Royal Malaysian Navy Plans to Expand Fleet

The grounding and training provided for our submariners are of such high quality that Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) crew were invited to serve with the French navy.

RMN chief Admiral Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Jaafar said the exposure given to its submariners was so thorough that the French navy was willing to have them aboard their submarines.

"This shows the level of competency our crew have attained, and the credibility they have achieved during their stint in France."

Abdul Aziz was referring to the 500-odd RMN crew trained in Brest, France initially in the Agosta training vessel before being deployed into the two Scorpene SSK submarines -- all three vessels of which were procured under a total package worth RM3.42 billion in 2006.

Technical training was also provided by the French shipbuilder, DCNS, at Cherbourg, and its Spanish partner, Navantia at Cartagena.

The first Scorpene submarine, KD Tunku Abdul Rahman, arrived here on Sept 3 last year, while the second, KD Tun Razak, is expected to arrive in the middle of this year.


"We are very committed and dedicated to ensure that the submarine programme, a strategic asset for the country, continues with minimal hitches," he said in conjunction with the 76th RMN Day which falls today.

For that reason, he added, the navy was also urgently scouting for a submarine escape-and- rescue vessel.

"Its presence will provide a psychological confidence to submariners."

Abdul Aziz added that despite the financial constraints, the RMN was bent on ensuring that Malaysia's coastline, maritime strategic interests, exclusive economic zone (EEZ), territorial waters and islands were secured.

The RMN, he said, was also prepared to defend the nation against seaborne threats.

"I believe if our men's and women's interests are looked after, morale will be high and they will serve the country to the best of their ability."

It is understood that the RMN's future fleet programme includes a second batch of Lekiu-class frigates, New-Generation Patrol Vessels (NGPV), Multi-Purpose Support Ships (MPSS), maritime patrol aircraft and anti-aircraft/ship/submarine warfare helicopters.

The RMN's ultimate goal is to have six-vessel squadrons of each class by the year 2020.

Abdul Aziz added that the emphasis was for RMN to procure assets on a common platform policy to facilitate affordable maintenance and servicing, improve readiness and optimise available resources.

"Such assets will boost our capability to protect our 3,000km coastline, the 400km separating the peninsula and East Malaysia, and the Straits of Malacca as one of the world's busiest sea lanes."


In 1996, a total of 27 Meko 100 NGPVs were built in Lumut, Perak, to fulfil the RMN's requirements.

An initial contract for six NGPV vessels (which have since been reconfigured as littoral combatant ships), was clinched and five -- KD Kedah, KD Pahang, KD Perak, KD Terengganu and KD Kelantan -- have been commissioned since June 2006.

On the MPSS procurement, Abdul Aziz said the navy was also considering those from South Korea and China which offered competitive and high-quality vessels.

The RMN now has 42 vessels after 17 were handed over to the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency.

On the RMN auxiliary ship Bunga Mas 5, Abdul Aziz said it played a pivotal role in protecting Malaysian commercial vessels plying the Gulf of Aden since being deployed there under Ops Fajar in June last year.

Bunga Mas 5, equipped with combat capability and special forces on board, undertook a six-month stint in the gulf.

"Its deployment has been very effective. There are no more hijackings since the two incidents involving MISC vessels last year," he added.

Russian S-400 Missiles to Go Into Serial Production

Russian long range ballistic missiles for S-400 Triumph surface-to-air missile systems will go into serial production in the autumn, a leading missile manufacturer said on Friday.

Earlier media reports said the S-400 missile system was incomplete as long range ballistic missiles, among others, had not been adopted for it.

"On December 26, 2009 the preliminary tests were finished and the missile was put forward for state tests," Kommersant daily quoted the general director of Almaz-Antei, Igor Ashurbeili, as saying.

"In the third quarter of 2010 we should finish them, along with combat duty launches, and then put it [the missile] into serial production in the fourth quarter," he added.

According to Ashurbeili, there were no technical failures or difficulties concerning the long range missile tests.
"The tests of S-400 missile lasted for about 3 years...We are bewildered by the bacchanalia of rumors and slander concerning the issue as an ordinary working process is going on," he continued.

Ashurbeili added that the situation regarding the production of missiles after 2012 is unclear as Almaz-Antei does not have "any signed contracts for 2012".

