Friday, September 26, 2008

Packing Day

Today was officially 'packing day'. Of course, I've been packing boxes for a month and a half, but today was the day the movers arrived to get everything ready to load on the truck tomorrow morning for our big move to Florida!

It's been a crazy week for sure! Monday I was up until almost 2am finishing a couple of voice over projects. On Tuesday I sent an e-mail informing everyone I would be tearing down my NC studio and heading south. I decided to call a couple of Tampa studios to set up my back up plan in case I have any problems during the move. I also wanted to find out ISDN rates since we'll be renting for a couple of months while we look for a house. My plan has been to set up ISDN in my studio as soon as possible, so I knew I needed a place to go in the meantime. During one of these calls, I was blindsided by some surprising news!

Apparently, Verizon- the main carrier in Tampa- has stopped setting up ISDN. Period. In a panic I posted some questions on one of the voice over boards, and made a few calls. As it turns out, I think I will be able to get ISDN- it will just require some leg work. It was very difficult to get anyone to understand why I would want ISDN- since most people think it's related to internet. With the creation of fios, or optical strands, which work much faster than the old copper wires, why would anyone want 'old' technology? My friend Bob Souer called to let me know that ISDN must run on copper wires, which I relayed to Verizon.

I must say, Verizon was fantastic with their customer service. Someone got back to me quickly, and gave me an e-mail address to send potential home addresses to. They will look up the homes we are considering for purchase and let me know if they can support ISDN. While it's a little weird that my next home will depend on whether there are copper wires nearby, I'm thankful to have a glimmer of hope that this problem may be solved!!

Wednesday my mother arrived to help pack, which has been wonderful! It took 6 hours to tear down my studio and pack everything into their original boxes. I was meticulous about documenting exactly how my mic-pre and Mbox were set. I drew diagrams and took photos of every button and knob so I could reset everything in my new studio just as it was. Despite taking forever, it wasn't as hard as I thought it might be to pack an entire studio.

Then, we were thrown another curve ball. Yesterday we received word that there is a major gas shortage in Charlotte (where I live currently). My mom took the car to see if she could find anywhere to fill up (I had about half a tank) and came back frustrated, and with the gas tank a little more empty, after hitting 8 stations and finding nothing.

Today, when the packers had finished, I set out for South Carolina with the hopes of finding someplace...anyplace, that might have gas. As I was driving down the road I noticed a long line of cars pulled over. Figuring this was more than likely my best shot, I got in line. 45 minutes later I pulled into a Citgo and was directed by one of several attendants to pump 1. Ahhh...gas!!! I filled up the car and just before pulling out I look back to see what I guess to be around 50 cars in line behind me. Then I heard one of the attendants say they were about to run out. Yikes.

So, as I prepare to watch my belongings loaded into a truck, in the back of my mind I'm hoping everything can just make it to Florida! I hear that once you get past the middle of South Carolina, things go back to normal. Thank goodness!

Tomorrow I head to a hotel to wait for the closing on Monday, then I'll be loading 2 cats, a dog, a trunk full of hard drives, a mic-pre, an Mbox, a couple of mics, a library of music and SFX, oh- and some clothes- and heading to my next home where my husband awaits!

5 comments:

Unknown said...

Kara, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I understand the gas crisis is pervasive in the Southeast. During the last 1-2 weeks, Atlanta has also had the same gas shortages you describe. I've heard stories of people waiting for 2 hours to buy gas. Things may have improved a little bit as the Georgia governor allowed stations to temporarily get "dirty gas", which doesn't meet the normal standards.

The places that sell out first are the ones competing on price -- Walmart, Costco, Sams Club, Kroger, QuickTrip, RaceTrack and BJs. If you go to a station for one of the major oil companies (BP, Chevron, Shell, Exxon), you're more likely to find gas. You'll pay more for it, but it's worth it not to hunt around for it.

I will be sending positive energy your way during this move. I hope that gas is plentiful on your journey and that you and your belongings reach Tampa safely.


Karen Commins
www.KarenVoices.com
www.KarenBlogs.com

brokenwingangel said...

Kara,

Hi. I am Author D'Maria Scaglione. I write Children's books. My most acclaimed book is "A Unique Bunny". Do you know how I can get this book into an animated film? It would be so cool if you were the voice of Beautiful Dreamer the bunny heroine of my book. Please check out my author name (google)
D'Maria Scaglione
http://enlightenedangel.bravehost.com
myspace.com/dmariascaglione
I really am networking to get a break. It is so hard to be an author--being disabled doesn't help. I have 5 books out now. People love my books. Right now I am working on A Unique Bunny II.
Thank you for reading this. I wish you the best in the work that you do.

Anonymous said...

Yes, I must say that South Carolina is very..um...odd...I live in Greenville, and I find all sorts of things everyday. States like South Carolina are very skittish when told about something bad, especially snow or gasoline.

I hope that your move goes well, and I hope to see you around at next year's Animazement!

Bob Souer said...

Kara,

My prayers and well wishes go with you as you transition to the new home you and Chris are establishing in Florida. We all ready miss you in Charlotte, but hope to see you again when next our paths cross.

Be well,
Bob

Anonymous said...

Hi Kara,

I hope things are going smoothly for you and your family (Chris and pets) as you transition toward getting settled in down in Tampa.

The tips you gave about taking pictures of cabling, knob settings and such when moving (from room to room or city to city) is a really great idea to make sure that your "trademark sound" doesn't change even though your location has.

The Charlotte area's loss is certainly the Tampa area's gain.

Reach out to your Charlotte VO friends the next time you're up this way so we can get together for a coffee or dinner.

Best Wishes,

Britt