[meteorite-list] Unbelievably late package - my story

From: Martin Horejsi <accretiondesk_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon Sep 18 22:20:21 2006
Message-ID: <9c2f96d20609181920o3c15f01doa132f667dcba812c_at_mail.gmail.com>

Hi Walter,

Not this Martin. But I seem to remember the tale as well.

I hope I won't have a story to add here, but I might have one in the
works. I mailed a meteorite to San Diego about a month ago and, you
guessed it, we're still waiting.

Cheers,

Martin



On 9/18/06, Walter Branch <waltbranch_at_bellsouth.net> wrote:
> Hi Bernd,
> >(sometimes it is good
> >people do not know much about meteorites
>
> You are right. This is how I judge whether to dismiss these stories that
> make it to the list. Sort of like Hollywood vs. reality.
>
> Who was it that had their apartment broken into and items where stolen,
> except the meteorites? Was it you, Martin?
>
> -Walter Branch
>
>
> -----------------------------------------------------
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <bernd.pauli_at_paulinet.de>
> To: <Meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com>
> Sent: Monday, September 18, 2006 1:57 PM
> Subject: [meteorite-list] Unbelievably late package - my story
>
>
> > On Wednesday, October 01, 2003, Mike Farmer sent out my NWA 1909 (AEUC)
> > and my NWA 1943 (AHOW) specimens. The package did make it safely across
> > the Big Pond but on October 21, 2003, I wrote to Mike that the German
> customs
> > authorities were withholding the specimens and I was battling with them
> over my
> > comment that there was no commercial value involved and their idiotic
> response
> > that everything had a value.
> >
> > By November 10, 2003, the package had got lost somewhere between Tucson
> and
> > my home town here in Germany after the customs idiots had agreed they
> would
> > send it to us via mail. It never arrived. Lots of telephone calls but to
> no avail
> > although I had the photo copy from the customs dudes with all the details
> (sender,
> > contents, etc.). More calls and the information that the package was
> probably on
> > its way back to Tucson. The customs dudes said that if it didn't show up
> here or
> > in Tucson sooner or later, the sender would have to start a "tracer".
> >
> > Wednesday, December 17, 2003, Mike wrote that the meteorites had just
> arrived back to
> > him and that the customs idiot had removed the packaging so that the
> meteorites (worth
> > $600!) were loose in the box which was smashed - fortunately the
> meteorites were fine,
> > not damaged.
> >
> > The customs people were not the culprits this time. That honor goes to the
> German mail
> > company. There must have been a potential thief who opened Christmas mail
> that looked
> > promising (precious metals, jewelry, money, etc.). Meteorites were just
> worthless and
> > meaningless stuff so he chucked them back into the torn package (sometimes
> it is good
> > people do not know much about meteorites :-)
> >
> > My meteorites were shipped again, and, unbelievable but nonetheless true:
> Tuesday, Dec.
> > 30, 2003, NWA 1909 and NWA 1943 finally arrived (again) after this
> transaltantic odyssey
> > which lasted "only" three months!
> >
> > Cheers,
> >
> > Bernd
> >
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>
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Received on Mon 18 Sep 2006 10:20:17 PM PDT