Day's Not Over Yet!

A good day. Learned a few things, had a few beers, had lotsa food (Kerrie's meatballs won), now back @ home. Too early for bed, never too late to make Kahlua!

Much Better

Almost done. Which means it's almost beer time. Oh wait, it was beer time quite a while ago.

Food Break!

This side job rocks. Meatball contest was apparently going on, we had to take a break and test/vote for our favorite ones. Next course? Beer-can chicken. Nice!!

Side Job for a Buddy

I have the easy part: tear everything out. McCarthy is the one that will put it all back together.

Settle Down Magraw

Today, I'm in kind of a "whatever happens is gonna happen" mood. The bike will eventually get registered and things will be good again. No sense in getting so aggravated that my head explodes.

And then, on top of this, I went over to visit my nephew tonight because it's his birthday. I walk in, round the corner and *BAM* - I'm blasted in the face with Silly String. As I'm trying to peel the stuff off of my face and out of my hair, I hear the excited cackling from both him and my niece, as they go running down the hall. And it hits me; life isn't always perfect...

...but times like this are pretty great.

WTF IS GOING ON!?!?!?!?!?

In my last post (from earlier this morning), I mentioned I'd had a stroke of good luck in that the monies came together and I was able to pick up the bike yesterday. Well, the wheels have fallen off the F'ing cart again and at this point, the only stroke I'm dealing with is the one that's popping the blood vessels in my brain.

"I'll register it today and will be riding tonight." HA! I should have known better than to jinx myself.

I went to the local Framingham Registry office this morning to get myself legal...only to find that officre has recently been closed. F'ing Awesome. Back to the internet to locate the next closest one. Ok, there's one about 15 minutes away. Nevermind, they don't handle new registrations, only renewals. Ok, where's the next one...ok, 25 minutes away. Nope, they don't do new registrations either. Ok, moving further out...where is the closest location that handles new registrations. Ok, here we go; 35 minutes away. Directions seem easy enough, off I go.

Traffic's not too bad, and I arrive in decent time. The lines are long, but they're moving quickly, and in about 15 minutes, I'm at a counter, handing my paperwork over. Whew! I'm close to riding!!

Can you hear that screeching sound in the background? Yeah, that's the brakes being slammed once again on this entire F'ing fiasco. You see; the bike I just bought had a lien placed on it way back in '08 when it was bought. That lien was satsified and dismissed months ago, and the lending bank issued a Release of Lien form. It was part of my paperwork that I got from the dealer I bought the bike from. It was part of the paperwork I had my insurance agent look through yesterday to make sure I had everything I needed and that I'd be in good shape (they said I was good to go).

So anyway, back to the screeching brakes. It seems the lien release form is a photocopy, it's not the original. So? So the Registry wouldn't accept it. The lady even checked with her supervisor and he said no. ARRRRRGGGGHHHH!!!!! Can you hear the blood pounding in my head??!?!?!?!?

I called the bank that had the lien (YEARS ago!!) and filled them in on what was going on and explained that I needed them to mail me an original release form. They. Have. Never. Had. To. Do. This. Before. NEVER!!!!!!!!!

So anyway, the lady at the bank was very nice and said she would have this sent out to me ASAP. The problem is that the last time someone told me something would be sent right out (the insurance check), it took a week to arrive. This lady sounded much nicer than the insurance claims guy (Mark S..."S" for shithead), but even so, the bank is in NY so that will add some travel time to things. Hopefully it'll arrive in less than a week, though, and I can try pushing forward again.

That is, unless something ELSE comes along to get in the way.

Words cannot begin to convey the level of rage I am experiencing.

Deep Breaths...Deep Breaths...

In a stroke of major luck, things fell into place late on Monday and I was able to retrieve the bike yesterday. Believe me; the stroke of luck had NOTHING to do with the insurance claims guy, he did everything possible to screw things up Every. Step. Of. The. Way.

Ain't that right, Mark? Mark S., from Commerce? Mark S., who can be reached at 1-800...well, never mind. I don't want to get myself into too much trouble here. But suffice to say that the coward never returned my irate phone message that I left him when I was standing in the agent's office, looking at a check that was incorrect.

But moving on. A few deep breaths, a few long stares at the new steed in my garage, and things are good. I'll register it today and will be riding tonight.

There's rides out there to be had, and I can be a part of them again. Who's in? It's time to...

RIDE HARD, TAKE CHANCES!!

Thievery

F the insurance company, I'm taking the bike!!

#$*@#%!!!!!!!!

And, of course the check is for the wrong amount so I can't accept it. Which means more delays. Which means no bike tomorrow. Current Mood = Fuming.

Check It Out!

The check has (finally) arrived! Heading to the insurance office now to retrieve it, then over to Flex's to grab his trailer. Tomorrow morning will find me retrieving the bike, then back to the insurance company to insure it, then off to the registry to get legal, then...well...then I might just do a little riding...

