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Moving (with books), Tips, Tricks, Moving Stories


Athena

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Well.. this morning I spent over an hour typing a really long post, only to lose it when I tried to post it :weeping::7_mad::banghead:. This is why I usually write everything in documents first, but this time I hadn't, and the forum hadn't saved it :censored: (I think it's because I'm making a new topic).

 

Since I don't remember it all and don't want to spend another hour typing it, I will make a shorter post, writing down what I can remember.

 

So as some of you may know, earlier this year my partner and I bought a house. We got it in the beginning of February (a few weeks before the pandemic came to the Netherlands). Since then, we've been working on doing it up one or two days a week together with my parents (we live with them). We want to take things slow because moving is difficult for me (see further in the post for more details on past moves). With my autism, changes are difficult and take me more time to get used to, than most neurotypical people.

 

The move may get delayed because, aside from doing the work on it, we also need and want to buy some things like furniture and appliances. We can't do that yet with this current situation.

 

This will be the first time moving as an adult to my own place.

 

When I was 1 1/2 years old, my parents and I moved to a different part of the country, because my dad got a job there.

When I was 7 years old, my parents, my sister and I and my newly born brother, moved to a different house in the same town, because an extra bedroom was needed for the new baby (my brother).

 

When I was 14 years old, the five of us moved to a different town / city in the same area. We went from a relatively modern newly built house to an old farm. This move was difficult for me. I didn't want to move, I loved our house and town and it took some time before I loved the farm we moved to. We moved in the summer.

 

After the summer my 3rd year of high school started, and it was much tougher than the previous 2 years. All summer long I refused to unpack my boxes, thinking that if I didn't, then the move wouldn't be happening. I became depressed and the input at school, sounds in particular, really started to drain my energy.

 

When I was 17 years old, I got my autism diagnosis (my ADD diagnosis I got when I was 24 years old) and I got prescribed anti-depressant medication.

 

My siblings (my sister and my brother) moved out when they went to university (my sister not in her first year but in her second, I think my brother might've moved out in his first year).

 

When my partner came to live with me in the Netherlands, he and I moved into the bakery. That was already the place where we spent the night when he was visiting me. My old bedroom, that held my books and bookcases as well as my bed and my desk, became my library room. My childhood bed was removed and put up the attic. My desk was moved to the bakery. My books and bookcases stayed in my room. Things changed in that I started to spend most of my time in the bakery rather than in my room. We started to have meals on our own in the bakery, after a cooker was installed, we got our own fridge and microwave/oven and cupboard as well.

 

And that brings me to now, a move which will take us to a new place of our own. We won't be living with my parents then. Nor with the big garden, the  dog and the chicken. I'm hoping Pamuk (the dog) can come visit us.

 

Our new house is in a different area of the same city we live in now. We'll have new neighbours and different shops to go to etc (obviously right now I'm not going into any shops, but okay).

 

Right now we are dependent on my parents to drive us to the new house. I don't drive, my partner can't drive. There is a cycle path, so when we have moved in and have sorted out bicycles and have trained a bit (we have an exercise bike? Not sure what the English word for it is), we can cycle to my parents' house.

 

I plan to do a lot of walking, we should be able to walk to some of the shops and also the library (it's closed atm because of the pandemic but hopefully some time in the future it will open again.). There is a train station too so we can take the train to other cities and towns (for example, my psychiatrist is in a different city so normally I go by train and bus. Atm my next appointment is digital because of the pandemic, but hopefully things will go back to normal in some time when it is safe).

In January and February I sorted through most of my old stuff that was up the attic. I donated some things to charity, I threw away some things, and I saved some things.

 

What's left to do now for me in terms of old stuff in the attic, is some boxes that contains things that belong to both my partner and I (and will therefore need our joint decision in what to do with it) and some boxes that have my stuff but that are way too heavy for me to lift and take off the attic to downstairs so I can sort them out. Those boxes contain my CDs, some older videogames and puzzle books, if I'm not mistaken. There are also some boxes with cables, we'll have to see what is useful to keep and what not (I think a move is a great time to declutter).

