Sometimes Dickens needs help writing his blogs.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Dickens is a big baby
I've been waking up about 6, 6:30 to give Dickens his first morning pee. He had been waking me up by biting my ears which I thought was great because that's when I wanted to wake up when I started work anyway. For some reason he's decided he wants to sleep in more though which means I end up waking him up which is all kinds of backwards but regardless.
Anyway, post walks he is always playful and this morning was no exception. He was deftly moving between boxes as I threw his orange "chewie" around the house. However, on one particular attempt I threw his toy and in his quick turn around, he managed to catch the power cable on one of Kate's lamps that was sitting in the middle of the room and knocked it over. Shocked, he immediately jumped back and started to growl at the lamp. This however, quickly turned into fear and he was far too afraid to go anywhere near it.
I attempted to show him the lamp was not dangerous by picking it up and cuddling it but he would have none of it. His ears went back and he cowered in fear at the lamp. I cornered him near the front door of our house and tried to show it to him. He sniffed the power cord but spent the entire time hiding behind me in fear of the lamp. When I picked the lamp up again he used the opportunity to dart away.
So he still is afraid of the lamp poor guy. I hope he gets over it soon.
Anyway, post walks he is always playful and this morning was no exception. He was deftly moving between boxes as I threw his orange "chewie" around the house. However, on one particular attempt I threw his toy and in his quick turn around, he managed to catch the power cable on one of Kate's lamps that was sitting in the middle of the room and knocked it over. Shocked, he immediately jumped back and started to growl at the lamp. This however, quickly turned into fear and he was far too afraid to go anywhere near it.
I attempted to show him the lamp was not dangerous by picking it up and cuddling it but he would have none of it. His ears went back and he cowered in fear at the lamp. I cornered him near the front door of our house and tried to show it to him. He sniffed the power cord but spent the entire time hiding behind me in fear of the lamp. When I picked the lamp up again he used the opportunity to dart away.
So he still is afraid of the lamp poor guy. I hope he gets over it soon.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Pack up my kibble in the old kit bag...
Here are things that are bad: cars. Being in the car. Being in the car for a long time. Being in the car for a short time. Dad singing along to Taylor Swift.
Always have, always will.
Nobody said moving would be easy but I also don't think anybody imagined it would be this hard. For all of our preparation, all of our work, the number of difficulties we ran into across the first two days of this trip near drove us to the point of madness.
In particular, months ago I spent a considerable amount of time researching moving companies and getting quotes. I had about 4 or 5 estimates for all of our crap before I finally settled on one particular company, nobody not because it was cheapest but because they had the highest ratings of anybody I could find and were well respected on the BBB. I thought if nothing else that part of the move would be the smoothest and easiest since we had a couple pieces of furniture that weren't manageable. However, if we weren't taking Kate's TV and dresser it almost wouldn't have been worth hiring movers at all since we could grab a U-Haul and probably perform the whole move for under $500 while the movers were costing us around $3000.
Suffice to say, getting out of Pittsburgh, our home for 4 years was not going to be so simple.
We were expecting our driver, Ron, at 9 AM and according to schedule, a little after 9, a knock at our door opened to reveal Ron. Unfortunately this would be the last part of the move that would be going according to plan as Ron informed us he would need 3 cars at the beginning of the street to move. This street was a notoriously difficult one to get people to work together so we were already into "what is plan B?" mode.
Our first stop was the owner of a red truck who upon a knock at her door came out looking for a fight. Ron very politely tried to inform her about the situation but all he got was some threats to call the cops and some refusals. As we regrouped across the street and watched her call the police and point at us, her husband, a buff looking fellow, came walking towards us. Expecting a fight to brew I walked up to him and informed him we would be getting a van and not requiring the moving truck to get on the street. However, I was greeted not with screaming but with a very kind soul who was happy to move his truck and assist us. After finding the couple who owned the other two cars we were able to get the truck onto the street where a new fresh hell awaited us.
