Ugh

Taking a break on the last day of packing (the movers come tomorrow at 9 am). Have a carload of books ready to go to the library, but only half loaded in the car, as it is raining. Total books to go = two carloads. So much still to do.

I thought that I was finished with the books I'm keeping

as far as packing goes, but I forgot the cookbooks in the kitchen. There are two partial shelves, so there aren't a lot of books left. I think that they'll fit in a copy box. I wound up finishing up everything else book-wise and came about two boxes short of the small U-Haul boxes, but I'd put some VHS tapes in a couple, so it's just about 52 boxes of books to go. Now I have to turn to the other stuff that's going into storage, like the curio cabinet contents, electronics I won't be using, etc. I have to empty the chest of drawers that's left, which is mostly photos and audio tapes (yes, I still have a tape recorder on my player) and the steamer trunk (which is full of art supplies, many of which are old and need to just be thrown out, although I gave Brenda some Renaissance and Elizabethan patterns, a Hobbit graphic novel, and my fish. She came yesterday and got those, and so the tank is now empty save for gravel and some water, and I have to get the rest of that out today so it can dry).

Today I'm going to go get a few more totes for things that shouldn't go into cardboard, do some packing, take some things over to YKWIA's, including my laundry, do that, work on a project for him, take him to my apartment so that he can look through the discarded books (there's a lot of good stuff, I just didn't keep things that I would not reasonably read or use). I have to get things ready for a Goodwill drop off. And then I have to pack up the books that are left to take to the library so I can drop them off tomorrow. I think I reduced the books by about a third; I went from fourteen shelves to about five or six with books on them.

So most things will be taken by the movers to storage on Tuesday. Between now and then I need to take the following to YKWIA's:

1. Three small boxes of books
2. My library books (mustn't get them mixed up with the others)
3. My summer clothes (winter ones are going into storage in totes)
4. CDs and DVDs
5. My laptop, accessories, and a portable DVD drive, since I don't have one built-in
6. Some purses and bags with their holder that hangs in the closet
7. My fan
8. The CPAP and accessories
9. My jewelry box
10. The remaining plants
11. Food and a few glasses
12. Towels, washcloths, and hand towels
13. Toiletries
14. Shoes and hanging shoe rack

That's just about it. I have two long drawers in my bed, an entryway closet for clothes and a few other things, and YKWIA is going to let me use the cedar chest for some clothes, too, and I don't usually have many clothes at any given time, just enough for a week, so that should work. The books can go on the bed's bookcase; the CDs and DVDs can go in the sliding door compartments on the foot of the bed and if needed, the drawers. I was going to try to bring one of the folding bookcases, but there isn't room.

Okay, I should get started. I wanted to get breakfast in me and take my medicine; I've done so. Also, I really need to get a shower before I go to Kroger for the containers, as I didn't yesterday and worked pretty hard. By the time I get those and get them packed, I should be able to go over to YKWIAs.

One week

It just really hit me that I'm moving in a week. That means I need to step up my packing game, for one. Really step up my game. I've been coming home around 8 pm the last couple of days and just haven't felt like it. I don't have that luxury anymore. The biggest problem is that I simply don't have much room to pack in. I'm just going to have to find a way to make room.

Today was a good day, though. My spirits are still up from the eclipse, although I started out a little tired this morning. But my boss moved me out of check out (except for covering breaks) and instead I was in a quieter bay with the door closed taking live calls and returning voicemails. I returned 60 voicemails today, answered maybe 20 more calls, and did some e-mails as well. Since I wasn't trying to check out people and do that at the same time (which gets worse as the day progresses when you do try that), I was able to focus on people's needs much better. All in all, I was much happier.

Alright. Here's the plan. Pack what I can each weeknight through Friday--try for at least five boxes each day. Friday I'm in a training for two hours and then a meeting, and it's lighter census-wise, so if I'm lucky maybe I can leave at 4:30. Saturday will be devoted to packing as much as humanly possible. Sunday is the game, but we knew I might need to cancel, and I think that's going to have to be the case, as the notes and the game will take too much time away from getting ready for the move. If I can have things ready so YKWIA can look over the books left to see if he'd like any, then I can box those up on Sunday evening and Monday, when I'm off, along with anything left, and then I can take the books that are the discards to the library on Monday, and fold up the bookcases that can be.

