Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Musings on packing


Idle thoughts as Miss D. and I do the final round of packing before loading the truck tomorrow.

  1. Why is there always one gun more than there are gun cases/sleeves/rugs to hold them?
  2. Why, when I drove my ammunition stocks down to Texas a few weeks ago, am I still finding ammo in odd corners, drawers, nooks and crannies?  I've found enough to fill two ammo cans so far.  No, of course I'm not a compulsive ammo hoarder!  Why would you think that?  (Hangs head, shuffles feet.)
  3. What do you do with a cat that's growing steadily more paranoid as she watches her world being packed into boxes?  We're trying to reassure her by giving her lots of extra attention (and treats), but she seems unconvinced.
  4. On the other hand, she enjoys some parts of the experience.   For example, every time I have to tie things together with string to form a bundle, I'll find a cat tugging enthusiastically on the other end of the line.
  5. I must remember not to assemble plastic shelving units too forcefully.  When I have to take them apart again, all those blows with a rubber mallet (to make sure they stayed fastened together) come back to bite me.  This is not good.
  6. A big roll of bubble wrap is worth its weight in gold.
  7. If you pack all the dishes and cutlery early on, it's a great excuse to eat out every meal until you leave.

Back to the fray . . .

Peter

13 comments:

  1. Answer to No. 2: So you still won't run out of ammo when cornered in a weird part of the house. :-)

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  2. Sam's club sells paper plates by the ton and plastic table cutlery by the bushel. My lady and I have gone almost exclusively to paper and plastic.

    I haven't eaten on a regular plate in months.

    Enjoy the move. Texas is wonderful this time of year.

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  3. Heh, I found THREE ammo cans full in my packout... At least mine all (pretty much) matched the gun that was closest to the stash. And stop playing with the bubble wrap! If the cat figures out how much fun it is, you'll never get her to stop!

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  4. Last time I moved, I went to my friendly local gun shoppe and told Don what I was up to. They had a BUNCH of very inexpensive cloth sleeves with tie closures. $3 each, and a roll of bubble wrap (they weren't padded at all) and my accumulation was pretty well wrapped up.

    I did get a bit of plywood some cheap 2x4s to make a crate to put them all in and screwed it shut. I was driving through Chicago, and didn't want to take any chances with anybody in Illinois making a traffic stop and going fishing in my truck!

    Good luck with the rest of the move, sounds like you're headed towards the fun part now!

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  5. If you have one more gun than rugs, maybe a neighbor will be helpful enough to "hold onto it" for you. :-)

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  6. We experienced a similar situation when cleaning out Mother's house. We thought she had all her quilt fabric in one room. Nope, she had it stashed in some of the oddest places. If I don't buy another piece of fabric I will never use it all before I pass on.

    I like BC's idea I will have to borrow it the next time I move.

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  7. Hi Peter,
    Related to item 3, here is another story about two dogs who didn't appreciate moving: link

    -- Steve

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  8. 1. Accept that ammo is everywhere. You would have to raze the building down into the topsoil to be sure you had removed it all.
    2. Crate the cat.

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  9. Welcome to Texas! We are so glad to have you here.

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  10. Best of luck on the move. May it go smoothly. Here's looking forward to a very productive life in Texas.

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  11. Set up a small empty box for the cat.

    My wife was packing her grandmother's house once and found a diamond ring under a rusty Brillo pad in a teacup under the kitchen sink. Who knows what other hidden treasures you'll find.

    Note: My father was born and raised in Texas (4th generation). He moved to Montana. :-)

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  12. the stability of the shelves in the time between moves is far more important than the ease of disassembling them

    besides, they aren't _that_ expensive, consider abandoning them in place and getting replacements.

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