Our summer moving saga commenced last weekend. The paces of moving now have
\nus living out of boxes and plastic bins until the end of the month. Oh,
\nwell, and suitcases and duffels for an upcoming jaunt to the Great Lakes State. I
\nwill do everything I can to resist complaining again about the inconveniences of
\nmoving.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
D. and Ph., after all, have been tremendous. Whatever D. packs, Ph. carries,
\nstacks, carries again, etc. He took his last Regents exam for the year
\ntoday and without complaint went about mowing the grass this afternoon while I
\nwas away at the local Honda garage yet again for the problem of intermittent
\nbrake noise (from the brand new brakes we had put on back in late
\nFebruary…this was the third<\/i> (and final? final!) brake-adjustment visit
\nin the interceding months). I will do what I can to resist complaining
\nabout the inconveniences of several hundred dollar brakes that squeak and grind
\nso loudly that people turn their heads and stare.<\/p>\n
Just three years ago, we lived in Kansas City. The move at the end of
\nthis month will deliver us to our third (and final? final!) home in Syracuse.
\nThe next move will not<\/i> be local. Since I finished my BA in 1996, I
\nhave lived for more than one month in ten different places (four in Michigan,
\nfour in Kansas City, and two in Syracuse). Longest stretch at the same address:
\nfour years. It comes as a downer when I realize that six (and soon seven) of
\nthese moves have relocated Ph. over the last ten years. In these days leading up
\nto moving yet again I feel desperate to live at the same address for four years
\nagain. You might have guessed it: We are expert in the forwarding of USPS mail. <\/p>\n
I posted a bunch of stuff on Craigslist this week. Desks (too big and
\nheavy for the new second-floor office space), a television, a Marantz
\nstereophonic receiver, an exercise bike, some random wall hangings and
\nknick-knacks. The Marantz was a hit. Swarms of technicians and
\nhobbyists inquired by email. The TV has been claimed. The wall hangings
\nswiped up just this afternoon. <\/p>\n
The weight of paper is, more than anything else, the reason I dread moving.
\nPaper and hide-a-beds. And washing machines. Those three things
\nspoil what might otherwise be an occasion to celebrate a fresh start.
\nFortunately, the hide-a-bed loveseat has found a permanent new home (permanent<\/i>
\nas in I hope never to lift it again). We will move it there, say
\ngood-byes, and never own another one. The washing machine stays.
\nThis is an advantage of renting. But the paper, the books, the file
\ncabinet. Ruthless. Saturday, Ph. and I carted four carloads of bins to the
\ngarage at the new place (where the new LaLo has been generous to give us a
\ncorner space and a head start on filling it in). Upon hoisting an
\nespecially heavy container, I put it back down again and lifted the lid. Rock
\ncollection? Inside were paper-filled binders–the Collected Life Works of
\nPh. No wonder he’s so enthusiastic about the haul. Preparations for
\nthis move remind me that I have too many books (even if, deep down, I know it’s
\nalways going to be too few), and that I have felt some struggle in organizing
\nand focusing my work-a-day paces in anticipation of the looming, imminent
\nupheaval.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Our summer moving saga commenced last weekend. The paces of moving now have us living out of boxes and plastic bins until the end of the month. Oh, well, and suitcases and duffels for an upcoming jaunt to the Great Lakes State. I will do everything I can to resist complaining again about the inconveniences…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_hide_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_featured_image_duplicate_dismissed":0,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[161],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6769","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-slouching_toward"],"yoast_head":"\n