Today’s experiment was to act like we actually live here: I went to work and Frank didn’t. Typical for the summer so it seemed normal. I didn’t even bring a travel mug of coffee because with a 15 minute commute, I wouldn’t have time to drink it. I got to the Bank and was issued my badge and parking credentials, filled out paperwork and then headed to my department where I proceeded to be scared witless by the number of people hinting that there were high expectations for what I could do now that I’m actually here.

Frank, on the other hand, had a more harrowing experience: dealing with the cable company. Yes, we signed up for Google Fiber; yes, we will have 1000 GB download speeds; and yes, it might take several months for our house to be wired. We can’t wait that long for basic internet and TV access so we made a deal with the devil and signed up for month-to-month basic cable and internet with the local evil empire, Time-Warner. After close to a dozen text, email, and phone reminders to repeatedly confirm the installation, the cable guy came by this morning and got our basic wiring sorted so we can at least watch the local news and compose blog posts using more than my thumbs.

I spent the day shaking hands, smiling, and trying to create secure passwords while my spouse tried desperately to finish putting together the storage furniture which we need to get rid of those last few boxes in the living room. Then there was the invitation to happy hour for me- not because of me but one doesn’t say no to margaritas with the boss, the boss’s boss, and the Bank president on one’s first day regardless of the reason.

Then a fabulous dinner out at a local establishment (Julian – fabulous!) to which we can, and did, walk. And now to collapse in exhaustion after our different but equally taxing “normal” day.

Apparently reality TV has affected me more than I care to acknowledge. I think I had subconsciously been planning a big “Ta da! Look at how quickly we unpacked” post. Until today when I realized how far in the future such a post would occur. We have made significant progress – Facebook friends might have noticed it by the various meal photos that have been posted

But what you have been spared (or have missed depending on your perspective) as blog readers is a blow-by-blow account of the initial trials and tribulations. It is also due partly to our lack of internet access (I will whine about that soon) and there is only so much wit and wisdom I can relay from my phone.

So I ask your patience and promise to regale you with tales of establishing residency, meeting the neighbors, the bunnies of Brookside, finishing the unpacking, and starting work. And of course more photos of food, the new house and tallies of wine consumed!

It was really great waking up in our own house this morning even if Frank nearly killed himself trying to get up off the air mattress on the floor. We walked to another coffee shop before having breakfast and them the real work began. More trips to Home Depot and Target; hanging blinds; cleaning bathrooms (first time I’ve scrubbed a toilet in 20 years!); signing for wine deliveries and generally preparing for the arrival of our furniture tomorrow.

We did have another gourmet meal of nachos and margaritas.

We met some neighbors and had our first visitor – Jon from my work who biked over to say hello and remind me of the awesome job I start next week.

We also managed to get the wine sorted before the madness starts. Keep your fingers crosses for us tomorrow!

Checked out of yet another hotel this morning with no word about the furniture. I tried to extend our stay at the illustrious Holiday Inn but they were booked for this evening. I did a quick check of airbnb but there was nothing for tonight. The only thing we could find was a fancy room near the plaza for $250+ per night. Well that was the straw that broke the camel’s back. I was not going to pay that kind of money to stay in a hotel near my house! A plot was hatching…

We stopped at the local coffee shop – the Roastery – for some very large lattes. Then we picked up some basics at the Brookside market for breakfast which we ate at the impromptu table that the whiskey box became. Quick meeting with the insurance man and we were free to run up more credit card bills to put the finishing touches on the house: blinds, towel racks, ceiling fan, stools for the breakfast bar in the kitchen (assembled by yours truly), and a few less obvious items.

We got word during this spree that the furniture wouldn’t be delivered until Thursday morning. Yes, the very last day of the delivery window. *We* had to be here Monday just in case but they have until Thursday to show up. Two more nights in hotels? I don’t think so! An air mattress, sheets and pillows cost far less than just one night so we were bound for some urban camping! And we got to find the local laundromat to wash the new sheets which is always an adventure!

The beautiful but unbelievably expensive fridge was delivered in the heat of the 100 degree day so we could stock up on food that doesn’t require real cooking and stop eating out for every meal. So back to the local market for some essentials and we celebrated our first day in our house with that gourmet meal that is rotisserie chicken and microwavable sides. But nothing on paper plates has ever tasted quite so good!

So we drink a glass of wine while the air mattress inflates in the dining room and enjoy the adventure because when Thursday and the furniture arrive, them the real work begins!

