The Bedlam of Moving

Howard used his well-organized tool/job trailer to move his belongings from Wyoming to Kentucky.

His boxes and furniture have come out so that Jim's tools can be conveyed to the 'other house.'

Our bedroom dressers going into the trailer drawer by drawer.

The living room is an uproar of our belongings and Howard's.

I have decided that I won't remove pictures, quilt racks and such until we have [somewhat] organized the heaps of 'stuff' which have landed at the other house.

I have not been there for several days and can only imagine the jumble which awaits sorting.

Bobby naps on our bed minutes prior to it being dismantled.

He refused to be dislodged from the bedspread, rolling himself up in it.

As each successive layer of bedding was removed he inserted himself in the folds.

Finally he stood on the bare pillow-top mattress, happily kneading the fabric.

The king-sized box spring comes apart in two sections.

Devin carried out the first section.  On picking up the second half, he realized that it felt heavier in a lop-sided way. Turning it up he discovered three frightened cats lodged inside, clinging to the wooden slats. 

The cats have been, according to their various natures, appalled/frightened by the shuffling of furniture, [Teasel, Mima, Chester, Edward] or intrigued and underfoot [Charlie, Nellie, Bobby, Raisin.] Willis has declined to grace the operation with his supervision.

By the end of the afternoon we had decided that trying to set up our bedroom at the other house and stay there tonight was not a working plan. 

H. set up his bed in the master bedroom, brought in one of his dressers, a nightstand, various boxes.

Our clothing remains in the closet, our bedside tables against the wall by the windows, my shoe rack shedding shoes near the door.

The cats have come out of hiding but are obviously confused.

Jim and I spending the night in the guest room.

Moving the guest room bed to the other house needs to wait until I have cleared the small bedroom there.  I have been using the floor and the closets as a landing place for books, baskets, various oddments.

Meanwhile [!] I am canning tomatoes!

We have yet to harvest enough tomatoes for the amount that I like to put up.

No matter how well we start out, blight and high heat put an end to tomato productivity.

Accordingly, we attended the Casey County Produce Auction on Friday, coming home with 14 boxes of tomatoes--half of them for Gina.

These are the best quality we've had from there--and the best price.

We are puzzled as to the variety of the tomatoes. 

They are very firm and 'meaty' with shiny, smooth skins.--the appearance of hot-house tomatoes.

I put up 15 1/2 quarts on Sunday afternoon. Gina popped in as I tipped the first colander of scalded tomatoes into the sink.  She peeled and cut up tomatoes into the kettles for simmering [we hot pack our tomatoes] while I tended the scalding and eventually the ladling of  hot tomatoes into the jars.

This evening I processed 7 quarts and 2 pints.

Most of my empty canning jars were conveyed to the other house in an early move--not sure why.  

I will now have to haul the remaining tomatoes to my 'other' kitchen--more sensible than bringing jars back here, then packing filled jars to the shelves in the other house.

[Why does my life get this complicated?]

I need to be at the other house on Wednesday as a serviceman is meant to install the phone and internet line.

The familiar task of processing tomatoes seems preferable to attempting to organize the house!

I very much want to be sorted and settled.

This is obviously going to require more time [and energy] than I optimistically projected!

The cats will need to be gently transferred in batches, and I don't want to do that while doors are being left open to haul in furniture and boxes.

I tell myself it will all get done, we will survive the upheaval one more [last!] time!

Posting here, reading, commenting, will likely be a bit sparse for a few days.

I am looking forward to setting up my 'study' in the sunny room with the soft yellow walls.

Perhaps I will place my desk in front of the window which looks out to the front lawn.