Time passed as I tried to decide what to do, and when I'd have time to do it. About a week or so ago, a friend of mine agreed to help me out. We decided that the lock was broken and would need to be replaced anyway, so he just put a metal bit on his drill and drilled it out. So now I can drive my bike safely without fear of the front fork locking by accident or anything. But the bike wouldn't start -- the battery was not quite strong enough to turn her over. Not too surprising, since it had been sitting for a few months.
Last night, I put the battery on my trickle charger. This morning, it was all charged up and ready to go. About fifteen minutes of fiddling about, and it was installed again and I was on the road. I think I'll be able to get a few more good rides in this year before it becomes too cold.