The trip from St. Louis to KC was fairly short and uneventful – although the number of billboards advertising adult superstores along I70 was pretty frightening.  We got to the house just after lunchtime and unloaded the car, met Jan the mail carrier and started making lists of things that we need to replace.  This involved a trip to Home Depot and Walmart to start since the moving company wouldn’t take anything that involved chemicals – like cleaning supplies or Weed and Feed.

We ran errands and waited for the call from the moving company which never came.  That meant another hotel reservation and another night in limbo.  We bought new appliances (fridge gets delivered tomorrow, washer and dryer on Friday) and tried not to think what the Mastercard bill was going to look like next month.

So after a fabulous meal at Cafe Trio, we are settled into another hotel waiting for our stuff to arrive so we can really be home….

Today we said goodbye to Kentucky and started what could be a long road trip. After breakfast, we checked out of the B&B (mediocre at best and not worth the money BTW) and headed out into another grey day. It’s a pretty boring drive straight out interstate 64 and we weren’t quite sure how far we were going. The delivery window for the furniture starts on the 21st so if the moving company called and said we needed to be there first thing tomorrow then we had a 9 hour drive to Kansas City ahead of us. We had planned to stop in St. Louis on the way, the only question was for how long – just for dinner or for the night?

So we rolled along the miles out of Kentucky into Indiana and the skies started to clear. Funny thing about Indiana is that you move from Eastern to Central time about halfway across the bottom part of the state. There is no sign to show it but the time on my iPhone was suddenly different than the time on my watch. Oh and Frank’s car seemed to know. All of sudden the hands on the dashboard clock started speeding forward.  Because the hands don’t move backwards, they needed to skip ahead 11 hours to lose the hour. It was like something out of a science fiction movie.

With no flying saucer or time hole in sight, and no phone call from the moving company, we made plans to stop over in St. Louis for the night. Some speedy texts to my friend Alice and a couple of clicks on my cell phone and we had a room at the Moonrise Hotel, the only hotel on “The Loop”. It has a space theme which could be a bit over the top but how can you not love having drinks below a giant rotating moon on the roof top bar!

We wandered all over the area which is entertaining in a “hookah bar on every corner” kind of way. Then it was time for some culture – and possibly some stained glass – so we headed for the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis. Not much in the way of stained glass but oh, the mosaics! 83,000 square feet of them. Absolutely breathtaking! (For those keeping score at home, I did light a candle for my mom.)

Then it was out for Thai food with friends Alice and Todd followed by GF cannoli and accompanied by lots of friendly chatter.  It’s so nice to be able to meet up with friends as we traverse the eastern US. Tomorrow, it’s KC or bust!

More tastings today!  After breakfast, we headed out under more grey skies to Woodford Reserve distillery, the smallest distillery in the US. They are also one of the oldest but we’ve gotten some conflicting info about that which we haven’t worked out yet (see below).  The grounds are lovely and the buildings are designated as part of a national historical landmark. We pulled in behind a hummer limo and were dismayed to see a gaggle of girls emerge – a hen party from Chicago.  Really?  Ten women came down from Chicago to taste bourbon for 3 days.  Okay Stephanie – it’s your wedding.  At least they were not a giggling gaggle.  This was the first distillery where we actually got to see some of the equipment working – the bottling line was really cool.

 

This of course puts in question the comment we heard at the Wild Turkey distillery yesterday that all the distilleries shut down in the summer. Woodford Reserve produces only two bourbons, their signature one and a double oaked version that gets recasked after the 6-9 years in a second new oak barrel for an additional 9 to 12 months.  They also triple distill their bourbon ala Irish whiskey like Jamesons and this was the first tour to show and discuss the spirit safe (still no head, heart and tail of the run discussion though.)   Like Maker’s Mark yesterday, the distillery and tasting was very classy.  The tour guide explained how to do a three sip tasting to wake the palate so that the third sip was really appreciated.  And we got the bourbon ball which really changed the flavor profile of the bourbon when you sipped after eating the chocolate.  I think their double oaked is by far my favorite bourbon.

Now bourbon isn’t the only beverage that comes in a barrel – Kentucky has a wine industry don’t you know! 🙂  There were several that we could visit but we did get a personal “recommendation” for one from Chris and Amy; by recommendation I mean they conceded that it was “pretty good for Kentucky wine” so off we went to Equus Vineyards.  It was very laid back and friendly and we did a tasting (so now we have MORE wineglasses from wineries) and actually purchased a few bottles.  Nothing earth moving but they did have a nice steel chardonnay (Frank actually preferred it to the oaked version for a change) and a pretty smooth cab sauv. So we now have wine from at least 4 states in our collection (not including commercial ones we pick up a the grocery store) as we are equal opportunity wine industry supporters!

