June 2011: Moving Day(s)

I was in my own personal hell.

After 2 months of (begrudgingly slow) sorting, donating and packing, it was moving day.  7 people, going through my stuff.  I don't think I qualify for "Hoarders: Buried Alive" TV Show quite yet, but once I let people start going through my stuff, I really felt like I should at least be on the waiting list.  I don't think there was a person on the block that didn't benefit from our over indulgence of things in our garage.

The worst, though, was my In-Laws.  They are Olympic Gold Medal hoarders.  Every 5 minutes one of them would ask me, "Are you keeping this?  Are you taking this? Do you need this?" grrr....yes, I need it.  Of course I'm keeping it.  No, I'm not throwing it away (as I bury it deeper so they can't see that I DID throw it away...) Oh but the best part: somehow, all my cleaning supplies, including the vacuum cleaner and dustpan got carried off the day before.  So I had to go begging to my neighbors for Windex.  FML.

Now, on THE DAY...PACKING DAY...I got up at 7 AM, ready to clean, load the truck and have an exciting day... after all, I was moving to a major metro area!  Wasn't this what I have dreamed of my whole life?  I was definitely jazzed.  Hubby and I were off to get the truck, kids stayed home with In-Laws.  Hubby insisted on getting a 24 ft trailer...even after we downsized to only 2 beds, a dining room table, 2 desks, a chest of drawers, and a bookshelf.  Oh, and Washer and Dryer.  Everything else was sold or trash.  Ah, but remember that Hoarders comment from earlier...?  Yes, we filled that truck. ( I still have piles of boxes, but we will get to that later...)

I kept trying to keep things labeled, and trying to keep things in groups in the truck.  After all, wouldn't it be easier if we unloaded each room, instead of mass chaos?  Hubby and the I*L (In-Laws) were ALL ABOUT SPEED.  Screw organization!!!  Let's get this done!  Let's get out of here!  You would think the Police were about to show up and kick us out!  And all the while, Mom I*L was right there "Aren't you keeping this?  Shouldn't you pack this?  Where is that (random shirt from Wal-Mart) that I got the boys, I want that back if you aren't keeping it..." GRRRRRRR....pressure...building...

Ok, end of stressful day.  The truck is packed, it's about 11:30 PM, it's time to catch a nap, get started early the next day.  UHHH NOPE!  You see, my Dad I*L pulled his back doing something stupid THE DAY BEFORE WE WERE MOVING.  So, while we were all running around, packing and cleaning, he was sitting on the couch.  SLEEPING.  But ever the MAN IN CHARGE...when we were done loading, he was ready to drive.  Well, if he was ready, everyone else better be ready, by God.  Now, again, I had been up SINCE 7 AM and while I'm not the most driven person in the world, I was awake all that time.  So here I was, staring down the barrel of an 8 hour drive.  In the dark.  With no sleep.  PEACHY.

12 AM to 9 AM:  The Drive

Ok, we've all done it... driving while tired.  Holidays, birthdays, Theme Park Trips, its just something you have to do, because the siren song of your own bed is soooo nice... 
  But wait!  I don't have my own bed to go to.  Once we hit DFW, the only thing waiting for me is a carpeted floor.  We don't even have a couch to crash on!  Why am I here again?  Are those dancing unicorns on the freeway?  Oh shit, I fell asleep again.  Time for more Mt. Dew.  Look, pretty orange mountains...oh wait, those are traffic barrels!  Turn right!  Turn left! 
  It's 6 AM, somewhere in Oklahoma.  I am frantically trying to call Hubby, who is in the moving truck on his cell phone, because I am seriously afraid for my life at this point.  It keeps going to voice mail.  Again, and again and AGAIN!!!!  I'm flashing my lights.  I don't think he sees me.  I start imagining what its going to feel like hitting one of those cement barriers at 70 mph.  We constantly were in some kind of construction zone.  Finally, Hubby calls me, "Hey, are you ready for a break?"  All nonchalant and shit. YEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS....89 missed calls later you get that? 
  We pull into a truck stop, gassing up, and then pull over to a dark part of the lot so that we can "nap".  45 minutes later, Hubby is banging on the window.  "C'mon I don't want to get caught in morning traffic!"  I probably slept for a whole 20 minutes. ( 23 hours awake, 20 minutes sleep.  Oh yeah, I should be good....) We were two hours from DFW, plus checking in, so sleep wasn't to come until probably 11 am...ok, you can do this, a couple of good hard slaps across the face should keep you awake.  Ok, maybe one more...Aaannd another...

9 AM to 3 PM: Moving IN...

Once we found our little 'burb in DFW, we had to freshen up.   A stop at the gas station (which was relatively nice compared to any others I'd seen, awesomely clean bathrooms), then it was off to meet the Property Manager of our new apartment.  We ended up going with the first property we looked at.  I know, I know, BUT it really was the best deal, with the most perks.  We opted for a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom 2nd floor apartment. (without the loft)  This way, the boys have their own bathroom, plus extra storage under for pool toys and towels.

We signed papers while Dad I*L maneuvered the huge truck over to the building we would be moving in.  They hadn't even finished cleaning the apartment...we were that early.  You could still smell the paint (in fact, the pantry wasn't even dry, I still have cans that are stuck to the shelves).  We walk in, do a once over, and I'm ready to collapse.

OH NO!  It's time to move stuff in! This is where the real clusterfuck started to unravel.  You see, my Mom I*L, ever the good Grandma (except when it comes to taking care of MY boys)  Had to bring our 4 yo niece with us.  My Sister I*L was too busy partying with her friends on a float trip to raise her child.  They also brought our 16 year old niece, but hey, she can move boxes.  The only thing the 4 yo did was cry and break one of the boys' beds by jumping on it.
  So, I'm trying to keep up.  Furniture first, then a TON of boxes.  An insane amount.  No way this is all fitting in this tiny apartment.  Not EVERYTHING was labeled, and we are still sorting THAT out, but after 5 MORE hours of up and down stairs, I did collapse.  Right on a bare mattress on the floor.  I was DONE.  It was 3 PM, and I was gone.

