Some Assembly Required

So last Thursday was particularly productive. Still on a high from the day before when I learned that I have received a sweet promotion at work, I woke up bright and early and got dressed. There was a plan in place and we were going to do it. Brian got dressed and we were soon on our way to pick up our U-haul. We hit our first obstacle when the person who mans the u-haul location was not there at the pick up time. We waited a while finally they showed up and gave us a truck. We then stopped over Brian's parents house so we could remove my comic book collection that was still there.

However after coffee the decision was made that Katherine and Jen would come with us, because they wanted to help. I didn't think they would be able to provide much help but I knew they would probably want to get out of the house for awhile, and since we were eventually going to end up in Auburn it would be could for them to see Mikey and Clarissa. So soon we were on our way to the storage unit so that we could load up the Washer and Dryer.

We arrived and I settled the bill and we emptied the unit. One less bill to worry about now. So then it was off to Auburn but not before putting some gas in the u-haul since the bastards only left me less than a 1/4 of a tank. I say bastards because they probably forced some guy to pay some outrageous refilling fee because they brought it back low but then left it up to me to refill the damn thing. The trip to Auburn was relatively uneventful; however I would not have wanted to drive that truck again on another day since the engine gears seemed to be slipping. Its amazing how cheap this company is and can't service there own business. I mean they give you a nice 1-800 number to call in the event that you break down. Why don't you do a little maintenance to make sure we don't break down. I mean usually you take the time to schedule a day off or whatever so its rather important that you get your project/move done that day. Who wants to put all their eggs in one basket? Thats what we are forced to do though, because they cut corners on the upkeep, so we have to depend on this one machine that seems all but doomed to break down when you need it the most. Not a good way to run a business, but everyone needs to move so I guess they can rest on their mediocrity.

So it made it to Auburn and we were able to unload the Washer and Dryer. My sister was very happy despite the "discussion" Brian and I were having on spatial relations and how to get them into the laundry room. However, even happier who were Katherine and Mikey who had not seen each other for a couple of years. I doubt really that they remembered each other since they were quite small, but this time they got along quite smashingly. They played for a little while and then it came time that we had to leave. So we packed up the truck and loaded the Subaru off to out next destination. IKEA! We did however stop first for lunch. While thinking about all the places in we could go we settled on that it would be best to eat sooner rather than later so we decided to eat local at the Classic Auburn Town Pizza. While I have eaten there for years, Brian has become quite a big fan of the place since I took him there a few years back. Not sure why but he loves it. So we had a good meal and set out for the next leg of the journey.

Things were mostly uneventful until we got to about Framingham when I felt the engine starting to have problems again. I thought that maybe we should have gone down the back roads on Route 27 to finish the route, but we decided that it would take too long so I kept on down the pike until 128 and then went that way until 24. There was a traffic build up on 128 but it was not as bad as we first thought.

Now I know no one wants to get behind a truck and that is why they want to get around you. But does anyone take into account what it would feel like to be hit by a u-haul. Let me tell and number of cars on Thursday are damn lucky that I was observant otherwise I would have plowed right into them and it would have been there own damn fault. Seriously if any of you who read this think its ok to pull out in front of trucks think again. Even if I was the most observant guy in the world, your fully loaded SUV is still not going to stand a chance against a fully loaded u-haul.

IKEA was good however I found more stuff that I wanted to get then I budgeted for put that is usually the case. All in all I think we did well as I had originally budgeted about $1200 and we cashed out at just under $1000 because I switched some things last minute. In all we got a TV stand, Dining Room table, 4 dining room chairs, the biggest book case they offer, two office/visitor chairs, a tall dresser and a shorter longer dresser. I don't think it was bad at all for the price. Some people may jest at the fact that the furniture was cheaper, but I'll tell you it holds up better than most of the expensive stuff plus if I do scratch it I won't freak out about it. If I bought a $700 table I would never want to use it.

Finally we left IKEA after loading up the truck. We got back to the apartment, unloaded and brought the truck back. It was 10:30 by the time we got back. I quickly jumped into the shower and freshened up before going out to see the Midnight showing with my friend Moe and Jeff M. It was a long and fulfilling day, and I was glad to have that bit of entertainment; even if were the oldest people there. I think its fun to see movie on premier night especially when its a big movie, becuase you are more likely to get a bit of audience participation. So even though it was packed we all had fun ooing and ahhing.