 

Some boxes of my older things have been taken to the new house, things I won't need any time soon. I don't want to start packing my books yet because 1) I am a huge mood reader and I don't want to be without my books for too long, and 2) I don't know when the move will be and so the books in boxes may be unaccessible for a while depending on how things go with the lockdown and such.

 

Also, I don't think we have enough empty boxes to put all of my books in, so we think it's a good idea to, at some point, start taking books in boxes, and then empty the boxes and bring the empty boxes back to put more books in, etc.

 

I have a lot of bookshelves and a lot of books. Not everything will fit, so I have donated some books to charity.

 

We also have a DVD/Blu-ray collection and we have a lot of videogames (though most of those are my partner's).

I haven't quite worked out yet how I will organise things with my books, as I won't have as many bookshelves as I do now. Some of my bookshelves will go into other rooms and be filled with other things. I plan to buy a few new shelves, that will be more efficient regarding space in my new room.

 

Anyway.. the point of this post was to ask, if anyone has any experience with moving their book collection (assuming you have at least some physical books)? Any tips or tricks you would like to share with me? Or tips about moving in general, I'd love to know too. I've not moved as an adult before (unless you count moving to the bakery from the farm), and as a kid it was never my own choice (and my parents did most of the organisational side of it, and helped me pack my boxes). Any moving stories you want to tell?

 

Well.. I think that contained most of what I wrote about in the post I lost (although maybe not as eloquently). It'll be a while until I move, but I'd love to hear any tips or stories you want to tell about your own experiences moving.

 

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Oh you really don't want to hear about my recent house move. Oh well, I'll give you the gist. Initially we were told it might be before Christmas, then 17th January, then... we eventually moved in February just before the weekend of a terrible storm. We were just beginning to unpack when we heard a rumbling sound as if a roof tile was - and it was. Then the burglar alarm went off in the middle of the night, then the electrics failed in the living room. Day after day these hiccups kept on happening. I assure you, that is the short version. 

 

All I can say is that it was worth it. We got in to the new place before the Coronavirus started to mess our lives up and we filled up our new fridge and freezer just before the lockdown started. Phew! 

 

So I hope that your move will go more smoothly than ours did, and I hope you enjoy your new place as much as we are enjoying ours.

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I can sympathise with you Anna - remember the great storm of 1987, the hurricane that wasn't forecast?  Well my mum and I moved the day of the storm, actually we should have moved the day before but there was a holdup with the money transferring down the chain and of course it stopped just before it got to us, so technically we were homeless but the lovely couple who bought our house and were trying to move in agreed to spend the night at a friend or relative's house so that we could sleep in our old house, but on their furniture (we slept on their couches) as they were able to move in.  Our stuff had to go into storage for one night which cost a fortune, there was a court case to claim back the money which probably cost more than the cost of storage.

 

So we moved in the next day and in the evening I remarked how windy it was.... thought nothing of it , went to bed only to be woken up at around 4.00 by a weird noise which I thought was thunder as there were a lot of flashing lights outside, but eventually I realised it was the street lights going on and off, and  the noise was in fact the wind.  Eventually the electricity went off  altogether and then I was kept awake by various tiles sliding off the roof and smashing outside (it's a bungalow).  So the next day my mum had to put in an insurance claim for the roof damage, and we hadn't been in the house 24 hours. Phones were also down (long before mobiles, kids) although they did start working after a while.

 

Well they do say that moving house is one of the most stressful things you can do.  Hope it goes well Athena, I think it's a good idea to move a few boxes at a time so that you can empty them out and use them again, just try to do it gradually and not worry too much.  good luck.

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23 hours ago, Anna Faversham said:

Oh you really don't want to hear about my recent house move. Oh well, I'll give you the gist. Initially we were told it might be before Christmas, then 17th January, then... we eventually moved in February just before the weekend of a terrible storm. We were just beginning to unpack when we heard a rumbling sound as if a roof tile was - and it was. Then the burglar alarm went off in the middle of the night, then the electrics failed in the living room. Day after day these hiccups kept on happening. I assure you, that is the short version. 

