Dire Straits Moving: Where Do I Get Boxes?

 

Dire Straits Moving: Where Do I Get Boxes?

Use common courtesy when asking for boxes, if you say you’re going to show up then show up. Get people’s cell or email so you can let them know if something comes up.

If you need bigger boxes you can look on Craigslist or your area Facebook groups for someone offloading their moving boxes cheap.

Some U-Haul locations have a spot where people can leave their boxes, and you can pick them up free.

McDonalds fry boxes are great boxes, they are strong, they stack beautifully, they are almost always clean, they are free. Go inside and ask for boxes, they will usually tell you there is a cardboard only dumpster in the back to look for more.

Liquor stores are excellent sources for boxes. They usually keep a pile of them in a corner until the end of the day. Ask and someone will let you know if you can take them, they keep some empties for boxing purchases that are not for taking. The boxes do tend to be smaller and sometimes are cut open funny, requiring more taping.

Most big box stores have compactors now and don’t have boxes unless you happen to catch some. Mom and pops and restaurants often have boxes, but it is better to call around and find some, than drive around hopelessly wasting gas.

Next: How To Pack

Dire Straits MovingMake a Plan, StanMoving Truck BudgetnessPreparationComputery PreparednessBinder of DoomOrganize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff UpWhat Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?Needful Things for PackingWhere Do I Get Boxes?How To PackMoving TipsMoving Day/Stuffing all the StuffMoving with Pets (tons of cats for me)Moving with KidsHow Do I DO Schtuff with No Home?How Do I Eat with No Home?Meal Plan for Dire StraitsI Moved and Now I Don’t Have Anywhere to SitNeed Help?

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Dire Straits Moving: Needful Things for Packing

 

Dire Straits Moving: Needful Things for Packing

You don’t have to spend a ton on moving supplies. You do have to spend some money, though.
I put what I needed in a cart in Jan 2021 and it came to about $100. I have a ton of tubs and tape already, though.

  • bankers boxes (pack of 10 so everyone gets a Last Box, somewhere to put stuff they need to have access to throughout, or printer paper boxes, I found cheaper ones at Walmart)
  • four gallon trash bags (I’ve been using reusable bags so my stockpile of little plastic grocery bags is gone)
  • large clear bags (for trash and for stuff to donate, so Mr Autism Spectrum Teen doesn’t confuse things and give away my stuff, 60 count x 2)
  • large white drawstring kitchen bags (for packing linens and soft things, 90 count x 2)
  • masking/painters tape (for labeling tubs and securing items)
  • packing tape (four rolls, a gun increases your packing speed, don’t cheap out on the tape)
  • permanent markers
  • zip bags in various sizes (for keeping like things together, and packing liquid things like shampoo bottles)
  • padlock (for storage, do not get the cheapest one, the width of the metal loop on top is what matters, that is what a thief will try to use bolt cutters on)
  • packing paper (you can save newspapers, but you will never save enough)
  • plastic tubs (for larger things that won’t fit in most boxes)

Last box with a cat in it

Next: Where Do I Get Boxes?

Dire Straits MovingMake a Plan, StanMoving Truck BudgetnessPreparationComputery PreparednessBinder of DoomOrganize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff UpWhat Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?Needful Things for PackingWhere Do I Get Boxes?How To PackMoving TipsMoving Day/Stuffing all the StuffMoving with Pets (tons of cats for me)Moving with KidsHow Do I DO Schtuff with No Home?How Do I Eat with No Home?Meal Plan for Dire StraitsI Moved and Now I Don’t Have Anywhere to SitNeed Help?

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Dire Straits Moving: What Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?

 

Dire Straits Moving: What Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?

Rehome it, donate it, toss it. Burn it on a funeral pyre (but get a permit, safety first!).
You can stuff clothes in donation boxes in your area (although I found that my nearest clothing box disappeared, this may be harder in a pandemic). If you have time you can donate different things to various places. Goodwill or Salvation Army may come pick up large items like furniture. Smaller local charities and thrift stores may pick up other items.

