User Post: Moving: Do I Really Have to Take All This Stuff?

I was speaking with my Aunt the other day and complaining about all the packing that I had to do. She said that she had moved so much that the next time she was just going to walk out with the clothes on her back and leave everything. I almost wish that I could do that myself. I counted and realized that I had moved five times in the last 10 years. I had left some things along the way so with each move, my stuff became smaller but then I ended up adding more stuff back in as I lived each day. My moving box count goes up and down as often as the stock market.
I think the stuff in my closet keeps multiplying. I could swear that every time I remove and pack hangers that the next day there are 10 more hanging on the bar. My books are growing, too. And my shoes are not only increasing in number but in style and color. My room is beginning to look like The Home Shopping Network and I don't even shop. Where did I get all this stuff?
Another problem with moving is the boxes. I can never find enough and they are expensive to buy. No matter how many boxes I drag in from my car, I am always running out. So every few days I must go on a box quest to different stores and request some boxes. It is getting more and more difficult because larger stores are crushing their boxes as soon as they are empty. So, at midnight, I find myself zooming down the aisles grabbing them out of stocker's hands before they know it. Earlier today at a large discount store, I asked a store employee about some boxes. He said I would have to ask Chris. I found Chris and he said I had to first call after 10pm and ask for a manager and request the size box and how many I needed. Then the manager will stack them in a basket with my name on it and I need to get to the store about 7:30 am to pick them up. I wanted to ask if I needed a password.
Also, the expense of moving is extremely high. No matter if you choose a moving company or you rent a truck and move yourself, you are going to be out some bucks. I can remember years ago when I was single and in my twenties moving in with three roommates. All I needed to do was find a friend who had a friend who had a pickup and we would grab a sofa from goodwill along the way. Why is it that moving is so much more difficult now? Is it that I have more stuff now? Or is it that I am so much older? Or is it because I no longer have a friend who has a friend with a pickup?
Moving can also be dangerous for those of us who are mature. Or should I say those of us who have to watch our vitamins and our roughage. I can't believe the bruises that have appeared all over my shins and thighs from running into boxes I have packed and stacked all over the apartment. I have stubbed my toes so many times, I'll never be able to wear sandals again, let alone a toe ring.
I drew a map last week and handed it to my Mother. "What is this for?" she asked, turning it every which way. "It's the best and safest way to get from your bedroom to the kitchen without climbing over a box, " I said. My Mother gave the map back to me. "Too late!" "Well, ok," I said. "The movers are coming on Tuesday. Are you going to be ready?" My Mother smiled. "Of course. All I have to do is sit and watch them load up the truck. I'm ready!"
Finally, the moving day comes and the movers load up the truck while we watch them work and hope they don't notice how badly our boxes are taped or how heavy they are. We follow them 100 miles in our car to our new home and once again we watch them unload. We walk through our new apartment, winding around all the boxes and trying not to trip. I was already dreading the unpacking. I wondered how long I could avoid it before we would need to find something. My Mother started laughing. "What's so funny," I asked? "Well," she said as she kept laughing. "Looks like you're going to have to draw a new map."