We moved last weekend. Is there anything worse than moving? I can't think of it. Ugh, one moment...there. Kung Fu Panda was in my laptops DVD drive and kept setting it off, revving and interrupting my sensitive thought process. Moving is tough on a marriage. This time around I was unable to lift furniture because I'm pregnant, and my husband lifts furniture like a pregnant woman, so we decided to hire movers. We're at that stage in life where our furniture has to last us a few years because it cost us more than $5, so having friends haul it all up flights of stairs and scratching things is no longer an acceptable trade-off for free labour.
Moving didn't bring out the best in us, we discovered. I just wanted to throw out everything in my path, minimising our lives no matter what sentimental value the object in question had. So what if your grandmother smuggled this up her bum out of the old country when the Nazis invaded? It's taking up space - toss that sucker out! Whereas Graham shut down and refused to pack, his total tally of helpful packing coming out to two and a half boxes of only his own DVDs and books.
Picking a moving company was Graham's job. He took it very seriously, picking the first moving company he called and promptly forgetting which one it was. He then spent the week asking me if they take cash or cheque (I must have owned a moving company in a previous life) and procrastinating on calling them to ask until the night before. If we paid in cash we could escape paying taxes, so we went to the bank to pick up some cash and went home to organize the move.
I wasn't very impressed the next morning when the movers were 30 minutes late, and I couldn't call them for two reasons. One, we didn't have any computers to look the number up - we had moved them the night before. Two, Graham gave them our land line to call in case they couldn't find our place and I had joyously and less-than-gently disconnected our digital phone box so it could move with us - and had no idea how to set it back up again. After much squabbling and finger-pointing, a moving truck pulled up out front. Hurrah! I ran downstairs to prop open the door, willing to forgive them for being 30 minutes late when the driver raised his Tim Horton's cup at me and made the universal smoke-break signal at me with his two fingers. What? WHAT? 30 minutes late and I'm supposed to hangout while they finish their coffee and have a cigarette?!
So I shut up and waited. Really, I needed to pick my battles and they were going to carry all my shit anyway. The moving guys came upstairs, had a look around, set up their truck, and then an amazing thing started to happen - our apartment started to get empty, and it wasn't causing us one single second of pain or arguing. While the movers effortlessly picked up our entertainment unit, swivelled dressers out the tiny door, brought our beds downstairs, and shifted my heavy deep freezer, we were able to sit and stare with idiotic grins on our faces. Every time the movers were out of earshot we giggled and whispered to each other excitedly. Our mutual love of the moving guys brought us closer together on a day filled with much stress and conflict.
I think I was even forgiven for ripping the phone out of the wall when I was only supposed to disconnect the modem.
James here with Quick Transfer in Winnipeg. As a moving company, we love this post! It's very easy to get caught up on 'da biz' and lose sight of customers' perspectives - thanks for the insight you provide here! Hope you don't mind, but we shared your post on our Facebook wall and Twitter feed.
ReplyDeleteI see a few lessons here for consumers:
-Leave your phone connected until the very end of the move (or provide a cell)
-Write down your mover's name & phone number (!)
-Choosing a mover that will accept payment under the table is, in principle, a bad idea. Sure, you dodged the 'moving disaster' bullet, but you can't claim your moving expenses on this year's tax return without an official bill.
The moving industry can pick up a few tips here too:
-Be on time
-If you can't make it on time, phone ahead (assuming the customer's phone is still connected)
-Don't be late because you had to make a flippin' Timmies run!
-Don't take a smoke break the minute you arrive on site!
I loved how you were able to disconnect from the stress of the move and enjoy the day, once it got going. Your writing style is witty and colourful - keep it up!