If you have a lot of time yard sale it, or you can post individual items on eBay or Facebook yard sale or Buy Nothing groups. Post on Freecylce, Craigslist or your local Facebook groups that you have stuff (which site works best depends on where you are). List your terms, like if resellers are ok, a brief description of the contents, if you smoke, if they have to reply within 24 hours (not that I’ve had people leave me hanging or anything). I had a man come and take bags and bags of stuff that I assume he sorted and resold what he could, but I was just grateful to get that stuff out of the way so I have room in storage for the stuff that matters to me.

Next: Needful Things for Packing

Dire Straits MovingMake a Plan, StanMoving Truck BudgetnessPreparationComputery PreparednessBinder of DoomOrganize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff UpWhat Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?Needful Things for PackingWhere Do I Get Boxes?How To PackMoving TipsMoving Day/Stuffing all the StuffMoving with Pets (tons of cats for me)Moving with KidsHow Do I DO Schtuff with No Home?How Do I Eat with No Home?Meal Plan for Dire StraitsI Moved and Now I Don’t Have Anywhere to SitNeed Help?

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Dire Straits Moving: Organize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff Up

 

Dire Straits Moving: Organize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff Up

How to sort and declutter, that is a sticky question. If you have a huge limit on both time and money you need to buckle down and make the best choices you can. What should you keep and stuff in storage? Things you can’t replace, things you can’t just buy again at a thrift store or big box store. Grandma’s china might be gorgeous and one of your favorite things, but you could buy more china when you are back on your feet. The photos from your little darling’s kindergarten graduation, however, you can’t get anywhere. Some decisions may be painful, but if you have no time or money you have to give your worldly possessions some tough love.

There is also the issue of your quality of life once you find a place. If you have to get rid of every single pan you own, and when you set up the new place you have to wait for your first check to buy one, cooking is going to be hard. Every situation is different, so use your best judgment.

There are hoarder tendencies in my family. Living at the bottom of the financial fish pond makes you nervous. You can’t just go out and buy a new one if something breaks. You can’t go on a shopping spree if your clothes are getting a little raggedy. I have struggled for a long time with how to organize my duplicates, and parts, and broken things, and any free toy my children were ever offered, and every kid’s book on the planet.

I believe I have found the organizing method that works for me. Japanese organizer Marie Kondo claims that you should discard everything that does not “spark joy.” The thing that is driving me to purge mercilessly is that I can clear the air and surround myself with things that I love, that “spark joy.” I know exactly what she is talking about, and most of my stuff does the opposite. I have realized that most of my stuff either makes me feel worried that I will need it at some point if I get rid of it, feel guilty that I am not taking better care of my stuff and home, feel anxious that there are too many things to sort and clean and burn on a funeral pyre, and feel like I am neglecting my children if I do not limit them to one dozen rubber duckies. This storm of negativity and terribleness is not my favorite thing. To learn more about Marie Kondo, check out De-Cluttering Your House With Love and One Guru’s Approach to Decluttering Your Home—and Your Life, or buy her book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing.

How to sort clothes? Clothes were actually pretty easy for me. If it is missing a button or has a stain that won’t come out, donate it (I have rescued clothes other people have given up on). If it is too big, too small, or otherwise makes you self-conscious, get rid of it. I am a comfort monkey, if I am not comfortable I’m pretty much never going to wear it. Don’t keep clothes because they have sentimental value. Take a picture of it if it means that much to you. Grandma’s wedding dress is highly unlikely to fit you, but if that’s the one thing that you really want to keep then you need to make that decision intentionally.

