Archive for October, 2008

Hello? Evanston Police Department?

written on October 24th, 2008 with 2 comments

Approx. 5:28 am CST

Hey, my name is Grant Gannon. I just moved here and I’ve got kind of a problem. You see, it really is embarassing, but my girlfriend spent the night and she just got up to go to the bathroom and somehow pulled the doorknob off in her hand. So yeah, we’re not locked out of the apartment, we’re locked in. There’s an emergency contact for the building manager on the bottom floor but I can’t get to it. Yeah? Really. You can come check on it? Thanks.

Approx 5:45 am (Building manager)

Hello, Elena? Hey it’s Grant Gannon over in 3N. Hey. Good morning. See, I’ve got kind of a funny problem. I hope I didn’t wake you up. What? Oh, no, I’m not locked out. I’m actually locked in. Yes, locked in. See, the door knob came off in my girlfriend’s hand just now when she went to leave the bedroom so we’re locked in. It happened the other day, but we got the doorknob back on, but not this morning. Really? Constantin can come get us out? Thanks.

1000 yards, fools.

written on October 15th, 2008 with Comments Off

I haven’t swam (swum?) in months…8 to be exact. I was a triathlete in Texas and a slobathlete in Alabama. Sports journalism and health usually don’t mix that well. There are very few sports writers who are just plain fit. Odd hours, road trips, late night runs to Sonic contribute to the round bellies of many a sports journalist. When you toss in the flu, a knee injury and a sinus infection over the course of eight weeks, I fell off the wagon pretty hard.

I started to climb back on earlier this week when I started eating right again and drinking tons of water. I made another significant step today when I got back in the pool and validated my McGaw YMCA membership here in Evanston. In Dallas, at the height of my training, I’d usually do anywhere between 2800 and 3300 yards of workouts on any given day. Today….1000 yards and not all that fast. Still, I’m proud that I did what I set out to do. Swimming will be the only thing I can do for the next few weeks as I broke my toe moving in and can’t really run. That suits me just fine. I’d rather get back in cardio shape in the pool than on the treadmill. Ironman2010 here I come.

Video: My new apartment

written on October 15th, 2008 with 5 comments

 So here’s a quick tour of the new place!

http://media.grantgannon.com/video/MVI_0787_640x480.flv

If this is the worst thing that happens…

written on October 14th, 2008 with Comments Off

….I broke my pinkie toe. Not jammed, not sprained, but broken. It’s black and blue and hurts…..bad. I was walking through the still unpacked apartement yesterday with a  load of clean clothes and turned to glance at the TV and got the base of my bike trainer square on my left foot. Hurt.

Regardless, the apartment is coming together quite nicely. I need a bookshelf, pciture hangers, clean clothes, take trash out etc. etc. I think I can wrap up the lion’s share today and declutter the place. I’ll post a video and photos of the new place when I do.

So far, so good.

Sitting on the couch at my new place

written on October 11th, 2008 with Comments Off

Wow, this thing is big. Like, really big. Much more space than I had in Dallas. A separate kitchen (with a door?). I’ve got tons of space in the den. It will be great for a bookshelf or something. The radiator is near the couch, but not too close. The Internet works, Dish dude is coming tomorrow. Woo.

I’ll post photos and video later.

Five tips on how to move effectively

written on October 9th, 2008 with Comments Off

So this is the last full day in Birmingham. My truck is packed (Thanks Danny, Kevin, Tong and Brad). I’ve got some loose ends to tie up, I need to pack up my clothes, wrap up my TV that has been at my dad’s house, etc.

Again, I’m still waiting for the inevitable flat tire, dead battery, forgotten big something to happen. Things to this point have gone smoothly. Of course, it could be that in the last two years – four or five moves total – I’ve learned a thing or two about how to do this.

1 – Pick your truck up early, use discount codes.
I started pricing trucks and moving help weeks ago.  Rental trucks for long distance moves usually rent cheaper during the week and there are always discount codes available somewhere online. Budget gave me four days of rental, but I end up getting five because the return store in Illinois closes before my 96-hour window is up. Voila, five day rental. Scout out UHaul, Budget, and Penske for the best rate on the truck you need. I ended up saving over $100 by renting during the week and using a 20% off coupon I found online.

