I think I might have left that out.
So hey...we're moving!
We've taken 6 loads or so in Corey's truck over the last week and have pretty much everything but the big stuff out of here. Remember Operation Couch? In case you are new here, it was a fascinating 6 part series the day I recruited 3 of my undergrad students to come hoist my new couch up over the balcony of our second floor apartment.
Anyway...now we have to reverse it and get the couch back out. Good times!
We have a u-haul, 2 friends, and my future little brother-in-law reserved for Sunday to help us with it and to get the rest of our shit out of this place!
I am really excited about our new place. It's the lower part of a duplex that my friend owns. Her and her husband (and super adorable baby that I watch 3 days a week!) just bought a new house, so we are moving in. It's in a good (and pretty) neighborhood right across the street from a gorgeous catholic church, and 2 doors down from an equally gorgeous lutheran church. It's got shiny new appliances and cabinets, hardwood floors, and pretty pretty built in woodwork. And a cute little yard in the front and back. And a basement! And it's even got 2 little stained glass windows. This is like Christmas x 100 for me.
Did I mention that the street is lined with big trees? I dream of things like this.
Ridiculous, no?
I'm sure the honeymoon phase of our new place will wear off eventually, but right now it's heaven. Sunday night we will sleep there finally, and I think we've got it worked out with our apartments that we won't have to clean anything, which will be a glorious time and energy saver.
Oh crap - I left out the best part - our rent will be considerably cheaper than it is here - an apartment that isn't near anything but a few crappy neighborhoods! Yay!
The only downside is that for the next year it will take me about 40-45 minutes to get to work instead of 20-25. That is going to be a real bitch in the winter, but I'll deal.
Showing posts with label couch tales. Show all posts
Showing posts with label couch tales. Show all posts
June 21, 2008
February 16, 2008
Operation Couch: Part 6 - VICTORY IS MINE!!!
[20 points to anyone who got the Family Guy reference]
There is a loveseat AND a sofa in my living room.
It was magical.
AND...Corey didn't even notice it when he first walked in the room.
The entire thing only took about 10 minutes, and that includes hauling it from the garage to our front door, tying ropes and ratchets around it, maneuvering it down my shoveled path to the area below the balcony, throwing the ropes up, running upstairs, and bringing it in. Like I said before: Magical.
I didn't get any shots of it being pulled up because I had left my phone upstairs, but here is one once they got in in the room:
Here are the guys, soaking up the glory:
Here is what our living room looks like now:
I am the only casualty in this whole thing.
While I was moving that old chair into the spare bedroom I slipped and sandwiched my ring finger (and therefore my ring) between the chair and the wall. I bent a prong on the ring and my finger is slowing turning red and purple and swelling.
Prongs can be fixed right? I sure hope so.
There is a loveseat AND a sofa in my living room.
It was magical.
AND...Corey didn't even notice it when he first walked in the room.
The entire thing only took about 10 minutes, and that includes hauling it from the garage to our front door, tying ropes and ratchets around it, maneuvering it down my shoveled path to the area below the balcony, throwing the ropes up, running upstairs, and bringing it in. Like I said before: Magical.
I didn't get any shots of it being pulled up because I had left my phone upstairs, but here is one once they got in in the room:
Here are the guys, soaking up the glory:
Here is what our living room looks like now:
I am the only casualty in this whole thing.
While I was moving that old chair into the spare bedroom I slipped and sandwiched my ring finger (and therefore my ring) between the chair and the wall. I bent a prong on the ring and my finger is slowing turning red and purple and swelling.
Prongs can be fixed right? I sure hope so.
Operation Couch: Part 5
OH MY GOD HE’S ON HIS WAY HOME.
He is 50 minutes away and the boys are almost here. Crappity crap crap. I think Corey is suspicious. I’m never ask when he’s leaving, when he’s coming back, how far away he is, etc.
Remind me to start being nosier.
He is 50 minutes away and the boys are almost here. Crappity crap crap. I think Corey is suspicious. I’m never ask when he’s leaving, when he’s coming back, how far away he is, etc.
Remind me to start being nosier.
Operation Couch: Part 4
12:14 - OH MY GOD WHERE ARE THEY.
12:17 -
Ring Ring
D: "Hello?"