The S-400 Triumph boasts unique characteristics. It can destroy any air target, including stealth aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, and cruise and ballistic missiles within a range of 400 kilometers and an altitude up to 30 kilometers. The system is almost three times more efficient than its Russian and foreign counterparts.


There are no plans so far to export the S-400. It will be produced only for the Russian Armed Forces. An additional two systems will be deployed by the end of 2010.

Sunday, May 2nd

Honored to see Mr. Jason Paglia here with what is to be the first Pony Ghost show in a very long time. Beautiful stuff. Gotta come and see. We'll also be welcoming back Dan Galucki whom you may remember from Hello Loneliness! and other good projects. He's been traveling for a while with his new band, The Fed, and we are so pleased to welcome him home. Special guest DJings in between and after sets. Party time! Excellent!

Saturday, May 1st!

Ooohwee! Can't tell you how excited we are to have our friend, Maxamillion bring his Danger on over to our little alleyway. We heart his records times infinity. Come and give him a good welcome to 1st Saturdays!

Thursday: Tender, Love 'n Care!

And hey, folks. Whether we're gonna have to drown our sorrows or celebrate a Blazers win together...this is a damn fine way to do it! Mike and Josh, we love you guys. Come on down and enjoy these classic records.

Wednesday, April 28th

The Only Way

This is the only way I can even entertain the idea of doing solo
shopping trips. On this particular outing Sam and Jake thought it
would be fun to practice their screaming at each other while I browsed
the 75% off racks. I didn't even care because I was getting outfits
for them for less than $2!

Tuesday, April 27th

Up for Grabs: An evening of improvisations in movement, music, and visual work curated by Danielle Ross

"The poetics of the 'open' work tends to encourage 'acts of conscious freedom' on the part of the performer and place him at the focal point of a network of limitless interrelations."

-Umberto Eco

New work by:

Lena Munday (sound)

David Bryant (film)

Tim Duroche and Reed Wallsmith (sound)

Danielle and JP Jenkins (sound/movement)

Karl Lind (video)

Nathan Warner (movement)

Future Death Toll

This is not to be missed.

2 Year Statistics

Today Samantha had her 2 year check-up. I know you are all dying to know her vitals, so here are the numbers:

Height: 33 inches (25th percentile)

Weight: 24 pounds, 6 ounces (25th percentile)

Head: 50th percentile

Now, back when she was first born, I did a height prediction, which predicted she would be 5'6". Looks like that prediction was right on the money if we double her height at 2 years old, which is another way to determine adult height; double height at two years to get her adult height. Samantha has consistently come in at the 25th percentile for height and weight, and there are no concerns for her petite size.

Now, onto the best. And yes, I am a proud mother right now and so be it! A direct quote from the doctor "you have quite a smart little girl here; she is advanced in her social skills for her age". Yes we do and yes she is! We are amazed by Samantha's language every day, and how much she is putting together. I feel like I say this every month, but it is just amazing to see her develop and figure out things on her own. She truly is such a happy girl, and delights in everything, especially the people around her. She gets so excited to see people she knows, and to play with her friends. Often times this will translate into her tackling her friends to the floor, but the love is there regardless of her rough expressions of love. Samantha is very inquisitive about other children, and is at her best when she can follow other kids around and learn from the older children. The gleam she gets in her eye is visible when she is doing something that the "big kids" are doing. Hopefully in the next year or two she will have as much tolerance and patience for Jake as these older kids seem to have for her!

All Smiles for the Park!

Thursday, April 22nd

Can You Hear Me Now?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOMMY

Mommy, 

     Have a great day.  Thank you for being a terrific teacher.  We Love You!

Sam & Jake

Swiping

I am taking a page from Swiper the Fox and swiping a blog post (or at least the photo) right from the Loban blog. Today we headed to the park with Ethan and company, and as always laughs were aplenty when hanging out with Ethan and Sammy. When they aren't wrestling each other they are running after one another, eating each others snacks, and basically doing things that make us say "even though we have no clue what they are doing, they are obviously in sync to what is going on." At this point Jake and Noah are just along for the ride, but it won't be long before we have 4 crazy kids on the loose!

Egg Carton Caterpillars

Over the past few days we've been doing various projects to complete these caterpillars laying in the grass. Last time we used google eyes Samantha's snowman had random eyes on it's belly. Now the eyes are in the correct place, but there was no stopping at just two eyes!