Easter!

On Easter, you don't get pink elephants, you get life-sized bunnies.

Sammy Hagar Reference

"I can't *drink* 55!"...oh, I guess we can. And, 2nd tab has been started...

Math can be fun.

Why order a bottle when u have a full pitcher? To test how many oz are in the glass (11)...to then find out how many oz are in the pitcher. Tall pitchers here!

Zombie Apocalypse

When the zombies come for us, I know someone who will be prepared.

Expanding Horizons

Something exotic after a long day.

Guess I shouldn't be surprised.

No check today. Which meant the claims guy got an irate phone call from me. He has the balls to say "The payment was processed two days ago and your agent should have it soon". I corrected him that our prior conversation had not included the word 'soon', but that our conversation was specifically worded as "Your agent will have it in two days..two days from now...Thursday. They'll have it Thursday." He had nothing to say to this.

I asked if there was some way to track the check to find out where it is, and he said no. "No? So you're telling me there's a very large check that you guys have sent out...a very large check that was supposed to have arrived two days ago via interoffice (UPS) mail, but which has not arrived, and for all we know; could be lost. Even worse, you're saying you have no way of tracking this check to see where it is. That's what you're saying?" "Yes" was his answer. Unbelievable.

Bastard probably has the check sitting on his desk.

Lineup

Potsy is hanging with some new friends...and some old ones (back row).

The Check Is (Hopefully) In The Mail

No check today. The claims guy said the ins company sends the check to my agent and that they should receive it today. I just got off the phone with them (my agent) and the check didn't show up. Damn.

I'd revised my plan and, if the check had shown up today, I would have taken tomorrow off to go get the bike, then register and plate it tomorrow afternoon, and be out riding tomorrow night. Now it looks like I'm back to the "riding by Tuesday" thing...

...I hope...

Mick Morgan

Met Michael and Scott at the new Mick Morgans bar. I was about to order a Bass, when Mick himself steered me to a beer he was fond of. I liked his suggestion and that set off a round of conversation that had us all laughing and enjoying each other's company. So much so that he wound up buying us beers. What can I say, we're in good moods; I have new bike, he has new bar. We're celebrating.

Is The Nightmare Over??

I'd love to say this whole insurance/dealership fiasco was a joke. You know; pop out of a cake and shout "April Fool's!!" or something like that. But unfortunately, it was no dream (but it was a full fledged nightmare). Thankfully, this nightmare seems to be about to end, and 'reality' can start again.

As mentioned yesterday, I found (on-line) a bike that was the same make, model, color, year, (etc.) as the bike I just lost. I went down to check it out this morning and sure enough; there it was, larger than life. The even-better news is this thing was apparently babied by its former owner (I inquired and the previous owner apparently was an older gentleman who had many other bikes in addition to this one.) Anyway, the bike itself is basically stock, but that's ok. It's way cleaner and shinier than mine was...oh, and did I mention the mileage thing? I did, but I'll say it again; 30,000 fewer miles on it!

Ta Da!!



I took it out for a test drive and man, this thing was tight! Shifted great, braked solidly, hummed right along. The shop I bought it from (www.bobsmotorcycles.com) was a pretty cool place. Bob (owner, obviously) was easy to talk to and didn't BS around anything. He said they do a full service on any bike they sell (they have a full shop there), and that he'd even put new tires on it (indeed the tires have a lot of tread on them). I shook his hand and told him he had a sale.

The difference between what the insurance company paid and what this thing cost is certainly tolerable, and overall; I'd say I'm happy with things. I have to wait for the insurance check to show up (supposedly tomorrow) and then can hopefully pick the bike up on Saturday. I'll have to wait until Monday to register it, but with any luck, I'll be riding by Tuesday.

"I'll be riding by Tuesday". What a nice ring that has...

Back To Familiarity, Soon?

The insurance company offered me what they felt my bike was worth. (Despite my protests, they said I could not claim an additional $40k for emotional distress.)

Based on lots of advice, I did a shiteload of research...and found their offer, while disappointing, was actually not that far off from what is out there. Damn. Ok, back to the drawing board. Digging through receipts (and using some creative arguments), the insurance company has agreed to cough up close to an additional $1k. Not too shabby.

The even better news is I found a bike for sale down in RI. It appears to be almost an exact duplicate to the bike I had; '08, Electra Glide, Pacific Coast Blue. (It happens to have 30,000 fewer miles on it, too.) I'm hoping to get down there tomorrow to check it out and maybe even put a deposit on it.

With any luck, this surreal nightmare of no motorcycle might be over soon.

In A Strange Place

It fully hit me last night. I don’t currently own a motorcycle. This is the first time in nearly 20 years that I can say that. I don’t like saying it, but the fact remains.

