Movin’ on Up!

My office is moving. Literally, we’re moving up… as in North. On Friday. And you would think it’s Christmas for me!

When I was interviewing a few months back, they mentioned that come March they’d be moving locations. And I tell you what, had we not been moving, I may not have accepted the job (may being the operative word).

Right now, we’re downtown on State Street, one area of tourist retail heaven (or hell) in this city. Our building is between  just about any store you can think of on a very iconic street, but take the elevator up 13 floors and you step into what is the most raw and depressing looking places you can imagine. All the walls are either dark red, bright orange or lime green, with a garage (literally a garage) in the middle acting as our main conference room. I should also mention this garage has working garage doors, so it’s really fun being on the phone with a client when someone decides to “open the garage.” Not. There’s also no cell service and only 1 wall of windows, resulting in a very dark work environment. OH, and how could I forget! In the past year, an “escort service” and a meth lab were discovered on other floors in the building. Needless to say, I share the elevator every morning with some of Chicago’s finest!

It was then announced that we would be moving to the Merchandise Mart – the building attached to the building I had just come from! I get to be back in the same space as my old Upshot buddies and my husband! And I get to take a clean yuppie train to work, not the gross homeless-magnet pee train! Oh happy day!

So now is the fun part: packing. Having only been there 2 months, I have not accumulated much crap yet so packing is a breeze for me. But for some, it’s like they are packing up their life and it’s a big deal. And of course, they have been telling us for weeks to start packing and throwing things away, but do you think anyone listened? Nope. Not until today. Two days before the move.

Here’s what the space next to my desk looks like: dirty and empty. There have been moving men in all week taking apart desks, hammering and showing off their butt crack. It’s been fun, let me tell you. But the end is in sight!!