I'm not dead but I am tired!

[leehljp]

I have missed this forum and all of you fellows and Ladies. 84 day until I leave Japan! I have these next two weeks with only a moderate work load, so I will be checking back in for a while. Mid October to mid November will be busy again, but after that - Coasting to December 20.

These past 4 months have seemed like a whole year - with all the traveling (mostly local within 100 miles or so), all of the meetings, training others to take our place, filling out forms, learning new forms, finding holes in supposedly secure web sites of personnel, helping people learn a new secure email system and personally rebelling at a new accounting system - and we just learned one (interim system) back in February! Had some minor disagreements with some IT folks that don't think anyone but them knew anything. Now when I find a security hole, or a solution to common problems, I send the reports to a friend in Africa and most people (of our IT folks) will listen to him.

We pack out - or rather have the packers come and pick our belongings up in mid November. We started packing back in August - agreeing to pack and inventory at least one box a day (at night, rather) each. Keeping with that agreement, we both stay up to 1 and 2 AM to get that done before bed. LOML and I have about 80 boxes packed already and another 20 or 30 to go. I just started taking tools apart yesterday - at LOML's insistence. Isn't it great when the wife initiates some things for the husband .) I hope we have enough space for everything. I just finished a two cubic foot box filled with pen blanks. And I have another box that needs to be weeded out.

I will break down my drill press, lathe, BT3000, 6 inch belt sander and Sears bandsaw. I started taking my router workstation apart and then realized after taking the 7 drawers out that it was going to take as much space apart - as it does when together, so I put the top back on and started stuffing it with router accessories.

Everything and every box is inventoried. We will have a container (roughly 1000 cubic feet) for our shipment.

Now for a couple of weeks of 8 hour days - hopefully. I will be looking on this forum to see what I missed - over the next few days.

[cabinetman]

We've missed you too Hank. Sounds like you have had a full plate. You mentioned all those boxes...do ya think 1000 cu. ft. will be enough? That's only a bit larger than 10'x12'x8½'?
.

[leehljp]

The inside dimensions of a shipping container are:
19'4" long
7'8" wide
7'10" high
1,172CuFt
47,900 max cargo weight.

We have that container dimensions in our living room/dinning room marked off with tape and are placing boxes within that. We have 1 CF Boxes, 2 CF boxes and 4 CF boxes.

Boxes will take about half the container. We chose to pack the boxes instead of them because they will usually put one small bowl in a huge box, if you know what I mean. For anything that is breakable, we usually double line a box and then double and triple wrap with bubble wrap. For our china and crystal, the boxes were triple lined and then each item wrapped like it was a little baby, but we did not put one item per box like packers like to do - so that they can charge for space in addition to weight!

I forgot to mention - I was able to order the shipping material from the shipper, so I have plenty of wrapping on hand. 3 large rolls of Bubble wrap, 1 large cardboard roll, 1 large foam roll, 120 boxes total, banding rolls and clips, and a bunch of tape and "Fragile" tape too. We are good to go!

[lrogers]

Is this a permanent move back home?

[chopnhack]

+1 what Larry said! That is a lot of effort, I envy you not. Good luck and welcome back

[jking]

It doesn't sound like fun, but, once you're back it will be easier to spoil the Grandkids.

[BerniePA]

My Sympathies to you. We just packed up and moved from PA back to AZ. It took 2 1/2 weeks just to pack up the stuff in the shop!!

I had a uhaul truck '26 feet long, the biggest they have, and I towed my pickup behind it on a car carrier trailer. We JUST had enough room for all and that was with a few items in the cab of the pickup and my workbench in the bed of the pickup. You are not mentioning furniture, so if it is just belongings, you may be alright for space.

BTW, that is my LAST cross country move and drive, at least with a truck and trailer rig like that -- I'm getting to old for that. I measured it at 75 ft from the front bumper of the U haul to the read bumper of my pickup. Sometime ask me how I managed to get the rig stuck in a Subway (the sandwich shop, not a transportation system)!!!!

Lottsa luck to ya -- you're gonna need it -- I speak from experience!!!

P.S. When we moved from AZ TO PA, we did the same thing in reverse!!! But I was five years younger and it didn't seem so bad. Between 62 and 67 -- things change A LOT!!!!

[BerniePA]

I forgot -- the volume of the truck was 1611 Cu. Ft.

I sincerely hope you have enough room.

[leehljp]

Is this a permanent move back home?

Yes it is. From my return date, I will have just over a year's work back in the States - and I will turn 65 just 3 weeks before my official retirement from my organization. I can live with the 65 retirement date instead of the supposedly 66. However, I have had two offers already for work beyond that in which I am considering.

