Thanksgiving on the Road and the bumpity bumps along the road

It was five years ago this Thanksgiving Day that we were on the road in a UHaul truck containing pieces that we could not get into the BIG moving van that was also on its way. We were moving to Sequim, Washington. We were so eager to get to our new home that we decided to forego Thanksgiving Day with the family. Michael and I dubbed it the "Sequim Chapter of our Life".

There we were in the freeway, when suddenly we heard a pop! we had a flat tire. I was so afraid and Michael eased our Uhaul van into the center divider where we waited for about two hours for the repair guy who just sat down to this Thanksgiving dinner at his home.

Then we thought, OK things are fine and we're on the road again. But, darn if we didn't get a second tire blowout! Michael left me on the side of a lonely offramp (after all, everybody was with their families enjoying Thanksgiving). He had to locate a phone to call in our 2nd blowout. A longer wait this time for the repair guy who has to locate something or another to fix our problem. Of course, his Thanksgiving Day was also interrupted. At this time, I am getting worried about this trip and the company we chose to rent our moving van from.

With each blowout, we hear things shifting about inside the back of the van. But, frankly, I really didn't want to see what was going on. I mean, I have my not so meager collection of Lladro there, my antique Grandfather clock, along with several Orchids, in bloom no less. I couldn't face what might be a disastrous sight. Michael tried to reassure me that all's well.

Tired and jubilant, we arrived the following morning, only too eager to view a home that we purchased a couple of months ago and had not seen since then. (With the downturn of property values in San Diego at the time, needless to say, we were worried if we can make it.)

The contractor we hired to do complete the remodeling to the house by our move in date (he had 2 months to do this) hardly made any progress except for the demolition. So, we slept in the smaller bedroom, camping style. You know, nothing but a blanket and bed sheet between us and the floor. We hung a bed sheet to protect us from all the dust and mess going on in other parts of the house. But, we didn't mind it at all. We made it! The promise of a new chapter buoyed our spirits.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!

Here's the house before all the remodeling and landscaping of 5 years.



Here's a current picture: