Busnut Burned Out - Lost Home and Bus. Needs Help

[MacGyver]

Well, today was reasonably uneventful... Though, I discovered why a cat has been hanging around our place...

Seems she delivered a litter of kittens in our shed. We noticed her hanging around right after the fire and didn't think much of it... Then we discovered she'd been hiding out in the shed.

Well... After looking through the shed for some stuff, she made a quick escape but then I heard a "mew"... Looked down, and there was a jet black kitten with white strands of hair here and there... Well, where there's one, there's more...

So, I continued tearing the shed apart and found four of the little rascals... Three are black with sparse markings... One was white with grey tipped ears, tail and feet... We put some food and water down for them and they began chowing down on the soft canned food, then... To our surprise, started chowing down on the hard cat food once they caught a whiff of it... So, they're weaning age.

I took the little white one up to the vet to be checked out and get their opinion... I thought it was male, my mother thought it was female... Vet says male. They also said they're of weaning age and will be abandoned by their mum within a week...

I had them go ahead and keep the white one for me, I'll adopt it as my own. He needs to be wormed, treated for fleas and ear mites and get his shots... They'll be doing that tomorrow. He's a gorgeous kitten... Blue eyes, but what's unusual is his irises are tinged purple... Really light purple... Never seen anything like it before.

So... From the fire and devastation comes a breath of life... I'll post pictures when I get a chance... I didn't take the camera with me today. I'll take it tomorrow to get pics of the kitten.

-Mac

[HighTechRedneck]

Kevin asked me to let everyone know he will be offline for possibly up to a few days.  He chose to move into the apartment before it is ready so that the dogs could be with him instead of boarded.  Until the cable company comes up to install, he won't have Internet access.

Aside from a donated bed, it isn't furnished yet.  But he is happy to have the dogs with him.  And I'm sure they are very happy to be back with him.

[MacGyver]

Thanks, Mike... 

Now for today's update.  Sigh.

---

Well, I've moved in to the apartment..  Everyone else is still staying in the hotel for the time being...  I went ahead and moved in so the animals wouldn't have to stay in "doggy jail" up at the Vet's office.

Internet was just installed...  So now I can post again. 

Not a great deal has happened in the past couple of days.. 

The insurance company is screwing us pretty hard though.  We spoke with a lawyer today...  There's no chance of suing the city nor State Farm for the damage to the bus.  Even if I'd had "Uninsured Motorist" coverage, I'd still have been screwed because it wasn't a motor vehicle accident.  So, I'm SOL.

The lawyer wants a 33% cut of whatever he gets..  That eats into the money that's supposed to go towards rebuilding the house, as well as replacing what material possessions were lost.  Well, the total for his services would exceed $80,000.  Leaving just as little to rebuild and replace as we're already (not) getting.

For the time being, we have a roof over our heads...  But there's no telling how long that will last.  I'm unemployed (and can't find a damn job, even Mickey D's isn't hiring) and my parents depleted their bank account just paying for hotel and setting up in the apartment.

We still have almost no furniture..  I'm sitting on the floor writing this post on my laptop at the moment..  Can't build furniture because all my woodworking tools burned. 

Sigh.

We were told by the insurance company initially that if we bought anything to replace things with, to just turn in the receipts and they'd pay us back out of the pool of money from the insurance coverage...  Now, today, they changed the tune and now say we must furnish them with the complete list of everything that was in the house, how long we had each of them and how much it's expected to cost to replace each item...

That's going to take weeks to compile that list...  Especially my parents..  I can compile one pretty quick, as I know what I had...  They don't, and they never documented or took pictures of any of it...  They can't remember what half of it was either...

Although I can remember 90% of what I had and can provide what they're asking for, it's still going to take me a month to furnish MY list...  And we still won't get the money to actually replace anything for at least a year.  Grrr.

I hate insurance.  It's all a scam.  Every last bit of it...  They nickel and dime you to death when you make a claim, and then pay nothing near what anything was actually worth.

Oh yeah..   The lawyer said I can't sue the city because he was "doing his job", and I can't sue the insurance company because it's written in the policy that way.  My dad elected only 93% structure and $100k contents coverages...  A quarter of the contents is already "billed out" for them coming in and STEALING our stuff, claiming they were going to "clean and return" what could be salvaged...

I'm glad I told them they couldn't touch my room and my computer equipment or I'd never have gotten ANY of it back.  They've "written off" the entire content of the house and "thrown away" nearly everything they stole, and what they didn't throw away and they deemed had "resale value", they're actually selling it and KEEPING the money they get for it!

My dad's a Vietnam Vet...  My parents are both disabled.  I'm on the verge of being able to claim disability myself because of my health problems, but not quite there yet.  (Not that I *WANT* to be, I'd rather be healthy as a damn oxen)... 

