DAY 23: Selling CDs, More Meals, and Pinball Wizardry
Yesterday (DAY 24) I finally started digging into clothes. Nathan has been packed for two weeks, but he also left about 10 days' worth of clothes in the villa when we were down last summer. I left a few outfits and swimsuits, but not nearly as much. It's a task I have been dreading.
He has been urging me to "soft pack" what I'll wear between now and when our goods arrive in Belize in September (most likely). That means a lot of repetition in my outfits, so my Youtube videos will experience a bit of deja vu in the clothing department. And yes, I know I need to up my video-editing skills, it is on my perpetual "to-do" list, which grows every day!
I had our 80-square-foot closet packed to the gills with clothes - being in sales, I had "professional" and "event" clothing, for awards banquets and such, plus "going out" clothes, and casual attire. The photo is from our listing, after I moving-sale-sold and donated about 75% of what I had, and added some of Nathan's clothes on the right-side rods so it didn't seem that a normal couple couldn't share the closet space.
I thinned out more pieces to donate and condensed down to two XL vacuum bags. EEEEEK. I am glad someone asked in the "Moving to Belize" Facebook group about long-sleeved shirts - other expats said to bring them for sun protection, if nothing else! I chucked the 3/4 sleeve shirts but kept a handful of long sleeves.
After Nathan finished work, he set out to sell our old iPods and CDs. We're both huge music fans, and must have 400 or so CDs. We have been meaning to take them into a used record store (do they even call them that any longer...?) years ago, yet they have continued to move with us. The first store he went to bought the iPods and...5 CDs. He tried another store that bought 4 more. Meaning we still have about 391 CDs, if anyone has any suggestions on what to do with them!
Today (DAY 23), my mom came over - there was a typo on Shadow's rabies certificate, so she brought a corrected one, and breakfast. Then I dragged her through our home and tried to pawn stuff off on her. She left with a full trunk, and also managed to find buyers for 2 of our remaining TVs. BONUS!
Then I met Angela, one of my old sales partners, for a sushi lunch. We worked together at - hands down - the most toxic and emotionally-damaging builder in town, in their flagship community that was an absolute shit-show - literally. At the time, the highest-priced homes in the area, on huge lots with RV garages, and DOZENS of homes flooded with raw sewage within days of closing. Sometimes, the same home flooded more than once. You can imagine how upset a customer would be after spending $1M on a brand-new home, to have it flood with raw sewage the day that they move in. That was one of just many reasons it was an awful place to work. But I digress. It was great to catch up, yet bittersweet to know I won't see her again any time soon. I know I have more of those feelings coming, too.
While I was out, Nathan had our pinball machine serviced, A.K.A. "Our Frivilous Shipping Item". I bought it used for $400 back in 1997 after moving into my first home. Since then, it has been moved five times, and we originally planned to sell it. Both boys want it, but don't have anywhere for it to go. Lots of family memories go with that machine, so we decided to bite the bullet and that will be the ONE ridiculous thing we take with us.
The tech was here for about 3 hours - he changed out all the bulbs to LED which will be MUCH cooler, and last longer than us, most likely. He also replaced all worn parts, checked the wiring, and advised us on how to pack it for moving. When I moved to Scottsdale from Nashville, I hired movers to pack everything. Since then, our moves have all been local, and as short as 2 miles, so the movers we have used haven't had to break it down.
It now looks brighter in play!
We're strategizing on how to pack it, as no heavy items can go on top, even when it is consolidated into the freight forwarder's container. I have some patio lounge chair cushions, and I think we might wrap those with a strap on top - they will work as cushioning and also discourage additional items from being stacked above. I also have concerns about how we will get it onto the U-Pack trailer - it comes with a ramp, but this machine must weigh 300lbs, it will absolutely suck to carry up a ramp. We were instructed that the best way to move it was to fold down the top, but leave it on its legs. Did I mention that it will be 110f+ when we load the trailer...? Good times.