I’m pretty sure this wasn’t a joke. It was on the plane to Atlanta.
EDIT: Urn asked if I took any off the plane with me. Unfortunately, it was bolted down, and I think tampering with or disabling the sink in an airplane lavatory probably carries a pretty stiff penalty.
I really should have told you this before now, but for any of you waiting with bated breath, yes, we did move into our new place. I wrote this on the plane to Atlanta several days ago.
I’m not really sure which is less fun, packing boxes or loading a truck, but in a pinch decision, I’d prefer a good old fashioned punch to the face over either.
Last time I wrote, I gave you a small piece of advice regarding moving: don’t have a lot of stuff. I have another one for you today: don’t move on a weekday. Even if you are friends with great people who are generous with their time and energy, they will still be working, and you will have to load the boxes up yourself. And while there’s something, actually a great many things, to be said for being manly and carrying a million pounds of books and whatnot, the something that is most appropriate is “ow.” Anyone who has moved more than one book or a single casserole dish can tell you that small boxes are the way to go for heavy things. The boxes we were given for the move were pretty large, though, so they weighed a little more than what a guy my size should have been carrying over and over.
By dinner time, though, the boxes were all loaded up, and it was time for the incredible Tetris job James and Rebecca helped us do to get almost every possession onto the back of the truck with room to actually close it. There was some intense strategy happening toward the end, but it paid off. They took a chair home with them because it wouldn’t fit, and Meghan and Ryan, who we were staying with for a couple of days, took a couple of boxes of our stuff in their car. Other than that, it all fit in there. I drove about 20 for the three miles to our new place, parked it, and went back to Meghan and Ryan’s place to fall asleep. Three nights there and then our new place was ready.
And this is where the story gets even more happy. We had several people come over to help us unload everything, and from the time I unlocked the back of the truck to the time I started it up to return it to the rental place was ninety minutes. Awesome! Everything landed in the room it belonged in (with only a couple of small exceptions), the piano made it inside safely, and I even got the bed set up just in time to collapse into it.
On the whole, not the very best way to move (FYI, the best way is not to move at all), what with the three-day delay, but considering how safely and smoothly it all went, it was a very good move. Much easier and quicker than driving across the country, too. Our new place is getting more and more comfortable, and pretty soon, we’ll even be able to walk a straight line without running into a box. Kirsten’s mom is over, and the two of them are arranging things just so and making things cozy. I’m on the plane right now heading out to Atlanta for a few days with Kirsten’s emphatic permission (I didn’t want to just dump her in a new place and fly away immediately, but we got a lot of unpacking done, and she was excited about it), so it will be pretty cool to get back and see curtains and artwork where there once were blank windows and walls. I’ll give you a tour of the place at some point. Viva la video.
Update: It’s all looking awesome. The downstairs is completely finished, and Meghan’s over today working with Kirsten to get the second bedroom (primarily a nursery) put together. I finished putting my clothes and things away, and put in some shelves, and things are looking just fa-hantastic.
To the presidential candidates:
Quit pandering. People do not have an innate right to own a house. It’s that kind of thinking that’s brought us to where we are economically.
To the vice presidential candidates:
I know you’re going for votes here and don’t want to alienate anyone, but please don’t let me catch you saying that middle class America is not to blame for our economy. I will soap your mouth.
To the responsible people in all “classes” of America:
Keep on truckin’. As long as we have to pay for the mistakes of a few others (and let’s not kid ourselves; these are our mistakes sometimes too), we might as well do it without unnecessary complaining.
To the people blowing it for the rest of us (and that has, at times, included myself):
Two steps you can take to immediately begin making an impact on the economy. First, quit buying crap you don’t need. Now. Second, quit buying crap you can’t afford. Also now. If nothing else, you won’t fill up an entire sixteen-foot Budget truck before you even know what hit you and then have to unload the whole thing.