We recently moved eastward across the coast mountains, inland 30 miles or so, to the wine country of Paso Robles, California. This, after living for 20 years on the California coast in Cambria. We loved Cambria but its 340 days a year of temperatures that range no lower than about 50 degrees fahrenheit (at night), with a high of 72 degrees fahrenheit in the day -- again, for 340 days a year -- is the perfect breeding ground for mold and fungus. Did I mention that I am allergic to mold and fungus?
So, following a stressful move, we settled into our new digs in Paso Robles. We love the new digs as they are in a rural area, in an almond orchard that was planted over a hundred years ago. Paso Robles is a great town with a rich history and we really like being here.
But one of the side effects of moving has been pretty stressful...telemarketers and collections agents.
It seems like the phone company no longer keeps previously used numbers out of circulation for a while, as they once did. Now, they are thrown almost immediately back into the hat and if you are lucky -- did I mention we haven't been? -- you won't get the number of someone who just ran out on their bills. We have had two numbers so far; one, we got rid of immediately as the phone stated ringing the day that the phone company turned it on -- with harrassing calls starting soon after daybreak and going into the night. Then the next number was quiet for about a month and a month and then all of the sudden, collections agents began calling for some woman we have never even heard of.
Unfortunately, asking to be pulled from their list hasn't worked and they've been calling for days. So, I took the numbers that have been showing up on caller-ID and have Googled them and started calling the companies after filing them with a Form 1088 complaint with the federal government. Once I told them that, they became a lot quicker to listen...
Beforehand, they didn't care and just kept asking for the woman. But when I mentioned the form 1088 filing, they become a lot more willing to talk.
Hopefully soon, Kathlyn and I can get back to enjoying the peaceful Paso Robles countryside.
Ron Lindeboom
Digg it
Some observations about moving....
You already know this Ron, but having lived in 18 places in the past 22 years, I've learned a few things.
(A couple of those places overlapped, like when we lived in a friend's rental property while our place was being rebulit after a hurricane. People ask how we could have moved away from our tropical island paradise - that's how.)
1) Packing is always faster than unpacking.
2) Pay burly young men to do as much as you can possibly afford. Then spend a little more.
3) The best part of the moving PROCESS is that you get to sift through all your stuff and get rid of things you don't need anymore.
My general rule of thumb is if I haven't touched it in a year, it goes. The only exception is if I would DEFINITELY buy the thing again, even if just to have around for a rainy day....but I give twice as much weight to the first. If I haven't touched it in a year, it's not too likely I'll need it next year.
4) It's actually more efficient to get rid of things at your destination. "But I don't want to waste the time or money moving it" doesn't actually work in practice. The object of the game is to get out of the old place as quickly as possible. You're always going to take the time to figure out where things go when you get there, and one potential destination is the trash.
5) It's also not a bad time to pick up some new stuff. Part of your sifting can include what you still need, but need to update. Or just want to.
You know what they say: home is where your things are. :-)