COP (Change of Plan)

Sat. May 12

7am:

If all had been going according to the original plan I'd be finishing loading the truck this morning and starting the long drive across country.  The plan has changed.

The last few days have been chock-full of a variety of emotions.  A roller coaster, really.  But the real decision happened a couple of mornings ago as I went to the storage unit, looked in it at all my "stuff", and realized (a) just how much stuff I've still got and the size of the effort to move it and (b) that until I'm more settled than I am bringing more stuff actually creates more problems than it solves.  Honestly, that's a decision that could only be made when face-to-face with all the "stuff".  So, I made it.

I've also started selling a few things.  I've done a pretty good job downsizing but the fact of the matter is that when you've got a 4-bedroom house full of stuff you can get rid of half of it and still have lots and lots.  I've got 2 queen sized mattresses w/ box springs - don't need both of them and frankly I'd happily get rid of both of them and get a new one in Charleston.  That's one of the easier decisions.  I've got a pair of Klipsch speakers that I just love but they're big, heavy things.  65 pounds each.  I'd rather not sell them but I've got some people coming by to look at them today so if they're gone I'll just need to let go.

The job situation seems to have settled itself out for now - I got an offer yesterday that's too good to pass up - but I'll believe it's real when I actually start there.  As always, I'll need to be vague about what I'm doing but I will say that it's in a city a thousand miles away from Charleston (and from Phoenix, for that matter) and will require travel if I'm going to commute regularly.  The main problem with the Raleigh commute was the drive.  I'd rather fly somewhere than have that God-awful 4 hour drive twice a week.  I came to dread that.  Anyway - we haven't pinpointed a start date because there are some logistical decisions I need to consider over the weekend.

The question on the table now is how/when to get back east.  The original plan of driving the truck is off the table, and the price of flights has been fluctuating.  I've tentatively made arrangements to head back near the end of next week as I've got a commitment in Rochester next weekend.  Still working that, as well.

I wish things weren't always so complicated with me, but they just are.  I accept most of the fault for that.  But I still haven't decided whether it's a blessing or a curse.  Regardless, it just is and I deal fairly well with it.  At least, I think I do.

I've had a very pleasant visit here so far.  The Phoenix area has more dear friends for me than any other place, so it has been nice connecting again.  I really do miss the area.  One of the things I've written about several times in the past (I did a YouTube video on it - see it here) is climbing Squaw Peak and contemplating the universe in a special little spot I've got up there.  I'll be making that climb tomorrow.

I always enjoy my visites here.  The desert is a unique part of my Yin/Yang and it has been too long.  The energy, the colors, the sunsets, the people.....

The view out front

9pm:

So, I spend the better part of the day in the storage unit.  I made a dent.  I sold a mattress and box spring, and a head board.  And I sold my beloved Klipsch speakers.

The storage unit - Making Progress

I probably would have stayed longer but a scorpion fell on me and creeped me out.

The scorpion that fell on me after I brushed it off, and shortly before it's demise.

I've been drinking water all night - very thirsty.  Every time I come back I get reminded how dry it is here and how important it is to keep hydrated.

I got a call from my mom saying she had been in a car accident with a school bus.  The ambulance took her to the ER as she was concerned that the impact may have done something to her pacemaker but as of when I talked to her the only visible injury was a quarter-size bruise.  She's disappointed that I won't be there for Mother's Day, as am I, but things just change sometimes and there's nothing I can do about it at this point.  Just in case this happened I put a card for her in the mail earlier in the week....