Tag: adventures in moving

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Adventures in Moving – Being Safe

In these uncertain times, I’m making this announcement in the Adventures in Moving: I’m being safe, and delaying my move date.

For folks who are out of the loop, I planned on moving because the house I’m renting got sold. Thankfully, mom (who owned the house before) sold it to my sister. Because of that, the time table to move is more relaxed.

However, it is NOT relaxed for my sister’s current roommate. Currently, he’s renting an apartment from a preeeety shady landlord. This landlord has been demanding consistent rent payments and will kick out anyone whose lease runs out if the renter does not renew. Even during these uncertain times.

And what do you know? This roommate’s lease runs out in the beginning of June.

He also has a dog. An elderly, pain in the ass dog, whom both of my cats HATE. And he also has a kitten.

The house I’m in is small – so fitting 3 people under the roof is a challenge. Add an extra dog and cat, and that becomes my sister, the roommate, me, four cats, and two dogs (because my sister has a dog, too) under one dinky roof.

So I DO intend to move before June starts.

However, with coronavirus still being A THING, I’ve heard through the grapevine that Ohio intends to open the state back up around May 1.

I am of the opinion that this is WAY TOO DAMN SOON.

(Personally, I prefer the relief effort ViHart outlines in her latest video. Go check it out if you haven’t seen it yet.)

So I’m going to be safe.

Right now, the plan is to move out of my current home between May 15 and May 31. There are contingency plans if the move has to be delayed. But this is the current plan.

Where am I moving to? Well, it’s looking like the Toledo area – but Columbus is still an option.

That’s where things are at for now. As things change, I’ll keep you posted.

Thank you for reading!

You. Are. Awesome.

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Adventures in Moving – Cleaning Out the Junk

I’m used to my life and belongings fitting inside one car. From 2012 to 2014, I moved 4 times, and each time, no U-haul was necessary. But now, in this latest Adventure in Moving, I need to clean out the junk.

Right now, I live in a house. It’s a small house built to be a father-in-law suite for my neighbor, but still a house. This next move will be into a new apartment. I’ll be losing at least 300 square feet, if not more. So I can’t keep everything.

So how am I picking what stays and what goes?

Well, I’m sorting my things by category.

I’ve already cleaned out my closet of everything I no longer wear. I also got rid of the things that don’t fit me. And then I took those to the local YWCA.

Next came the books. That category was harder for me. Working as a comic artist, I get a surprising amount of books from comic conventions and meeting with other creators. I determined that the best I can do is keep my book collection to 4 and a half shelves. (I’m brainstorming how to shrink it down even more than that, though). I got rid of the books I knew I could get at the library easily. I also got rid of books that I considered “aspirational,” as in “one day I’ll read these and become a better person!”

Nope. Got rid of those books. I’m only keeping the books that bring me joy.

Then I cleared out paperwork. Thankfully, with credit cards, student loans, and some other documents having online statements and backups, that made it easier to clear out papers.

CDs and DVDs? I thought I would have trouble with that. But I think all the sorting I’ve done before made sorting these discs WAY easier. I condensed a lot of them into a CD holder and got rid of the cases…responsibly. Always recycle.

That’s the secret about cleaning out your space: start with the easy-to-clear stuff.

With every category you clear, you level up just a little bit more, and it becomes easier to get rid of the things that no longer make you happy or have any use.

The next category to tackle is the bathroom stuff, which should be easy. The plan is that by the time I get to the work- and/or hobby-related stuff I have, I’ll have leveled up my sorting to the point that this will be easy.

Will I be able to fit all of my things into my SUV when I’m done? Probably not. I’ll be taking some bulky furniture with me, like my bed and drafting table, as well as my convention gear.

Will I be able to fit my stuff into a smaller U-haul? That’s the hope. And that’s why I’m going to keep sorting and paring down everything.

What am I doing with the stuff I’m getting rid of? Well, I’m donating it to the local YWCA.

The YWCA has seen an uptick in women and children moving into their location. As it turns out, an economic crisis worsens domestic abuse, making people more likely to seek shelter. At the YWCA, the women and children can recover in peace, but they always need things, like socks, clothes in general, and bathroom supplies. After all, these ladies often only arrive with the clothes on their back and nothing else.

