I'm baaaaaack!

A'salaamu alaikum ya'll! Wow, I've been on quite a break. :-) Welll a lot has happened since we last "spoke", dear readers, so let me catch ya'll up.

I am in my apartment alhamdulillah. Actually moved in the weekend before Christmas which was really difficult to get everything settled but alhamdulillah it did (somehow!) all fall into place. Oh wait I think a list is in order, otherwise I'll forget. OK so here we :

1. Moved into apartment. Yeah, touched on that. ;-) Aaminah and I are officially in our own place. We have been SOOOO blessed to have such lovely friends who allowed us to stay with them and treated us like their own families. Well better actually ;-) lol. We really tried to be good houseguests and were clean and neat and helpful but it was still, I am sure, a huge stress on the 2 families which housed us. May Allah swt shower His blessings on them, amin!

2. I got internet. Alhamdulillah! Ya'll know I like to stay in-touch so this was really important for me. However I had some issues getting the cable guy out to "git-er-done" so a very helpful friend (thanks!!!!) suggested I try tethering my mobile phone to use it as a mobile hot-spot. Worked a charm! However in US this isn't free (wouldn't you know!) so I am paying an extra $15 a month but that is so much less than normal internet (like half-price) and so far, my connection is great. In this corner anyway but alhamdulillah.

3. Which brings us to money which brings us to my job. :-) Alhamdulillah. I was working babysitting for the sister but it was not enough money. Now I am working as an office manager for a tax office (a brother owns it masha'allah) and he had no issue with how I dress. I have been in charge of training new-hires (well everyone as it's a new office) and getting the office up and running for tax season. Subhanallah it's been quite a task but I do have experience. I worked at H&R Block for 3 tax seasons as a receptionist and accouting assistant and also did taxes on the sly on the side ;-) for the past 2 years in Massachusetts.

I am salaried which means during the busiest time (from now til Feb. 20th) I'll be working 7 days a week, 10 hours a day (minimum). I am of course not happy about that but agreed as the brother really needs my help and I need the money. So for that time period the money isn't awesome per-hour but later I get a 2 week paid vacation :-) (wonder where UofA will be headed?????) and then I will only work 25 to 30 hours a week through the remainder. So no, it isn't permanent (it's taxes, ya'll) but it's sooo helpful. Insha'Allah He blesses my provisions and allows me to do everything that is needful with it, amin.

4. My stuff. Oh my goodness. This is an entire post in it's own but to be frank, I'm tired of the drama. We hired movers, you see, to move my stuff from MA to TN. I went online, got several quotes from one website and went with the lowest. They arrived to get my things and, after loading it all, informed A that he had to pay another $1000. Yes not a typo, an extra $1000. Of course we didn't have it nor did we intend to pay it. They said I had too much stuff.

Yeah fair enough, I can see I wasn't as thorough as I should have been in recounting my apartment contents but not on purpose. I had given them a list of what to pack. So I aksed the driver, what happened to my list? And he said, oh I packed all the extra THEN packed the list stuff. Uh huh. So I said ok take off what wasn't on my list and he said can't it's behind all your other stuff and I'm not doing it.

OK. So I tell him to unload the truck and leave everything. He flat refuses and tells me he is taking my stuff to a warehouse in New Jersey and I'll have to speak with the business owners.

This was December 15th. Subhanallah. Finally I agreed to pay the extra but I couldn't get it how they wanted; they decided cash only and I refused as there is no way to trace that and they have been so fraudulent. They refused to take a credit card. Wha...???? They took it for the deposit so what's up now???

Anyway I talk to the lady once a week approx and I tell her the same thing, I'm willing to pay your extra amount but $650 on credit card and $350 cash when it's delivered. She keeps putting me off. All of my personal effects, furniture, my clothes even, are there. I've bee living off the 2 abaya I brought for my 2 week visit in September. Subhanallah. I try not to stress about it because I can literally do nothing. The government entity which oversaw this was closed (guess so they could put more FBI agents in masajid) so there is literally 1 person to field complaints.

For the entire US. Subhanallah.

Anyway please make dua I get my things soon. We are sleeping on a futon (ouch!) and have no furniture. Alhamdulillah a kind sister did give me an old recliner so I am not sitting to type. :-) All my clothes and Aaminahs, winter coats and gloves and boots for her, all in storage. Subhanallah. These people are crooks. So beware East and West Movers from Hoboken, New Jersey.

OK so I'm really tired. I wanted to include pics of my new place but tooo exhausted. Insha'allah next time.

Note to self: please dont sit in a moveable rocker/recliner when typing. Your vertigo WILL kick in. :-)

Love, me.