So...  I did go ahead and order the windshields from Luke @ US Coach, but did it before the insurance started really putting the screws to us.  Wouldn't have mattered much either way though...  I can at least get the windshields in, fix the marker lights and driver's seat and be able to move it when I need to.  I don't NEED the rest of the windows right now...  Just enough to get it "road legal" again.  Maybe then I can get the hell out of here with what little I have left and find a damn job.

Word of warning to those who use State Farm for ANYTHING...  Run.  Run away.  Run away FAST and DON'T look back.  Go to Farmer's Insurance...  Everyone we've talked to loves them.  EVERYONE we've talked to about the Snake Farm that's had to make a real claim has been screwed with a 6 foot sword right up the rear end...

I'll finish this for now, my back is killing me from having to sit on the damn floor. heh.

-Mac

[HighTechRedneck]

How are you doing today Kevin?  I'll bet your dogs are happier now that they are with you instead of at the boarding house.

[Kwajdiver]

Kevin,  I'm sorry for the hand that has been dealt you.  Hope my little donation helps a little.

Bill Williamson
Tampa Bay

[Airbag]

Farmers Insurance is no better. I was rear ended in my F-100 PU by an Air Force Airman that had expired insurance. I ended up in the ER for a bit. No problem I say I have uninsured motorist coverage. Farmers told me to send them reciepts for medical and lost work. I sent them my ER bill, ambulance, one week lost work. They said were not paying that, it's too much, I had to sue my own Insurance company that I have been with since high school. I have paid them a king's ransom over the years and they do this. 

[MacGyver]

Hey guys... Been offline a couple of days.  Been feeling pretty under the weather lately.  Always somethin', eh?

Mike...  The animals are doing well.  ^.^  Though, they miss their respective owners.  I'm the only one in the apartment right now... It's not actually suitable to live in yet for everyone else...  My standards are a bit lower when it comes to home furnishings...  Might have something to do with the fact I was willing to live in a bus fulltime... lol

My folks and brother will be staying at the hotel until July 3rd...  We've had some furnishings donated to us...  a bed, dining room table and various other odds and ends.  Things are going 'smoothly', considering...  One day at a time, one hurdle at a time I guess.

---

Bill, yes...  Thank you.    It's much appreciated...  We're still fighting the insurance company big time...  They got wind that we were consulting with a lawyer, we're not sure how, but they did...  They stepped it up a notch and sent the money my folks had spent on the hotel stay so far, and paid it thru Jul 3...  So, it's something, but not enough.

They're telling us we have a sum total of 60 days to get them the list of everything that was in the house at the time it burned.  After that, anything we list is inconsequential.  So we're trying to remember everything...  Hard to do when you have several generations worth of stuff that burned and simply has no 'replacement' value, since it can never be replaced.

One of the bastards that was moving the stuff out of the house made off with an oil lamp from the 1700's that's been in the family for MANY generations..  It happened within a day or two of the fire.  The other one was 'cleverly hidden' under the bed, but we found it...  So, one is lost, one was found. 

They've made off with much of our stuff claiming it was 'destroyed'.  Several pieces of furniture were covered in soot and smoke particulates, but could have been easily cleaned off.  The insurance company 'condemned' nearly everything, claiming it all as 'salvage'.  So, what this means is that anything they CAN clean, they're going to sell and keep the money from STEALING our property... Claiming they're 'replacing' it.  We can 'pay them' to re-acquire OUR property, but they won't 'replace' it afterwards. 

I really despise insurance companies.  I don't care who they are or what they promise.  They're worse than your average politician...  If their lips are flappin', they're lyin'.  Plain and simple.

---

Airbag...

Yeah, I suspected as much...  seems to be the way 'insurance' works.  Steal your money, then fight you when you have a claim they don't like.  Even something piddly like a $400 bumper they'll fight you for it...  Few insurance claims go smoothly, and even fewer get paid out at the full 'promised' coverage amount, claiming it's 'beyond the scope of the policy' or some such bullshit. 

Sigh.

---

Well, I'm off to rest.  Not sure what's hit me, but it's not something good.  Been completely run down like I have 12v batteries only charged to 0.5v, yeah... that bad. 

Guess all this crap is taking its toll on my physical and mental wellbeing, not that I had much of either to begin with!!

-Mac

[Gary '79 5C]

They've made off with much of our stuff claiming it was 'destroyed'.  Several pieces of furniture were covered in soot and smoke particulates, but could have been easily cleaned off.  The insurance company 'condemned' nearly everything, claiming it all as 'salvage'.  So, what this means is that anything they CAN clean, they're going to sell and keep the money from STEALING our property... Claiming they're 'replacing' it.  We can 'pay them' to re-acquire OUR property, but they won't 'replace' it afterwards. 


Mac. Really sorry about the entire ordeal, However if this is the insurance company's doing as described above, It is a unbelievable eye opener for me. It makes no sense. Just No Sense.

I still hope and pray you find the strength for you & family to carry on, which you will, more and more in time.

