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ZAGNORCH PRODUCTIONS INC., LLC
PRESENTS
2015
A NEW YEAR'S THRIFTING ODYSSEY
Greetings from Terra!
My adventure began when I saw this notice on the front door of the local Goodwill around mid-December:
[img width=438 height=583]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/GWSale_zpsa7c261d4.jpg[/img]
Needless to say, my plans to just goof off and kick back on New Year's Day went right out the window. Instead, I embarked on one of my patented cross-county thrift runs. With over a dozen Goodwills within a half-hour drive from home, I figured I'd find more than a few things of interest. When the first day of 2015 was in the books, I'd logged a twelve-hour trip, driven over a hundred miles, and filled eleven blue cases with some pretty awesome swag.
[img width=700 height=439]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/NewYear15a_zps4a1a86e1.jpg[/img]
[img width=562 height=487]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/NewYr15b_zps284888ed.jpg[/img]
First stop: the Almaden/Foxworthy Goodwill. Although its asking prices for games and hardware are rarely reasonable, it does get in a few interesting things from time to time that I'm willing to pay a little extra for...
[img width=603 height=536]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Newyr15c_zps3a8f7ec0.jpg[/img]
...like these CIB Asia-region PSP games (Mobile Suit Gundam Seed: Rengou vs. Z.A.F.T. Portable, Tenchu 4, and Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G) that set me back $5.99 $4.43 each.
Then it was on to the Blossom Hill/Snell location. It hadn't had much of... well, anything since it was remodeled a few months back. Today, however, was a different story...
[img width=700 height=288]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15ea_zps2786e398.jpg[/img]
[img width=595 height=520]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Newyr15eb_zpsab011895.jpg[/img]
...a not-quite-CIB Piano Discovery System for PC for $19.99 $9.80. All I need is a connector cable... and DOS Box... and probably a few adapters... and I'll be all set to rockit with John Herbie Hancock! While this pickup isn't all that... miraculous... at least it doesn't need a foot pedal.
[img width=110 height=97]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/ScaredDuke_zps9cc078b5.jpg[/img] 
BTW it wasn't until I was home that I discovered that it bore another price tag neither I nor the cashier had noticed:
[img width=700 height=359]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15ec_zps99c96ffc.jpg[/img]
You know what they say: never attempt to correct an error in your favor. Anyhoo, also found at the same location, setting me back $4.99 $3.72:
[img width=607 height=535]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15d_zps243bc377.jpg[/img]
The adventure continued at the Capitol/Silver Creek store, where I found this for $4.99 $3.72:
[img width=564 height=533]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15f_zps146b0624.jpg[/img]
And then I hit the one-oh-one and headed south to the Mecca of Garlic. There was nothing of note at the Gilroy Goodwill, but the Salvation Army store across town was a slightly different story:
[img width=595 height=522]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15h_zpsf4b5f1e4.jpg[/img]
An original-release CIB Ratchet Deadlocked for $3.50 to replace my Greatest Hits copy, and...
[img width=700 height=475]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15g_zpsff484ed5.jpg[/img]
...a CIB Saitek Kasparov Cougar chess computer for $19.99.
I then drove a few miles up the road and hit the outlet mall, where I found...
[img width=700 height=463]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15m_zpse781643f.jpg[/img]
...a CIB pair New Balance 510 trail-walker shoes to replace my well-worn 605s. And what better way to break in a pair of trail-walker shoes than to hit the local hiking trails for a couple hours?
[img width=700 height=343]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/gilhike1-1-2015pano_zps69f39408.jpg?t=1420236340[/img]
Always insist on 100% natural lens flare! J.J. Abrams eat your heart out!
With some daylight to spare, I headed northward, eventually making it to the Cupertino store, where I grabbed:
[img width=585 height=544]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15i_zps717fa89d.jpg[/img]
Then it was the Mountain View Goodwill's turn, which yielded...
[img width=630 height=535]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15ja_zps397b89b0.jpg[/img]
I gave the Empire Strikes Back mini lunchbox tin to someone I knew would get a kick out of it:
[img width=426 height=522]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15jb_zpsb81e80ea.jpg[/img]
Oah! Appreciative of this gift I am! Very much thank you! Mmm-hmm-hmm, yes!
Up next was Sunnyvale, the original hometown of Atari, and the first Goodwill store I ever set foot in. This particular stop only yielded...
[img width=663 height=523]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15ka_zps94934123.jpg[/img]
...a CIB copy of Descent Freespace: Silent Threat for just $1.24? Now we're talkin'. But wait, what's this disclaimer on the package?