Here’s the bike, just before it was sent off to the salvage lot.




It looks perfect, still hard to believe the frame is damaged. I go back and forth as to whether I should have taken it as salvage, but the fact remains that it’s gone.

Between being slammed at work and busting my hump to get stuff done around the house, I haven’t been able to devote a lot of time toward looking for a replacement bike. But after the whole “you have no bike, dummy” realization hit last night, things are gonna change. I’ve got a ton of feelers out there, and poor Matty seems to have taken on “finding me a bike” as a personal quest.

Time will yield what new beast winds up in my stable…

When Winning = Losing

A friend of mine from work likes to make bets with me from time to time, and the wager is always beer. Here's a fer-instance; back in January, we were in the middle of one of the worst winters on record. All you heard about were airline cancellations, due to the weather. I was seriously sweating being able to fly out on time for the famed Feb vacation, so my friend said she could guarantee good weather on the day of the flight. The wager; a case of Bass Ale. The day came, the weather was clear, and Bill, Matt and myself flew out on time. (I happily settled the bet upon my return.)

Fast forward to the current goings-on with the bike. My friend and I had another bet going; how much the insurance company would pay-out, on my bike. The bet was just a 6-er this time, and the bet was whether or not the insurance check would be for $17k. She thought it would be, I was fairly certain it would not be. The insurance company called this week. Suffice to say, I won the bet.


Not only did I win the bet, but sadly: I won it by a vast margin.

Yes, the bet was only for one 6-pack. I guess she felt she owed me two of them because how far off from $17k it was.

Yay, I won beer. Damn...I have no bike...

This Just In; Man is down, gets kicked repeatedly.

Dave-O isn’t feeling the love these days. Here at work, those that don’t know the tale of woe, keep chasing me down to ask how come I haven’t been riding yet. Those that do know the tale, crack up when they see the look of indignant resignation spread across my face each time this question comes up. But the pain doesn’t end there. Oh no, that would be too kind. There’s a running gag among some of the girls. See, there’s a couple of scooters for sale nearby and the conversation has revolved around which one I’d look better on, the bright pink one or the canary yellow one.

Moving along, my company has its annual kid’s carnival party coming up in a couple of weeks. A few of my friends here have said I should attend – there’ll be tricycles there that I can ride.

And adding even more insult to injury, I finally received a call-back from one of the adjusters. It came as no surprise to hear that he had no information for me - he’d been away on vacation and didn’t know where things stood. When I expressed my frustration at how long things have dragged out, how no one seems to have any answers for me, and how, at this point, I don’t even know if my bike will ever see the light of day again, he said he understood. I asked him specifically; “Do you? Do you really understand the level of frustration I’m going through? Do you understand how I’m going insane without being able to ride?” His response was exactly the wrong thing to say. He said “I totally get it. I ride, too! I was out this past weekend – it was BEAUTIFUL out!!”.

Where’s that defibrillator, I’m going into cardiopulmonary arrest…

From Bad to Worse

The dealership called yesterday to let me know the adjuster had been out (AGAIN) to look at the bike (AGAIN). Apparently he didn't like what he saw. The dealership said the word the adjuster tossed out was "totalled". (Where is that insane screaming sound coming from??? Oh, I'm sorry, it's coming from me.)

This makes less than zero sense to me. The F'ing bike ran fine for FIVE months before I brought it in!! What the Hell is going on!?!? The dealership really had no help to offer (shockface!), saying it's now in the adjuster's hands. So I called the adjuster and left yet another message. (None of my earlier ones have been returned, why should I expect anything different this time around?)

And then I called the insurance company, and left yet another message. (None of my earlier ones have been returned, why should I expect anything different this time around?)

And then I called the adjuster again and left ANOTHER message. (None of my earlier ones have been returned, why should I expect anything different this time around?)

Are you seeing a pattern here?

I just called the insurance company again and (PRAISE BE TO ALL THAT IS HOLY) got through to someone. They put me on hold and called over to the adjuster's office to see where things stand. Well, it turns out the adjuster's office doesn't have the paperework in from the adjuster yet (FROM TWO DAYS AGO!!) so they don't know what the story is. (Right about this time, I started to slowly stab a freshly-sharpened pencil into my eyeballs to help ease the pain.) They left a message with the adjuster's office, who left a message with the adjuster, to find out what's going on. I expressly asked that I get a phone call back when something is found out. Wanna take odds that I get that call? Yeah, me either.

If it is totalled, then the whole claim gets moved over to a diffeent department because the insurance rep I've been dealing with (Oh, I mean; leaving a bunch of unreturned messages for) doesn't handle total losses.

At this point, I'm walking around with a portable defibrillator in hand. I'm going to need it any second now.

