A few years earlier, I'd mostly moved out of the family home on the south shore, but when we…read morefinally sold it, I needed to move some furniture, including items that had been given to me by my late mother. It was only a few pieces, so I figured I could just hire a kid with a truck. Yes, that one. It turns out that it's not really a kid with a truck, it's a moving company just like any other, except that they don't work Labor Day weekend, the busiest moving weekend of the year, and they charge just as much as the "real" movers, if not more, even though my dates were flexible. I was willing to move almost any day over a three-week span. Nothing doing, they said. We have to take a vacation.
So I did what people do. I went to the community page on Facebook and asked people from the town for recommendations. Several people swore by Daley & Wanzer. Because they're a big company, and ship large households across very long distances, I didn't think they were right for my small job. But I was getting desperate and so called them. They called right back, and within hours, the rep came to the house and gave me two estimates: one for the smallish job of moving a few of my things to my condo in Boston, and a second for moving some of the remaining stuff to their storage. (Yes, they have storage, which is competitively priced.) We were in flux, with plans developing as we went, and Daley & Wanzer were totally flexible. Although they gave me two estimates, I only ended up using them to move my few pieces to Boston.
I was a little worried because I didn't always hear back from them ASAP, and even though I had a verbal commitment for the date, they didn't send me a contract right away. The woman on the phone promised that it was all set. (It turned out they were out moving other people.) And she was right that I didn't need to worry. A day or two before the actual move, they sent a digital contract (and let me add a "yay!" for very old companies that adapt to the new realities, e.g. e-signing contracts). I was nervous -- it had been years since I'd hired actual movers -- but they were competent and professional and even kind. When, after the move, I've mentioned them to friends, most people nod and say, "Of course they're good. They've been around forever. They'd have to be to survive that long." And it seems to be true.
Day of the move, three guys showed up on time ready to work. They had a system. When I showed them the pieces to be moved, the got to it. And they offered condolences on the loss of my mother, which was a surprise. The rep had paid attention to the impetus for my move, and passed that info to the workers, who took great care with the china cabinet, the bachelor, and other items. It felt very human, very warm, but also very competent. And when we got to the condo, I arrived first and was worried that they'd gotten lost. Again, I shouldn't have. I called the office and got one of the woman I'd spoken to before. She was professional and comforting. She contacted the movers and called me back to assure me that they were on their way. It was just me being nervous. When they arrived, they set about getting all the pieces into small doors, stairways, etc, of the condo, which was no small feat. One piece in particular, a large 3-piece custom-designed desk wasn't going to fit. I had visions of leaving it on the curb. But these three guys huffed and puffed and measured and adjusted and magically and amazingly with laughter and good cheer fit that desk and all its components into one of the bedrooms. If I ever need to move it again, I'll be calling Daley & Wanzer and asking for the same guys. They were great!
