Attractive woman

Moving day is a nightmare all of its own. There are boxes to pack, utilities to notify and have transferred, changes of address that need to be sent out, and moving vans to be rented. Then there is the headache of making certain that you are completely moved out in time for the new tenant to move in. This headache can sometimes compounded by another one: arriving at your new abode with a fully packed, rented-by-the-hour van, only to discover that it has not been vacated yet. It’s all part of the Moving Day Law of Opposites: what goes out, does not necessarily go in.

Moving can be a disaster waiting to happen, and Annabel wanted no part of it. She wanted it done quickly and smoothly, and she wanted it done in the right way, by professionals.

Months before her moving date, Annabel began her preparations. First she contacted every professional mover in town, checked their references, and inquired if they had insurance. She would only entrust her valuable antique tables and armchairs to a moving company whose credentials she was satisfied with. Next, she began packing her boxes. She selected only boxes that were neither too large, nor too small. She divided and categorized everything that she packed, and labeled each and every box. The day before she was scheduled to move, she called ahead in order to be sure that her new place was ready for her to move in to.

Annabel had an older sister named Julie, who also happened to be moving. Julie, however, did not believe in doing things the right way, as Annabel did. Julie had dozens of moves under her belt, and if there was one thing she knew about, it was moving. Julie did not bother with the size of her boxes, or separating what went into them. She tossed everything in together, and as long as the box could still be lifted, it was fine by her. She did, however, have a fairly unique way of preparing her paintings and drawings for transportation. First, she would remove all of the drawers from her dresser. Then she would take all of the pictures down from their easels and off of the walls, and wrap them up in bedding quilts. Once they were safely wrapped, she would jam them into the empty slots in the dresser. It was a wonderful technique that had served her well in the past. Occasionally one or two would be damaged, but what did it matter? She was no Picasso, after all.

There was no need for Julie to call ahead. Whenever she rented a new apartment, she always tried to get one that would be vacated by it current tenant at least a month before she moved in. That way her new landlord would be done with the repairs, and have the place all cleaned up for her when she arrived. As an added bonus, she sometimes was allowed to move in early. It also helped her to be certain that the previous tenant would be gone when she got there. Several of her friends had had the nasty surprise of arriving at their new homes, only to discover that they couldn’t move in. They had been forced to put their boxes, sofas and dining sets in storage, while their new landlords found alternate apartments for them.

Julie never bothered with professional movers, nor did she care if the movers that she hired had insurance. What she wanted in a mover was someone who got the job done, and did it cheaply. The movers that she could find by simply opening her newspaper to the classified section suited her just fine.

Moving day came, and moving day went. Annabel and Julie each moved in the style that suited them, and their moves came out all right in the end. Annabel swears she will never move again if she does not have to, while Julie, well…. She’s still looking for that perfect southern exposure.