A Trip to Troutville

Friday was my last day of work. It was weird because I had really finished up around Wednesday afternoon, but I did some research and cleaned up a bit. I cannot wait to get started this fall.

All summer, save 2 weeks or less, I have been biking to school or riding with Jacob, mostly a combination of the two. My truck had issues starting around spring semester finals and we only got it fixed in June. Well then it wouldn’t pass inspection and my tires were bald and it was making all sorts of noises. When Rachel and Jonathan came to visit they offered to take my truck home, to what I thought would be its final resting place. A week ago, mom called me up saying that dad had spent the past week and a half under my truck and all was fixed, it was inspected and ready to get back in the action. I was speechless, my legs were crying thanksgiving (biking is only so much fun). I am so grateful for my wonderful daddy!!! I was ready to bike to school, and ride with Jacob and live in the lab, but I’m seriously thankful that I don’t have to. I can study and work where it’s convenient, not where I’m stuck. My truck is like brand new. No joke. New tires, new front axle or something with bearings, new fuel pump, people, it was vacuumed and armor-alled, for pete’s sake!!! My father is amazing and so giving. My truck used to sound like you were standing between two train cars, with lots of metallic clanking sounds and jerking to boot. Now it rides like a dream and can take me anywhere. Ok, but anyway, I needed to get up to see my parents, and soon so I could have my truck!! (and do lots of work for them, of course, in gratitude).

Well, lucky me, I didn’t have to come up with a plan of repayment, it was given to me. My parents are redoing their floors. I grew up on this soft brown carpet, it served us well but is now 30 years old. It is time for a change and my parents picked a good time when supplies and labor are steals, I mean good deals. They found some beautiful wood and although it is weird for me to think of such a change in the house (even the bathrooms are getting wooded!), it is definitely for the better. And the hardwood floors will last much longer than carpet, so hopefully my parents won’t have to do this again.

Friday night, Jacob and I packed up his car and headed for Troutville. He had saved the packing for the day of, but we got out of town by 7. We stopped in Charlottesville for some taco salads and were rolling into the driveway by 11. Jacob spoke a lot about work. On the last stretch of 81 he was really tired and struggling to not be bored. I started talking all about lab stuff, but Jacob had to cut me off, apparently I wasn’t helping destroy his boredom only making it worse 😛

Saturday we woke to mom and dad going through pictures loudly: oh, we’ll have to save this for Jacob to see. Oh my look at your dad. etc. I got up, fed my man and was promptly handed a box to start cleaning out my room. The house needed to be empty before the floor-layers could begin. So I emptied my drawers and then went for the bookshelf. Soon we were called to help move the big furniture. With all four of us lifting and moving and packing and moving, the house was mostly empty before nap time. Mom was shocked. She though I was just going to do my room, and just the stuff not the furniture before going back home. But instead all of us got on a roll and filled at least 3 trailers with stuff.

The living room floor cannot be replaced because it is cement. So all the large furniture and mattresses went in there. It was a bit cramped.

We all napped really hard, and ate a wonderful dinner. Soon we were back taking drawers out and really having an empty house. Oh the work we did. It was so hard. But it felt good to collapse at the end of the day, and officially make Sunday a day of rest. We went to church and picked up some extra boxes before heading home. I made Jacob a sandwich and he left me to go back to work. It was kind of odd, him leaving. But I had fun reading a recipe book and hanging out with mom while she did genealogy.

Monday we got back to work, but a different kind. Mom repayed our repayment in food, yay! Mom picked the beans while I was still asleep. When I woke, I waited for 8 am so I could change my class schedule. I decided to switch from biochem to advanced organic, but I had a class during the latter’s time period. My history class had an alternate section the previous hour but I had to drop one to pick up the other and with only 7 spots left in both I was worried I wouldn’t get my spot back. But I took a leap of faith, signed on just at 8 and pulled the switch. It worked and immediately (I checked) the classes were full, both of them, what a blessing. So now my schedule is perfect and I have lots of time for research and practice. Plus I have a class with Kate, yay!

But back to food. I picked the most beautiful tomatoes, a whole 5 gallon bucket full. We cooked them all day and canned the tomato juice, 8 quarts of it. Rachel came over and we took apart the beds and moved the mattresses. Both dad and Rachel helped us snap beans and we had those canned, all 19 quarts of beans, before 2. Then we drifted in the pool and after dinner, Jonathan came over to help us with the very very last things. I had to pack up my entire room, including all the stuff on the walls. Apparently the nail gun rattles the walls, and the dust from the sanding would probably be bad for them too. But it was sad, I felt like I was getting kicked out, it really was a time capsule and now it will just be a museum. I’ll put it back though, as soon as the floors are done. They won’t get rid of me that easily. We spent the night watching cops and chilling, and periodically wandering through the house just speaking to hear the echo.

Mom was absolutely ecstatic that we moved the entire house in one weekend. She was planning on puttering at it for at least a week. I told her with the crazy way we packed it would take weeks to unpack, clean the stuff, and organize it. But that’s what I love about our family, we get together to help. We are just so productive, well, my parents are. Jacob and I are a bit more lazy and Rachel falls a few rungs lower, but hey when we are all together, stuff gets done. Bam.

Today I left; the floor-layers said they would be there at 8. They had offered to help move but there was literally nothing left to move. Oh, well, they did clean out the closets which I hadn’t thought of. I passed them in the driveway on my way home, waved and drove on back to Williamsburg, with the radio blasting and the windows down, mainly just enjoying being reunited with my favorite second favorite man.