Feb

Open Thread: Unloading

By the time I took this photo we were pretty much done.Â Two Saturdays and we’re reduced (in worldly possessions) to what fits in our Subaru four-door hatchback. Wooo Hoooo!

Backstory: Huff’s DC job didn’t work out. I’m allergic to our house (if not the entire mid-Atlantic, according to my doctor.) So we’re off on another adventure. We have friends near Seattle who have been bugging us to move there. So on Wednesday we’re off to the Pacific Northwest. We kind of like the coast of Oregon and Huff has applied for jobs that have travel to Hawaii and Alaska so who knows where we’ll end up.

For now I just hope the passes are open. Hope we don’t get stuck like those trains in the Donner Pass a couple of weeks ago. Hope we don’t have to eat our four cats. Otherwise, I’m approaching our newest adventure with anticipation.

But use this as an open thread, discuss anything you want. I’m just thrilled to be rid of tons of crap I have no idea why I collected in the first place (much less hauled with me three times in the past five years).

Categories : Uncategorized

11 Comments

Undercover Blue
February 17th, 2008 at 3:22 pm

Gack! Hope you’re not allergic to mold, mildew and moss. You know what they say, “Oregonians don’t tan, they rust!”

Rate this comment: 0 0

Arratik
February 17th, 2008 at 7:06 pm

Speaking of unloading, I stopped by my Grandmother’s old house in Long Beach earlier today. My aunt and uncle are cleaning it out, getting ready to put it on the market. They found this in a stack of old books in the study:

It could be reissued now with the title “What to do if John McCain wins the election.”

Rate this comment: 0 0

Gordon Smith
February 17th, 2008 at 8:30 pm

DQ!

When you moved to DC to be a Mover and Shaker, I didn’t think you took it so literally. It’s not to keep moving and shaking up your life!

I wonder if you’ll leave politics behind completely. If Huff finds a wildlife sanctuary with a guaranteed funding stream, no cellphone towers, and mail delivery twice a month, maybe y’all will see another radical retooling of how you live your lives.

I’ve always been impressed with your willingness to pack the car and take the turns you need in your life. Congratulations on your next adventure. I hope we’ll get to see it unfold here.

Rate this comment: 0 0

Drama Queen
February 17th, 2008 at 11:26 pm

I like that, Gordon:

. . . willingness to pack the car and take the turns you need in your life.

I guess that’s true. Though it seems mostly like we’re compelled rather than willing!

And, Arratik: Earl Warren was the Governor of California? I didn’t know. What kind of advice does he give? Does it say things like hide under your desk like we did in school drills during the 60s?

I just went through my mother’s old papers and found some similar stuff. WWII ration cards and a training manual of my father’s for how to identify Japanese plains and ships.

And yes, UB, we’ll probably rot. But if the allergens get too bad we can always just move to a higher altitude there. Here there’s temperate humidity in every direction.

Rate this comment: 0 0

Arratik
February 18th, 2008 at 8:16 am

Heh heh – I seem to recall doing duck & cover drills as recently as the early eighties, DQ! Gotta love Republican fearmongering in all of its manifestations. Whether it’s the Commies or the Islamofascists, fear works.

I’ll be scanning the entire thing and doing an in-depth feature on it as soon as I can get access to a scanner.

Here are some nuggets of wisdom from the centerfold of the pamphlet, a handy pull-out guide called “SIX SURVIVAL SECRETS FOR ATOMIC ATTACKS”:

ALWAYS PUT FIRST THINGS FIRST AND

1. TRY TO GET SHIELDED: If you have time, get down in a basement or subway. Should you unexpectedly be caught out-of-doors, seek shelter alongside a building, or jump in any handy ditch or gutter.

2. DROP FLAT ON GROUND OR FLOOR: To keep from being tossed about and to lessen the chances of being struck by falling and flying objects, flatten out at the base of a wall, or at the bottom of a bank.

3. BURY YOUR FACE IN YOUR ARMS: When you drop flat, hide your eyes in the crook of your elbow. That will protect your face from flash burns, prevent temporary blindness and keep flying objects out of your eyes.

NEVER LOSE YOUR HEAD AND

4. DON’T RUSH OUTSIDE RIGHT AFTER A BOMBING: After an air burst, wait a few minutes then go help to fight fires. After other kinds of bursts wait at least 1 hour to give lingering radiation some chance to die down.

5. DON’T TAKE CHANCES WITH FOOD OR WATER IN OPEN CONTAINERS: To prevent radioactive poisoning or disease, select your food and water with care. When there is reason to believe they may be contaminated, stick to canned and bottled things if possible.

6. DON’T START RUMORS: In the confusion that follows a bombing, a single rumor might touch off a panic that could cost your life.

Remove this sheet and keep it with you until you’ve memorized it.

It’s 5:00ish in the morning here as I type this. This time difference thing is really fucking with my head…

Rate this comment: 0 0

greenasheville
February 18th, 2008 at 11:17 am

Good Luck DQ! My sister lives in Seattle. The pacific NW is not as bad as everyone says. The rainy season runs from about Halloween to March, but the summers are beautiful! I’ve been there about a half dozen times and it’s never rained when I visited. Seattle is a great city. Go see a Mariners game if you get the chance.

I’ve been through Oregon as well and it’s beautiful as well.

Rate this comment: 0 0

Drama Queen
February 18th, 2008 at 2:40 pm

Green: Most of the homes have twice as much window square footage to let in light on cloudy days which is an improvement on any house I’ve lived in from NC to New England so I think I can handle it!

And Arratik:

NEVER LOSE YOUR HEAD AND

Duhhhhh. Too funny.

I know kids who were never allowed out in the rain because of nuclear testing west of them.

Rate this comment: 0 0

Betsy Muse
February 19th, 2008 at 6:09 am

Safe travels. Find free Wifi on the way and keep in touch. We’ll miss you. It didn’t seem so permanent a move when you were just going to DC. Head back this way when you can.

Rate this comment: 0 0