Moving can be no fun

[$heriff Tom]

I figured I dump all these rants in here so I dont clutter the "what you are doing right now" thread and the like. Bottom line, we are moving by the end of the month, directly across the street. There are obvously inherent advantages in such a thing, physical move wise.

Today I woke up prepared to tackle our closet / bedroom while Dana was stuck working the Saturday. Sounds easy enough. Eh, not in our closet. We have always had a space issue. Today I am finding out exactly how much.

I remember when I moved out of my LIC studio apartment - one room, a bathroom and a kitchen mind you - I somehow found a way to discard OVER A DOZEN trash bags worth of stuff that was somehow scattered about.

Well, I have been at it since before 11, I am taking a break to gripe and change Emma's game on the computer. The room looks like a bomb hit it. Dana would be grumpy if she sees this. Thing is, I have some organization here.

My plan is simple. Clothes on hangers I just take multiple trips and put in the proper closets. Clothes in the dressers or hanging around here or there I will put in trash bags and carry over. As Dana and I are both Bibliophiles, there are literally HUNDREDs of books - way too many of them hardcover - that need to go over. I will put those in a big hockey bag and take over a heap at a time, and simply pile them in the basement or something. When we get the bookcases moved over I can figure out what gets prime bookcase space, and what stays downstairs.

I am also finding out the lack of enthusiasm in those who said they would help out at this early stage. Its ok, I understand, I always felt the same things.

DECEMBER 27th the furniture is moved over! Time to be determined! Beer will be in the fridge. Lets hope there is not an icestorm that day. We technically have until the end of the month, but we want to get over for New Years and move on with things.

Oh my, what a mess. A pile of clothes to sort through over here, heaps of shoes now in a bag, boxes of books and mags, a whole heap of cassettes I am trying to figure out how to take over (probably just some kitchen garbage bags) and random closet junk. I am just putting all my VCR tapes - and there are a couple of hundred of these - on the top shelf of the closet for now - those i can carry over in the hockey bag anytime. I need them out of the way.

Grrrrrr. This bites bozack! Emmas room is going to be worse.

Thank you for your patronage.

[jwmcc]

Cassettes?
VCR tapes?

[9]

He moved the 8-tracks and reel-to-reel films yesterday.

[$heriff Tom]

I actually have a rack meant for VCR tapes with piles of old school cassettes on it. I am going to box/bag those cassettes, and that rack is going to be called into VCR tape duty. The top of the closet is home to piles of old wrestling tapes. I am talking well over 150. Classic footage which some traders would kill for.

Before you guys kill me for the tapes, I have entered into the DVD age, and all future purchases from traders are on DVD. I do add some tapes per annum, mostly things I tape myself off WWE Classics on Demand, and highlights off shows I am watching. Once the move is complete and I have everything racked and packed in the new digs, I will give you all a count on how much of this stuff I have.

I am not too glum about moving all of it, again - I found that hockey bag and can move dozens at a time slung over my shoulder. This is, for now, simply a question of VOLUME. It looks like there is no end.

Dana should be home any minute....she'll be mad.

[Jason Giambi]

purge baby purge.

[Ms. Jericho]

What is all this talk of me being mad and grumpy? Since when am I the grumpy one?

Moving blows.
But at least I get my little kitty soon. ;D

[baldvinny]

yo, t

take a peek over at www.bagsunlimited.com

they have a ton of storage options, for everything from vhs to dvds. i have a few of their ultra corrugated boxes for my bootleg cds, and they are invaluable. they are sturdy, inexpensive and stackable. it has helped me stay organized and cleaned up my otherwise cluttered office

[$heriff Tom]

I thank you for that, as I have been looking for storage options, especially for my magazines. They are actually neat for now, but willy nilly. You know how cramped we were for space. I'll be on that site for sure.

[jwmcc]

Bump...update?

[$heriff Tom]

In some respects, well, in others, a grind. Bottom line, we are moving into the house on December 27th, a mere 2 days after Christmas. The timing has been tricky. Basically everything that has been moved to this point has been carried by me across the street. Not necessarily hard, but tedious.

Emmas room is the one remaining big project. Really have not moved anything from there, except some games on the shelves. Thats Saturdays task. We need to do as much as we can Saturday, as there is wretched weather predicted for Sunday.

The comical task of all this was moving all my VCR Tapes. This has come up on here before, but, wow, I have hundreds. I honestly look forward to organizing them a little better, and seeing what I have. JW, you'll be happy to know more than a few are Yankee telecasts from the 90s, big playoff games and even parades, many taped for me by you.

Oh, the books. Have not touched the books yet. I am thinking of moving all of them into an empty closet now, out of the way. Once the big move is done and the library sized bookcases are across, I can bring them over and decide what goes on which shelf (one in the living room, one in our bedroom) and what gets relegated to log some basement time.

The guys coming over to help on the morning of the 27th wont have too crazy a task, I am guessing about a dozen pieces of furniture / accessory to heavy to handle for now. This part of the move could be knocked out in well under an hour.