 

All I can say is that it was worth it. We got in to the new place before the Coronavirus started to mess our lives up and we filled up our new fridge and freezer just before the lockdown started. Phew! 

 

So I hope that your move will go more smoothly than ours did, and I hope you enjoy your new place as much as we are enjoying ours.

 

Wow, that's quite an experience, Anna! I'm glad you are happy with your new place and that you got there in time before the lockdown started :).

 

22 hours ago, Madeleine said:

I can sympathise with you Anna - remember the great storm of 1987, the hurricane that wasn't forecast?  Well my mum and I moved the day of the storm, actually we should have moved the day before but there was a holdup with the money transferring down the chain and of course it stopped just before it got to us, so technically we were homeless but the lovely couple who bought our house and were trying to move in agreed to spend the night at a friend or relative's house so that we could sleep in our old house, but on their furniture (we slept on their couches) as they were able to move in.  Our stuff had to go into storage for one night which cost a fortune, there was a court case to claim back the money which probably cost more than the cost of storage.

 

So we moved in the next day and in the evening I remarked how windy it was.... thought nothing of it , went to bed only to be woken up at around 4.00 by a weird noise which I thought was thunder as there were a lot of flashing lights outside, but eventually I realised it was the street lights going on and off, and  the noise was in fact the wind.  Eventually the electricity went off  altogether and then I was kept awake by various tiles sliding off the roof and smashing outside (it's a bungalow).  So the next day my mum had to put in an insurance claim for the roof damage, and we hadn't been in the house 24 hours. Phones were also down (long before mobiles, kids) although they did start working after a while.

 

Wow, what a hassle with the hurricane and the money issue and the storage!! I'm glad the couple who bought your house let you and your mum stay the night. I'm glad things turned out allright.

 

22 hours ago, Madeleine said:

Well they do say that moving house is one of the most stressful things you can do.  Hope it goes well Athena, I think it's a good idea to move a few boxes at a time so that you can empty them out and use them again, just try to do it gradually and not worry too much.  good luck.

 

That's true, they do say that. Thank you, Madeleine :)!

 

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That's what we said - we'll never move again. We also had a delay in payment further down the chain and we stayed in our son's house for several nights because the removal men, late because of the delayed payment, only had time to unload a few boxes before it was Friday-night-going-home time. They were very nice about it and explained we would have to pay overtime if they stayed later. So it was the Monday before they returned. I won't bore you with the rest - you get the picture, I'm sure. And it sounds like a lot of us have had to go through this. I hope we're not putting you off moving, Athena, just be prepared.

 

It's Sunday, I have a sunny balcony, I'm going to sit on it and read. :)

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I hope you enjoyed your reading :)!

 

Well gladly things have gone well with all the payments, so that's not a worry anymore :). And because the house isn't far from where I live now, we're not planning to hire any moving company but instead do it ourselves. We were thinking of renting a van by the time we can move. I was going to ask my brother for help too but because of this pandemic, that might not be possible. I mean, my partner and I live with my parents, so we are all together no problem, but if I ask my brother for help we must keep our distance at all times and not sure that's possible when you're carrying let's say a sofa or something. But, we'll see how things develop.

 

I am a naturally anxious and easily stressed person though, and moving is scary, so I do have some fears. And the pandemic has made things lots worse (I am in fact probably more stressed because of the pandemic, than moving, but then they are intertwined a bit. We can't/shouldn't go out shopping yet for anything and such).

 

Anyway, thank you Anna and Madeleine, for sharing your experiences :hug: !!

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I'm sorry you lost your original post, that's so annoying! I thought your new post was perfectly eloquent though :)

 

Since you're staying in the same city maybe you could ask your parents if you could store a few boxes of things like books and dvds in the attic of the bakery still? Then if you've been in your new house for a while without needing those things you might feel more comfortable about getting rid of them (but if you decide you do want some of those things to hand in your new house, you can find a place for them when most of your things are already in and it's a bit less stressful). 

