The Big Move, Part 2

So after making the decision to relocate Calypso Farm to Apopka, I set the move in date for August 14. A week after that decision, I was hospitalized when what I thought was a pulled muscle turned out to be a blood clot in my leg.
Overnight, I have gone from healthy and active and feeling immortal, to being put on restrictive activity...fine with me, giving the horrible heat, but I have had a hard time understanding how my healthy body could turn on me and make me feel so weak, light headed and tired all the time. I am finally coming to terms with the fact that I am dealing with a "serious" health issue here.
Thankfully, I have had the best of support from my boarder, Nikki, who has taken over feeding and mucking; Jen, who has come home from Tampa whenever she can, both their boyfriends, Shawn and Travis, who have helped with the move, and good wishes from all my friends.
Moving in the middle of summer is insane. Moving when not in the best of health...well, that is just beyond stupid. But we have been managing!
Last weekend was the "big move"..all the heavy and big items..trunks, jumps, stall mats, troughs. Shawn brought his trailer on Sunday and Jen and Travis came up for the day. We loaded everything, a barrel decided to make an early departure from the trailer halfway to the barn and was recovered with no incident to any passing vehicles, and we spent the afternoon unloading, cleaning, killing wasps and spiders and organizing. Peter stayed home and smoked ribs and chicken all day for us to feast upon for dinner. It was a great time, although I did more supervising than work!
It is amazing how much stuff one accumulates over the years! I think each of my horses has at least 2 sheets and 3 blankets, not to mention fly sheets, coolers and anti-sweat sheets. Thirty years of ribbons decorated my tack room and had to come down. Numerous photos, signs and plaques. Buckets and saddle pads multiply tenfold, just like rabbits. No, no rabbits to bring, although a few years ago there would have been a few bunnies and guinea pigs, not to mention a bird. Two fat and useless barn cats will come with us, however. I don't need a crop, but yet there is a collection of them. Two bridles for each horse, 20 bits for each horse (or so it seems, though they all go in just one!), girths, halters (their every day halter and their "good" leather show/travel halter) and many lead ropes. It goes on and on!
Once I received permission to go to the barn, I started packing all the stuff, a little at a time. Stacked in the aisleway in rubbermaid totes, I made several trips to the new barn to deposit them. The heat really gets to me right now, so I have just dumped them in the large feed room...when cooler weather prevails, most of it can be addressed.
Last Saturday, Nikki and I decided to forego bagged shavings and get it by the bulk. The stalls, having sat empty for over a year, needed alot to get started and it made more sense from an economic view anyhow, to go to Focal Point Nursery in Geneva and get it by the truck-bed load! Economically sound? At just $75 for the truckload, Yes! But what we didn't figure into this equation, was removing 3 yards of shavings..an entire 8 foot bed full, out of the truck!
Filling it was an adventure! We followed Dave in his tractor into the behind the scenes of a nursery...down a dirt road, past potted plants and trees, empty plant containers and piles of rock, mulch and dirt. A sharp 180 degree turn in my F250 crew cab with extended bed was difficult enough....next up was an even sharper 90 degree turn, with a fence on one side and empty pallets on the other...I was wondering how on earth could I back up and around the 180 degree turn, when Dave hops out of his tractor and pushes the pallets out of the way...Nikki and I were laughing hysterically at this point, as a light rain drizzled. We filled the truck bed and Dave took us out a different route, past an old log cabin tucked away where no one would ever imagine it exists. We were laughing the whole time, while Dave kept apologizing for the locked gate and missing key that took us on our wayward journey!
A quick stop for some South Carolina peaches and another stop at Horstmeyers for some wormers and feed, and we arrived at the new barn. We started cleaning and then realized we had to empty the bed of its contents of shavings. Suddenly, we realized why we paid the extra expense of bagged shavings! Thankfully for me, Nikki shoveled out the entire 3 yards of shavings...we may be going back to bagged shavings in the future!
The new barn is now clean, rid (hopefully) of wasps and spiders, waiting for 4 horses, 2 useless cats and a slew of tack. Nikki's mom and dad arrive tomorrow from Tenessessee, bringing us 60 bales of freshly baled orchard hay! Saturday morning, bright and early, the horses will arrive! I cannot wait!