I am off the first week of January, and plan on using a lot of that to arrange. That will be a fun part, though, of a move. Even putting my CDs, now piled in a closet, back into the nice cabinet I have for them, will be fun in a way.

More updates to come!

[jwmcc]

How much stuff can Emma have in that room, she's only 5?!

[$heriff Tom]

Hey, Im with ya. But thanks to overly-generous grandparents, aunts and uncles, and a gigantic interest in books, and way too many stuffed animals and Webkinz animals, her room is a full load. To say nothing for her clothing, and dvds and tapes on top of the dresser, and her jewelry box, and piggy banks...

Full load in this instance = probably a dozen trips back and forth across the street with it.

[$heriff Tom]

So the weather is not much in the way of cooperating the next few days. We're going to pretty much lose Sunday as a transport day, as it will be today revisited in regards to snow, sleet, and rain. And tomorrow will have trouble topping 30, with what appears to be a sheen sheet of ice between here and our future abode.

Oh well, when the rubber meets the road, you deal with the hand you're dealt.

[9]

You really like "when the rubber meets the road," don't you? ;D

[$heriff Tom]

Man, today has SUCKED. Some more snow in the morning, and now its just damn cold and icy outside. Lets just say we pulled more stuff from Emmas room than any of the other rooms combined. Right now we are "taking inventory" to see what else we should move over there, now we are crunching clock, as the furniture is set to move over next Saturday morning.

....when of course more rain is predicted.

We've pretty much been at it since before 9 this morning, by the time we are done I think today is a 10 hour day, and I would not be surprised if we work on our dressers tonight.

[Jason Giambi]

get a big catapult, and use that to fling the stuff across the street.

[$heriff Tom]

Well, tomorrow is the day, a crew is arriving at around 10 to move the furniture with me, then we're in. Our kitten arrives to his new home in the evening. The main thing being left behind, tucked into our closet, is our books. That will be a grind, but I will handle that after the bookcases are in place.

We've been too busy with the move and the holidays to step back from this, I guess I should start realizing tonight is the last night I will be sleeping in the apartment. When I get home from work today - and yes, I am inexclicably working all day today - i have to take over some minor batches of stuff. Whats in the fridge, stuff out of the medicine cabinets, a hamper and our towels / sheets, holiday decorations, stuff out of the kitchen cabinets.

I am so ready for this to be done.

[jwmcc]

Can we get some info on the new cat?

[$heriff Tom]

His name is Owen. He's black, with some white. Apparently he likes to tussle with Christmas trees, and swim in his waterbowl. He will be greeted by some pretty cool cat toys, and a little girl who is beyond excited to welcome him in.

[9]

Congrats on the move finally wrapping up. I hope today goes smoothly. And we want pictures of Owen!

[$heriff Tom]

Anyone have any ideas on where I can find cheap options for bookcases? Not so much on display, but in the basement, mostly housing paperbacks, some hardcovers. I just want to store these things in something other than a trash bag.

[$heriff Tom]

Oh, and Im getting me one of these -

Fulfill all of your media storage needs with this stylish cabinet. Adjustable shelving makes customization a snap.

Product Features
Holds 1,080 CDs or 504 DVDs or a combination of media
Measures 71-1/4"H x 40"W x 9-1/10"D
Laminated wood, MDF and particleboard with espresso finish
30 adjustable shelves
Wide, stable base
Assembly required

as seen at Best Buy

[baldvinny]

Ikea has some inexpensive bookcases. you can add doors or shelves to most styles they carry.

[9]

I have a very similar CD rack from Gothic Cabinet Craft. It didn't require any assembly (thank God, because I suck ass at doing anything handy), but probably cost a bit more, too.

[$heriff Tom]

Yeah, this one is only $130, and while assembly is required, its apparently simple (well, for Dana, simply assembly to me is hard)

There is another option at $109 from the same company that holds a couple of hundred less on the DVDs, but may be large enough for my current needs.

[9]

Mine's only for CDs, but I'm pretty sure they make similar units for multiple media.

[yanksgooner]

apart from a prostate exam, i can't think of anything i'd rather do less than move. it sucks.
it costs 2x as much money as you had hoped, usually takes alot longer to complete, and you realize what a packrat you actually are.

it's a great chance to give all of your belongings a 'haircut' and maybe start over with some new stuff though, donate some clothes and housewares, throw out some shit you haven't looked at in 5 years.

[Jason Giambi]

Humans should be forced to move 900 miles every 5 years to purge, I agree with you Keith.

[Chris]

Tom, STOP!

It's particle board (aka laminated wood).

Don't buy it, dude.

As stated, an alternative to inexpensive particle board furniture, which is extremely susceptible to damage during assembly, rapid wear and tear, and a rapid degradation in sturdiness, IKEA offers a lot of pine furniture.

Pine is an inexpensive, cheaper, soft wood, but miles better than particle board in terms of quality and durability.

I will always do all I can to discourage people from purchasing particle board furniture.

[crazilyz]

Is decent stuff actually available at IKEA? I just remember a joke that a former co-worker of mine used to say about IKEA furniture, "it's Swedish for 'wobbly.'"