Misery Loves Company

I'm not the only one unable to ride at the moment. Yesterday afternoon, King sent me a pic of what was going on in his backyard: Multiple inches of new, heavy/wet snow were falling. It prompted multiple texts between him, myself, and TEP, and they both sounded pretty fed up. I don't blame them. I told them I'd see what I could do about bringing good weather for their upcoming ride east...

...but I think we all know how much 'pull' I have around here.

Countdown…extended…

The bike was dropped off at the dealership on 1/29, for what was to be a 6-week down time while it was prettied up and gotten ready to roll again. 6 weeks. We were in the middle of the worst winter in ages, so 6 weeks didn’t seem like any kind of problem. Ok Mr. Dealership man, here’s the keys. Oh; hang on to all the parts you take off as I’d like to take them with me when I pick up the bike. “Cool, no problem” they tell me. And with that, I’m out the door.

Fast forward to the 5 week mark and I place a phone call over there to see how things are coming along. Well, it turns out they had to have a supplemental insurance review, to authorize more parts. Yeah, I guess that’s not entirely unheard of with something like this, but it means it’s going to run over the 6 week estimate. Whatever, the weather is still pretty much ass, so I guess I can deal with it a little bit longer.

Fast forward a couple more weeks (we're now at the 7 week mark); hey, parts have finally started coming in, but they’re still waiting on the tin. Hopefully within another two weeks. Ugh, it’s getting nicer out there…

Fast forward to the 9 week mark; a call over on this past Friday to check on progress and I’m told all parts should be in-house within two more weeks (WHAT?? “Should” be in??). After that, it’ll be a quick turnaround and they’ll have me up and running, probably by mid-April. Yeah ok, I’m a big fan of the whole ‘up and running thing’, but what’s this about mid-April?!? Says the service guy; “We can’t control when the factory sends parts, so we’re all stuck waiting.” Yeah, great. You’re waiting for your next coffee. Me, I’m waiting to get my sanity back. Anyway, I reiterate my desire for them to save all the parts and the guy tells me the insurance company will probably take them instead of me. Say what? (Never heard of that before??) I told him that sounded odd but he assured me it was normal practice. Uh-huh. I had the insurance adjuster’s number back at home so things had to wait until Monday (yesterday) before moving forward again. A quick call over to the insurance company to verify things…drum roll please; No, they don’t want the parts and won’t take them. In fact, they’ve never taken the parts before, and haven’t heard of any insurance company doing this, either. Yep, thanks, I didn’t think so. So, if they’re not taking them, and I’m (supposedly) not getting them, where does that leave the parts? I’ll tell you where it leaves them; it leaves them at the dealership and listed on eBay to make a few extra bucks! I don’t think so!

Tuesday morning (today); a call over to let them know that I checked with the dealership and the good news is they don’t want them so if they can hang on to them for me, that’d be just dandy. And that’s when the bad news comes. It levels me like a Louisville slugger to the gut; the frame is bent. WTF??? What do you mean the frame is bent?? How can this not have been discovered prior to now?!?!? They claim they didn’t have the rear fender before, so they weren’t able to try and mount it until this past Saturday. (And that BULLSH*T because you can’t tell me they didn’t have a spare fender kicking around that they could have tried fitting!!) They told me they’re going to call the adjuster today and will hopefully have an answer for me (as to where things are going) by end of day tomorrow. Just to be certain that things ARE moving forward, I called the insurance adjuster myself to let them know the latest developments.

So at this point, I have no idea when I’ll be riding again. McCarthy texted me this morning, asking when I was getting my bike back. Jokingly, I said December.

The joke will be on me if I wind up being right.

Fatboy Follow-up

Just rec'd a text from Big Bill (the guy I sold the Fatboy to). His words;

"Getting ready to ride. New pipes & tires. Now ordering jet kit. Ride it every day the sun is out."

Nice!!

Quality Time

Thankfully life slows down a bit sometimes and I get to spend time with Sam and Zak, my niece and nephew. They're awesome!

Here's a pic from a recent bowling excursion... We thought it was funny how it looked like a face(kinda). [Shrug] We had fun.

Balloons and Smiles

No idea what's going on now, but Irena just tied balloons to our beers. When we asked what was up, she just smiled. My funny follow-up story may have to wait...

Washington Apple

Our new fave friend Irena reccommended another shot: Washington Apple. And w/bare mins to spare before last call! (A separate funny story to follow...)

IRA's?

And Irena, our new favorite friend, intro'd us to a new shot ("new" for me) IRA's.

Mini Guinness!

Learned new shot tonight: Mini Guinness. Layer of kahlua on top of Bailey's. Likey!

Time Check!

50 minutes until...oh hell, McCarthy says it's "now": Jaeger O'Clock!

April Fool's

It's April Fool's Day but the joke is on us; more snow, lousy drivers, iced up windshields and slippery footing.

The first person that says anything about how pretty it is, will be on the receiving end of the most intense hairy eyeball I can muster.