Astor Reinhardt

Alcohol and q-tips.

Doesn't get the game working every time though...I've even boiled the pin connector after getting fed up with the NES not working...but it's still iffy. Damn thing.

I broke one of my back molars a few weeks ago and it's been giving me a hell of a time. I went to the dentist and they said I need a root canal. However my insurance only covers FRONT teeth root canals...like seriously? So I'm looking at about $1,800. I just don't have that kind of money and neither do my parents. So I can't get them to go halfway on it with me. By the time I'd save up the money...my roots would be dead and the tooth wouldn't be saveable...according to the dentist...I only have a limited amount of time to save this tooth.

I've tried calling all the dentists in my area and even some dental schools. I found one school that could do it pretty damn cheap but the waiting list? 14 months. They said it is case by case so I MIGHT get in earlier then that but...idk if what's going on counts as an "emergency" to bump me up the list.

There is one other dental clinic that is also fairly low cost but they only take adults on Mondays and only for a few hours in the morning. Now this is fine and well but as my mother pointed out, there's probably a lot of people like me who's insurance won't cover things that are waiting to get helped. So I might not even get in.

My last option...and one I don't want to do...is having it pulled. I've already had the two back teeth on both sides pulled because they needed root canals and I couldn't take the pain. This time around though I'm hoping to get something from my doctor that'll take the edge off. Haven't talked to the doctor yet but I'm going to see him on the 11th. Anyways, since I'm already missing the back tooth, I really don't want to have them pull this one, it doesn't seem like a good idea. But I really don't know what to do here. And the worst part is I just noticed on the same tooth but on the otherside...has some black on it and the start of a hole. I don't think it goes all the way to the roots but...idk. There's no pain on that side so...maybe a good sign? I'm hoping it's just a cavity. I'll have to have the dentist look at that tooth too when I go in to get whatever done.

So my question is this, if you were me...what would you do? Pull it? Try for the dental clinic and wait in line, hoping you get in? Or something else? Also any dentists here want to chime in on anything I should try to ease the pain in this tooth while I figure out what to do? I've been popping Advil like it's candy and it sort of helps, but not enough. Or just...maybe telling me what that black spot is...is it a cavity and I'm ok or is the start of a hole a bad sign?

Pictures aren't showing up for me OP.

Why do I collect?

Well it started out because I watched AVGN and Pat The NES Punk videos and got hit with nostalgia over those old games. I wanted to replay them. It grew from that to collecting the games my mom never let me own (Castlevania, Contra, Megaman...) and it grew from that to owning every game ever made...yeah. $11,500 later...and I learned some expensive lessons. I don't buy every game anymore. I have a fairly complicated but strict set of rules I go by when I buy something.

But diving down deeper then that surface answer...I'm depressed. I hate my life right now. There are things I can't change about my life, and there are some I can. I'm working on a few of them. So collecting and playing games is an escape from my horrible reality. It's not just "boo hoo, the world is so hard"...I have a lot of pain/health issues and just getting out of bed in the morning is sometimes more then I can manage. So any escape is welcome. It's a miracle I haven't turned to drugs and booze. Collecting is my vice...healthier then some other vices. Anyways, it helps me escape into my childhood, where I was happier and less worn out. My childhood wasn't amazing but damn it was better then this. So I try to recapture those memories any way I can. Playing games I played back then helps...so does surrounding myself with things from my childhood...not just video games but toys, movies, books and so on and so forth from the 90s (and 80s since I had a lot of stuff from the 80s even though I was born in 91.)

How do I determine what to collect?

For NES/SNES/N64 it's easy. I'm after every game...twice. One is CIB, one is loose with manual. CIB is for preservation reasons/ego stroking and loose with manual is to play. Loose cart conditions can be worse then CIB carts. Since I plan on playing them only...so I call them my "playing condition" games. These can have flaws like torn labels, yellowed plastic...so on and so forth. So long as most of the label is readable, the plastic isn't missing chunks and it will actually work...I'm fine with whatever condition. Manuals however need to be in pretty good shape as I plan on actually reading them and handling them. CIB games...don't have to be mint (can't afford that!) but they need to be in good shape as it's about preservation...and yes some ego stroking. The only other system I'm after every game for is the Atari 2600. But I'm not picky...they can be in any condition, complete or not...just so long as they play. And I'm not actively going for it...I pick up games when I see them, but I don't worry about it.