How to sort in the kitchen? It is hard to decide what to keep. If you haven’t used it in the last year, it’s safe to get rid of it. If it does not have multiple uses, you may want to get rid of it. Even if you can’t stand to give up the teddy bear cake pan when your kids have all grown, you should consider it before you decide to keep it all and overflow storage. Have you used the waffle maker or ice cream maker in the last six months? There are recipes for ice cream that don’t use a maker, so you can still have your dessert without storing that honker of an appliance. My hubby love love loves rotisserie chicken, but I have found that whole chicken made in the crock pot is more moist. Read this article from Stone Soup on how to set up a minimalist kitchen, to help you determine what you really need. This article will help you to be thoughtful about what you use in the kitchen, and decide what you need to pack to move with you, and what can stay in storage until you are more stable.

How to sort food? When packing food leave the prepared/quick stuff for last. Canned soups, boxed pastas, etc. As you pack the rest of your kitchen equipment these will look better and better, and will be handy once you move and have no idea where your stuff is. You could pack it first and set it aside, but then at the end you will be unpacking some of it to eat. Most food pantries will take any food, including slightly expired food, and it will do you no good for an extended period in storage.

Next: What Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?

Dire Straits MovingMake a Plan, StanMoving Truck BudgetnessPreparationComputery PreparednessBinder of DoomOrganize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff UpWhat Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?Needful Things for PackingWhere Do I Get Boxes?How To PackMoving TipsMoving Day/Stuffing all the StuffMoving with Pets (tons of cats for me)Moving with KidsHow Do I DO Schtuff with No Home?How Do I Eat with No Home?Meal Plan for Dire StraitsI Moved and Now I Don’t Have Anywhere to SitNeed Help?

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Dire Straits Moving: Binder of Doom

 

Dire Straits Moving: Binder of Doom

Do some household tasks now so you won’t inconvenience yourself later. Create a binder that has important documents in sheet protectors. Put all the really important papers like birth certificates in here so they are not buried in boxes. You need to keep this binder safe.

I recommend you have a print copy of many things, since charging your phone may be an issue if you don’t have somewhere to live. You can’t just look it up on Google Docs.

Scan the fronts and backs of the contents of your wallet and print them, and keep in your binder.

Create emergency sheets for each family member (and each fur baby) in case something happens, you will have a recent photo, birthdate, their height and weight, and their insurance info in one place. Print off lists of prescriptions for family members and keep them with the emergency sheets. If you do not already have one, create an ICE (in case of emergency), family binder, or home management binder, now is a good time to start one, even if you just start with these really important documents.

Develop your budget (as best you can) past when you expect to be in your new home, and print it.

Print your passwords, account numbers, and any other information you refer to often or might need.

Create a contacts document of people you will need info for, including utilities, the school, doctor and vet, in case something happens to your phone and you can’t access anything else. My contacts document was printed and lived in my purse. Mine had the following info: Each child’s birthdate (because no I can’t remember them), my license number, car plate number, my contact info including cell, the doctor’s info, the bus my child would be riding and pickup and dropoff times, hours and addresses for several local stores, my child’s work info, hours for accessing our PO Box, the number of a neighbor who would let me use her phone, contact info for the studio where we get guitar lessons. I had the following for both towns: address and phone for school and school bus company, the hours of both the transfer station and swap shop, info for the town offices, and contact info and hours for the library.

If you may be job hunting tidy up your resume (many libraries help with this, even if the building is not open to the public). Get it gussied up and print it out so you can make copies, and add this to a flash drive/memory stick so you can print it from the library.

Next: Organize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff Up

Dire Straits MovingMake a Plan, StanMoving Truck BudgetnessPreparationComputery PreparednessBinder of DoomOrganize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff UpWhat Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?Needful Things for PackingWhere Do I Get Boxes?How To PackMoving TipsMoving Day/Stuffing all the StuffMoving with Pets (tons of cats for me)Moving with KidsHow Do I DO Schtuff with No Home?How Do I Eat with No Home?Meal Plan for Dire StraitsI Moved and Now I Don’t Have Anywhere to SitNeed Help?

