How do you eat an elephant?

Hello Everyone,

I heard a story once that scientists studying an 8,000 year old skeleton in Cheddar, England found that some present day local people shared its DNA. It was cited as proof that people often stay rooted in an area. I think it's proof that moving is so much a pain in the ass that 320 consecutive generations of people said: "Eff it, we'll just stay here.''

This past week, Emilie and I moved into our new house. We're very happy with it, the place is a dream. But buying a house very much isn't. Buying a new pair of pants is a big decision for me because I will wear them every day for the next seven years. That upfront decision making means I never have to wonder what to put on in the morning. Buying a house is very similar. Eventually, I'll know where everything is and life will be easy, but right now, I'm spending hours in the evenings and weekends figuring out where to put pots and pans, clothes, etc. Also, houses cost more than a pair of pants.

Even getting to where I have to decide where I want to store the reusable food containers for the rest of my life has been an odyssey. The theory of the division of labour is that everyone specializes in one thing, gets super efficient at doing that one thing, then we all trade for the things we need, and everyone is better off. My experience though is that banks are shockingly bad at managing money, real estate agents miss critical components of selling real estate and telecommunications companies literally refuse to take money in exchange for services if you live in the wrong place. Emilie did so much research on banking, real estate, and telecommunications, I'm pretty sure she's licensed to sell, finance and wire your house for internet, in case you're looking for someone. It also means a lot of inefficient duplicating of the work, which was frustrating, even exasperating at times.

On the plus side, Arthur loves the new house. There's lots of room to run around, he's inherited a comfortable bed from the dog who lived here previously, and there's a pair of plump little rabbits who live in the yard that he gets to ineffectively chase into the brambles. But the change means his anxiety is running high. He was pretty much at DEFCON 5 when I left him alone with Emilie on our second night here to drive into town to buy some snacks. He was very excited, 12 minutes later, when I returned.

We've mostly got the high traffic areas, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom, unpacked. In the basement though, are two rooms with nothing but boxes of stuff waiting their turn. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

Wes

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