At least I will get to spend some time with grandkids.

[leehljp]

I forgot -- the volume of the truck was 1611 Cu. Ft.

I sincerely hope you have enough room.

Bernie,

I hear you! I have a house back in the States and it is already furnished. So, we don't need to take everything back.

At our stateside home, we have a "little house" of about 450 square feet behind the big house in which we will store much of what we take back. Some of our items over here, we are getting rid of - electronics that run on 100V only, sofa sleeper, mattresses, one bed, kitchen table and chair set, some lamps and night stands.

My tools will take up about 15% space-wise, the rest will be furniture and boxes , and much of that are things that I have made over the years. Our girls have already claimed them, so I can't leave those things behind! About 1/2 of the boxes have books, toys and memorabilia of our girls time over here.

It used to be that international turnover in the major cities was a constant, so getting rid of nice furniture and good electronics was easy and a good way to make a little spending money too. However, since the economy went south a couple of years ago and since the yen dollar has really changed, there are not many foreigners moving in - who used to buy American sized appliances or furniture from those that are moving out. And Japanese don't like "used" things very much. Garage sales would have to increase in cultural value in order to be considered a joke. One American friend had a garage sale a couple of months ago and one Japanese person showed up! He advertised it well too.

[BerniePA]

I was fortunate in the way of garage sales.

In our old neighborhood, they have a giant garage sale throughout the entire development, and this year it just happened to be about 3 weeks before we moved. My one neighbor across the street really made out this year. I "gave" him all the stuff I had left over that he wanted. I did not want to cart it across country again!!!

[Norm in Fujino]

The inside dimensions of a shipping container are:
19'4" long
7'8" wide
7'10" high
1,172CuFt
47,900 max cargo weight.

We have that container dimensions in our living room/dinning room marked off with tape and are placing boxes within that. We have 1 CF Boxes, 2 CF boxes and 4 CF boxes.

Boxes will take about half the container. We chose to pack the boxes instead of them because they will usually put one small bowl in a huge box, if you know what I mean. For anything that is breakable, we usually double line a box and then double and triple wrap with bubble wrap. For our china and crystal, the boxes were triple lined and then each item wrapped like it was a little baby, but we did not put one item per box like packers like to do - so that they can charge for space in addition to weight!

Good to see you back, Hank. Where will you be heading when you go back?
As for the container biz, I sympathize. I just stuffed a 20' container with Hardieplank, oak flooring, PT deck wood and tools back in May so I know the drill. I passed it through Yokohama customs by myself and am now working on residing our house.

[leehljp]

Good to see you back, Hank. Where will you be heading when you go back?
As for the container biz, I sympathize. I just stuffed a 20' container with Hardieplank, oak flooring, PT deck wood and tools back in May so I know the drill. I passed it through Yokohama customs by myself and am now working on residing our house.

Looks like you have a job to do! I don't envy you, but I will probably be doing something similar next summer with our house in NW Mississippi - about 30 miles south of Memphis, TN.

The first thing I will do is take up carpet in the LR & DR and re-finish the oak floors (hopefully). If they are not in good enough shape, I will re-floor the two rooms. THEN expand my workshop from 12' X 16' to 18' by 16' (and later 22' by 16'). I like being able to find my hand tools and being able to use floor machines without having to move them around just to get to them.

By the way, my freight will be picked up here in Toyota (mid Nov.) and shipped to Yokohama where it will be put into the container there. Then ship out from there to SF or LA. It will stay in the container and go via train to Memphis, at least I have been told. It will ship out (early Dec) about two weeks before we leave and we should get it in mid January.

[chopnhack]

Hank, when the container gets to your home in the states, will they roll it off for you to easily unpack or will it stay on the trailer? Stupid question I guess, but with all the heavy tools, it had me wondering.

[leehljp]

Hank, when the container gets to your home in the states, will they roll it off for you to easily unpack or will it stay on the trailer? Stupid question I guess, but with all the heavy tools, it had me wondering.

Are you offering to help? Honestly, I do not know how that will be done. We have gone through quite a bit of financial changes and cost cutting adjustments in the past year.

Our organization has always dealt with Armstrong Moving and Shipping for those of us from the Memphis area. Our org. deals with different shipping companies in different locations. If I remember correctly, the delivery company will call and ask what is needed. In the case of going back to the States for retirement, I think they deliver and roll it/carry the individual items to where we want it (inside the house or storage), at least I hope so. Otherwise a bad back will take away from our final years work in the States.

It is my guessing opinion that the container will stay on the trailer.