 

My moving experience was very different to yours, because I moved to a little one bed apartment that was mainly furnished already. The biggest things I had to take were kitchen appliances. Because I didn't need a van though I just took absolute essentials at first, leaving most of my things at my family home, and then every time I visited my family I took a little bit more back with me. Two years later I moved back to my family home (for a good reason, I got into a really lovely university in my home city to do my masters degree) and that was actually harder than the original move!

 

My one practical piece of advice would be to mix your books with lighter things in the boxes. So, for example, take a box that is half books and half pillows. Because a whole box of books is ridiculously heavy, but you don't want to waste box space either :lol:.

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18 hours ago, Hayley said:

I'm sorry you lost your original post, that's so annoying! I thought your new post was perfectly eloquent though :)

 

Aww thank you :)!

 

18 hours ago, Hayley said:

Since you're staying in the same city maybe you could ask your parents if you could store a few boxes of things like books and dvds in the attic of the bakery still? Then if you've been in your new house for a while without needing those things you might feel more comfortable about getting rid of them (but if you decide you do want some of those things to hand in your new house, you can find a place for them when most of your things are already in and it's a bit less stressful).

 

Thanks :). My brother and sister still actually have a lot of their old stuff in the attic of the main house. I don't want to leave anything unattended in the bakery, because it leaks there and if we're not around to see where it leaks and put buckets etc under it, things will get wet. Also, there are mice in the bakery so I don't want to leave my stuff there if I'm not around (they're already there when we are around!). There are mice in the attic of the main house too, though not quite as many. They ate my knitted plushie I made in primary school when I was 10 :weeping:. I was so proud of that (I only found out recently in February when I went through all my stuff from the main house). I've gone through most of my things, everything I've gone through now that has stayed, I want to keep. I've already got rid of a lot of stuff. There are just a few bits left to do (mostly things I need my partner's opinion on, things that we own together, computer cables and boxes).

 

18 hours ago, Hayley said:

My moving experience was very different to yours, because I moved to a little one bed apartment that was mainly furnished already. The biggest things I had to take were kitchen appliances. Because I didn't need a van though I just took absolute essentials at first, leaving most of my things at my family home, and then every time I visited my family I took a little bit more back with me. Two years later I moved back to my family home (for a good reason, I got into a really lovely university in my home city to do my masters degree) and that was actually harder than the original move!

 

Oh wow! That makes sense though :). I'm someone who loves having their stuff with them, I think I would find it difficult to leave a lot of it behind, not directly accessible. It's nice you got to go to a lovely university in your home city and live with your family for a while :).

 

18 hours ago, Hayley said:

My one practical piece of advice would be to mix your books with lighter things in the boxes. So, for example, take a box that is half books and half pillows. Because a whole box of books is ridiculously heavy, but you don't want to waste box space either :lol:.

 

That makes sense! I'm trying to come up with a good system for what is in which box, but so far I haven't come up with anything good (the system I used a few years ago when I went through the attic, involved some kind of postit notes / sticky bits of paper, which came off the boxes sometimes when they got stacked on top off each other). Like, especially for my books it'd be useful, in case there is a specific book I want to find, but.. well I have a lot of books (!) and it'd be a lot of work to write down which books exactly are in which box. I plan to pack it per bookcase/bookshelf, so at least most of the books in one box will be of the same genre / coming off the same book case, but still. Ah well.. I guess we'll have to wait and see. I may have to keep some books separate that I might want to read soon, or something. At least I'll have my Kindle.

 

I've been thinking about replacing it though, because it's from 2012 and quite old and slow, the battery doesn't hold its charge for long and such. And Amazon NL can send me a Kindle. The one I have, I ordered from Amazon US and I had to pay import tax on (first generation Paperwhite). But it'd mean I have to change to Amazon NL for Kindle books (which could be beneficial for my wallet?) and it of course costs some money. I haven't decided but have been thinking about it for a while. Anyway, that's a bit off-topic, but I do like to ramble!

 

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The only bit of practical moving advice I can give is to make sure things can't move when they are packed. Anything that can move around in a box is a prime candidate for damage. This can be solved by filling empty space with things such as clothing or crumpled up newspaper.