If you’re on a tidying journey of your own, I encourage you to look up a shelter local to you and donate your things to them. Trust me – they will use it. And they will be happy and grateful that you helped.

That’s all for now. Thank you for reading!

You. Are. Awesome.

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Adventures In Moving: The Cats Edition

two pet cats, scarlet the black cat and bree bree the gray cat sitting on my lap

In this week’s installment of Adventures in Moving, I’ll be talking about…cats.

I have 2 cats, Scarlet and Bree Bree. Both will be 14 years old in May (next month!). In the times they have been in my family, they’ve moved 4 times.

The first move happened when they were kittens, going from my neighbor’s house to ours.

Second, from our old family home to our new home.

Third, when they lived with my younger sister for a while.

And fourth, when they moved back into my home.

When I DO finally get an apartment and move, that will be their fifth move in their life.

Like I mentioned before, they’re reaching 14 years old. They are, by all accounts, cranky old ladies. I’m not sure how well they will handle this next move, especially since this one will be across the state.

I WILL say – Scarlet has surprised me. I had to take her to see the vet last week, which meant putting her in a carrier. For the first time in nearly 4 years.

She handled it better than I expected.

Of course she trembled. But I gave her treats and pets. And she didn’t hiss or growl while in the carrier.

(Reacting to the vet is a different story).

This response to the carrier has me hopeful, though. Hopeful that the move will be easier than anticipated. I expected a lot of growling and hissing and I didn’t get that from Scarlet.

Bree Bree, on the other hand…

Well, I have to take her to the vet as well, so we’ll see how THAT goes.

That’s all for now. Thank you for reading!

You. Are. Awesome.

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More Blog Posts Incoming

image of a desk covered in papers, pens and pencils, an x-acto knife, a sketchbook, and a mug full of tea

Yus, there are more blog posts coming to the site during the month of April.

Why? Because I have a lot to write about, surprisingly.

There’s a handful of blog posts series coming this month, including:

  • Adventures in Moving: updates on my moving situation, as I’m looking to move house this summer.
  • Writing for Comics 101: pro-tips on how aspiring comics makers can write better comics.
  • Freelance Lifestyle: how to live well on a budget, land and fulfill gigs, and maximize your energy and focus.

I’ll also be continuing my Throwback Thursday art posts on (you guessed it) Thursdays. I like this trend and I’m going to maintain it.

Adventures in Moving will start updating on Tuesdays.

Freelance Lifestyle will update on Wednesdays and will run for 4 weeks.

Writing for Comics 101 will updates on Fridays, starting on April 17, and will run for 4 weeks.

The short-run blog post series might continue if there’s enough demand for them. For now, we’re starting with this.

If there’s a topic on any of these posts that you would like me to cover, let me know in the comments!

That’s all for now. Thank you for reading!

You. Are. Awesome.

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Adventures in Moving: An Updates on Searching for an Apartment

Adventures in Moving is my latest blog post series, where I share updates on my search for a new place to live.

Today I’ll share what I’ve discovered so far, which is this:

SOME places are willing to make exceptions regarding pet policies. You just have to ask.

See, my potential roommate and I are totally ok with sharing a place. However, our rooming together would make us a 3 cat household. (She has 1, I have 2.)

Most places, I have discovered, have a 2 pet limit.

That said, some places are willing to make an exception, but you have to ask about it.

Also it may depend on other factors. Like:

  • is the landlord sitting on a lot of empty properties that need filled? Or are places scarce (as in, only 1 or 2 places are available for move-in)?
  • are the cats indoors exclusively? (Which, ours are).

I also suspect it depends on how good of a credit score you have, as well as your past renting history. I don’t know though – I haven’t had a credit report pulled on me yet while searching for a place.

Anyway, there’s at least 1 place in the Columbus, OH area that looks promising. But there are also a lot of places in Toledo that fit our budget better.

I haven’t toured the Toledo places…yet. But I will this weekend.

Yep, I’m out of town again. This time it’s not for a convention – it’s to visit friends and tour some potential apartments and houses.

Wish me luck, yo.

That’s all for now. Thank you for reading!

You. Are. Awesome.