Hey now, everybody. I've attempted on a couple occasions tonight to post a blog of all my small and not-so-small scores from the previous week, to no avail. So I've given up the blog thing, and will post it here instead. Hope you don't mind.
Aaaaand ACTION!
Hey now,
I dropped a few hints about this in the small scores thread several days back, and now-- after a few unavoidable delays-- it's time for the big reveal. But before the main event, I'm gonna regale you with an incredible story chock-full of anticipation, frustration, tragedy, and-- ultimately-- overwhelming triumph, with a little mean-spiritedness thrown in just for the hell of it. So sit, back, relax, and take it...
as
Zagnorch Productions
in association with
[img width=234 height=60]http://www.rfgeneration.com/left.gif[/img]
presents
SEVEN-DAY SCORE CARD:
GOOD TIMES NEVER FELT SO GOOD
(Week of 31 March to 5 April 2014)
Brought to you by
The Sonic The Hedgehog Interactive Museum
and Transmission Service Center
in beautiful downtown Detroit
Aaaand away we go!
Monday 31 March It was a modest start to the week. I picked up a complete BradyGames
Brutal Legend guide with detached poster for $2.95, and a
Diddy Kong DS Racing card in a
Yoshi's Island DS case for $1.99.
Tuesday 1 April No fooling: not much happened today as I discovered a complete boxed Radio Shack 1650L portable sensory chess computer for $3.49, and a CIB
Nerf N-Strike Elite set for $7.49.
[img width=600 height=554]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64scorestart1_zpsf82d6f68.jpg[/img]
[img width=700 height=474]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64scorestart2_zps06f42ca3.jpg[/img]
[img width=700 height=443]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64ScoreNerfWii_zpsea23032e.jpg[/img]
Wednesday 2 April Now things are kicking into gear. After my trip to Savers yielded six N64 carts and a
WoW: The Lich King hardcover atlas for nine bucks, I took a big old stack of junky gap-filler games and headed over to one of the local used-media shops, plopped the box o' shovelware down on the trade counter, took a number, and headed over to the vidya shelves. But before I got there, I spied a little something in a nearby display case:
[img width=695 height=406]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64scoreretro1_zpsc4717a9a.jpg[/img]
[img width=663 height=256]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64scoreretro2_zpsbc39d889.jpg[/img]
The Mad Catz RetroCON controller for the PS2 is a thing of simple beauty, and is surprisingly comfortable to use. I dug the throwback look of it so much, I knew I hadda have it. Fortunately, I got enough in trade credit from my substandard wares to cover it and a few other things, like the Prima
DKC Returns 3D guide,
Gradius Galaxies for the GBA,
Starmaster for the VCS/2600, and
Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits for the DS.
[img width=528 height=553]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64ScoreStreetSavers_zpsc2762d56.jpg[/img]
Thursday 3 April There's nothing quite like ending your work day with the men's room toilet exploding in your face. Fortunately, it was fresh water from a breached valve I got inundated with, so at least it wasn't a sh*tty moment in the literal sense. Fortunately I was off well before noon, leaving me a nice chunk of thrifting prime-time to burn. Later that afternoon my bad attitude got adjusted for the better while hanging out at a local Goodwill. I was staring at a Yamaha keyboard on the electronics shelf, and I started thinking about the Miracle Piano I picked up at the end of last year. The instant that thought popped into my head, I looked to my right, and saw...
[img width=700 height=316]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64scoremiracle1_zpsb6dbe1ed.jpg[/img]
This is how powerful my thrifting skills have become: I only need to think of something to will it into existence. You know, like young Will Robinson in that episode of
Twilight Zone, only better. Sadly, this scary power has proven less than effective when I think about
Metal Storm.
Anyway, I picked it up and carried it around with me as I kept on browsing. This led to three customers mistaking me for a Goodwill employee. I responded to each of them with, "While I don't actually work here, I come here often enough that I might as well work here," and then helped them flag down an actual employee to assist them.
Sadly, only the keyboard, AC plug, user's guide, and function face overlay were in the box. Also, the box was pretty stained up, like it was used as a giant drink coaster.
[img width=611 height=518]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64scoremiracle2_zps4a1abad6.jpg[/img]
Sorry, Duke, no pedal here. Still lookin' out for ya, though.
On the upside: for $19.99, it was still well worth it just to have a complete boxed rig.
But if you thought the Miracle Piano pick-up was a big deal, wait 'til you see the score that leveled me up to flag rank in the retro gaming navy.
[img width=250 height=250]http://cdn.memegenerator.net/instances/250x250/44061024.jpg[/img]
Right after I got home from scoring the Miracle Piano, my best bud (who I'll refer to as "Shotgun" from now on) texted me from a nearby estate sale, asking "what the market was" for a certain... something he found there. When I read what that "something" was, I replied, "
I'M the market! Tell me where you're at, and I'll be right over!"
What was this "something," you ask? It's none other than the first home video game platform I ever owned. Well, actually it belonged to my parents, but I put in more time on it than the both of them combined. Also, it wasn't exclusively for gaming; its primary purpose was to help me type, save, and print my middle school book reports and project papers. I even tried my hand at a little BASIC-type coding on it a couple times. But when all the school work was done, it was game-on in one of three different media formats. Sadly, as other machines of its kind became more advanced and compact, its obsolescence was inevitable, as was its replacement by those new-fangled gizmos. But thanks to the vigilance of a close friend and $105.00 in cold hard cash, I had one of my fondest childhood memories in my grasp once more.
