It is so hard to talk about this, but I think the psychologists would tell me it is good to get it out, so here goes.

.

Last year I spent over $1000 on auto insurance, $1500 on home and libality insurance, and a lot more on various other risk coverages.

.

I have not have ONE claim. I've LOST all those premiums.

The shame is killing me. (Huge sobs) How could I have been SO foolish. All that money *wasted*. Oh the humanity of it ! ! !

But I know better now.

NEVER AGAIN !

I will slink off into the darkness of night now. Trying to overcome the foolishness and stupidity of this insurance scam.

-Greybear

-- Got Risk?

-- Greybear (greybear@home.com), January 01, 2000

Answers

One difference. Put it this way, you spent alot of money on *car insurace, on a *car that never existed.

* = y2k

-- (simple@formula.com), January 01, 2000.

I'm so thrilled and relieved to find out that there were NO glitches, that there are going to be NO glitches and the we can all get back on the yellow brick road now.

And, BTW, I think you honesty and forthrightness in the choice of a hanle is comendable - Simple. But you forgot the "minded"

-- Greybear (greybear@home.com), January 01, 2000.

LOL good one Grey bear!

-- Tiara (sorceress5@hotmail.com), January 01, 2000.

y2k never existed??? No! Say it ain't so! Your telling me we've all been spending billions to fix something that never was!?!? The humanity! All this wasted time spent..I could have been enjoying life..sob..sob..boohoo get real..thats the dumbest statement I have seen today..yes you win!

-- Todd.D (tie@flash.net), January 01, 2000.

Ask any corporation where or not they should have addressed the date issues. Where is your head at. If you are good to talk, try and have something to say.

-- hard to grab (bob@apples.com), January 01, 2000.

You got me so upset, I forgot how to speak!

-- hard to grab (bob@apples.com), January 01, 2000.

Greybear, insurance is a ripoff. I finally switched my auto insurance this year because the agency spiked my premium even though I have an excellent driving record. I was given a pathetic excuse why the increase was necessary: for years the original premium had been calculated for multiple cars. Uh... I've only owned one at a time. So I switched to another agency and saved $$. Meanwhile, all those thousands of dollars had piled into their greedy paws, and I never made a claim, and they never gave me anything, not even a stinking desk calendar!

Insurance salesmen are right down there with lawyers!

-- dinosaur (dinosaur@williams-net.com), January 01, 2000.

HeeHee.
In spending in preparation for what the very real Y2K problem may have or will wrought, you have been much more educated in personal survival, taking your own intiative, and depending much less on the gubmint for your needs. This is VERY valuable and is something you shall now always have.

In terms of your paid premiums, at least these you can eat, burn, use, or donate to the needier. That lost car insurance premium ($$) went to the ones who are certainly NOT needier, your insurance co.

Keep those preps around, for the rest of Y2K fallout, and for any of many other probs that can unexpectantly befall you. Your newly begotten wisdom is a rare commodity.

A valuable lesson here, especially of what you will do for yourself and your family in the face of uncertainty.

Others deride, for they be fools.

-- Me (not@here.com), January 01, 2000.

What can I say Greybear. You've already said it.

May be everybody else who didn't believe in preparing for potenial problems at y2k should put their money where their mouth is not prepare (i.e. take out insurance) for potenial fires, robberies etc.

If not they are all hypocrites and should grow up.

-- Interested Spectator (is@the_ring.side), January 01, 2000.

That's right, you have TRULY "lost" the premiums. The money you spent for insurance is absolutely, completely GONE.

Not so your preps. Anyone else care for a cup of coffee with re-constituted pure pasteurized skim milk? Good -- and cost effective -- to the last drop.

-- King of Spain (madrid@aol.cum), January 01, 2000.

My preps were insurance for my family that *does excist*

-- Marli (can'tget@it.duh), January 01, 2000.

Greybear, I could hug you! Have a great year.

JOY

-- JOY (Tryon1ja@cmich.edu), January 01, 2000.

Point being, and again lost on this ever maddening cult, is that Y2K was real, the theory of TEOTWAWKI was not. After all, THAT is what the insurance was for, correct?

