The day I dreaded for so long had arrived. Moving day. I was in a frenzy of loading up my minivan with anything I could grab. I had to be at the house by 09,00 to accept the second delivery of a dresser for my son as the first dresser was badly damaged. I had no breakfast. No coffee. I was in moving mode.
I disassembled the bed and wrapped the mattresses before the movers arrived at 13,40. One of the movers recognised me from one of my three moves last year. During the summer. The other mover was new having been on the job only six months.
I watched them wrap the furniture with blankets then shrink wrap as I talked with my husband. We were just discussing the beautiful hand carved cabinet now being wheeled away on a dolly down the stairs by the new guy. The cabinet I had since my oldest was born. Then the loud noise jolted me.
The crash was loud but I stayed seated hoping that everything was fine. When the movers returned they assured me it was just the dolly hitting the last step and that the cabinet landed on its feet. I trusted them. I should not have.
After two hours of loading the furniture, the movers made their way to the house. In the meantime, I went to Home Depot to buy a Y-connector for the washer as the movers did not wish to remove the one in the apartment. Something about them not being plumbers and rules and such.
I watched them and told them where to place the furniture. ‘Just plop it over there’ I said as I the house was already full with the other items I brought to the house during the past month. They even brought over the Christmas tree with its lights. Then my beautiful carved cabinet was unwrapped.
At first I noticed no significant damage. A slight indentation on the top which the movers let me know would not show up on photos if I submitted them for damage claim. They agreed to reduce the moving costs by $60. After they left and I paid for the almost four hours of moving, I went to the apartment intending to relax and watch Friends with my husband. I had a change of mind. Some things never change.
I made two more trips to the house with anything and everything left in the apartment. The little things always get you during the moves and there are so many more of those little things left behind in addition to the daybed, a table, and a desk. When I arrived to the house after my first trip, I noticed it.
I turned the cabinet around and saw the split in the mitered joint on the bottom. It was on both sides. Then a noticeable gap above one of the doors. Somehow the glass was not broken and I wondered how the cabinet fell and from which height. What really got me investigating further was a now darkened piece of missing wood on the front of the cabinet from years ago that I left exposed. Somewhere I have that missing piece but now the area was coloured in.
I looked closer at the gap and noticed that also looked to be coloured in. I felt betrayed. That feeling of being lied to is nothing new but dishonesty like this about a piece of furniture was difficult to comprehend. I then wrote an email to the moving company about the situation and now have to wait for their response.
I returned to the apartment and took more things. I will have to spend time going through everything next year to see what I can get rid of before the next move. I was not planning on moving from the apartment until I could afford to buy a house but things changed. I need to believe this new year will be better though I realise it will not be an easy transition as I continue living in this extreme survival mode.