Me: "D!!! This is Jessie. Where are you guys?"
D: "P said he was picking me up in 5 minutes. That was 20 minutes ago.
Me: "OH MY GOD He's going to be back in like an hour or so!"
D: "Oh. Shit. Ok, I'll call P and see WTF he's doing."
Oy vey. They are giving me a heart attack. I think I'll go eat a bagel.
Those boys are making The Baby Jesus and The Couch cry.
12:17 -
Ring Ring
D: "Hello?"
Me: "D!!! This is Jessie. Where are you guys?"
D: "P said he was picking me up in 5 minutes. That was 20 minutes ago.
Me: "OH MY GOD He's going to be back in like an hour or so!"
D: "Oh. Shit. Ok, I'll call P and see WTF he's doing."
Oy vey. They are giving me a heart attack. I think I'll go eat a bagel.
Those boys are making The Baby Jesus and The Couch cry.
Operation Couch: Part 3
Here is my source of wisdom for how this operation is going down...
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Moving-Furniture-2016/Hoisting-couch-2nd-floor.htm
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Moving-Furniture-2016/Hoisting-couch-2nd-floor.htm
Operation Couch: Part 2
At the request of my mom, I took a few "before" pictures. I wish I had a picture of what it was before the loveseat.
Dorm room city. Highly inappropriate for a couple of 30 year olds IMO.
The loveseat and rug were a huge improvement. I won't keep you in suspense.
Exhibit A:
Now let me draw your attention to the sheet that is half-assedly serving as a curtain. That pesky sun shines in that window during the day and causing a pesky glare on the TV which in turn results missing über-important football plays and ESPN highlights. Also notice the leaning lamp and messy coffee table. We are both to blame for this.
But the loveseat looks nice, no?
Exhibit B:
Notice that chair to the left. My mom and step-dad bought that over a decade and a half ago with a matching couch and since then it has moved all over California and to Wisconsin. It was nice when it was new, but now it is horribly outdated and worn the hell out. It is one of 2 chairs that served as our only seating in our living room since June when we moved here. See that stack of paintings (Corey painted that cool eyeball thing, by the way)? Those have been sitting there since June. We have no where to hang them or store them. So they sit there. See that door in the back? That is where my couch will come through and make its glorious debut in our living room.
Exhibit C:
There is the papasan chair. I used to love it...then it became the only thing I had to sit in and I'm contemplating sending it back to the dorms with my hired help. Now that you've seen both chairs, picture them side-by-side where the loveseat is. Yep...that is how our livingroom has looked for 8 months.
Let me explain some other obviously klassy looking things you see in this picture. That door that is off it's hinges is the doorway we originally tried to bring the couch through. That bookshelf back there is on our teeny tiny landing that (along with the low clearance of the door jam) made it impossible to maneuver the couch anywhere but back down the stairs.
Yes, there is a 19lb trout on our wall. It's a little strange, but it has sentimental value for Corey, so I let him hang it.
Anyway, T minus 1 hour and 3 minutes until Operation Couch.
Dorm room city. Highly inappropriate for a couple of 30 year olds IMO.
The loveseat and rug were a huge improvement. I won't keep you in suspense.
Exhibit A:
Now let me draw your attention to the sheet that is half-assedly serving as a curtain. That pesky sun shines in that window during the day and causing a pesky glare on the TV which in turn results missing über-important football plays and ESPN highlights. Also notice the leaning lamp and messy coffee table. We are both to blame for this.
But the loveseat looks nice, no?
Exhibit B:
Notice that chair to the left. My mom and step-dad bought that over a decade and a half ago with a matching couch and since then it has moved all over California and to Wisconsin. It was nice when it was new, but now it is horribly outdated and worn the hell out. It is one of 2 chairs that served as our only seating in our living room since June when we moved here. See that stack of paintings (Corey painted that cool eyeball thing, by the way)? Those have been sitting there since June. We have no where to hang them or store them. So they sit there. See that door in the back? That is where my couch will come through and make its glorious debut in our living room.
Exhibit C:
There is the papasan chair. I used to love it...then it became the only thing I had to sit in and I'm contemplating sending it back to the dorms with my hired help. Now that you've seen both chairs, picture them side-by-side where the loveseat is. Yep...that is how our livingroom has looked for 8 months.