Ron informed us that the huge parking spot we had saved for him was relatively useless because he could not pull up to the curb as he had a side loading truck and needed 11 foot wings to be let out on the sides which would easily overstep the sidewalk. So his solution was to park in the middle of the street. This quickly turned into more people threatening to call the police on us as they quickly piled in behind him. After enough screaming Ron finally pulled out of the street and parked about a block and a half away where he was to stay for the entire move. We talked to him and he told us his company was working on getting a shuttle but also he was expecting a few people to come and assist with the move who weren't at our house yet. They were apparently expecting Ron to pick him up and because he didn't they decided to go home instead.
So that's where we were left, sitting on Kate's kitchen floor for hours waiting for updates. We attempted to finalize a couple other moving items we were planning to move but watching time slip away as we were supposed to be in Ohio by that evening. At around noon Kate received a phone call from Ron, he was telling us that do to the movers not showing up and an inability to get a shuttle we would be moving the move to Monday.
Suffice to say this wasn't sitting well with me. I had hotels booked, appointments set up, and I was absolutely miserable in that house in Pittsburgh. I was not going to stay until Monday and certainly not when paying $3000. So I took the phone and I asked Ron "how much is this going to cost me Ron?" He told me it would be an additional fee to get a shuttle there for Monday and I told him "No no, I mean you're moving me to Monday, I'm going to lose a ton of money in rebooking fees, how much are you going to discount my move?" When he told me nothing I knew we were getting out of there that day.
"Ron, if I get all of our stuff down to you, will you put it on your truck?" He told me yes but "How are you going to get all of your stuff down here?" and I said, "Ron, I'm a very determined man and I will use my bare hands if I have to but we will be moving out of here today."
So I hung up with Ron and told Kate, "Let's move" we unloaded her Avalon that we had previously loaded with our roadtrip gear and started loading it with boxes as well as calling our families and letting them know the situation. We kept making trips down to Ron's truck and unloading all of our stuff by ourselves while Kate's mom saved us and found us a pair of guys who would be willing to drive all the way from Morgantown, West Virginia just to help us move boxes for $150. Those two were absolute saviors. They were built like trucks and we only asked them to move 3 pieces but they helped with everything and didn't even take a break in the hot Pittsburgh sun. 5 hours later everything was loaded onto the truck and we were ready to go.
While that entire process was happening I was fielding calls from Ron's manager and the company I hired the movers from. Both of them were telling me all of the things they were incapable of doing. They could not find guys (we found 2 guys in half an hour) they could not find a shuttle (we used Kate's car) any guys they found would be unwilling to walk the stuff down to the truck (except, again, the two guys we found in half an hour) if only the truck would have gotten on the street this wouldn't have been a problem (except it didn't and we still got everything out of there that day). Every single thing they told me they couldn't do I managed to do in under an hour. We completed all of their jobs without problem once we took the reins away from them. It was a catastrophic embarrassment on a company scale and huge burden on us to do their work since we were paying them a ton to move our stuff. But we got out of there and in by the 20th we will be in our brand new home.
But that wasn't the end of our troubles. We had one more major obstacle that almost put us off course. In Ohio we met up with Kate's family and it was a lot of fun but Kate's mother did us a huge favor by taking care of a final check up with our car the morning we were supposed to be leaving. Down at Sears they were getting a tire rotation but the time quickly started to fly by. At around noon we finally received a call that the brake rotors and pads would need replacing and it'd be at least an hour to get the parts in. And so the time ticked even further and for the second day in the row we weren't able to get on the road until 5 PM. Unfortunately our drive to Memphis was significantly longer and we didn't get in until almost 1 in the morning but since then it's all been according to schedule.
And so sitting in Albequerque watching the sun rise and Dickens sleep on his complimentary dog bed I know we're on track and we're in the final stretch of our journey that started a year ago at Kate's performance of Icara. We're about to start an entire new story in a matter of days and I can't be more excited. Hopefully we'll see you all in San Diego at some point because we have room for all of our friends and family in our new place.