Now for other systems...it varies. Handhelds (excluding DS/3DS/PSP/Vita) I get loose games, sometimes buying CIB if I manage to find it and usually for a game I really love (since CIB handheld stuff is expensive and hard to find). I'm going for exclusives to the systems and my favorites. DS/3DS/PSP/Vita, exclusives and favorites...but they need to be CIB. I have bought some games loose but only rare ones I got a sweet deal on...like Izuna for the DS. But trying to find someone selling a case with the manual for that game is freaking impossible...which is why I don't like buying loose. That and the games are tiny!

Disc based games are the same as the DS/3DS/PSP/Vita. CIB only unless very rare and very cheap. Exclusives and favorites. When I say favorites I mean like Fallout 3/Fallout NV. I own them on the PS3/360 and PC. And variations of those, Collectors Editions, GOTY edition and base game.

What drives my decisions?

I've already touched on this in both of the previous questions. It's a form of coping for me and it's also about preserving games. When I die...there's a few things that I want to happen, depending on when I die/who I leave behind. If I die while my parents are alive...I want them to sell the games. All of them. Use the money to have fun...take a trip, spoil themselves because I know they never do. If I die alone, without anyone to leave anything to, I want my games to go to a gaming museum. They can use them however they see fit...hopefully putting some on display and continuing to preserve them. If I die without children but married, my collection will go to my husband who will either donate them to a museum or play them. If I die with children, I want them to have my collection...IF they actually show interest in keeping it/using it. If not, it goes to a museum.

It boils down to I want the games to go on to be preserved, long after I'm dead. Unless someone I know and love is willing to take care of the collection and pass it along when they pass...except in the case of me dying before my parents. This could be health issues or mental health issues catching up to me...or just fate royally fucking me. Either way, I know they don't spend time on themselves...they're miserable. Dad works himself almost to death on his stupid projects...and mom is as unhealthy as I am. They need to take a break and have fun while they still can. I hate seeing them like this. I don't think my collection is worth a ton...and honestly my mom would have to be the one to sell it all...idk if she'd get top dollar or not...listing everything on eBay would be a bitch. But it's probably a few thousand...enough for a small trip somewhere for a few days...something is better then nothing. My last good deed, my last goodbye and my last gift to them.

And wow that's all super depressing to read and think about huh? Whoops.

I still collect for last gen. Not so much the Wii U, simply because I don't own a system/can't find games cheap locally. I have a handful of titles for it but nothing compared to my 360 or even PS3 library. The 360 I've really taken to...mostly because my PS3 is an overheating PoS and I can't play on it now unless I want to risk bricking it. I have to take it apart, clean it and put new thermal paste on. It's just...scary. I don't want to risk fucking it up since it's my original one my mom got me for Christmas when it first came out. Lot of good memories on it.

But neither my 360 or PS3 are hooked up to the internet and I can still play games just fine without patches/bug fixes.

I've never bid on something unless I was 100% sure I wanted it. I don't like bidding anyways since snipers...and bidding wars...hate em. I usually do BINs or suffer without.

I guess I need to up my storage game. I'm storing most of my carts in a generic tub that doesn't fit them very well...but it's super deep so I was able to get most of my carts into two tubs. They're just sitting in the middle of my room...reminding me daily of how much I need to finish my game room...

Just now, Quack said:

TV Guides, I have 1981-1989 complete, and will have 1980 soon as well.  Found a collector from an older issue and have been in contact for about 5 years now working on a full decade and then decide where to go from there.

Blu-ray's and DVD's still, love my physical media.

TV guides huh? Never heard of anyone collecting those. But then again I don't know of anyone who collects vintage Christmas housekeeping magazines from the 1950s like I do...

1 minute ago, drxandy said:

Oo so organized and shiny, I need to go through and clean mine they're all oxidized quite a bit. I dig it!!

I tried to organize them by area, but the last one I added needs to be near the top with the rest of my WA state ones (I made it at the state fair this year). Several of these are pretty old, and before I got this album I didn't keep them any place special or anything...so idk why mine are all nice looking...guess I was lucky? I do try to find the shiniest pennies I own before I press them however so perhaps that helps?

2 minutes ago, drxandy said:

Ooo nice a book! I need to step up my ziplock baggie hahah

Officially it's a "coin album". Snapped some low quality pics quickly of it to give you an idea. And to show off the single pressed quarter and dime I own.

On 10/28/2019 at 12:11 AM, Jono1874 said:

Super Play Action Football is actually pretty decent. At least, as far as I recall.

I miss finding cartridge games in thrift stores. I lived within walking distance of 3 thrift stores a few years back. I would visit each one every 2 or 3 weeks.i only ever found 1 Nintendo 64 game in the full year that I did that before moving.

Really? The only "good" sports game I've heard about is NBA Jam on the SNES. I just don't like sports in general...I find them dull lol. Racing games are about as close as you'll get to get me interested in playing them but...I have set myself the goal of playing every NES/SNES/N64 game at least once, just to give them all a fair chance...even the crap ones.

