The Red Velvet Lawyer

For 13 Years, I've Called the Central Appalachian Mountains my Home These lush mountains provide a home and identity for proud, resourceful, self-reliant Appalachians who express a hospitality that combines both mountain and southern values.  They emphasize family ties, community, and church.  They use power washers like no other population I've ever met, probably because mold and coal dust tends to coat walls, porches, and other outside structures in this wet climate . . . and because, contrary to the stereotype, they are fastidious housekeepers and take great pride in their homes, yards, and gardens.  These mountains  shelter wildlife that includes black bears, panthers, coyotes, deer, timber rattlesnakes, migrating birds and butterflies, raptors, owls, mourning doves, ravens, groundhogs, spring peepers, cranes, and chipmunks.  I've also spotted blue-tailed lizards and voles in my own garden. My Facebook friends a...

The House , for sure. Over the last few posts, I've been discussing my transition to a new job in Qatar beginning on August 15 (yes, I've got a firm date now).   That transition has forced me to consider what to sell.  This past week, I boxed up most of the family heirlooms and other items for storage.  I've also packed about ten boxes of clothes and other items I plan to ship. I also spent several hours on the Qatar Ikea website adding furniture, dinnerware, cutlery, lamps, and other items to my shopping cart to decorate my anticipated four-room apartment in The Pearl District of Doha.  The list includes all sleek, modern items in white, light beige, and black.  Here is my new bed. So most of my "country cottage" furnishings that I enjoy here will not fit this new experience I'm creating.  Final Close Out Sale! So, time to sell everything that's left in the house?  This week, I was confronted with that possibility....

      I Get It.     One lawyer's way to have access to his stuff while on the move.

Do I Love it Enough  to Send it on an  Extended Boat Ride? During this transition, I am faced with the following decisions: What do I take on the plane with me? What do I store in the U.S.? What do I ship to Qatar? What do I sell or give away? I've covered a couple of those topics here and here .  Today, I am thinking about what to ship. Luckily, I've got new colleagues that have offered good advice. Aaron, a U.S. expat, had this to say: I actually put everything in the biggest boxes Qatar Airways would allow and shipped everything over with me on the plane (I think it was 9 boxes total). I paid for extra bags and for overweight charges. I had it when I touched down, which ended up being way more convenient than people who shipped. You'll get a housing allowance, and anything you think you will really need is likely something you can buy here. I brought over more random stuff than I needed and then found out I could have bought it here. Then late...

80,000  Page Views for The Red Velvet Lawyer Friends, family, and colleagues: Another milestone reached! 80,000 page views! My blogging experience started in March 2013. Like everything, success relates directly to the attention and energy invested in the project. As I blogged more frequently, built my relationship with other bloggers, got more posts shared by my FB friends, and continued to create content I hoped you would like, page views grew exponentially. Here is a summary of my experience: 5,000 page views on August 2013. 10,000 page views on November 7, 2013. 15,000 page views on November 27, 2013. 20,000 page views on December 9, 2013. 25,000 page views on January 1, 2014. 50,000 page views on July 17, 2014. 60,000 page views on Oct. 10, 2014. 80,000 page views on May 2, 2015.

What I Really Need or Love (Part 1) My colleague, Henry, helped me get the new job.  One year ago, he finished a 3-year contract in the same job.  He's been a marvelous resource.  When I asked about the move, he said he moved in two suitcases. A new Facebook friend, who moved to Dubai last August, said he moved with two suitcases, a carry-on bag, and his laptop case. Lordy, lordy.  From the mouths of men . . . . Employment Benefits As I decide what to take, what to store, what to ship later, and what to give away beforehand, I am influenced by the following benefits offered by Qatar University College of Law . $2,000 moving allowance.  I've checked.  I could carry 10 suitcases on the plane for $200 each for this international flight. I could also ship, by boat, additional items, but I don't have pricing on that yet. I do know it takes three months to cross the ocean and make it through customs.  $10,000 allowance to buy furnitu...

If I Don't Love it,  It's Gone, Girl! Since I got the job offer in mid-March, I have had to think deeply about what I really care about keeping.  I've settled on three sets of items:  my extensive CD collection, some of my original artwork, and my ADR book collection.   The Crap I Don't Even Miss! As I readied the house for sale, I made one purge. Brenda, my personal assistant on the home front, carted off trunk loads of clothing, purses, kitchen items, linens, and other things I don't even miss.    (Brenda's friend, Jean, wants one of my Michael Kors purses, but she's not getting it.  My Kors purses are the only purses I'm taking with me, except for four evening bags.  Silly that I think I will need four evening bags, but they are small and won't take up much room in a suitcase.) Jerry, my handyman, carted off several truckloads of stuff, including some furniture. He's putting an aquarium on this side...