Thankyou for all your suggestions and good thoughts. I am thinking all the time about the best things to do. I am planning for someone to be there when I tell them, and there will be quite a lot of people helping me on the day I move. It's the in between times I am concerned about. I still have to go to work, and I don't get home until a couple of hours after they do.

There is actually a fourth person living there too. When the worst brother (Eddie) moved in, he asked if his girlfriend from Indonesia could live there too. She doesn't speak English, and is just basically his slave. Now they are married. You'd think they'd want to be on their own, but I guess he thinks he is on a good thing, bludging off me. She is pretty much always there, so I can't get anything done without someone hanging around.

This is why it is no good suddenly leaving the day I tell them. I have a lot of small stuff that needs to be packed up, in the main part of the house and in the garage (we are talking about a lifetime's collection of household effects and memorabilia) and there is no way I can do that without them noticing. They'd notice stuff was disappearing straight away. It's going to be quite a challenge to get it all packed up in 2 weeks as it is. I will have to do it under their noses. There is no way out of that. So I am going to try to get friends to "drop in" as much as possible, and of course, help me pack.

Unfortunately the friends who would be most willing don't have cars and my place isn't easy to get to by public transport. They have to work during the day anyway. I only have a foam mattress to put on the floor if anyone wants to stay, but I will certainly be exploring all the possibilities. My daughter can possibly stay some nights. I feel like I need as many people around me as much as possible.

The guy I will be sharing with will be very helpful whenever he can, I am sure, but he has to work, too.

My son lives on the Central Coast, a good hour's drive away, and with the new baby, I can't be expecting him to drop in too often, but I am hoping that between them all, I won't have to spend a lot of time alone. But that still leaves some of the nights. That's when I get spooked and can't sleep. I should be sleeping now, but if I get tired enough, maybe I will get to sleep quickly before my mind starts racing.

Jenny