THINGS ARE GETTING HECTIC | July 2021

We’re four days away from our move to Helsinki, and this month has been very different for us… About a week ago I was at my desk trying to figure out, what did I do this month? Did I do anything at all? Usually I spend around eight hours at my desk working on client projects, personal work or story ideas. This month was not that. I can’t remember a time I spent less time sitting in my studio. So there I am, a week ago, wondering how this month flew by so quickly. And since I’ve felt like I haven’t had a chance to make many new exciting things to share, I think the easiest way to break down June and share it with you was to whip it up into nineteen easy steps that it took to get airplane ready! I hope you enjoy my super helpful and informative guide, and most likely it will inspire you to make a move like this on your own.

1. FILLING BOXES (EASING IN)

Remember you packed that one time already when you moved out of your apartment? (see June’s blog post here about moving to the suburbs) Well it’s time to do it again. This time tetris everything into your boxes to max out the space (and obviously break your back lifting it). This leads to a very satisfying outcome but requires way too much thought and effort than at all necessary. At this point you wonder, why didn’t I just pay someone to do this? Where will I ever find a box that will fit my bicycle?

2. FILL OUT A PACKING LIST

After you commit to a shipper, they give you a packing list to fill out with confusing customs codes that may cause you to panic and forget everything that you put into the box and now you’ll have to empty it again and pack it one more time and this time all the stuff that you fit in there before don’t fit anymore. Filling out an efficient packing list also includes finding the infuriating middle ground between descriptive and non-descriptive words. And if nothing else do NOT forget to number your boxes or otherwise you’ll never know what is in what box! Once you’re done though, it might be the most beautiful thing you’ve ever made.

3. FORGO A HEAP OF MONEY

Oh man, it’s time to pay the questionable shipper. It’s OK try cry at this point, it is a lot of money for not a whole lot of guarantees. But you maintain hope that it will make it to its destination! Either way, it’s the first big chunk, and it does sting a little.

4. MEASURE YOUR BOXES (AND INEVITABLY DO A BUNCH OF MATH)

You’ve filled out your packing list but haven’t got any weights of measurements for these boxes that are all different sizes! Lifting and weighing countless seventy pound boxes is not the ideal way to spend a day, but it must be done! Take a good sudsy soak once you’re done - it’s well deserved. And maybe throw your scale out the window while you’re at it…you might not ever want to see it again.

5. HAVE A HEALTHY MOMENT OF SELF-PITY

You’ve made it through the packing stage. You’re pretty sure you know what’s in every box, but the doubts are starting to creep in. Am I sure I listed that comb in box 12? It’s all taped now and you really don’t have the energy to check it out again. It’s okay to let it out, because the hardest part is yet to come: palletizing. But let’s not think about that just yet. Have a good cry and leave the next step for tomorrow.

6. COMPOSE YOURSELF AND FIND AN APARTMENT

It’s the perfect apartment! The best part of this whole thing. When you find that awesome place and start to imagine what your living space and day-to-day is starting to look like. It requires more phone calls and applications, but it’s worth it for the right spot.

VERY IMPORTANT TANGENT: Look up furniture in second-hand shops for at least six hours. Feel excited and then immediately disappointed that you can’t snag everything up right away.

7. PAY ANOTHER HEAP OF MONEY

Like any other place, with an awesome new apartment comes another stingy installment of money. This one feels more exciting though than handing over cash to the mysterious shipper person and you’re starting to grow numb to the money slipping through your fingers. You might as well just let it happen.

8. MAKE AT LEAST ONE FRANTIC CALL

A quick panic call to the shipper to make sure the Friday drop-off is still good to go, and where do you go again when you get there? Make sure that you didn’t forget any export/import documents and do a safety google search of the shipper’s warehouse just to make sure it actually exists. These shippers can be so shady!

9. DO SOME ACTUAL WORK

It might be good to get some regular work in between all the planning and arranging for you know, money and general personal feeling of accomplishment. There are a few gaps between planning here and there (if you choose to see them).

