A Rocky Start

It's been almost a month since I've been back here. Whether that's good or bad - I haven't decided. Moving into the house was a challenge and I've had plenty of ups and downs trying to get ready for the move. Honestly, I wouldn't have ever gotten through it if it wasn't for a close friend of mine. C saw me through everything and was there to help me when I needed it. She's the best!

So - here's what happened....

I started packing as soon as I got the news that my application for the lease on this house was approved. I packed with a frenzy at first, packing all the things I knew I wouldn't need for at least a month or so. I felt good. I was getting a head start on packing and felt that when the time came to move, I wouldn't have miscellaneous stuff laying around the apartment waiting to be packed at the last minute.

Well, I underestimated myself. With a full-time job, two kids, a dog and many other responsibilities, I packed less and less over the span of a month. Moving weekend came and I found myself packing and taking apart furniture well into the night. Moving day came and I was still packing and taking apart furniture. Thank goodness - J was there to help me, but of course, it wasn't without a whine or two. He hates early mornings just as much as I do - probably even more.

Anyway, as soon as I was approved for the lease, I started making the many phone calls necessary to cancel current services at the apartment and ordered new ones for the house. That also included the many change of address forms that I had to fill out. Fun, isn't it? I called AT&T for Internet and TV service at the new house and I had to order gas from Centerpoint. Also, the house didn't have a fridge or a washer/dryer so I had to buy them from Conn's. Both AT&T and Centerpoint required someone to be there to let someone into the house, as well as Conn's. With all the deposits and initial activation charges on many things - I couldn't afford to miss work (and AT&T/Centerpoint wouldn't come on a Saturday) so I was stressing out. Since my friend, C, is off on Fridays, she volunteered to come and stay at my house (which had no TV, no Internet and no fridge) to let all these people in.

Well - Conn's showed up but with a washer/dryer that was damaged. They apologized and said they'd be back Saturday morning with new ones. Ok - not too bad, right? Well - AT&T showed up right after Conn's did and found that there wasn't any connection. The AT&T guy thought maybe something was wrong with the phone line behind my house so he called for a phone tech to come check it out. It took the phone tech guy ALL DAY to show up (The TV guy called him around 10am and he showed up around 4pm) only to say "You're too far to get any services from AT&T." Poor C - she waited at the house all day for nothing. While she was at the house, I was running my many errands - one of them was visiting 4 different schools to withdraw my children from Katy ISD and to enroll them in Cy-Fair ISD. Yes - 4 schools - because my kids attend different schools. Fun! By the way - Centerpoint never showed up either.

So - on my way to one of the schools, I knew I would be passing the house so I stopped by and gave C some lunch. C was texting me all day long keeping me up to date on the many problems there was at the house. What made matters worse was that T-Mobile's servers weren't working that day. The only thing that worked on our phones was text. I ended up having a chat with the AT&T guy about the problems. That stressed me out even more. I ended up not going to work after all because I was just too mad/upset about everything. Since I couldn't make phone calls (no Internet, no phone, no nothing!), the nice AT&T guy decided to hang out and help me with these issues. He called Comcast and set up the service for me. How nice! Funny - he was being paid by AT&T and helping me get set up with Comcast. I wonder how his superiors would feel!

I also called Centerpoint to find out why they didn't show up and they gave me the run-around about some stupid deposit that they never told me about. After two days of trying to find out how to pay the deposit, I finally paid and they finally showed up on Tuesday to turn it on. So - I had to go a couple days without hot water and a oven/stove. Again - fun, huh?

Comcast also came on Tuesday. Since AT&T was stupid in not checking before my appointment whether I could get services or not - I had to go without TV and Internet for a few days. In the old days, that wouldn't have been so bad - but when you live in the world of technology, the Internet means everything. I make phone calls, pay my bills and check my emails. Without the Internet, I'd have no contact with the outside world. Scary.

Finally - with everything turned on and working on Tuesday, my roommate moved in. I thought that things would finally settle down. Nope. No problems here, but a house comes with responsibilities. I've been cleaning out the garage, trying to decorate and watching my bank account take a dent with buying the necessities for the house (toilet paper, anyone?).

It's been fun, but tiring at times. All I can say is that I'm loving the house and good riddance to 3 flights of stairs!