It’s beginning to get very real…We came to the almost painful realization that packing up doesn’t just mean stuffing your mountains of acquired crap into a storage area and various assorted suitcases. Oh no. What it really means is transforming your house into a blank canvas so that you can begin the real work: cleaning it and making it renter ready.
Wow! Our delusions of minimalism were rocked to the very foundations when we delved into the darkest and deepest recesses of our small home. Items lost years ago magically presented themselves (including 3 cousins, a boat lost in the Bermuda Triangle, another child). Perhaps we need to try a little harder to limit possessions?
Added to which, did you know that when you remove every single item of food from the cupboards, fridge, and freezer it reveals a layer of detritus that must be cleared away and then sanitized? Apparently we didn’t when we decided to, “quickly pack up the kitchen and then the rest of the house before lunch…” My bones still ache from the memory.
Still, we are done. Tonight is the last night we will spend in our house until mid July, 7 months from now. We will presumably go through our luggage a few more times to make sure that we have what we will need to replace when we get to -20 degree weather in Finland. Yet for now we are set to go. Yes, it’s getting very real.
Thanks to everyone who in ways big and small are helping us prepare. Let’s do this!
-Stu