Big Move to Grad School: Exciting or Depressing to Move Long Distances?

[switch]

I had to move a really long distance once in the last five years, and the idea of making a second really long distance move to a different part of the country is seriously depressing me.

1. I hate packing and unpacking boxes.

2. The last move some fragile furniture and art got broken beyond repair.

3. I had to drive for 3 days to transport my car. WITH my dog in the back seat. UHHHHHHHHHHHHH........................... Do you know what it's like driving cross country during July and August???????

4. I was completely lost in my new city for weeks.

5. It was expensive and now I get to repeat the expense a second time.

Is anything positive about moving? Any horror stories? Any inspiring stories? Thanks...............

[Normal]

I'm from DC but did 3 years of undergrad in Phoenix. I drove by myself in August and May back and forth to school (5 day drive) and to this day I love the drive. Your only responsibilities for those days are to get from point A to point B. Very relaxing. In regards to transporting goods, I just always pick up dirt cheap furniture on Craigslist so I can just sell or donate it before I drive so I'm not towing a trailer or anything, but my SUV is always stuffed to the brim with boxes and some tables. The boxing up and moving in and out is stressful, but I find it motivates me to have less crap in my life, which is nice. By the way, if you're getting lost, I really recommend a GPS. They can run pretty cheap now and are definitely worth every penny, especially long distance traveling.

For the dog, they have some pheromone sprays that remind animals of their mothers or littermates which always seemed to keep my dog calm, although she wasn't a bad traveler anyway. She just slept in her crate most of the time (the crate is important because it protects the animals in case of an accident).

Anyway, I wouldn't sweat it. Packing sucks and is stressful but think of the rest of it as an adventure.

I had to move a really long distance once in the last five years, and the idea of making a second really long distance move to a different part of the country is seriously depressing me.

1. I hate packing and unpacking boxes.

2. The last move some fragile furniture and art got broken beyond repair.

3. I had to drive for 3 days to transport my car. WITH my dog in the back seat. UHHHHHHHHHHHHH........................... Do you know what it's like driving cross country during July and August???????

4. I was completely lost in my new city for weeks.

5. It was expensive and now I get to repeat the expense a second time.

Is anything positive about moving? Any horror stories? Any inspiring stories? Thanks...............

[ksin11]

Personally I'm really excited, probably because I haven't made such a far drive before, Sacramento to st louis, and plus I love driving. I've moved so many times growing up that packing is something im used to, though I really wont have much to bring. Plus I've been looking into getting a gps as I have a habit of missing turns a lot.

[hejduk]

KY to CO, and I'm married, so we have a ton of sh!t. Gotta move two cars, as well as a full apartment. No getting rid of stuff here!

A new place = new opportunities. It's a lil' more stressful when you're not doing it by yourself (as I'm quite the independent person), but experiencing it with my spouse will be awesome. Do it and don't look back!

[wtncffts]

I guess I'm an austere person, because I don't share any of these problems. When I moved from home across the country (Canada) for my MA, I took a couple suitcases: clothes, books, that's it. I plan on doing the same thing this time. Come to think of it, it's probably more because I still have a room in my parents' house where most of my things are, though most of it is just accumulated crap. I think I could survive with only a few sets of clothes and my laptop/ipad. What else would I need? The only moving expense for me is the plane ticket.

[michpc]

I am dreading my move...

- money...great just what I need to be spending!

- I despise packing and unpacking

- The weekend my lease is up here and I therefore need to be moving is the same weekend I want to be in Upstate NY with friends....I might try to do the PODS thing if it's not insanely horribly expensive as this would allow me to accomplish both moving and being in a different state than either where I am now or where I'm moving to at the same time, haha.

I have enjoyed driving a 16 foot moving truck in the past...you feel pretty badass when you can maneuver it down narrow one way streets and into parking spaces to get it off the road. I wouldn't mind driving one again, but I hope the PODS work out.

I do love decorating, so I always enjoy that about new places.

[hejduk]

Depending on where you're going, I'd look at Uhaul, Pods, or Broadway Express.

Pods: They drop off the container, and you fill it. They drop it offer wherever, and you unpack it.

Uhaul: no explanation here.