The movers will be here 9 am on Tuesday the 29th, so on the 28th, I should take whatever's left to move to the new place [medicine, clothes, etc.], except for my CPAP and the clothes I'll wear on Tuesday, plus a few toiletries. Then, when everything's gone, I can focus on cleaning and that sort of thing. Tuesday morning I'll put the mattress and box springs in their bags after taking the bedding off. I'll be sleeping that night at the new place [YKWIA's], so I'll take the CPAP, etc. over after the move. The majority of the plants are already over there; I'll take the rest over this week or weekend. Also Monday I need to go to the University of Kentucky parking office and get a new hang tag; mine expires on August 31st.

I also need to make a list of places to cancel service, namely Spectrum (Internet), Kentucky Utilities (electricity), and Vonage (home phone) and also touch base with the leasing agent to see when she wants me to return the keys and pay the fee for breaking my lease. My mail has already been requested to forward as of August 25th. I'll send my new address to my family members and change over the bills.

Sometime this week, Brenda is coming to get the fish so I can drain the aquarium and have it dried out before going into storage, too.

Wow. So much to do. I hope I can do it without melting down. (It has happened before, that time I left my entire record collection when I got evicted fourteen years ago after getting laid off.)

The dog

Figured out today that my bed is, indeed, a bed, mainly because I sat on it and tried it out for reading. It's pretty high and not really comfortable for reading (hopefully sleeping will be better--it's a Sealy mattress). I've never done well reading propped up on pillows, although the study pillow I have might help. With it being a bookcase bed with empty shelves as of right now, the pillows tended to recede into the openings.

The dog really wanted up, but I know if I let her once, it will be her bed, and there's really not enough room on a full bed for me and a 75-lb dog. Besides, the cat has already claimed it as his. :) The other dog can't get up on it, as far as jumping, I don't think, as it is very high, she is older, and she used to jump a lot and it's left her with some arthritis. She could climb up on the sofa that is temporarily at the end. But she knows better.

I'm a little afraid my weight will hurt the bed, so I'm being careful. There is a bunkie board underneath the mattress to help distribute weight, but still, I'm not confident.

I did do some reading. I starting to reread Stephen R. Donaldson's Thomas Covenant books. I read the first two trilogies when I was young and they first came out. I haven't read the last quartet. I own all the books but the last one and was going to leave them out from the packing, but wound up packing them because one was separated from the rest and I wasn't sure where it was (I found it later). So I found the first trilogy  together as a set on the Kindle. I also have all of Madeline L'Engel's Time books, but couldn't find Many Waters for some reason. So I may do the same for that. I do have the first three accessible, plus An Acceptable Time and one other.

Okay, I think I'll sign off. Looking forward  to the eclipse tomorrow, despite the fact that I'll be at work. I have my eclipse glasses in my bag and plan on taking a break near the climax. My boss said I could, and I can cover for the other person if she'd like to see it. Happy viewing! Be safe!

There is a very good chance

That I will lose a character next time we play the game (next week is right before the move, so I may need that Sunday for last-minute packing). Both Brenda and I have characters hanging in the balance, both infected by a mad scientist who took the only vaccine, with no known cure. The scientist was killed by ghouls after we unmasked him as a horrible serial killer and mad anatomist, but the damage is done. Magic is possible, but we don't have the time or materials needed for such a large spell. I came up with a possible solution after Brenda left, which the game master is considering, but even if it's iffy. I think the best we can hope for is to save Brenda's character. The scientist used a spell to nearly destroy my character's heart before infecting her, so she's not likely to be saved. But Brenda's might be. And he has kids and a wife who's going to be really passed if we let him die. Mine is unmarried and started out as a shallow princess (literally--she's a Savoy), but who's grown over the years. She's not my favourite, but I am rather fond of her. If she dies, it'll be the second killed of in less than two months, and the fourth in 26 years.

Whew!

I think I'm up to over 30 boxes of books, CDs, and a few other things packed. I thought weeding the books in the bedroom would be hardest, but it went well - I decreased them by about a half. My nightstand, dresser, and one chest of drawers are empty. The old school Atari and Nintendo are packed up. Some of my winter clothes are in a tote. A lot has been put aside for charity and some things are in bags to be thrown away. Plus I did some things for a friend. It's been a productive day. I think I've earned a rest. There is still an awfully lot to do, but I got quite a bit accomplished.

