We're a movin' on up, to the sky, to that deluxe apartment in the sky (imagine singing here)!

This month, we moved. Why would you possibly move in the middle of the holiday season, you ask? Well, we looked at the calendar and said, “Hmmm, the second week of December, situated right between Thanksgiving and Christmas seems a bit slow, how about we add a little drama?” Seriously though, all I can tell you is that we found our dream home and we simply couldn’t pass up this opportunity. Unfortunately, this created a challenging dilemma for me, the man of the house.


You see, I, like most men, subscribe to a unique style of social etiquette. In fact, “unique” is the perfect way to describe it. Ann Landers would have nothing to offer me in this area as it has nothing to do with the placement of silverware or the philosophy or timing of an RSVP. Rather, it has more to do with what we (and by “we” I mean those of the male persuasion) call the “Guy Code”.

The “Guy Code” is a set of rules that most men apply to the way they operate in their daily lives. A classic example is the “one seat” rule at the movies. I recently took my father-in-law and brother-in-law to see the remake of “True Grit”, a legendary guy movie. I sat down in one seat and my brother-in-law sat next to me . . . with one seat between us, thus, the “one seat” rule.

Another recent example of a test of my commitment to the “Guy Code” is when I asked a bunch of my friends to assist me in moving. Now, any man will tell you that this will test of any guy friendship for a couple of reasons; First, I broke the number one rule of the “Guy Code” – Never ask for help. Unfortunately, my family has a lot of stuff, including large appliances that I simply could not move myself, so I was pushed into a position where I had no choice. Second, I put myself in debt to a bunch of my guy friends, all of whom will need a favor at some point in the near future. This all but guarantees that in 2011 I will be assisting in moves, loaning my vehicle out, and dog sitting. What is worse is that because I am indebted to my friends, I can’t make up an excuse as to why I can’t help.

The stress of a move; putting everything you own into boxes, renting a truck, breaking the “Guy Code” and becoming indebted to your friends, loading and unloading, and then taking everything you own back out of boxes in a short period of time, experiencing buyer’s remorse about leaving a home you’ve put 6 years of hard work and sweat into, and doing it all during the holiday season, can take its toll. So, I go back to the original question, “Why move to a new home during this time of the year?” To answer that, I’ll explain by telling a story. Shortly after moving into our new home, we took our children out to feed the horses in the neighbors pasture and put out corn for the deer and my son simply looked at us with eyes wide and a huge smile on his face and asked, “Am I dreaming?” I guess that sums it all up. Welcome home Ryerson family, welcome home.