In particular, months ago I spent a considerable amount of time researching moving companies and getting quotes. I had about 4 or 5 estimates for all of our crap before I finally settled on one particular company, nobody not because it was cheapest but because they had the highest ratings of anybody I could find and were well respected on the BBB. I thought if nothing else that part of the move would be the smoothest and easiest since we had a couple pieces of furniture that weren't manageable. However, if we weren't taking Kate's TV and dresser it almost wouldn't have been worth hiring movers at all since we could grab a U-Haul and probably perform the whole move for under $500 while the movers were costing us around $3000.
Suffice to say, getting out of Pittsburgh, our home for 4 years was not going to be so simple.
We were expecting our driver, Ron, at 9 AM and according to schedule, a little after 9, a knock at our door opened to reveal Ron. Unfortunately this would be the last part of the move that would be going according to plan as Ron informed us he would need 3 cars at the beginning of the street to move. This street was a notoriously difficult one to get people to work together so we were already into "what is plan B?" mode.
Our first stop was the owner of a red truck who upon a knock at her door came out looking for a fight. Ron very politely tried to inform her about the situation but all he got was some threats to call the cops and some refusals. As we regrouped across the street and watched her call the police and point at us, her husband, a buff looking fellow, came walking towards us. Expecting a fight to brew I walked up to him and informed him we would be getting a van and not requiring the moving truck to get on the street. However, I was greeted not with screaming but with a very kind soul who was happy to move his truck and assist us. After finding the couple who owned the other two cars we were able to get the truck onto the street where a new fresh hell awaited us.
Ron informed us that the huge parking spot we had saved for him was relatively useless because he could not pull up to the curb as he had a side loading truck and needed 11 foot wings to be let out on the sides which would easily overstep the sidewalk. So his solution was to park in the middle of the street. This quickly turned into more people threatening to call the police on us as they quickly piled in behind him. After enough screaming Ron finally pulled out of the street and parked about a block and a half away where he was to stay for the entire move. We talked to him and he told us his company was working on getting a shuttle but also he was expecting a few people to come and assist with the move who weren't at our house yet. They were apparently expecting Ron to pick him up and because he didn't they decided to go home instead.
So that's where we were left, sitting on Kate's kitchen floor for hours waiting for updates. We attempted to finalize a couple other moving items we were planning to move but watching time slip away as we were supposed to be in Ohio by that evening. At around noon Kate received a phone call from Ron, he was telling us that do to the movers not showing up and an inability to get a shuttle we would be moving the move to Monday.
Suffice to say this wasn't sitting well with me. I had hotels booked, appointments set up, and I was absolutely miserable in that house in Pittsburgh. I was not going to stay until Monday and certainly not when paying $3000. So I took the phone and I asked Ron "how much is this going to cost me Ron?" He told me it would be an additional fee to get a shuttle there for Monday and I told him "No no, I mean you're moving me to Monday, I'm going to lose a ton of money in rebooking fees, how much are you going to discount my move?" When he told me nothing I knew we were getting out of there that day.
"Ron, if I get all of our stuff down to you, will you put it on your truck?" He told me yes but "How are you going to get all of your stuff down here?" and I said, "Ron, I'm a very determined man and I will use my bare hands if I have to but we will be moving out of here today."
So I hung up with Ron and told Kate, "Let's move" we unloaded her Avalon that we had previously loaded with our roadtrip gear and started loading it with boxes as well as calling our families and letting them know the situation. We kept making trips down to Ron's truck and unloading all of our stuff by ourselves while Kate's mom saved us and found us a pair of guys who would be willing to drive all the way from Morgantown, West Virginia just to help us move boxes for $150. Those two were absolute saviors. They were built like trucks and we only asked them to move 3 pieces but they helped with everything and didn't even take a break in the hot Pittsburgh sun. 5 hours later everything was loaded onto the truck and we were ready to go.
