Articles Empire
When it comes the holidays, moving is not an ideal activity, even if your move has occurred several months ago. If the move has been more recent than that, then you could be setting yourself up for some significant depression.
It’s not much of a surprise as to why you might be feeling a little blue during the holiday season. Dozens of holiday songs and movies, played endlessly from Thanksgiving on, literally sing the praises of being “home” for the season. Think about it for a moment: “Home for the Holidays” and “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” are just two examples. And when you’re In a new place or about to move to a new place, it may not feel much like home.
Some Sources of Holiday Blues
There are a few things that can lead to having more Holiday Blues. Understanding the causes can help you find solutions. Here are some of the most common:
• Being unfamiliar in new place
• Feeling alone, potentially separated from family and friends
• Losing traditions that made you feel more festive during the Holidays
• Feeling disorganized and stressed both by the new place and the Holidays themselves
Here are a few steps you can take to try to feel less down and more festive during the season:
Holiday Blues Buster 1: Allow Yourself Some Holiday Time
Many people are simply overwhelmed with packing, moving and unpacking responsibilities as the Holidays arrive. There can be a huge temptation to simply cancel the Holiday celebration altogether. This is generally a bad idea if the Holidays have been important to you traditionally. Leave at least 20 minutes a day to focus on the traditions that have been most important to you.
Holiday Blues Buster 2: Break Out Some Holiday Decorations
If there are certain decorations or treasures that make the Holidays special to you, be sure to pack them in a specially marked box to stand out from the rest so you can find them easily. If that’s not possible, set aside some time to look through your boxes to find them and put some out. If neither of those options work, you might want to visit the local Dollar Store and get a few inexpensive decorations to put out until you can find the rest of yours.
Holiday Blues Buster 3: Visit Local Holiday Events
By getting out and participating in local holiday events, you accomplish a few things all at once:
• You get out of the house
• You get a chance to meet new people
• You take your mind off the changes and the new place
As an added bonus, since many Holiday celebrations are repeated annually, you will be building new traditions that you will be able to come back to.
Holiday Blues Buster 4: Play Some Favorite Holiday Music
Having some favorite Holiday music playing the background, even when you’re doing other things, can make you feel more festive. Be sure to pick CD’s that are your favorites so that they’re familiar and comforting.
Holiday Blues Buster 5: Keep In Communication With Family and Friends
Take advantage of email, webcams and the phone to check in with family and friends “early and often” throughout the Holiday Season. Ask lots of questions to keep the conversation going, request copies of emailed pictures of their celebrations and send them yours. One trick is to send out cards very early in the season, since this tends to help bring cards back into you.
Moving during the Holidays has its own unique challenges, but following these steps can make them feel more festive and help eliminate Holiday Blues.
More Moving Resources:
* For more FREE Moving Tips and Advice on movers, please use this link.
* By clicking here, you can also access our FREE Change of Address Guide, with tips and tricks, including how to reduce “junk mail” and virtually eliminate commercial telemarketing calls.
* Finally, get even more advice with our Moving Advice Blog.
Tags: Holidays, movers, moving, Packing, relocation
Posted in Real Estate · July 23rd, 2010 · Comments (0)
Nothing beats backpacking in Europe if you get the opportunity. So, you probably want to aware what to pack for Europe.
Packing Your Backpack for Europe
Millions of people head off to Europe on a backpacking trip through a discount travel guide each year. Having done it five times, I can tell you that it will be one of the best times of your life. That being said, you must take some things with you. On the positive side, you don’t need that much.
Europe is not another planet. I mention this because you should keep in mind you can buy everything there if you forget it here. The first time people go backpacking in Europe, they tend to completely overdue it on the packing front. You are not climbing Mount Everest, so don’t overdue it!
The first things to pack are clothes. Depending on where you are going, you may need clothes for warm weather or cold. Assuming it is warm, you need a couple of shirts that are wrinkle resistant. You will buy others there, so don’t pack ten. You also will need a pair of shorts and a bathing suit. If you plan on visiting museums and churches, you will need a pair of long pants to get into many of them. Pack something light that is wrinkle resistant.
For your feet, you can load up on socks because they do not take much space. You will need some sandals and then a pair of something comfortable. Some prefer hiking boots, but I usually went with cross trainers. Whatever you do, make sure you get used to the shoes before heading off. You are going to walk a lot, so blisters from new shoes can be a killer.
On the personal front, you need a brush, toothpaste and any medicinal needs. That is it. You can buy anything else you need as you need it. There is zero point to lugging around shampoo all over Europe. Murphy’s law says it will open in your backpack! Keep it super simple.
While your trip will result in great memories, they will fade in time. Take a camera and, of course, one of our travel journals. The camera should be hardy so it can take the inevitable beating that will occur. Our Nomad travel journals are compact and in a case. They are perfect for trips to Europe because we were on one when we got the idea!
Europeans can read. This means you can buy travel guide info over there. If you plan to visit three or four countries, take the holiday travel guide for the FIRST country only. You can pick up the others over there or trade with other backpackers. Guidebooks are heavy and this will save you the aggravation of hauling them everywhere. Also, cybercafes are everywhere, so you do not need to bring a laptop unless you really have a specific need.
Finally, keep copies of your passport and any supporting documentation with you. One set goes in your backpack while another goes in your shorts, money belt or wherever you have space.
Pack light. If you forget something, you can buy it over there. Have a blast!
Tags: backpack, Europe, guide, Packing, Travel
Posted in Travel · July 9th, 2010 · Comments (0)