Moving

I'm moving. Physically, from one apartment to another, not on the interwebs. Still in NYC (which makes me sad), but to a bigger, cheaper apartment that actually gets sunshine, with a landlord who's a decent human being. And it's closer to my kids' dad, so it'll be easier for them to see him, and less transport time for the adults.

I am freaking out, though, about how all this is going to happen! In the next couple of days I need to jettison all the crap I was holding onto for security and pack up the stuff I really need. And then figure out how to get it into the new apartment by Wednesday...

Comments

[Kate]

If you need to chat at 1 in the morning, I will also be up jettisoning stuff :)

Changing your physical location can be very powerful. (Once you get through all the crap.) All for the good!

[MrsHaley]

Good luck, Mox! Moving has always been a watershed for me. I'm not a sentimental 'keeper,' so my a$$vice is this: Streamline, simplify and minimalize. Keep only what is useful, beautiful or meaningful. Off with the old, on toward the new! Can't wait to hear how well it goes!

[eccentriclibertarian]

I love the catharsis of the paring down process of moving...and I'm not an especially prodigious accumulator or sentimental keeper of objects.

The entire business associated with moving (packing, sorting, getting boxes, etc etc etc) is mostly a PITA, so I look for the catharsis part to make up, somewhat, for that.

Good luck to you!

[marci]

i *hate* moving, and helped my lovely bf move last week. ick.

i really hope it will all be worth it in the end. ours has been, so far.

[pennifer]

Best wishes for a smooth move. I'm guessing that means you'll keep a lower profile hereabouts - we'll be here when you get back! Or maybe you're such an awesome mover that you can do it all!

[Cobblestone]

I've moved a lot in my life and here is what I have learned.
1. Touch everything once and only once. Pack it, goodwill it, trash it - whatever but only deal with it once.
2. Plan it {it isn't too late!} Pick two sections to pack a day, an easy thing {CDs, Books, the good bakeware} and a section of house that is tougher. Do the tough one first and then rock the easy one.
3. Label the boxes where you can see it, not the easy spot on the top.
4. Once everything feels too sentimental to let go of you're too tired to keep going.
5. It is ok and helpful to label boxes, "cr-p from the laundry room and throw stuff in the box and call it done.

Good luck.

[Erin]

Rather than labeling boxes, we have always numbered them and then kept a master sheet on the computer with a more detailed description of contents (so we can make specific mention of objects we KNOW we'll need ). This is particularly useful if you're using a moving company and want to know if you lose a box exactly what was in it. (We move all. the. time.)

I love jettisoning old stuff. It can be deeply cathartic - like starting fresh. Don't underestimate the power of Craigslist for jettisoning bigger ticket items if you can't have a sidewalk sale.

[caramama]

While moving is a PITA, I love setting up rooms. So I always concentrate on how I'm going to set up the new place to help get through the drudgery of packing and moving.

I'm so glad you are going to a new place with a better landlord! I hope they have a working elevator that doesn't break down, too! Good luck!

[Jeannie]

When in doubt, toss it out.
I'm a ruthless mover.

[momgawaga]

I've also moved every 1-2.5 yrs since... omg... 1988? Wow. Anyway... for the last 4 moves we've bought room-specific tape from U-Haul. We use regular (cheaper) tape for sealing the boxes, and the color-coded tape to mark the top & 2 sides. Then we put the tape on the door of the room where the boxes are headed.
http://store.uhaul.com/Tape/Moving/Smart_Move_Tape_Kits
I'm *fairly* sure the place on 126th sells the pack - although we might have trekked to the big location in the Bx. Good luck!

[parisienne mais presque]

Here's to bright, sunny apartments and decent landlords! Congratulations, Moxie!

My only piece of moving advice is this: label the toolbox well. There's nothing like trying to put together an IKEA bed at 2 a.m. and realizing you have no idea where you packed the screwdrivers.

[Claudia]

My only advice: when I moved one block away, I broke the most stuff. So pack like you're moving to another city. It's worth the effort.

Good luck!

[Elaine]

My mom's best advice for moving: set up and make the beds first thing. That way no matter how much you haven't unpacked, you have a place to sleep.

Good luck.