Let me explain some other obviously klassy looking things you see in this picture. That door that is off it's hinges is the doorway we originally tried to bring the couch through. That bookshelf back there is on our teeny tiny landing that (along with the low clearance of the door jam) made it impossible to maneuver the couch anywhere but back down the stairs.
Yes, there is a 19lb trout on our wall. It's a little strange, but it has sentimental value for Corey, so I let him hang it.
Anyway, T minus 1 hour and 3 minutes until Operation Couch.
Operation Couch
Since the man has left the house for ice fishing near Madison with the boys, I can unleash my plans.
That couch that we couldn't get in our apartment? It's coming in. TODAY.
Over the balcony.
What? It's been done before. My apartment manager has given her blessing, the couch has been measured, the balcony has been measured, and so has the doorway. It's going to work. It's going to work because it's just barely big enough, I have a shitload of ratchet straps and rope that I've borrowed, and I've recruited 4 strapping 20 year old boys to do the heavy lifting.
It's going to work because damn it, I want that couch. I want it in my livingroom. Now.
This is what happens when you have two very stubborn people living under one roof. He's stubborn in the way of no way it's not going to work I'm not going to touch it ever ever again sell it I'm done. I'm stubborn in the way of I want this and I will make it happen with or without you so the sooner you accept that the better surprise there is a couch in our livingroom hahahahaha too bad! I'm sure he'll love the couch once it is in the livingroom. Kind of like how I swore he'd love our cat Zoey once she was already in our house when he got home. Besides, how can he not love more room for planting our asses?
The fact that our relationship has thrived for 8 years is amazing.
So as soon as I finish my second cup of coffee I've got here, I'm going to go shovel a swell little path through the36 feet 2.5 feet of snow from our sidewalk over to the balcony, then I'm going to go wrap a couch up in blankets and straps and rope. Then I wait until noon when the hired help shows up (to work for free...or maybe for our old chairs. What? They live in dorm rooms. Free old chairs are gold to them! Right? No? Crap.).
Did I mention it is currently 9 degrees?
***Edit to update****
OH.
MY.
GOD.
Shoveling snow is no effing joke. My forearms can barely support my cup of coffee at this point. I'm afraid I've been rendered useless for lifting today.
No no no. I know I've pushed through exponentially more difficult things in the army, and I was much less excited about those things than I am this couch.
Here is my glorious path to the balcony:
That snow is deeper than it looks. Believe me.
That couch that we couldn't get in our apartment? It's coming in. TODAY.
Over the balcony.
What? It's been done before. My apartment manager has given her blessing, the couch has been measured, the balcony has been measured, and so has the doorway. It's going to work. It's going to work because it's just barely big enough, I have a shitload of ratchet straps and rope that I've borrowed, and I've recruited 4 strapping 20 year old boys to do the heavy lifting.
It's going to work because damn it, I want that couch. I want it in my livingroom. Now.
This is what happens when you have two very stubborn people living under one roof. He's stubborn in the way of no way it's not going to work I'm not going to touch it ever ever again sell it I'm done. I'm stubborn in the way of I want this and I will make it happen with or without you so the sooner you accept that the better surprise there is a couch in our livingroom hahahahaha too bad! I'm sure he'll love the couch once it is in the livingroom. Kind of like how I swore he'd love our cat Zoey once she was already in our house when he got home. Besides, how can he not love more room for planting our asses?
The fact that our relationship has thrived for 8 years is amazing.
So as soon as I finish my second cup of coffee I've got here, I'm going to go shovel a swell little path through the
Did I mention it is currently 9 degrees?
***Edit to update****
OH.
MY.
GOD.
Shoveling snow is no effing joke. My forearms can barely support my cup of coffee at this point. I'm afraid I've been rendered useless for lifting today.
No no no. I know I've pushed through exponentially more difficult things in the army, and I was much less excited about those things than I am this couch.
Here is my glorious path to the balcony:
That snow is deeper than it looks. Believe me.
February 14, 2008
Shh...I'm up to something
I've been quiet. And busy. The next two days are no exception.
BUT...
