Right. It's already the third week of September. Feels like it was just yesterday that we moved into our new home, despite sleeping here for exactly one month. The moving-in went smoothly and we are happy to see all our stuff from various countries - finally! - unpacked and forming our home altogether. 

We also said goodbye to some items which did not survive either the two-year storage or moving and shipping. One in particular was the iron we got back in Singapore only a few months before having to pack up. And since office shirts are of immediate urgency, we went to the departmental store looking for a new one. 

Now when it comes to investing in a good iron, apart from its weight (with and without water) and power (no less than 2400W), one should look for a high steam flow rate which is measured in "g/mn" (at least 150g/mn). Otherwise ironing would really be a dreadful chore. 

We spent some time checking out various models on the shelf when the sales staff came over to help. She seemed to have her mind set on Tefal over Philips. Ah! I liked her already. "Both about the same price. But one made in Indonesia. What are you paying for?"  Now I liked her even more!

So we chatted about some of the most mundane things, like why do steam iron plates turn brown too soon. The enthusiastic lady shared her wisdom.

"Oh! That! You tell your maid ar!! When she irons your clothes, she must not set it to the highest setting! You know sometimes maids have so many things to do, they think by ironing at the highest setting they can get the job done faster. This is wrong! Not only your maid risks spoiling your clothes, she burns the iron also! That's why the plate turns brown!"

The husband looked at me and said, "You hear that?". 

Our chirpy "aunty" was slightly embarrassed and apologized. 

That's how common domestic helpers really are in this part of the world. Everyone thinks everyone has one. Or two. 

We saw our container driven away for Marseille yesterday. It was a long day for JL who had been with the movers since morning. Glad we won't be doing this for the next three years at least. I only joined the party after lunch and they sure worked fast! 

The garage had already been half-emptied before the guys went for their lunch break. As most of the boxes (packed in Singapore two years ago) are still in good condition, the guys only had to redo their inventory list using their own labels. 

Nonetheless our three Bulgarian acquaintances came armed with new boxes in assorted sizes. Not too bad, because they've come all the way from Lyon and they'd better not forget nor run short of anything they need. Otherwise it'd be three hours' drive both ways to get it!

So the 101 was on respect for all things paper. What else to prepare yourself with before a week of serious packing? Here are some of my favourites through our moves:

Make a list. I love lists! If you don't, at least make one in your head and hope that you'll remember it. I write them down because my memory fails me when my limps are aching. The list should contain the items you want to pack. You don't have to explicitly spell it all out, just categorize them eg. house linens, books (JL's school texts, comics, my French books, cookbooks, and so on), paintings, winter clothes, the likes. The more you can group them, the better organized you will be when you get down to the actual packing. And the better you can imagine packing your stuff, the more you can identify what is required: custom-built wooden crate for paintings, packs of desiccants, bubble wraps, which sizes for your carton boxes, etc.