[hush]

From one woman who also hates the moving of crapola process to another: good luck!

[Cecily T]

Good luck. We did our last move 2.5 years ago, and I'm hoping it was the last. My advice, if you're not sure about it, toss it. We paid to move stuff that we ended up trashing once we got here.

I agree w/ Elaine, too, get the beds set up.

Pack a 'last-minute' box and overnight bag w/ the stuff that you need to live. Not just PJs/toothbrush/etc, but whatever you plan to cook/eat with in the morning, a roll of TP, some hand towels, and possibly a bottle of gen purpose cleaner in case you find a place too yucky to set your belongings down on.

[Charisse]

Yay Moxie! Congrats on your escape.

[Slim]

No advice, just sympathy -- moving sucks.

[After Words]

As I'm in the middle of a move myself, I understand the agony. I'm definitely an advocate of "when in doubt, throw it out," mainly because I didn't follow that advice in the last move, and I still regret it.

(We wound up paying the movers to pack us up last time and they got it done in a day--and because we moved on a slow day for them, it wound up costing the same as doing our own packing had we moved on a different day. Let me know if you want deets.)

[Badger]

@Erin - thanks for the awesomely great tip on moving, that will help a ton!

[danielle]

Good luck! Moving sucks, but throwing crap away is cathartic. And good for you for staying near the boys' dad. The right thing to do is so often the hardest, isn't it?

And yay for sunshine!

[Nutmeg]

I am with Claudia. I moved interstate 6 + hour moves three times and broke nothing. When I moved three miles from one town to the next, I broke several things.

Good luck. I find moving to be the best way to force purging which will help put a little lightness in your chest... a little space in there where you have a place to take a deeper breath and room for your heart to be.

[Cori]

I'm in the same boat. I have no advice - only sympathy. We're moving from a large house in the 'burbs to a smaller house in the city. I'm just trying to stay focused on how much better it will feel when we're done. This will be my fifth move in four years. God I hope we stay put for a while!

[hedra]

We can't move, we have too much stuff. It would take a year to just get to the movable state of being... sigh.

[liz]

Advice:

Keep: Photos and kid's art work

Toss/Donate: Wedding presents you don't use (no matter how much you love the person who gave it to you), books you'll never read again (unless they're signed first editions), and bills you paid three years ago.

Bring to the dry cleaners anything that needs cleaning or repairing and leave it there until you've moved.

Donate or toss any clothes that don't fit you or the boys or are stained.

And I second the "touch once" advice. I had three boxes going in each room, "Move", "Donate", and "Trash".

[pocha]

This is too late for your move today, but since we're all adding our two cents, here's mine (and it's pretty simple):

If you can afford to, hire help. :-)

[Mother in the Making]

(From long, long-time reader and lurker, and very infrequent poster!)

GOOD luck with the move, Moxie! Please don't forget us trench-workers out here (anyone with a baby under 3 :)) but understand it may be hard to post while your laptop is under a barrel of boxes?!

Also, I have myself just started a blog last week, and thought some of your readers might like to check it out. If this is contrary to blog rules (like, is it self-advertising?) then please forgive me; I am a novice blogger and only one week into the whole blogging thing!!

If you do feel inclined, though, the blog is at:

http://launchingthemotherlode.blogspot.com

Best Mother in the Making

[z]

good luck on the move moxie. No advice just plenty of good thoughts and hugs.

[mom2boys]

Hoping your sorting/packing/moving goes smoothly!!!

[Amy]

Why sad that you are not leaving NYC???

If you need any motivation on getting rid of stuff, watch America's messiest house - definitely a motivator to get the crap out!!

Good luck with the move. I hope the unpacking is a bit more fun than the packing.

[Eveanyn Ronakov]

Mox,
Have you heard of the Fly Lady system? It really is an amazing routine if you can get into it. I picked through it and used alot of the cleaning and keeping it clean things but don't have alot of clutter the isn't kids stuff or poorly stored necessities. It may help. Lots of hugs and positive vibes!
E

[Home Investors]

Fly Away..........Fly Away

[coach handbags]

Marzipan cookies sound absolutely delightful! I could not tell from your post if you were currently pregnant or getting ready to have your baby-Either way, CONGRATULATIONS.