there and also, leaving my kids over Christmas isn't something I have wanted to do. But this year his friend Michael Rowe got into it... I haven't met Michael other than the sparring we do on Facebook over religion and politics... and really put the pressure on. I finally told Ron I might be able to afford the airfare but there was no way I could afford a hotel. As his place is full with guests, he said he would see if his partners parents had space. Meanwhile, my kids... all three of them... have also been pressuring me to go saying it would be a great opportunity to meet some cool people and that I needed the break from the stress of the last few months. It became apparent fairly quickly that I couldn't even afford the airfare so the whole idea was nice but not going to happen. One afternoon, shortly after making the decision, I got a text from my daughter saying that all three of my kids wanted to go in on a ticket for me for Christmas. Then Ron wrote a day or two later saying there was room for me at the parents house. So I caved and said I'd go. So the ticket is bought and I am going to be spending Christmas in Palm Springs.
I can't believe it's only two weeks until I leave. I have some serious Skor Bar making to do - Ron loves it and I dare not show up without some. I have all the ingredients. I just need to get started.
