Move-Out Day Chaos

I moved out of my dorm on Saturday...it was pretty much hell. The two worst days of the year are move-in day and move-in out day, no joke. Almost everything that could possibly go wrong went wrong.

Ignore the fact that I look horrible in this picture (people, this is what three hours of sleep and a 2.5 hour calc exam does to you) and instead focus on how there are three grown people crammed into the front of the car. Everything in back of us is boxes. There wasn't any room left for us. 

Needless to say, we miscalculated how much stuff I've obtained during my two years of college and thought it could all fit into the back of our Ford Explorer. About halfway through loading the car we realized in a panic that not everything was going to fit. Much yelling and cursing and blaming each other ensued.

My university has strict policies on leaving items after move-out and coming back for them, so we had to abandon my lamps. No one else would take them. 

Fair thee well, $12 Target lamps. You almost burnt me every time I turned you off, but I'll still miss you.

Amid all the chaos, my sister and/or mom (it CERTAINLY was not me) accidentally packed my keys into some box. We didn't realize it until it was too late, and we weren't going to and unpack everything to look for them (our car was looking like a Tetris screen...we squeezed everything in so tight that we'd never be able to get it back in the same way again).

The nice, wonderful lady at Residence Life informed me that I'd have to pay a $120 charge for not turning in my key. I understand that I should pay some fee, but $120? Seriously? It costs you that much to remake this little guy?

Via

I found my key while unpacking boxes today and mailed it back to school, so hopefully the fee will be waived or discounted? Cross your fingers.

We were so fed up with everything, but we knew we had to take a picture of our situation. My sister and I took turns sitting in the middle during the three hour car trip. We also stopped at McDonalds halfway through, because when you experience the most frustrating day of your life, you need a 1000-calorie hamburger to cheer you up.

Somewhat for my benefit as for others, here are some tips I SHOULD have followed to make this a successful move out endeavor.

MOVE-OUT DAY TIPS

1. Plan Ahead

It's been so busy at home and at college that none of us really thought about move-out day. It crept up on us. It took me thirty minutes after waking up on Saturday to realize I was moving out that day--that's how crazy things have been. Think about all the items you need to transport, and what vechiles you need to bring. Perhaps you should think about renting a trailer. You won't be the only one: tons of people bring trailers to move out of their dorms.

2.  Bring Enough Boxes

This one's obvious, but make sure you have enough boxes to put everything in! My freshman year I ended up literally throwing everything into garbage bags because we didn't bring enough cardboard boxes. Yeah, obviously we're great at this moving out thing...maybe you shouldn't listen to us!

3. Keep Original packaging

For big items, keep the packaging they came in. This includes TVs, appliances and even your mirror. We forgot to bring anything to wrap the mirror up in, so it made tiny dent in the ceiling of our car.

4. Bring Tools

My dad came a day earlier to try to transport my futon. Sadly, it was too small for his truck by an inch and we didn't bring any tools to break it down. Bring all necessary tools that you think you would need in case you have to take apart any furniture. Even if you don't think you need it, you probably will.

5. Recycle/Organize Ahead of Time

Our garbage shoot and trash room was full when I was moving out, so recycle and throw away trash early before others do.

6. Delegate tasks

I think part of the reason my keys got packed away was because my mom, sister and I just started throwing things in boxes randomly without really caring about what we were packing away. Assign tasks to all the people who are helping you move out, such as telling them to pack away the dishes, or to pack away the bedding. Also, inform others on what NOT to pack, so you can keep track of where you put the things most important to you.

Fare thee well, Fordham Hall. I will miss your beautiful views, but I will not miss the loud basketballers above me or the sound of the El coming every five minutes.

Yes, it was a stressful day, but it's over with at least. I'm sure I'll have to move many times in my life, so this is something I better just get used to. And the best part about moving out? It means that  SUMMER is here!

P.S. I will be participating in Mallory's Two Truths and a Lie linkup tomorrow, and you should all too! It's going to be a lot of fun. All the details are here. Basically you write three facts about yourself (one of them being untrue), and your readers have to guess the lie. I can't wait to see what you all think of mine!