The Move

July 26th 0000 | I picked up my dad from the airport. He said his ear hurt because he fell asleep while the plane was descending. As I drove back to the apartment he said the pain was gradually going away. He took my bed and I slept on my couch.

July 26th 0900 | We wake up and go to store to buy breakfast supplies. My dad made hashbrowns, eggs, and bacon. I had the moving van reserved until Monday, so my dad wanted to get on a boat ride on the Potomac river on Sunday. We saw boats, drank beer, visited National Harbor, and rode on the ferris wheel there.

July 27th 1000 | We show up to the wrong uhaul location but they are able to switch the reservation over. We brought the truck back to my apartment and loaded everything. My couch was very tough to move out of the front door, so we ended up having to remove the door. The right blinker on the car trailer did not work properly, so we had to take it to another location to get it repaired.

July 27th 2000 | Left apartment key, laundry room key, and mailbox key on the counter. I hadn't accumulated much furniture over the 2 years living in the apartment. A couch, tv stand, small shelf, desk, bed frame, a dining table, and a coffee table. The rest of my stuff is musical equipment. My dad and I left late in the day planning to drive through the night.

July 28th 0500 | Arrive in Knoxville, TN to rest. We had drove as far as we could with what energy we had while alternating driving shifts through the night. We slept for the majority of Tuesday in a hotel with the intent to drive the rest of the trip nonstop. While we were staying in the hotel room, we received a call from mom. She tested positive for covid. My mom was currently working at a nursing home, so all the nurses were regularly being tested. She had been passing them up until this day, so now she is out of work. We speak with her and my brothers for a bit before going back to sleep.

July 29th 0900 | Hit the road. We drive the entire day into the following morning making occasional stops at trucker stations and rest areas. I was afraid my car sickness would afflict me, but it never did. During the night I would feel faint nausea but it was not as bad as it had been in the past. The drive itself was grueling. In and out of uncomfortable microsleeps in the passenger seat of the moving truck, waking to pitch black highways and illuminated road markers. It was actually easier to be the one driving, although the moving truck did not come with cruise control so I would regularly get a stiff knee from depressing the gas pedal for hours.

July 30th 1000 | Arrive in El Paso. Hugged my mom and brothers. Pet the dogs. Jumped into my parents swimming pool. Ate whataburger. Much needed sleep. July 30th was a good day. It dawned on me I have the materials to live what I feel like I need to live a happy life now; the musical equipment I've gathered, a good job that allows me to work remotely, and now my family in close proximity.

I have loftier goals now that I am back in my hometown. I want to reconnect with friends and pursue artistic projects. Currently, I'm looking for a more permanent place to stay. Right now all of my possessions are still in the moving truck and my mattress is in my parents' living room floor. I want an apartment with laminate flooring and a patio. Will probably have to move my things into storage in the meantime. Being able to look forward to this part of my life is a nice change.

This trip made it clear to me I do not intend to do another move like this for a while. If I do, it will be with close to no possessions. looking forward to seeing family again at least. Ending this blog with a discord post I had made before the move happened:

i feel like im emotionally attached to the material things I've collected past couple of years because ideally I could just sell all of it and get a plane ticket back, but no im going to pack all this shit in a uhaul and drive 2k miles. they weigh me down even though I enjoy owning them like my tv, couch, records, turntable, receiver, speakers, desktop pc, desk, etc. maybe its just more apparent because of the move. ideally i would like to be free from material things, but that might be too idealistic.