Wednesday was our big move to Baltimore. As the moving van and I were driving out of DC, there was a sudden downpour of rain mixed with frequent thunder and lightning. Some might view a thunderstorm on the day of your move as a bad omen. But I'm trying to think more positively these days. That's why now, two days later, I'm still asserting it was a great move. Damnit.

Great.

Except for a few, itsy-bitsy details:

1) As we hit the 50-295 split, I noticed the moving truck wasn't getting on the parkway to Baltimore with me. This was surprising to me since I had just gone over the directions to Baltimore with him before we left. I called him to ask what was up. He said he couldn't get on the BW Parkway with his truck because he'd get a huge fine. "But I told you we were going 295," I said. "Yeah, I didn't realize that was the same thing." In other words, he knew enough to know he could get a ticket on the BW Parkway, but not that the BW Parkway was 295. A little frustrating, but I didn't let it get to me. I had to go a little out of my way to pick up C from work so this would give me extra time to get up there before them. See? This is how we look on the bright side.

2) About 45 minutes later, I got a call from the driver. The truck, which - and this might be stating the obvious, but I want to bring the point home - was carrying all of our worldly possessions, including our bed, our spare air mattress, photos, music, memories, and a cooler full of frozen food - had broken down. According to the driver, who was speaking to me from somewhere off of 495, it probably just needed oil.

3) As it turns out, the truck needed more than oil. In fact, it was so debilitated that it had to be taken back to the mover's warehouse in Sterling, VA. No passing go. No collecting $200. Directly to Sterling. And all of those possessions I mentioned earlier? They had to be transferred to another truck. A newer truck. Now I might say (if I were somebody who was prone to sarcasm) that it was a dang good idea to have taken out the 'old' truck on our DC-Baltimore move. You know, instead of the newer, more reliable one. Luckily, I never use sarcasm if I can help it. (Such a vulgar word, sarcasm, the root meaning of which is tearing of flesh.) Here's how we shed this one in a positive light: the move was so good, it had to be done twice. And besides, they promised to deliver our stuff that night in the new truck. How could we possibly be upset?

4) The crew arrived at our (empty) house around 9pm. It feels weird to move into a house under the cover of darkness. Not that it was a very 'covert' operation. I think the truck knocked most of the branches off the trees on our block. And nothing beats the sound of a growling diesel engine right outside your window on a week night. The only thing that could have possibly made us any more loud and imposing is if we set off a few fireworks to mark our arrival on the block. Naked. I think we must be off to a great start with the neighbors.

5) Two of the guys who loaded the truck in the morning did not accompany the team leader on his late-night delivery to our house. So two new guys came instead. The good thing about this was that these new guys were actually much better than the two guys from the morning. The bad thing is that the new guys knew nothing about what the two guys from the morning had done with the hardware to our furniture. (You know, all those pesky screws and bolts without which assembling something like a bed frame becomes a remarkably complicated task.) But again, let's put this in a positive light: resting the mattress directly on the floor put us closer to our new house, both in body and in spirit. Again, how could we complain about that?

6) There was no financial compensation for all the inconvenience. And we were really too tired to argue much about it. But they totally deserved the money. You know, for a job well done. We've tried calling the company a couple of times since then to express our undying love and gratitude, but they must be really busy. They're not returning our calls.

So, you see, there were just a few minor glitches. But otherwise, it was a perfect move. So if you want the kind of experience we had next time you move in the Balitmore-DC area, be sure to contact Relocation Systems in Sterling, Virginia. Ask for Wayne or Cathy. Oh, and make sure "D" is the team lead on the move. He's a true multi-tasker. He's really good at taking personal calls while he 'supervises' his crew.

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