I really didn’t want to, but after moving less that two years ago I had to move again. I had to move about two years ago because I sold my house. That move was an adventure in itself and I really did not want to relive some of those experiences (Yes, I wrote a blog entry on that here). Fortunately, I had thrown out a bunch of junk when I moved then so there was less to move, right? Wrong. I still had tons of stuff to move, most of which should be thrown away.
Several months back I was thinking about moving away from Kirksville as there were several things I did not like there, especially my job. So I started thinking about where and when to move. I had the perfect opportunity coming up in a few months as my lease would be up on the house I was renting. So the “when to move” was somewhat identified so all I needed to do was to figure out where to move to. Then something happened.
I had a disagreement with my boss and I was no longer employed. The reasons didn’t matter as they wanted me gone and I wanted to leave. So it was either I was fired or I quit, it depends on who you ask. Enough said.
So here I was with two more months remaining on my lease, no place to work, planning to move and enough money in the bank for several months. So, I decided to take a couple of months off to figure out where to move too and then look for a job once I got there. It sounded like a plan to me.
I decided that I wanted to move to Columbia, MO, about 90 miles south of Kirksville. My step-daughter lives there and Columbia is a nice small city. Since the population is about 5 times greater that Kirksville, I felt my job opportunities where better in Columbia, so a move was planned.
Since I had time to move and I was going to Columbia every week or so anyway, I decided to start moving early. I rented a storage garage in Columbia and every time I drove to Columbia I had my pickup truck and my trailer full of stuff. First, I moved everything that was in storage or boxed. I figured I would not need most of this stuff for a while anyways. Then I started with extra furniture, spare clothing and anything else I could find that I would not need for a while.
After several loads the house was stripped down to the bare essentials yet I had no place to live. Fortunately, luck was on my side as a nice duplex home just came on the market down the street from my step-daughter. The price was right and it had a garage, which means I would no longer need the storage garage in Columbia once I got moved. But there was one problem, the landlord wanted to get a few projects done in the house, besides the necessary cleaning after the past tenants left it a mess, so he needed a few weeks. All I had was a few weeks to out of my house. Fortunately, we, the potential landlord and I, decided that I was acceptable as a tenant; he would finish his work before my old least was up and I would wait for him to finish in the house. Now I had three weeks to get out of my old place and hopefully my new landlord will be done in two weeks.
Four Days before my lease was up my new landlord said the house was ready. For the next three days I drove back and forth between Kirksville and Columbia, once per day, hauling my stuff. The last day I spent in Kirksville with the carpet cleaners getting the house cleaned for my outgoing inspection (My old landlord required professional carpet cleaning as I left as a condition of my lease). My old landlord was unable to be there for the inspection so he had me leave the keys on the counter and lock the door. Hopefully, everything was to their satisfaction. I have lived in many rental apartments and homes over the years and I was truly surprised a few weeks later when I got my entire deposit back. Usually there is a charge for this or that which ate up half or more of the deposit. Getting the entire deposit back has never happened to me before. Thanks!
Now I am out of the house in Kirksville I got a place in Columbia, I just realized that I am only half way moved. Yup, half of my stuff is in the storage unit in Columbia and still needed to be moved into my new house. At least I was still unemployed so I had the time to move the stuff, plus it was only a few miles away. No long distance driving to haul the stuff.
After a few more weeks I was moved into my new home. Now, the only thing left to do is to unpack all the boxes. That will take time.
All I got to say, “Moving sucks”.