Today though was filled with assembling the various pieces of furniture that were purchased at IKEA. Part of the reason why things at IKEA are so cheap is because you have to assemble them yourself. Last night I assembled the 4 chairs. Today I completed the TV stand, book case and Dining table. I wouldn't have guessed it but it took a lot out of me. I will have to do the dressers tomorrow. I want to have it all done by tomorrow night so its done before I leave for PA so Brian does not have to worry about it.

One week until PA

Well as part of the exchange we do at work I have been picked to go to our Distrobution Center in a week. I can't say that I'm happy about it and neither can I say I don't want to go. Its just damn inconvenient right now. But I will get a chance to meet the other people at my company who I work with. I'll be working along side them doing there job. I can understand the value of doing this if the whole company participated in it and not just my department. I think we have a good idea of what our DC does seeing as how we work with them on a daily basis. I think there are several other depts that could benefit from this experience. Plus I have already done something similar to this in the past with a different company. I guess I don't have a problem going I just have a problem with the working. Yes it is manual labor but I can get over that. Its more the assembly line mentality that exists. I know I could never hold down a job in a factory the whole repetition thing is really something I hate. Just doing the same job over and over all day without something new; no thought involved. Plus they also eat in a "canteen" and need to wait for bells before taking a break or going to the bathroom. Yikes just not my thing.

I have the day off on Thursday as we finally have to get rid of our washer and dryer and bring it over to Auburn. Then we'll use the truck to go to Ikea to pick up some stuff we need for the apartment. On the plus side Thursday night I am going with a couple of friends to see Spiderman 3, I know it doesn't come out until Friday but the Imax theater has a midnight showing so I will be in geek heaven. Now I just have to get throught the rest of the week.

itchy ithcy scratchy scratchy

What is it about growing a beard that makes your face so damn itchy? Now I know why I never follow through with it. This is the longest I stayed with it now (about 2 weeks) its driving me crazy. Its mainly just to prove to myself that I can grow one, although I dare say I do see how it could look quite nice once its filled in. Maybe I'll post a pic online of my progress soon. Not that you all want to see this mug.

Anyways time to celebrate, the Internet is alive and well in my apartment and with it comes better access to e-mail and blogs and I can finally start answering some people. This weekend though I think I am going to find some stuff to do outside while Brian works. It looks like its going to be a nice weekend and I don't want to see it go to waste.

I may be travelling soon for work. I was just informed that I may be going to our Distribution Center in Hanover PA !!! I've been to PA before when I went to visit QVC (yes the TV station). I was not that impressed with Westchester. It just seemed like a bunch of urban sprawl to me. I wish when I go down there I would be able to see more of the city. Oh well at least I can stock on pretzels as our DC is located right down the street from the Snyder's pretzel people.

Soon I see in our future another visit to IKEA since we have not much in the way of furniture to entertainment. The biggest thing on my list is table and chairs. We need something and I had forgotten that we had thrown our old ones out before the move. Once we get a few necessities we'll be having "shindig" as Brian likes to call them at our place.

Anyone have any suggestions on what to do this weekend?

Sniffle Sniffle ... Cough Cough Cough

So the unpaking is going a bit slowly, no sooner we move in and I come down with a cold. This had been the year of annoying colds. I got my flue shot but that doesn't help with anyhting esle. The last 24 hours have seen me drift in and out of consciousness, the chills, and an annoying cough. I think I mat bowing out of Easter this year.

Mission Accomplished . . . Sort of

Well we are here. We made it to Natick, and with help as well from my friends Mat and Tina. We are now officially moved into our new home. Most of our stuff made it over in one piece. There were a few things that got bumped around but nothing that I cared to much about. Now we just have a few odds and ends to worry about back Brian's house but over the course of a few days trips back and forth I know we'll soon be done. Besides I need to make room for everything here. While we do end up having more living space, our storage space has been cut down considerably. So there's no garage, no basement, that means its time to take a serious look at some the books we have and decide what we should do with them and a bunch of other stuff I think will finally be tossed. On the bright side I believe Monday morning my company will be announcing a bonus for us so that could go toward some Ikea purchases in the future to make our apartment complete. Alright back to work for me, between work work and apt work I should be busy all this week. Oh by the way for those of you who know our cell phones please use them as we don't plan on getting a phone line anytime soon.