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Reflecting On Life As I Prepare To Move

I’m late getting my post written today. I was attempting to transfer all my photos from the old laptop to the new laptop and ran into problems.

It’s taken me hours and hours and finally calling Cox Tech Support to straighten the problem out.

I should have done that from the get-go and not gotten myself into such a dither over it.

A small santa with a tabletop Christmas tree and a red candle

Remote Computer Technician:

On another note, it’s so interesting to talk to someone you’ll never meet and your time conversing is brief.

But you learn so much about this anonymous person who is working on your computer remotely. Someone who simply answered your call because you were next in line to be helped.

I think of it as one of life’s little gifts. And getting the photos transferred on Windows 11 was a pain. But now it’s done. I talked to a guy who lives who knows where. who helped me and now I can proceed with my day.

Doing whatever it is I’ll end up doing.

My apartment kitchen with the doors removed showing my red and white dinnerware

Photos Of My Red & White Kitchen:

My gift to you today is random photos of my red and white kitchen. Oh, how I hope I can recreate my kitchen in the new place.

I recall when I first took the cabinet doors off here. The inside had to be painted. So I painted it. Hard to imagine that an apartment has been around for over 50 years and certain parts of it have never been painted.

Anyway, my kitchen evolved and I love the red and white. I don’t know if I can take the cabinet doors off there. And I don’t even know what color the cabinets are. But in a month I shall see it.

And then I can make my plan for it.

A place setting in red and white on my table

Constantly Thinking & Mentally Planning:

I lay awake at night and think about these rooms, so far unfamiliar to me, that I will inject myself into.

I’m so curious about how this will play out. And I shall share it with you all along the way.

You know I don’t “do Christmas.”

It’s funny, Kendra spent a few hours at her sister’s yesterday doing the whole family thing. I talked to her a bit later and she said she was going crazy just sitting there making small talk.

I don’t do small talk well. And she’s a master at it. But she said she felt like she was wasting time when she could be over at her house working on the walls.

And so that’s what she did. Said she had to go and work on her house. I told her she was becoming more like me every day.

A photo of my open cabinets and all my red and white inside

Holidays Should Be Fun:

I told her that holidays should be what you want them to be. Not what is simply conventional and what everyone else seems to be doing. I haven’t really followed traditions.

Maybe because I wasn’t raised with traditions. Maybe because I’m a bit unconventional to begin with. Or maybe because I just get bored making small talk.

So Kendra ended up doing what she loves, which is working on a house to turn it into a home.

I don’t know when she’s going to get to move in. It probably won’t be January like with me. She hasn’t even put her current house on the market yet.

COVID & The Supply Chain Problem:

With COVID it’s hard to get building supplies. She can’t get her windows until April, and she’s had them ordered for several months already.

It takes longer to get inspections.

I believe she moved a gas line and other things that she had to get the go-ahead approved for.

She’s added more square footage onto the garage to get her Tahoe inside and all her electrical tools.

A photo of some of the transfer ware I've collected in red and white

She’s pretty much wiped out the inside of the house and reconstructed it. All her usual stuff.

If she doesn’t like a wall and can do something about it, she tears it down. Nothing much stops her when she gets a design in her head. And then if she decides she doesn’t like it, she rebuilds the wall.

Doing Away With Nonsensical Objects:

I’ve been cleaning out things I haven’t cleaned out in ages.

For instance, my file cabinet.

I’ve just been tossing things in no particular order into it and now I’m finding instruction booklets for things I haven’t had in years!

More red and white transfer ware in my open cabinets

It took me two giant trash bags to do away with stuff I no longer needed. And it’s hard to believe it came out of a file cabinet with only 2 drawers.

I found even more photos to go through. And I thought I had that chore completed and photos sent away with my daughters for safekeeping.

Moving means revisiting every aspect of your life. Bit and pieces of you go into cardboard boxes and disappear for a time.

No telling what all I’ll find as I go through things. Maybe objects I have been searching for for years will reveal themselves.

Little pieces of my life that I will just have to pack away again.

So Merry Christmas and enjoy whatever you’re doing. And I hope it’s something you really want to be doing and not what everyone else wants you to do.

Life is short. Be the master of your own fate.

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I'm Brenda, creator of Cozy Little House. I live with my cat, Ivy, who keeps me laughing. I graduated from journalism school with a degree in professional writing and won awards for feature writing. I practice gratitude and enjoy my solitude. The glass is always half-full.

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42 Comments

  1. Merry Christmas, Brenda! I always enjoy your red and white kitchen photos. No doubt you’ll figure out a way to recreate, or come up with a whole new plan that makes you even happier. I know exactly how you feel about laying awake at night thinking about your new place. I did that when we bought an apartment in Florida. We were able to see it, but because it was so far away, it was months until I saw it again once we owned it. It’s both fun, and stressful, isn’t it?

  2. Merry Christmas a day late:)
    I moved last year, it’s amazing what we find!
    Gracie and Ivy remind me of my daughters cats, Bella, who was a solo for many years and Shea who came last January at 8 weeks, they’ve come to peaceful coexistence with an occasional spat,Shea definitely can hold her own with her though.
    You must be getting excited about the move, don’t overdo!

  3. Merry Christmas, Brenda! It sounds like you had a nice day. My family was here with all the grandkids. It was noisy and absolutely wonderful! It was a perfect day!