Tuesday, April 20th!

Hey all! Come get your 4/20 on with all these buddies. ROB plays for us in the alleyway as always. Definitely come early for awesome new band, Psychic Feline (ex- Caldonias). See you for the fun!

Laws of Physics and Mathematics Dictate the Optimum Shape of a Stealth Aircraft

Refer to my post PAK FA T-50 : A Preliminary Analysis regarding to the similarities between F22 and PAK FA design, here is the illustration concerning the optimum shape of a stealth aircraft. To obtain a low observation characteristic, a stealth aircraft must have as much as possible paralleled edge of the airframe to reflect the radar wave away from its source. The coloured line shows the paralleled edge of the airframe on the PAK FA T-50 and F22 Raptor.

Cool as a Cucumber!

Today we headed off to the grocery store with two kids in tow. The routine of the grocery is that whoever is pushing Jake in the cart is the one that is doing the actual shopping. The other person is strictly on Sammy duty, running after her in the store. If that person happens to throw a few things into the cart then that is a bonus! Today in the produce section, Samantha picked up one of those long cucumbers that come wrapped in plastic.Next thing I know Chris is holding up the cucumber saying "I guess we just bought a cucumber". Samantha had taken a bite out of the cucumber right through the plastic! She was very vocal that she wanted more cucumber, so Chris unwrapped the top of the cucumber so that she could continue to nosh in the store.
She gained a lot of attention in the store while she did justice in eating the cucumber. We were explaining the eating of the cucumber in the store to another shopper who happily informed us that since we'd be buying this cucumber we should be sure to get a second one because they were buy 1 get 1 today! So, off Samantha and Chris went to get another cucumber. When we got home we compared just how much cucumber Samantha actually ate in the store with the unopened cucumber!

A New Take on Snack

Pasta!

Mommy Time!

Now that Chris is traveling 5 days a week we have decided to get a babysitter to come in to help me out one day a week for about 4 hours at a time. Today was the first day of having someone here to help out and it was great! Katie came to play for the afternoon after nap time, and it gave me some much needed time to get a few tasks completed. I stayed around here while they played since it was the first day and it felt funny getting stuff done that I normally wouldn't do when the kids are around. Once we move into our own place we are considering getting someone to come in to play with the kids for part of 2 days per week, but for now are just doing 1 day. It was nice to be able to do some laundry and actually fold it and put it away all at once rather than doing bits and pieces here and there. I was also able to pay some bills, do a little blogging and tackle a few thank you notes from Samantha's birthday. It's amazing what you can get done in a few hours! Thinking of all the possibilities when I actually leave the house!

Samantha and Jake seemed to have a great time with Katie. I was telling Samantha that Katie was coming to play after nap and when she woke up I think she was surprised to see an adult here instead of a friend her size/age, but she got over it quickly!

Party Time!

This past weekend we had Samantha's birthday party at Bounce U. It was a day full of friends, family, and bouncing fun! I didn't do so well with photos as I was trying to take ones of the kids bouncing and coming down the slides, but they all turned out blurry. Here are some of what we did get. I missed out on getting a group shot of all the kiddies as well. Why is it that we don't think of these things until it's all said and done??

Watching the Bounce U video;

Melissa and Andrew were bound to break a few more rules than the kids

(Kyla, Delaney, Brynn, Sammy and Jake)

Sammy bouncing:

Who's having more fun;

Sammy or Daddy? (Chris and Tim)

Samantha getting birthday hug from her friend Nora:

So excited to be the birthday girl!

Pizza Time:

Dora the Explorer Cake:

Before blowing out the candles:

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Friday, April 16th

OMG. Sweet Jimmy Thompson has one of our favorite record collections around. He's well dressed. He's funny. He smells good. People often compliment him on his mustache and all jokes aside, he will make you dance. You should come hang out. It's gonna be a real good time.

Right on, Thursday!

That's right, friends. Dual release party for Miracles Club and Operative who have both put out kick ass records! Come hang out, give some love, and grab your copy. They both sound excellent. We can already smell summer right around the corner. Hurray!

Trump SoHo Opens

When an out-of-scale glass tower in one of New York City's most popular neighborhoods opens, does it make a sound?