So

Amazon, according to the radio today, is doing a trial run where in select cities you can order something and then go pick it up from their fulfillment centre within minutes, a new revolution in shopping.

Um. Let's drive to a place and buy what we want. I thought that was called a store. In fact, this store would be basically a warehouse outlet store. Not all that original. Just saying. I'd still love to do it with Amazon, because I like Amazon, but I can do the same at almost any brick-and-mortar store with a web presence right now. I wonder how much they paid the marketer to come up with that idea?

Tonight's rant

This Clown Blasts Gender Stereotypes After Mom Won't Let Son Get Butterfly Face Paint

Across the hall from where I work is a talking dollhouse. A little boy a few weeks ago wanted to play with it, and his parents insisted it was a girl's toy and dragged him over to a dump truck, and he stopped wanting to play altogether and got really quiet and sad. :( Lots of little boys play with that dollhouse every day, but that boy's parents drained the joy right out of playing. I felt so bad for him. Don't men live in houses? Why was it so bad for him to pretend to live in a house? Why can't we just let boys and girls discover their own likes and dislikes without being pushed like square pegs into a round hole to value what mom or dad do? If the little girl wants the pink sparkly unicorn, that's fine, but why can't the boy? And yes, as the article mentions, girls who are tomboys are more normalised and not shamed to the extent boys are for their 'unacceptable' choices, so the girl with the dump truck doesn't raise eyebrows (as much). How about just valuing the idea that the child is taking his or her first steps in developing choice and personality, no matter how 'girly' or 'boyish' it may seem to us at times? Also, a child should never be ashamed because he or she likes something beautiful and natural. And last time I checked, there are girl butterflies and boy butterflies. What makes any creature of nature particularly 'girly', anyway? Funny, my middle name is Welsh for 'butterfly'. And you know what? In Wales, it is traditionally a MALE name. Gender stereotypes are different between different cultures. They're not invariable and predetermined. We should think about that before pushing our own ideas of gender specificity onto our children. And we certainly should not change or belittle them. Just let them enjoy the magic of childhood, rather the being ashamed of being themselves or made to feel like they were never really wanted as they are. I know someone who, as an adult, lives in terrible pain because he was never accepted for himself by his family. He was never the child that was what the parents truly wanted. Think about that. Think of what damage that could do. Always criticized for being yourself. And you know how it begins? By being dragged away from something you want to do by well-meaning but clueless parents who are afraid that you will somehow turn into something they disapprove off because you played with a plastic dollhouse.

Today

The water heater upstairs leaked (no one's living up there presently), so I awoke to a leak coming through my bathroom vent this morning. It's been fixed, as our maintenance is very responsive. I hope that will be the last order I put in to the office. It's so odd to think that within days I'll be leaving my apartment complex where I've lived for over 14 years! But soon I'll be in my friend's house, and I might be able to do some gardening in his yard along the way, and that makes me happy. The houseplants I took over already look like they're doing okay for now. We'll see. At work and at home I had sunny windows, whereas these are shadier, at least in my room, so I may have to do some distribution throughout the house. But we'll make it work.

Four hunting horrors and five ghouls later

So the notes went pretty fast, really. Next time (tomorrow) we go after the evil cultist/mad scientist. What can I say, this is what I do for fun.

And now, I'm going to take a well-deserved rest for about 40 minutes before doing anything else whatsoever, except clearing off space on the bed for said rest. :)

Okay

Sixteen boxes packed and one peace lily that constantly needs water replanted in the lavender pot (it had died, and the pot is a nice cobalt blue and larger than what the peace lily was in, plus it has an attached saucer built in. The peace lily is going on the floor in the room I'm going to be sleeping in--which is technically in the living room, not a bedroom--in front of a shady window.)