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Dire Straits Moving: Computery Preparedness

 

Dire Straits Moving: Computery Preparedness

If you have an off-site or online backup service make sure all your files are backed up, before somebody drops your laptop en route. Backup your important files on a flash drive and carry it on you. You want to have both paper and electronic backups of all your important and necessary things, in multiple places. Throw non-sensitive info up on Google Drive. If your binder of doom is in the car and it gets stolen, or you leave your wallet back two states, how bad will it be? If somebody drops your laptop, flushes your phone, or sits on your flash drive, what will you do? Apply Murphys’s Law (anything that can go wrong, will go wrong), and you will be better equipped to handle whatever life throws at you.

You can use Google Drive to store important files, like your resume and your rental hunt tasks. You can access Google Drive from any computer that is online, including at the library, if it’s open. Don’t host any really sensitive info like passwords on Drive, it may not be safe. And always, always, log out of Google on public wifi or computers (and don’t tell it to remember your password in the first place). Also, you can forward your domain email to a Gmail account, so you can have access to that if webmail doesn’t work for you.

Next: Binder of Doom

Dire Straits MovingMake a Plan, StanMoving Truck BudgetnessPreparationComputery PreparednessBinder of DoomOrganize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff UpWhat Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?Needful Things for PackingWhere Do I Get Boxes?How To PackMoving TipsMoving Day/Stuffing all the StuffMoving with Pets (tons of cats for me)Moving with KidsHow Do I DO Schtuff with No Home?How Do I Eat with No Home?Meal Plan for Dire StraitsI Moved and Now I Don’t Have Anywhere to SitNeed Help?

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Dire Straits Moving: Preparation

 

Dire Straits Moving: Preparation

Take stock of your pantry and freezer. You need to make a plan to eliminate the most perishable items. If you get to move to a new place then yay, you just need to limit what you bring in so you can fit your food in a cooler or four on the way to the new place. Otherwise, make a meal plan or use another method to figure out how to eat all the foods, like the just-eat-all-the-things diet.. Stone Soup has a lot of very simple, good recipes.

You can also take the opportunity to use your pantry ingredients to make some just add water mixes that will be easy to whip up later.

Take some time to ponder what tasks you will have coming up in the time your housing is in flux. Do you have any bills coming due, social commitments, or other responsibilities? Do you need to make payment arrangements or bow out of commitments now, while something can be done about it if you plan ahead? Is there anyone who will be affected, that you should warn when you still don’t actually know where you will end up?

If you have time develop a meal plan with inexpensive ingredients and basic equipment, so you can tightly plan your budget and your shopping right after the move.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help! The first time we did a dire straits move I was an irascible New Englander. New Englanders are a hardy bunch, and don’t like to ask for help. I wanted to do everything myself, I didn’t want a handout from anybody, and despite how grim the outlook was, I didn’t ask for any help. Instead everyone from my awesome office and family showed up and threw things in boxes, we stuffed storage to the gills, and we lived in the car in a warmer climate. If I had looked for assistance I might have been able to keep my kids near my family and support network.
Maybe you are proud. Maybe you are afraid. Maybe you can’t stand not being self-sufficient. Are your feelings really more important than keeping your children comfortable, secure, and safe?

Call your town welfare office and the local transitional shelter, they will be able to get you started. When applying for help you may need documentation of your income, your eviction or foreclosure notice, birth certificates, bank statement, proof of residence in your current town (unless you’re already homeless), social security cards, car titles, latest taxes, proof of auto insurance, your lease or rental agreement, your latest utility bills, and any statements for expenses like child support. All of these documents should be in your binder so you have access to them. We call ours the Binder of Doom.

Also, most of these programs have waiting lists, especially transitional housing. Get started now and keep track of who you have contacted. I have a document of who I have called, the results of that conversation, and the requirements they had whether I met them or not. I jot these down and then copy them to my document on the computer/Google Docs when I can. You can use Google Docs to access this from any computer. Just make sure you log out and clear the cache on any public computer.

