The Movers Have Gone

            I wondered if they would ever arrive.  The wait was tortuous, more so because I was promised for two weeks that they would be here within a day or two.  I complained to the broker (All State Van Lines) and to Five Stars Movers.  Promises were repeatedly made and broken.  But finally, they came just before 6 p.m.

            And once they were here, they worked.  Oh, how they worked.  Shawn joined in, as did the teenager next door.  I know for a fact that my antique crystal goblets made it intact.  So did the antique furniture.   I unpacked two large kitchen boxes and directed furniture placement.  All the other boxes just about fill up what will be the guest room/toy room.

            One of the workers spoke virtually no English.  The driver’s English was heavily accented and hard for me to understand, especially on the many unsatisfactory phone calls over the past three weeks.  As I watched them work, though, my heart softened.  The anger over the long wait and broken promises faded away.  I saw two men hard at work and anxious to please.  The final item to come inside, my big side-by-side refrigerator, took the longest as they managed to maneuver it through a front door that wasn’t quite wide enough.

            And now everyone is gone.  Tomorrow morning Dana will come help me start the unpacking.  Tomorrow evening Shawn will hook up my dryer and refrigerator.  I have my bed to sleep in, though heaven only knows in which boxes my bedding and pillows reside.  As I picked up stray leaves and strips of packing tape in the living room, something on the floor caught my eye:  an old, battered yellow M & M that must have fallen out of Mom’s recliner.  I laughed out loud.   Love you, too, Mom.  Welcome to my new home.

Saturday: Looking Forward

            Gorgeous red oak hardwood floors greet me as I come in the front door of my new home.  The fresh varnish and paint fumes have dissipated.  Sunday evening I will go to look at a dining room set; Tuesday afternoon the couch I purchased Friday will arrive.  And sometime by the end of the week my belongings from Mom’s Greenbank cabin in the woods should arrive.

            I’m feeling a little off balance, in a limbo of sorts.  My new life here has hardly begun and seems far from feeling real.  Tomorrow, though, I will visit Good Shepherd Presbyterian Church.  Between perusing the newly updated website and listening to last Sunday’s sermon online, I am pretty sure that on Wednesday I will be going to my first choir rehearsal.  Then, perhaps, my Oklahoma life will begin to feel real.

            In the meantime, I am enjoying time with my family.  Benjamin is surprised and happy each time I show up, and Joelle has warmed right up, too.  Dana and Shawn make me feel very much at home.  It’s just that I miss the island and church and friends.

            All this is to be expected.  I am looking forward to setting up my household when my stuff arrives.  I am looking forward to gradually establishing a routine and a rhythm to life here.  I am looking forward to the Kingdom adventures, whatever they may be, that wait just ‘round the bend.  I am looking forward to establishing new friendships, getting involved at church, and finding outlets for music and writing.  And I am also looking forward to visiting Whidbey Island, I hope, in April.

Here is a p.s.:  The people at Good Shepherd are very hospitable.  The choir, though small, sings well.  I’ll be there for choir practice Wednesday evening and the women’s small group Thursday at 1 p.m.  Membership class is November 10. 

This afternoon I went with Dana, Shawn, Benjamin, and Joelle to the Down Syndrome Association of Tulsa annual Buddy Walk.  It was extra special because this was the first time Benjamin could actually walk.  It was a great afternoon to be outside and I anticipate falling into bed by nine tonight.  Tomorrow morning it’s off to Benjamin’s eye appointment with Dana and Joelle. 

Day Seven

            Seven days and 2,600+ miles since we left Greenbank, we arrived just after 12 noon in a torrential downpour.  The gusty winds picked up in Kansas yesterday and continued today, while the rain started south of Wichita and kept on at various levels of intensity all the way to Bartlesville.  And still continues.

            Dana, looking so perky and pretty with her new shorter haircut, was waiting for us at her front door holding Joelle.  Soon thereafter Benjamin got home (via school bus) from his half day at preschool.  Oh, how those grandbabies have grown since the end of July!  Benjamin is taller and leaner . . . and way faster on his feet.  Joelle is also big for her age (8 months on October 28) and plumper than ever.  She also is cutting her top two teeth and has learned to roll to get places.

            When the rain let up a little, we walked over to my house.  Yes, the front yard has a wide strip of mud from house to sidewalk and needs more fill dirt.  (When the sewer line was repaired, the plumbing crew did not add enough dirt back into the trench they had dug.)  But turn the key and open the front door, and you are socked in the face by varnish and paint vapors—and, more importantly, gleaming red oak floors and freshly painted, neutral tone master bedroom and hallway, a real blessing since the bedroom had been pink (even overwhelming to me) and the hallway a sky blue.

            Dana has already added her personal touch in addition to the cleaning she and Shawn did.  A bowl filled with fruit on the kitchen counter, some snack foods, a microwave, and a spare coffee pot were the first things I noticed.  There were also some decorating touches in the bathrooms and a lovely cushioned bench in the living room.  Wednesday night will be my first overnight in my new home thanks to the loan of their air mattress.  By then, the house should be aired out enough to be habitable. 

