Today I said goodbye to my first new car purchase. My 1997 Honda Accord (nicknamed "ZiPPy" for the three letters on the license plate) was driven away by a nice couple who purchased it off of Craigslist. It was a sad moment for me - perhaps even sadder than when I walked out of our Green House.
I had to sign the title with my maiden name. I almost botched up the signature since it's been so long since I had last done that. To make matters even worse, on the Bill of Sale that I had prepared for the transaction, I had noted the wrong Vehicle Identification Number (VIN). It was completely wrong. Like a 1987 Toyota Camry wrong. Good thing the buyer was more attentive to these "details" than I was.
So, now we are a one car family. We'll see how long we can manage with one car (our mini-van nicknamed "Blackhawk") in LA.
Well, so long ZiPPy. You were a great car.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Bye-bye Green House!
Well, this is our much beloved Green House (without the trash lined up on the sidewalk!) to which we've said our good-byes. The movers came yesterday and loaded up 128 items (furniture and boxes) totaling over 3,700 pounds.
Air Boss and I walked hand-in-hand with 'Shroom and Lolli and we said good-bye to every room in our house. The kids didn't seem overly sad but they knew that they would no longer be living here. Air Boss and I had our separate moments of nostalgia as we were frantically cleaning the house after the movers.
As Air Boss took bag after bag of trash to the curbside, he felt sadness wash over him. As I was vacuuming the playroom, I thought back to all the memories I had sitting on the couch in what was then 'Shroom's nursery. I spent hours and hours molding the couch cushions to the shape of my butt as I nursed and nursed (and nursed) 'Shroom. I remembered the little grocery store we had set up complete with stocked shelves of "food" (empty containers and cereal boxes) when the room was used as a playroom.
Ahh . . . definitely fond memories. Truth be told, even though it was sad to leave the kids' first (and only) house, I've been so busy that it really hasn't sunk in.
Now that we have two weeks living with my parents and nothing to pack or clean, I'll have a lot more time to think about what's behind us and what's to come.
Air Boss and I walked hand-in-hand with 'Shroom and Lolli and we said good-bye to every room in our house. The kids didn't seem overly sad but they knew that they would no longer be living here. Air Boss and I had our separate moments of nostalgia as we were frantically cleaning the house after the movers.
As Air Boss took bag after bag of trash to the curbside, he felt sadness wash over him. As I was vacuuming the playroom, I thought back to all the memories I had sitting on the couch in what was then 'Shroom's nursery. I spent hours and hours molding the couch cushions to the shape of my butt as I nursed and nursed (and nursed) 'Shroom. I remembered the little grocery store we had set up complete with stocked shelves of "food" (empty containers and cereal boxes) when the room was used as a playroom.
Ahh . . . definitely fond memories. Truth be told, even though it was sad to leave the kids' first (and only) house, I've been so busy that it really hasn't sunk in.
Now that we have two weeks living with my parents and nothing to pack or clean, I'll have a lot more time to think about what's behind us and what's to come.
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Basement on the Sidewalk
One door converted to a desktop . . . $ free
One no longer used Hibachi grill . . . $ free
One box of old printed music . . . $ free
Countless CD's and software programs . . . $ free
One dusty guitar stand . . . $ free
Countless pieces of scrap plywood from equally numerous home projects . . . $ free
Enough electrical and coax cable to wire a small 5,000 SF building . . . $ free
Worn men's boots that have endured several New England winters . . . $ free
One plush green carpet once used at the foot of our bed . . . $ free
Two trash bags stuffed with shredded documents (which eventually killed our shredder) . . . $ free
A dozen plus moving boxes that will not make it onto the moving truck to CA . . . $ free
One cleared out basement . . . PRICELESS
Monday, June 11, 2007
The Omigee Dilemma
As we are well underway in our packing, Air Boss and I are trying to keep a wary eye on all the items that won't go on the moving truck but rather, will accompany us in our minivan. Right now, I think we have enough stuff to fill a U-Haul twelve-footer.
So, now that we've upgraded to a U-Haul (not), we figured we could take on more stuff. Well Air Boss now wants to schlep our little (but full adult-sized) blue betta fish, Omigee. I'm worried the poor guy won't even make it into the Central Time Zone.
If the 3,000 mile car ride won't be enough of an experience, we can always throw in 'Shroom's and Lolli's first lesson on death should the little blue guy bite the dust before we reach our final destination.
Well, it's not a done deal with regards to Omigee. We'll have to see 1) how packed the minivan really is, 2) if I can find a container that will let the blue guy swim around enough so that we're just under the threshold of animal cruelty, and 3) whether or not Air Boss and I are ready to have the "death discussion" with the kids.
Stay tuned . . .
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
When there are no toys left . . . .
Poor 'Shroom and Lolli have been without toys for almost a week now . . . and the movers don't show up for another two more weeks!
So, how do they pass their time away? by doing some creative things . . .
- playing "baby cheetah" (Lolli) and "daddy cheetah" ('Shroom)
It seems a little weird that Lolli is being babied by 'Shroom but it's all imaginary play with no props or toys.
- making paper airplanes out of scrap paper with Air Boss
They're enjoying the big backyard as we most likely won't have a blade of grass to call our own for a very long time (unless we hit it big at Vegas or using scratch tickets!)
- helping mommy shred paper (ahh . . . so nice to get rid of 5+ year old bank statements!)
"Shroom and Lolli call it "shedding paper" and they know how dangerous the shredder is. They feed the paper in, jump back, and cover their ears with their hands (it's not THAT loud)
- drying cans of leftover paint using kitty litter
Lolli and I started the first batch this afternoon and she had fun stirring the clumped up mess. She informed me that she likes the smell of the latex paint. Oh dear.
and the best way to pass the time away with no toys . . .
. . . screaming at the top of their lungs and running through out the emptier house. Yes, it's very noisy and I'm sure our downstairs neighbors hate us but they have absolutely nothing to play with. Can I blame them?
=)
So, how do they pass their time away? by doing some creative things . . .
- playing "baby cheetah" (Lolli) and "daddy cheetah" ('Shroom)
It seems a little weird that Lolli is being babied by 'Shroom but it's all imaginary play with no props or toys.
- making paper airplanes out of scrap paper with Air Boss
They're enjoying the big backyard as we most likely won't have a blade of grass to call our own for a very long time (unless we hit it big at Vegas or using scratch tickets!)
- helping mommy shred paper (ahh . . . so nice to get rid of 5+ year old bank statements!)
"Shroom and Lolli call it "shedding paper" and they know how dangerous the shredder is. They feed the paper in, jump back, and cover their ears with their hands (it's not THAT loud)
- drying cans of leftover paint using kitty litter
Lolli and I started the first batch this afternoon and she had fun stirring the clumped up mess. She informed me that she likes the smell of the latex paint. Oh dear.
and the best way to pass the time away with no toys . . .
. . . screaming at the top of their lungs and running through out the emptier house. Yes, it's very noisy and I'm sure our downstairs neighbors hate us but they have absolutely nothing to play with. Can I blame them?
=)
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