You spent money to insure against a non existant entity.

I'm sorry your so jaded now that you lack the ability to see reason. It must be tough to go through life so gullible and have to make excuses at every turn.

Let me offer my pity on the recent death of your skill of thinking for yourself. Fear not, however, for there is always someone out there seeking to lead the foolish.

-- (my@sincerest.condolences), January 01, 2000.

I sincerly hope you find them, my

-- Greybear (greybear@home.com), January 01, 2000.

As a charter member of the "ever-maddening cult" I personally think you are way off base in thinking that the majority of us who prepped were prepping for "TEOTWAWKI". Not so my intellectually compromised friend, from my observations of my fellow "cultists" (Hehehehe..."join the Y2K cult: The only cult with a definite time limit!") those of us who thought "TEOTWAWKI" was possible knew that there would be no real way to prepare for it, it being the end of the world and all. 3 months of food and water is not going to help you too much if EVERTHING BURNS. I think most people were/are merely concerned with supply chain interruptions WHICH ARE STILL ENTIRELY POSSIBLE! So I'm with Greybear on this one too pal.

-- Ludi (ludi@rollin.com), January 01, 2000.

GB,

Stop by for fruitcake and coffee--I have a few pounds of each. Did Y2K exist--you bet your boots, buddy, and it still ain't licked.

-- Mara (MaraWayne@aol.com), January 01, 2000.

Alright Greybear, as long as we're having this little "focus goup" to vent our feelings, expose our vulnerabilities, and overcome our guilt and shame, at the risk of being embarrassed in the eyes of the entire world, here it goes...

I too, have an utterly disgraceful confession to make, and I plead that the world will forgive me.

I bought about 5 dozen rolls of toilet paper last year, well before I even needed to, and I wasn't even certain that I would still have an ass left to use them on!!

I HOARDED!! (Oh my God, the horror of it, the shame!)

Will you ever be able to forgive me?? Please? :-)

-- Hawk (flyin@high.again), January 01, 2000.

Folks ... this thing ain't over, it's just STARTED! Rollover was not the end of the problem, it is only when the problem STARTS developing. The trouble will happen when systems start making date calculations involving 1999 and earlier dates and 2000 dates - for most systems this hasn't begun yet!

This is a time for patience, not conclusions. Y2K has just STARTED. Midnight wasn't the release of momentum, it was the START of it!

-- Bruce (broeser@ccgnv.net), January 01, 2000.

Hawk- Bwahahahahahahhaahhaha!!!!! Greybear, As a small business man I spent quite a sum on liability insurance, among auto, health and what not. Guilty as charged I guess. Does that make me a y2cultist too?

-- dozerdoctor (dozerdoc@yahoo.com), January 01, 2000.

I'm saving my preps for the big ass earthquake that the "experts," have been predicting. It may or may not happen, but they certainly do scare the crap out of you with all their scenarios. Hell, they even included "what to do JIC" in front every phone book here in California. Every year on the anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake we get a rerun of what happened on that devastating day. They will not let us Californians forget, they just keep warning us time and time again to be prepared. Very few people here in California have earthquake insurance, it's not affordable for millions here and there's a hefty $10,000 deductible right off the bat. If my house falls down during an earthquake, I'll simply walk away from it and I won't look back, and the same goes for Y2K.

-- bardou (bardou@baloney.com), January 01, 2000.

Why did you buy auto insurance when you shouldn't be driving a car?

Every year, thousands of people are killed in auto accidents. This isn't speculation, this is fact. People are KILLED.

And yet you, with your big brain, simply get in your car and drive around, knowing FULL WELL how many people DIE because they got into a car.

You should never get into a car. NEVER.

I hope you don't have any family whose lives you are risking by allowing them to get in a car. Doing so makes you no better than a murderer.

It's not the odds, it's the STAKES.

-- (cars@can.kill), January 01, 2000.

Greybear,

I loved that. You're forgiven. :-)

Hawk,

I'm worse than you. I have enough TP to build an extra sofa. You're forgiven too. :-)

Both you guys know what I mean. And thanks for making me laugh. It's a wonderful day for laughing; I've done it a lot. Feels so good.