Consider your car situation. Maybe you are making car payments and don’t have the money anymore. Is it better to turn that BMW in and get a beater, or wait until they repossess it? I will at least check Facebook for a van or maybe RV that will work better in our current situation. If you have a truck you could look at campers. Did you know that pop-up campers have lovely things like heat? I may have to use the security deposit I have saved to do it, which will admit that I am going to be homeless, and put our rehoming off that much more. But if it is the smart decision, I will do it. Keep in mind that what you buy might be a lemon, and if you carhouse breaks down or is stolen you will be in deep doo-doo. If you live in the city it’s possible you could sell your car to get a security deposit, and just use public transportation until you can get another. Use your limited resources as wisely as you can.

Consider relocating. If you have kids then this is a very hard decision to make, but you need to explore all of the possibilities, weigh all your options, and make the best decision you can. If you are on a fixed income, like disability, then your income will be the same no matter where you live. Your dollar may go further in other places. Perhaps you have a grandpa in Tucson the kids have never seen, or a grandma in Orlando. Seasons might influence your choice as well, it’s hard to live in your car in New Hampshire in January, but Arizona is absolutely beautiful. You can compare the cost of living in different places. If you refuse to accept help until you can get back on your feet then relocation is a very real possibility. However, if you pull your kids from school and uproot them from their friends and family you may be seeing the emotional scars for years to come. If you have a support system in place then use it, and investigate your options for local assistance. It could be that someone in your church has a rental property they’re fixing up, will trade labor for the deposit, and will be happy to have someone they know in there instead of a stranger who may wreck the place. You won’t know until you ask, as hard as it is to put yourself out there.

When you are moving you want to overlap services like power in both locations by a day. However, you must call to have them read the meter for power about four days in advance. They usually have a backlog and will need to schedule you in. Also if you find a place, getting the cable and internet people scheduled early is a good idea.

Next: Computery Preparedness

Dire Straits MovingMake a Plan, StanMoving Truck BudgetnessPreparationComputery PreparednessBinder of DoomOrganize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff UpWhat Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?Needful Things for PackingWhere Do I Get Boxes?How To PackMoving TipsMoving Day/Stuffing all the StuffMoving with Pets (tons of cats for me)Moving with KidsHow Do I DO Schtuff with No Home?How Do I Eat with No Home?Meal Plan for Dire StraitsI Moved and Now I Don’t Have Anywhere to SitNeed Help?

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Dire Straits Moving: Moving Truck Budgetness

 

Dire Straits Moving: Moving Truck Budget

Use the U-Haul site to estimate what the move will cost you. Compare different scenarios with trailers, trucks, and multiple trips. Do you have a friend with a truck? Can your car pull a trailer (this is determined by your vehicle and the U-Haul site will tell you if it is not recommended)? Figure out the costs for various towns you are willing to move to. I have a notepad document in my financial folder for moving truck scenarios. This way I can refer back if my budget or other variables change. I used a 26 foot truck (the big one) and the furthest town in our school district for my estimate. I assumed it would take us two days, with two trips each day, since I know we have physical limitations that will slow us down, and I don’t know how much stuff I will end up with when I’m done purging. If it takes us less time then whoopee, I saved some money. If I’m lucky I can actually do it all with my friend’s truck and I just have to put back whatever gas I use (not an insignificant expense).

To get your estimate get your truck price from the site, add the mileage you estimate ($1ish/mile is their fee), and gas costs. To figure out gas costs most trucks only get 8 miles per gallon. When calculating mileage make sure you cover each round trip, plus the trip to return the truck, and round up. Divide the miles by your 8 miles per gallon to figure out how many gallons you need (round up so you don’t have to worry about going off-route in the quest for a quick potty stop). Use gasbuddy.com to figure out the highest gas price on your route, round that up, and multiply that by the gallons. If you have another driver who can help you need to calculate the gas for that vehicle as well.

