House in Charlotte was finally emptied & cleaned around 9 pm on Wednesday the 27th. Our neighbors Eddie & Angela took our kids that night so that Diane and I could focus on the move. The kids stayed with them until Saturday evening.

    After breakfast at Greg's in the morning we left Charlotte about 9:45 AM (last minute cleaning delayed our departure) and headed for I85 stopping just before hand to put in $100 dollars worth of gas into the Truck (It took still another $30 dollars before I returned it on Friday after approximately 260 miles)

    All went well with the drive down and we arrived at Columbia about 4 PM. Fortunately as we arrived we ran into some students (Michael, Sarah & Catherine) who for a while  helped unload some of the truck. Since the ground was dry we drove the truck close to the front door of the apartment which helped when the Thunderstorm rolled in at 9 PM that evening. Our unloading continued till after 11 PM with just a small part of the ramp being open to the pouring rain. Diane & I had obviously packed the rain from Charlotte when we moved as Decatur had not had rain for weeks. About midnight we settled down to a peanut butter sandwich.

    The next day we were woken not by the sound of bells or music but a hose spraying against our window as the maintenance staff continued to prepare the housing for future arrivals. Diane & I spent the day organizing the apartment and purchasing a refrigerator since the apartments do not have one. We tried to buy one off of leaving students but they are prized possessions down here.

    On Saturday the 30th we left early to return to Charlotte to pick up the kids & our other car. They had a great time with Eddie & Angela. The trip in both directions was uneventful.

    The kids are happy that their new rooms are almost a 1/3 bigger than their old rooms in Charlotte. This has meant that we have made them responsible for storing all toys and games.

    Greek school starts Monday : )