Hi, everyone!

I'm sorry that I haven't called or written, Frank. I've been negligent.

After 36 years of riding, I wrecked my motorcycle while out of state on a trip last Sept. I ended up spending a month in the hospital, recovering from major spinal surgery and a TBI.

It has been an interesting journey since then, with a number of twists and turns. Today, on the whole, life is very good. I'm back to walking, driving and working. One twist that I encountered with all of the medical attention focused on me was some strong indicators that I would be better off without cigars.

I'm not a fan of life without cigars (and the friendships and connections that come with them), but I'm a fan of life. I came pretty close to kicking the bucket with the wreck. I don't want to stand in line for more life lotto tickets after getting lucky in the last drawing that I participated in. If you know what I mean.

Over the last few months, I've been slowly rehoming my collection of over 1300 cigars with my cigar friends. (I think I'm down to about 6 or 700.) I've been doing mostly trades for wallet candelas, but there have been a few interesting trades for other items, too. Some of these cigars, I got at events or in trades (and a few from PIBs/bombs from you). Letting them go hasn't been easy. I'm surprised at how attached to them I still am.

If anyone is interested in wallet candela trading, please let me know and I'd be happy to send a spreadsheet of what I have. They are pretty much all non-cbid cigars, but I've been trading them at cbid prices.

Anyway... Sorry again for not calling or writing. Hope all is going well and that Hamk (if he's still around) has been behaving himself.

Mattster

Damn Matt! Great to see you post again but the circumstances in the months prior not so good. [gonzo]

Glad you were able to secure a Life Lotto Ticket and got to “cash it in” to good use.

Say “Howzit” to the Amazing Amy for me.

Well that explains where you have been sorry to hear all that has happened to you brother. Glad to hear you are doing well now send me a list and I will check it out . I have not been buying much lately.

glad you survived, Bro...sad that you are departing the joys of the leaf...but you will always be a member of the brotherhood...

Amy says "Awww... That's nice" to your nice "howzit," Conan. She was a trooper throughout all of this. Put her life on hold and spent the month with me in CA. Figured out how to get me home in a ,wheelchair (train, instead of plane). Has been my drill sergeant and cheerleader (I've benefited from both).

Thx, Corey and Delta. I kinda miss this place.

And that’s why she’s the “Amazing” one! 👍

you didn't write, you didn't call... but The Lovely Caren and I are giving you a pass, Mattster.

What an ordeal! Had no idea what you were going through. Glad to see you are up and walking on your hind legs again.

Probably don't want anything (cutting waaay back) but send me the inventory anyway if you don't mind.

Don't be a stranger, my friend.

Frank

Frank! Thanks for the pass.

Thanks also for being willing to take a peek, even with cutting back. I'll send you the link. Feel free to share with any cigar friends who might be interested in a decent trades on some decent cigars.

I have one local friend who traded for about 300 and one of my two wineadores. He's getting set up like I used to be!

Stranger I will try not to be. Because strangers don't end up connecting with folks like you. You've been one of the many positives I've encountered through cigars.

Mattster

Matt you should have learned from Desolbones (Greg Wyatt) mistake back in 2014 IIRC...…..almost exact same circumstances.Greg is still kicking and smoking...…...….He's gonna live forever I tell ya.

Glad to see ya back Brother

Thx, WB!

Good to hear from you Matt but sorry it’s under these circumstances...

I wish you a speedy full recovery and hopefully will be seeing more of you posting again.

Welcome back!!

Thx JR!

glad to hear you made it through the crash and the aftermath Matt...been there done that, many years ago
So, I gotta know, curious minds and all that, You gonna ride again?...again, good to see you back

Thx, Brother. No plans to ride again. I took a huge withdrawal from the grace & love bank of my family & friends. In addition to getting back on track with my life, I’m focused on making deposits back into this grace & love bank. The thought of riding again feels counter to this process, somehow. I have no memory of the accident. All i know is what my riding partner shared with me. I lost a week, waking up in the hospital with my wife and son by my side and metal rods in my back. No PTSD or fear of riding that I know of. Just a sense of rightness to keep focused on what I’ve been doing.

Hope that makes sense. If it doesn’t, I blame the head injury. 😉

Mattster

of course it makes sense.

Well said Matt. =d>

makes perfect sense....like I said, just a curiosity and the cat type of thing...🍺

Good to see ya posting brother!

Thx, Z!

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A friend of mine had a big, heavy, customized 1400cc Harley. Then one day out on the highway he hit a patch of gravel he failed to see. The next thing he remembers he was floating through the air with the extremely-heavy Harley floating directly above him, with time slowed down to a crawl, and he remembers thinking, "Gee I hope that big thing doesn't fall on me, I'll die".

It didn't, it crashed to Earth right next to him, instead.

He got his injuries treated and sold the bike, and will never touch another.

He likes to point out that in a car, that patch of gravel would've done exactly nothing.

It's said the lowest rates of motorcycle ownership are among E.R. doctors and nurses (who call them "donorcycles" because they get so many donated organs that way) and physicists, who unlike the average guy truly understand the horrifying magnitude of the forces involved.

Occasionally guys tell me to get a bike, and I tongue-in-cheekly reply that I will, as soon as they make them with four widely-spaced wheels for proper stability, anti-lock brakes, traction control and vehicle stability control to prevent crashes and a rigid steel cage that completely surrounds me, multiple airbags all around me, energy-absorbing crumple zones and seat belts with automatic pyrotechnic pre-tensioning for the remaining unavoidable crashes. Then I add, "oh wait, that's a CAR! I already have one of those!"

My pal is still around and smoking great cigars today, relatively intact and in good health, thank god. But he warns anyone who will listen to consider taking a pass when it comes to motorcycles. You want that open-air feeling of freedom with the wind in your hair? Consider a convertible with as many safety features as possible. It's not quite as safe as a fixed-top car, but it's pretty close, and enormously better than a motorcycle, no comparison whatsoever.
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