Today was stressfull for a control freak like me that wants to know what’s going to happen when.
The movers couldn’t tell me when they’d arrive. I didn’t know what all they wouldn’t take. Then they arrived. Then they were awesome and hard-working but I couldn’t do much of anything useful. So I sat in the backyard with thedogs and tried to keep Jango from eating rocks. And caught Sawyer knocking over the birdbath to get to the wrapper from my Trader Joe’s Chicken Tikka.
After 6 hours of sitting outside and occasionally traipsing through the house to see what was happening and stick some stuff in the car, they were done. It was 3 PM. I had to drive to Comcast and return my cable modem and then drive to LA. I was *just* early enough to beat rush hour.
I got to Comcast’s San Rafael office at the warmest part fo the day, but it was still cool enough to crack the windows and leave the dogs and all the stuf in the parking lot while I ran in quickly and dropped off the modem.
And then there were 13 people in line. THIRTEEN. I have two dogs and a bunch of stuff in my car and all I need is to give you your stupid crippling modem Comcast and…OK. To be fair, they threw two more people on the service desk and I was out of there in 20 minutes. But honestly, it was touch and go when I first walked in.
Then I hit the road. No traffic to speak of on the Richmond Bridge or in Berkeley. Score. It did slow down right before the split of 880 and 580 but not nearly as bad as it can be and only slow, not stopped. It was smooth sailing until Dublin-Pleasanton. That’s when rush hour caught up with me. But it was still early rush hour and while I slowed down to 20 a few times, I never stopped dead.
Once I got past the Altamont Pass things lightened up considerably. Fromt here on out the 580 and the 5 were free and easy. I got behind an unmarked cop at one point so couldn’t go flat out, but he went 75 in a 70 zone) so I did too.
The dogs were quiet. In fact I had to reach back and pet Sawyer a few times to make sure he was there. I could see Jango. They chilled quietly until I stopped at Taco Bell at 6:30. We all three ate and reassured Eileen I was not dying on the highway, and after a luxurious 20 minute break, jumped back in the car. It was 80 mph for most traffic form there until the Grapevine. If you don’t know the stretch of Interstate 5 north of LA called ‘the Grapevine’ then you don’t know the horror that can strike in drivers. It’s a very steep mountain pass almost always filled with semis and sometimes snow because of the elevation.
Thankfully I only got the semis, and not even the most I’d ever seen. It was uneventful to the 405 right up to the Santa Monica Blvd. exit. Which was closed. No problem. I’d spent two weekends down here, and from jogging around Eileen’s temp housing knew where I was going. Got to the place without a problem.
The dogs are a little freaked out. I’m exhausted, but I’m home. Well, temp home.
Tomorrow: Verizon gets hooked up. The guy called me while I was driving. I called him back from Taco Bell but he didn’t pick up. Hopefully it was just a courtesy call, not a “we have a problem” call. Saturday DirecTV comes, and Brent Bye hangs the first set of lights for the new studio. And Sunday our stuff arrives…we hope.
Tonight: SLEEP!