Beginning the move

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I "retired" on March 26. I spent 3 days camping (a previous blog) and then, it was back to work. First we finished packing in VA. Kim came over the first of April to take her cats to our favorite vet and helped a lot. We got 95% of the house packed, packed the car and the RV and the pickup truck and prepared to move out. Monday we left for 'Bama about noon and in strong crosswinds, headed south. This was the first time we had driven separately and we kept in touch with a small handheld radio set. We needed more frequent breaks since we couldn't spell each other. Weather reports got ominous the further south in VA we went. Finally, around Blacksburg, we pulled over for dinner and decided to call it a day. We headed for a nearby WalMart and settled in for the night. Soon after getting in, the storms came. They rocked the RV and the wind and rain were powerful most of the night. In the morning, the weather looked clear and we had a nice breakfast and got ready to go. Then another wave of wind came in so we waited another 45 minutes.
When we finally pulled out, we still had strong winds but not as bad as the day before. Further south in VA we hit snow and sleet, the last hurrah of winter in Virginia. We trucked on and eventually crossed into Alabama late in the afternoon. Our contractor there called and wondered where we were. We told him we'd be in soon so he decided to wait at the house to greet us.
We pulled into the yard, unhitched the car, and went in the house. Wow! What a great deal of work he had done. The overhead cabinet in the middle of the kitchen was gone, we had a huge walk-in closet in the MBR, all the nasty carpet had been removed, and important structural fixes had been made. We thanked him and told him we hoped to get the flooring for him to put in later that week.
We set up the RV next to the house so we could live and began shuttling things out of the truck and car and into the house. ALL of Trish's plants came and those were put on the porches and outside where we watered them and made sure they were OK. Painting supplies were toted to the garage and eventually we were set to live in the RV and work on painting the inside.
First order of business was to clean the stove and refrigerator. We had almost all the frozen food from VA in the RV and lots of the things from the fridge as well. Once we had the fridge in Alabama clean, we could empty out the RV. The fridge was easy, just a bit of soap and degreaser and it was done. I turned it on and gave it a day to chill. The stove was another story. I think the previous owner had fried everything and never wiped up. Top was sticky and thick; needed steel wool and lots of elbow grease. As to the oven...well, yuck! Two coatings of heavy duty EasyOff (not so easy) and lots and lots of elbow grease. Meanwhile Trish was cleaning the bathroom and bathtub and shower. Took her most of a day plus, but then we could take showers!! And Trish eventually took a long, hot bath in the deep garden tub. Nice.
After those tasks it was upstairs to tape the woodwork prior to painting. The room that was to become the den was hot pink with green vertical stripes. That required one coat of heavy primer before even trying to put a soft green over it. Other colors were selected and purchased and we worked our way through the house painting in soft pastels and trying to tie the rooms together.
We had purchased hardwood floors for the rooms and the flooring was waiting for us at Lumber Liquidators in Huntsville. Our contractor had a pickup with a dual axle trailer and said he would come help us load the flooring. So off we drove to Huntsville and picked up the flooring. Turns out it was 2 pallets worth and darn near lifted the rear of his pickup off the ground. They rearranged the load and headed back to Crossville to drop it off. When they finally got in, turns out they had to add air to all the tires in truck and trailer and were slow to travel. The trailer and flooring went in the garage and they promised to come and and lay it the next week.
By the way, the house sits on 5 acres and at least 3 1/2 is in grass and field. Now that means I am NOT going to use the electric walk behind mower we had in VA. There is not enough extension cord in the county to let me do that. But I do need the grass cut so I got estimates from several folks and ended up hiring a young man who is friends of the neighbor across the street. He came and did the big field with a bushhog and the area around the house with a riding mower. Total cost = $80. But next time it won't be so much, he said. Good news is now Trish honestly feels I need my own riding mower. Josh will be so jealous; he always wanted one we we lived in NY.
One of the things we wanted to do was get our cars registered. They were about due in VA, so this was a good deal. We got "Sweet Home, Alabama" plates on the car and truck, but to get the RV registered, we have to get a copy of the title from the lender. That will take 2-4 weeks. But we put the paperwork in motion. The other item was to get our new driver's license. THAT was an experience. The DMV in Dekalb county is about the size of a broom closet with one officer to handle the paperwork, testing, driving test and answer questions. And, the week we went in was spring break and every eligible high school student in the county was there to get their license. After a two hour wait, we finally got in with all our paperwork ready to go. I had the list of required documents: current state license, birth certificate (original or certified), Social Security card, and passport or other reputable form of ID. When Trish sat and presented her papers, the officer rejected the birth certificate because it was a "Certificate of Live Birth". (Shades of Donald Trump!!) Yes, it was signed, stamped and certified and had her foot prints. No, it was not a birth certificate. However, the kind officer accepted the passport in lieu. (So why bring all the other documents??) In order to get a passport I had to present a "real" birth certificate plus a social security card to the Federal Government. Shouldn't that be good enough??? I was reminded of the scene in Miracle on 34th Street where the judge says, "If the United States Post Office recognizes this man as Santa Claus, that's good enough for the state of New York." Oh well, we got the licenses.
So the two weeks went with cleaning, painting, straightening, getting set to move and occasionally getting out and exploring the stores and towns. We got library cards, found where the recycling center was, tried a couple of local eateries, and sat on the back screened porch in the morning enjoying the cool breeze and had coffee. Now if we can just get moved in and set, we'll be fine.
We left Alabama leaving the RV and pickup truck and drove back to Virginia. The cats, not very excited and definitely not happy about the confusion and chaos, rode in the back seat of the car. They were pretty good, though Domino did want to get out at a rest stop for a walk. It was back to Virginia to finish packing, clean the house, and oversee the move to the moving van.

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Photos

Trish packing
Trish has done the bulk of the packing while I was still working. Now that I have "retired", I can help full time.

Grapes of Wrath or Jed Clampett?
We loaded the pickup, put plants in the Toyota, and hauled that behind the RV. What a caravan going down the road.

Yes, John does work
Stove required degreaser, steel wool, soap, warm water and elbow grease to get clean. It took 2 days. Fridge wasn't as bad.

Trish covering up the hot pink
This was obviously a girl's room--hot pink with green vertical stripes. We covered it in a primer.

John doing over new den
The hot pink is gone and a cool green is going up in the den. Yes, I leave the edges for the person with the delicate touch--my wife.

Official residents
We spent a half day getting the new plates for the cars. Also spent a half day getting Alabama driver's license. So guess we are almost official.

3 1/2 acres mowed=$80
Guess I need a riding mower. If it's going to cost this much to keep over 3 acres mowed, better invest in a good mower.

Cat travelers
Cats usually ride in the RV. But to come back to VA to finish packing, we put them in back seat of Echo. They were not overly pleased.