[Hannah]

The little neurotic bit in the back of my skull is starting to worry a bit (see, it's not just the other half who has a neurotic streak...)

We've got PR, given in notice at work (finishing at Xmas), booked shippers (for 12th Jan), sorted out a rental in NZ, cleaned up some tools etc. ready for shipping, booked flights....and waiting for house sale to go through (fingers crossed!)

Most other things I can think of (relating to packing) have to be left till nearer the time we go - we plan to get Christmas out of the way and then start some serious boxing up. Some boxes are packed but as we are quite minimalist we need most of the stuff we own on a daily basis.

What really obvious and time consuming things am I not doing now which I could be doing. Plan to go out tomorrow and cancel some direct debits, write letters to the utilities companies.....but what else.

I remember reading on this forum a few weeks ago that someone wished they had used the time more effectively before they left because in the last couple of weeks there was so much to do and so little time.

Any advice from those who've been there and wearing the T-shirt!!!?

Thanks, hannah x

[Lupin]

"Contemplate my navel" seems to be high on my agenda atm :roll

I'm a bit like a rabbit in headlights...bank account, IRD numbers, hire car, flight socks....

[jess]

Hannah it sounds like you have it well under control! :D

I can't think of anything you've missed that's a must do. One thing I wish I had done was pick up a few things I was low on that I knew I would need -- flannel sheets, paint brushes, my moisturizer -- nothing I couldn't find here in NZ. Just a few things I could have gotten quite a bit cheaper and packed in our container.

[MB]

One thing I wish I had done was pick up a few things I was low on that I knew I would need

Yes. And alongside Jess' point about need, something that I think is of huge value is to spend a little time now choosing just one or two things that you know you will want.
By this I mean a couple of things that will either be a touchstone of where you are coming from, and/or will help you keep going in unfamiliar settings or if things get challenging. Not necessarily objects like photos or jewellery -- though it might be those -- but anything you know underneath is really important to you such as favorite music/radio recordings; a familiar re-read paperback; a few old TV shows on tape or disc; a beat-up old sweater. Could be anything dear to you!
I think I have said before (if anyone cares! :laugh ) that there are probably enough changes to undergo without making a grand gesture and sweeping aside absolutely every last trace of 'the old life'! If you're wide awake at 2 a.m. in a rental cottage in the Coromandel, it's pitch dark and the bedside lamp is still coiled in a packing box, it's great just to be able to bung on your MP3 player and hear an old talk show from home; or have a slug of your favorite Scotch; or grab a flashlight and read a few pages of a book you read a hundred times in your schooldays! :yes

As much as anything, I think the trick is to sort out one or two such things now and pack them where they will be on hand on arrival, rather than be in my '2 a.m.' situation and suddenly realize that they're all in a container 10k miles away or that nothing special was packed in the first place!

All the very best!

[willowshouse]

Something I planned to do and didn't is cancel my life insurance policies - I thought I'd better wait and until I had new policies here and then cancel them BUT now I'm extra glad I didn't because everyone on this site says it's best to keep UK ones.

My philospophy was - anything that didn't get done while I was in the UK would get done when I arrived in NZ. With the internet and cheap phone calls it's not that hard to do stuff. You can drive yourself mad if you try hard enough!

I completely agree with the posts above - try and think about what you really wouldn't want to do without ... and buy it up in bulk! At the moment I am missing jars (not tins) of beetroot and tins of (not frozen) spinach.

Best of luck with it all ... oh, and try to make the most of your time left in the UK. I found that the impending move puts a different perspective on things that I found quite enjoyable.

Dawn

[real_sunfire]

Hi Hannah,

Make sure you phone all the utilities companies before you go to make sure all your accounts are closed before you go as it is a real hassle trying to phone them from here because of the expense and the 13 hour time difference.

Rgds.,
Nick.

[Ana&Steve]

Do you need to sign paperwork with the bank to approve money transfers? (something we have to do before we leave! :) )
Congratulations on the move,
Ana

[marcia]

My suggestion would be have cooking lessons on an electric stove!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I HATE cooking on electric, you can't control the heat fast enough like gas and the air in the kitchen at the moment every tea time is blue I'm afraid, not with smoke but my bad language :(

I wish I'd brought my bottle of lavender oil for the burns too - will have to go and get some!!

Another thing I did do, when we packed our cases which was invaluable in the motel where we only unpacked the essentials, was to number each of the cases and bags and make a list as I was packing of those bits and pieces that go in, that you can never find normally without going through every case, eg the plug adaptors, kids books and toys, shaving stuff, toiletries, etc, I had put a selection of everyones clothes in each case so if one went missing (which it did!!!) nobody would be without stuff.
We found the list was referred to on a daily basis to find stuff, no way would I have remembered what went into each case in the madness of the last couple of days in the uk.

[Brijan]

Hi Hannah
This may sound stupid but make a list of all your friends addresses, i have a hell of a problem every Christmas remembering them all :o , it sounds obvious but when you live close to people you just pop in or ring them, or maybe i'm just a brick short of a bungalow!
Good luck
Brian :)

[lollypop]

.
Another thing I did do, when we packed our cases which was invaluable in the motel where we only unpacked the essentials, was to number each of the cases and bags and make a list as I was packing of those bits and pieces that go in, that you can never find normally without going through every case, eg the plug adaptors, kids books and toys, shaving stuff, toiletries, etc, I had put a selection of everyones clothes in each case so if one went missing (which it did!!!) nobody would be without stuff.
We found the list was referred to on a daily basis to find stuff, no way would I have remembered what went into each case in the madness of the last couple of days in the uk.

Brilliant idea Marcia - wish I'd thought of that!

[Hannah]

Thanks guys...so that's a general consensus that i can fill my cases with yorkshire tea!!!!!

Will search special offers over the next few weeks and make sure my cases are full to the brim (forget clothes and toilettries Marcia, where to find the tea is the important issues - c'mon, get your priorities right).

So how's it going Marcia - time for a 'first impressions' post I think (unless you've done one already and i'm just dozy and missed it!!!!)

Have you been to Tracy Island (aka Palmy Park) yet?

hannah

[marcia]

Hannah - we drink Pg and they sell it over here so we were fine!!

I'm just about to do my first few weeks post - but got side tracked.

Now which park did you say Tracy island was in - the boys spent quite a bit of time down at the Esplanade the first week because it was just round the corner from our motel, was it in there? Even i had a go on the airel slide - big kid eh?Couldn't get over how lean and well kept it all is, and to even have vending machines in the little hut that don't get trashed (they do lock them up each night)

The parks and sports fields here are wonderful, Kev will be getting a good insight to Ashhurst Domain tomorrow as he starts work in the morning up there - only 130 acres to look after, and another 9 parks as well!!!!!!!!!!!!

So let me know Hannah if I'm looking in the right park or not!! I'll go and do my big post now!

[Hannah]

Hi Marcia,
Not sure what the park is called - but its the one near the netball/basketball/cricket fields etc., pretty much in centre of town (very close to the immigration dept in the town centre!)
It has an aviary in it, a small train track (with dollar rides on Sunday), loads of play equipment, free BBQ, free hot water dispenser in the park kitchen area, a bit of play equipment that looks like a giant hamster wheel (which kids run around in and fall over)....and paddling pools, near the aviary, along with a line of palm trees that make the place a spitting image of Tracy Island from Thunderbirds!
I remember it being a few minutes drive up from the town centre, near various other sports fields and nearish to the main swimming pool (Which is excellent also).
Welcome to Palmerston North!!!
Hannah