Tuesday, September 4, 2012

The hardest part is behind us

Saturday, old place to Monday, new place
We made it! That picture of me Saturday, with my wine in hand at the end of a long day and that blue heated neck warmer around my neck tell the story of how I was feeling. Oh, and don't forget to note the knee pads so I could scrub floors in relative comfort. The internet and cable are up and running, and everything had pretty much gotten back to "normal" by Monday. Sunday was the day that the two young men with strong backs helped to move everything into the new apartment. By the end of Sunday I was worn to a frazzle, and I still had to finish the vacuuming and floor scrubbing of the old place. However, it was all finished by noon on Monday, Labor Day, and we can get accustomed to the new place more slowly. We have a very nice view of Mt. Baker from our front porch.
We have had amazingly beautiful weather for this move, and Seattle is getting close to a record spell of days without any rain. The record is 51 days, and they are already up to 43 days with no rain in sight. We here in Bellingham had a bit of rain a couple of times during August, but Seattle has had nothing. The grass everywhere is dry and the garden is incredibly happy. Here's the view of the garden from my new back porch:
You can see that the grass outside the garden is all brown. I've watered my little plot almost every day, and it's paying off. I've harvested lots of zucchini and green beans, some collards and kale, and lots of tomatoes.
In this picture you can also see my apartment, the last one on the upper left. I haven't had any time to spend in the garden lately; it's in need of some tending, but I'm lucky just to get it watered regularly right now. I've fallen into bed very tired every night, but today I'm finally beginning to feel that I can begin to relax a little. I can understand why moving is considered to be one of the big stresses of life.

I threw out a portable TV that I brought with me from Colorado. I couldn't bear to let it go five years ago, but today I couldn't even give it away. Technology has changed so much in the past few years that an old TV with a tape player is totally useless. And it was such a treasure ten years ago!

That's the news from my corner of the world, and I look forward to my hike on Thursday and my life taking on some semblance of our new normal. Hope you had a relaxing Labor Day!
:-)

29 comments:

  1. Wow, you have beautiful views in your new place. I have a parking lot. I do believe moving is one of the most tiring things you can do, probably because it is so stressful.

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  2. We are spreading our work out over a longer period of time, although not necessarily by choice. We didn;t work very hard on labor Day, and I didn't do much today. Tom painted two walls in the family room, and Emile installed the stair treads. He worked late and has to come back tomorrow to finish. Then we'll have to stay off the stairs for several hours. Tomorrow someone is coming to reapply the baseboard molding. Then we can do the final cleaning and start moving furniture back in. It will be Sunday before we get help with the heavy furniture.
    It's great that you can see both your garden and the mountain from your new appartment!

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  3. That view might be worth the hassle of the move, it is gorgeous. We need to trim a few trees to get our mountain view back.
    I'm glad to hear you have the hard part done and can enjoy your new digs.
    That's a long time without rain for Seattle. We got all of .o1 inches last month.

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  4. That view is beyond gorgeous. Wow. I think I would be sitting out there at wine o'clock each night drinking in the view (and the wine).
    I am not in the slightest bit surprised that you are exhausted, and look forward to you always energetic new normal.

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  5. glad you are feeling a little more settled today...love the view...and hey you are close to the garden when you get your energy back from all the work this weekend...glad it went well for you...

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  6. Isn't it surprising that moving a few hundred feet is just as hard as it is to move a thousand miles?
    Good thing you're so sound and healthy and can bear up under that stress, even if you are tired at night (not a bad thing). And your garden looks LUSH.

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  7. Moving is exciting, but stressful at the same time...it was a stressful job here just moving a bedroom to a lower level! You certainly acquired a beautiful view of Mt. Baker, DJan! It finally rained here, after 2 mos. of drought like conditions.

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  8. So glad you accomplished your move without any injuries. Love those knee pads and needed them yesterday as I was cleaning base boards all over my house. Just a few more days of "hard labor" and we will feel like the house is ready for the Realtor to show.

    I can only dream that my next home will have a view as beautiful as yours. Enjoy!

