June 4th! + Project Move Out

[13000km]

I will be moving to Oregon on June 4th!

Our backpacking trip has been postponed for a couple of years. We have decided to get our degrees before going to see the world, because we're going to need them for life after backpacking. I have applied as an international transfer student to the University of Oregon, but who knows when I'll hear back from them.

We're trying to align my move up there with my mum's business trip to Boston because she wants to see the place I'll be living in, but HATES to fly, so I can't put her through two long flights. /:

That means I have to pack up and move out of this place in 5 weeks! I'm super excited, but very nervous and even scared.

I might have mentioned somewhere before that I am a borderline hoarder. I have lived in this room for 11 years. That's 11 years of stuff I have collected. It's piles of stuff on my bookshelves, on my large study desk that I don't use anymore cause there's too much stuff on it and ALL over my floor. The only visible floor space is a little path from my door to my bed. I'll take a picture when I can. /:

I have NO idea where to start with clearing my room out. I'm sure my parents would not appreciate if I left the country with my room in this state. Any ideas?

The worrying has also started, now that everything has been set in motion and is becoming very real. Don't get me wrong, I really want this, but all of a sudden I can think of so many reasons why this decision might blow up in our faces. A lot of LDRS begin with partners moving away for school, but has there been anyone who has closed the distance through school?

For people who have already closed the distance, did you move in with your partner? Did it take you guys long to get into a new rhythm of being close to each other?

[Zephii]

For your room, first figure out how many suitcase you are taking and if your mum will bring stuff for you when she visits. This way you know your limits. Then get some bags, and look at your clothes. Save no more than one week's worth of clothes, donate the rest to charity. Then chuck out everything you have not used in the past six months (unless it's like a family heirloom or something).
With everything you have left sort it into piles *keep* *don't keep* *storage* (If you're allowed to leave a box or two there, that you can pick up when you visit - whenever that might be). Once everything is in piles, throw out stuff from your keep and storage piles until what you have left fits into the space you're allowed to use. Be hard on yourself. Ask "can I replace this?" "do I really need this?" "Why have I been keeping this?".
Or that's more or less how I did it

Lots of people close the distance through school.

I moved in with my partner. It didn't take much to establish a rhythm at all. We talked a lot... asked questions about how much alone time each of us thought we needed, how we'd handle spending time with friends, general good manners things, who would clean what, etc. If you talk about everything you can think of, and you're honest when a problem arises, you'll be fine! Good luck

[13000km]

Thank you. (: I stared at my mess for a good 30 mins this morning before I wrote this and was trying to figure out where to start clearing first. I think my first move will be to get some boxes then. How long did it take for you to finish packing up?

I most likely would not be moving in with him, but I'm a bit worried about finding stuff to do on my own...

[bluepotato1236]

Nice! First of all congratulation!!
About the cleaning, yeah i agree with Zephii.. I was a hoarder too..Then few months ago, I tried my best to throw all the things that i dont need anymore and donate all the clothes that i hardly wear...Its hard while you do the cleaning, but once all of it gone from your sight, you will forget about it..and you will feel fresh with cleaner and neater room..:-P

For my case, my SO is the one that moving to me...We live together and things are great... Like Zephii said talk alot..Learn about each other... Anyway, all the best to you!:-)

[13000km]

I will start cleaning this weekend! Wish me luck. (:
Thanks for your well wishes!

I'm trying to look for flights there now but why on earth do one way tickets cost as much as round trip ones? Shouldn't they cost half the price since I'm taking 2 (out of 4) less flights??!

[bluepotato1236]

Good luck!:-D Yeah it supposed to be that way, but the airlines wants to make more profits since if you buy 1 way ticket they get less profit..i guess so..

[Jonesonaboat]

When I tackled my room before I moved out, I did it in sections.
First I started with the clutter in the room. Stuff that other people had got me and stuff that I've picked up over the years, like nick naks ya know. Other than sentimental stuff, it all went in the bin.

I think it's a lot easier to sort through things when the area around you is as decluttered as possible. After that I sorted my clothes. I went through the clothes in my wardrobe first, then my chest of draws. There was the things that was 'yes keeping without a doubt'. Then there was the 'certainly not keeping', and then there was the maybe pile. I think it's good to go back to the 'maybe' pile after a couple of days and see if you've made your mind up then. You might look at a piece of clothing differently if you're in a different mood.

[13000km]

Oh no, but everything is clutter in my room. I have some pictures.

This is (was) my desk


The other half of my desk and my chair that no one has sat in for a long time. There's even more stuff UNDER the desk that can't be seen. /:


Aaaaand this is half of my room's floor space.


Terrible right? And this is just the clutter. There's still clothes, years and years of books and other stuff that are kept neatly away.
I have started putting stuff I want to throw out in trash bags and after an hour, I have filled a giant trash bag with stuff to throw and have two boxes of stuff I don't want but is still useable and I have only cleared out a TINY corner nearest to my door. /:

[Zephii]

Holy crap man! How do you ever find anything?

Sometimes it's worth buying a round-trip ticket and then just canceling the return when you get there, which gives you a credit for a flight that lasts a year. If there's not much difference in the price it's smart to do this, that way if something goes really terribly wrong you're not stuck there.

[Sora1101]

xD that looks exactly like my room, glad to know I'm not the only one who hardly throws anything away. ^^;

[13000km]

Holy crap man! How do you ever find anything?

Sometimes it's worth buying a round-trip ticket and then just canceling the return when you get there, which gives you a credit for a flight that lasts a year. If there's not much difference in the price it's smart to do this, that way if something goes really terribly wrong you're not stuck there.

Okay, I'll start looking up the airline's cancellation policies. My parents are freaking out because we usually book our flights waaaay early and we haven't done so yet. The last time I flew to the US in december, booked my tickets in August. /:

I don't really need anything from that mess on a regular basis, but whenever I try cleaning up I can think up many reasons to keep stuff. Like, what if I do something that needs this, this can actually be used for something else, etc. So I put these items in neat little piles and never touch them again. The new stuff I bring into the room goes on top of these piles and they may be used another one or two times before they join the ranks on the floor permanently. If I do have to look for something specific I'm generally able to remember which corner of the room it is in, pull everything out from that corner, that stack it back in a pile and push it to a side when I'm done. /: It's awful, I know. Hopefully when I move I NEVER let my room get into this state again.

[13000km]

xD that looks exactly like my room, glad to know I'm not the only one who hardly throws anything away. ^^;

Ah, I'm glad I'm not the only hoarder around here. (:

[13000km]

Man, this cleaning thing is TOUGH. I started last weekend and threw out 2 large trash bags of stuff. I thought I was making good progress. Today, I've been cleaning all day. I have (unorganised) boxes of stuff in my room: stuff to bring, stuff to keep here, stuff for donation, and textbooks and papers. So, 5 boxes, 7 trashbags and 2 bags (of stuff I won't be using but other people can use/it'll be a waste to throw it away) later, my room still looks as messy and clluttered as it did before. What on earth am I doing wrong? /:

[BlueCat]

I don't think you're doing anything wrong. Whenever I tidy my room or have a big cleanout. It takes me forever and my room always gets messier before it gets tidier. But trust me, it's worth it

[13000km]

I don't think you're doing anything wrong. Whenever I tidy my room or have a big cleanout. It takes me forever and my room always gets messier before it gets tidier. But trust me, it's worth it

I hope so! I haven't touched a thing in my room in two weeks, I think. And now I have slightly more than 3 weeks to get it completely cleaned. /L