Mini Rant VI — Moving

by Marko Peric

I'm currently in the process of moving. For some people this is no huge deal. According to statistics roughly 10 percent of Canada's population moves every year (not the same 10 percent every year, of course). That number rises to 19 percent in the United States. Using those numbers that means this time next year three million Canadians and 50 million Americans will have a different address than they do now. That's a lot of people moving.

But this isn't about all these other people. This is about me. I haven't moved in a long time. Over a decade, actually. I'm not a mover or a shaker (or a smoker or a midnight toker, although I am a bit of a joker, if you're counting) and I don't particularly want to move, but it was inevitable. And it was time. I've been here long enough, it's time to move.

Now that I've actually started the moving process I wonder why other people bother moving as often as they do. It's not much fun at all and it brings more headaches than one would think. One lesson I've learned already is that you can never have enough boxes. Seriously, you don't know how much stuff a box holds until you fill four boxes and realize that you've only packed the books and the DVDs. I guess I have too much stuff.

I also didn't realize how expensive moving can be. I thought my bank account was in pretty good shape, but I checked my balance online just now, and the hemorrhage is disturbing. And I still need to buy a new bookcase and some other odds and ends, so the bank isn't done bleeding yet.

It takes a while to sink in that a few days from now I won't be coming back here, won't be sleeping in the same bed, won't be eating at the same table, but you get the picture. What really made it hit home today was when I went to pick up a key to the new place, and low and behold there was mail waiting for me. The Visa bill. The bank doesn't waste any time updating its records.

It's time to end this disjointed rant now, and turn in. I have a long day ahead of me tomorrow, and I'm still not sure how I'm going to get category-5 network cable down to the basement in the new place so I can get broadband Internet on the second floor. I'm pretty sure it will involve using my drill, though. . .