Insurance Assurance
Hello all! It has been a wild week, what – with all the time travel to pick up my new award (see below) and then, just when I was finally recovering from that – well, I found out I had been invited to be a guest of honour to see Weird Al Yankovic play at The Redneck Bar and Grill. Needless to say, it was a great time and despite long periods I cannot recall – the lyrics continue to run through my head (...“have some more bacon,” …) man, it was awesome. That being said, with all those drunken people screaming, dancing and generally carrying on … well, I was a little worried at times about the immediate future of one of my favourite watering holes – especially when the flaming shots came out – I know that Weird Al’s fat suit has to be incredibly flammable!
Anyway, it was at this point that I tried to pull Ernie and Tim aside to talk to them about small business insurance. You know, just in case the worse happened. These guys really like to party and their Blue Beaver beer REALLY packs a punch. Between the amateur wrestling bouts and concerts – well, it really is a matter of time at this point before things go really wrong. I knew for a fact the place is uninsured and worried what would happen in the event of an accident or other unforeseen event that causes a business disruption. I mean, these two count on the Redneck for their livelihood! That being said, I think most would agree that a discussion about insurance would be considered dry, boring, and uninteresting, at the best of times – let alone in the middle of a concert. However, with the three of us fuelled by beer – well, let’s just say that was certainly not the case. In fact, Weird Al stopped right in the middle of ‘White & Nerdy’ and asked, “Hey – are you guys talking insurance.” When we sheepishly admitted that we were he said, “Super cool! Count me in! I LOVE insurance”
As some of you will no doubt be aware, Weird Al is a honourary Canucklehead. He spends quite a bit of time up here and has had at least three songs on our Top 10 since 1986. Only Stompin’ Tom has done better, which is what their upcoming duets album so exciting for Canadians. But I digress. Since he spends so much time here, it was no surprise that Weird Al knew exactly where to go. (I’ve personally seen Weird Al divide by zero using only an abacus and a dull crayon). Right away he directed us to Kanetix, a new service for Canadians that provides quotes from over 30 insurance companies in just minutes. While we were only worried about our beloved bar, they also offered PLENTY of other types of insurance: Auto, Home, Motorcycle, Life, Critical Illness, RV, Antique auto, Business, Travel insurance for Canadians, and Travel insurance for visitors to Canada. Anyway, you get the idea. The service is completely anonymous (high-pressure follow up calls anyone?) and they served Over 1 million in 2006 alone, which I’m being told put them in the Paris Hilton range. Impressive! Anyway, 5-7 minutes later we were done and rockin’ out to “White & Nerdy.” Tim & Ernie certainly saved a lot of time, and a significant chunk of cash – which was promptly spent on novelty t-shirts, Star Wars figurines, and of course a LOT of beer! Weird Al told us that he is an expert on insurance out of necessity - adding, "You wouldn't believe how flammable those fat suits are!" At the end of the day, I’ll sleep better tonight knowing my beloved pub is in safe hands – which I think I’ll do right now (it being the end of the day) … CHEERS!
