Well, I pick up the U-Haul trailer at 0700 tomorrow. Home by 0830, loaded by 0930, shower and I hope to be out by 1000. Yep, I’m hauling the first load of my stuff up to Washington.
So if you don’t hear from me for the next few days, that’s why.
Bon voyage! Happy trails to you - and I envy you for experiencing some fine scenery along the way. We look forward to hearing from you when you arrive at your new home.
Have a great trip Johnny L.A.! I had to do the same, but it was a much shorter way to me, when I left California too.
When I saw the title I could not help thinking about the fires:
*The time has come
A fact’s a fact
It belongs to them
Let’s give it back
How can we dance when our earth is turning
How do we sleep while our beds are burning*
Now, don’t burn the midnight oil on the way to WA. 
Safe journey, Johnny. I hope that all of the right things are there for you.
Welcome to the PNW!
A blessing for you: Fur gezunter heit, und cum gezunter heit. I don’t know where dad picked it up, but roughly translated, I’m told it means Go safely, and return safely.
I don’t have any Chinese blessings or proverbs for you, Johnny L.A. All I can say is good luck on your move, and welcome to the PNW proper! You’ve been wanting to do this for some time, as I recall. Hope things go smoothly and work out well.
F_X
Good luck – drive carefully.
Johnny Its supposed to snow today! Drive very carfully!
(first time its snowed in 3 years)
Good luck I hope everything arrives at your new home in the same amount of pieces it was in when you packed it!
Here’s to a new life, a new start, and a safe voyage getting there. Best of luck, Johnny and congratulations!
Thanks, All!
I’m off to pick up the trailer. See you Thursday or Friday!
Go Safely.
I am so jealous, I plan to move up there in about three years. Gotta finish my 20 yrs at this job and pay off some crap first!
Be careful!
I’ll wave at you as you drive through south King County.
Drive safely, and the best of luck in your new home.
and here i thought this thread was going to be about a Disney song.
Don’t forget the cabbages and kings…
which Disney song?
Have a safe trip!
From Alice in Wonderland, silly!
*The Walrus and the Carpenter
Or, The Story of the Curious Oysters
“Work?! The time has come,” the Walrus said
“To talk of other things
Of shoes and ships and sealing wax
Of cabbages and kings
And why the sea is boiling hot
And whether pigs have wings
Calloo-Callay
No work today!
We’re cabbages and kings”*
[Queen of Hearts]OFF WITH HER HEAD![/QoH]
Hey, Johnny, are we there yet? Huh? Are we?
Safe and Happy trails, Johnny! may you be blessed with many cool adventures in your new home!
Ye gods, and little fishes! What a haul!
I’m back in Hell-A. I picked up the trailer on Sunday, and brought it home. I thought it would only take a half hour or so to load it, since everything was already stacked and ready to go. Wrong. It was more like an hour and a half. Heavy work, but it went okay until near the end. I was a bit worn out. There was one box that was of different proportions to the rest. Perfect size for stacks of shelving, my vollyball poles, etc. Rather heavy. I had it on the handtruck and was taking it down the stairs. The first step was okay. It topped on the second. The box was destroyed, and the contents clattered down the remaining seven steps. A neighbour thought a bomb had gone off. Well, at least I’d had my glitch. Now I could go on without anything else going wrong. I thought.
After stacking the shelves, poles, and other stuff on a table, I went to get my A-7E ejection seat. It only weighs about 60 or 70 pounds, so it should have been a piece of cake. I put it on the handtruck and headed out the door. I lost it over the threshhold. My left ring finger was bashed against the stucco wall by the top of the handtruck, bruising my nail. For good measure, my finger was dragged along the stucco a bit so as to be sure to remove some skin. Funny how much the base of your finger nail can bleed.
After finishing the loading and having a shower, I got on the road a little before noon; a couple of hours later than I’d hoped. I went north on the 405, north on the 5, saw a Hercules flying low over a burned area by the Simi fire, and then went over to the 99. The “scenery” on 99 is marginally more interesting than on the 5. Of course, that’s not saying much. It’s only a little longer drive to Sacramento, but I’ve found that fuel is quite a bit cheaper on 99 than on 5. I rejoined the 5 at Sacramento (naturally), Nd made it to Anderson (8 miles south of Redding) around nine at night.