Gary Pasternak

[uncle ned]

Insurance company's are the ban of the earth.

A driver ran a stop sign in front of me,totaled my truck. Insurance company towed my truck away,don't know where and will not settle with me.offered me pratically nothing for my truck,and will not do anything else.

you have no rights and the lawyers are worse.

uncle ned

[MacGyver]

Ned...  Absolutely right.  Insurance companies don't want to pay out what they've stolen from their "customers", and lawyers want to steal it more than the insurance companies do.

You're damned if you do, and damned if you don't.  It's pathetic that we're REQUIRED to carry insurance for everything, and the insurance companies ARE NOT required to pay out when the time comes to collect on it.  It's really a shame that such organized crime is permitted by our "government", and that us, the PEOPLE, have lost all say in how things work because as a general rule...  People just don't give a damn until "it happens to them".

Until it does, it's always "someone elses problem", and when something DOES happen to you, it's too late because you didn't give a damn in the first place.  This describes 99% of the population, but fortunately...  This doesn't describe this community, which is a REALLY nice change.

Sigh...  Sad world we live in these days.  We, as a people, need to take back the power we've squandered away to the politicians and the lawyers...  But it's going to take a lot more people than us to get something done about it now!

-Mac

[uncle ned]

one of the reasons that i have become a card carring member of the NRA,AMA
and if there were a Militia close i would probaly join.

uncle ned

[Airbag]

Same bastards that allow things like, Check into cash, Payday loans, Autotitle loans, legalized loan sharks. The loan sharks in Chicago in the 1930's did not have the nerve to charge 400 % interest and yet our government has given them the green light to ruin so many lives. Instead of Venny and Boom Boom coming to break your legs now it's the sheriff that comes to take your property. Some days I think the tea needs to go back into the harbor.

[HighTechRedneck]

I heartily agree with all of those points.  (But let's try not to turn this into a political thread.)

Kevin, you mentioned that you ordered the windshields.  A while back you asked for tips on installing them.  Did you get the information you needed to do that?

A couple days ago you mentioned feeling really tired and drained. Have you been able to get some rest and recover a little from that?

Have you had any luck getting your computer equipment cleaned up and operational?

[Airbag]

I heartily agree with all of those points.  (But let's try not to turn this into a political thread.)

Kevin, you mentioned that you ordered the windshields.  A while back you asked for tips on installing them.  Did you get the information you needed to do that?

A couple days ago you mentioned feeling really tired and drained. Have you been able to get some rest and recover a little from that?

Have you had any luck getting your computer equipment cleaned up and operational?

I wonder how I got so over weight with my foot stuck in my mouth. Sorry for the rant.

Kevin do you still need the drivers seat? I still have it and if somebody can get it to you it's yours. You might try posting a seperate thread asking if anyone is passing this way.

[JohnEd]

Kevin/MacGyver,

I hope your life is coming back together, even if just a little.  I sent you some money at your PayPal address and you should have it by now.  We don't know each other and I don't recall us ever talking on the board.  I am sorry to see what has happened to you and that your alternatives are so limited.  Hang tough and know that there are better days coming.

I am trying to get you those "D" windows.  Can you measure the dimensions and sent them to me.  I have glass but I think there were more than one "D" window and I want to be sure I have yours.

I have two RV double pane sliders for you.  They cost me $60 each but they are yours if you pay it forward when you can.  Problem here is getting them to you from Eugene, Orygun.  Mike(HTRN) got some stuff shipped to him in Tenn.  He had trucker friends carry it back to him.  Contact Mike and explore the possibility of getting stuff for you moved thru the same channels.

I like your idea of traveling to the work.  There are some spots around the country thaT ARE not as shut down as others.  being mobile can really make all the difference.  I think you should pursue that.

We have something in common....Dobies.  I had one for three and a half years.  I have a weeks worth of stories and I think of him often.  Baron.  He was of national champion stock, Grand Father was best in show at Westminister.  I never took that guy out with me that i didn't get compliments shouted across streets or parking lots.  Nobody wanted to pet him though, just comment on him being a magnificent dog.  My favorite question was "What do you feed him?".  My answer: Oh some sirloin, Sand Dabs, Lobster, Prime rib, King Crab and lots of Prime Rib.  Wifey worked in a swank steak house and every night a bag was placed at the waitress station with BARON printed on it.  He got the best scrapes in the evening.  We froze that and both dogs got premium fare a few nites a week.  He shined like a patent leather shoe.  I got a weeks worth of stories.  I would have one today but I travel and everyone is terrified of them and that isn't even remotely justified.  Facts and evidence don't matter, though.  After a Dobe everything else is just a dog.  My Manchester Terrier is the image of a Dobe in 25 pound traveling size.  Plays well with others and comes and gets Daddy if there is anything going on that needs shot.

Call Mike about transport.  Two RV thermopane, black, aluminum sliders with a light filter tint.

Hug your dogs for me,

John

John