Big Emotion

In my mind I had been thinking that maybe we'd be saved from the brunt of terrible two-ness only because Samantha is very verbal and does not have many times of frustration from not being understood. I was thinking oh, we'll sail right through this because she can understand us, and we can understand her. At the time of this thought I obviously was wearing blinders because everything I ever learned in school or in real life practice would tell me that I was in for a rude awakening.

I read an article yesterday about 2 year olds that talked about the "terrible twos" as being not so much about terrible behavior but more about big emotion. I feel this is definitely the case with Samantha. A week before her 2 year birthday she started displaying some very big emotion that is sometimes accompanied by some not so stellar behavior like hitting and whining, but most of all it seems as though she is so distraught over these big feelings that she just doesn't know what to do with herself. The time of day when the terrible twos have been rearing their ugly head is right after nap time.

Yesterday she was just so beside herself that even the offering of a snack, milk or tv show was met with a sobbing "no". After some time she was able to say that she wanted milk, but when I got her cup from the refrigerator and handed it to her she backhanded it onto the floor saying "noooo" (add a little feet stomping as well). I said something to the effect that she had asked for the milk, but if she really doesn't want it she doesn't have to have it. I went to put it back in the fridge only to have her throw her head back stomp those feet, swing those arms, and whine "miiiiiiilllllk", to which I said "do you want your milk or do you not want it?" She sheepishly nodded her head yes and grabbed for her milk so quickly as if it was a life and death situation.

We are only one week into being 2 and I have a feeling I am going to get awfully sick of hearing myself say "use your words!"

Upcoming NYC Events

Here are some upcoming events of note for those in and around NYC.

MOVING TOWARD UTOPIA: What King of City Lies Ahead?
PANELISTS INCLUDE: Tom Angotti, Nancy Levinson, & Bill Menking
Moderated By David Smiley

Wednesday, April 14th
6:30PM
James Room
4th Floor Barnard Hall
(West 117th St and Broadway)

A new concept of the city has emerged among contemporary urbanists. Architects and planners now frame the city not as a set of independently regulated functions but as a mesh of landscapes, spaces, and policies. Streets, paths, parks, and infrastructure are elements of a constantly shifting system that joins the particularities of place and overarching social goals. In this new environment, planning tactics, management techniques, policy goals, and fiscal strategies continuously interact. Building on the Fall 2009 "Rights of Way" symposium, “Moving Toward Utopia” addresses questions of power, health, equity, and ecology that confront and are fueled by new design strategies. “Moving Toward Utopia” will bring together a distinguished group of urban thinkers to examine the implications of new approaches to the design of public spaces. What kind of city lies ahead?

Information: (212) 854-2037

: : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : :

Minds in the Gutter: Storm Water Management in New York City
...a viewing of the selected designs and
a panel discussion among expert dreamers and do-ers
in the field of stormwater management.

April 22, 2010, 6:30pm
Museum of the City of New York

Click through for tickets!
S.W.I.M. members call 917.492.3395 to enter at MCNY member rate!

: : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : :

FAST TRASH: Roosevelt Island‘s Pneumatic Tubes and the Future of Cities
April 22 – May 23, 2010
Opening Reception: Thursday, April 22, 6 – 9pm

Roosevelt Island’s idiosyncratic underground garbage disposal suggests alternate futures for New York City’s infrastructure.

: : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : :

The Changing State of the Design Press: Now What?

When: 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM MONDAY, APRIL 26

Where: At The Center

There’s no question that the platforms for architectural dialogue are in flux. While some design publications are shrinking or even disappearing, other media outlets are using technology to broaden their reach. Design critics and journalists can use web sites, blogs, e-newsletters, and other forms of communication to talk about anything, from practice to technology. The mainstream press is even increasing its design-related reportage, supported by growing interest in such topics as sustainability, innovation, and urban planning. How do we navigate our current media landscape? To prepare for what’s now and what’s next, Oculus editor Kristen Richards will moderate a panel of editors from top publications who will discuss ongoing shifts in the design media and readership; how these changes are influencing the type and content of traditional print publications; the rise of new publications and new audiences; and the influence of blogs and on-line magazines.

