another weird dream of Paris

it's been a really long time since my last post on this blog. I feel like it's time though, considering where I am and what I'm doing.

Here I am, back in Paris....again. It's August 30th 2007. Dan, Chico, and I arrived this morning from New York, here to continue and hopefully conclude the great Totemobile saga.

The quick back story, for those who didn't know or don't remember, is this: The Totemobile was mostly built in Brooklyn last summer by a team of awesome people, Amorphic Robot Works. In September we flew this giant transforming car to Paris for the Paris Auto Show. We then, somehow, ended up staying here in Paris for about 6 months to work on it. Along the way, we learned that it was nearly twice as heavy as the elevator rating for the building into which it will go: the new Citroen Showroom on 42 Champs Elyees, Paris. TWICE as heavy. That's OK, we just cut it in half. Really, not a big deal.

Weight has been a major issue with this damn machine all along, so it goes.

We finished our work last April, and on the last day we weighed the machine to verify that we meet all the required limits to get this thing in the building. There's a weight limit on the elevator, a weight limit on the floor, and everywhere in between. And we're damn close to exceeding all of them.

Well, Citroen, being the on-the-ball kind of folks that they are, decided to weight he machine as well. They could have done this in May, June, or July. No, why rush it? They waited until last week, 1 week before it is scheduled to go into the Champs Elysees building to weight it. And it came out almost 10% heavier than when we weighed it last.

That's the emergency, so here we are, back in Paris a few days early.

We landed today and went straight to the Conservatory, Citroen's museum of all their great and not-great cars of the past. That's where the Totemobile is being stored. (http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2007/08/23/automobiles/20070824_CITROEN_SLIDESHOW_index.html)
We re-weighed it, and quickly realized our crappy scales are just that, really crappy. Not trusthworthy at all. To be fair to myself, I last weighed it in April, after working nearly 48 continuously with no break, it was 4 in the morning, and I was sketchy at best. I didn't realize the scales were quite so prone to error.) Sadly, we have to assume that Citroen's number from last week is probably correct, and ours was off.

But, there's always the last minute, right?

Our big weighing was supposed to happen today with all the major Citroen people witnessing and us there too. The situation is very serious, we're facing the very real possibility that they won't let the Totemobile in the new building because it is too heavy for the floor loading specifications (not the elevator, the floor!). It would be doomed to a life stored away in a warehouse outside of Paris. Well, lucky us, the meeting was rescheduled for tomorrow at 1:30pm.

So, here's the plan. We wake up tomorrow, get to the shop by 7:30am, and we have 6 hours to cut 300kg out of the base. We think we can do it. It could get crazy.

(Just to complicate things: Mr. Pontieux, the guy who is officially weighing the car and transporting it, hasn't been paid by Chico - even dating back to when he transported the car from Brooklyn to Paris in September '06. France just called Dan 5 minutes ago (it's 10pm Thursday night here.) to say that if Chico doesn't wire Pontieux the money tonight, he won't weigh it tomorrow. Of course, Chico is complaining he never got the bill. We just had this conversation with Chico through his door as he tries to get down with his lady friend in the hotel room. Seriously, just now.) I wish I was making this up, but it's much too ridiculous for me to invent.)

So, the story will continue tomorrow.

I'm exhausted, so I'm heading to bed.

good night folks.