Forced Silence
Most of you who read this blog know I’m about to undergo the biggest change my life will have seen to date. With that has come a myriad of to-do lists and deadlines that have prevented me from sharing the details thus far here. Now there’s time, but just a little.
SpyC and I took a forced break from all the stress this weekend, and now, as we make our way cross-country back to Las Vegas, I have a moment to write. I suppose this entry will end up long, and covering varying topics, so I’ll just jump right in. Here goes...
The Move
Things are moving along as our move date approaches. This, without saying, is the reason for all the upheaval lately. And the date is near, very near. We officially leave Las Vegas Friday night, August 4th. The moving truck comes Thursday to pick up all of our belongings. My car is already on a truck headed to Raleigh, and we’ve sold Beth’s car. We’ve closed on our house in Las Vegas. Yes, it is official, the home is no longer ours. The closing recorded this past Friday and we get THE BIG CHECK today. Hooray for that!
The Break
Amidst everything happening around us, SpyC and I decided we need to take a break and attend an old friend of SpyC’s wedding in New Jersey. We flew out Thursday night (on the redeye), checked into the hotel in Weehawken and attended the wedding Friday night. It was a lot of fun. We drank, danced, drank, ate, drank, danced, ate and drank some more. It was an evening of good food, good drinks and great music, which all supported the festive atmosphere and continued indulgence. I drank enough, SpyC drank too much, but we’ll let her share that one (if she chooses) on her own blog. Needless to say, we had a great time and were more than happy we decided to make time for the wedding in the midst of all that is happening.
Saturday morning, after the wedding, we ate breakfast at the hotel with other wedding-goers, including the bride and groom. From there, we hopped the train to Little Silver, a station near Monmouth Beach in New Jersey. There, we have other friends that have a house on the beach. They’ve been trying for years to get us to come visit, and finally, we did. We had a great time. Again, time was spent drinking and eating, but this time with a little more restraint. It’ll be hard to go back home and eat store bought rotisserie chicken, mac and cheese and whatever else you can make in five minutes after eating Filet mignon, lobster tail, King crab legs and jumbo peel and eat shrimp. Cooking doesn’t happen much lately in our house as we’d rather busy ourselves with packing than cooking multi-course meals with multi-course dishes to wash afterwards.
We went for a nice boat ride Saturday afternoon, dined handsomely Saturday night and took showers in the must have outdoor shower. Club Joe, as it is nicknamed, is home to family friend Joe, and pseudo home to the other family friend, Art. The two have been friends for decades, and though Art doesn’t live at Club Joe, the house is shared equally by Joe and Art. It’s a good arrangement. We’ve been reassured that Club Joe’s doors are always open and we’re welcome anytime. And after the relaxing weekend we had there, we just might pay a visit more often.
Sunday was spent lounging around literally doing nothing. Club Joe has a seven foot long Poof, affectionately named Poofy, that is a must have. I’ll be sure to place my order in the coming days... it’ll go great in the bonus room of my new house which I have plans of turning into a home theatre and office. SpyC permitting. Poofy was great for laying on. It was perfectly suited for sleeping, waking up and watching random clips of “The Man Show” and then falling asleep again. There were some mimosas and bagels thrown in there, some more man show and more sleeping. I spent a good three or more hours in Poofy Sunday and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. I finally peeled myself from Poofy’s velvety outer layer so that we could all go to the beach. We ended up wading in the water and talking for an hour before heading back to shore and drying out. In all, we spent about two hours there before we headed back to the house. Again, more food and drink, more outdoor showers and more sleep. It was a perfect day. No expectations, no plans, just pure R&R.
Now about the outdoor shower. Club Joe has a fantastic outdoor shower on one side of his house. It has everything you need in it, along with an open view to the sky above and ground below. Of course, you’re concealed from the nosey neighbors within its walls, but you are still out in the great outdoors, and for whatever reason, it made for an extremely relaxing shower. In all, in two days time I took three showers there, two of them with SpyC. It was quite fun, and we’re already trying to figure out where we’ll put ours at the new house. And fortunately, Joe and Art are already planning a trip to build it.
Now we’re headed home, on a flight from Newark to Dallas, then to Phoenix, then to Las Vegas. I know, it sounds like a roundabout way to go, but it’s the only way we can get there since we’re traveling standby. On the way to New Jersey, we had to fly from Las Vegas to Miami, then to Newark. But it has all been worth it as the weekend was exactly what we were hoping for... a little rest and relaxation before the pressure is really turned on.
The Move, part II
Since we’re heading home, our heads are already filling with more to-do lists as we anticipate the final stage of the move. The movers are coming Thursday, just two (full) days from now. We’re about halfway packed, and though we have a good start, there is still plenty to do. On top of that, I need to get two fillings from my dentist, a haircut and some last dinners with friends and family before we say goodbye. Fortunately, most of the busy work is done like scheduling all utilities to be turned off Friday and turned on Monday at the new house. Our realtor and closing specialist in North Carolina are taking care of everything for us on that end, so we don’t have to worry about any of that.
Nonetheless, it gets overwhelming at times when we stop and consider everything that is left to be done. It is not wise to do that often, but wise to go there occasionally to ensure we’re still on track. All the while, we can’t help but anticipate what awaits us in North Carolina, and we can’t wait to decorate and the new house and get it set up. I am also anxious to try out my new commute, and anxious to see SpyC’s new classroom and meet her principal. So much awaits us as we prepare to begin the next chapter in our lives. For now, it’s off to packing!
