Farewell Portland
Over the past few days we of The Secret House packed (and packed and packed and packed) and tossed (and tossed and tossed) and cleaned (and cleaned a little extra) and moved away. Last night we all drove up to Port Townsend with our final belongings weighing down the car and the cat carrier in my lap.
In my life so far, moving has usually been a traumatic process. Balancing a schedule full of "one last time" and saying goodbye with the demands of a huge project with a sharp deadline. Getting sentimental about leaving your housemates at the same time you're all doing something difficult ("I sure hope they pack all of their stuff but none of my stuff ... and how did this stuff that no one wants get here, anyway?"). The sadness of saying goodbye, the stress of getting it done, the uncertainty of what's to come, guilt over the things left undone, pride over the things done, the thrill of an adventure into the unknown ... and of course, the overwhelming expense. Transporting stuff should be expensive, but it's not like we have the money.
It feels like cashing in all my karma (good and bad) at once. So what did I get?
Good: Friends and family showered us with emotional, physical, and financial support. Thank you!!! We left the house clean, empty, and in great condition (something I am ashamed to say I have not always accomplished in the past). We did it about 8 hours ahead of deadline. Nothing I wanted and was able to take was left behind. There was a minimum of infighting (again, something that has not always been true). No one pulled an all-nighter (a first for me) although Pseudomammal and his dad came close. Kif (the cat) never freaked out. We sold most of the furniture. We made it.
Bad: Pseudomammal got sick and feverish and had to keep driving and lifting things anyway. Note to self: learn to drive and get even better at lifting things. The car tire blew out when we were halfway here, which was scary and took more favors to fix and made the 4 hour trip into a 9 hour trip. There was a minimum of infighting - none would have been better, and I'm sorry. We generated an impressive heap of garbage even after donating every unwanted thing we could conceivably donate.
E-mail me if you want my contact information for the next two months. Vruba is heading home to the island for a spell. Chakraoffish is visiting with him and then off to family and friends in Florida. Pseudomammal will of course be coming with me.
I am going to University of Tennessee at Knoxville for a PhD in psychology. It's songbird communication instead of dolphin communication, but the advisor and his other students are some of the friendliest people I've ever met, there's plenty of teaching experience for the taking, and they're giving me good money. I'm going to keep my job, too! I've been advised that I'll be expected to have my own car to drive between the campus and the field station. I think people who have cars overestimate how necessary cars are, but we're gonna hang onto the car anyway just in case, until we figure it out.
That means we're driving from Washington to Tennessee. We have no hard schedule yet, except for some commitments in August. We're leaving Washington in late June or early July. If you live somewhere between Washington and Tennessee and would like to see us, get your bids in now.
In my life so far, moving has usually been a traumatic process. Balancing a schedule full of "one last time" and saying goodbye with the demands of a huge project with a sharp deadline. Getting sentimental about leaving your housemates at the same time you're all doing something difficult ("I sure hope they pack all of their stuff but none of my stuff ... and how did this stuff that no one wants get here, anyway?"). The sadness of saying goodbye, the stress of getting it done, the uncertainty of what's to come, guilt over the things left undone, pride over the things done, the thrill of an adventure into the unknown ... and of course, the overwhelming expense. Transporting stuff should be expensive, but it's not like we have the money.
It feels like cashing in all my karma (good and bad) at once. So what did I get?
Good: Friends and family showered us with emotional, physical, and financial support. Thank you!!! We left the house clean, empty, and in great condition (something I am ashamed to say I have not always accomplished in the past). We did it about 8 hours ahead of deadline. Nothing I wanted and was able to take was left behind. There was a minimum of infighting (again, something that has not always been true). No one pulled an all-nighter (a first for me) although Pseudomammal and his dad came close. Kif (the cat) never freaked out. We sold most of the furniture. We made it.
Bad: Pseudomammal got sick and feverish and had to keep driving and lifting things anyway. Note to self: learn to drive and get even better at lifting things. The car tire blew out when we were halfway here, which was scary and took more favors to fix and made the 4 hour trip into a 9 hour trip. There was a minimum of infighting - none would have been better, and I'm sorry. We generated an impressive heap of garbage even after donating every unwanted thing we could conceivably donate.
E-mail me if you want my contact information for the next two months. Vruba is heading home to the island for a spell. Chakraoffish is visiting with him and then off to family and friends in Florida. Pseudomammal will of course be coming with me.
I am going to University of Tennessee at Knoxville for a PhD in psychology. It's songbird communication instead of dolphin communication, but the advisor and his other students are some of the friendliest people I've ever met, there's plenty of teaching experience for the taking, and they're giving me good money. I'm going to keep my job, too! I've been advised that I'll be expected to have my own car to drive between the campus and the field station. I think people who have cars overestimate how necessary cars are, but we're gonna hang onto the car anyway just in case, until we figure it out.
That means we're driving from Washington to Tennessee. We have no hard schedule yet, except for some commitments in August. We're leaving Washington in late June or early July. If you live somewhere between Washington and Tennessee and would like to see us, get your bids in now.