That is exactly what I have felt like over the last nearly three weeks. You might wonder where we have been. Well... my life and Thane's literally turned upside down almost three weeks ago when my manager showed up at my door with a massive renovation schedule. Forget the notice that this was even taking place or the fact that it is the rainy season in the Pacific Northwest and inconducive for spending any amount of time outdoors or with windows open to air a place out- oh yeah and forget the fact that I have PROFOUND MCS!
Here I was though with my life in the balance LITERALLY. There was no way around it, it was time for a move and so began all the frantic work between me, ILR, caseworkers, my folks, Community Action, a few very caring friends, and I am sure I am leaving someone out.
Living on Section 8 allows me to move which is a huge plus (something HUD complex subsidy never would have enabled me to do) On the other hand, it can be very restrictive. Lets face it Section 8 limits don't take into account the real reality out there.
When you add MCS to the mix in trying to find a new place- oh boy, it makes life interesting. Apartments are not generally advertised until AFTER they have already been painted, re-carpeted, and cleaned with heavy chemical cleaners. I keep telling my folks that what we need is a list of the units *to be available soon*
Needless to say my holidays (Thanksgiving and Christmas) have been/ will be spent frantically packing/ unpacking hopefully. If trying to prepare for a move spur of the moment isn't difficult enough, try doing it when even the boxes you use to pack have to be MCS safe and they are in limited supply because you had no idea you needed to be keeping every Wag.com and Amazon box that hit your porch over the past year!
My apartment has rapidly been worked into box after box so that when a place is available, I will be ready to just seal up the last minute boxes and boxes of clothing that I am living out of as though they were suitcases.
You might wonder what happens to Thane in all this hubbub going on. I won't say it has been easy on him, but he is really taking it in stride. Sometimes he seems sad or a bit bewildered by the happenings. After all we have lived here the entire time I have had him. He does not know what this scale of moving is. I'm taking the time for those moments of training and fun. Sometimes that just means throwing his dinner for him to fetch while others it means filling buster cube so he can dispense it around the room himself.
I've been concerned obviously about what this level of stress on me, could do to him. At present, I've actually found him more in tune to me and the alerts we have trained or were training. I absolutely love it when he bounces up to me in full *paws* mode (front feet in my lap, on my armrest, on back of chair) to tell me someone is at the door or my timer went off (wherever I sat the thing down at). Moments like these are a joy.
Life will one day be normal again, but for right now, I struggle with getting everything done amidst the toxicity that I know could easily take my life. Today though, it is not. Today I am here with Thane and we will be OK in a new home one day very soon.
The leads have been few on the *new home* front. Either they don't take Section 8 or the price in their advertisement, isn't really the price they plan on charging and thus it is over my cap for Section 8. I'm also having to downsize to a one bedroom which is not good for MCS. Having a spare room for detox needs is crucial for me. I didn't have this in the apartment in California and I paid pretty heavily for that. I have the ability however to layout my living area how I see fit and appropriate for my needs since I will be entering this post MCS when I can control my personal space.
We've got our eyes on a place now. All I can do is take a look and if it seems good for my needs, hope that it will be able to be fit into the cap that Section 8 has for me. The overall expense there will be higher, but there are a number of perks that would make my life with MCS so much easier.
Today though, I have to be patient. The lady who helped my folks see the place is away until Tuesday. These days are for errands and more packing (while hoping other staff memebers don't rent the units out from under us), and oh yeah, a time to get out and work this redhead of mine so he feels like a new dog again.
One day I am sure I will look back on all this chaos and nightmare that has unfolded and have a funny tale to tell, but today, I just want it to be over.
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