[img width=461 height=233]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15kb_zps79b8e553.jpg[/img]
Aw, maaaan... it's just an expansion? Well, that totally blows. Eon knows how many long hours I'll have to spend to find the main game that goes with--
[img width=568 height=475]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15kc_zpsf9d4a481.jpg[/img]
Oh wait, there it is; just had to flip the box over is all. Okay, never mind.
The final stop of the day would be the Palo Alto Goodwill. Located in "the birthplace of Silicon Valley," this store has yielded many of my greatest vidya scores over the last few years. This is where I found my first Miracle Piano, my Atari 2600 Jr., my first near-CIB Dreamcast, and countless games and portable consoles. Its constant supply of the good stuff, friendly and helpful staff, and close proximity to my workplace has kept me coming back on a very regular basis. Culminating my New Year's thrifting odyssey here seemed to make all the sense in the world. And yet... it could very well have been the worst time to have come. For one thing, the place had been open for business all day, and the sun had set two hours earlier. If there had been anything there at the start of the day that I would have been interested in, surely it would have long since been sold and out the door? Undaunted, I ventured inside.
A bad omen appeared right away: the electronics showcase couldn't be unlocked because someone had misplaced the key. Inside that case, mocking me in deafening silence, was a CIB copy of Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness. Oh, the horror. What kind of loving God would allow this to happen, I lamented. Adding insult to injury, one of the clerks said he was sure he saw a copy of Twilight Princess for Game Cube somewhere in there. That's when I realized that there is no God.
Theological dilemmas notwithstanding, I looked around the place, hoping to find something worthy of purchase. After several minutes of fruitless searching, I conceded defeat, and headed for the exit. I was just about to open the door when I took a quick look at the front-end display case... and caught a glimpse of something. My curiosity piqued, I took a closer look, and grinned from ear to ear when I realized that I'd discovered...
[img width=560 height=483]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15la_zps5adf7f41.jpg[/img]
...a loose limited-edition Fire Emblem Awakening 3DS with Pokemon X card? Aw hellz yeah! Now I know what you're asking yourself right now... and here's the answer:
[img width=614 height=523]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/newyr15lb_zps5bd8ddd0.jpg[/img]
($11.19 after discount)
If that isn't the greatest capper ever to an amazing thrift crawl, then I don't know what is. And if the first day of 2015 is any indication, it's gonna be
The BEST YEAR EVAR!!!11one1one1!!!1one!1!!!!
I can hardly wait to see what I'll bump into next. And I bet you can hardly wait, either. Worry not, for I'll keep you in he loop.
Until next time...
...'Late
SEVEN-DAY SCORE CARD:
HARDCORE HANDHELD HARDWARE HAVOC AND THE GREAT RETRO GAMBLE
Week of 4 May to 10 May 2014
No big blustery fanfare this week; let's just get right down to it.
Sunday 4 May & Monday 5 May: I started the week with a meal-break run to my workplace Goodwill, which yielded a crimson DS Lite with charger along with Mario Kart 8, Pokemon SoulSilver, New Super Mario Bros., Nintendogs Lab & Friends, Lego Star Wars, and Lego Batman, for $19.99 all told.
More handheld hardware fell into my... um, hands the following day as I hit the local Savers and grabbed a loose PSP with Lumines UMD for $19.99, along with a Mattel Hockey handheld for $2.99. Also found was a CIB Metroid Prime 3 for $2.99.
[img width=597 height=514]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Score5-4amp5-5_zps7892fdf9.jpg[/img]
But if you think the first two days had impressive handheld hardware scores, just you wait...
Tuesday 6 May:: This was the day for $1.99 CIB PC game pickups, as I grabbed Giants: Citizen Kabuto, KKND X-Treme, and a sealed LucasArts Archives release of Star Wars Force Commander. The latter pickup was especially odd, seeing as how I just got the original version at the same Savers the week before...
I also discovered a sealed Wheel of Fortune TV Games plug-and-play dealie for $3.99. Then there were the four books for $10: strats for Mass Effect 3, Halo Wars, and a limited-edition Final Fantasy XII, along with The Making of DOOM 3.
[img width=683 height=486]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Score5-6-2014_zpsc13f2557.jpg[/img]
Wednesday 7 May & Thursday 8 May: After taking a breather on Wednesday, I resumed the hunt and discovered a Special Edition copy of Perfect Dark Zero for $3.95, CIB Borderlands 2 for $1.99, CIB Thunder Strike: Operation Phoenix for $3.99, and a Sega Genesis Super Pad for $4.99.
