But again, being insecure that I was about the 
lack of insurance coverage but at the same time 
being very influenced by Nick constantly 
discouraging me from making a claim at all, I 
felt that I needed to seek advice from fellow and 
knowledgeable collectors.

And so, I made my now infamous post.  But 
although it may be hard for Nick to see, I was 
really just seeking much-needed advice in the 
middle of a very physically and emotionally 
trying situation.  I never intended to nor wanted 
to place Nick in any trouble with other 
collectors; I never had any desire to hurt his 
business.  I did everything I possibly could to 
illustrate my dilemma without blatantly placing 
blame or fault upon Nick.  I even got chastised 
for being too soft or a push-over by others 
because I tried to protect Nick's identity.

All I was concerned about was figuring out what 
was the right thing to do.  That's all I ever 
wanted from this thread.  Sure, being a little 
too easily influenced that I was, I probably let 
a lot of collectors sway me away from Nick's 
point of view to their less favorable view of him.

But in the end, I believe that I am a cautious 
person.  Many people told me to get on Nick's 
case even earlier or stand up to him more 
aggressively; some even suggested that I take him 
to court.  Still, my personal desire was to wait 
and see how the postal service handled this claim 
before doing anything else.

AND even then, I spent my time resting in bed 
thinking about possible ways to resolve this 
dilemma without going too extreme.  I even came 
up with a plan where, in case the insurance claim 
did not work out, Nick could still set things 
right without any money leaving his pocket.  
Although I do feel the need to protect my 
interests, it's also in my nature to try to work 
things out in a way that's beneficial to both 
sides.

It's very important for Nick and everyone else 
NOT TO CONFUSE what I actually do in reality with 
what other people have suggested that I should 
do.  I consider everyone's opinion (including 
Nick's) to be important but overall I want to 
take things slowly and try to do the right thing 
by everyone.  It's already plainly obvious from 
other posts that many people would not have been 
as patient or as tolerant in this scenario than I 
have been; I just hope that counts for something.