Best Laid Plans...

FRIDAY. 7:30 PM. By the time I returned from the airport just before 1 PM, the sky was dramatically dark. Within 30 minutes the clouds overhead burst open. It's still raining. Our afternoon POD packing was seriously curtailed by the weather, as has been the case for several weeks. In lieu of POD work, M cleaned out my safe deposit box while I stayed home and packed my office. The kitchen is another story, and I have yet to have the oil changed in the Caravan. Our neighbor, Janet, brought us 40 lbs. of ice so we could empty the fridge into coolers. If this rain ever stops, we'll move the refrigerator into the POD tonight, in the dark. M has an extremely heavy dresser to move out there as well, for up-ended travel. Perhaps Dennis, Janet's husband, can help. PODS called to let us know they'd pick up our stuff between 1 and 4 Saturday. This is a Very Good Thing: it gives us the morning to pack up the kitchen and cram a few more boxes in the POD.

Our ever-changing departure date is now Sunday. It doesn't make sense to leave late on Saturday, exhausted. M can sleep here Saturday night, on Murphy's human-sized dog bed, and I'll sleep at Mom & Dad's house, which is vacant at the moment. (They are in New York.) We'd all stay there, only Murphy exceeds the 20 lb. canine rule at Mom's retirement village. He's too big.

The POD won't be delivered in Albuquerque until August 8. That gives us over a week to drive to NM, but we're hoping to arrive by Thursday evening, the 3rd.

9:10 PM. We have emptied the fridge and watched our condiments swirl down the drain. Seems such a waste, but there's no way those open bottles of barbeque sauce and salad dressing are coming with us. We're now faced with the monumental challenge of finishing up all the ice cream. It's a tough job, but someone has to do it.

Janet promised to send Dennis over at 8:30 AM to help us move the fridge.

The broker made an appointment to show the house tonight. I told her to do so at her own risk, as the house is liberally littered with boxes (both empty and filled) and packing supplies. As of 9 PM she had not appeared, so I'm guessing she made other plans. She is ill-advised to show this house before we have completely vacated. It would be a gross understatement to say the house is a chaotic mess.