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  9. Well I love you new view..I would be staring out the window all the time. I am glad the move is behind you..now just settle in..and relax. Yes moving causes stress...so be kind to yourself:)

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  10. congratulations!!! glad things are sort of settling in to normal. whew! that's got to feel good to be completely done with the old place. that photo was priceless! :)

    your view is gorgeous! your garden sure looks good, too.

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  11. My last move was in 1991 when we bought our house 3 miles from our condo. Lordy, Lordy! I never want to go through that again. Actually, we plan to die in this house.

    You make gardening sound so romantic, but I know how much work you put into it. Congrats on the great harvest, DJan!

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  12. That IS a lovely view! And nice weather to enjoy it!

    Glad the move went ok! Enjoy settling in and making the new place feel like home! :o)

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  13. You've been through a truly "moving" experience. And survived. Which is good.

    Like the view of Mount Baker (from the south). I occasionally get to the in-laws place just outside Vancouver (Canada), and see Mount Baker from the north.

    Glad to see the garden is holding up, Sorry to hear about the dryness n Seattle.

    Hope your week in the new place goes well.

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  14. Maybe the T.V. could be a big paper weight? Or antique art installation?

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  15. the hardest part of the move is thinking about it before it happens. It's called anxiety. The move itself isn't that bad...especially with wine!

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  16. What a lovely view you have!! Wow! And you can see the garden, too. I am so glad it is finally over and you can advance more slowly now. Happy for you guys!! Relax! Enjoy your new place. :):)

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  17. Congrats! You made it. Now you can settle in and get o with life.

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  18. Well done! The rest will be easier. Nice view out your front door.

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  19. Truly a Labor Day weekend for you...glad you're in and getting settled. The garden looks wonderful, as does the view from your front porch. I used to love to move...but as I've gotten older I don't love it so much...especially when it's not by choice. Hope your week is back to the usual hiking trips with your buddies.
    Take care xo

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  20. Glad it's over. It's amazing how you can hike miles and miles and miles, while I sigh and envy your stamina. Then you talk about being exhausted from a move and I feel better!

    Sorry!

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  21. Jan...I've been following every blogpost you've written, but haven't been able to comment due to sickness here (my Mama is very ill.)
    I wanted to let you know that I am thinking of you as you have been moving and have now completed the move...and am continuing to follow your garden's progress. I wish you only the best. Sending you hugs from Georgia.
    J.

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  22. Yay!!! New home, better garden view...clean and de-cluttered (what I love most about moving--maybe it's time for me to move again??) lol

    Good job on the garden, rookie. I love your posts...I've been a little AWOL lately...so busy...trying to get back into the swing of things though.

    Happy Thursday!!!!

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  23. Most folks would kill for a view like that. Lovely. What a beautiful sight to see each morning. Your garden is looking good despite the lack of rain. You're such a caring gardener. Wishing you much happiness in your new home. Love the knee pads and wine.

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  24. Dear DJan, I was grinning widely by the time I got to the end of your posting. I'm so happy for you. And that corner home with its view of Mount Baker, which you've mentioned many times in your postings, as well as the view of your garden, which you've shared with us throughout planting and tending and harvesting, is just such a treat for you.

    I suspect that your new home--even though you've told us it's the exact same layout as your old one--is going to offer you sights and experiences that will make this truly, truly, truly a home to come home to. Peace.

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  25. Welcome to your new home D-Jan. I hope that you and Smart Guy will be very happy there. Lots of work to do isn't there. I can see from the picture how tired you are, but that will pass. Enjoy your new surroundings. The garden looks great! ps I'm stateside now for a little while.

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  26. I'm so glad your move went well. It was a lot of work, but it made it that much more satisfying, I would think. Everything looks somehow newer and cleaner in your new place. You're lucky that you're so close to your garden and can watch over it.

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  27. Happy that all has shifted and you are now in your new place. Video players are still being used as there's a come back by those who have not converted their stuff.
    They even sell new ones at Best Buy.

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  28. What an amazing view! I'm glad you're moved and can finally relax and enjoy your new place.

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