10. CRAM ALL THE THINGS YOU FORGOT TO PACK IN THE REMAINING BOXES

Camera lenses, adapters, bicycle helmets, power converters (including a mega power converted weighing at 20lbs - how do you miss that?)…Can you even cram these into your two open boxes that are left? It’s a nightmare. Don’t fret, open up another box, and mark it down in your packing list…There might be a bit more space to squeeze a new box onto the pallet.

11. PLAN YOUR PALLETS

Wow! All the boxes are sealed, numbered and marked with their labels. It’s done! Time to start actually planning the pallets. Another chance for some tetris:ing and puzzling - what combination will give you even weight distribution? And then, how will they actually fit together. It’s easy with all the boxes that are the same size, but then you start getting into the weeds with all the odd-sized boxes of bikes, banjos, keyboards, desks that are all different sizes from one another.

It takes a while, but you get there. Another very satisfying milestone completed! Time for another relaxing bath to mend your back from the third stint of lifting and carrying.

12. BOOK A U-HAUL…

Easy and cheap! What could go wrong?

…DRIVE A U-HAUL.

They feel…Funky!! Luckily the warehouse is 10 minutes away. Get your boxes in and start driving!

14. IT’S TIME TO PACK YOUR PALLETS (FO-REAL)

This part should be easy. You’ve drawn a diagram that only you can understand, and getting everything onto the pallet will be a breeze. Well, maybe not for your back because this is the third time this month that you’re moving a bunch of boxes that are carrying more weight than they’re meant to. Just make sure everything is super wrapped and you’re ready to say goodbye to your stuff!

15. IT’S DONE - SIGH OF RELIEF.

See you on the other side, pallets! Now we can relax until we…

…IMMEDIATELY START WORRYING ABOUT THE PALLETS TRAVELING ACROSS THE ATLANTIC.

You can track vessels? I’m not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing. Might lead to more neurotic breakdowns. Close down the app and maybe even uninstall it, we don’t need that kind of temptation.

16. REALIZE HOW MUCH STUFF YOU’LL NEED TO FIT IN YOUR SUITCASE.

Compared to the pallets, it felt like you left very little to pack in your suitcase. But in reality, it barely fits and you wind up forcing it all in and possibly facing some overweight charges at the airport. You consider whether you’re willing forgo another pair of shoes or extra bits and pieces of supplies.

17. HAVE THE CATS HEALTH-CHECKED

Time to cram the kitties back into their carriers one more time before the flight for a final check-up ten days before arrival in Helsinki. They will not be happy about it, but you just think about how unhappy they will be for the flight and maybe in hindsight they won’t think that this was so bad. Either way, you have to deal with some kitty-related guilt.

18. CELEBRATE THE FIRST DAY OF YOUR VALID RESIDENCE PERMIT

Thinking back to the application for the residence permit feels like years ago (in reality it was only three months), and there have been at least seventeen steps that happened after that but you still feel like celebrating the official beginning of the residence permit! Have a drink, see friends and family and enjoy the few pre-flight days! Soon you’ll be on the other side and everything will be a new kind of scary and exciting, but at least you won’t be packing again for a long time.

19. YOU’RE READY TO FLY!

Ready or not it’s happening! Time flew by and you breezed through all eighteen steps and you’re thinking, ‘that wasn’t so bad’ and ‘I could do that again in a couple of years.’ And you’d be right! It was really not so bad at all, and you’ll probably be thinking about doing something like this again in no time at all. But for right now, all you have to do is focus on having a nice flight and keeping the cats happy under the seat!

Aaaand that’s it! Now you know what goes into an easy-peasy international move… No further explanation required, no questions left unanswered!

I do hope you enjoyed July’s newsletter with these little illustrations, I’m looking forward to cooking up something new for August! It feels like we are whipping through the summer months in a furious pace, though it’s probably because of all this excitement I’ve been having with the move!

Next time you’ll be hearing from me, it’ll be from sunny Helsinki and I could not be more excited!

Until then, enjoy this wonderful month of July friends and followers!

-Tilda