North again at seven in the morning. I stopped off at Grants Pass to have lunch with my uncle. The rest of the trip up was uneventful until I got to Kelso, WA. That’s when the mobile phone rang. It was a customer from my previous job. They wanted to arrange an interview, which we set for Wednesday at 11:00. Oh – there were two areas of snow: Mt. Shasta and Mt. Ashland. It was not snowing when I drove through, but it covered the ground and trees.
It was about nine when I got to Birch Bay. My friend suggested I back the trailer into the driveway so as to make for easier unloading in the morning. I have had no experience backing trailers since I was an adolescent and I backed a very light motorcycle trailer on a rare occasion. It took many tries and many stoppings while I said “Okay, if I want the trailer to go left, I turn right,” but I got it in. The next morning my friend quickly wrenched his back, and so had to stick to unloading the relatively light stuff. No worries though, since the handtruck worked well.
I spent the rest of Tuesday running errands. Unfortunately I was unable to hook up with Rico’s friend to get his golf clubs. I’ll try again next trip.
Wednesday morning I got up at six. My friend had gotten the coffee maker ready, which was a good call. I’d been wondering how I was going to grind the beans without waking him. I shaved, showered, and got into my interview suit. I got Rico’s message on the landline, and woke cadolphin when I tried to call around 7:30. (Sorry, cadolphin!) At 8:00 I was on the road.
Just as I got to the Bow-Edison offramp, the phone rang. It was the customer who wanted to interview me. They needed someone to start immediately and the VP had to make a decision that morning. The job went to another person. I was all dressed up, so I went there anyway. From ten 'til noon I chatted with the VP and my {former) contact. They’re very keen on having access to someone who can reformat their data for them. They said that maybe I could “contract” with them to write extract programs remotely, and bill them for the time. I’d be cheaper than using their out-of-state data house, and I know exactly how they want the data. They also wanted to find out about having my former employer giving special handling to their data. That would be the best option, business-wise; but I don’t know if my former employer will go for it. They like things to be automated. I told them who to talk to, so they will follow up with her. In the meantime, I said I’d find out about the tools I’d need to do the job in case they want to go that route. They really liked me. They gave me the names of two data houses in Bellingham, and said that I should tell them that they referred me to them.
By midnight I was nearing Sacramento again. I couldn’t go anyfurther. I found a rest area and got into the back of the Cherokee. Remember, this is a compact SUV. I had to lie (or is it “lay”?) diagonally. I slept for an hour or two, until it was too cold. Back on the road. Sleep was overtaking me again near Fresno, but I couldn’t find another rest area. The sun came up though, and I was able to continue. I figured I’d get to L.A. around 09:00.
The 405 was stop-and-go from Sherman Oaks on down. It was about 10:00 when I pulled into the driveway. Off to bed! The phone rang at 11:11 (my sister saying she didn’t have anything to say). I’ll call her later. Woke up again around 13:30.
I still have to figure out how to get the motorcycles up. I know they’ll fit, along with the rest of my stuff, in a 10’x6’ trailer. But the trailer doesn’t have a ramp. I’m thinking that what will happen is that I’ll rent a small trailer to take the rest of my gear, and then make a third trip to get the bikes using one of U-Haul’s ramp-equipped motorcycle trailers.
Now see I thought he’d been loved and set aside. He’d been crushed by a tumbling tide. That his soul’d been psychedelicized.
Welcome to the rain forest, Johnny L.A.!
I was shocked (and happy) I heard the phone. I rarely hear anything when I’m asleep. Hope I was kinda nice to ya.
Glad to hear ya made it back ok. Look forward to seeing you at Ye Olde Kings Head. I guess it’s time for me to weigh in on what you should order. Since you’ll be leaving the land of good Bangers and Mash for Fish and Chips Heaven, well, I vote for you to order both. :eek:
Yes, that’s what I said. Both! It wouldn’t be a true last meal without you making your boat.
I’m making a signup sheet so we can take bets how long it will take you to finish both. 
Kathy