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Friends and family that visit my site know I compete in various dance competitions around the country. But just prior to the Virginia State Open 2007 my Jeep Cherokee was stolen from out in front of my apartment building near the Navy Yard metro station. It was hard to believe, but my ride of 9-years - also known as "Club Doug, the only club on four wheels - was gone. I filed a report and quickly learned that regardless of the year or the condition, Jeep's are a prime target for car theft in DC. The Police mentioned that they're usually taken for joy rides until they run outta gas, so be prepared for a late night call from an officer on patrol.
So about 5 days later at work, the call came that they had indeed found the Jeep in a less-than-desirable part of Northeast DC. So I had them tow the car to my Jeep dealer in Arlington and started to plan for that dreaded task of looking over the damage. The crappy part was, I knew I had to go look at the truck for the insurance company. And I knew that it would break my heart to see my car in such a condition. I also knew that regardless of the condition, I probably would never want the truck back.
So the damage done was more than I expected. The criminals that stole my Jeep basically used it as their personal get-away car. It looked like they drove down the street bouncing off cars until they finally hit something that took out the front wheels and axles. There was literally body-damage on all sides. But the interior was even more sad. Dirty would be a nice word to describe the inside. They obviously used my vehicle to steel from several other cars, cause there were about 6 sets of car keys and several wallets. There was a pair of fancy sunglasses, a shoe, and a random brick used to bust windows. Oh, and there was a nice condom on the floor. As I said, it broke my heart to see something that was mine in such a condition. But thankfully the insurance company considered it totaled.
So to wrap up this story of grand theft auto with a happy ending, I made a purchase over the past weekend. I went up to Bethesda to look at a black 2005 Mercedes-Benz C230. I took it for a test-drive and started to negotiate. Before the day was over I was driving off the showroom floor with my new Benz. What you see in the above photos is the new ride parked in my garage. It will take some time getting used to driving something other than the Jeep. But if I had to get rid of "Club Doug" for something new, I can't think of a better car. Thanks to Dan Kelly for putting the idea in my head that it was time to ride in style.
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