DAY 5: The Final Touches

As the clock struck midnight Sunday morning the four of us were hard at work putting together the apartment. Joe and Wendy had just finished installing two window air conditioners, which was a big relief because it was still very warm and humid. I was in the process of putting together a bookcase that Beth had just bought. Everything was going together well but it was starting to get late and we were all tired. Finally around 3 AM all the furniture was put together except for the new couch. Joe and I worked to put it together and then we finally went to bed around 3:30 AM. It seemed like a matter of minutes and it was time to wake up and start again. We got up around 7 AM because we were planning to go to church at eight. We all got cleaned up and headed off to church. The church was only a few blocks away so we were able to walk. It ends up church wasn’t until 10 AM, so we decided to go and have breakfast.
After breakfast we went to church and then headed back to Beth’s apartment to hang some pictures on the wall and just try to help her unpack some boxes. Before we knew it was getting later in the afternoon and we had to prepare to drive back to Akron. After a great pizza for lunch it was time to say goodbye and get in the truck for our seven hour drive home. We all said goodbye to Beth which was difficult because we hated to leave her.
The drive home was very uneventful and long, but we made some stops along the way. Seeing signs for Akron was great because the final hour of the trip seemed like forever. Once we made it back to Akron we were all really tired and ready to hit the bed.
Overall I think the trip went really well and it was really a great opportunity to spend some time with my Uncle Joe and Aunt Wendy. Plus it was really a true joy to help out Beth and spend time with her also. I look forward to the next time we go and visit her because there will be no work involved at all. Sure the trip had its high and low points, but most of all it was just great to help out a good friend like Beth.

DAY 4: A Wet Move

As the alarm clock went off Saturday morning we knew it was time to get ready for the big move. The weather was overcast as we ate at the continental breakfast that our hotel offered. After breakfast I took a quick look at the weather radar on my computer and it looked wet, very wet. I told everyone that rain was coming but the sun would shine by afternoon. We checked out of the hotel and headed to Beth’s apartment to start moving her in. As we pulled into the parking lot of the apartment a massive downpour greeted us. Once inside we got the keys to Beth’s apartment and headed up to her room. We got in the elevator and went up to the fourth floor where her room was. The elevator sure wasn’t the fastest thing in the world. Once on the fourth floor we checked out her apartment and decided it was time to start moving stuff in.
Joe made his way down the hall to check out the freight elevator and try to take it down to the first floor so we could load it with belongings. Joe didn’t have much luck as he pressed the button a few times and no elevator came. Meanwhile the rest of us weren’t having much luck either as we were trying to figure out whose car was parked near the back door. We wanted to try to get the car moved so that we could back the truck in closer to the door to make it easier to unload in the pouring rain. Sure enough the front desk didn’t have the license plate number written down so there was no hope of that car being moved. The lady working the front desk was about as clueless as a rock and wasn’t much help to us at all. At this point everyone was in a pretty bad mood as nothing was working in our favor. Finally a bit of light beamed down on us. Joe talked to a maintenance worker who had the freight elevator tied off on the second floor preventing it from going up and down. He said people were riding it and he wanted to put a stop to that. Beth wondered if he was just using it as his own personal elevator or if his story was true. Anyways we got the freight elevator down to the first floor along with one of the two passenger elevators and prepared to start loading them.  
We were lucky enough that each of the elevators had an off switch so that we could load them with ease. It was funny because the freight elevator looked as though it was from the 1920’s and would be in an old movie because you had to manually close the doors and it really wasn’t that big. The biggest challenge at this point was the rain because the ramp leading up into the truck was like a skating rink. Despite the rain, unloading stuff went well as we would load the elevators up and then take a big load up. Everything went well except for some lazy woman who decided to take our elevator up with stuff in it. She was just so lazy that she couldn’t wait for the other elevator! Between the rain and humidity it was hard to tell what was sweat and what was just wet from the rain. We all looked like we just got out of a swimming pool.
Everything was just about unloaded except for the couch that Beth bought at Wayside Furniture in Akron. Joe and I figured out that the couch would not fit in either elevator so it would have to be carried up the steps. Joe and I decided we would try to carry it up ourselves, but Beth came down before we got very far. I was really glad Beth did come to help because it made it a little easier to carry. The stairwell was tight and only about one hundred degrees. It was a tough process because we had to stand it up at each landing and had to take it out into the hallway in order to go up the next flight of stairs. Wendy came and held doors and helped the best she could. At one point I didn’t know if we would make it out of the stairwell alive and with a couch. Reaching the fourth floor was a blessing because carrying a couch up four flights of stairs is no walk in the park. Once again I was really thankful to have Beth helping on my side of the couch because I don’t think I could have done it on my own.
The next challenge was getting the couch to fit through Beth’s door. It was a tight fit because once you went into her apartment you had to make a sharp left as soon as you walked in. Joe and I tried about every possible way to get that couch in the room, but nothing was working. Beth sat and prayed that her couch would fit, but sadly it never made it into the apartment. The next thought that crossed our minds was the fact that we had to carry that couch back down the stairs. Carrying the couch down the stairs went much better than carrying it up. Finally the couch was put back on the truck  as it would have to be returned to Wayside in Akron.
That evening we went and had a nice meal and Beth went shopping for a new couch. She purchased a bookcase along with a smaller couch at a store called Ikea. We arrived back at the apartment and got all the furniture into her room. It was around 10 PM and it was time to start putting furniture together. I knew in my mind it was going to be a late night and I wasn’t even sure if I would even see a pillow that night.

