Phase 1: Purging is now complete. We have successfully simplified our load of possessions by sorting all our things into Throw Away, Donate, Keep, or Sell. This was the hardest phase (I hope!) because it involved more thought than physical labor and some of the decisions were difficult emotionally. I had to help Steve decide what to part with and he had to help me. We want to start our new life lighter, with less clutter. Not only will this make the move cost less, but it feels so good to be organized.

Last week, I sold some things on ebay, things I’d hoped would turn out to be invaluable but, after dragging my treasures to 12 antique stores, I found out differently. After deducting ebay’s fees, pay pal’s fees, and paying for the shipping and insurance, I wasn’t left with much. But at least we have less to move. And then on Saturday, Steve and I had a huge blow-out yard sale. We got rid of everything and made a little (not much) extra spending money. The best part is that, hopefully, we’ve had the last yard sale of our lives. At least, it has to be the last one where we haul everything up two flights of stairs at 5:00 AM and stand on a carport floor’s slanted concrete for 8 hours. We idealistically planned to go to our church picnic after the sale ended and found neither of us could move our knees. We shuffled back down the stairs and stayed there, unconscious, until the next morning.

Tomorrow, Phase 2: Painting begins. I’m flying out to paint our new, vacant house. I can’t wait to see it again.