Saturday + {Summertime}

After we got back from the Color Run, life has been non-stop. Well, I guess, technically, life has been non-stop ever since Moving Day. We spent a week sharing a twin mattress on the floor of our otherwise furniture-less apartment, intermixing our last few days of work with cleaning marathons, utilities-disconnecting, errands, last-minute socializing, and copious amounts of television watching in the wee hours of the evening when we were too exhausted to look at another cleaning rag.

Then, as soon as our apartment inspection was over, we got in the car and drove straight down to Portland to meet up with Maddie & co. for the Color Run.

Which was a blast. We were coughing up color for days, but it was well worth it. I've never had so much fun running. There were so many people and everyone was in such high spirits; even though we only ran for about two-thirds of the actual race, it was amazing. I felt strong, energetic, and felt like I pushed myself.

As you might have noticed, amidst all this chaos, I stopped updating this blog for awhile. So what have I been doing?

Well, during our week in-between getting back from Portland and flying to Scotland on Monday, I've been finishing our itinerary and enjoying the last few days of Seattle summer. When we get back, it'll almost be the end of October, and fall will definitely be here with winter on its way.

On Thursday, I went for a bike ride to a park about five miles away. It was an absolutely gorgeous day; the park is beautiful, too, and I had it almost all to myself. Well, myself, a sack lunch, and Michael Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay. Then yesterday, Alex, Gooligan, and I went hiking in St Edwards State Park. 

Moving away from Bellingham is tough, in part, because of all the stunning nature that is so readily available to you. We used to be able to literally walk out our door, cross the street, and disappear into the woods. Or hop in the car, drive five minutes, and arrive at a gorgeous lake or park.

But the last few days has been an important reminder that we still live in a beautiful place: we just need to invest a little time into (re)discovering it. Whether it's hopping on our bikes to go for a ride, or going for a walk or a run in the winding streets nearby, or driving somewhere for a slightly bigger adventure, we're still blessed to live in an incredibly nature-rich area.

Saturday + {Moving Day}

I woke up today to a text from the apartment supervisor/handyman informing me, quite politely, at 12:03 a.m. that it was "Quiet time." The text was also quite ineffectual, considering that I was in bed, asleep, and Gooligan and Maddi and everyone who came to wish us goodbyes were the ruckus-raisers. 

The rest of the day went surprisingly well. I opened at work and by the time I got off, my parents had arrived, Pumpkin Spice Latte in hand for Gooligan, and they and Gooligan had loaded almost all of our moving truck.

After a quick stop at Starbucks to load up on more coffee and hot chocolate (I'm on day six of being coffee-free, which I'll get into in another post I'm sure), Gooligan and I accompanied my dad to Home Depot to get supplies to fix a hole in our wall left by a previous tenant. Note to renters everywhere: newspaper is not an appropriate substitute for drywall.

We drove down to Seattle and spent the evening unloading, reconstructing our furniture, and feasting on Indian food and coconut ice cream with frozen blueberries. Wake-up time is five-thirty, since I have to be at work in Bellingham at eight. Only three days left at work, which is exciting and scary simultaneously. I'm sure it'll pass even more quickly than usual, considering that Sunday and Monday are huge Labor Day sales events.

On our drive down, Gooligan napped, having worn herself out from all her stupendous work. I spent the time thinking about my homework. I'm focusing on my lecture this month, since my adviser still has three short stories of mine to give me notes on from last time.

My lecture is about world-building in science fiction and I'm going to discuss the works of Ursula K. Le Guin, Junot Diaz, Michael Chabon, and Karen Russell. I'm pretty excited to delve into the topic more. Right now, though, I just need to get through the final push of work and let my thoughts soak in my brain a little longer.

Overall, today was a great reminder about the importance of family. We all pitched in together and got a really big job done in a single day. There's no way Gooligan and I could have done it without them. We're truly lucky to have their support as we start the next step of our journey.

Friday + {Saying Goodbye}

Tonight, Gooligan, our wonderful roommate Maddi, and I are throwing a goodbye potluck. AKA a housecooling party. Our apartment is striped bare, but decorated beautifully, thanks to Gooligan's hard work. Boxes are piled high in every corner. The cake is baked. (A delicious graham cracker whole wheat and lime cream cheese frosting, courtesy of my favorite cupcake blog, Ming Makes Cupcakes.)

The last time this apartment looked so bare was the day we moved in two years ago. My dad helped us assemble our IKEA bed frame as we ate Chinese take-out. 

