Tuesday 27 January 2009

Packing, Parks, and People

I'm dead tired from the move as I write this, so I'll keep it brief. With links. Still no comments though? I'm mostly prepared... last year around this time, we saw a few.


Jan 19 - Good, Bad, Not Paying Attention

Copasetic - an odd word. Look it up.

I could write a lot of things here, but today I choose to simply say I am ambivalent. I've had a lot to think about lately, and it's left my mind feeling rather wrung-out. Coming to a lot of realizations about Life, The Universe and Everything has not been fun some days. One thing that has bothered me has been what I term 'Life Withdrawal' where someone finds too many thing are causing them emotional distress, so they stop getting emotional... at all. While this works fine for stress reduction when your car drops its transmission, it really muffs you up when the time comes to find yourself caring about other people's life joys, or even being social. Most people are quite able to tell when you are going through the motions, pretending to be interested in what they are saying... especially when you can't recall anything about WHAT they were saying later on - can't be bothered, you know.

So that's it for today.

Jan 20 - Packing Green

I took time today to visit the park at the end of my street, the one that I've never managed to climb around in. Yes, that's right: climb. The park is a series of rock outcroppings of various sizes and levels, covered in scrub and trees with paths in between. It faces south, so that those who work their way to the top of the cliff are rewarded with a stunning view of Fairfield and the Olympic Mountains beyond. Being a beautiful sunny day, it was just amazing... the rocks, the green of the trees and grass( in winter! )and the misty cloud layer that the mountains rose above like the homes of the gods.

Too bad I'm moving out of the area.

While packing, I've found a few things that I didn't know I still had, forgotten about, or that I just haven't used - the usual. Take for instance, the Milton Bradley Gamesmaster series - lovely games that came out in the 80's, the most popular of which was Axis & Allies. While I still have the games with me, I have no-one to play them with any more... devoting an entire evening to a game session just isn't in the cards for folks in my social bracket / age category. A shame, as they're great games.

I just don't want to find myself talking about duplicate Bridge with someone anytime soon.

Jan 21 - What, me evil?

If you are an Evil Genius, you may find yourself too busy to take care of the smaller things... hence, hiring the Henchmen, those poor underworked slobs who are cannon fodder for the villain's plans. Thankfully there is help for these minimum-wage, high-mortality fellows: the Henchman's Helper.

Plus, if the Evil Genius boss decides to leave you hanging in the wind when the heroes come calling guns-a-blazing, good news: cloaking devices may soon be in the local Henchman Depot.

In the meantime, while you wait for your personal invisibility hoodie, you can look over the original handbook for wannabe Evil Geniuses: How to Win Friends and Influence People. Lots of laughs.

Next week: Evil Lair Decorating - without a single doomsday device in sight!

Jan 22 - So I told the Jedi I didn't want any lightsaber insurance...

Someone told me today I look like George Lucas, and not for the first time. Though I am not sure it's a compliment, as Mister Star Wars has totally gray hair and is not exactly slim and trim anymore.

Better than resembling Rush Limbaugh, I guess.

As you may have noticed, this week I am running rather short on sentences. For those of you that brevity appeals to, I offer you One Sentence - stories told in a single sentence. Go see.

Jan 23 - Countdown

Another busy day at work, but at least it was jerk-free. The sun was out most of the day, so people were in a cheerful mood. It also helps that I am now quite familiar with most of the regular customers at the branch, as I am there almost every day the place is open, being the only staff member. So that helps with keeping things smooth, as I know the names of 9 out of 10 people who walk in the door immediately. We do a lot of Western Union sends, especially to the Philippines, so I imagine if I ever attended a local Filipino cultural event, half the people there would know who I am... strange but true.

After work, I helped my parents pack some final items at their place, large or awkward things that they couldn't do themselves. Which twigged me to a realization that perhaps older people stay in the same residence for decades because it is just too much effort to pack things for a move... not to mention expensive if you're on a limited pension. Lifting TV's around, even smaller or flat ones, is not easy for those no longer in their prime. Even wall mirrors become heavy, awkward things that are best left in place rather than risk a shattering drop if they prove too much to handily.

Jan 24 - Tick... Tick... Move

Up early to do some final packing. My parents are moving today, so they're up too in order to, well, get things in order. Not me though; I have to work today.

I kept in touch with them to ensure all went smoothly, as we were using the same movers as last time, A to B Moving - they impressed me with their speed, careful handling of our possessions, and their reasonable rates. They were done moving my parents after only 4 hours all told, from packing the truck to unloading, with nary a dropped box in the lot. Very low stress, and I will be adding glowing reviews of them to a few websites as soon as I get the chance.

After work, I went back to my condo to finish packing a few final boxes, around a dozen all told. The piles of cardboard are man-high in most places, and have the added benefit of really retaining the heat despite the very low temperatures outside. I finally left around 11pm, tired but confident of a successful move tomorrow.


And... more on the move next week. No mention about the visitor from Jan 15th, though I will get the pictures posted... once I find them.