September 1, stay away from Allston, if you know what's good for you

September 1 in Boston...the day it looks as though EVERYONE in the area packs up and trades apartments. Especially true in the student-heavy areas like Allston, Brighton, Brookline. If you have errands to run, stay away from these areas today. And if you can't avoid these areas, maybe you should wait till next week. The U-Hauls, overladen pick-up trucks, overstuffed hatchbacks...kids waiting on the sidewalk with all their belongings, because their pal went to get the U-Haul, but in the meantime the people taking over their apartment have shown up with theirs, and they needed to clear out fast. Some of these kids will be waiting on that sidewalk until very late tonight or tomorrow, I'd wager.

I came to Boston in 1984 to go to Emerson College, and of course moved out of the dorms by my second year, and into a series of different Allston-Brighton apartments with a revolving cast of roommates (one roommate in particular worked out pretty well, and lasted about 7 or 8 years, and about 6 or 7 different apartments. Shout out to YOU, you sloppy bastard. Say hi to your parents for me.) More often than not, I was part of the apartment trading madness, and I know whereof I speak.

So, the first of September always brings me back and I feel a little bit of that nostalgia, panic, sense of doom, frustration, supressed-mayhem-and-screaming-in-my-head. Even though I'm not moving, I empathize with those who are.

UNIVERSAL RULES OF MOVING:

You may THINK you're a clean and tidy person, but when your furniture is moved away from the wall, you'll see that you could have vacuumed and dusted a bit more.

Also, you may THINK you don't have a lot of stuff, but once you've started to pack, you'll see that you're at least 7 or 8 boxes short of what you'll need.

Oh, and also, you may THINK you're organized, with all your boxes neatly packed, labelled and all items safely cushioned, but by the end of the process, there WILL be a few boxes of random shit, thrown in haphazardly, even broken, and labeled "CRAP."

Good luck, kids.