Packing for moving (plus bats)

We are discovering that packing for moving is an entirely different process than packing for short trips (i.e. less than 1 month). For instance, I've never taken measuring cups, a set of kitchen knives or a 3 day supply of dog food during any of my other adventures. Nor have I *ever* taken 5 big duffels plus 2 carry-ons. I feel like an old-time immigrant with my steamer trunks full of hope. In fact, that's what I am - an immigrant. Expatriate is the hoity euphemism you normally hear. But the fact remains, I am immigrating to Germany - from whence my people came, mind you. I imagine that doesn't happen a whole lot. Not 120 years later, anyway.

David and I spent most of the afternoon carefully packing and weighing our big crazy duffel bags. We have these giant ziplocs that we used last summer during the "Great Boston Bed Bug Fiasco of 2006" to sanitize and store our clothes. I think they are called Space Bags. Anyway, you can pack them nearly full and then attach a vacuum cleaner to the little gasket thingy and suck out all the air. It makes the whole package about 1/3 the size and it feels like a brick. A brick of clothes. You could probably wallop somebody with one of these filled and decompressed bags and inflict some serious damage. I'll keep that in mind. We are living in the city, after all. The end result is that we managed to get 10 lbs. of shit into a 5 lb. bag - quite literally. It's amazing.

Anyway, we are nearly packed and our "papers appear to be in order." I will totally lose it if one of the German immigration officials says any derivative of that statement. It sounds very Cold War and very official and very very funny.

Ok, and the last bit in this installment is about the interesting wildlife that has made itself known at 156. We have been here since Thursday and we have had to remove 2 (count them 2) bats from the house. And I'm not talking Louisville Sluggers, here. I'm talking about flying rodent vectors. The second of the pair David caught with a fishing net. Unfortunately, the bat got all caught up in the net and it took a significant amount of effort to extricate the screeching, tiny beast from his nylon prison (at the cost of the net, mind you). It was quite an even to watch a bat move from the dining room to the living rooms to the dining room to the kitchen to the...you get the idea. All while the dogs looked around totally puzzled.

I'll post one more installment before we "jump across the pond" - so stay tuned.