Broadway Express (or ABF): driver shows up to door, and you pack stuff within X amount of hours. You have driver's cell phone and can contact driver anytime along the drive. You fly to wherever you are moving, driver shows up, and you unpack.

I'm going the Broadway Express route, as I've got "old man back" (or so the wife calls it), and I"m sure as hell not moving cross-country in a Uhaul. Sure it's expensive, but I'm married, and will be there 4 years, so gotta do what fits best.

I think that is the main key for each individual: do what fits your specific situation best.

[LJK]

I'm excited to move across country! I would be moving out of my house regardless (one of my roommates is getting married and moving in with her fiance, another is graduating, the last is moving in with her boyfriend closer to his work) so I would have to do the packing/unpacking thing whether I was moving in town or across country. One of my best friends is in need of a major vacation so I'm picking her up on the way and we will embrace some of the ridiculous that is Americana road-trip attractions. It should be a fun adventure! She will just fly back to her city. If you can find ways to make the experience fun rather than just stressful, I think it will be healthier for you all around.

[CSC]

I have no car or furniture so moving is just getting on a plane with my computer and a bag of clothes. But I was just thinking how much I would love the excuse to make the drive from California to Florida.

[michpc]

I have no car or furniture so moving is just getting on a plane with my computer and a bag of clothes. But I was just thinking how much I would love the excuse to make the drive from California to Florida.

I envy you...I've been out of school for 5 years and had originally planned on staying around here back when I started buying furniture. There's no way I could recoup even close to what I've spent on Craigslist, and I wouldn't be able to afford a new couch if I sold mine, so I'm kinda stuck with this behemoth that dictates where I can live based on whether or not we can get it in the place...it had to be hauled over and then back off the second floor porch at my last apartment. Lesson to learn: make sure you read how big your couch is on the label BEFORE you sign the final sale clearance item receipt, because they all look the same size in a big furniture store. Now I'm stuck with an 8 foot long couch.

[Behavioral]

Minimal furniture here, but I'm trying to figure out whether I'm driving or flying from LA to Chicago in the summer. It'd be nice to brave out the historic Route 66, but it doesn't sound as awesome when I'd be making the trip alone!

[LadyinWaiting]

Personally, I'm excited to move, but I've lived on 3 continents in the past 4 years so I don't have much in the way of furniture/housewares. Certain parts of moving are definitely a pain in the ass (or costly), but I'd try to think of the hassle as part of the big investment you're making in your future by furthering your education.

Do you have a friend who can accompany you at least part of the way? Long distance trips can be a lot more fun and manageable when you have company.

[runonsentence]

Moving definitely can be fun! I had some culture shock after moving about 10 hours west of where I grew up, but I'm still so so glad I did it.

I've had friends use the PODS and LOVE them; I'd definitely recommend looking into them.

Trucks: my own recommendation would be to use Penske (who keeps their trucks really well maintained—anything above a certain number of years on the fleet gets retired) or Budget, which I used for my last move and was very pleased with.

I know we're all poor, but avoid U-Haul, if possible. A number of news stories have come out in recent years (LA Times and in Canada) about how unsafe their vehicles are: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U-Haul#Safety_issues http://www.mymoneyblog.com/u-haul-vs-penske-moving-truck-rentals-share-your-story.html Personally, I wouldn't want to drive one of those things cross-country.

[tew]

I do hate the packing and unpacking, but I otherwise enjoy moving. This will be my biggest move yet, and I'm on the whole very much looking forward to it. Don't have that much stuff, and will just put some into storage at my parents' place. I'll be shipping a few boxes directly, in addition to taking stuff in the car (in case you notice my location: for complicated reasons I have a car and some stuff in California), and planning on about 10 days from coast to coast. That gives me enough time to stop by sights like Yellowstone, Mt. Rushmore, and others I've always wanted to see along the way

Edited April 13, 2011 by tew

[FingersCrossedX]

I am dreading my move...

- money...great just what I need to be spending!

- I despise packing and unpacking

- The weekend my lease is up here and I therefore need to be moving is the same weekend I want to be in Upstate NY with friends....I might try to do the PODS thing if it's not insanely horribly expensive as this would allow me to accomplish both moving and being in a different state than either where I am now or where I'm moving to at the same time, haha.

