Hi, Frank. You're close.
When the MBP is shut down, the sleep light is off, the drive heads are parked, and it's completely safe to move the computer.
When the MBP is running normally, the sleep light is off and the hard drive is operating. Moving it suddenly, i.e. jarring it, at such times should activate the sudden motion sensor, causing the hard drive heads to park almost instantaneously, and thus preventing damage to the drive and to your data. Moving the machine should be done smoothly and gently, if at all; smooth gentle movements should cause no trouble.
When the sleep light is on steadily, the contents of RAM are being written to the hard drive, so obviously the drive is spinning and its heads are active. Any abrupt movement might trigger the sudden motion sensor, which should prevent damage. But this only lasts up to about 30-40 seconds (if that long), so to play it safe, it's best not to move the computer until the light starts pulsing.
When the sleep light is pulsing, the MBP is asleep and the drive heads are parked. It's completely safe to transport the machine.
