Sounds like a nightmare job unpacking and logging all that stuff, especially if it all has to be repacked temporarily again until you finally take possession of your own house again. After so long away I guess it will be difficult to remember everything you had.
I suppose the only advantage of all this, if indeed there is one, is that perhaps the enforced decluttering exercise it has triggered will save you the problem of doing it sometime in the future.
Baggage survey from Kyiv at last!
Moderators: KG Steve, Chantal, Tigger, peter, Chief Spud
-
Stravaig
- KG Regular
- Posts: 868
- Joined: Thu Jul 18, 2019 8:59 am
- Location: Kent, UK
- Has thanked: 159 times
- Been thanked: 105 times
I spent a few days in January last year decluttering in Kyiv when it started to look like the Russians might invade. Of course, many of us thought they never would but one has to be prepared anyway. I left a lot of stuff behind for our cleaner, which she's welcome to.
But I really am very angry at the thought of that useless packer guy taking our stuff. He was contracted to do packing and shipping NOT a house clearance. I am just about to write to Pickfords UK (who uses that company as their agents). I'm trying to calm down first... Is it to early for a glass of wine? Really, I am very, very angry!
The people at our usual self-store place (Lok'n'Store - stupid name) are always very helpful, so as long as we get a big enough locker, we'll sort it. It doesn't have to be done in a day. If we had our own house I suppose a lot of it would go in the loft. But this flat doesn't have a loft (unsurprisingly).
Self-storage is quite expensive so we've bought a couple of plastic garden sheds. Husband is currently building them on our roof terrace. Despite the purchase price, that'll save us a few bob. It's not that we're skint, I just prefer not to throw money away on things we don't need if we can avoid it.
But I really am very angry at the thought of that useless packer guy taking our stuff. He was contracted to do packing and shipping NOT a house clearance. I am just about to write to Pickfords UK (who uses that company as their agents). I'm trying to calm down first... Is it to early for a glass of wine? Really, I am very, very angry!
The people at our usual self-store place (Lok'n'Store - stupid name) are always very helpful, so as long as we get a big enough locker, we'll sort it. It doesn't have to be done in a day. If we had our own house I suppose a lot of it would go in the loft. But this flat doesn't have a loft (unsurprisingly).
Self-storage is quite expensive so we've bought a couple of plastic garden sheds. Husband is currently building them on our roof terrace. Despite the purchase price, that'll save us a few bob. It's not that we're skint, I just prefer not to throw money away on things we don't need if we can avoid it.
-
Stravaig
- KG Regular
- Posts: 868
- Joined: Thu Jul 18, 2019 8:59 am
- Location: Kent, UK
- Has thanked: 159 times
- Been thanked: 105 times
It is quite hard to remember all your possessions after not seeing them for a long time but we made an inventory, including photos, quite early on, ie about a month before the evac when it was all just a hypothetical possibility.
If there's a chance of war/invasion/evac you hope for the best and expect the worst. That's all you can do.
Went to L&S on Sunday. Husband was going for locker A and I'm like, "Don't be daft, our stuff won't fit in there" so we got locker B instead (according to my orders). It's OK, we can downsize any time with only a week's notice but we'd look rather silly trying to shove 4x X into a locker designed for 3x X.
Why do men seem to have no common sense at all?
If there's a chance of war/invasion/evac you hope for the best and expect the worst. That's all you can do.
Went to L&S on Sunday. Husband was going for locker A and I'm like, "Don't be daft, our stuff won't fit in there" so we got locker B instead (according to my orders). It's OK, we can downsize any time with only a week's notice but we'd look rather silly trying to shove 4x X into a locker designed for 3x X.
Why do men seem to have no common sense at all?
-
Primrose
- KG Regular
- Posts: 8063
- Joined: Tue Aug 29, 2006 8:50 pm
- Location: Bucks.
- Has thanked: 41 times
- Been thanked: 290 times
I think it's a case of "Left Brain" and "Right Brain" which just operate on different axis. I often find that my other half and I approach problems from a rather different perspective.
On the the question of household equipment, most of us, unless we're professional chefs like you Stravaig who need it , probably have too much of everything simply because it's available on the market and we have the funds to buy it (which after all, is what keeps the economy moving, and jobs safe). But when I think how little domestic "stuff" we had when we were first married, and still managed to survive perfectly well, I do wonder aboutwhether we really need all the stuff we surround ourselves with !
On the the question of household equipment, most of us, unless we're professional chefs like you Stravaig who need it , probably have too much of everything simply because it's available on the market and we have the funds to buy it (which after all, is what keeps the economy moving, and jobs safe). But when I think how little domestic "stuff" we had when we were first married, and still managed to survive perfectly well, I do wonder aboutwhether we really need all the stuff we surround ourselves with !
-
Stravaig
- KG Regular
- Posts: 868
- Joined: Thu Jul 18, 2019 8:59 am
- Location: Kent, UK
- Has thanked: 159 times
- Been thanked: 105 times
LOL! Primrose, yes, I am qualified as a professional chef and have worked in commerical kitchens to get experience. But I only did that as a hobby after I retired as an accountant. 
I have far too much stuff and even duplicates so I never have to be without anything whether home or away. Yeah, I probably don't need it. And I probably don't need the hundreds of cookbooks either (more than our local library!). But they make me happy. I don't wear make-up or have any jewellery, so that's my pleasure.
I know what you mean about left brain/right brain, and my husband and I are very different. We're both pretty literate and numerate but the big differences are elsewhere. He's terrific at languages, speaks at least half a dozen fluently. I failed my German O level. He's very musical - can play a few instruments really well. I can learn to sing a song if you take six months to drum it into my thick head. I've had a guitar for more than 50 years and have barely got past G, C, and D7. In my defence, i'm quite artistic and have had some recognition and he probably couldn't even draw a stick man.
I have far too much stuff and even duplicates so I never have to be without anything whether home or away. Yeah, I probably don't need it. And I probably don't need the hundreds of cookbooks either (more than our local library!). But they make me happy. I don't wear make-up or have any jewellery, so that's my pleasure.
I know what you mean about left brain/right brain, and my husband and I are very different. We're both pretty literate and numerate but the big differences are elsewhere. He's terrific at languages, speaks at least half a dozen fluently. I failed my German O level. He's very musical - can play a few instruments really well. I can learn to sing a song if you take six months to drum it into my thick head. I've had a guitar for more than 50 years and have barely got past G, C, and D7.
In my defence, i'm quite artistic and have had some recognition and he probably couldn't even draw a stick man.-
Stravaig
- KG Regular
- Posts: 868
- Joined: Thu Jul 18, 2019 8:59 am
- Location: Kent, UK
- Has thanked: 159 times
- Been thanked: 105 times
The helpful London-based packer, very nice guy, certainly raised his eyebrows when he saw the size of our locker. I said I was fairly confident we could get the stuff in, which we did, but that also involved husband taking home a couple of car boot loads while the guys were still unpacking their crates. We got there!
And now we're unpacking some of the boxes. What a mess. Things have not been packed properly but just thrown into boxes. Often without even packaging paper or anything.
Plenty of damaged items. INVOICE!
I know there's a war on, but there's no need for such poor service, especially from someone who has stolen hundreds of quids of our possessions.
And now we're unpacking some of the boxes. What a mess. Things have not been packed properly but just thrown into boxes. Often without even packaging paper or anything.
Plenty of damaged items. INVOICE!I know there's a war on, but there's no need for such poor service, especially from someone who has stolen hundreds of quids of our possessions.