It's so easy to say hello. To reach out and meet new people. Establish friendships. When you don't have an end date in mind, it seems like time stretches forever, syrupy and light.

But saying goodbye, that's hard. For two years, this two-bedroom apartment has been our home. Our base as we've grown into the people we are now.

I've met so many people in Bellingham and had so many wonderful experiences. But many of my friends have also moved on already--graduated and waltzed off into their next big adventures. Or they've just moved here and are putting down some temporary roots. It doesn't matter. The point is, I'm so proud of all of these people. They're living life, stretching themselves.

I read an article recently that one of my friends posted on Facebook: 30 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself. The article urges people to "stop thinking you're not ready." If an opportunity is right, it'll feel scary. Because if you're already comfortable, then you're really not pushing yourself far enough.

This is the number one thing I'm keeping in mind as we prepare for our trip, our move, and our uncertain future.

Whether we're still here, just arriving, or getting ready to leave, we all have a ton of growing still to do. Who doesn't? But with so many adventures lined up and yet to come, I'm sure we'll get there some day!

In the meantime, we'll eat cake and see a few friendly faces one last time before we pack up on Saturday and make the big move.

Gooligan cooked a delicious feast for our last dinner as roommates!

Monday + {Selling Your Things on Craigslist}

We're moving. Part of the reason that we're going to Europe on the dates that we are is because it falls between our life in Bellingham and our life in Seattle. Since we're going to be gone for over a month, that's a month of rent we're not going to be paying, a month of food and gas and utilities and all the miscellaneous expenses of living that add up. When you consider the amount it costs you to live anywhere for a month, the extra amount that it costs to travel doesn't look too bad.

Since the space we're moving into until we find stable jobs and an affordable apartment--a room in my parents' house--is a lot smaller than our current two-bedroom apartment, we've had to make a lot of choices about which pieces of furniture to keep and which to cut.

Gooligan and I have collected a lot of great furniture over the last four years; some of our current pieces are things we bought for our first dorm rooms, some of them are IKEA purchases when we moved into our apartment two years ago, some are hand-me-downs, and others are items salvaged from thrift stores or the curbside.

We are keeping quite a few things. For our roommate who is going abroad for an undetermined amount of time, we're holding onto a cute purple armchair. We're keeping our dining room set--a huge wooden table with black metal folding legs, a pair of colorful chairs that Gooligan is in the middle of painting/reupholstering, and a black bench. We're moving our bed, a wardrobe, a Spanish cabinet with a million useful drawers, a bookcase, and a cute green retro loveseat.

On an impulse one day, I put a few of the things we aren't taking up on Craigslist. I had never sold anything on Craigslist before and wasn't quite sure what to expect. But I wrote a clear, honest description, snapped a few pictures, and priced fairly--and my item sold within hours.

It's not always that easy, of course. You have to know your market, for starters; people are in desperate need of cheap furniture on a constant basis in Bellingham, especially during the end of the summer, when everyone it seems is moving into a new apartment, or students switch to off-campus accommodations for the first time. And sometimes schedules just don't mesh. Sometimes it takes a couple of days. Sometimes people flake. But if you give yourself enough time and price your items fairly, they will sell.

It can be tempting to hold onto everything, but the fact is that it's so easy to find hand-me-downs or cheap furniture from thrift shops, extended family, yard sales or free piles--or off of Craigslist when you really need it--that there's no reason to move all the miscellaneous bookshelves, side tables, etc. if it's not absolutely necessary.

 For non-furniture items, such as clothes, household goods, or books, we either sold or donated most of our clutter. 

For clothes, a lot of places that accept donations of gently used clothes will give you a coupon to their store, so if you need a couple of fresh items, or you're going to be changing dress codes with your job, this is a good way to save some pennies. Depending on the quality of what you're donating, consignment stores might take them, too, and they'll either pay cash or give you store credit. 

Books have a notoriously low resale value, but many used bookstores will offer cash or store credit (usually up to twice as much). If you can see yourself using it, definitely go for store credit, but if you just need the cash or you're moving out of town never to come back, don't get hung up on the cut you'll be taking in price.

If you do the hard emotionally-intensive part of the move now--whittling down your belongings to the essentials--then you'll thanking yourself on moving day. And if you play your cards ride, you can make a decent amount of cash. Treat yourself to something special--a weekend on the town with your friends, a special date with your love--or something practical--a couple of tanks of gas--or just put it in the piggy bank for your next big trip. Just think: your desk could pay for a night in Paris!