The Real Numbers for Moving to Boston

Posted October 5, 2018 by Katie Carlson

104 days to panic between graduation and move in

5 inquiries sent to potential roommates//landlords

4 rejections (some last minute)

1 perfect fit

10 pages of the world’s longest packing list — organized by room, and including a physical description of purchased objects

294.8 miles between home and home 2.0

1,000,000 anxious thoughts

2 red minivans packed to the brim, seats all folded down

4 hours and 58 minutes << the anticipated drive time

9 hours and 4 minutes << the actual drive time

1 crucial Dunkin’ stop

1 high school friend I duped into riding to Boston with me (thanks Alex!!!)

1 lovely girlfriend of the high school friend I duped into riding to Boston with me >> who also happens to be a Boston local

1 rolled IKEA queen size mattress

3 sets of too small bed sheets, purchased in a confused panic

1 set of sheets that actually FIT the bed

1 amazing past and future roommate, flying in from Kentucky

1 committed and supremely organized mother

2 air mattresses, 1 sleeping bag, and 1 yoga mat >> because my home will always be a pseudo youth hostel

1 cousin of a family friend >> also new to Boston and also roped into assembling furniture

1 bright yellow Kallax shelf from IKEA

17,000 loose screws and pegs rolling around the floor

5 floor lamps >> because you can never have too much light!

1 twin size bed set, inherited from a beloved friend who couldn’t fit them in her suitcase to go back home to the UK

4 towels to match the bed set inherited from the same beloved friend who couldn’t fit them in her suitcase to go back home to the UK

1 set of green stackable drawers that are covered in stickers and stuck with me all throughout undergrad

1 beautiful table >> trash picked during the new (to me) phenomenon of Allston Christmas on September 1st

2 rolls of cucumber scented paper for lining the linen closet

1 collapsable “granny” cart, lovingly loaned to me by my actual grandmother, and perfect for hauling groceries

2 giant metal mixing bowls, because I might need to mix up two giant recipes at once!

1 more college friend, willing to sacrifice her Sunday to assemble a bed frame

3 attempts to PROPERLY assemble said bedframe

1 giant little brother, with newly purple hair

17,000 throw pillows, because I am, in fact, a pillow hoarder

8 moving boxes full of clothes, because I am, in fact, also a hoarder of clothing

1 father, sorely missed, attending a fantasy football draft >> (Don’t worry, he appears later)

1 electric kettle, so I can get my tea fix

2 weekends required to move my life from New Jersey to Boston

1 U-haul, picked up in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania

1 giant denim encased futon >> its intense size making the U-Haul necessary

1 set of saintly parents willing to drive said U-Haul to Massachusetts

2 bottle openers, because while we are grad students, we are still 22, and human

1 salad spinner, because it’s the little things in life that make me happy

1 sword, purchased in Toledo, Spain, displayed proudly on the wall (don’t ask)

2 legless lawn flamingos, named Flo & Mingo, one of which accompanied my mother through her college years in the 80s

1 4K television, because TV is literally my roommate’s job, and we love our Jeopardy

1 gangly brother whose limbs could barely be contained in the U-Haul

5 under the bed boxes, because I am neither resourceful nor rich enough to find a dresser, and I need somewhere to put my 8 moving boxes worth of clothes

1 wildly expensive toll clocking in at $42.50 >> the cost of taking a U-Haul over the George Washington Bridge

20+ animal themed folders, because I’ve never been a fan of limiting my tastes based on age

1 boot tray, already set up by the door, because I know it won’t be summer forever

 Finally being settled in my favorite city attending my dream program? – I can’t assign numbers to how awesome it feels!