Our new home

I thought I'd post some pictures of our new home: Greenville SC

An ariel view of downtown

One of my favorite intersections downtown: Main St and Coffee. There's a great coffee bar down the steps to the right of the building. It's called Coffee Underground.

Up the street from that corner is the Hyatt where Friday Night Jazz is held. And it's just one of many free regular events. If you check out the link, you might notice that nowhere on the schedule is bluegrass found. (And before you ask: yes, I like bluegrass......in moderation!!!!)

I can hear them now.

This is Smoke on the Water. The food is great.

Sat. Farmers Market. It continues on thru Oct. so we'll be able to take advantage of it.


I can't explain this picture, except to say, "Now, that's my kind of mowing!!"

And this is my kind of way to observe Breast Cancer Awareness month. Those are bras hanging from a bank building downtown.

Two shots from Fall for Greenville. We always enjoyed it in the past and look forward to this year's. I'm thinking about volunteering through Operation Bear Hug. On one of our trips down we donated some of the bears to go to live with some boys and girls who needed them.

All pictures can be found at: Greenville Daily Photo.

We decided against the loft apartment. We're moving back to a complex where we previously lived. We loved it there and the location and neighborhood is much better. Once we get settled, I'll take and post my own pictures. We are looking forward to exploring all the old spots and the many new one since we left. Me and the digital and Tony on his scooter with the 35mm. Look out Greenville, here we come. Until then, back to packing boxes.

Oh and I applied for 2 great jobs. Both with the Greenville Public Library. Boy, has the main branch changed in ten years. They have a coffee bar in now and there must be a room with sixty public computers. It has 119,215 square feet and is the second largest public library in the state. Keep your fingers crossed.

Ah, Moving

It's not like we are strangers to the process. When we were younger, we moved a lot due to employment. So over the years, the process has been refined.

We were (still are??) collectors. In the younger days, everything was packed and moved. Of course, in the younger days, "everything" didn't consist of much. But it was moved!

Now, we are "downsizing." I'm not sure I have wrapped my head around it's exact meaning. Are we doing the Lean Manufacturing equivalent of the 5 S process? Sort, Straighten, Sweep, Standardize, Sustain. Are we just getting rid of large furniture we can no longer physically move from place to place? Are we contributing to other people's up sizing, i.e. yard sale and Free Cycle? I don't know the answer, but I do know there won't be as much "stuff" this time.

Some things we have given away. A garden flag to a little girl, a stuffed bear to another little girl. Those things we won't see again. The patio set will be visited when we visit Jonesborough as will the fire screen. We look forward to that. It will mean we are seeing dear friends who now have our "stuff." And the friends are the important thing. A friend bought a Christmas item to remember us by at our sale last weekend. It was one of those things that got moved every time. It was first bought at a Christmas bazaar. Where? Charlotte? Richmond? Idaho Falls? Reading, PA? Middlefield, OH? Who knows now, but it's new home will be Jonesborough until maybe she has a yard sale and it goes to Limestone or Key West or Rhode Island.

In the younger days, we had at most a week to pack. Now this time the physical process has been going on for about 2 months and the mental process has been going on for about 4 months. And there is still 2 months left before we actually are in Greenville. I'm not sure which was better.

Is this the last move? Probably not, but we go into it with more experience, more time and a whole lot less stuff. It's the easiest one by far.

It's Official

The Smiths are on the move. After much prayful consideration, we have decided to relocate to Greenville, SC.

There are lots of reasons, but since it's been almost a year since I've posted to my blog, I'll do some catching up first.

In Jan 2009, Tony was one of 109 laid off from Mountain States Health Alliance. That was the factor that started us thinking. He made the decision to go for early retirement. Then his doctor told him to quit driving. He's now in the middle of the process to get SS Disability. That all started the ball rolling.

We love Jonesborough, but it's not a place condusive to mobility problems. There is no way for a person who shouldn't drive to get out. We knew we should leave, but where.

Greenville was the logical choice. We probably would never have left there in 1997 had it not been for a job change. We love the area, the town, the cultural aspects, the weather and the people. They have a good transit system, so Tony will be able to get out and about. Employment opportunities for me is much greater. It's close to my hometown and friends around there.

So we drove down (2.5 hours from J'boro) and made sure we still loved it. It's always the place we would go for a long weekend or just to run down on a Sat. And yes, we still love it.

So the ball picked up speed. I let my work know what's happening and they are very graciously letting me work until we leave. Our friends all know around here. We're having a downsizing/yard sale on the 25th. We'll be going back to apartment living which I so look forward to. I've decided that having a lawn is just not something I want anymore.

We've found a great place not far from downtown. It's an old textile mill converted into modern loft apartments. Each floorplan is named for a well known Greenvillian or other famous person. Being a huge baseball fan, I think it's neat that the plan we chose is the Shoeless Joe Jackson, who was from Greenville.

Our anticipated date for moving is by Sept. 30. We won't be here for the storytelling festival this year, but I'm sure we'll be back in future years. We already have plans to be back for Thanksgiving.

We rented a storage unit there on Monday and left a van full of boxes. The plan is to head down at least once a week with a load. That way when it comes time for a truck, it will be a small one with just the remaining furniture. Then we can move out of the storage unit at a slower pace.

That's the Smith news for now. If you know of any job opportunites there, pass them on. If you are in the area next Sat. stop by the sale. I'll try to take pictures and post them and more here as things progress. I've missed blogging.

So if you are in the Greenville area after Oct. 1, let us know. We'd love to show you around.