h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hey, bartender, I'd like an if you don't mind.

You know how it is. First, you talk about moving. You set the date. You make a list of all the things you have to do in order to transport yourself from one place to another in a reasonable amount of time. Then you box up your entire life, figure out how many trips it's going to take to get all those boxes and large, cumbersome pieces of furniture over to your new place. And, of course, it always takes you 3 times longer than you originally thought it would. And (rambling now) then, after your whole world's been ripped out from under you, and you have to try to sleep in a strange place that makes strange noises, with all your blankets still in boxes and a window in your new place that you didn't know had a lack of shutting ability when you paid for it's use, you have to call the utility companies. The water people, who need a $200 deposit, and then turn your water off by mistake when your neighbor from across the hallway moves out. The gas people, who need a $50 deposit + $20 if you want someone to come over and turn the gas on for you, a service which generally means that there's less risk of you getting blown up, at least on moving day. The phone people, who claim that you owe them $300 from an account that was opened when you were a toddler at an address that you've never heard of. The cable people, who come over, drill a few holes in the wall, run some wire, and leave you with a little kit for installing a cable internet access program that your computer hates and keeps trying to blow up. The electric people were actually very nice.
Pour me another please.
This is actually the first time I've moved. Is it always like this?

-Yehonala

*pours several *

Usually, But you failed to mention the magical moving packing. The box something is in when you try to unpack at your new place has no relationship with which box you put it in at your old place.

At least you have been spared the cat saga.

*gulps *

Where's Nick Ross to say to me don't have nightmares?

*Considers phoning FC to say we aren't moving*

*thinks better of it*

Well moving house is supposed to be the second most stressful thing you can do.

I know, and I'm doing all of the top 5 in a period of 18 months.

So you are planning the divorce early then.

Meant 4 0f the top 5. Whoops!

So thats Wedding, moving and divorce covered. What are the other 2?

Changing Jobs and Coming Out

Never move house ever again. It is like this (and worse) every single time regardless of how organised you think you now are having learned from the mistakes of last time. The alternative, if you are forced to relocate, is to simply leave all of your possessions behind and acquire a new lot of junk in the next house.

This doesn't help with utilities though, I have just had a bill from nPower for a house I moved out of 14 months ago. We read the meter and paid the final bill at the time we moved out but aparently they got it wrong and now want another 75 quid. Can they make me pay this? I might wait 14 months then write back asking for an explanation of the bill.

Never move house ever again. It is like this (and worse) every single time regardless of how organised you think you now are having learned from the mistakes of last time. The alternative, if you are forced to relocate, is to simply leave all of your possessions behind and acquire a new lot of junk in the next house.

This doesn't help with utilities though, I have just had a bill from nPower for a house I moved out of 14 months ago. We read the meter and paid the final bill at the time we moved out but aparently they got it wrong and now want another 75 quid. Can they make me pay this? I might wait 14 months then write back asking for an explanation of the bill.

We had a blinder when we moved into our student house. We ask a gas company to supply both gas and electricity. But they processed the application 2 days before the gas companies were deregulated so they were only allowed supply the gas. Did they tell us, did they hell.

So unknown to us all the letters that kept turning up for the previous tenants were actually the electricity company demanding money as they were technically the supplier. We just kept blindly forwarding the letters on and they old occupants just ignored them. Eventually some bloke came round and tried to cut us off. And as all the rest of the people I was sharing with had buggered off for the summer I got lumbered with a bill for 9 months power.

I was not happy.

Oh... that's bad. I like to travel quite alot, so chances are I'm going to go through it again and again. And I forgot about the cat--she actually wasn't too much of a problem, having been dumped over at my boyfriend's house a few months prior to the move--she just shook on my lap while we were driving from place to place.

Would you believe I've had trouble receiving a bill. Swalec electricity seem incapable of addressing a letter correctly and hence, having moved house in early July, we still haven't got a final bill to pay. I wouldn't mind, but until we pay the final bill, we can't get our deposit back from the old landlord.