Friday Five: Moving and Changing

Sally at RevGalBlogPals writes:


ALL IS CHANGE.... and although I am looking forward to it, it is not without a sense of trepidation, as change always brings challenges.

Changing location also means packing, so next month will be a month of clearing and sorting, deciding what comes and what gets left behind...

So with change in mind I offer you this Friday five; ( if you've never moved here's a chance to use your imagination)

1. A big move is looming, name one thing that you could not possibly part with, it must be packed ?
Now that we have no children living with us, I'd have to bring along our pets: Baillie, our old cocker spaniel; Cisco, CB's mixed shepherd; and Gracie, the furry queen cat.

2. Name one thing that you would gladly leave behind...
The HEAT/humidity of south TX.

3. How do you prepare for a move
a. practically?
Clean out and get rid of.

Having lived in the same house for the past 15 years has us packed to the gills. Moving motivates me to sort and clean out.

b. spiritually/ emotionally?
I'd check with Shalem for spiritual directors in the new area, so maybe I'd have possibilities for friends there. I have met wonderful people here, who were directed through Shalem.

Keep addresses in my address book. Try to see friends as much as possible before leaving.
I have lived here in Corpus Christi longer than I have in any other place in my life (since I grew up with a dad in the Marine Corps), and so it would be difficult to part from this "home," even though it's always too hot.

4. What is the first thing you look for in a new place?

This is what our moves usually looked like:

When we moved so much when we had children, I would always seek out the La Leche League leaders and groups, plus the local library.

Now I would seek out spiritual friends, probably first through Shalem's directory.

5. Do you settle in easily, or does it take time for you to find your feet in a new location?
One would think that moving so frequently both as a child and as a young mother, I would have gotten used to relocating. However, it has always been difficult for me to move, probably because I am an introvert.

The hardest move of all was from RI to NJ when my mother had just died. When we moved, the children (except for 2 year old MJ) were in school and CB was immediately at work, and I was alone with MJ. Thankfully, I had her.

The bonus for today; a new opportunity has come up for you to spend 5 years in a new area, where would you go and why?
This is a revelation to me.

I have been worrying about whether we should move to Bellingham, WA, where I still own (and rent out) my parents' home, but friends and three of our children living in TX hold me here. A move doesn't have to be permanent, except it seems that way with all our junk. So getting rid of stuff would bring freedom of movement, also.This is a map of Bellingham. Find Lakeway Drive and then see Puget Street--my parents' old home is about the middle of the word "Puget." CB's parents live past Yew Street on Lakeway Drive.This is a good view of Western Washington University (formerly WWSC, from which CB and I graduated) and Sehome Hill. The hill behind Sehome Hill is where my parents' house is.