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ceebeegeeWhat an epic experience. Holy crap--Saturday was difficult, to say the least.
I stayed up rather late trying to pack absolutely everything I could, to minimize delays during the actual move. I was super-stressed because of the mess that exploded the day before--U-Haul had abruptly changed my truck reservation--instead of picking up in Chelsea, I now had to pick up the truck in the Bronx. When I called the location directly to confirm the times (pick up at 9:00 am, drop off at 4 pm--I had requested these times, of course, thinking I was driving soley within Manhattan) the manager, "Maddie," said she would charge me for an extra day if I got the truck back after 2 pm. (She also wouldn't guarantee that the truck would even be there). When I protested, saying I was coming from Manhattan and had an email confirming I could return the truck at 4 pm, she threatened not to rent to me. After our conversation, I called U-Haul again on Friday and spoke to Tania, who said I had until 3 to drop off the truck. So fucked up and unprofessional--I have an email that confirms a pickup location in Chelsea and a drop off time of 4 pm, a U-Haul representative on the phone who tells me a drop off time of 3:00, and a rude woman at the location who says 2:00.
So I was trying to make the move as quick as possible. Chris and Tesse offered to get there early, to pre-move smaller boxes into the courtyard, while I was getting the van. Mike showed up around 7:00 am to go with me to get the van, and he had to abet the insane struggle to get Tibby into his carrier. HOLY SHIT. Tibby, sweet little Tibby Two-Shoes with the big kitten paws and the snouty sweet face who gives me fuzzy kisses, turned into the Exorcist Kitty. He REFUSED to get into the carrier--he hissed and growled way down low and ran up into the loft. When I went up there to maneuver him down, he ran down back into the living room and then made a tactical error--he tried to run back into the bedroom. I knelt down and fielded him like a second baseman with a grounder--I simply CAUGHT him and grabbed his furry, squirming body. Mike held open the carrier and I shoved him in there and clamped the box shut. HOLY SHIT. I was trembling, I was so shaken up, and covered with scratches. One bad one on my leg, and another deep one on the wrist, and then some more on my arms and stomach. Seth very kindly offered to drive us to the U-Haul place in the Bronx and when he arrived, I showed him my Tibby wounds. Mike deadpanned "yes, I'm pretty sure I heard him say 'your mother sucks cocks in hell.'" This made me laugh for the rest of the day.
We got to the U-Haul place and "Maddie" was there, behind bulletproof glass, working very slowly. You'd think the manager would have at least one other person behind the window on one of the busiest moving days of the month but I guess that's asking too much for "Maddie." Not only would she not guarantee the truck (first-come, first serve), none of the equipment was guaranteed either--you had to spot it and grab it. The maddening thing was the equipment--the hand truck, the furniture dolly, the furniture blankets--was what made me choose U-Haul over Ryder or Budget. If I'd known that "reservation" meant nothing, I definitely would've chosen another company. We got out of there and lumbered our way back to Hell's Kitchen, which took a long time (since, you know, the Bronx is far away from Midtown Manhattan--which is why I reserved a truck for MIDTOWN). Got back around 9:00 and started running stuff into the truck. Run, run, run. See Clara move. Move, Clara, move! Got up to the new building around 11:00 and thank God for elevators. We got done around 1:10 and it's getting close now--I have 50 minutes to put some more diesel fuel back into the tank and return the truck. I asked someone to go with me, fearing "Maddie" might be difficult and I'd need a witness, and Duncan came. We drove back and drove around for a good 15 minutes looking for a station that sold diesel. Finally Duncan called the truck office, and they gave us a location, which took another ten minutes to drive to, and another ten minutes to get gas.
