"Scum-Sucking" Movers!!!!

Ludo's new home -- Heart of Sky Ranch






As you can tell, I'm having a few problems. Delores and I have been putting together a "scum-sucker" list. They are (in order of the problems they created):

• Banks
• Contractors
• Realtors
• Movers

and we are open to adding more (just send me your favorites)

I checked with my "own personal" moving coordinator 2 days ago. She said the truck would probably arrive on Monday. Okay.....that was 3 days later than she originally told me, but I could live with that. My friend, Delores, is here until the 10th, so that gave us an unloading day and 2 days to place furniture and unpack. We can do that.

Today I get a call from the Grabel driver (yes, it is Grabel Movers). He is in Atlanta and was calling to tell me they just (June 5) loaded my possessions on the 18-wheeler. Mind you, they were picked up everything on May 27. And he'll try to get to Kalispell on Thursday, but more probably Friday. F--R--I--D--A--Y!!!!!

I can't tell you the feeling of panic that went through my body. Delores is leaving on Thursday. And she made the trip for 2 reasons -- to help me haul Ludo, and to help with my move. So we've been here 6 nights, and we've done no moving. We just changed her ticket to leave on Tuesday (the only day we could make the flight change for only the $150 change fee).

There has been some progress. We've met with my contractor who we believe "ripped me off" on his charges. His people did quality work, but as I said in the previous blog, I still don't understand all the expense.

I've shopped and purchased great deals on a new (but with a dent) refrigerator (got $250 off), a new mattress (missed the final day of the tent sale, but they had "my" mattress left, so I got it for half off), and a new flat screen TV (Walmart is moving to a new location, and they are selling display models, so I got a 32" for $279).

I've met with the plumber who was replacing a part in my kitchen sink faucet "for free", but learned that the house did not have a filter from the well, so the dirt was clogging the faucet and would probably continue to do so. We also learned from the plumber that the water hose to the current refrigerator (which I am selling to my friends Jack and Jane) was wrong and very poorly done. He's coming back this Thursday to put in the water filter and run a proper, correct water line to the new refrigerator.

I also found out on the first day I visited the house, that it did NOT have a furnace so it did NOT have electric forced air heat. Instead, I have electric wall heaters in all the rooms -- 2 of which don't work, so I need to get those fixed (my Realtor told me there was a furnace -- but she was wrong as my friends pointed out). Wall heaters do heat very well, and you can close off rooms and not heat them, so there are advantages.

I also made an appointment with the hearth company that put in the 2 fireplaces -- my Realtor turned off the pilot light for the one in the master bedroom, because she thought she smelled gas, and now we can't get it to work. So the fireplace company will check that out and make it work. The second seems to be a gas fireplace in the family room, but there is nothing in it. So if it was a gas starter, those pieces seem to be missing, and I'll have to get that one working as well. Hopefully this service man can set it right and tell me what to do. Since there is no electric forced air, these fireplaces are the only way to heat the family room and the master bedroom. In the master, it has a thermostat.

Also spent about 2 hours in the Verizon store yesterday. I've found out that AT&T has absolutely no reception in my home, so I had to cancel that service and get Verizon service. The cell phone signal is weak in the house, but it does work. Unfortunately the broadband "stick" (that's what I call it -- gives me Internet access for my laptop) doesn't work in the house. So I need to figure out another way to get access, and I did get a brochure from CenturyTel (phone service out here) which indicates they have "naked" DSL (meaning I don't need a land line phone in the house). So I'll be checking that out.

So see......PROGRESS.

On the plus side, we've been to Fernie, British Columbia, Canada to see the beautiful mountains (it rained and was cold). We've shopped in Whitefish. We've gone to a reining clinic in which Jane is participating with her 5 year old quarter horse, Artie. I've included a couple of pictures.

And after the stress of finding out my furniture is still 6 days away......we took a walk along the Swan River "Wild Mile" -- and the river is way up with huge rapids. It has also rained almost every day we've been here. Today was the exception -- it was beautiful.

And Jack and Jane has been the "hosts with the mosts", and have treated both my horse and us great. We have to tell them to quit feeding us so much. Last night I had my first Elk steak -- it was great. They are both great cooks.













The Reining Clinic