Just for the sake of recording for posterity (as if that was necessary), I will show my move-out process from my storage unit in Eagan, Minnesota. After spending a week sorting out my stuff, dividing it into "keep", "throw away" and "maybe piles", the day of reckoning came. Last Friday, I had an appointment for the shipping container to arrive, when I could then send my stuff off to Alaska, where I'm moving.
I got all the stuff out of my storage unit, "staged" and ready to load. My friend Bob arrived to help me load. It was a very hot day.
When the truck came, about noon, they had the container on the back of the truck. The truck backed down the driveway of the storage place, but we still had about 25 yards across which we had to carry everything. So we got everything at the back of the truck.
We got it all loaded. The driver and his wife (they were a husband-wife trucking team, which are very common for long-haul truckers in the US), were extremely friendly and helpful. I felt very lucky. They helped us load and gave us good pointers on how to secure stuff too.
So we closed up the truck and sent my stuff on its way. It will arrive in Alaska before I do. The container will have to sit and wait for me on the dock in Craig.
Yesterday (Saturday), I went back and paid some junk guys to come and take away all the "throw away" stuff from my storage unit. They were very efficient and did a great, fast job cleaning everything out.
Then I told the office at the storage place that my unit was empty. They inspected it and pronounced it clean.
And now, after 20 years, I have finally managed to get all my possessions out of storage. I feel like a great burden has been lifted from me.
Today I flew out from Minneapolis back to Portland, and I'm back with Arthur, Juli and Keith. I'm very sore from moving all the boxes, and sleepy from taking such an early flight.
Here are some volcanoes I saw from my airplane window as we landed at Portland.
They are, from left to right: St Helens, Rainier (farthest away), Adams.
[daily log: walking, 2km]