Prologue

April 2011: The Exploratory Mission

The trip down to DFW to explore housing for me, my husband and two elementary-aged boys started off pretty weird.  You know it can only get weirder when someone says they want to drive to Dallas at 11 pm at night.  Six hours and a lot of cat naps later (the road from Missouri is bumpy) I awoke and was gazing up at a six-tiered interchange in the heart of Dallas.  We were lost.  The Tom-Tom (or the Dum-Dum as my husband started calling it) had taken us downtown.

Ok, let me rephrase that: he had made all the right turns, just not at the right time.  Once you hit the city (and this was definitely a bona-fide CITY in our eyes), there are exits to the left and right about every 50 feet.  Separated only by SIX LANES of bleary-eyed Texans who know exactly where they are going.  At 5 AM.  Since nither of us had ever had use for a Tom-Tom before, when the machine said "Turn right ahead." we thought it meant, turn right, right now.  NO.  Turn right ahead is Tom-Tom speak for "start merging to the right, because I'm going to tell you an exit number soon".  I have never heard the word "Recalculating..." so much in my life.  Trial by fire my ass.  More like trial by asphalt and rubber and raw nerves.

When we arrived at our hotel, the Marriage Gods smiled down on us.  I was able to talk the clerk into letting us into our room six hours early (check in was at 1 pm, this was around 7 am) we fell into our small but comfy room, unconscious for at least 4 hours.

When we awoke, showers were in order.  We both reeked of gas fumes and road snacks.  Our first order of business was to visit the two apartment complexes we had picked from the internet. We had spent the better part of 2011 combing the DFW area (via internet) for someplace we could call home.  I started with school reviews, figuring we could find apartments in the best schools radius.  This turned out to be a pretty good plan, that way we weren't just casting our line in the water: we had a definite area of attack.

Our first stop was a decent sized property, with a clubhouse and 3 pools.  The kitchen was small, and the model that they showed us, the laundry was IN the guest bathroom.  meh.

The second place we went,  the rental agent was a trip.  Or was ON a trip.  I couldn't quite tell.  She drove us over to "look" at a unit, but we couldn't go inside. (???)  "Just Imagine..." she said, "the bedroom is up there, and the kitchen is just about here" (complete with hand motions and big smiles)  I was not impressed.  NEXT!!!

After that, we decided to get lunch.  Found an awesome BBQ place on Main Street, all you can eat for 15 dollars.  We found an Apartment Guide stand in the lobby, last one in the box.  As we ate, we went through and looked for any larger two bedrooms.  After that, we kind of just drove around in the same area, looking for "Leasing Now" signs.  The last place we went, looked lovely ( although a bit overpriced) but when we turned the corner to drive around the property...1 and a half buildings were completely burned down.  NEXT.

We went back to the hotel.  Our plans were to meet up with a gaming friend of my husband's (that we had never met IRL) and go out on the town.  Hubby had picked up a six-pack, but I'm more of a hard liquor kind of girl, so I thought I'd wait.  I got dressed while he scanned the TV.  A knock at the door announced our new friend.

Now, we had both talked to this guy on the internet, chatted about work and bullshit, and general gaming knowledge.  Let me tell you, no amount of conversation could have prepared me.  Do you ever get a vision of someone, even if it is the person taking your pizza order?  I was TOTALLY off.  I expected a Type A TEXAN...he sure had the accent!  But "Buddy" I would have pegged him as a East Coaster for SURE before I said he was Texan.  Backwards cap and beer in hand, he was about two inches shorter than me.  I stood agape for about three seconds before I let him in.

The guys shook hands and talked guy talk while I fluffed my hair and stepped into my shoes.  From what I gathered from the convo, Buddy is a beer aficionado.  Like, he orders it from Belgium.  The six pack he had brought was grade A stuff.  I smiled, the conversation seemed to be going well, and while I am the type of person that makes friends pretty easily, Hubby is not in that realm.  It takes a long time for him to warm up to someone.

Off we went to Arlington, for drinks at a college-type pool hall/pub.  After about two hours, re-living the drive down from Missouri to Buddy, we stepped next door to a dueling piano bar.  After several unheeded requests (evidently you have to tip more than a $5 to get your song played) we decided to call it a night. A hug and a handshake back at the hotel (was that jealousy that I saw on Hubby's face?), we made plans with Buddy for lunch the following day.

The next morning, we picked a couple of properties from the Apartment Guide and decided to trust in Tom-Tom one more time.  We also went back to the first property, Hubby had seen another property across the road that interested him.  It was gated (!? Can we afford this?) and three pools as well.  It was definitely my favorite kitchen. Instead of being a galley kitchen, it was L shaped, eat-in kitchen with a window.  A large living area too.  But it WAS a little too steep for our budget.  Maybe when he gets promoted...

Lunch was more fun than I thought it would be.  We ate at a Cajun place within walking distance from our hotel. Yummy Seafood Fondue, an awesome frozen drink and a VERY steep bill at the end.  Ah well, we will save this place for our special guests who come visit us!  My drink cost $10, but I got a $10 buzz, for sure!

We said goodbye to Buddy, and went in to pack our things.  7 hours later, we collected the boys from my frazzled mom and headed home to make our decision.  We had not gotten the official "closing date" from his Corporate Office, but we knew it was going to be sometime in the summer.

Dallas.  In Summer.  Yee. Haw.