On 10/28/2019 at 1:34 AM, a3quit4s said:

I wonder if regular people are starting to figure out not every game has value, especially sports games and pricing them accordingly 

Jeez I hope so...lol.

On 11/2/2019 at 8:17 PM, Ghost Soldier said:

I collect quite a few things including multiple toy lines. I still collect Hot Wheels, MOTU, TMNT, and anything Jurassic Park. I'm also fond of collecting old electronics like boomboxes and computers. I've acquired my first Ford Mustang and have been restoring it. This has lead to searching out Mustang merchandise to spruce up the garage. 

I have some old electronics. Some radios, my mom's old portable brick cell phone, our old video camera...I wish I could find old computers, I just haven't managed to find any.

On 11/2/2019 at 8:41 PM, N64 Gamer said:

Other than video games, I’m really into manga, anime and light novels. I especially like to buy manga from niche titles that aren’t super popular, because I want to support the authors since they don’t earn a whole lot of money either way.

The only niche manga I get is...uh...18+ stuff lol. No seriously. Some of those are low print runs and hard to find. Specifically the stuff I'm into (MxM).

On 11/3/2019 at 12:02 AM, NeXmetal said:

I decided to start collecting Nintendo pens lol

Neat! I didn't know these were a thing!

On 11/3/2019 at 10:11 AM, The Strangest said:

I don’t know if this will be a thing I actively start collecting but I bought some casino chips. I found a booth at an antique store that sold coins and apparently casino chips are a newish subset of coin collecting.

I just like the aesthetic of them I guess, which is odd to me because despite loving Vegas when I went, I didn’t gamble much because after losing $30 I wanted to burn down the casino in frustration.

The one and only time I've been to Vegas was when I was too damn young to do anything but sit in the food area by myself and seethe. That was annoying. Since then I have been to the local Native American casino a few times and have played the slots...I don't wanna touch the other games. I've won and lost...nothing major...but it's extremely addictive and I have an addictive personality so it's dangerous to go there lol.

On 11/3/2019 at 1:18 PM, drxandy said:

I too am an elongated penny collector, hay guys!! Been since childhood, not very serious until I'm in some museum, theme park, etc and then I try to get all the cool ones but never every single design.

Theme park merch: if I find any cool merch at the thrifts from cedar point or really any of the theme parks I've been to I try and snag it up.

Shoes: mainly vans

CDs: collected as a kid, sold off in the 2000s and then started back up. Always looking for music.

Vinyl: mainly from shows I've attended, lots of memories in my collection for sure

Started getting cassettes recently, probably have about 30/40 of em

Those are it, I've dabbled with other things in the past but tried to limit to things I really love.

I've been collecting pressed pennies since I was a kid too. Mostly from WA state places but I have a few from outside the state when me and my parents went on a road trip to visit my dad's family for Thanksgiving one year...

Sadly I know I used to have more of them but I've misplaced them over the years...a few years ago my mom got me a little booklet you can keep them in (and it has spots for smaller/larger pressed coins as well). So whatever I have left, I've stored in there and I keep putting them in there when I get them.

I got super excited but then I realized...limited amounts...what are the chances I'd get them? This stuff will probably sell out fast because nostalgia...so I'm actually going to skip it...as weird as that is for me to say...since this just appeals to me so damn much.

I've only had a few chances to play pinball as they're not very common and I suck at it. One I remember playing on was an Austin Powers one. Love the movies so I decided to play on it. It was in Cali at a motel me and my parents were staying at for the night on our way back home...they had a pool, some vending machines and this pinball machine so I played a little on it.

A handful of years ago, I played the magical game known as "Fallout 3". Before that, PC gaming meant to me...Team Fortress 2 and other Valve games. But...Fallout 3 blew me away. It was the game of my dreams. I LOVE post apocalyptic/apocalyptic/dystopian stuff...movies, books, games...love em. So this game was right up my alley. I was just fresh from playing Team Fortress 2 so I thought...why not play a doctor character (since I mained Medic in those days). And thus Astor Reinhardt was born.

Over the years I've fine tuned him, putting him into every Fallout game since then (Fallout NV really added a lot for my character). My avatar is of the Fallout 3 version, just fresh from the vault, still wearing the vault lab coat.

So no, he's not from Full Metal Alchemist. Yes he does look a lot like that guy, but no, he's not. I've never even watched that anime. I commissioned an artist to make this avatar YEARS ago and I guess they drew inspiration from that anime. If I had an ounce of talent, I'd redraw him so no one would think he was from the anime...but I don't so there we are.

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