As expected, eldest son had packed practically nothing in preparation of our arrival to extract him from the dorm. Fortunately, his roommate was already gone, so there was no sorting process. Just grab and box.

And fortunately, many of the essentially college supplies that we had purchased (like a printer, printer paper, shoes, comforter, sheets and blankets) were still in their original boxes, unused. Easy to pack that way.

Got to his room at 10:00. Parking lot full of students and parents cramming gear into too-small vehicles. Fun passing the same fathers going in and out the doors. Asking them "Are we having fun, yet?"

One father and mother standing bored, idle and helpless in the hallway. Either unwilling or unable to help their son pack.

Another father and son (looking nearly identical, dressed similarly, and each wearing European "adel-veiss" hats) sawing 2x8 beams to fit into the small u-haul trailer. Whether to salvage the wood, or make platforms in the trailer I do not know.

The dorm dumpster filled to overflowing. With a steady stream of input. Including textbooks and a scavenged computer (it had been pitched intact... eldest son and friends did the scavenging).

Tempers surprisingly never got short, and all in all we did well. Space was at a premium, so I had to remind the wife which large items had to be prepped first (computer boxes and refrigerator). And that you pack the books, cds and tech equipment next, then see if you have room for the boxes of Mac&Cheese, cereal, croutons, Oreos, etc.

Her response on one occasion?

"Have you looked at the price of cereal lately? This will cost more to replace than the printer paper."

We had him out, the room cleaned and mopped (a great surprise to the SA) by 11:40.

When we moved the roommate's dresser to clean underneath, we found a metal panel in the wall behind it. And stenciled on that panel were these words"

"PLEASE DO NOT BLOCK"

Okayyyyy. Little late, now.

The Explorer was literally packed to the ceiling, with room for the driver (me), a heeler on the suitcase in the passenger seat, and another heeler on the bedding, at shoulder height, immediately behind the driver.

That left four people and the smallest heeler in the little sedan. With a full trunk.

Then a quick trip to Wal-Mart, and a purchase of a modern bike carrier and four single roses for Mother's Day, and a return to campus for the bike.

And then to the Mall.

Good point about the lack of space in the two vehicles?

Severely curtailed shopping. No room to put anything if we had bought it.

Tried several stores to find some more chambray shirts for me (impossible to find, these days). Gal at one western store couldn't help us, but she suggested another store five doors down. We thanked her for her kindness.

"You betcha" was her response. Really. Literally.