NOT That I'm Whining....

JEEZ!  Has it been three days since I last posted?!  WOW!  What HAVE you folks been doing for entertainment!?  I am SO sorry for leaving you defenseless in the barren wilderness of mindless drivel that passes for "engaging" nowadays!  I shall attempt to rectify this oversight!
So yes, my absence HAS been due to blessed busyness, and several rides have come and gone since we last spoke, but at the moment we are in a bit of a holding pattern (get to that in half a mo!) but we would like to take this opportunity to THANK all the great folks who have made this such a busy week!  In the last couple days we have moved MANY bikes to new homes, so much so that our cupboards are a tad bit bare (get to that in a full mo!) But like in Vegas fortunes can change "just that fast!"  Speaking of Vegas (get to that in one and a half mo's!).  As I was saying before I so RUDELY interrupted myself, the rides built that never saw the light of day (day being the pic's posted on this site) "were as follows, and I quote" (special NO-PRIZE for anyone who can guess where THAT partial quote came from! ((and a BIGGER No-Prize and bragging rites if you can finish it!))  (((hint:  think "Boris")))
Wow....I do love using (  ) don't I?
Crap....where was I....
Oh yea,
Had a real sweet older Ross 6 speed step over, two El-Cheapo BMX's, A BIG BOY Schwinn Sport, a Townie Electra (that lasted all of about three minuets) A Motiv MTB (weird name but NICE components) and also ones you DID get to see, sold as well!  The Recumbent, Cannondale, Jamis hybrid, Sub Rosa BMX....and I KNOW there were a couple more but I lost track! So a big Granola....'er, Kudos to all the folks for helping us out and pleasing themselves with an AWESOME ride! 
(wait...that didn't sound right...)
Now lets go back to Vegas (no, not a sequel to "Leaving Las Vegas") Found out the hard way that my "dealer" (bike parts officer....bike parts)  took off to Vegas this past Saturday for the week to attend the annual Big Wig Bike Expo...or whatever it's called, so we got left hangin' on any new parts for repairs and rebuilds and what have you.  Not wanting to stop building, however,  I commenced to re-furbing up to the point of new parts (primarily tires and tubes) but at mid morning yesterday my chain breaker (a CRUCIAL tool in the fight against Chain Decay!) well....broke.  Realizing I've got about four more days before he's back, and NO place else around SELLS it, I would have to go to....
Dum...Dum.....DAHHHH! 
"ANOTHER BIKE SHOP!!!"
AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!
Now I won't go into details as to where, but even though I knew I could make a trip to Wal-Mart and for $5.00 get a cheapy "Bell" tool (that would last for about four days) I didn't want to close the shop up for THAT long (I'm old...I take my time riding) so I opted to hit the nearest "Boutique" bike shop.  Really...that's all else that's out there.  Upon arriving and perusing the wares in search of the right tool I became keenly aware of the sticker shock that others have spoken of.  WOW!!  I mean, for a moment on the way there I thought, perhaps, while I was there I could wrangle up some of the parts I needed to fix a couple of the rides I'd recently "partially" built.  That though was QUICKLY dashed on the jagged rocks of capitalistic reality when I realized I'd pay more for the tubes and tires then I would charge for the WHOLE bike!!  SO, with that liberal dose of reality slap, I sought out what I had come for, a simple Park Tool chain breaker.  I normally pay $8.00 for this little chunk of metal, and normally go through them at about a rate of 1 every couple months.  Dealing, as we do, with MANY a rusted out chain, they just don't last, and paying more dough for what is consider a higher quality one didn't pay of in the past, as they broke just as quickly.  Finally locating the one I needed, I damn...near....died.  Granted, it was sold as a "Tool Set", comprised of a chain breaker, small hand held allen key set, and a two sided (14m./ 15m.) cone wrench in a lovely plastic-formed case....but for $87.95!?!?!?!
WHAT THE!?!?!
Remember...I normally pay $8.00....that's EIGHT dollars, for the EXACT SAME TOOL!!!!  The allen set sold by Bell (same design and material...different name) at Wal-Mart for $3.79 and the last time I bought a real good cone wrench it was about $3.00.  SOOOOO?  What's the mark up for?  Look, I'm not knocking Capitalism or profit but SHEESH! 
SO, anyway.  My only other choice was a small, collapsible breaker which, honestly is built with the same cheapo material and inferior push pin as the Bell tool, but this one cost $27.95?!?! 
I was shtuped, but had no choice.  Cost of doing business I guess.  The only saving grace was that, as I left, my conviction and commitment to what WE do was strongly reaffirmed!!   It's good to know that there is at least ONE bike shop out there that caters to common people, like us!  \
Well, with the shameless, self-aggrandizing plug I am OFF...to try and find SOMETHING that I can build! 
PS!  If you got any bikes or parts to sell...HOOK US UP!
PEACE Y'all!!