Then we nipped into Frankfort to snap a pic of the capitol.  Keep your eyes out for my new page ‘Capitol Selfies’ – I’m going to see how many states I can get photos of the capitol building for.  I’m sorry I didn’t think of this when we were in Charleston WV the other day so we’ll just have to go back.  Snapping a photo was about all one could do in Frankfort on a dreary Saturday though.  What a lonely and depressing place! We couldn’t even find a restaurant open to have lunch – we had to settle for the celiac fast food standby – Wendy’s!

But we got some sustenance before heading to the last distillery of the trip: Buffalo Trace.  Executive summary:  best tour for technical information, otherwise not particularly impressed.  This was the only tour where they discussed the barrel making process in detail and explained the technical process of distillation.  Otherwise, the best part about the tour was that it was free! The distillery is one of the largest and claims to be the oldest continually operating distillery in the country.  It was opened in 1787 and operated even during prohibition when they were one of four distilleries allowed to make “medicinal whiskey” [Note: I have as yet been unable to craft a Google search that will return the names of the other three.  There are pages of dense text that make up the results of the searches I’ve done so far and I haven’t yet had the patience to sift through it.]

The distillery supports *18* brands of bourbon and I’m not sure either of us think they do them particularly well.  They did start bottling some pretty good vodka though and we picked up a bottle of that instead. They also were not operating and so similar to Wild Turkey yesterday, we got to sit and watch a video instead of seeing how things were actually done.  That was more painful today because the script was appallingly maudlin and soppy.  I think it was written by someone at Hallmark. Some memorable phrases: “amber hued treasure” and making “whisky as bold as their spirit”.  Yak.

And like Wild Turkey yesterday, there was no organized tasting.  There were four options for tasting: white dog (moonshine), vodka, Buffalo Trace bourbon and Eagle’s Rest 10 year old – and everyone could taste two.  I opted for just the vodka but Frank tried both the bourbons and wasn’t a fan of either.  So we are calling it a day and are off for the evening repast and possibly some bluegrass!

 

Today started our pilgrimage that is the bourbon trail.  After a long lie and a lovely breakfast, we ventured out into the grey, drizzly day to hit two of the big bourbon distilleries outside Lexington.  First, to visit Maker’s Mark.  At first Frank wasn’t too bothered about whether or not we stopped here but since it was one of my mom’s favorites, I might have twisted his arm a bit.  It’s a fair drive from Lexington (about an hour) but very near a cooperage that I wanted to visit. [I still laugh when I think about how I used to use coopers as examples of the structurally unemployed.] So off we went. 

It was kind of like finding some of the more obscure wineries in Virginia – on several occasions we were convinced that we were lost and then the sign with the barrel and an arrow would appear.  The grounds and buildings are lovely, even in the rain, and our tour guide was adorable and very interesting.  Maker’s mark is the oldest continually operating bourbon distillery – going since 1805 according to the Guinness plaque on the wall but I wish I had thought to ask about how they counted prohibition… The fermentation room was in full swing with several different stages that people could actually touch and taste (luckily, as it was predistillation, it is not gluten free so I was spared the expectation that I would taste it.  Yuck.)

They still use a 1930’s era printing press to print the labels and each bottle is hand dipped in the signature red wax that seals the top of the bottle.  We got to taste the “white dog” – precask alcohol which is basically moonshine – as well as the regular Maker’s Mark and their “46” which has extra aging with charred oak staves.  (They sell the staves for  use as grilling planks – it’s going to be a yummy summer at our house!)

Interesting note:  used barrels go to the Laphroig distillery in Scotland.

Frank got to dip his own bottle.

We had so much fun that we missed the tour at the cooperage and decided to grab a bit to eat before the next stop.  So off to Bardstown and a stop at the Old Talbott Tavern for lunch.  It dates back to 1779 and we had a lovely meal there – Frank had the Old Kentucky Hot Brown which may have started as a sandwich but this version was slices of bread covered with meat, cheese and Mornay sauce. He declared it delicious.