[img width=556 height=471]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Score5-8-2014_zpsab2d905c.jpg[/img]
Friday 9 May: A lunch break trip to my fave Goodwill yielded a black 3DS with charger for $69.99, and a Korean Onyx DS Lite for $13.49. Also included with each handheld was a flash drive card and Micro SD card.
[img width=612 height=468]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Score5-9-2014a_zps77aae83b.jpg[/img]
[img width=414 height=287]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Score5-9-2014b_zps4a4a04ba.jpg[/img]
Saturday 10 May: It was back to my fave Goodwill, where I took a big risk on this grab that I teased on Small Scores a few days ago:
[img width=548 height=484]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/mystery_zps84edc1ce.jpg[/img]
At a penny under $70 and non-returnable, it's the biggest thrifting gamble I've made this year.
[img width=606 height=387]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Score5-10-2014c_zps4e092766.jpg[/img]
And now, the full reveal...
[img width=343 height=581]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Score5-10-2014a_zpse074add8.jpg[/img]
...a compact junior-sized Atari 2600 with three joysticks, AV cord, and twelve game carts.
While I felt the asking price was fairly high, I'd just gotten my state tax refund check the day before, and I figured why not treat myself. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that all twelve games in the bundle were not in my collection previously, not even Centipede, Dig Dug, or Ms. Pac-Man. I coulda sworn I had Pole Position, but after checking my collection page before updating it... um, nope. So if nothing else, at least I significantly expanded my personal library of 2600 carts.
[img width=649 height=518]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/score5-10-2014b_zpse717b166.jpg[/img]
Now you probably noticed that this bundle of retro madness was held together with packing tape... which kinda sucked. The tape was so sticky that my initial attempts to remove it from the paper labels on the console and cartridge end labels didn't go over too well:
[img width=484 height=371]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Score5-10-2014g_zps89e4bd2f.jpg[/img]
[img width=419 height=306]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/score5-10-2014i_zps1add2428.jpg[/img]
So I decided to quit before I did more damage, grabbed an X-Acto blade, and carefully cut around the edges of the labels that got taped.
[img width=487 height=275]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Score5-10-2014h_zps6b65d05d.jpg[/img]
BTW does anybody know if the plastic covering the rainbow part of the console is lamination, or just a protective plastic film to be removed by the user? 'Cuz I've got some major bubbling action goin' on, and it's not very attractive:
[img width=681 height=231]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Score5-10-2014f_zps873523e1.jpg[/img]
And now the million-dollar question minus $999,930.01: does it actually work?
You'll find out soon enough... 
NON-VIDYA BONANZA: It's the usual suspects again; I just hope Mr. Nupoile can practice some self-control this week...
[img width=424 height=483]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y409/Zagnorch/Nonvidya5-8-2014_zps36853043.jpg[/img]
Hawt.
- TI-82, TI-83, and TI-83 Plus graphing calculators, $9.00 for all
- HDMI cable, $2.99
- Electronic talking pokedex thingy, $2.49
Well, that's about it for now. But before I go, please note that there will be no Seven-Day Score Card blog next week. Instead, a tribute to one of the greatest masterpieces in cinematic history-- and some of the video games it inspired-- will be presented. Be sure to check it out, and I'll see you again in two weeks with a double-sized episode of Seven Fourteen-Day Score Card, only on the RFG Network!
Byee
Hey now!
Ever since Shadow Kisuragi started posting the GameCenter CX series on RFG, I've been absolutely captivated by the Kacho and his valiant efforts to conquer the most maddeningly difficult old school retro games ever produced. So much so, in fact, that I've started watching the later shows on YouTube.
However, if you think I'm gonna horn in on Shadz's action by posting GameCenter CX episodes on my blog, you've got another thing comin'. As far as I'm concerned, that's Shadz's prerogative, and I'm not gonna play a fellow 'Generator like that. More importantly, however, the dude's part of the site admin, which means he most likely has access to the dreaded RFG banhammer. So it's a really good idea for me--and all of you as well--to stay on his good side. Ya dig? 
Well, actually I am horning in on the action, albeit in a roundabout way: by posting a few of the 3DS commercials Arino has starred in. Much like GameCenter CX itself, the commercials show the beloved Kacho failing hard, yet taking it all in stride with that happy-go-lucky demeanor his fans have come to know and love.
Anyway, enjoy:
http://www.youtube.com/wa...ch?NR=1&v=IO0Pni5QYiA
BTW am I the only one who'd like to see Arino try to play a retro game while drunk? Tell me that wouldn't be the greatest thing ever...
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