Mileage = miles to travel x $1 =$
Gas costs = miles / 8mpg = gallons. Gallons x $ gas cost = $
Total mileage + gas = $

One year there was a Penske coupon in the phone book which would make them cheaper than U-Haul, and then when I called the associate knew of another discount that was even better for me. It pays to look around for discounts.

Next: Preparation

Dire Straits MovingMake a Plan, StanMoving Truck BudgetnessPreparationComputery PreparednessBinder of DoomOrganize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff UpWhat Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?Needful Things for PackingWhere Do I Get Boxes?How To PackMoving TipsMoving Day/Stuffing all the StuffMoving with Pets (tons of cats for me)Moving with KidsHow Do I DO Schtuff with No Home?How Do I Eat with No Home?Meal Plan for Dire StraitsI Moved and Now I Don’t Have Anywhere to SitNeed Help?

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Dire Straits Moving: Make a Plan, Stan

 

Dire Straits Moving: Make a Plan

First of all, don’t panic. Okay, if you like, panic a little. Then make a plan so you can feel confident you are doing your best. Even if your best definitely isn’t what you would like to be doing. Make a plan. Make contingent plans. Make multiple budgets depending on what happens. This last time I had my regular budget continuing like nothing happened, a budget for finding something immediately (this budget had a lot of red in it), and a budget for if we were homeless for a while.

Use your local Facebook group to find real estate listings to budget for a new rental. Review your requirements, revise your expectations, and see how much it would cost to actually get a new place. This is typically your first month’s rent, plus the same amount as a security deposit (depending on your state). Sometimes there is a smaller pet deposit. It may be that you can’t pay for a moving truck to get your stuff out of storage until a later month, but getting into a place and living out of boxes is more fun than living in your car. Search all of the towns in your school district, and if that isn’t promising expand to area districts and towns where you have more family. You may find that one lovely town that has cheap rentals AND is a nice place to live. Be wary of moving to a larger city with cheap rentals, and scary neighborhoods. If you get trapped in a bad area you may be stuck, and your kids will be less likely to break the cycle of poverty.

There is a method of dealing with anxiety attacks (not that I get those) where you picture the absolute worst thing that could happen, in vivid detail. Confronting those fears helps diminish your anxiety. Collect all your problems and hurdles, and face them. Dig down to the very worst that could happen, follow all the ugly branches, and shift your Rubik’s Cube of Troubles until you have exhausted all the possibilities. When you are the Emperor of if/then situations and have considered the best responses in each case, you can make educated decisions and be smart about what you do. This also allows you to take the best advantage when things do go right.

Examine your lifestyle and budget for things that will be an adjustment to your expenses. Cut anything and everything you can. If you have no money coming in then it must stop going out. Call your utilities and see about getting on a payment plan, many companies will only do this before you are actually behind on the bill. Keep in contact with the people you owe money to, a lot of people are in trouble and if you explain what’s happening they will know what the company can do, if you do not contact them they will just send you to collections.

Also, try to be upfront with your landlord if you are renting. At one point we had a lease, but circumstances changed and my shoestring budget told me we couldn’t stay. I could contact my landlord, or wait until the money ran out and I didn’t have cash for a truck. The landlord released us from the lease without penalty. I used to help with apartment clean-outs. The filth that accumulates when you do not have electricity (and sometimes running water) is expensive for a landlord to pay someone to clean, they would much rather you move your stuff out and sweep up the place. Another time the house was foreclosed on and the new owners kicked us out despite our lease. We cooperated with them (without being pushovers, know your rights) as much as practical, and still got a good reference despite contesting eviction in court. We always paid our rent on time and worked with them, so I still had a decent reference when applying for the next place.

