Tip #1: Hire professionals to pack everything! Yeah right! Like I could afford professionals! After all the times I've moved I should be a professional!
Tip #2: Be frugal... don't buy "real" packing boxes & supplies... use recycled boxes and packing materials! I mentioned before that I previously used liquor boxes that were set out by a local liquor store. Of course a truck box full of liquor boxes will prompt folks to a) judge you & tell you to seek out the nearest AA meeting or b) offer to help (thinking the boxes actually have liquor in them).
Tip #3: Have plenty of caffeine on hand! I made a pot of coffee this morning & have been re-heating the same cup o' joe all afternoon... I didn't seem to have time to drink it! There's still a half a pot left... I'll probably heat it again & drink the rest of it in the morning.
Tip #4: Don't ask hubby for help... it's easier to do it myself! Jerry told me that I have to be able to lift & carry every box I pack - I think this was an effort to get me to NOT take everything! Besides... according to him - the only thing he owns in the house is HIS wardrobe (and maybe a few odds & ends).
Tip #5: Make sure that you only bring one box at a time from the basement to pack things upstairs. This will insure you get LOTS of exercise...a good cardio workout!
Tip #6: NEVER mark the boxes you packed! The element of surprise when you unpack. Wonder where the blood came from that's smeared on one box & discover it's your own! Hmm! I don't remember cutting my hand! Look for a band-aid... discover the only band-aid in the house has Backyardigans on it!
Tip #7: By now coffee isn't working so well... pour a glass of wine to relax a bit. Wine has healing properties - sure to help the cut on my hand, right?
Tip #8: Leave a stack of full boxes by the stairs to take back to the basement - but conveniently forget to take a box down as you go to check on the laundry...that is why you're going back to the basement isn't it? Have another sip of wine before you head to the basement - empty handed again. Oops! Back up, grab a box... have another sip of wine.
Tip #9: Did I mention you should dust each item before you pack? You don't want to move dirty stuff to your new place. Oh wait! The new place will be either a storage unit or an unfinished cabin where dust blows constantly!
Tip #10: After discovering dusting is a bad idea & you're sneezing... have some more wine - that will settle the dust & you'll relax a bit more. After a few more sips of wine, decide you CAN take your dirt with you... most likely your stuff will need to be washed or wiped off after it's unpacked anyway.
Tip #11: Do not attempt to cook dinner while packing. What's that high-pitched, screeching sound? Oh no!! While you were busy packing or were in the basement re-organizing the boxes you've packed (because you can't just leave them stacked randomly) - dinner will burn - setting off the smoke alarm. That's what that sound is! Run up the stairs... trip on the landing & almost fall head first into the wall!
Tip #12: After the smoke clears - have some more wine. After three glasses of wine you'll not care whether dinner is burned.
Tip #13: May as well give it up for today...before things get worse. Things could get worse, right?
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Response to comment:
This started out to be a serious post about my adventures in packing... but wine tends to bring on AADD (Adult Attention Deficit Disorder) with me... and I had to include all the other stuff that happened during my day of packing!
So... please don't get me wrong... I'm very organized normally... I am a list-maker to beat all list-makers! I have made lists of things we have to move immediately (in approximately 3 weeks) and lists of things that will go on the moving sale. I pack room-by-room... for instance - kitchen: decor / casseroles / dishes / cookware / utensils / pantry; bathroom: decor / towels / rugs / medicine cabinet / shampoo,soap, etc. Like items packed in boxes of like items - boxes marked (except when I don't have a marker!). All the bedding & throw pillows & towels have been stuffed into those cool vacuum bags that you suck the air out of (can't believe those things work but they do!). I have packed the bedding & decor for the master bedroom in one HUGE tub to take with us (we're hoping to have the upstairs finished soon after getting there!).
The countertop/sink, cook stove, enamel top table & kitchen cabinet we've acquired will be the BIG things we take... along with some tubs of things we will need to "survive" the summer. Our furniture won't be moved until later in the summer...and quite frankly we don't have THAT much furniture.
Today I will make a trip to WalMart to get more vacuum bags, a fresh marker...and more wine! Let the packing continue!
Enjoyed the post - it made me smile. Thanks!
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