  4. I use a completely separate hard drive from Seagate for photos and anything important, so it’s not saved on my computer. You just plug it in and the new computer will see it all. No transferring!!! It’s so worth it.
    And, I’m like you and your daughter. I despise small talk too. I’m not a people person at all. I find it amazing how people can talk about absolutely nothing for hours on end. It’s incredibly draining and what one does in hours, one can do in less than an hour. I’m done, I’m gone, IF I even go. 🙂 Merry Christmas, Brenda!

  5. Merry Christmas and hope your 2022, will be lovely in your new home. Moving is exciting but will wear one out..for sure. So take care and do not let it run you down.. Can’t wait to see how your new home will look and your red is always cheerful decor. The kitties will have new territory to explore.. :0) ..Take care and Happy New Year to you and to all. May our World be blessed with good health and better future times.

  6. Merry Christmas Brenda and babies. We had a busy day with family and great food..now back home cuddled on the couch with our dogs Munchkin and Buttons..enjoying the twinkling lights and the fire..bless you and yours this Christmas night❤

    1. I’m sitting here with my little tabletop tree lit up. No ornaments. Trying to decide when to take it down. There’s SO much to do!

  7. I’m confident that in your new home, you will re-establish favorite areas of your current home. We did that as my mom aged and moved from our family home to a cottage in a retirement community to a 1-room studio apartment in assisted living. It’s totally possible.

    P.S. I don’t so small talk well either. It’s why I don’t like to talk on the phone. Send me a text or an email any day!

    1. Happy holidays, dear cousin who I haven’t laid eyes on since…oh, about 45 years ago? That’s one good thing about Facebook. I don’t do much of anything with any social media besides Pinterest because it drives a ton of traffic to my blog, thus more income. Maybe we’ll see one another one of these days.

  8. Brenda, I’ve so enjoyed looking at your photos of your red and white dishes. They look so festive. I have never been especially drawn to red to decorate with but your vignettes are very appealing, especially on Christmas.

    My Christmas has been spent mostly in bed as I am still recovering from COVID which I contracted just after Thanksgiving. Fortunately I haven’t had a life-threatening case but it’s taking me a long time to fully get back on my feet. So your post has been a little bright spot in my day. Thanks also for the photos of your little grandson. What a cutie. Two is such a magical age.

  10. Brenda, Merry Christmas! I could not agree with you more, your life is your life, we only get one, it is too short to live it doing things we do not like or want to do.

    Looking forward to your new place, I think I am as excited as you!

  11. Thinking of your nice dishes you have makes me think a small narrow vintage looking hutch would be so nice for you to decorate with your various finds. You always make items look so cool together and your dishes would sparkle in those shelves if it were a shabby color white. I have no doubt you will come up with some original solutions in your new kitchen.
    The older I have gotten has shown me I just don’t want to talk and converse just for the sake of opening my mouth. I want meaningful caring friends and family to talk to me, ask questions, speak intelligently and not just make small talk. So I understand how you finally say to yourself is this really where I want to be when I would rather be doing something else.
    I thought of you the other night cause I saw a tv commercial for book of the month club. A mother and daughter were sharing books.
    Blessings for good health and good fortune to all in the new year.

  12. Brenda, can’t someone in the front office tell you what color your cabinets are going to be? And whether you have a fireplace or not? You could let them know that it would help you with packing so you would know what you want to keep for decorations.

    1. Pretty sure it has a fireplace. I called and asked about the cabinet color, but by the time I talked to them about it weeks later, they’d already forgotten. And someone is still living there till January 11.

  13. Merry Christmas 🎅 🎄 Brenda, Ivy & Gracie!!!
    Did everyone enjoy a holiday meal? We repeated our Thanksgiving feast!! Very delicious!😋
    I love ❤ your red & white kitchen. All the very cute dishes & nick-knacks ,,,,,, very colorful & fun!!
    Best of everything to you Brenda & your family!! Looking forward to the big move next year !!!

  14. Merry Christmas to you too! I’m still enjoying your red polka dot plates/bowls!

    I put instruction manuals (for appliances, electronics, etc) along with registration and receipts in a three ring binder. Just a helpful hint.

    1. I think of you sometimes and wonder where you put them. I’m down to one set of white plates finally. And for now that’s what I want.

  17. We are doing our usual Saturday thing…I get a baguette, stuff with some good lunchmeat, cheese and today some green onions sliced thin…warm (wrapped up) in oven for half hour…we let it cool a bit and enjoy…tis our treat we usually have on Saturdays. Quick, yummy, and we love it. I think keeping things just per usual works well for us in this stage of life. We have no where to go anyway. Especially now with COVID controlling the world. I am looking forward to seeing all your ideas in your new place as well as what your daughter ends up with in the house she is preparing for herself!!

  19. Good to be going through stuff before you leave. Amazing how we accumulate in a short time. We moved here 12 years ago and went through lots of stuff then. Its time to do a serious re-visit which will keep me busy in January a month I don’t like. Its very cold here in January so I tend to stay home, but then with covid I stay home anyway!
    Merry Christmas Brenda. Quiet here with my husband, our son and our sweet little dog Gracie. The house is filled with turkey smells which I love.

      1. Our Gracie is now 8 years old – hard to believe as time with her has gone by so quickly. She is sweet and very entertaining!

  22. I can’t wait to see what you do with your new place. A month from today you get to move, right? Do you at least know the floor plan? Whatever you do it will be warm and cozy. Merry Christmas dear🎄

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