The Anatomy of a Mess

"If it ain't a mess, it'll do till the mess gets here."--No Country for Old Men

I have a love/hate relationship with moving.  Part of me finds it exciting and fun.  The other part of me thinks it's one of the biggest pains in the a** challenges a person can experience, especially when there are children involved.  Of course, the most difficult challenge is saying goodbye to friends and, sometimes, family.  Moving is never easy, and moving overseas presents its own set of issues.  One of the most ironic conundrums is the anticipation of receiving household goods.  It takes a good 1-3 months for the prized possessions to travel across the ocean, and the excitement begins to build after living in a hotel or a house without furniture for weeks on end.  Then, the magical day arrives!  The crates are lined up on the truck, and the unloading and unpacking commence.

Having your material life stuffed into big wooden boxes is a bit disconcerting.  Un-stuffing those boxes is downright daunting.  Piles everywhere.  Masses of stuff.  Neverending heaps of paper and cardboard.  The excitement quickly dissolves into dread.  I often plunge into the depths of despair, not knowing where to begin and wondering if there will ever be an end.  

May I present to you a glimpse into moving hell.  This particular version of Hades began in Florida, took a brief sabbatical in Rhode Island, and is still in process on its way to Guam.  When we moved to Rhode Island, we put about 80% of our household goods from Florida in storage because we lived in a furnished house in RI.  While we've already received the items we took to RI, we have yet to receive anything from storage, and we probably won't see anything until the end of September.

Dining room in Florida...will I ever see this stuff again?  Do I want to?

Can't wait to get my bed!

Won't be seeing the piano or the desk in Guam  :(

Crates on the way to storage, truck #1

Movers taking a siesta here in Guam, where we received almost none of the stuff shown above.

The disaster in my new kitchen

Now, you've seen just a snippet of how enjoyable moving is.  I feel like I have been moving for the last 2 years, and I still have more unpacking to look forward to.  Dare I even type the words, but I can't wait to be settled for a while.  Eek!

P.S.  The kitchen looks a lot better now, I promise.

Summah-time

Most mothers of school-age children are counting the days until the kids go back to school, or maybe they've already taken the obligatory first-day-of-school pics and sent them on their way.  I, on the other hand, am one of those crazy moms who actually likes summer.  Yes, I am not looking forward to school starting.  Gasp!  Shriek!  Zoiks!  I know, I've lost my mind, right?  Actually, it really boils down to a little thing called laziness.  I like not having to get up in the morning and quickly herd everyone out the door, barely managing to make the bus on time.  I like not having to pack lunches every.single.day.  I like the relaxed schedule, although summer is sometimes as busy as the school year, but not quite.  I hate the impossibility of school year activities.  There's never enough time, with sports, music lessons, school activities, church activities and homework.  Summer is the crack-free, sober version of the school year.

Now, I didn't say that I love how my adorable angels kids fight.  Or hearing "I'm bored!" 20 times/day.  Or feeling like I have to take them somewhere or do something with them, just so the guilt doesn't set in.  Those are summer travesties I can certainly do without.  I love them dearly, but a break from their ever-so-sweet little faces is definitely nice sometimes.  And, with that, we are going to enjoy the rest of what summer has to offer, even if it is a whole lot of nothing.  Remember that laziness thing?

The Good, the Bad and the Newly Learned

Wondering what it's like in on Guam (that's what you say, since it is an island)?  Being that I've only been here a month, I can only really validly give you my first impressions.  While first impressions do count for a lot, I've also learned over time that they aren't always correct.  Let's just hope the good stay good and the bad....well, they can just do what they will with themselves.  Here goes nothing....The good, the bad and the newly learned:

• It certainly isn't big, but it's big enough.
• The people are very friendly.
• You can see water from just about anywhere, and the beaches, tropical jungles and water itself are beautiful.
• It reminds me of Mexico in a lot of ways.
• The people are very proud of their heritage and culture.
• The locals are some of the nicest people I've ever met....I already said that, didn't I?
• Every car on the island must have a ding, scrape, dent or other impairment of some sort.
• Most things are way overpriced, including cars.
• The weather is hot and humid, although I don't find it to be overly hot.
• You can get sunburned walking to your mailbox.
• My hair hates it.
• I've had the pleasure of visiting the biggest KMart in the world, the Micronesian Mall and the Home Depot on island.  All that's left is Ross.  Hey, that's more than we had in Niceville, FL.
• It takes forever to drive anywhere because the top speed limit is 45 mph.
• The sunsets are amazing.
• Snorkeling is fabulous!  The island is surrounded by reefs.
• I think I've seen just about every Nemo character while snorkeling, minus Bruce, although my friend, Nancy, saw a shark while we were snorkeling.  The rest of us missed it.
• Coral reefs do not feel good on the legs or hands.
• Chickens and boonie dogs....might need to learn to love them.
• Brown tree snakes...wasn't sure they really existed until I spotted one in a trap.  Yes, there are traps everywhere.
• Just like Jamestown, we are on island time, and I'm pretty sure it suits me fine (most of the time...at least for now).
• I like it here and think you should come visit.

Ask me again in a few months, and I may have a different story to tell, but I have to say that life is good here so far.   Good night, good morning, farewell, hafa adai wherever you are!