Packing Up and Eating Sushi

All of a sudden we're three weeks away from leaving Missoula! We've started to panic a bit and have been desperately trying to get rid of all of our stuff. We've put some of the logistical stuff concerning the trip to Guinea aside in order to concentrate on the actual move. It's pretty overwhelming to look around the house and know that we have to get rid of everything (or, almost everything). We'll be taking with us personal papers, photos, favorite games, favorite books (we're having to be very brutal about what qualifies as "favorite" - ouch, this is tough), some clothes, the dishes we borrowed from family members, and some keepsakes. That's it. Thus the panic. I guess we've acquired quite a bit of stuff over these past three years here.

On Saturday we had a yard sale which was pretty successful. I've always been curious about what it would be like to have one and it was such an odd experience. It was bizarre to see all of our "stuff" strewn about the front yard and it was so great to see people get excited to buy some of it. One teenager bought a scarf of mine that I'd never worn. As she walked away she kept saying, "Are you sure you want to sell this? It's so soft and beautiful." Yes please take it!! Take more!! Take everything!! People were happy with our prices- we were practically giving stuff away. While the sale put a dent in the stuff we have in our house, we've already got a new stash of things that we'll be selling at the next yard sale we'll be having in a few weeks. We're also using our local Craig's list to sell some of the bigger items that our friends have said they don't want or need. I had never used Craig's list before and I must say that I'm pretty impressed with it. I know I'm a bit behind the times since Craig's list has been around for some time now, but I'm now on the bandwagon. What a great (FREE!) place to connect with people who might want the stuff we have and who might have the stuff we want (although we won't be using that part of the list for now).

One last thing about our yard sale. I want to add that several of our good friends stopped by the sale to say hi, sit with us for a bit, help out, etc. It was wonderful to have their company and support since it is a bit of an emotional strain to think of selling things that have meant something to us, not the mention knowing that this is all in preparation to leave a town we've come to love and, more importantly, people who we love. Which brings me to the only perk of this whole process of packing up and moving away: doing all kinds of fun things with friends that we've been meaning to do for awhile. It has this "now or never" feel that, while a bit painful, has been a wonderful excuse to spend more time with friends. I'm happy to say that "last chances" to do this or that with people are leading into "one more last chance" and then "one more last chance" etc. etc.

One example of an amazing faux "last chance" came last night when Jonathan and Ayumi came over to teach us how to make Sushi. This is something we've all been meaning to do for a long time. They were great teachers and the sushi was amazing. After we had all eaten a ton Matt asked them how we were supposed to gauge how much we were eating since we just kept popping bite size sushi rolls in our mouths. The answer is that you don't. So of course I ended up with a bit of a stomach ache. But it was worth it. What a delicious meal! Here are some photos:

Our Sushi platter after we had already eaten a ton. All of a sudden I thought, geez, I better take a photo while I have a chance, these things are going fast...And by the way, the rolls that are bursting at the seaweed seams were made by Matt who often applies the Texas adage that bigger is better to all kinds of non-Texan things.

Ayumi, me and Jonathan eating

Ayumi, Matt and Jonathan eating