Moving In

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I have done a lot of moving in my life.  So much that one might think I like moving.  Really I don’t.  I like knowing where my things are and all of it having its place.  With each move stuff gets a different place and because layouts are different and storage areas are different then things that were together no longer are.  It takes time to figure out the new places things should go and sometimes thinking through all that overwhelms me.

Other than that the move went great.

I took Friday off from work to pack.  Most of my stuff was still packed from the last move because my residence in the basement was meant to be short term.  It was longer than I anticipated but never long enough to unpack stuff.  So I really just refilled and retaped what was there.  I gave away a bunch of clothes leading up to the packing day so that was good.  I went to bed Friday night with most everything done.  Or in my eyes it was done.

Saturday I got up and after getting ready I packed the stuff that had to wait until it got used in the morning.  I stripped the bed and packed all the bedding stuff and pillows.  I boxed up my computer and then headed out to get the truck I reserved for the move.  The road I live on is under construction but further up the road than the turn to my basement abode so I was thinking about that when I turned that direction.  I got to the construction area and had to turn around and go the long way to the rental place.  Didn’t matter much that I was late.  They weren’t ready for me anyway.

I got to the rental place and there were two guys waiting ahead of me.  They seemed to be waiting for a while.  No clerk in sight.  Finally the clerk came back and was working with the first guy.  He reserved a 26 foot truck that had been confirmed with his wife.  Yet, he wanted something smaller.  The clerk was kind and rented him the smaller 16 foot truck.  I thought that was great for him to accomodate him like that until . . . .   Guy number 2 goes to the desk, he reserved the 16 foot truck but decided that if he could get that other guys 26 footer he would prefer that.  No problem, the morning is working out for everyone . . . .  My turn, I reserved a 16 foot truck and this rental company as a guarantee that what you reserve will be available for you.  I even got a call from the 2 days prior to confirm my reservation.  Oh no, the clerk said that he didn’t have any 16 foot trucks left so I would be getting a 26 footer, “would that be okay?”  Heck NO it won’t be okay that thing is huge and I have to drive it and back it up, TWICE.  What I really said was, “if that is all you have then it has to be okay because I have people waiting at my house to pack it.”

Now the kindness for the 1st guy isn’t seeming so kind.  How could the clerk change that guys reservation and give him the truck that I should have gotten without asking me if it was okay? They have a guarantee!  So, I got the 26 foot truck at the 16 foot price.  I found a large parking lot to turn it around in since you had to make a U-turn at the light to go the right direction to get home.  There is no U-turning in a 26 foot truck.

I got to the house, after several phone calls from my moving help, and actually backed that thing into the drive on the first attempt.  I have always said I will drive anything at least once so I guess my lack of driving fear paid off this time.  While waiting for me to get there with the truck the moving help had decided to start bringing stuff up from the basement and stacking it all on the driveway.  They got a lot done while waiting on me.  Almost too much, they were wearing themselves out too fast.  They slowed down and took a water break as I was arriving.  Everything got loaded, with room to spare, without any trouble.

So, the stuff that didn’t get packed . . . .  I told everyone that the odd and end things that didn’t make it into a box they could leave because I would come by after returning the truck and could just put that stuff in my car.  Oh, no they wouldn’t hear of it.  Those very sweet ladies put together some of the left over boxes and packed that stuff up.  They packed everything they found which included all the expired food I left in the pantry to put in the trash later.  They saw food and thought I was just ignoring it because of a fb comment I made about my kitchen.  It was great not having to get stuff later.  I loved having everything go in one trip to the new house.  But now I have a bunch of expired food I have to unpack right into the trash.

At the new house my good very smart friend Sheree had asked the neighbor across the street if it would be okay for me to pull the truck straight into her drive allowing me to back straight into my drive rather than angling the turn.  The neighbor agreed but watched me like a hawk the whole time.  That trick worked perfectly and again I back that behemouth of a vehicle up in one try.  The unloading went a bit slower because everyone was already tired and hot.  Other than having the guys take what furniture had to go upstairs up for me I had everything else put in the living room or garage so they didn’t have to haul boxes of books upstairs for me.  This won me my friends back.  They weren’t liking me so much before that.

Now, everything is at the new house and all over the place.  I got the truck back to the rental place but now have to call them to complain about what I was charged.  The had a guarantee afterall.  On Sunday I arranged furniture were I wanted it in the study and my bedroom.  I unpacked some clothes, and moved all the boxes from the garage into the house so the car could be in the garage.  After all that I found a movie and watched it through my computer, because of course it was one of the first things set up.  Now to get internet service.

I will be at a wedding this weekend so no unpacking will take place.  I have several evenings with nothing planned so slowly over time I will get it all undone and situated.  My sister is moving in with me in 3 weeks so I have a goal date to have everything done or mostly done so we can get her stuff in.  While it all seems a bit daunting now I am sure it will come together in the right time.  Everything else has so far.  So much so that I still can’t believe the move is actually in the past and not still to be done.  It all happened pretty fast but it happened in the right time for the right people.

And now I must say, “I have the MOST AMAZING friends EVER!!!”

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