Hal,
I have a silver 2001 Dodge Grand Caravan that seats exactly 7, but we squeeze 8, more than half the time. Actually, waiting isn't the hardest part, it's finding. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a Series II Six String? As good old Shawn C. put it, They're rarer than hen's teeth. Boy was he right!
Up to about 2 months ago, all I'd found were cold trails, rumors, and a very few pictures. The closest I came before finding the one I have now is the Brown 6 (a custom Europa with custom body shape and headstock, I think), which is to say one that looked like a Series bass, but wasn't.
I looked everywhere, then I finally started emailing some of the guys who I knew had them. Actually, I emailed just 2- Chip, of the Coco Bolo Omega Series II 6, and Shawn C, who was listed in his profile as owning a S2 6. I had no idea what Shawn's looked like, and he was kind enough to send me a picture when this all started.
I received no response from Chip and later found his listed email was dead, so that was a dead end.
When I saw the picture of Shawn's bass, I said to myself, That's the one, and found myself hoping, but not too much. I figured there was maybe a shade, a sliver of a chance because he'd listed his other 2 Series II 4's, and I figured if he didn't have any luck with them, then maybe he'd consider selling the 6, even though when he first posted he clearly stated, The Big 6 isn't going anywhere.
From there, we started speaking hypothetically, and he said that since he'd given someone dibs on his graphite necked S2 4, he'd give me dibs on the 6 if and when he posted that bass. Then, all the sudden, after about two weeks, I saw his posting, Any Interest In My Series II 6? And my heart kind of stopped.
I was freaking out because I didn't have the hypothetical amount we'd discussed, nor the amount he mentioned in that thread, nor anything resembling that amount in my woefully slender bank account. I emailed Shawn immediately and asked him if I still had dibs, and he said, of course, and it progressed, from there.
I immediately listed my 2 Alembic Sixes on eBay, in a frantic effort to raise the funds over the weekend being that Shawn was in the middle of trying buy a new truck and I didn't want to lose what appeared to be my only chance in 15 years to get the bass of my dreams, nor hold him up from getting his new truck.
I listed both basses, that Friday, and the Brown 6 sold on Sunday. The Epic 6, which I affectionately called Thunderstick because of the killer low end from the ebony lams and East Meets West Electronics, took a little longer to sell, but I managed to sell it in the nick of time, about 3 days later.
Timing is everything. Somehow, it all worked out, and although Shawn and I had talked about meeting up that Saturday, I'd had no bass, since Wednesday, and I brainstormed the idea at work to go for the bass, Friday, instead.
Brilliant idea. My father and I drove 6 hours, one way to meet up with Shawn at the above mentioned Rest Stop. We left at a little before 6, and after stopping for gas, once, we got there close to 1 am.
The drive back was a bitch. I was jazzed the whole way up, especially because every mile was a mile closer to the bass and my dream realized, but after playing it for a mere couple minutes and giving it the once over, and chatting with Shawn for maybe a couple minutes, we then hit the road, and began the long haul back.
Around 4:30 am, I got to that special place where the lines between sleeping and waking began to blur, and I had to stop at another Rest Stop. My father then drove, and we hit home around 7:30 am.
Exhausted, I lugged the bass, all 60 pounds of it (with the power supply, strap, 5 pin cable, extra strings) in it's indestructible flight case into the house. I napped for maybe 2 hours, then went to practice around 4pm.
So yes, waiting is hard. But seeking and not finding for years on end is even harder, I think. But I never gave up hope, and here we are, a mere 8 days later, me and my new Series II Six.
Why is it that wives so love to laugh at us?
You're going to have the Jester Series II started in 2010? That's awesome! I think that's so cool. 2 Alembic Series Basses, of your own design is a very cool thing. It's one thing to pick your woods, and what model, and body shape, but another thing, entirely to design your own shape- that adds a dimension that even Alembic might not have expected.
I hope the Toma_Hawk comes just in time for a very Merry Christmas, I think that would be perfectly fitting. How would it be to get that bass, in your stocking?
We'll have a Gathering when the time is exactly right- when you have the Toma_Hawk, and we can all play one of your realized dreams.
Peace All;)
Frank