I did spill some soil on the carpet, and my vacuum is over at YKWIA's, so I will need to retrieve it tomorrow. Anyway, I think it's time to work on notes, now. Time to turn off Pandora and listen to the game instead. I also need to water the other houseplants. Two orchids are still blooming (in fact, the yellow one sent another shoot off of last year's stem and has five blooms and a bud on it, and the pink one that started blooming in March is still going strong). I've been going through things and rearranging them so I can get around things. I've also been throwing or recycling things as I go. There are two-and-a-half big bags of recyclables, one and a half of trash, almost two, and a small grocery bag full of drink lids, which one of my co-workers collect for some form of charity purposes. I'll take the bags out later--that's not got a time limit for today, whereas the notes do. So it's next on the list. I also have a (small) collection of books to take (remember, it's a book case bed), a few I want to read, a few to study (mainly Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, all of which I'm getting rusty with), and then there are a couple I just need to take--my workbooks on hoarding and anxiety/phobia disorders. I've also gotten my important papers and identification papers together, like my birth certificate, passport and passport card, business licence, and librarian certification, that sort of thing. They're definitely going with me, and not into storage.

Okay, on to notes!

One of the things I've discovered

having packed a total of 10 boxes is that I don't have room to really pack or store boxes. So, I'm going to see what I can downsize or move to storage, like some of the holiday decorations that never made it back in the walk-in closet, but rather are out in boxes of their own. I'm going to try to do that today, but I need to work on the game notes first, now that I'm about halfway through my list. I can always run the other things over tomorrow morning before the game, after all.

Today's agenda

1. Get medicine from pharmacy
2. Return books to the library
3. Donate a few of YKWIA's books and a CD to the library
4. Work on the bedroom
5. Pack books
6. Get totes for clothes' storage
7. Get mattress pad to protect my current (queen) mattress from dust (and cover up a couple of menstural blood stains from the movers--I should have putt one on years ago. The new one (which is a full mattress) had one on within minutes of delivery. Of course, it has a 10-year warranty that is void if it gets stained.)
8. Find something that will work for providing more clothes storage in the closet at YKWIA's
9. Work on game notes

Today, possibly tomorrow:

1. Take telescope, holiday decorations, and walk-in-closet things to storage
2. Take out trash/recyclables
3. Go through medicine in the refrigerator and reduce packaging/space
4. Clean kitchen
5. Clean bathroom

Well

Today was a good day at work. I kept up with everything, and didn't feel exhausted afterwards from that much mental juggling and human interaction. I even had enough energy to work on the house, and my boss gave me an extra day off next week to pack. But... being an introverted person with bipolar depression, anxiety, and OCD, I think work is taking a toll on me, but I haven't really had the energy to do job hunting lately. So, goals for the next few weeks: 1) take care of my health, physical and mental, meaning taking my medicine on schedule, eating well, and getting rest, 2) resume job hunting, 3) get moved with the least stress possible, and 4) do a great job at work. I think that's enough to work on, don't you?

Countdown to sleep

Last night I got maybe one or two hours of fitful sleep, so the goal tonight is to sleep uninterrupted.

Lights out? Check!
Music off? Check!
Drank half of caffeine than yesterday. Check!

Okay, wish me luck!

Fun fact

So apparently my Bluetooth headphones, when fully charged, just make it through all of the deluxe versions of Ed Sheeran's albums (+, ×, and ÷) and then die.

Got everything set up

It's hard to see in these pictures, that this is a full-sized bed, but the 'headboard' and 'footboard' are on the long ends of the bed. The coloured inserts can be changed, or even contain photos with a clear insert over them. Since my friend's living room is pink, I changed them to pink, even though I prefer the lavender ones. I wanted storage and so this seemed a good plan. I guess I assumed the mattress would be recessed more - it's pretty tall. Only the cat seemed interested in claiming it - I think the dogs were afraid of it, or at least one of them was. All the animals were upset about all the furniture moving and strangers coming in to set it up. I hope this will bear my weight okay; it's quite different than the way the similar bed at the store was constructed underneath. There is a bunkie board to help distribute the weight, at least, but underneath there are boards above a cruciform support of perpendicular particle board.

But all in all, it went well. At one point they had a piece upside down and had to change it around, but they still did better than I would have. The guys forgot to put the lower knobs on the nightstands, so I did, and I changed the inserts, even though the lower ones on the footboard meant getting down in the hardwood floor. The workmen spoke a language I couldn't quite identify. Some words sounded Spanish, but it definitely was not that. Maybe Portuguese? It's possible that are Brazilian.

YKWIA seemed to be disturbed by the intrusion of his peaceful home by the bed and what it meant - that we were really moving in together. It will be an adjustment for each of us.

Anyway, it's together and I put the mattress cover and bedclothes on. Now I'm home and I need to work on the game notes tonight, or pack, either one. But I did do a lot today, cleaning and moving things, and really want to just relax. It's hard to believe it's only Friday night - it's felt like a Saturday all day. But tomorrow I have to take YKWIA to an appointment, but otherwise I think game notes and packing are a priority. I don't have a lot of time before I move, and it will go by very fast.

So nice to be off work today

My furniture is going to be delivered today, and I didn't know when that would be, so I asked off for the day. Turns out they're coming between 4 and 7 pm, so that leaves the rest of the day to be productive. I did sleep in, till 8:45, but there are things I need to do today:

1. Pay my rent.
2. Pay my electric.
3. Call the credit union with a question.
4. Get all of the boxes out of my car!
5. Water the plants in the living room (I got the ones in the bedroom a couple of days ago).
6. Look for a rose-coloured full microfleece blanket.
7. Help YKWIA get the house ready for the furniture, moving some things and cleaning.
8. Take him to pay a bill.
9. Receive and inspect the furniture.
10. Pack some.

I need to take two pillows (for the shams) and a blanket I'm going to use to protect the bedding from one of the dogs, who has very short hair but really sheds. Fortunately, the bedding is a cream colour, and she's a light gold, so it should be mostly okay. But since I'm allergic to dogs and cats, I should minimise direct contact as much as I can.

With the exception of Monday, when my mood was troubled by the horrible interview, it hasn't been bad this week. We were a little slower, about 100 people in the clinic or so a day, so busy enough to always be working, but not overwhelming. On Tuesday I sent an e-mail to the interviewing committee thanking them for the interview, answering the question I misunderstood and basically telling them that I tank during interviews due to nervousness, and I hope they'll consider me for the next step in the process, despite my performance on the phone. I hope they will. I suppose all the experts would say not to do this, but I felt I should. The new head of the committee sent an e-mail to me Thursday acknowledging it. So all hope is not lost, hopefully. I really want this job, and I think that I would be very good for the nurse-patrons.

Other things to accomplish this weekend:

• Finish the game notes, as we're playing on Sunday.
• Take off the caps of soda bottles to give to a co-worker who saves them and take out the recyclables, which are full.
• Pack some more.
• Take some light items over to storage and the new place as I can.

The plan is now to go through the books and pick what I want to keep, putting those in the U-Haul boxes. Then YKWIA can look through the ones left and those not chosen by either of us can go into some of the other types of boxes to be taken to the library. My therapist suggested just letting the movers take care of the books that are going into storage rather than me trying to deal with them a little at a time--I will be paying them to move them, anyway. That is the bulk of what I've got, after all. I've already booked the move to start at 9 am on Tuesday, August 29th. I booked them online, with a note that things will be moved from my apartment to a storage centre, that much of it is books, and with a request that a few large items be moved to the Dumpster area if they are amenable. I'm using Wildcat Moving, a local company that seems to have good ratings with the Better Business Bureau and online. I absolutely refuse to use another company, Two Men and a Truck, which is very popular around here, as they stranded a couple I know in the middle of their move with some lame excuse when they realised that the couple was not my friend and myself but rather two men. No kidding. Hometown Movers saved the day back then, and I would have used them now, but they seem to have disbanded. So hopefully, Wildcat Moving will be a good experience. That gives me 24 days to pack, including a weekend right before. I'm off the 28th and 29th for the actual move. That also gives me a couple of days afterwards to clean the apartment and turn in my keys. That reminds me--I should fill out a change of mailing address sometime this weekend, while I'm thinking about it.

Okay, I'm going to get going. I need to pay those bills, get off the computer, and get moving. The boxes will take a little time to get into the house--there are probably about 35 in the car, although the U-Haul ones are still packed flat in a bundle, at least. Hope you have a good weekend!

A little sad tonight...

On this day seventy years ago, my mother was born. I so wish she were still with us. Happy birthday, Momma.