We walked into the truck office at 2:20 and naturally "Maddie" took her sweet-ass time getting to us. Finally at 2:35 she processed us, and of course charged me for the extra day--not just the rental fee for the truck but for the equipment. AND she added on liability insurance, which I did not ask for. I protested, saying I knew all along I would have a difficult time getting back to the Bronx by 2 which is why 1) I'd reserved the truck in Manhattan, and 2) I'd reserved it for 8 hours. She said "you signed a paper PROMISING you would get the truck back by 2--" and I said "That's because you threatened me! I spoke to U-Haul and they said I could return the truck by 3:00." I immediately called up U-Haul and spoke to Tania, who said she would call "Maddie" on the land line. I remained on hold during their conversation, Maddie's end of which I could hear through the bulletproof glass. She was telling Tania sharply that she only ever allowed 6 hours out for a truck and U-Haul be damned. Apparently this eloquent riposte shut Tania down, because I didn't hear anything from Tania for another 15 minutes, during which time I was on hold, refusing to pay, and customers were backing up because until I paid, "Maddie" couldn't or wouldn't help anyone else. While on hold, I was also holding court to the waiting customers, telling them never to rent from U-Haul again, as their reservation policy was very elastic. Some of them had this arrested expression on their faces, like they're listening to the crazy lady on the subway platform, going off on some religious jeremiad, but there's a grain of truth in what she says. Poor Duncan is sitting patiently to one side, his eyes rolling around on the floor from boredom and annoyance. (BTW, Duncan, I'm sorry I had to put you through that but I knew she would pull this and I needed a witness.) The best part was this beefy guy with a Noo Yawk accent, leaning menacingly into the bulletproof glass, saying "Whaddya mean you don' have a truck? I spoke to yoo yestidday--you prawmised me a truck. I have a reservation heah." I finally hung up and called U-Haul again, and a bored representative told me to call "Will" during the week, to apply for a refund.
So to sum up--I reserved a truck in Chelsea for 8 hours use, and 36 hours before I was to pick it up, U-Haul abruptly changed all the terms of the reservation, making it impossible for me to avoid being charged additional fees, and it is now up to ME to try to get my money back.
U-Haul's motto (I saved several of their brochures from the location) is "We Make Moving Easier."
I finally signed the papers, circling the charges and writing "disputed charges" above them. I told Duncan I would type up an affidavit and have him sign it, then get it notarized (we have several notary publics here at work). Duncan said somewhat fervently "I will sign anything you put down. That woman is awful." I mean--can you believe it? Can you fucking believe that shit? Why do people act that way? Why did she have to act like that? Why? I don't understand why people are so awful. I just don't get it. 20 damn minutes--was it worth it? She ruined my day, she pissed off other customers as well, U-Haul is going to get a very angry letter and if I don't get a refund, I will call up one of those news stations to enlist their help so she may well lose the U-Haul commission--and that must be every day of her life if she's that unreasonable. Is she happy? Is it worth it? Why?
Naturally after all that, Duncan and I got on the train going in the wrong direction. Eventually we took the D to 145th Street so we had to trek through St. Nicholas Park to get to my building, where we met Tesse who'd had to leave (Michael had already left so I owe both of them dinner). Jason and Chris were still waiting at my place, though, and I took the three of them out to Dinosaur BBQ which is a few blocks from my new place (in fact I can see it from my window). Dinosaur rocks! Damn, good drinks, good meat--what's not to love?
The good part, the very good part, is that I love my new apartment. It is actually bigger than I remembered from first seeing it--the kitchen is ENORMOUS, with tons and tons of cabinet space. It's a studio but is bigger than my old apartment (which was technically a 1-bedroom), especially with the bigger kitchen. I also have a long hallway entrance and lots of closet/storage space. But the best part is the VIEW. I have a fantastic view of downtown and the Hudson River, and I can see the Columbia campus, the Chrysler building, the Empire State building, and GE building (that is, 30 Rock where I work). It's a great view at any time but at dusk, when the lights downtown start to turn on--it's so, so pretty. The cats are fascinated by it--it's like kitty panoramic TV! Last night I spotted no fewer than 5 different fireworks displays--three along the East River, one coming from Columbia, and the Hoboken fireworks.
