Okay, okay, all this means I'm a bit off on my title, but you'll understand what I mean.skål!
gk
Sunday
18 October 1981
Norrköping, Sweden
Reference: Pages 2, 3 from the English language paperback edition of the novel LTROI.
I pull onto the side street nearly two hours later than my planned arrival. I dislike being late. "19:48" says the clock on console of my Volvo light truck. I park as close as I can, grab my gloves, extract the keys and climb out. It's cold outside of the small cab and I look about for the building entrance. Turns out the door is pretty easy to spot and I ring the bell. The renter immediately answers and he greets me straight off. It is a relief, always, to find the right party and begin the work. Yet tonight it is a bit of an embarrassment for me to be so late in my arrival.
He is a stout man, overweight and balding. I find him agreeable but looking tired. I shake hands with him and we exchange names. As usual I forget his within thirty seconds. He tells me he doesn't care how late I am in getting here, that the requirement for the job was that we do this after dark - which is indeed the case.
We climb the couple of stairs to his flat. He lets me in - it is a dingy, sparsely used place - and I see what is to be taken down to the street. Everything has been boxed and arranged. The bed has been broken up and the boards, rails, head board and mattress are together against the left wall. "I need you to sign for this before we begin," I tell him. He grunts, looks over the paperwork and signs it. The money comes out of his pocket and quickly I can tell by the large denomination notes that the matter is paid for. Settled out on the formalities, we begin the work.
I usually have a man with me for residential moves. It helps with the large pieces. In this case I had been told the move would be very light - nothing large - and this turns out the be the case. We proceed by my direction, which turns out match his thinking. I take a small liking to the guy - he's organized. Sofa is moved first because it is the largest single piece. Then the bed parts. Then the tables and chairs. Boxes last.
It takes a long while to move everything down the stairs, out through the doors, up into the truck and then secured. We work for a long while at it, taking frequent breaks. I can tell the guy is exhausted by the work but doesn't want to show it. He is not in the physical shape to be doing this. The darkness and the cold don't help. I let him rest at the end of each piece's move. If he gives up on me with the truck half loaded, we're done. But he holds it together even though he is panting most times like a locomotive.
A mystery of why some of the chairs and boxes up in the flat keep moving closer to the door while we are downstairs and outside is finally answered. The guy has got a kid with him. She appears out of the shadows during our next to last trip down the stairs. We're carrying the boxes at that point and I catch my first glimpse of her as I'm heading out the door with several stacked up in my arms. "Hey, I didn't realize you had a kid here too," I call out to him. He grunts and continues down the stairs ahead of me. When we have the box run secured in the truck and he is taking a breather on the tail gate he finally answers me. "Yeh, she's pretty quiet." "Daughter?," I ask. "Yes," he grunts and then forces himself back into action. Seems to me he's cutting the conversation short. Whatever. We're almost done.
He does the usual last look around the place. Everything is out as we carry away the remaining set of boxes. He locks the door behind and we descend. "Is she out," I ask? I've only seen her the one time. "Yes," he grunts. Again the grunting. I let it go.
The final box load is secured and I close up the truck. It is getting very late now. And cold. But at this point we're committed to all this, which is why I don't like doing moves at night and why I don't like being the only workman on a run.
I climb into the cab and he joins me. I buckle in and ask if he knows the way. He says he can help guide. Fortunately Blackeberg is not that complicated.
Just as he shuts his door, she slips in. Right out of nowhere. She must have been haunting around on the far side of the truck. In the darkness you'd never see her. Even now in the cab she's a quiet shadow over between him and the door. I want to give her a friendly "hello," but can't get a look at her. She seems pretty cute though. Probably about ten years old, judging by the size of her. Ghostlike, though.
We drive along in silence. Again, this is a problem with doing moves at night: everyone is tired. It gets too easy to make mistakes and I know the hard parts are yet to come.
Blackeberg.
We turn onto Ibsengaten, two hours later, and find a place close to where he points out the new entrance. Number 75, Ibsengaten is our destination; their new home. At least the street is lit, even at this hour.
The whole dance begins anew, going in reverse. I open up the truck. We start with the boxes, climbing up and into to their new place. Again I have to give the guy long breaks, only it's worse now. Hauling everything up the stairwell is taxing him. Nothing I can do but give him time.
I lost sight of the girl the moment we parked. His door opened and she was gone into the night before I even thought to look over. I haven't seen her since.
We continue with the boxes and then the chairs and tables. Finally the bed pieces are brought up. I will let him assemble those and he tells me he can do it on his own. It is almost midnight as we struggle with the couch. I figure the police will be here any time now, asking us to wait on the rest until morning. And then, finally, the sofa is up and inside the new place and we're done. The timing is good. He is dead exhausted and I want to get home to my family and bed.
We shake hands and ramble down the stairs and back outside. A final bit of conversation occurs but we're both tired. It's been along day for me - three moves - I can't keep doing this. He gives me a nice tip.
I climb into the cab and start it up. As I pull away I see him talking to his daughter. They're just outside in the doorway entrance. I can't hear the conversation with the cab windows shut but I imagine they're discussing what more needs needs to be done tonight and who is going to sleep where.
It's odd but the last thing I worry about as I pull away is the unusual nature of that little girl. Most times when I help with residential moves the kids are a menace during the unpacking stage. They are typically wound up and racing through the new place, getting into everything. Not this kid though. The little ghost was nowhere to be seen until just as I pulled away. How odd.