            Tomorrow, John and I will go to Lowes to pick up supplies for a few remaining repairs and improvements, which he has kindly offered to do for me.  The day will pass quickly, I am sure, and when Shawn gets home from work we will enjoy some Papa Murphy’s pizza and a pleasant evening of conversation.  Wednesday morning I take John to Tulsa for his flight back to Seattle, and then I will start to settle in.  Hopefully I won’t have to wait for my furniture and books too long.  Dana is ready to decorate! 

Day Six

            After some more time with Joseph this morning, we were off to Kansas.  On very short notice, three friends came to the Colby Starbucks, and we had a really nice visit.  Connie and Carol, my former English department colleagues (perhaps sometimes known to our students as the plagiarism police); and Kathy, my friend who let me stay with her for a couple weeks before I got my apartment back in February 2008, all belong to the Presbyterian church in Colby.   It was so good to see them, and I plan visits back to Colby since I’ll be just an eight-hour drive away.

            The wind farms along I-70 were impressive.  I’ve never seen so many in such a short distance.  They stretched along the highway and on out to the horizon, miles and miles of them.  Perhaps some people think them an eyesore, but I like them.  The wind was blowing mighty hard today, and I liked thinking about those gusts creating electricity.

            So tonight we are in Salina, Kansas and will head off to Bartlesville in the morning.  It is finally beginning to sink in that I really am moving.  I’m feeling the first twinges of homesickness for Whidbey Island and my church family and am mighty glad that I’ll get to cuddle with my grandchildren tomorrow. 

Day Five (October 12)

            Saturday morning seems like a very long time ago.  We started out the day in Green River, Utah and are ending the day in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

            We drove a lot and stopped very little, mainly because all the scenery was visible from the car and the places we would have normally spent time were all national parks.  Oh, well.  Not having those parks open to stop at probably cut two days off our travel time.

            The word of the day, clearly, was mountains.  I had not thought much before about how many different kinds of scenery mountain driving affords.  Beautiful is an inadequate word, but I am too tired to come up with any detailed description right now.  I will say that I love the bright yellow leaves of the aspens.

            At Monarch Pass, my brother and I both learned rather quickly that we don’t do well at 11,000 foot elevations.  We stopped to take a picture of the snow-covered peaks (and there was plenty of snow right there in the parking lot, too).  We got out of the car and before even taking a step both realized that it was best to stand right there by the car for the picture-taking and oohing and aahing.  Upon standing, I was a little lightheaded and dizzy.  John felt out of breath.  However, we had done all right in Gunnison, even walking several blocks downtown looking for a restaurant.  I guess the 3,000 foot difference made a difference!

            We took a long and winding road trying to get to Royal Gorge outside of Canon City, hoping to see the gorge even though signs said the bridge was closed.  No luck there, but we did see the sad charred remains of a forest fire.  Sometime I will take Joseph back to Canon to see the relatives who still live there.

            And once in Colorado Springs, we navigated to my son’s apartment and took him out to a movie (“Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2”) and then out for some really good Jamaican food.  We are going to spend some more time with Joseph in the morning before heading east toward Colby and beyond.

            So the mountain driving is done, and tomorrow (Sunday) will take me through very familiar territory.  The plan is to reach Bartlesville sometime on Monday.

Day Four

            Boise to Twin Falls, stop at Shoshone Falls: lovely! 

Twin Falls to Snowville, Utah, lunch at a diner.  The friendly, efficient waitress there looked to be in her twenties—and was expecting her fifth child, first girl. 

Snowville to Salt Lake City:  first stop to see the Great Salt Lake.  Road signs to state park led us down a dirt road where, it seemed, a farmer had left a trail of manure—let’s just say the car became suddenly fragrant—to an out-of-the way parking lot that was set up with Halloween displays.  There we ran into a man and a dog, the man with no hands.  I silently thanked God for the blessing of having hands.  Second stop at Temple Square where we walked around the temple:  observing several brides getting their pictures taken, accepting a pamphlet from a friendly Mormon guide, and walking through the visitors center rather quickly.  That was about all I could take of seeing and hearing the Mormon story.  The Temple Square, though, was pretty and so very tidy and clean.  And I loved the architecture of nearby apartment buildings and houses.

Then Salt Lake to Gunnison, UT where we got the car washed.

 Then Gunnison to Salina and on to Green River.  The drive from Salina, UT to Green River, UT on Interstate 70 was absolutely glorious:  incredible changing vistas along the 110 miles.  Summit was over 7,000 feet.  Scenery included red rock, tall sandstone towers sculpted through erosion, light-colored rock that reminded me of huge pieces of driftwood, some light green rock, incredible vistas of deep canyons.  Every mile was breathtaking and, even though John is an excellent driver, also nerve-wracking for me when the speed limit was 75.  If it weren’t for the elevation indicator on the GPS, I would have believed we were going downhill when we were going uphill.  Finally we arrived at Green River after 8 p.m., ate chef salads at a truckers restaurant, and are ready to crash now at a slightly shabby Ramada Inn.  Tomorrow, Colorado!