DAY 3: On the Road Again

Friday started off with some light rain and everyone’s mind seemed to be on the fact that LeBron James announced he was leaving Cleveland. We didn’t let that get us down as we prepared for our seven hour drive to Philadelphia. First we drove from Cleveland to Akron because Beth had ordered some furniture at Wayside in Akron. She had ordered a lot of nice furniture from Wayside including a brand new couch and chair. We loaded everything in the truck and began our long drive. Personally I don’t think any of us was looking forward to the seven hours ahead of us. I started out riding in the truck with Joe and Wendy rode in the car with Beth. We made an effort to stop about ever two hours to eat, stretch, and use the restroom. Those breaks sure helped everyone feel better and make the trip a little less stressful. After a while Wendy and I switched who we were riding with. It was nice riding with Beth as we talked about just about everything and listened to a nice mix of music. Once we got into the Philadelphia area the traffic really got thick and our seven hour trip turned into an eight-hour trip. Beth was not a happy camper as she was ready to be done driving for the day. Arriving at the hotel was a terrific because we were all tired and ready to be done driving for the day.  We checked into the hotel and had a nice meal at Ruby Tuesday. Afterwards I took a swim at the hotel and we all decided to call it a day. We all needed some good rest because in the morning we would start moving stuff into the apartment.

DAY 2: The Easy Move

As the morning of July 8th arrived we all knew it was moving day. The day started with us going to rent a truck and bring it back to my Uncle Joe and Aunt Wendy’s house in Lima. As Joe and I loaded a few of Beth’s things we realized it was really going to be a hot and humid day. Once the few items were loaded in Lima it was time to hit the road and head for South Bend. The three-hour trip went by fairly quick and it didn’t seem like we were in the car as long as we really were. We drove through rounds of rain which really didn’t make the drive very enjoyable at all. Once we arrived in South Bend, Indiana we had some lunch and began loading the truck.
I didn’t realize how much stuff Beth really had until we started loading the truck. We loaded a ton of boxes and a few pieces of furniture. Loading everything went really well considering the humidity was so high you could cut it with a knife. Nothing really exciting happened in South Bend as everything went just as planned. Next up would be a four and a half hour drive that we would make to Lyndhurst, Ohio where we would spend the night. Beth drove her car and Uncle Joe drove the giant moving truck as my Aunt Wendy and I were just the passengers and we switched off riding with the two drivers.
It was yet another boring ride, but a lot of good music made the time pass by quickly. We arrived in Lyndhurst a little after 11 PM and stayed the night at Wendy’s mom’s house. Once we got the car and truck parked everyone was ready to call it a night. You could say that this would be the easy moving day as we were in for a rough few days ahead.

DAY 1: Let the move begin

As a kid I always enjoyed adventures. Maybe it was exploring different parts of town or just riding my bike down a road I had never ridden on before. This weekend is going to be a very exciting and different adventure. Starting Thursday and lasting through Saturday I will be helping my aunt’s daughter move. Now sure you are probably thinking that moving isn’t really an adventure but when you are moving someone across three states it becomes an adventure. The trip begins in Lima, Ohio where I have been staying with my aunt and uncle since July 3^rd. I decided to stay with them after a picnic we had on July 3^rd. I figured they would need some help moving and I thought it would be fun to go along for the ride. Thursday morning we are renting a truck in Lima and then driving to South Bend, Indiana to load up everything from Beth’s condo. We then are driving to Cleveland where my aunt’s mom lives. Thursday night we will stay at her house before traveling more Friday. Early Friday morning we will leave and head to Philadelphia Pennsylvania. She cannot move into her apartment in Philadelphia until Saturday morning, so we booked a hotel for Friday night. Saturday we will spend the day moving everything into the apartment. It is surely going to be a trip and an experience. I have never been to South Bend or Philadelphia, so I will get to visit two cities that I have never been to.