Bitter Alert

I am going to move all of my stuff out of storage on Thursday, into the new place, one street over.  I don't really know what the problem is, but I did not get a particularly enthusiastic response to the invitations I issued to others to help me move.  I can kind of relate to that, because frankly if someone asked me on Monday to help out on Thursday I'd probably think to myself "maybe, but I'm not going to say that, because I don't want to promise anything.  It's too far out to be committing to those kinds of plans."  Of course since I am the one that needs the help I do not think like that, rather I think "What is wrong with these people?  Why are they all so lazy?"

I included the Elder's quorum president in my request for helpers.  He can't make it, but in good EQP fashion he stepped up and asked if I had found other people to help out.  

I still remember when TRL was EQP and was forced to create a checklist for ward members seeking assistance with a move.  When they called him for assistance he would ask questions like "Have you contacted your home teachers?" "Is everything boxed up?  There should not be any loose items."  He also encountered a situation where he actually asked a girl "Just as a matter of course have you looked into the cost of professional movers?"  His moving committee was instructed that if they never moved a single box that was just fine, their job was only to coordinate moves.  My time on the board has further reinforced the idea that the church is not a moving company.  

Apparently the current EQP has already encountered these sorts of issues with people moving, because he immediately began questioning me if I have already contacted my home teachers, and friends (which of course I have).  I understand where he's coming from, so I told him I'd make a second effort to convince some people to help me move, but in a moment of frustration I announced to him (this was all via text message) that if people don't want to volunteer to help I'd really rather just handle it myself.  Tricia was sitting right next to me when I fired that one off.  I told her what I wrote, and just as I was hitting send she said "Julie, you might really want to sleep on it before you send that.  You're sounding sort of bitter right now."  Ummm...too late.  Of course in typical man fashion the EQP just responded back in an unruffled kind of way that he's confident that he can find plenty of people that are happy to help.  I have a feeling that if a woman had been on the receiving end of that message, after reading it aloud to everyone, in the room the response would have been something about feeling very frustrated and overwhelmed trying to work with someone who has such a poor attitude.

Despite my bitter text message the EQP was still okay with finding me some movers.  He called this evening to let me know that he has a few people lined up to be there to help me heft a few things around.  I reassured him, before he even had a chance to ask that all my things are boxed up, and that there are no loose items.