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you...
[img width=700 height=362]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64main1_zpsa4f6739d.jpg[/img]
The dream machine of every geeky child of the '80s.
Not bad for $105.00, huh?
Oh, and it came with a few bonus items:
[img width=492 height=543]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64main3_zps919e2fa1.jpg?t=1397194054[/img]
[img width=700 height=427]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64main4_zpsc472e7bd.jpg[/img]
[img width=700 height=254]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64main2_zpsec54cf60.jpg[/img]
[img width=700 height=366]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64main5_zps939cae65.jpg[/img]
[img width=700 height=240]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64main6_zps3bbb529e.jpg[/img]
[img width=700 height=230]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64main7_zps8775dbd2.jpg[/img]
[img width=513 height=472]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64main8_zpsbf6b7d5b.jpg[/img]
[img width=363 height=452]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64main9_zps6e257327.jpg?t=1397194093[/img]
Needless to say, I was so stoked by this grab my main man got for me, I was practically...
Keytar!
And I'd have done it...
...if I could.
But that's just a small part of my C64 acquisition odyssey. After I texted Shotgun that I'd be right over to the estate sale, I discovered that I misplaced my wallet. For several minutes I looked all around the house in a gradually increasing panic trying to find it, with no success. Eventually Shotgun called me back asking what the holdup was, and that there was someone else interested in the lot. After sheepishly disclosing my predicament, he told me he'd be more than happy to buy it for me, and I could pay him back when I picked it up at his place later.
A mere minute after that exchange I finally found my wallet, sitting on a bookshelf in plain sight, right where I left it. Helen Keller could have spotted the damn thing for goodness sakes. Pretty embarrassing, I must admit. Sometimes the thrill of finally adding a highly coveted piece to your collection makes you blind to other things, both figuratively and literally. But the not-so-small score my best bud grabbed for me more than made up for all the frustration.
Friday 4 April I headed on over to Shotgun's place to pick up the C64 stack. I threw him the $100 he paid for it, plus an extra fiver for his trouble, and a Starbucks drink later that day. He then told me about the other interested party, who was apparently such a whiny, douchy little bitch over my main man putting it on hold until I got there to pay up, that he was more than happy to buy it for me just in the hope of seeing the guy suffer a nervous breakdown. Oh man, what I would have given to have seen that happen! Now,
that's entertainment!
But, seriously:
f*ck that guy.
[img width=253 height=320]http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HcaiBFz1MAc/TbSRWbr9hpI/AAAAAAAACqU/2KJnkZlu0J0/s320/different-ear-piercings.jpg[/img]
Right in the ear.
I dug into the lot, and seeing all the hardware really brought me back to those afternoons where I'd forget about the hassles I endured in middle school with a few rounds of
Gridrunner on cartridge and
O'Riley's Mine on datasette tape. However, these childhood reminiscences eventually gave way to marveling at how far personal computers have advanced in the last three decades when I picked up the keyboard unit, and was immediately surprised by its size and heft. I also couldn’t believe how much space the floppy drive occupied.
Were these things really that big and heavy, I asked myself. Now all of a sudden I started feeling like an old geezer, pining for the "good old days". Fortunately, I put everything back into perspective, and reverted back to the thirty-nine-year-old-going-on-thirteen you all know and love, living in the here-and-now... more or less.
There was another reason for my visit: Shotgun was having a garage sale the next day, and he invited me to pull whatever I desired from his stack of unwanted XBox games. I grabbed the following CIB titles for $20:
KotOR, Dungeons & Dragons Heroes, Morrowind, Jedi Outcast, The Warriors, Evil Dead: Regeneration, Gauntlet: Dark Legacy, and
Jaws Unleashed. I bought the latter game because I found the idea of playing the shark rather amusing. Hopefully, it'll be nothing like
jumping the shark...
[img width=700 height=469]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64scorexbox_zpsae2739b2.jpg[/img]
Saturday 4 April: No scores today; I was so overwhelmed by the last few days, I decided to take a breather. Instead, I'll take this time to show off some notable non-gaming scores I snagged throughout the week:
[img width=566 height=562]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64scorenon1_zps4aeb47cd.jpg[/img] [img width=90 height=110]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/NupeHappy_zps61e11f80.jpg[/img]
- Meco
Music Inspired by STAR WARS... and Other Galactic Funk, $0.99: Features the disco rendition of the
Star Wars theme. This is the first vinyl record I've bought since high school, and it's in surprisingly good condition. The record itself is practically scratch-free! Now if I only had a player for it...
Take a listen... IF YOU DARE.
- HP 12c Platinum financial calculator, $3.49: This one's a no-brainer for those who know me, as is...
- CIB TI Personal Banker calculator,
$12.99 $10.35
[img width=630 height=525]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/c64scorenon2_zps8bbe1745.jpg[/img]
Why you should never, ever let Nupoile borrow your calculator.
Whelp, I've wasted enough of your time and brain cells. Time to wind this up and...
Lionel Richie rocks the pageboy-'fro like no other.
Until next week-- and what a week it will be...
[img width=480 height=430]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/RushFore2_zpsdfa3fcdd.jpg[/img]
...'Late!
Author
