above: A 16 foot POD is only a little bigger than a walk-in-closet.
The fireworks on July 4th in Washington DC signified the official end to our “big trip”. Afterward, we went on to Richmond Va. for a little R & R and to be reunited with the “Princess”. But, we couldn’t stay long as we were now in a time crunch to get back to Charleston to pack up our lives and head West.
left: Marlina, our favorite dog sitter, beats the heat, indoors, in Richmond.
right: The Dudes avoid the heat.
left: The “Princess” beats the heat too.
Marlina, who had been taking care of the “Princess” during our New England loop was farm sitting for her friend’s, Debbie and Willie, in Richmond. So, we planned a rendezvous there to pick her up. The farm was also a wonderful place to take a few days to rest before heading on to Charleston where we knew a heap of work was awaiting us.
The lake at Debbie and Willie’s farm where Marlina met us to hand off the “Princess”.
Unfortunately, the days that we were there was during the record heat wave which made it difficult to enjoy the outdoors. But, the Big Dude and the Hippygeek braved a morning fishing trip on the lake and the Lil’ Dude didn’t miss an opportunity to help care for the four miniature horses. We also managed one outing to Colonial Downs right down the road to see some thoroughbred racing.
above: The Lil’ Dude sprays the miniature horses to cool them off.
above: Despite the heat, the Big Dude managed to fit in some fishing.
above: We braved the heat to catch some thoroughbred racing at Colonial Downs
Except for the heat, it turned out to be a great place to start to digest the fact that the big adventure was now over. Although the process has started, I think it will be a long time before we can fully appreciate our special year. When I get a breather, I will do a wrap up of the “stats”.
above: “Signs” of the “times”.
We were tempted to do some sight seeing on the drive home but we knew that we only had three weeks to pack up our lives and get on the road. So, we took the express route back to Charleston only to find that the work we had anticipated had doubled as the renters had trashed our house. THANKS ?*&#%!
above: While packing, the Lil’ Dude came across some of his old dress clothes and just had to try them on.
Once we fully assessed the damage and regained our composure (the difficult part), we made the necessary repairs and got down to the business of moving. Moving meant that we had to empty our storage unit, have a yard sale, make many trips to goodwill, visit as many friends and family as we could fit in, get the house in condition to rent again and finally figure out how to fit our entire lives into a 16 foot POD.
My first thought when I saw the POD was “wow, that’s small!” My second thought, after opening the door was “ it looks like a walk in closet”. My third thought was “ w’ell never fit!”
above: The only “seat” left in the house.
But, we had to fit. Our belongings would be going into storage in Charleston until we actually had a place to move them to which might be months away. There was nowhere else for it all to go except in the POD. That meant getting rid of more things than we ever anticipated even things we have been hauling all over the country with us for the last thirty years!
above: Now there are no “seats” left in the house. It’s pitiful, isn’t it?
The Hippygeek maxed out his ingenuity and in the end we closed the door on the POD with room to spare. Maybe I didn’t need to get rid of my favorite plant stands after all!
Some of the junk we will never miss, some will be easily replaced and some others will have to be a fond memory. Overall, I am excited about the opportunity to start over with a more minimalistic approach to avoid the burden of so much stuff.
above: Getting the yellow boat ready to be hauled off to it’s new home.
above: Our home for 13 years.
With the house empty, the grass cut and the POD gone, the only thing left was to get in the bus and head west. And so, we did.
above: The morning of our departure.
“We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” Walt Disney