Boxes, boxes, boxes!

This past weekend, I moved into a new apartment with my girlfriend. Though I would like to report that we're all moved in and settled, that's not the case. As we speak, dozens of boxes fill the living room and pour over into the adjacent computer room and bedroom. It's like a maze that we set up for the neighborhood kids to come play in. At night, if I get up, I run into not one, but three boxes before reaching the bathroom. On top of that, there is just so much purging we have to do. Between my stuff and her stuff, we could probably fill an entire house!
Each night we have set a goal to get one room finished. Sunday we did the kitchen. Monday we did the dining room. Progress IS being made, but at a slow pace. And that's not saying anything for the rest of my stuff still at my old apartment. I have to clean that out completly by Sunday. She assures me we will be done with the old apartment Wednesday. Somehow I have my doubts. The place still needs to be cleaned.
Tommorow we're meeting the Salvation Army guys to come and get my couch, loveseat, kitchen table and chairs (sadly, they did not make the final list). The Salvation Army said they will pick this stuff up between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. I guess that means while we are waiting around for the truck to show up, we can clean the apartment.
On top of all that, after work yesterday all I wanted to do was come home and plop down on the couch and watch TV. That was not to be. A day after the cable and Internet was hooked up, it didn't work. Therefore I have to meet the cable guy again today after work to see what the problem is.
For those poor souls who find moving "fun", I envy you.

Handle with care ...

For two weeks I have been trying to pack up my apartment in Belleville. Earlier this year, my girlfriend and I decided to start shopping around for places to live. A lot of people told us that now would be a good time to buy a home. In hindsight, they are probably right. However, we wanted to wait until she graduated from college in February to make any decision like that. My old childhood home in Allen Park is up for sale. It would be nice to buy that house, but I do not think that will happen. Hopefully it will hit the market again when I am shopping around for a house.
For now, we're content moving into a cozy two-bedroom apartment. I have already begun making plans to turn one of the rooms into a joint office. The part that I am quickly losing patience over is packing.
For one, I HATE packing and moving. It's so tedious and annoying. I have spent most of my free evenings packing and sealing boxes in preparation for the big move on Saturday. My girlfriend reassures me that I do not have that much stuff (and that she has a lot more). The fact that I stare at boxes filling my current living room frightens me. How much more could she have? Can we cram it all in one small apartment?
We are purging some stuff and next week I have to meet the Salvation Army guys so they can take my couch, loveseat, chair, kitchen table and coffee table. I apparently lost the battle on whose stuff is going with us to the new apartment. Again, she assures me, her stuff is nicer anyway and in better condition.
I'm not too much at a loss though. Most of my furniture I've used for the past two and a half years was donated to me.
I will be glad when this week and next week are over and I can rest in my new apartment. Then again, if it took me two weeks to pack everything up, how long is it going to take for me to unpack everything? Indeed, I already forgot which box contains what appliance.
That being said, at least we're not trying to move around the holidays. The holiday season is one of my favorite times of the year and I do not want anything affecting that.

Christmas shopping can add up

Okay, so this week I bit the bullet and decided to start shopping for Christmas. Usually I start shopping toward the end of November, but this year I did it on a whim. Infact, most of it I did last night online waiting for my girlfriend to get home. This afternoon I am going through my reciepts to see just how much I decided to fork over. Already I am over what I allocated to spend this year and I still have three more people to shop for.
Since when did Christmas shopping become so expensive?
I remember the days when my brother, sister and I would shop at the local store a few weeks before Christmas. Because we were too young to have jobs, mom and dad would give us our allowance ($20 for the month), and we would have to figure out how to spend $20 on four people. That was never too hard -- an action figure for my brother, a diary for my sister, a video for mom and dad.
Now, Christmas shopping is a lot like a chore. You are expected to get a gift for everyone and their mom and your list grows expotentially larger every year. And of those on your list, half of them say, "Don't get me anything; I don't need anything this year." All that does is make my job A LOT harder.
This year I decided to do 95 percent of my shopping online. Amazon.com had virtually everything I was looking for (and at a good price). Within 40 minutes I had gifts purchased for seven out of 10 people.
The catch is, I am still shopping for the three HARDEST people in the universe. My mom, grandma and girlfriend must sit around the kitchen table together and plot new ways to make my life more stressful. None of the " Christmas trifector," as I call them, will give me a hint of an idea for Christmas gifts.
Luckly, Bon Jovi is going on tour in March. And since the GF very much enjoys Bon Jovi, her name can be scratched off the list (thank you Ticketmaster).
The rest are probably going to gift cards. Yes its less personable, but for someone who has no patience when it comes to shopping, it's the best option. After walking around Meijer and Target for a combined two and a half hours last night browsing for gifts, I'm done.
At least, as they say, Christmas comes but once a year.

D.L.