Do I wake or sleep?

The other exciting news is that...*drum roll* Lori and I have FINALLY found a place. We signed the lease last Friday and are moving in!

Needless to say, this is a huge, HUGE load off my mind. We have discussed this for a long time--over a year. Last spring I was prepared to get my own place but she didn't have the dinero then so we put it off til the fall. We were going forward tentatively (due to her situation) and then the fire at Chris's apartment happened. Mickey and I each came up with the idea of having him take over my spot, and after that I was trying to find a place sooner rather than later. Lori and I went to see several places together including one 2-bedroom in, of all places, Elizabeth's building. The apartment was gorgeous and I wanted to jump at it--Lori thought her bedroom was too small and wasn't thrilled about it but finally agreed. Then we spoke to the woman showing the place who said they didn't take guarantors (which Lori had to have). So the broker (who was hired by the landlord [Tesse's and Elizabeth's landlord]--I've never had to use a broker, and hope I never will) asked me if I thought *I* could qualify for the apartment all by myself. A $1650 apartment, on my income! I really wanted the apartment though, and even offered to pay a year's rent up front. She kept shaking her head and saying "no, with this landlord, it's all about the income. He's been burned--they've had to evict people." I know that the woman across the hall from Elizabeth and me, the one who let the mold take over the apartment, didn't want to leave and had to be evicted, and didn't Elizabeth say something about her ex-BF getting kicked out? Anyway, the whole thing was extremely annoying--not only do I have perfect credit and a high credit score, I can pay all that rent up front! Just ridiculous that that doesn't qualify me.

But it definitely turned out for the best in the end. Last Monday I saw an ad in CL for an apartment that sounded promising--2-bedrooms, $1400 a month, hardwood floors, being renovated, cats allowed. I made an appointment and Lori and I checked it out. GORGEOUS. An old pre-war building with a nice big lobby, marble steps on the staircase, 2 decent-sized bedrooms, a nice-sized living room, lots of light. We both immediately liked it and talked about it for a little while, and even picked out bedrooms.

Thursday I was on the phone going back and forth between the owner and Lori, trying to set up a time so that we could meet. FINALLY we hammered it out--2 pm the next day--and we showed up to meet the guy. He's an attorney on the Upper East Side and is...really cool. I liked him immediately. His mother works in the office AND they have a cat there! A big fat blotched tabby, just like Tatiana. Naturally I had to meet him. And when we walked in, they were listening to the Broadway cast recording of Rent. After the scrutiny I had to undergo for the other apartment, I was trying to explain everything to the guy (especially that I haven't had a lease in my name for over a year) but as soon as he saw my credit score and record, he waved me off. He said "I'm not a landlord, I'm an attorney. All I care is, can you pay the rent?" He approved us immediately and we chatted for a while, talking about logistics. I want (NEED!) to move in right away, but Lori wants to give her current roommate notice so she can find someone new. The landlord said "well, the lease starts on Dec. 1 and you've just paid the first month's rent--tell you what, whenever you move in, just prorate the rent, and apply that to January's rent." Oh my Lord! What landlord do you know would do that?! Lori and I danced out of there--we are SO excited! We started planning parties and furniture immediately. Mark your calendars for February 24, 2009 for our Mardi Gras party!

So I'm moving in right after I get back from Thanksgiving--Dec. 2 or 3. It's a bit hurried but hey, so have my last several moves been! As I said, the place is gorgeous and our apartment being renovated right now. Oh, and it's rent-stabilized, and we can sublet if we want. Eeeeh! My bedroom overlooks the backyard where there's a nice big tree that has beautiful leaves right now. And there's a fire escape off one of my windows so we can have a cookout! *And*--get this--my bedroom has French doors opening onto the living room! Now I can live out my Joan Crawford fantasy of accepting the Oscar in my bathrobe and maribou mules!

Oh, oh, oh and I forgot to tell you where it is--Inwood! Just one stop down, on Vermilyea off of Dyckman. Right by Fort Tryon Park!

I finally screwed my guts to the sticking point and called U-Haul to ask for a refund. I was prepared to have to harangue them, to offer affadavits and documents and copies and blahblahblah. And frankly, interpersonal conflict of any kind makes my stomach hurt. I'm a WASP, I loathe confrontation. But Will, the customer service representative to whom I spoke, had all the documents in front of him already--because it was all in the original email I received, confirming my reservation was until 4. I was on hold for a little bit but then he came back on and said I would be getting a refund for that extra day. I expected much more of a fight--he said "normally there might be more to prove but it's all in the original reservation." I thanked him fervently.

I'm going to mail a copy of the refund to that woman, with a photo of me smiling triumphantly. What a thoroughly unpleasant person. I'm glad I won. I hope they take it out of her profits or fees or whatever. Then I hope she goes out of business

I may hate confrontation but I can be damn vindictive.

What 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.

( STRESS )

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.

So, I'm mostly packed. Almost everything is in bags and boxes, piled up in my living room and on the stairs outside my door (thank God I'm on the top floor). Tonight I'm packing all the clothes, and tomorrow night I'll clean as much as I can and spackle the holes left over from all the nails. I'm waiting until the last minute (i.e., 5 am Saturday) to unplug/remove the 1) computer/phone/cable modem, 2) TV/cable box/VCR/DVD player and 3) air conditioner.

For those who are helping me: If you could be at my place by 9:00 (or even earlier), that would be greatly appreciated. Also, would people prefer coffee and donuts, or perhaps something healthier (I was thinking fruit/vegetables)?

Tesse texted me yesterday, asking what the move-in plan was. As of now, I am picking up the van and equipment around 7-7:30--if one guy were to be there with me, it would probably facilitate things. Otherwise, everyone can get there around 9:00, with coffee, etc. waiting. The van and equipment must be returned by 4:00, so we need to be in the apartment by 2:30-3. I think that's doable.

Any questions?

Um, okay. I was thinking about using the movers Jason and Paula have used, L&L Movers, and recommended highly, but they're quoting me around $800. I was thinking closer to $400-600--that is quite a bit more than I think I can justify, especially since you need to add tips onto that. Aaaaugh!! Er, can anyone help me move if it comes to that? I will provide coffe and donuts beforehand, and dinner afterward. I wanted just to pay the movers and walk into my new apartment without dealing with all of this, but $800 is a lot, especially when I'm putting on a flippin' play this summer.

The other day I popped into my landlord's building to sign the moveout papers. The girl at the desk said "okay, so you'll be moving out on or before July 1, correct?" I said yes, on July 1, then I asked, to clarify, "I can move out on July 1, right?" She said yes, that's what she said, then she went into the office to talk to the manager--she came out and said "actually, you need to be out by June 30." The thing is, because of all the renovations happening in the new building, I really can't move in before July 1 and even that's pushing it. I asked Mike about this, who said this sort of thing goes on all the time but this does seem odd. Who moves overnight? Has anyone else heard of this, where a landlord enforces the lease to the T? I asked the guy at L&L and he said that sounded odd--that a person would have to put stuff into storage for one day, and be charged for a double move. Has anyone else dealt with this?