While that entire process was happening I was fielding calls from Ron's manager and the company I hired the movers from. Both of them were telling me all of the things they were incapable of doing. They could not find guys (we found 2 guys in half an hour) they could not find a shuttle (we used Kate's car) any guys they found would be unwilling to walk the stuff down to the truck (except, again, the two guys we found in half an hour) if only the truck would have gotten on the street this wouldn't have been a problem (except it didn't and we still got everything out of there that day). Every single thing they told me they couldn't do I managed to do in under an hour. We completed all of their jobs without problem once we took the reins away from them. It was a catastrophic embarrassment on a company scale and huge burden on us to do their work since we were paying them a ton to move our stuff. But we got out of there and in by the 20th we will be in our brand new home.
But that wasn't the end of our troubles. We had one more major obstacle that almost put us off course. In Ohio we met up with Kate's family and it was a lot of fun but Kate's mother did us a huge favor by taking care of a final check up with our car the morning we were supposed to be leaving. Down at Sears they were getting a tire rotation but the time quickly started to fly by. At around noon we finally received a call that the brake rotors and pads would need replacing and it'd be at least an hour to get the parts in. And so the time ticked even further and for the second day in the row we weren't able to get on the road until 5 PM. Unfortunately our drive to Memphis was significantly longer and we didn't get in until almost 1 in the morning but since then it's all been according to schedule.
And so sitting in Albequerque watching the sun rise and Dickens sleep on his complimentary dog bed I know we're on track and we're in the final stretch of our journey that started a year ago at Kate's performance of Icara. We're about to start an entire new story in a matter of days and I can't be more excited. Hopefully we'll see you all in San Diego at some point because we have room for all of our friends and family in our new place.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
To Pittsburgh
Everyone tells you that your college years are some of the most formative years of your life. Being out on your own is wildly different in every way: it impacts who you meet, what you do, where you are. I truly consider the past 4 1/2 years my personal metamorphosis, and there are so many people to thank for their help in making me who I am today.
I remember visiting Chatham on my college road trip and being so completely overwhelmed at the immediate effect it had on me. Despite traveling through four other states and seeing countless other schools, not one ever entered my mind as a contender with Chatham. I felt instantly at home there, and instantly at home in this city. When I came back for Accepted Students Day, it was the first time I had ever entered the city at night from the Fort Pitt Bridge-- seeing the city all lit up, with its backdrop of bridges and rivers--it was life-altering.
Over the years, and especially after moving out here full-time, I fell even more in love with the city. I learned its roads, and how to deal with its drivers (to the best of my midwest, suburban abilty), and many of its mysteries. I worked here, I played here, and I still feel as though I have truly LIVED here. This city has helped me achieve my independence as I never could have done somewhere else, and I will always love it here.
In four years, I have made (and in some cases lost) some wonderful friends. Though some may say that it's the preemptive nostlagia taking over at this point, I am so thankful to all of you (though there are far too many to thank all of you by name). Know that I take with me only the good memories, and I will always cherish them. But most importantly, Pittsburgh led me to find and fall in love with one of the most amazing people on this earth, and that is something I cannot place a value on. Anthony and I will always have our first memories here, and I know I speak for both of us when I say that Pittsburgh will always be special to us for that reason alone.
I will miss this city. I'll miss its crazy random fog and driving through the empty streets of downtown at 5 in the morning on my way to work. I'll miss the different neighborhoods, and all the wonderful things that each one has to offer. I'll miss the Strip District on Saturday mornings; Phipps on a quiet weekday afternoon. I'll even miss the crazy sports fanatics here, because even if I never got into it, it is wonderful to see a city whose population supports it so unconditionally. I think I'll even miss Pittsburgh Lefts (though admittedly, not for long). I'll miss the Warhol, pretentious though it is, and I'll miss all the bridges too. I'll miss the spires of the PPG Place and ice skating there in the winter. I'll miss my school. I'll miss being able to take friends and family to all of the special restaurants and bars that I've fallen in love with over the years. I will miss driving through the tunnels to come into the city, blasting "Landslide" and yes, feeling infinite.
I know San Diego, and the road to getting there, are going to be just as full of potholes as the Pittsburgh streets. It's going to be bumpy, and it's going to take getting used to. But the thrill of it all is going to outweigh all of that. I am so excited for this new phase in our life, and I cannot wait for it to begin.
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