Lesson 2 - Packing/Moving

I'm down to my last ten days at home and to say that I'm excited would be an understatement. I'll be moving from Prescott AZ to Costa Mesa CA. Fortunately I used to live in that area, and I've already had a 2 month test run earlier this year, so the change won't be big at all. The 'Test run' was supposed to be a permanent move, but a series of... events... caused me to come back to AZ prematurely, which is a whole other story for a whole other entry. Anyway, this time is for sure. There's adventures to be had in CA, but before every adventure is the packing.

I know, we all hate packing(unless you have some weird packing fetish), but packing isn't all that bad, and if you're like me you may not even need to pack that much for a permanent move. On my 'Test run' I packed way too much stuff, shoes I would never use, books I would never read, shirts and jeans I would never wear. I brought home boxes of things I never even looked at. The problem was I made it a really big deal. When I was packing I kept thinking, 'I might use this, I might want this.' Which as far as I'm concerned if I might use something I might as well leave it be. I brought my entire wardrobe even though I only wear a few outfits from it(I brought my fucking suit reasoning that I'd never know when I'd need a suit, seriously). I brought all my pairs of shoes even though I only wear two or three of them. It was totally unnecessary. This time around I'm just going to bring what I need, and maybe use a small suitcase to bring things I might need. Things that I need are as follows:

1 toothbrush with toothpaste
1 thing of floss
1 bottle of shampoo and conditioner
1 thing of deodorant
1 thing of fancy perfume
5 razors
3 pairs of shoes
5 short sleeve shirts
5 long sleeve shirts
3 pairs of jeans
3 pairs of shorts(this also includes swim trunks)
2 jackets
3 hoodies(preferably plain hoodies)
3 belts(2 casual, 1 formal)
7 pairs of underwear/boxers/briefs/whatever
7 pairs of socks(I like black socks)
1 pair of sunglasses
1 laptop with all the necessities
1 large book(for putting your laptop on so it doesn't overheat)
4 books you enjoy reading or want to read

As far as I'm concerned that is all I need, now I didn't include things that are always on my person like my wallet, or cellphone, stuff like that, because those are obviously something that I would take regardless. Also, this list only applies when you're moving to somewhere that's already furnished with the necessary furniture(bed, sofa, refrigerator, toilet.. the works), no shit. Also make sure you bring paper money, you never know when you'll need to pay off a group of rabid sex deprived highwaymen taking a toll to cross the bridge over a dried stream in the middle of the California/Arizona dessert(I've never encountered such a thing, but then again I'm only 19 so I haven't encountered many things).

So pack light if you can, because packing an obese amount of things is unnecessary and you won't even use half of it. Oh! it's also a good idea to take one of those folding lightweight clothing hampers. That's it for now, if I think of anything necessary I'll let you know.