I will post pictures of my gorgeous new apartment as soon as I get it cleaned up.
I stayed up rather late trying to pack absolutely everything I could, to minimize delays during the actual move. I was super-stressed because of the mess that exploded the day before--U-Haul had abruptly changed my truck reservation--instead of picking up in Chelsea, I now had to pick up the truck in the Bronx. When I called the location directly to confirm the times (pick up at 9:00 am, drop off at 4 pm--I had requested these times, of course, thinking I was driving soley within Manhattan) the manager, "Maddie," said she would charge me for an extra day if I got the truck back after 2 pm. (She also wouldn't guarantee that the truck would even be there). When I protested, saying I was coming from Manhattan and had an email confirming I could return the truck at 4 pm, she threatened not to rent to me. After our conversation, I called U-Haul again on Friday and spoke to Tania, who said I had until 3 to drop off the truck. So fucked up and unprofessional--I have an email that confirms a pickup location in Chelsea and a drop off time of 4 pm, a U-Haul representative on the phone who tells me a drop off time of 3:00, and a rude woman at the location who says 2:00.
So I was trying to make the move as quick as possible. Chris and Tesse offered to get there early, to pre-move smaller boxes into the courtyard, while I was getting the van. Mike showed up around 7:00 am to go with me to get the van, and he had to abet the insane struggle to get Tibby into his carrier. HOLY SHIT. Tibby, sweet little Tibby Two-Shoes with the big kitten paws and the snouty sweet face who gives me fuzzy kisses, turned into the Exorcist Kitty. He REFUSED to get into the carrier--he hissed and growled way down low and ran up into the loft. When I went up there to maneuver him down, he ran down back into the living room and then made a tactical error--he tried to run back into the bedroom. I knelt down and fielded him like a second baseman with a grounder--I simply CAUGHT him and grabbed his furry, squirming body. Mike held open the carrier and I shoved him in there and clamped the box shut. HOLY SHIT. I was trembling, I was so shaken up, and covered with scratches. One bad one on my leg, and another deep one on the wrist, and then some more on my arms and stomach. Seth very kindly offered to drive us to the U-Haul place in the Bronx and when he arrived, I showed him my Tibby wounds. Mike deadpanned "yes, I'm pretty sure I heard him say 'your mother sucks cocks in hell.'" This made me laugh for the rest of the day.
We got to the U-Haul place and "Maddie" was there, behind bulletproof glass, working very slowly. You'd think the manager would have at least one other person behind the window on one of the busiest moving days of the month but I guess that's asking too much for "Maddie." Not only would she not guarantee the truck (first-come, first serve), none of the equipment was guaranteed either--you had to spot it and grab it. The maddening thing was the equipment--the hand truck, the furniture dolly, the furniture blankets--was what made me choose U-Haul over Ryder or Budget. If I'd known that "reservation" meant nothing, I definitely would've chosen another company. We got out of there and lumbered our way back to Hell's Kitchen, which took a long time (since, you know, the Bronx is far away from Midtown Manhattan--which is why I reserved a truck for MIDTOWN). Got back around 9:00 and started running stuff into the truck. Run, run, run. See Clara move. Move, Clara, move! Got up to the new building around 11:00 and thank God for elevators. We got done around 1:10 and it's getting close now--I have 50 minutes to put some more diesel fuel back into the tank and return the truck. I asked someone to go with me, fearing "Maddie" might be difficult and I'd need a witness, and Duncan came. We drove back and drove around for a good 15 minutes looking for a station that sold diesel. Finally Duncan called the truck office, and they gave us a location, which took another ten minutes to drive to, and another ten minutes to get gas.
