On Tue, 23 Apr 2002 22:24:04 -0500, Crusty Russ <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:

>Da Feeesh must have had him some big 'ole chicken fried steak with
>French fries for $1,000!  I know Sue can't eat that much.  :-)

You didn't even score if that were a game of horseshoe.  :-)

>> Add to that an oblique
>> reference by Feeeesh to a $1000 dinner for two in Paris and..., well
>> gentlemen the hook is set.  Haul me in, weigh me, gut me, and gill me;
>> DPTNST,

John, you can't say I PTNST;  only PTJNT -- which usually works.  :-)

Well, my statement was a tad inaccurate, though it definitely had to
do with our dinner for two in Paris.

The SHORT version:  On our trip to Honolulu in January, literally
EVERYTHING in our possession was stolen except my wallet.  In Paris,
NOTHING was stolen except my wallet which happened to contain $1000
in USD cash, on our way to dinner.  It was my turn, so to speak.  ;-)


The LONG version (for the sadisticians <sic>):

The Metro (subway) is a great way to get around in Paris, so Sue and
I went everywhere on the Metro on a five-day pass which costs only
45 Euros (about US$9 a day), whereas going the places we went on taxi
would have cost about US$1000.

But that wasn't the reason I was carrying US$1000.  It was "just in
case" there is a casino in Paris where I could play a few hands of
"Jacque Noir" which would be the literal translation of Blackjack. :-)
Alas, all the casinos are OUTSIDE of Paris, I soon learned.

I was VERY careful to have taken ALL the cash in my pockets and my
wallet and had put them into my zipped shoulder bag on which my hand
was over the bag/zipper when I walked, and the bag is over my lap when
I sat -- so it HAD to be pickpocket-proof, right?

WRONG, Aligator Breath!  I escaped unscathed from the well-known
gypsy women-with-child-and-card pickpockets in Rome, even when they
gang-tackled me in broad daylight, in front of policemen and crowd
at the Termini Roma.  But the pickpockets in Paris were MUCH better
skilled than I had ever thought, and they seized upon a 5 second
opportunity (during the entire trip), to have made the "pick" possible!

That 5-second opportunity (I easily eliminated all other possibilities),
was during a change of train at the Arc de Triumph station (Charles
de Gaulle Etoile) during the busy evening hours.  One member of the
"pick team" stood at the entrance door of the train, blocking my way
of entry, while holding a cup to beg for coins (an most unusual
circumstance and place for such an act -- which I duly noticed before
I realized my bag was picked).  At THAT time, his accomplice must
have unzipped my bag (while I was distracted) and picked my wallet!
It was only when Sue asked why my bag was unzipped that I immediately
realized that I had been screwed!

The only "consolation" (if there's such in losing a wallet with 1K
buckaroo) was that the accomplice COULD have picked another wad of
Euros in the same bag pocket (that covered the rest of my trip after
I reported my credit card stolen) because the wad was so big it
would not bit into my wallet.  :^)  The other consolation was that
I carried only ONE credit card (unlike the 4 Sue lost from her purse).
And unlike Sue's case in which the thieves had attempted or actually
charged over $5K of merchandize within 2 hours of the theft, there
was no unauthorized charge on my card because we went immediately
back to the hotel (told the clerk to pre-charge my stay BEFORE I
report it stolen <G>), all within about 30 minutes of the theft.

I know, I know.  I COULD have used traveller's chaques.  But I hate
those things -- they take forever to pre-sign at the bank and a pain
in the neck to keep track and use).  Besides, no casino gambler
would stoop so low as to carry anything but CASH <G>, even if it's
a wad of low-denomination $100 bills -- which was what I pulled out
of my pocket on our return from Vegas right before this trip, when
the airport security moron asked what I had in my pocket (apparently
a bulging one) even though nothing beeped at the walk-through gate. :-)


So, THAT was our $1000 on-the-way-to-dinner tab.  I had considered
not letting the pickpockets spoil our dinner plans by ignoring the
loss (when we discovered it), and dine before reporting the loss.
But Sue convinced me otherwise about the importance of prompt
reporting of the stolen credit card (given HER experience), and so
it was a dinner that never was.  :-)

By the time we got back to the hotel to finish the theft-reporting
logistics (we were old hands at it by now ;0< ), we had lost most
of our appetite, and the "celebration dinner" was replaced by the
FREE champigne and o'dheuvres at the Consierge Lounge.  :-)

It was a damned expensive free dinner!

To add insult to injury on my "picked" wallet, I get NOTHING from
our home insurance on stolen property, because cash loss is limited
to a max of $200 which is less than the "deductible" amount;  whereas
on our Honolulu loss, we had received a check (in excess of $12K)
for replacement cost, which was MORE than the value of what we lost
because no matter how old the items were, they were covered by the
cost of new "replacemnt".  Thus, our 10-yr old MX-20 was replaced
by a brand new, improved one.  :-)

If there is any moral to this bit of trivia which is relevant to
DIVE TRAVEL (ob scuba), it's this:  if you have to have items stolen,

DO have your old gears, clothing, etc. stolen (as long as you make
sure your home insurance has a "replacemnt" cost clause).  Place
large labels "STEAL ME" on them, if you need new replacements.  :-)

DON'T have cash or jewelry stolen -- because they have very severe
limitations relative to the actual cost.  For example, if I had my
Rolex stolen, the insurance coverage would not have paid even
1/25 of its current value, let alone replacement cost.

-- Bob.