THE DUKES OF T-TOWN DO A ‘DATELINE’ PHOTO UPDATE!

Temecula, CA – Lately the news has been bad for my peeps, my medical peeps anyway. Clinics being popped, pipes being pilfered, jewelry heisted, and cash siphoned off. Wayne Williams’ beautifully crafted pot powwow going up in smoke as Elsinore’s City Council not only didn’t show, but voted to stay in the dark ages. Even the fabled Jack Herer is puffing some drama. But here’s a story to brighten your day, cause sometimes the good guys win.

In a little piece that I like to call, ‘The dukes of T-town do a ‘Dateline’, this is the story. Long time readers will recall another ‘dukes of T-town’ story a few years back but for all the newcomers, the dukes are a couple of businessmen who so impressed Bipsy when she toured the warehouse/office, she quipped, “I can’t believe you guys got all this stuff from those little finger lights.” But that was back in the day when things were high-flying. Lately, with the falling economy, the dukes have barely been clearing the hedges.

Adding to the woes was a final trial. A so-called computer ‘whiz’ had come onboard as a way to reanimate the finance stream of the company. The plan was to reinvent the company as a 21^st Century marketer and jettison the ‘gadget’ business plan. However, before the new strategy was off the ground, one of the dukes was fleeced with a bum computer and hosed on a moving deal. Throwing up red flags, the one duke warned the other because that’s what friends do.

The green carrot of success though was too tempting for the one duke, and so the project moved forward, minus one duke. While the future looked bright, the present was becoming more and more encased in vile darkness as the true twisted sociopathic nature of the geek projected itself more and more into the picture. One bright Friday afternoon it all came to a head. Having become unnerved by the increasing erratic behavior of the ‘whiz’, the latter duke had requested the former duke accompany him as he sought to check up on the progress of the project.

Upon entering the office/living area of the geek, it was evident that the ‘whiz’ was planning to skedaddle. Gone was the stored red car and as much stuff as would fit in the car. The missing stuff included all the duke’s receipts and records of the proposed business venture, stolen from the duke’s office file cabinet. Further investigation revealed the duke’s entire business identity had been hacked and hijacked. One duke said to the other rather disheartened, “You warned me.”

All that remained from the geek were two clothes tote bins, a folding aluminum ladder, and an empty blue suitcase. Meanwhile the whiz fled the state. When subsequent communication was re-established, only the request for the geek’s stuff was heard, with the geek denying to return what was taken or even being open to trade tit for tat. It was all give and no take, all id with no super ego. Though a police report was filed for the identity theft and loss of paperwork, the police said it was a civil matter. A month later, adding insult to injury, the geek filed his own paperwork and not just against the sole duke, but also against every other customer the duke had referred the whiz to. The first such small claims suit ending with the geek raking in $775. Though the geek had broken off relations with the clients and not finished the assigned jobs, with the law it’s who follows through that wins. The disgruntled pharmacist issued a statement after his defeat in court only printable in Hustler. Suffice to say, he was not a happy camper.

Meanwhile paperwork also came from the geek to reclaim the ladder, empty suitcase, and two clothes totes maxed to $7500. In court, again there was no mention of anything belonging to or taken from the duke. The duke’s day in court went with him making a point or two but the geek still won the day. The judge ruled in favor of the geek and the duke had a week to turn over the geek’s belongings. Though no money was won, it looked the darkest before the dawn. Today the stuff was returned to the whiz, but with a side dish of revenge.

As the geek ventured over cautiously to inspect the returned goods in the parking lot of the Murrieta Police Station parking lot with an officer present because the geek ‘feared for his life’ the officer seemed to express, the second older duke sensing an unsuspecting geek now filled with jubilation at having rolled the younger duke ‘over in the clover’ with the help of the system might now be vulnerable, handed the geek a subpoena to appear at his own day in small claims court, as a defendant this time.

Cost of moving job - $100.00

Cost of bunk computer - $500.00

Cost of stolen items - $6500.00

Cost of surprised ‘hit-in-the-face-with-a-bag of-shit’ expression flipping the duke off– Priceless

“Revenge is a dish best served cold” – Monty Burns