We’ve been here for just over a month now and, to be honest, it seems like forever. Our life in London is fast receding into a dim and distant memory. A haze of delayed trains, standing up on the Waterloo & City Line and dubious weather.
Monday was Presidents’ Day, which meant a day off school for Alice. It was also the day that our shipping container arrived. The journey from the UK had been much quicker than we had expected so we were slightly unprepared for a delivery this quickly. In fact, the house we are renting is still pretty much furnished so right now it has double the volume of stuff in it. Amazingly, it’s big enough just to have soaked up all the excess boxes and it still doesn’t feel crowded!
What both Charlie and I have found quite interesting is how little we missed all our stuff. Yes, it’s all here now which is nice, but we both feel like we could have carried on quite comfortably without all the paraphernalia that so many people seem to think is an essential part of life. Finally I understand how some people can spend all their lives with a suitcase, a laptop and a Kindle.
Alice, on the other hand, was very excited to receive all her furniture, books and toys. Her room was the first to be assembled – and right now is still the only one that has been assembled! – but she is re-acquainting herself with her desk, Famous Five books and sewing kit.
The only slight hiccup in the delivery came when they tried to move the piano, which apparently weighs in at 800lb. How to make yourself popular with a removal crew…
Aside from our furniture arriving, the other big event in South Carolina right now is the forthcoming Presidential primary: this Saturday for Republicans and the following week for Democrats. I know that primary season involves all the candidates taking ever more extreme positions to the right or left to energise their support base, but this year feels particularly unedifying. Certainly on the Republican side, none of the candidates is acting very presidential right now, and the Democrats aren’t without their flaws either. I suppose it’s for the best that as an “alien” I don’t get to vote. Taxation without representation!
South of the Mason-Dixon line 