SpyC and I took a forced break from all the stress this weekend, and now, as we make our way cross-country back to Las Vegas, I have a moment to write. I suppose this entry will end up long, and covering varying topics, so I’ll just jump right in. Here goes...
The Move
Things are moving along as our move date approaches. This, without saying, is the reason for all the upheaval lately. And the date is near, very near. We officially leave Las Vegas Friday night, August 4th. The moving truck comes Thursday to pick up all of our belongings. My car is already on a truck headed to Raleigh, and we’ve sold Beth’s car. We’ve closed on our house in Las Vegas. Yes, it is official, the home is no longer ours. The closing recorded this past Friday and we get THE BIG CHECK today. Hooray for that!
The Break
Amidst everything happening around us, SpyC and I decided we need to take a break and attend an old friend of SpyC’s wedding in New Jersey. We flew out Thursday night (on the redeye), checked into the hotel in Weehawken and attended the wedding Friday night. It was a lot of fun. We drank, danced, drank, ate, drank, danced, ate and drank some more. It was an evening of good food, good drinks and great music, which all supported the festive atmosphere and continued indulgence. I drank enough, SpyC drank too much, but we’ll let her share that one (if she chooses) on her own blog. Needless to say, we had a great time and were more than happy we decided to make time for the wedding in the midst of all that is happening.
Saturday morning, after the wedding, we ate breakfast at the hotel with other wedding-goers, including the bride and groom. From there, we hopped the train to Little Silver, a station near Monmouth Beach in New Jersey. There, we have other friends that have a house on the beach. They’ve been trying for years to get us to come visit, and finally, we did. We had a great time. Again, time was spent drinking and eating, but this time with a little more restraint. It’ll be hard to go back home and eat store bought rotisserie chicken, mac and cheese and whatever else you can make in five minutes after eating Filet mignon, lobster tail, King crab legs and jumbo peel and eat shrimp. Cooking doesn’t happen much lately in our house as we’d rather busy ourselves with packing than cooking multi-course meals with multi-course dishes to wash afterwards.
We went for a nice boat ride Saturday afternoon, dined handsomely Saturday night and took showers in the must have outdoor shower. Club Joe, as it is nicknamed, is home to family friend Joe, and pseudo home to the other family friend, Art. The two have been friends for decades, and though Art doesn’t live at Club Joe, the house is shared equally by Joe and Art. It’s a good arrangement. We’ve been reassured that Club Joe’s doors are always open and we’re welcome anytime. And after the relaxing weekend we had there, we just might pay a visit more often.
Sunday was spent lounging around literally doing nothing. Club Joe has a seven foot long Poof, affectionately named Poofy, that is a must have. I’ll be sure to place my order in the coming days... it’ll go great in the bonus room of my new house which I have plans of turning into a home theatre and office. SpyC permitting. Poofy was great for laying on. It was perfectly suited for sleeping, waking up and watching random clips of “The Man Show” and then falling asleep again. There were some mimosas and bagels thrown in there, some more man show and more sleeping. I spent a good three or more hours in Poofy Sunday and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. I finally peeled myself from Poofy’s velvety outer layer so that we could all go to the beach. We ended up wading in the water and talking for an hour before heading back to shore and drying out. In all, we spent about two hours there before we headed back to the house. Again, more food and drink, more outdoor showers and more sleep. It was a perfect day. No expectations, no plans, just pure R&R.
Now about the outdoor shower. Club Joe has a fantastic outdoor shower on one side of his house. It has everything you need in it, along with an open view to the sky above and ground below. Of course, you’re concealed from the nosey neighbors within its walls, but you are still out in the great outdoors, and for whatever reason, it made for an extremely relaxing shower. In all, in two days time I took three showers there, two of them with SpyC. It was quite fun, and we’re already trying to figure out where we’ll put ours at the new house. And fortunately, Joe and Art are already planning a trip to build it.
Now we’re headed home, on a flight from Newark to Dallas, then to Phoenix, then to Las Vegas. I know, it sounds like a roundabout way to go, but it’s the only way we can get there since we’re traveling standby. On the way to New Jersey, we had to fly from Las Vegas to Miami, then to Newark. But it has all been worth it as the weekend was exactly what we were hoping for... a little rest and relaxation before the pressure is really turned on.
The Move, part II
Since we’re heading home, our heads are already filling with more to-do lists as we anticipate the final stage of the move. The movers are coming Thursday, just two (full) days from now. We’re about halfway packed, and though we have a good start, there is still plenty to do. On top of that, I need to get two fillings from my dentist, a haircut and some last dinners with friends and family before we say goodbye. Fortunately, most of the busy work is done like scheduling all utilities to be turned off Friday and turned on Monday at the new house. Our realtor and closing specialist in North Carolina are taking care of everything for us on that end, so we don’t have to worry about any of that.
Nonetheless, it gets overwhelming at times when we stop and consider everything that is left to be done. It is not wise to do that often, but wise to go there occasionally to ensure we’re still on track. All the while, we can’t help but anticipate what awaits us in North Carolina, and we can’t wait to decorate and the new house and get it set up. I am also anxious to try out my new commute, and anxious to see SpyC’s new classroom and meet her principal. So much awaits us as we prepare to begin the next chapter in our lives. For now, it’s off to packing!
