Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Moving In

It's done! I'm in! I have a home again!
What a relief it is... of course I am still not very settled, but it is just so nice to have all my stuff under one roof again.
I've spent the last few days running around to stores and gathering things I had stored with family. My movers came Saturday morning-- it was funny, originally I thought they were supposed to send 3 guys to move me in. It turned out to be two guys, or rather, one guy and one girl. I am all for equal opportunity, but I have to say, when I'm paying movers by the hour, I'd really rather have some hulking guy who can lift 5 boxes at once... since odds are that you wouldn't find a woman who could lift those same 5 boxes. If she could, she could probably make more money as a professional body builder. In any case, the good news is that it still didn't take them that long to unload all my stuff, and it all came back intact and undamaged. I had even packed a lamp that still had a bulb in it, and the bulb still worked!
So the move was another few hundred dollars, including a generous tip, and plenty of drinks and bagels.
One thing that made my move 100 times easier was that I was able to borrow a car for part of the weekend. I did another run to Lowe's, and a big Pathmark supermarket, and indulged myself a bit in buying some stuff that would normally be difficult-- a fire-proof safe, a fire extinguisher, and some bulk size packages of paper towels, etc. I had considered renting a car or joining ZipCar, but borrowing a junky old jeep was a very viable alternative!

One of the first things I did after moving in was that I picked up a cute little metal table on the street. At first I walked past it, then I went back and looked it over. It was broken in a couple of spots and needs a new piece of glass for a top, but I grabbed it anyway. My uncle said he could weld the broken parts for me, so with a coat of paint and a piece of glass, I'll have a nice new coffee table at a bargain price!

I have so many other things to deal with... furniture, window coverings, etc. I actually found a neat temporary solution for the windows. For about $5 each, I bought some pleated paper shades. You cut them to the width of your window, and then you can clip them in place to whatever height you want. They don't look half bad-- definitely better than hanging some sheet over the window until I buy real blinds or curtains!

The dust is still settling... literally, despite all my vacuuming... but I don't mind a bit. It's so nice to have my warm clothes back, and my kitchen stuff, and just to be able to sleep in my own bed again.

11 comments:

Denise Mall said...

Congratulations! I hope your home is with (It's a Wonderful Life Quote):

Bread, so that your house never knows hunger.

Salt, so your home is full of flavor.

Wine, so your home may know joy and happiness.

Ok, not exactly a quote, but I'm sure you get my drift. Best of luck!

Bitty said...

:)

There's no place like home!
There's no place like home!
There's no place like home!

Anonymous said...

Congrats on the move-in!

Anonymous said...

Congrats on finally moving in. It is definitely an exciting time when you move in to YOUR own place. Good call on the coffee table. You will have so many expenses as you get the place set up, that any freebie like that will definitely ease the financial pain!

Anonymous said...

Congratulations -- and I wish you much enjoyment with your new home for many, many years.

mapgirl said...

Congratulatons! I hope you enjoy your home and fulfills your dreams.

Cool paper shade ideas. 2.5 years later and I still have light sheer panels for curtains, rather than the real thing.

Anonymous said...

WOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!

Now exhale. Unpacking, organizing, setting up, decorating, etc. all takes time. If you have a place to eat and sleep, you're golden.

Dreamnepal said...

Loved your site. Thanks for all the great information....

Tired of being broke said...

Congratulations on moving in. May you have many happy days decorating.

Anonymous said...

Caongratulations on moving -- I know what a pain that can be. I was sure that you were gong to say something about the bad habit about -- and this is experience talking -- movers tacking on a 20% charge at the end of the move, when they have all your stuff in the truck, etc. That's happened to me a time or two in NYC, that's for sure.

Janet said...

Congrats on settling into your home! It must be an incredible feeling to walk in the door and know that you OWN it rather than renting.

did you budget in advance for the things you needed to buy for your new home such as furniture or household appliances?