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My advice is not to overload boxes of books, and have a variety of sizes, so you can fit them into a car boot / van like a puzzle!

 

Would it be possible to photograph your book shelves and have the photos as reference for the boxes? So, for example Bookshelf 3, rows 1 - 3 in box 4. That way, you have the record of the shelves and books, and only have to write a number, and maybe a genre clue on the box.  BOX 4 - SCI FI.?  I often will take a quite photo on my phone to make note of something, downloading it later to my PC if I want to keep the information. 

 

I think that your awareness of which areas of the move will stress you will be helpful, because you will be able to find ways to navigate your mental/emotional boat through the choppy waters of moving. (< how's that for an analogy?!)

 

There is no hurry, and you have the support of those around you. In any potentially stressful situation I try to imagine the moment afterward that I would be happy and settled. If it is a visit to the dentist, I think that I will be home by such-and-such a time, with a mug of tea and a book, and I concentrate on that. With moving I imagine my first meal in my new place, or (yet again) sitting with my mug of tea and a book, cosy and happy. 

 

Good luck with it all. :hug:

 

 

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22 hours ago, Chrissy said:

My advice is not to overload boxes of books, and have a variety of sizes, so you can fit them into a car boot / van like a puzzle!

 

Thank you Chrissy! That is a nice idea :).

 

22 hours ago, Chrissy said:

Would it be possible to photograph your book shelves and have the photos as reference for the boxes? So, for example Bookshelf 3, rows 1 - 3 in box 4. That way, you have the record of the shelves and books, and only have to write a number, and maybe a genre clue on the box.  BOX 4 - SCI FI.?  I often will take a quite photo on my phone to make note of something, downloading it later to my PC if I want to keep the information. 

 

That makes sense! I could certainly do that! What a great idea! Most of my shelves are doublestacked, I do have photos of most front shelves from a while ago, but none of the back rows on the shelves. Thank you for this!! :D

 

22 hours ago, Chrissy said:

I think that your awareness of which areas of the move will stress you will be helpful, because you will be able to find ways to navigate your mental/emotional boat through the choppy waters of moving. (< how's that for an analogy?!)

 

That's a great analogy!

 

22 hours ago, Chrissy said:

There is no hurry, and you have the support of those around you. In any potentially stressful situation I try to imagine the moment afterward that I would be happy and settled. If it is a visit to the dentist, I think that I will be home by such-and-such a time, with a mug of tea and a book, and I concentrate on that. With moving I imagine my first meal in my new place, or (yet again) sitting with my mug of tea and a book, cosy and happy. 

 

Good luck with it all. :hug:

 

Thank you :hug:. That is a great idea! I usually tell myself I can buy or order a book or a few books, after I make it through my dentist appointment. Thanks so much for all your ideas!! :friends3:

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On 11/05/2020 at 1:36 PM, Anna Faversham said:

We await news of a successful move!

 

Thanks! It will be a while, since we're still doing up the house, but when it happens I will post about it, maybe even take and share some pictures :).

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  • 1 month later...

Update time!

 

The official move is happening in the second half of August. I've been busy packing my books (as well as other things). Some of my books are in my room at the new house, other boxes with books are still at home awaiting transportation. We've been taking boxes there, emptying them, then taking the empty boxes back to refill them again. I have a few book cases already in the new room, and some book cases empty at home that can be transported. So, progress is being made. I will eventually post pictures, or maybe a video, or both, but I'm not comfortable posting work-in-progress pictures in public atm, as things are quite messy (piles of books all over the floor and such). I'm hoping to get as much of our stuff to the house as possible, before the move and also during.

 

Things left to do DIY-wise on the house:

- woodwork living room

- the wooden floor of the ground floor (living room, kitchen, hallway, toilet)

- all internet cabling & WiFi

- check all electricity / sockets

- various things in the garden

- various things in the garage

 

And we still need to buy certain things, such as a washing machine, freezer, certain furniture, lots of small things, etc (I plan to get lots of things through online orders because of the pandemic). Our new bed should be delivered in a few weeks.

 

Okay, that's it for now.

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