Well, almost.
The mover is booked to be here at 11:00am, and then I’ll find out whether all this stuff will fit onto his truck. I am sure hoping very ardently that it will. I have some vague idea where the few boxes of breakables are, but most of them are books and therefore heavy enough that they’ll probably not get blown off the truck. Anyway, I should probably just check my email, finish my awful breakfast, and get my sweater on, because it’s a damned chilly day.
I’ll next post from my new place in Bucheon. More about that later.
gord,
the sight of all those boxes, and the thought of the headaches involved in getting all of your stuff in them, just about sent me into a panic attack. And I’m not even moving right now!!
Great luck in your new location. Glad to have you back in this neck of the woods….
I wish you all the best in your move and the new job. Once you get settled in, perhaps we can revisit that book trade idea.
Wishing you and your belongings all the best as you make this transition.
Wow. Good luck for your moving. I also feel like having a panic attack by just looking at your stuff. But at least, the moving service is not expensive there. The last time I moved was last summer, and it cost me a fortune. I may need to move again (depending on job situation here). Pooh…
Guys,
Well, there were a few headaches, but much less than it could have been. My friends/neighbours/co-workers Mike and Shawn were nice enough to help me get the stuff downstairs and loading onto the truck was something the mover guy handled. Then I just sat in his truck for a few hours, off and on trying to talk about educational reforms and such things, and off and on thinking.
Since I live on the main floor (2nd, but still the main floor accessible from the road), moving in was totally easy, and the guy only charged me W140,000 for it all. (I gave him some extra because the gas alone was W40,000 and he spent a lot of time, and because I felt it was only right.)
The pain in the butt, though, will be (1) unpacking, and (b) carting a lot of the books and my desktop PC over to my private office, in a nearby building. But even that ain’t so bad. :)
wow! looking at all those boxes make ME feel exhausted! it’s also remarkable how the apts in korean are so cookie cutter, for your (now former) apartment reminds me of so many others i’ve visited in Korea.
Private office?
Yep, private office, a nice big one with lotsa bookshelves. When I first saw the apartment, I was a little worried, as it’s smaller than what I got used to back in Jeonju, but since arriving, I can say it’s not so much smaller. And the bonus is that the office is big, and can serve as a workspace, which is what about a third of my room in Jeonju had to do. So what’s lost in living space is gained in equivalent workspace. (I’ve fantasized about having an office to go and write in since hearing Ray Bradbury talk about his in a documentary. I have a feeling dedicating the space to that will help with my productivity, as will not doing it in my home, or at least not exclusively in my home.)
I’m thinking that mornings will be exercise, afternoons writing and class planning — at least two hours or more of writing in my office — and late afternoons/evenings will be teaching. This suits me fine, especially with Fridays off.
Ah, what a life! I’m still casting about for writing space solutions, while making do with what I have. If I could afford to rent an office, I would.
Enjoy yours.
Yeah, writing in the home can really suck if the distractions are too available. Of course, I’ve made do for many years, so it is possible. But I’m considering my new office a kind of nice luxury, really.
My suggestions: if you can set aside a room for it, that’s great. Otherwise, a portable and a space outside the home (like a favorite coffeeshop) and an MP3 player; or a screen; or a mental space, ie. a scheduled time that is for writing, and which everyone knows is YOUR writing time. And willpower not to flick on the TV or whatever.