We're Back!

I know you’ve all been waiting for the story of the move… Well, I’ve finally taken a moment to jot it down. Enjoy!

Everyone said moving was a pain…I’ve done it many many times (cross country twice before!) but somehow repressed the “painful” feeling of moving. Or perhaps all of my other moving experiences just went so smoothly that it really wasn’t painful. I owe many thanks to my family and my friends for helping me move. I’ve never had a shortage of help during a move. Aren’t people wonderful?

Well, this time, it hasn’t gone so smoothly. I totally let the movers screw me over and charge me tons of money for packing materials I didn’t ask them to use. I’m not getting into the story here, because it’s too emotional. Let’s just say, I learned a big lesson, and I’m sorry to A for roping him into my stupid mistakes.

It’s beyond two weeks since Moving Day and our furniture and prize possessions are on a truck somewhere in the U.S.A. (I hope). The moving company was very excited to tell me that “It’s on its way!”. I thought it would be here a week ago!!!

A and I are making the most of an empty two bedroom apartment with an air mattress and internet TV. Are you aware of the free TV shows you can watch on ABC.com. It’s only until June 30th. Check it out! We have an omelet pan, a spatula, a toaster, a few plates, silverware, and towels for the shower. Actually, we are feeling pretty functional in our sparse new home. A is missing having a chair and table, but come on…who said life should be luxurious? (coming from the person who sits in a cushy chair at work all day!)

The Road Trip: Fabulous!!!
I flew to San Jose on Friday May 12th and raided my Sis’ house for boxes, tape, etc. It was great to see Mom there! We’re such coast hoppers. Sis drove me to Sacramento (even though she was feeling sick) that night. Friday night (late) and all day Saturday were spent packing stuff into boxes and getting ready for the movers. C & S came up from San Francisco for a last hurrah, which was a nice mellow dinner at Pyramid. It was nice to chat and catch up! Sunday morning, the movers arrived, and wrapped my furniture in cardboard that they proceeded to charge me an arm and a leg for! It was hot, and everything was moving so fast, I didn’t process until later what went on. Anyway, I cleaned and mopped the apartment after the movers were gone…and we were feeling a little anxious with their handling of our stuff. Around 3pm on Sunday the car was loaded, the apartment was clean, we had said good bye to Sis and hoped she felt better when she got back to Sunnyvale. Allergies were driving us both crazy in Sacramento. A and I hit the road! This was the moment. The start of our road trip!

First stop, two miles away, the Blue Gecko bar and grill to hang with our friends. A did a great job rounding up the troops, and I thank all of you that came to wish us farewell. It was a wonderful reunion for me and great to see everyone before heading out. Around 8pm, we hit the road for real. Well, we had to drop of the apartment keys in Roseville, and get gas. It’s a good thing we don’t believe in omens because, guess what happened at the gas station? We hadn’t even left the Sacramento region…. We were sitting at the gas station, finished pumping our gas, looking at the map and discussing how far to drive that night when….. several police cars race down the street with sirens blaring…a few moments later a speeding truck lands in front of us and skids across the gas station (avoiding the pumps) and stops only because it runs into some parked cars. Police surround the stopped vehicle, pull out the driver and two female passengers, throw them on the ground and hold them at gun point. There were guns everywhere. Scary! The police got everyone under control and the scene calmed down pretty quickly… did anyone see this on the news or read about it in the paper? The truck had come barreling through an intersection, crashing into a car in the intersection, knocking over a street light, hopping a median and causing all kinds of mess. Once things were calm, we continued onto our road trip. A seemed fine, I was a little shaken up by the whole thing.

Night 1: Lovelock, Nevada. A small truck stop kind of town…turned out to be the most expensive hotel of the trip at $70 for the night. We ate breakfast the next morning at a Mexican diner that “also serves American food”.

Night 2: Idaho Falls, Idaho. We strategically placed ourselves for a day of fun in Grand Tetons and Yellowstone the next day. We strolled a little (turned out to be quite a long stroll along the river) in Idaho Falls and I learned about rivers, dams, water pressure, and energy generation. It’s nice knowing a water resource engineer! They have a very nice river walking path and it was a beautiful night for a stroll. A super fancy Best Western for only $60 a night. It’s nice what you get for your dollar in the Mid west. This was the start of our free continental breakfast theme for the trip…biscuits and gravy! (along with the muffins, bagels, etc.)

Night 3: Billings, Montana. We took our time driving through Jackson Hole, Wyoming, the Grand Tetons National Park, and Yellowstone. We arrived at Old Faithful just in time for it to erupt. Then walked around some of the geysers. It really does feel like being on a different planet (if we could really imagine what it’s like to be on a different planet). I’ll upload some pics soon. We saw plenty of Bison!...in fact we had to share the road with them….Okay, so I was scared at the way they were coming straight at the car, but no one was injured.

Night 4: Soux Falls, South Dakota. On the drive we went through the area of General Custer’s last stand, so A taught me about Custer’s mission to defeat the Indians and the time period when white folk were warring with Indians to take their land, etc. We also did lessons on how to use the compass and are now more confident in our “on the fly” navigation skills. It’s tricky when the car is moving! Between A’s analytical “this is the way it works mind” and my summer camp experiences we have the whole navigating process figured out.

Night 5: South Bend, Indiana. Sorry I didn’t call Mairead! I realized afterward that you actually live in South Bend…. We were tired of the typical diner fare so we picked up Chinese food take out and watched HBO in the Motel 6 room. Yup, we were livin’ it up. The entire night (including dinner) cost $48! By this time in the trip we were deep into our borrowed Audio Books (yippee for Boston Public Library). We had finished the third part of the five part trilogy of the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy Radio Show and were well into Around the World in 80 Days (unabridged) read by Jim Dale (who reads the Harry Potter Audio Books). I slept through much of the Hitchhikers Guide, but really enjoyed Around the World in 80 Days.

Night 6: Longmeadow, Massachusetts. It was a long trek, but not so unbearable….we landed at A’s aunt’s house around 10:30pm after driving through Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. The exciting part is that she lives just near the border to Connecticut so we got to add that state to our road trip too! We didn’t take a detour to Niagara Falls, so A will just have to see the seventh wonder of the world another time… It was great to meet the family in Longmeadow and stroll through Longmeadow days the next morning.

Night 7: Quincy, Massachusetts. We went to our apartment in Brighton. Woo Hoo!!! We’re home!!! We futzed around..unloaded the car, found out the phone is not working..and went to Mom and Dad’s place in Quincy for a real bed and food.

Night 8: Brighton, Massachusetts.

And now, you are caught up to speed! We’ve been living on our air mattress for a week and a half now. Mom was kind enough to take us shopping for area rugs, Costco goods, etc. So, we have plenty of toilet paper, and really aren’t doing badly. We are having fun exploring our new neighborhood.

A’s broken thumb is healing and he’s feeling more independent with everyday tasks like tying his shoes.