Moderator:
Kristen Richards, editor, Oculus and www.ArchNewsNow.com

Panelists:
Julie V. Iovine, Executive Editor, Architects Newspaper
Michael Sorkin, Principal, Michael Sorkin Studio, writer/editor/design critic
John Hill, A Daily Dose of Architecture
Robert Ivy, Editor-in-Chief, Architectural Record

Organized by: AIA NY Marketing & PR Committee and the Oculus Committee

Sponsored by: Hausman LLC

Monday, April 12th

Good news!

It's time for GOSPEL NIGHT again!

DJ Yeti and DJ Hwy 7

will be playing some from their amazing personal collections

Sunday, April 11th

9:30 til late

Hope to see you there!

Hamas Leader to Visit Moscow

The leader of the Palestinian party Hamas, Khaled Mashal, will visit Moscow next week to discuss ways of ending the Palestinian split and how to resume the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry informed that “The meeting will take place in the context of the political dialogue that Russia is holding with influential forces of Palestinian society to contribute to the resumption of Palestinian-Israeli talks on a well-known and generally recognized international legal basis,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrey Nesterenko.

In January this year, Palestinian leader and leader of Fatah Party Mahmoud Abbas held talks in Moscow with Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev. The ministry spokesman pointed out that the negotiations with Mahmoud Abbas “have confirmed the similar approaches with Moscow on peaceful resolving of the Middle East crisis.”

Hamas has controlled the Gaza portion of the Palestinian Territories since 2007 after winning a large majority in the Palestinian Parliament and defeating rival Palestinian party Fatah. So far, talks to reconcile Hamas and Fatah since Egypt began mediations in late 2008 have seen no results.

Hamas, backed by Syria and Iran, doesn’t recognize Israel and is seen by the EU, the US, Canada, Israel and Japan as a terrorist organization. However, Russia has always been open to a dialogue with Hamas and met the party’s leader Khaled Mashal in Moscow after the elections in 2007.

After the last meeting with the leader of Hamas in Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Hamas had adopted a more realistic approach since Operation Cast Lead in December.

Israel has criticized Lavrov’s meeting with Mashal, saying that Hamas is a terrorist organization. However, Russia’s FM said that in every conflict all sides should be involved in dialogue: “This principle applies to Hamas, as well as Hezbollah and Syria.”

Professor Irina Zvyagelskaya, Vice President of the Center for Strategic and Political Studies, thinks that is the exact reason why Moscow is seeing the leader of Hamas this February: “Relations between Fatah and Hamas remain tense, despite Egypt’s mediations. If Hamas will be excluded from negotiations, then any decisions, which will be made by other parties, will not be accepted by Hamas, and the Gaza strip will remain isolated.”

Meanwhile, according to the Israeli media, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is to visit Moscow in the middle of February. Irina Zvyagelskaya, however, doesn’t think that Moscow will anger either Israel or Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas by meeting with Hamas: “Well, officially they may express their dissatisfaction with this. However, both the Israeli and Palestinian leaders understand that we are acting as mediators and we need to understand what the Hamas position is.”

Vyacheslav Matuzov, president of the Russia-Palestine Society of Friendship and Business Cooperation, also thinks that Moscow’s talks with Hamas are essential in solving the Palestinian question and says that, even though officially Mahmoud Abbas may frown upon it, it should be taken well, “The level of trust between Russia and the Palestinian leadership is high; they trust us and know that we will not harm their interests,” Matuzov notes.

Moreover, Matuzov thinks that at the end Israel and the West will recognize Hamas – and Hamas, in his view, will also eventually recognize Israel: “Hamas was created by the Israeli special intelligence services and the elections in Palestine were choreographed by American special services.” He concludes that the aim of this political game is that the Palestinian state will be restricted only to Gaza.

Fun in the Sun

April 7th and temperatures near 90 degrees! What else can we do but get out the pool? We invited our neighbor Miles and his mom Amy to come over to swim with us. All of the kids dove right into the pool; even Jake!

Jake had a great time splashing!

AE 19: Structural Decoration

A couple recent bridge designs make me wonder about the symbiosis of structure and decoration in designing for long spans. Engineering expression in bridges certainly isn't new, but the traditional means of expression have been elements like arches, beams, and suspension cables. Think of the Brooklyn Bridge without its cables, its structural expression. As impossible as ignoring the Gothic stonework of its piers. But the two bridges below, and other recent examples, merge architecture and engineering to create unique expressions where the lines between structure and decoration have disappeared.


