We moved!

This is my first post written in our new apartment because yes, we managed to find a new place and move! I am relieved, exhausted (with a painful cramp in my neck after carrying all the stuff), happy and excited at the same time. Honestly, January had been super stressful for me due to the combination of house-searching stress and illness, which in turn resulted in my mental state plummeting significantly. Like last year, I’ve been in and out of infections all the time, and I really lost the resolve to exercise or go out much at all. My meditation routine and therapy, which generally keep depression at bay, stopped working, and I had to increase my anti-depressant dose. It seems to be helping and finding the new apartment made even a bigger difference.

We live in the country now, in a village close to Dublin (administratively it’s in a different county but for the postal code is for the Dublin area). Our apartment is in a new complex which is still under development. The owners have only lived here for a while before being relocated for work to Switzerland, and they wanted someone who would not damage the property and keep it in order. And, as dog owners, they didn’t mind pets! I wrote an offer that was better than any cover letter I’ve ever submitted (including highlighting our age to prove we’re not partying youth, and the description of our jobs) and we had to offer also references from the previous landlords, from the bank and from our workplaces (in my case, from the company that subcontracts me). And somehow, we managed to convince the agent so much so that he even agreed to postpone the deposit and first payment for a week (that doesn’t happen here where there are dozens of candidates to each rental offer).

We did some necessary shopping – such as a computer desk and chair for The Boyfriend – and then managed to transport everything between Friday evening and Sunday. I know I shouldn’t complain, but the move itself was an absolute nightmare! I had no idea we collected so much clutter throughout the years – and the van we rented was not enough to transport everything in one go. In fact, we had to drive there and back three times on Sunday, each time carrying everything with just one small trolley and the lift in the new building not working yet. We crossed the van rental time by 2 minutes and had to pay the penalty. Then there was barely any time left to vacuum the old apartment quickly before the landlord’s arrival to collect the keys (luckily, I cleaned the windows and all the appliances such as the oven during the week before the move). I was so stressed and tired that I wanted to cry, which happens rarely, as I tend to work well under stress and if I break down from it, it’s after the stressful time ends.

Then yesterday we spent unpacking and assembling the furniture (like our desks, large cat tree and living room shelves). I couldn’t even be bothered with showering until yesterday evening when the work was finally completed. We made it!!!

Transferring the cats to a new home was also a challenge. I followed the advice of my go-to cat behaviour book and set up a safe space for them in the master bedroom, with Feliway plugged in two days in advance to saturate the air and make them feel calmer. I think it helped, as after the first day of hiding under the bed, they went out yesterday to explore the unknown space. Today they are still a bit nervous and hide under the bed at every louder sound, but I think they’re going to like it here. And why wouldn’t they; the apartment is larger, and they have a lot of cosy spots for themselves. I also ordered a few window mats for them and a new pet armchair, so they should be just fine.

The apartment itself is awesome; I love it! It’s very warm and quiet, and the village centre with some shops is not far. There’s a bus service to Dublin from the village and the train from the nearby town (this is how The Boyfriend is going to go to work, leaving the car at the train station, as it’s much faster and more convenient than the crowded bus). We have a guest bedroom and two bathrooms, a balcony and a modern kitchen with yellow accents that I absolutely love. I also made some destashing before the move, and I set up a craft station in the spare bedroom.

The downside is the price. Our previous flat was much cheaper (almost half of the current rent), but the truth is, there was not much choice for us now. The most reasonable pet-friendly offers were about EUR 300 per month cheaper, at the disadvantage of being much colder, which would result in higher heating costs, and sometimes located in the areas without good transport options. So we decided to move here, although this is going to be a strain on our finances for sure.

We’re not really sure how long are we going to be staying here before moving to Greece. There’s a lot of stuff (with the mortgage, with taxes, just to name a few) that we need to settle before moving there and let me say that the Greek administration is not a very efficient one. That means we can be here for a year or longer – I don’t think it’s going to be less than that unless we’re very fortunate. So I have to say that I’m glad we’re going to spend this time in a nice place and make some good memories 🙂

Oh, and don’t think I’ve been staying idle throughout January knitting-wise! I managed to finish a few projects, and I’m going to write about them here soon. It’s my last free week before the work commences again, and I’m planning to use that time well, which includes updating the blog.