1.5 – If you are renting a truck, get one just a little bigger than you need if you afford it.
No playing an elaborate game of Tetris with your stuff. I’ve got room for anything I might have forgotten. A bigger truck at Uhaul is $14, a Budget is no cost when I just checked.

2 – Budget the time you need to move, then give yourself an off day.
I could leave right now if I wanted to. My truck is almost 100% packed and needs only my clothes and TV to go in it. Instead I’m enjoying my last day to go out to lunch with my dad and dinner with my best friend. If I needed to do anything else (like cancel my YMCA membership which I did yesterday) I have the time to do it. I know this isn’t realistic for some, but for me I’m not in a huge, huge rush to get up there. I’ve got a day to decompress and let the stress of packing and organizing dissipate before I have to move 700 miles away.

3 – No use in doing it all in one day
This will increase your cost by a hotel room, but the reduction in stress will be worth it. Consider driving a little more than halfway and spending the night. Regardless of when I could leave Saturday morning I would have been exhausted and it would have been late on my arrival in Chicago. Instead I opted for a hotel room in Indianapolis which leaves only 200 miles of driving (out of a total of 700) on Saturday morning. I get a full night’s rest (again search for discount codes, I found a corporate rate code for the hotel I’m staying in, 20% off), I don’t have to drag into Chicago, find a place to park the truck, and then have to move it in the morning. Instead I’ll be wide awake and ready to go as soon as I get in to town, and I’ll have all afternoon to move in.

4 – Emove.com or Craigslist for help
Hire, help. Hire, help. My brother pointed it out best to me the other day. Once you get past college and into your late 20’s it’s time to stop counting on your friends to help you move. I did so yesterday mostly because all it involved was moving stuff from a storage unit down a hallway and into a truck. There were no doors to negotiate, no stairs to climb or walls to ding. Hiring help (I’m paying $120 for two hours) is worth it mostly because guys who do it every day know the best way to get a couch up some stairs or get your chest of drawers in the front door. They do it five times a day. The cost of paying someone who knows what they’re doing outweigh the cost of your buddy accidentally ripping your couch or dropping your TV.
(Note: Many of these services are contract labor, no insurance etc.  You roll the dice, but I’ve never had anything broken. If you have extremely valuable stuff, hire those that have insurance)

5 – Take a deep breath and realize why you’re moving
For me it’s a great new job in a city I love near the one I love. Whatever stress and money it may cost, it will amost always be worth it.

Found an apartment, still tons to do…

written on October 7th, 2008 with Comments Off

…ok so yesterday I filled out the application for a place here in Evanston. It’s the same space I spoke about yesterday, plenty of room, good closet space and (I think) good water pressure from the shower.

There is a huge amount of stuff to do today. First I’ve got to head back up to the office to fill out an Illinois tax form, have to take a proof of income to my landlord, go fill out the lease etc. etc. etc.

Yesterday was a stressful day just because of the rushing around, making decisions, paying money, filling out forms, trying to figure out a schedule. The good news is it all has seemingly worked out. I should be able to move in Saturday as planned. I’ve got moving help lined up, weather looks good, logistics are going to plan.

I’ll try to bring photos back this afternoon of the new place.

This will help me survive the Chicago winter

written on October 6th, 2008 with Comments Off

Tried it on yesterday at the North Face store, found it for close to 33% off at BackCountryOutlet.com. You will know me by the shivering.

Apartment hunting in Chicago..and other stuff

written on October 6th, 2008 with Comments Off

So apartment hunting this weekend was pretty successful. It just so happens that the place I’m 95% going to sign a lease with is about a 20 second walk from Millie’s apartment. The proximity to her notwithstanding it’s still a great space. Every apartment I looked at this weekend was unlike anything that’s listed on Craigslist.

It’s a good space, four rooms with a monstrous kitchen. There are no bells and whistles in the building (like a debit-card laundry or a fitness center), but for the money it’s unbeatable.

Today it’s a physical, drug test, HR paperwork and an afternoon with the new work peeps. Hopefully I’ll get the process of lease signage started today. We’ll see.

Bringing it back

written on October 2nd, 2008 with Comments Off

Since I’m moving to Chicago, I figure there might be a few more people who care what I’m doing. So this blog will chronicle my ridiculousness moving forward. There will probably be a lot of pictures and video…many will include me cursing at the temperature.