I have some sweet plans for Saturday morning that mean nothing to you, my dear few readers, but they mean something to me! Whether you care or not (which you won't, trust me), I have to keep it a secret in case a certain person I live with happens upon my blog and puts a stop to my glorious plans. :)
He is going ice fishing on Saturday with some friends from work - it's my perfect opportunity.
Eeeeeeeeeeeexcellent.
BUT...
I have some sweet plans for Saturday morning that mean nothing to you, my dear few readers, but they mean something to me! Whether you care or not (which you won't, trust me), I have to keep it a secret in case a certain person I live with happens upon my blog and puts a stop to my glorious plans. :)
He is going ice fishing on Saturday with some friends from work - it's my perfect opportunity.
Eeeeeeeeeeeexcellent.
February 10, 2008
Because this day wasn't sucking enough.
I woke up really happy this morning because we were going to pick up our sofa and loveseat and it was going to be the best day ever.
:::insert obnoxious buzzer sound here:::
We got the loveseat in fairly easily. Then came the couch.
Not. A. Chance.
See, we live on the second floor. You enter our apartment from the ground level and there is nothing in front of you but our stairs. once you get up the stairs, there is a landing and the entrance to our livingroom on your right. That entrance is kind of skinny. We have vaulted ceilings, but that little doorway there is narrow and the landing isn’t very big. The couch is huge. There lies the problem.
Corey and his brother tried every angle they possibly could. They came close a few times, but would have needed about 3 more inches in any given direction for it to work. If we could get it over the balcony we could get it in our back door, but the balcony is too high. It would take a lot of rope and a few more strong guys to get it in that way. And maybe a ladder. Or 6.
I don’t know what else to do. I’m so disappointed.
We got the apartments to let us stick it in a garage until we figure it out, but it can’t stay there long without them making us rent it out, which would be way too expensive. Tomorrow I will try the maintenance guy - he’s been here awhile, maybe he’s got an idea. Maybe I can pay him and his ‘roid-ed out biceps to pick it up and throw it over.
And then, as if this day wasn’t sucking enough…
We went ahead with changing our wedding date to a week earlier. Not everyone I wrote to responded to let me know there was no problem with a week earlier. One of those was my matron of honor. She’s still in the army and I guess a week earlier they have something going on that she doesn’t think she’ll be able to get a couple vacation days.
Fuck.
:::insert obnoxious buzzer sound here:::
We got the loveseat in fairly easily. Then came the couch.
Not. A. Chance.
See, we live on the second floor. You enter our apartment from the ground level and there is nothing in front of you but our stairs. once you get up the stairs, there is a landing and the entrance to our livingroom on your right. That entrance is kind of skinny. We have vaulted ceilings, but that little doorway there is narrow and the landing isn’t very big. The couch is huge. There lies the problem.
Corey and his brother tried every angle they possibly could. They came close a few times, but would have needed about 3 more inches in any given direction for it to work. If we could get it over the balcony we could get it in our back door, but the balcony is too high. It would take a lot of rope and a few more strong guys to get it in that way. And maybe a ladder. Or 6.
I don’t know what else to do. I’m so disappointed.
We got the apartments to let us stick it in a garage until we figure it out, but it can’t stay there long without them making us rent it out, which would be way too expensive. Tomorrow I will try the maintenance guy - he’s been here awhile, maybe he’s got an idea. Maybe I can pay him and his ‘roid-ed out biceps to pick it up and throw it over.
And then, as if this day wasn’t sucking enough…
We went ahead with changing our wedding date to a week earlier. Not everyone I wrote to responded to let me know there was no problem with a week earlier. One of those was my matron of honor. She’s still in the army and I guess a week earlier they have something going on that she doesn’t think she’ll be able to get a couple vacation days.
Fuck.
January 14, 2008
It's getting better all the time
The Packers won!
The Giants beat the Cowboys! In case you aren't aware, this is glorious because instead of the Packers playing the Cowboys (who they lost to this year) in Dallas, they get to play the Giants (who they beat this year) AT LAMBEAU for the NFC Championship, and then move on to the Superbowl. See? Good news! :)
Corey finally smoked his last cigarette. I'm two weeks ahead of him, and completely over it. Remember back when I was really cranky and annoyed? That is where he is right now. It's not pleasant...but at the same time it is kind of entertaining to mock him a little since he did it to me. Before you start thinking I'm a terrible, non-encouraging person...I have been very supportive the rest of the time, it's just not as fun to talk about. Hopefully he has as easy of a go at it as I did. If you had asked me 2 weeks ago if I thought I'd be successful 2 weeks later, I would have said no.
