life: examined is a weekly invitation to get curious—a collection of ideas, and thoughts about living a creative, intentional life—written from my perch in Portugal.
—> Thank you for your support
I’m taking a break from moving to pen (type) this brief issue of life: examined.
Gratitude is a common theme around here, but wow, more so these past few weeks.
See those four guys up there? That’s Mark, Jon, Tim, and Ken. Wielding their single syllable names and bad jokes, they proved to be highly skilled at moving odd-shaped objects and monstrous duffle bags from one end of the neighborhood to the other.
They don’t need no stinkin’ van!
These guys are just a few of the good humans I’m fortunate to call my friends.
They choreographed and performed two walking-moving events with floor lamps, the aforementioned giant duffle bags, end tables, an outdoor bench—pretty much all the things with the exception of the big furniture pieces.
If anyone noticed our procession, they would have mistaken it for performance art.
When they arrived I was cranky and overwhelmed. within a few minutes I found it impossible to stay in a pissy mood around these gents. Soon we were laughing, walking, shifting our freight, and losing feeling in various extremities due to the respective heavy loads.
Shuffling stuff from one place to another was actually fun with these four.
So, how to express my gratitude?
Just saying thank you doesn’t feel adequate. Lacking more powerful and deep words of thanks is another limitation of the English language. So, imperfect language be damned, I offer to reciprocate, buy a round of coffees and cakes, and say thank you with the depth of gratitude I feel—you know, like I mean it—because I do!
So, here it is Friday the 13th, two days have passed since I started this newsletter.
Almost everything from my former place is now in my new one—with the exception of a few plants and my bike.
Despite a cranky hip and knee, I walked a total of 24k+ steps yesterday—carrying bags, hauling my stuffed-to-the-brim granny cart, etc.
My first dinner in the new place, savored among packing paper and boxes, consisted of an apple, hummus chips with, ahem, hummus; two dates, and pistachios. Oh, and a vegan ice cream cone. #ConsciousEating :)
Asking for Help, Hiring Help
I hired a man and his son to move my bed, couch, bookcase, and console. I woke this morning in the new casa zombie-fied but alive and so grateful for all the things—this new place, my good friends, this community.
My friend, Helena, offered her help, which I tried to refuse—but she insisted.
When Helena showed up, Katie and I were strategizing (read: Katie was bossing me around, which I appreciate) on the most effective plan. Seeing all the canvas shopping bags, Helena called her husband to bring the car. He showed up, we loaded up, and were at the new flat in minutes (I’m REALLY close to my old place).
I’m getting better at asking for help. Still makes me feel a bit queasy sometimes, but I’ll persevere until nausea subsides.
Aside from the few car trips, we moved mainly on foot. Mark and I (he was also moving) made many trips back and forth all week. I’ve since bestowed the rare and coveted Golden Broccoli Award on Mark for his remarkable ability to power through in good cheer.
Gratitude List
I’d like to thank these fine people, in no particular order, for helping to make this move happen. Whether it was physically, logistically, emotionally—or all three—I am indebted. The next coffee’s on me!
Mark
Andrew
Tammy
Katie
Lúcia
Grandma G.
Helena & Mike
Lisa
Ken & Jo
Tim
Jon
LaDonna & Bruce
Hobit
Jennifer & Jim
Liz & Scott
Luisélia & Jorge
João & son
The new neighbor from the snack bar who stepped in to help with my mattress
ALL my readers and supporters
Did I miss anyone?!
ps: this was my last move—I mean it this time!
GOOD LINKS
How long do you have left to live? What have you been putting off? How long do you have left to make art? via Sketchbook Skool on YouTube (Danny’s Essays, his newsletter, is a good one).
My people! —> “In 1925, they declared a collective war on work. They began to advocate for the idea of wage labour abolitionism. They were anti-capitalists who, ahead of their time, imagined a post-work world.” THE SURREALISTS’ WAR ON WORK via The Idler
Thank you —> Monique, Dave & Clyde, Jeff, and Deb for supporting life: examined through Buy Me a Coffee. I appreciate it!
Whether it’s a coffee, a comment, a like, or a share—I’m grateful for your support.
Until next time —> stay curious, eat your veggies, and thank you for reading life: examined
Say hello to me on Instagram.
How we move in Portugal
How are you liking Setubal? Probably good that you finished the move before the big vacation season coming up. I enjoy your posts.
So, you've moved! Congratulations on the new apartment. It's great isn't it when good friends offer to help? Sacrificing their time and their backs!! They look a really nice bunch of people, I take it they're American or English? It was probably best done now instead of in a month's time although it was probably quite warm anyway?! The next few months would not have been ideal for anything really, let alone moving house! You say this is the last time? That's until you find the perfect spot in an idyllic location, reasonably priced, usually when you least expect it! We did a lot of that in Spain, I loved our friends apartment and when they said they were moving, immediately I wanted to move! Penthouse with 2 large terraces, close to all the shops and amenities. It was a no brainer to me, we were both renting so it was just a matter of a month's notice plus all the furniture didn't belong to us anyway so moving was a breeze! I hope you're very happy in your new home and you settle very quickly! Take care, hugs xxx