Thursday, Friday

(April 27 – 28)

Packing up the apartment. The beginning of the moving process. I forget how the first 50% of packing equals only 20% of the total amount of work involved.

Saturday, Sunday

(April 29 – 30)

My partner’s parents arrived to assist in the move north. In retrospect, this move would have been four times as stressful and labor-intensive without them. Plus, they can tetris a moving truck like no one’s business.

Once our lives were packed up from both my small apartment and the Rocket Hideout, we left Tampa in the rear-view mirror and arrived in Jacksonville for a dinner hosted by my parents. That evening, we had the first great meeting of the parents. I remarked to my partner on the way there how all marriages are arranged: it just depends on the level of arrangement. The traditional wedding where the parents decide for the children has the larger families courting one another. In romance-based marriages, the children date and the in-laws are arranged.

Our parents were delightfully nervous and all trying to put their best foot forward in this first meeting. I cackled behind the scenes while my partner felt the empathetic tension.

Monday

(May 1)

Long day of driving to Virginia. Left later than we had anticipated due to some car misadventures. Arrived in an Airbnb around midnight. Crashed and slept like champions.

Tuesday

(May 2)

Lazy morning filled with coffee, prepping up food for later in the day, and a quick workout next to an adorable german shep/black lab mix on an outdoor line. A bit over five hours of driving separated us from our new Tumblebrook home. Left around noon, arrived around six. Met the landlords across the street, unloaded the entire truck, and roughly dispersed all of its contents throughout the home before sundown.

Slept in our new place for the first time.

Wednesday

(May 3)

Partner’s parents flew out around 5p, so they all spent the day exploring the surrounding area and our future hospitals. I lounged around the house like a lazy dog and began the process of unpacking and developing the space for our new home.

Thursday, Friday, Saturday

(May 4 – 6)

Putting up shelves, running laundry, and exploring the 20 acres of land around us. Little things around the house, like airing out the basement and the attic. Cat arrived via delivery service from Florida: Gadsden is definitely cold and settled in quickly to her new surroundings. It’s nice having another presence in the large house with us, before our third housemate arrives in about ten days.

Adventured around the property, there’s so much to explore. Found a field of wild onions just beginning to grow, a decrepit spring house and its spring bubbling up from the old concrete foundation, and many plants to identify in the future.

I love staring out of the window in our room, facing the east and a small dugout of recently cleared brush. Some trees are finally putting out spring new growth and others are beginning to flower. I forget how the 15hr drive up north equals a trip back in seasonal time. Spring just sprung here, when it began months ago in Florida.

Sunday

(May 7)

Feeling settled and enjoying the space. Writing and studying today, got a little under two weeks until Step One. This is the third and final postponement of my test date. The week and a half long break from studying has done wonders for my psyche. I feel rejuvenated from the labor and there’s a simple satisfaction from putting up a handsome shelf.

I have ten days of grind left in me. Now, I need to prove it.

Long Form Sundays

On a goodbye to Tampa (or 11 days to Step One)
On delaying the inevitable (or 18 days to Step One)
On necessary atrophy (or 8 days to Step One)

On the move (or 12 days to Step One)