[Yale Hill House Bridges | image source]

First is the to-be-realized Yale Hill House Bridges by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects and Guy Nordenson and Associates. The latter describes the design of the two bridges as such:

Each pedestrian bridge consists of two 3ft 6in steel plate girders which comprise the primary structure of the bridge as well as its railings. The plate girders have 1/4in-thick corrugated, perforated webs. The corrugation depth or "amplitude" of the web is trapezoidal in plan and varies between 2in and 6in across the span to enhance the structural stability of the web and to brace the top compression flange of the girder. The corrugation, therefore, allows for a thinner web and less bracing material. The corrugation also creates a varying pattern of light and shadow when the girders are viewed at an angle. The perforations in the web are diamond-shaped to generate a lattice-like appearance that recalls the original wood lattice canal bridges designed by a local architect Ithiel Towne in 1820. The perforations also help to reduce the weight of the structure.

[Yale Hill House Bridges | image source]

So what looks like a decorative guardrail is in fact a structural member, and an important one in that its shape and perforation increase performance and reduce weight from additional members that are now deemed unnecessary. An of course these pieces create dramatic effects for fairly small bridges.


[Bridge, La Roche-sur-Yon | image source]

Another design merging architecture and engineering, spotted at ArchDaily, is a footbridge recently completed in Roche-sur-Yon, France by Bernard Tschumi Architects and Hugh Dutton Associates (HDA Paris). They describe the bridge as such:

The intention...was to demonstrate an integration of an original structural system with an architectural concept developed from urban scale research of neighborhood identity and carried through the expression of the minutest details.

[Bridge, La Roche-sur-Yon | image source]

The bridge is experienced as a walk through a lattice-like tube. From the exterior it reads like a solid tube or an ethereal object, depending on ones relationship to the bridge. (Check out the PDF press release for many more images.) HDA was responsible for the engineering on the project, though their role as local architects probably aided in fusing the two usually distinct realms of architecture and engineering.

I think this apparent trend of engineering merging with architectural surfaces and decoration is not limited to bridges, much less pedestrian ones. It's found in buildings of many types, though what is special here is the openness that is possible with footbridges; space only needs to be contained for safety not for climate-control. Space then flows through the bridge openings, designed as much for structural performance as for formal appearance.

Today's archidose #407

Herzog & De Meuron TEA, originally uploaded by Héctor Guerra (Pritzker prize to SANAA!!!! ;))))).

TEA Tenerife Espacio de las Artes in Canary Islands, Spain by Herzog & de Meuron, 2008.

To contribute your Flickr images for consideration, just:

:: Join and add photos to the archidose pool, and/or
:: Tag your photos archidose

All Our Stuff is Packed with No Place to Go!

Today was a big day for us in Boston. We moved everything out of our storage unit and out of our condo into a POD. We have been anticipating this day for quite some time, and we had so many things to coordinate, and there were so many potentials for disaster in our line up for the day. The first order of business was to get a permit from the city to be able to place the pod on the street and prohibit people from parking in that area (BIG SHOUT OUT TO ANDREW for getting that done for us!) Today the POD was being delivered first thing in the morning, Gentle Giant was moving our stuff out of the storage unit, then moving everything from the condo into the POD. After everything was in the POD, then the POD gets shipped away to a storage facility. Chris and I met in Boston last night to finish packing up the last items in the condo, and this morning Chris headed to work for the day, which left me to coordinate and oversee the BIG MOVE. First order of business was to get a car towed. After 3 calls to the Boston Police department and being told each time "we are on our way right now", the owner of the car finally showed up to move it herself.

I'd just like to say that moving is not a fun thing, but we had a great experience with PODS and with Gentle Giant. Everyone was right on time and very efficient and pleasant. We went with a POD because since we don't have a house at this time, and we've already taken over enough space here as it is, we needed something we could store all of our stuff in, and storing our things in a POD cut down on the number of times we'd have to have everything moved as now all of our things will just sit in the POD at a storage facility until we want to move them into a new house!

Here is the POD being backed into the permitted space:

This is how they get the POD on and off the truck:

Here is our POD and the Gentle Giant truck.

Only problem is that car in the middle!

(The one I tried to have towed for hours!)

Last but not least, our filled POD!