Saturday, August 1, 2009

The Big Push

The physically strenuous part of our move is over, and one thing is clear: I'm getting too old for this.

We fetched a 26-foot U-Haul truck mid-day Thursday and worked late into the evening loading it, mostly furniture and big chunks of household goods. That night we backed the rented beast up against the house to keep it relatively secure, and then yesterday we drove it across town to our new home.

Unloading was much easier than loading, and despite the heat and humidity we were able to knock it out in less than four hours. We even had time and energy to do a little bit of unpacking and arranging.

It feels more like home now.

The two-day push wasn't without complications, of course, and both of our issues were related to attitude. The spawns were, in sum, less-than-stellar on Loading Day, although they did acquit themselves quite admirably yesterday. And Friday morning my in-laws, our new hosts, launched into an addled, entitlement-fueled harangue aimed at my wife and me.

You'll have that sort of thing, I guess. The missus and I persevered and got the job done anyway.

Our teenagers, relieved of duty around 6pm, dashed off to hang out with friends. I'd been saving my pennies to treat my wife to dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant and so, after washing the moving-day grime from our weary selves, that's where we headed.

It's a great little place, very authentic and just a couple of miles from where we're living now. The proprietor greeted us warmly and the staff, as if they knew we needed pampering, were pleasant and attentive. I can't decide what I enjoyed most -- the chorizo, the tequila or the strolling musician who serenaded us.

The company I kept topped them all. Mrs. KintlaLake is the best. No one works harder that she does. I'm a fortunate man, and we make one helluva team.

Over the next several days we'll empty boxes and move things around 'til we make this space our own. Next Saturday we'll pay a pair of pros to move four pieces we couldn't manage ourselves.

So we're not done just yet -- but the worst, I think, is behind us.