We walked into the truck office at 2:20 and naturally "Maddie" took her sweet-ass time getting to us. Finally at 2:35 she processed us, and of course charged me for the extra day--not just the rental fee for the truck but for the equipment. AND she added on liability insurance, which I did not ask for. I protested, saying I knew all along I would have a difficult time getting back to the Bronx by 2 which is why 1) I'd reserved the truck in Manhattan, and 2) I'd reserved it for 8 hours. She said "you signed a paper PROMISING you would get the truck back by 2--" and I said "That's because you threatened me! I spoke to U-Haul and they said I could return the truck by 3:00." I immediately called up U-Haul and spoke to Tania, who said she would call "Maddie" on the land line. I remained on hold during their conversation, Maddie's end of which I could hear through the bulletproof glass. She was telling Tania sharply that she only ever allowed 6 hours out for a truck and U-Haul be damned. Apparently this eloquent riposte shut Tania down, because I didn't hear anything from Tania for another 15 minutes, during which time I was on hold, refusing to pay, and customers were backing up because until I paid, "Maddie" couldn't or wouldn't help anyone else. While on hold, I was also holding court to the waiting customers, telling them never to rent from U-Haul again, as their reservation policy was very elastic. Some of them had this arrested expression on their faces, like they're listening to the crazy lady on the subway platform, going off on some religious jeremiad, but there's a grain of truth in what she says. Poor Duncan is sitting patiently to one side, his eyes rolling around on the floor from boredom and annoyance. (BTW, Duncan, I'm sorry I had to put you through that but I knew she would pull this and I needed a witness.) The best part was this beefy guy with a Noo Yawk accent, leaning menacingly into the bulletproof glass, saying "Whaddya mean you don' have a truck? I spoke to yoo yestidday--you prawmised me a truck. I have a reservation heah." I finally hung up and called U-Haul again, and a bored representative told me to call "Will" during the week, to apply for a refund.
So to sum up--I reserved a truck in Chelsea for 8 hours use, and 36 hours before I was to pick it up, U-Haul abruptly changed all the terms of the reservation, making it impossible for me to avoid being charged additional fees, and it is now up to ME to try to get my money back.
U-Haul's motto (I saved several of their brochures from the location) is "We Make Moving Easier."
I finally signed the papers, circling the charges and writing "disputed charges" above them. I told Duncan I would type up an affidavit and have him sign it, then get it notarized (we have several notary publics here at work). Duncan said somewhat fervently "I will sign anything you put down. That woman is awful." I mean--can you believe it? Can you fucking believe that shit? Why do people act that way? Why did she have to act like that? Why? I don't understand why people are so awful. I just don't get it. 20 damn minutes--was it worth it? She ruined my day, she pissed off other customers as well, U-Haul is going to get a very angry letter and if I don't get a refund, I will call up one of those news stations to enlist their help so she may well lose the U-Haul commission--and that must be every day of her life if she's that unreasonable. Is she happy? Is it worth it? Why?
Naturally after all that, Duncan and I got on the train going in the wrong direction. Eventually we took the D to 145th Street so we had to trek through St. Nicholas Park to get to my building, where we met Tesse who'd had to leave (Michael had already left so I owe both of them dinner). Jason and Chris were still waiting at my place, though, and I took the three of them out to Dinosaur BBQ which is a few blocks from my new place (in fact I can see it from my window). Dinosaur rocks! Damn, good drinks, good meat--what's not to love?
The good part, the very good part, is that I love my new apartment. It is actually bigger than I remembered from first seeing it--the kitchen is ENORMOUS, with tons and tons of cabinet space. It's a studio but is bigger than my old apartment (which was technically a 1-bedroom), especially with the bigger kitchen. I also have a long hallway entrance and lots of closet/storage space. But the best part is the VIEW. I have a fantastic view of downtown and the Hudson River, and I can see the Columbia campus, the Chrysler building, the Empire State building, and GE building (that is, 30 Rock where I work). It's a great view at any time but at dusk, when the lights downtown start to turn on--it's so, so pretty. The cats are fascinated by it--it's like kitty panoramic TV! Last night I spotted no fewer than 5 different fireworks displays--three along the East River, one coming from Columbia, and the Hoboken fireworks.
I will post pictures of my gorgeous new apartment as soon as I get it cleaned up.
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