Days 4 & 5 - Packers and Movers (Not the same thing)

I don't think I am alone when saying that moving just plain sucks. Not only is it time- consuming and tedious, but also labor intensive and exhausting. Getting up early on moving day, you just know that it is going to be a long day filled with frustrations and expletives. Inevitably, you always plan to wear your grungiest outfit, not worry about your hair and brace yourself for challenges and problems.
The beauty of the military move is that the government actually pays for someone to come to your home and pack up all of your stuff for you! And when I say all of your stuff, I am NOT exaggerating. They will take every little thing in your house, wrap it in 20 layers of paper and pack it tightly away for you. If you don't watch the guys closely, they will pack up your trash. No joke. I literally watched one of the guys take a small half-empty plastic spice bottle (cinnamon I think) and wrap it ten times, then tape up the whole little bundle. At one point, Kevin had been walking around the house armed with a screwdriver to take things apart as they were being packed. He put the screwdriver down for 5 minutes, and it was gone. Wrapped away in a box marked Rachael's clothes probably. The catch here is that you are not allowed to pack anything yourself. They don't want to be liable on the other end if your stuff ends up broken, but you had packed it yourself. I knew this, but I still took the liberty of packing a few boxes on my own with some sensitive things. The fun part will be unpacking all of the boxes once we get there. It will be a surprise, kind of like birthday, but a birthday where someone went to your house and got all the stuff you already own and wrapped it up for you in boxes. Should be interesting. I think I will be celebrating this "birthday" with lots of wine.
So, I have to mention the classy individuals who showed up to pack all of our belongings and prized possessions. The head of this motley crew was a young guy named TJ (I think). He politely introduced himself when he arrived, but I was so blinded by the two giant diamond earrings in both ears that I don't really remember his name. They were AT LEAST 5 carats, emerald cut studs. Whether or not they were real is up for debate, but this guy was blingin' fo' sho'. Some of his other stellar physical modifications included his bald head, dark brown teeth and several neck tattoos in Old English (is there no other font for worded tattoos?), one inscribed Bethany, and another a nod to the band System of the Down. His buddies were not as notable; a rather obese guy who backed his truck into our driveway and broke a tree branch upon arrival, and another guy who wore shiny black sneakers with white skulls emblazoned all around. All of them truly inspired confidence.
So, once the first group came and packed up all of our things and left, the moving guys showed up the next day (completely different people) to haul everything away into the largest 18-wheeler truck I have ever seen. The head of this crew, and the owner of the truck, was a jolly guy named Chris. He also politely introduced himself upon arrival and got right to the business of laying down carpeting all over the house and turning it upside-down. The guys were actually very nice and personable and proceeded to chat us up as we watched them throw our things around in the truck and squeeze them into nooks and holes where they didn't belong. My wincing didn't deter them - I am sure they have seen and heard worse. This process went much faster than the day before and soon enough, our house was completely bare. A very sad sight!
I am sorry I didn't get a picture of these guys either.