A brushstroke (Blank Canvas Project #1)

Date: 04 September 2010 23:59:02

And this post is illustrated with photographs!

Why haven't you been around recently? I've been wrapping up life in the mid-west so I could start living on the east coast. This involved a lot of phone calls, many tears, and a lot of lists...I mean, a LOT.

What has this last week been like for you? Good question, let's see... Last Saturday I took my parents to the airport after their visit, then packed my clothes, gathered my belongings for the next three months, then packed my car....said goodbye to friends, did lots of last minute things, frequently referred to my lists, and between Tuesday and Friday I packed the car, drove 1/2 way across the country, and arrived in Delaware ready to move in

How long did it take you to pack that little 4-door sedan? Two days.

Were you able to fit everything you wanted to bring? Amazingly, yes!

How did you actually do that? Well, after much consideration, I settled on a bag system. With everything in its own bag, then it was all able to nestle in together.

What??! No boxes? Nope. not one box came with me, nor did I use any luggage. Look at all this stuff!

Was your cross-country trip eventful? Actually, it was pleasantly uneventful. My car started making a continual MOO-ing sound somewhere in Ohio, however I'm hoping it'll go away at some point. If need be I can always get it looked at.

So how long did it take you? That's an interesting question, because it should have taken about 16-ish hours. But since I decided to sleep in the car (so my bike & clothes on top wouldn't get stolen en route) it took about 23 hours the first day, then 2.5 the next day.

You slept where? In the car - and the seat didn't recline b/c it was so packed... as you can imagine, I was thrilled to stretch out on a bed the next night!

It sounds like you arrived safely. After you signed the rental paperwork, what did you do next? I spent a few hours unpacking the car - it looked like one of those circus clown cars. Things kept coming out of the trunk!

How many times did you go up & down the 2 flights of stairs to your apartment? I couldn't begin to tell you - I stopped counting after 172, but my muscles are pretty sore today.

You mentioned some pictures? YES! Please see below... I forgot how to share & embed & comment, so I'll do my best. These are from the day I arrived (yesterday) and I'll have more images to share of the town very soon!

the very packed car!
from the back ....and the other side!

(I got a lot of odd looks from local townsfolk when I took these photos - they were just going about their business on a Friday afternoon...and here was a lady with Missouri license plates taking photographs of her own car, IN THE RAIN, in front of the post office. Why?) :)
( a view into the back seat... amazingly it all fit.
my passenger seat during the drive (the red balloon didn't join me until the end of the trip - see below)
...and this is what it looked like unpacked:

these 3 duffel bags were in the rooftop carrier - 11 cubic filled with clothes (summer clothes, winterwear, and stuff for the beach!)
a welcome basket!

And here are some town photos... more to follow soon! :)

...so where's the bank? On Commerce Street!

please join me next time when I'll provide more images of the local, rural, town :)