Then to the Wild Turkey distillery, a completely different experience.  We were on the last tour of the day so there were only 8 of us and our tour guide could have been Duncan if he had a Kentucky accent and could grow a beard. 🙂  The distillery wasn’t operating – it seems they all take the summer off because it gets too hot but we saw things going on at Maker’s Mark so I’m not sure what that means.  We did get to see a video and this guide gave more detail about the distilling process including using official terms like mash and high/low wines.  (We might know too much about the process….)  It was really interesting to see how bourbon distilling compares to single malt in Scotland.  At Wild Turkey they did talk about the angel’s share but no one used terms like the head, heart and tail of the run.  At the tasting, we got to choose two samples to try.  Which really meant that Frank got 4 samples.  I had a small sip out of all of them (the single barrell was WAY too strong, the spiced stuff tasted like cough medicine, the regular version was fine and I really liked the Russell’s Reserve) but he actually enjoyed them all. 

Interesting note: Used barrels go to Jameson’s in Ireland, and Glenlivet in Scotland.

We topped the day off with a dinner at Saul Good where we spend several hours having a fabulous time catching up with friends that we hadn’t seen in years – Chris and I had seen each other at conferences and such but Frank and Amy had seen each other since Madison! – and generally had a great time!

 

 

So I don’t have a great deal of experiences with long distance moves but this was not the first one. The last one was when we moved to VA from WI and the experience couldn’t be different. Last time we left the small house we still hadn’t sold to a larger house we had yet to buy. This time left the big house we hadn’t sold to the smaller house we already bought.  Last time we packed and loaded the rental truck ourselves with Frank driving the truck towing the Porsche and me driving the Taurus. This time we had professional packers and movers load our goods and two cars (and wine!) and take them away. Last time we had to transport two toddlers and a dog, taking three days and two nights in cramped hotel rooms. This time it’s just the two of us taking a few days to cover a similar distance staying in bed and breakfasts. A study in contrasts!

Today’s travel was uneventful and we covered lots of territory under beautiful blue skies. Through WV to Kentucky, we made good time getting to Lexington, our home for a few days. Although the Mercedes is very comfortable and we didn’t have to drive too long (6 hours or so) we were still very tired once we got here. But Lexington was partying as they apparently do each Thursday in the summer and we stopped by to enjoy. Not quite as impressive as the party
that Bergamo threw for us last year but fun nonetheless.

We stopped for dinner in a place with a great name (The Village Idiot) but only mediocre food. The evening was saved by the belated discovery of a lovely wine bar with live guitar music and CHOCOLATE COVERED BOURBON SOAKED ALMOND STUFFED FIGS. Holy amazing sweet tapas Batman – they were delicious!

So now we rest. The travelogue continues tomorrow. It’s not the Cannon Family Travel blog but I’ll try to keep to that high standard. Let me know if I don’t hit the requisite number of “yum” comments per post!

What a week! We spent several days deciding what we were not taking, what we were taking and what we were going to try and sell and what we thought we should give away. Then we had our first foray into selling things on Craigslist – what a great sociological experiment! On one hand people will try to talk you down to next to nothing and on the other they will use stupid amounts of time and gas to chase down a deal.

For the next part of the purge, the adult children were charged with finally going through the boxes of crap in their closets. While we’ve only been in this house for eight years, we moved from a smaller house into a bigger house on the last move so there was no reason to clear things out. Therefore they had an accumulation of personal items both valuable and not so valuable from the entire duration of their lives. It was fascinating listening to the exclamations as they discovered a new thing that they hadn’t seen for years. A journal from our sabbatical trip, a favorite stuffed animal, all those science fair medals. Then came the painful decision of whether or not it should be kept. Given that the house we are moving into is much smaller than the house we are leaving I had to repeatedly remind them that we couldn’t keep all of their stuff indefinitely.

Then came the packing. Luckily we didn’t have to actually do it as we had professional packers come in and do it for us: two people, two days, 172 boxes. We did have to corral all the stuff that wasn’t going with us which led to three carloads worth of donations to the Salvation Army: clothes; more than 200 books, and everything else that wasn’t going to go in a box. (By the third trip, I was hearing comments like “back again?”)

And the final stage: loading the truck. One empty eighteen wheeler, five guys, hundreds of blankets and rolls of tape, 223 tagged items besides the boxes, and seven hours of schlepping and hauling led to a truck that was 2/3 full and a house that was completely empty.

With a carload of stuff that the movers wouldn’t take – including a dozen open bottles of single malt – we pulled out of the driveway for the last time. I can’t say goodbye; it’s too final. But it is time for a new adventure so I’ll say “until we meet again my friends.”