-- Scat (sgcatique@webtv.net), January 01, 2000.

Scat,

"I have enough TP to build an extra sofa."

Not a damn bad idea... a lot cheaper than buying one! (is it Charmin?)

Yes, a good day for laughter indeed. Feels good to let go of a lot of the anxiety, at least about serious infrastructure problems. I think we'll probably have to deal with a lot of smaller annoyances, but no point in worrying too much, just deal with them one day at a time.

Best wishes :-)

-- Hawk (flyin@high.again), January 01, 2000.

I think I've got you all beat: we have about 500 rolls of T.P. I even went so far as to order it from the institutional supply company in the convenient 96-roll package!

-- Ann M. (hismckids@aol.com), January 01, 2000.

670 rolls of TP, give or take a few

40,000 matches.

Had fun, may need it yet

-- mushroom (mushroom_at_bs_too_long@yahoo.com), January 01, 2000.

OK, if we're gonna start playing one up on who bought the most....

I got 10,000 ..oh never mind.

But it is at least a 10 yr supply.

.

Oh yeah, and the reason that I let my family drive in a car is the same reason I "let" my family "participate" in Y2K, I don't have a choice.

That is EXACTLY what insurance is FOR.

It still amazes me that some people don't get it (not Y2K - insurance).

I hereby nominate a new classification - the NHIs - the Never Had Its. If you are ready to chuck you preps, plead foolishness, genuflect to DC then you are a NHI.

-Greybear

-- Got It?

-- Greybear (greybear@home.com), January 01, 2000.

Speaking of insurance I feel certain that all the medical doctors that pour millions upon untold millions into malpractice insurance are in deep sorrow because they have not been sued. All those premums wasted, down the drain. Go to your family doctor tomorrow and explain to him that he is so foolish with his finances, paying out all those useless premum. What about all the businesses that are now recouping their Y2K costs from the ins companies. Tell them how foolish they were in paying premums for useless insurance. You will soon begin the feel the effect of this foolishness in your insurance premiums.

-- Notforlong (Fsur439@aol.com), January 01, 2000.

Greybear, I stopped after 200,000 matches.

-- dinosaur (dinosaur@williams-net.com), January 02, 2000.

Y'all are rank amateurs when it comes to toilet paper inventory levels. : )

-- Wilferd (WilferdW@aol.com), January 02, 2000.

bardou -

Ditto. Was chatting with the family about preparations tonight and our relief that they weren't needed this weekend. My teenage daughter just grinned and said, "Hey, at least we finally got ready for a quake. I've been after you guys to do that for years!"

Learned a lot this past eighteen months. Wouldn't have missed it for the world, and will certainly have a good use for all the preps...

-- DeeEmBee (macbeth1@pacbell.net), January 02, 2000.

It's the *only* insurance I've ever bought where you get to eat the premiums.

-Greybear

-- Got Relish?

-- Greybear (greybear@home.com), January 02, 2000.

BTW, if anyone is interested, we just had a *premium* meal last night.

Juicy delicious "Texas Strawberies" (beans for the terminally uninformed) with ham pieces. Several spices, mainly chili, onion and garlic powders.

Over a bed of fluffy white rice.

The powdered cheese is undistinguishable from fresh in the beans..

Cornbread from fresh home ground corn. The difference is orders of magnitude better.

Big slices of onion.

Cold Milk.

Homemade bread with butter.

If this is suffering, then LEAD ME ON.

Dam, these "premiums" are good.

-Greybear

-- Got Grub?

-- Greybear (greybear@home.com), January 03, 2000.

There are two types of preppers around here; Those who need forklifts, and those who don't.

Godspeed,

-- Pinkrock (aphotonboy@aol.com), January 03, 2000.

Pinkrock, I think you may have given us THE definitive place to draw the line of distinction.

Too funny.

-- Greybear (greybear@home.com), January 04, 2000.

With all the TP stored away JIC, its kind of funny that it isn't 'get-at-able' when you really need it!

-- I try and try but I (cantre@chitfrom.here), January 04, 2000.