Anticipate an increase in costs, or something you won’t have to pay. We are on a plan for our electric bill that averages out our use and that’s our monthly payment. But if we find a place with electric included we have to pay the entire balance, which is $500. I am using almost all reusable/cloth items, so I have to buy lots of paper products, diapers, and wipes, since I won’t be able to wash the cloth products if we’re homeless. I will have to pay to go to the Laundromat, too. Also, when you move for the first month you should double your food budget to replace pantry items and perishables, and eat more expensive but quicker food as you unpack your kitchen equipment. I make my own cleaners, laundry and dishwasher detergent, and I know that I need to have the ingredients on hand to make a final batch before I pack it up, or budget the money to buy premade stuff when we need it. When staying in a transitional shelter we actually had less money than renting. We were required to save a portion of our income, plus storage, plus the laundromat, plus all those little expenses I had eliminated that I didn’t have my stuff to work around buying…

Next: Moving Truck Budgetness

Dire Straits MovingMake a Plan, StanMoving Truck BudgetnessPreparationComputery PreparednessBinder of DoomOrganize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff UpWhat Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?Needful Things for PackingWhere Do I Get Boxes?How To PackMoving TipsMoving Day/Stuffing all the StuffMoving with Pets (tons of cats for me)Moving with KidsHow Do I DO Schtuff with No Home?How Do I Eat with No Home?Meal Plan for Dire StraitsI Moved and Now I Don’t Have Anywhere to SitNeed Help?

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Dire Straits Moving: Tips for Relocating in a Not-So-Pretty Situation – Homelessness and Other Hard Times Moves

 

Dire Straits Moving: Tips for Relocating in a Not-So-Pretty Situation – Homelessness and Other Hard Times Moves

This article is intended to help those of us who are faced with finding a new place to live, when we are not prepared for that to happen. It is full of moving tips for anybody, but especially for those of us in a bad moving situation. Been there, done that. Blech.

Maybe your savings got exploded
Maybe your income evaporated
Maybe you were evicted
Maybe you were foreclosed on
Maybe your housing situation suddenly became untenable

I have now moved over a dozen times (18 but who’s counting), many of them with a less-than-rosy outlook. My suggestions and tips may help you navigate this situation more smoothly. If an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, then this article is about a gallon of preparedness to help you make the best choices for you.

There is only one rule (besides the Golden Rule):
Just do your best! That’s all you can do, and all anyone can ask of you.

If you know you have done your best, then you can be happy even in the worst of situations and satisfied that you made the best choices.

I hope this series makes you feel better about a bad situation.

A note on the pesky term, “homeless.”
Who is homeless? What exactly does that mean? I used to think homeless meant nowhere to live at all, living under a bridge in a box somewhere. I have come to find that there are many layers to being homeless, from having a box you can call home, to living in your car, to couch surfing, or staying in a shelter.
Being homeless means you do not have a home of your own, not necessarily that you are out in the cold. There is less stability and less comfort, but the situation can be dealt with and overcome.

*If you want to help, volunteer at or donate to your local food bank or transitional housing shelter http://www.volunteermatch.org/, or do more here:
Feeding America http://www.feedingamerica.org/
National Alliance to End Homelessness http://www.endhomelessness.org/

Next: Make a Plan, Stan

Dire Straits MovingMake a Plan, StanMoving Truck BudgetnessPreparationComputery PreparednessBinder of DoomOrganize, Sort, Declutter, and Otherwise Blow Your Stuff UpWhat Do I Do With All This Junk I Don’t Want?Needful Things for PackingWhere Do I Get Boxes?How To PackMoving TipsMoving Day/Stuffing all the StuffMoving with Pets (tons of cats for me)Moving with KidsHow Do I DO Schtuff with No Home?How Do I Eat with No Home?Meal Plan for Dire StraitsI Moved and Now I Don’t Have Anywhere to SitNeed Help?

We hope you enjoyed our Dire Straits Moving: Tips for Relocating in a Not-So-Pretty Situation – Homelessness and Other Hard Times Moves post