The newest love of my life (that I haven't met yet) is the sofa and loveseat I am buying from a friend. You see, we had to ditch our couch in Fresno because bringing it wasn't worth the extra $200 we would have had to pay for more space in the moving truck. Since June our livingroom furniture has consisted of a papasan chair and an uncomfortable chair that matched our old couch. Corey and I can't even sit together at home.
I've been looking on craigslist, but in the end I just would never again be able to bring myself to buy a couch with an unknown history of ass on it. I had a few of those in the army - scaaaaaaaaaaaary. I won't even get into the unidentifiable stains and smells on the couches that got passed around the barracks. I bet I could walk into our old barracks in Germany right now, 6 years later, and find at least 3 familiar couches that I owned at some point. Anyway...this sofa and loveseat are coming from someone I know - someone who is clean and doesn't have shifty eyes, so I feel safe! It is also rumored to be among the most comfortable couches in the world. Can you tell how excited I am?
It's the simple things. Here is the sofa :)
We're totally going to snuggle on it.
In other, not so happy news...I suck at wedding planning. You'd think I'd have a shitload of practice at it by now, right? No. I'm so glad I can't go back in time and see what a trashtastic job I did of things the first 2 times. It's almost as though I've never even thought about having a wedding before in my entire life. Yes, it's that bad.
I was informed today that the wedding is 200 days away. I'm sure that is not helping my mentality of it. It sounds like a lot of time, but at the same time, it's not. Once school starts again in 2 weeks, I'm not going to have time to get anything done. I have the time now, but I'm having a permanent brain fart. Woe is me.
The Giants beat the Cowboys! In case you aren't aware, this is glorious because instead of the Packers playing the Cowboys (who they lost to this year) in Dallas, they get to play the Giants (who they beat this year) AT LAMBEAU for the NFC Championship, and then move on to the Superbowl. See? Good news! :)
Corey finally smoked his last cigarette. I'm two weeks ahead of him, and completely over it. Remember back when I was really cranky and annoyed? That is where he is right now. It's not pleasant...but at the same time it is kind of entertaining to mock him a little since he did it to me. Before you start thinking I'm a terrible, non-encouraging person...I have been very supportive the rest of the time, it's just not as fun to talk about. Hopefully he has as easy of a go at it as I did. If you had asked me 2 weeks ago if I thought I'd be successful 2 weeks later, I would have said no.
The newest love of my life (that I haven't met yet) is the sofa and loveseat I am buying from a friend. You see, we had to ditch our couch in Fresno because bringing it wasn't worth the extra $200 we would have had to pay for more space in the moving truck. Since June our livingroom furniture has consisted of a papasan chair and an uncomfortable chair that matched our old couch. Corey and I can't even sit together at home.
I've been looking on craigslist, but in the end I just would never again be able to bring myself to buy a couch with an unknown history of ass on it. I had a few of those in the army - scaaaaaaaaaaaary. I won't even get into the unidentifiable stains and smells on the couches that got passed around the barracks. I bet I could walk into our old barracks in Germany right now, 6 years later, and find at least 3 familiar couches that I owned at some point. Anyway...this sofa and loveseat are coming from someone I know - someone who is clean and doesn't have shifty eyes, so I feel safe! It is also rumored to be among the most comfortable couches in the world. Can you tell how excited I am?
It's the simple things. Here is the sofa :)
We're totally going to snuggle on it.
In other, not so happy news...I suck at wedding planning. You'd think I'd have a shitload of practice at it by now, right? No. I'm so glad I can't go back in time and see what a trashtastic job I did of things the first 2 times. It's almost as though I've never even thought about having a wedding before in my entire life. Yes, it's that bad.
I was informed today that the wedding is 200 days away. I'm sure that is not helping my mentality of it. It sounds like a lot of time, but at the same time, it's not. Once school starts again in 2 weeks, I'm not going to have time to get anything done. I have the time now, but I'm having a permanent brain fart. Woe is me.
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