I have enjoyed driving a 16 foot moving truck in the past...you feel pretty badass when you can maneuver it down narrow one way streets and into parking spaces to get it off the road. I wouldn't mind driving one again, but I hope the PODS work out.

I do love decorating, so I always enjoy that about new places.

I've used PODS in the past. I had a move where my leases didn't match up by a few weeks so instead of packing, renting a truck, moving to a storage closet, renting a truck, reloading from storage closet and finally moving into my new place, I used the POD. It was a life saver in that situation. It was also to a different city in the same state so I didn't have to drive any distances in that terribly uncomfortable truck. The people that dropped off and picked up were very nice and were great about a few weird obstacles in placing my POD. (an overgrown, gnarly tree and a low hanging wire)

I too will be moving cross country. The only furniture I have here that I can't part with is my bed. My VERY comfortable bed. It weighs a ton and is queen sized. Not sure how I'll move it, but it will be done.

[theatrehippie]

Exciting! Overwhelming, but exciting. I'll be moving to the east coast, and this will be the first time that I have such a long drive. My boyfriend has moved back and forth between California and Texas a few times, so I'm definitely glad to have him around. I'm still trying to figure out exactly how I'll move my stuff, or if I'll even bother moving most of it. It depends on how big a place we get, and how much of our furniture will fit. I have a feeling it'll be PODS or just packing the SUV to the gills.

[LJK]

I posted this on another moving thread I think: I got quoted over $4000 for a PODs move from PA to CA, but got quoted considerably less than $2000 for a full service move with movers and a couple months of storage (one month comes in the base price). I would have thought it would be the opposite, but I really don't mind having someone else do the heavy lifting and not having to lure friends over to get my mahogany furniture down from the 3rd floor You all may at least want to look into 'real' movers in addition to the do-it-yourself options.

[switch]

I'm from DC but did 3 years of undergrad in Phoenix. I drove by myself in August and May back and forth to school (5 day drive) and to this day I love the drive. Your only responsibilities for those days are to get from point A to point B. Very relaxing. In regards to transporting goods, I just always pick up dirt cheap furniture on Craigslist so I can just sell or donate it before I drive so I'm not towing a trailer or anything, but my SUV is always stuffed to the brim with boxes and some tables. The boxing up and moving in and out is stressful, but I find it motivates me to have less crap in my life, which is nice. By the way, if you're getting lost, I really recommend a GPS. They can run pretty cheap now and are definitely worth every penny, especially long distance traveling.

For the dog, they have some pheromone sprays that remind animals of their mothers or littermates which always seemed to keep my dog calm, although she wasn't a bad traveler anyway. She just slept in her crate most of the time (the crate is important because it protects the animals in case of an accident).

Anyway, I wouldn't sweat it. Packing sucks and is stressful but think of the rest of it as an adventure.

I am past the Craigslist Furniture stage of my life so I've already invested in real furniture and real art. I can't just throw out a $2000 sofa and a $1000 painting.

[bgmlg]

On 4/13/2011 at 11:40 AM, LJK said:

I posted this on another moving thread I think: I got quoted over $4000 for a PODs move from PA to CA, but got quoted considerably less than $2000 for a full service move with movers and a couple months of storage (one month comes in the base price). I would have thought it would be the opposite, but I really don't mind having someone else do the heavy lifting and not having to lure friends over to get my mahogany furniture down from the 3rd floor You all may at least want to look into 'real' movers in addition to the do-it-yourself options.

LJK - I'm moving from PA to CA this fall! Who did you end up using for your move?

[nutella]

I haven't even figured out what program I'm going to attend in the Fall but I am absolutely dreading the move. Thinking about packing up my apartment and paying a moving company a few thousands gives me anxiety. I'll be adding a ton of miles on my leased car and driving with my SO and our two cats. When I moved from the east coast to Chicago a few years ago, driving by myself with one cat was hard enough. The sedative the vet gave my cat was supposed to work for the whole 13 hour drive. It stopped working around hour 8.. 

... On a positive note, I am excited about living in a new and less-expensive city where I can have a nicer apartment! 

[Need Coffee in an IV]

I'm not dreading the actual drive at all! My boyfriend and I drove from Virginia to Alaska so I'm sure we can handle any distance ha. Its just the packing/unpacking stuff thats going to suck.