No, I’m not quitting on SFC 😉 Don’t you worry about that, I’ll be around doing this for a good while yet.
But, in order to stick to this decision I’ve made, I’ve got to make it publically… then you can all help me hold to it 😉 *lol*
As you probably know, over the years I’ve spent a lot of time and money gathering Shining goodies to add to my collection, scan, share with fans, give as prizes etc. A month or so ago I sent off payment to my good friend Rei for a bunch of items from Japan, totalling around UK£300 (US$600). There are more on the way, and another bill of course… Now, this is of course no gripe at Rei, in fact I owe him huge thanks for all his help over the years in getting me this stuff, and asking very little in return – favours only, never extra money. Thanks so much, my good friend 😀
Having moved from the flat to our house earlier in the year, our budget took a major dive, with the mortgage doubling, along with extra taxes, higher bills and so on. We’ve also had to do a lot to the house, and still have more to go. I’ll never save up for a new kitchen if I keep going with Shining stuff at this rate… it’s actually quite a tough call as to which I’d prefer 😉
However, the nearer the release of Shining Force NEO draws, the more I find my heart sinks as I realise there’ll be more things to collect. It’s been bad enough with all the Shining Tears stuff I’ll never afford and so many I’ll never even find (signed stuff, one-offs etc). I looked on Yahoo! Japan the other day and found a set of promotional fliers/posters for SF NEO, and for the first time I honestly thought ‘I really don’t want to have to get these…’ – everything I’ve seen and heard about the game sickens me that much. I don’t want posters of those damn eyebrows everywhere! I know, it may yet turn out to be a fantastic game, unlikely though it is… but I think I need to draw the line at Shining Tears, as far as collecting goes. I’ll still pick up the new games, and books to scan if I can afford them, a few bits and pieces as contest prizes… but the collecting has to stop somewhere. Odds and sods from earlier games may crop up, and I’ll try to get them if they’re within the budget. But, I can’t afford to go nuts on all this stuff anymore, much as the obsessive, stubborn part of me would like to. Hell, I’ve not been able to afford it for a long time, but still I got the stuff, hence the new kitchen fund is down to 0 again 😉 Huge lack of control on my part there, but anyone who knows me knows how obsessive I am about this stuff. I feel very fortunate that I can count on SFCers to help with the hosting costs each year, Zod knows I can’t afford it myself anymore.
Man, it’s tough having to put this decision in writing… part of me doesn’t want to stick to it, even though I hate the look of the new game.
There are a lot of things I know I’ll never get: the Yog figure, SFII Calendar, Signed PD, Tony hand-drawn illustrations, Gaiden II T-Shirt, and more. They’re just too rare. However, since I’m enjoying Shining Tears so much, I’d like to at least get a bit closer to completing my set of Shining Tears items… which means getting hold of a set of the phonecards. I’ve found one – at US$450! >.<;; US$100 I could probably get away with, due to a bit of extra work I had before Xmas... but that leaves me somewhat short. So, here's the cheeky bit... anyone want to help ol' Moogs top off her collection and put a big ol' smile on her face? If I can get some contributions in and manage to get the set before someone else snaps it up, I'd have a few spare items to offer to random contributors - a couple of A4 plastic files fearuring Elwing, a couple of promo DVDs and some limited edition memory card stickers. If I get donations, but not enough to buy the set, or someone beats me to it, the money would go towards the next hosting bill (which I'll have to put out another beg for anyway nearer the time, I'm sure). Yes, I know, I'm a cheeky cow. Anyhoo, anyone who's got some spare cash (any millionaires here?) can check out the Support page for more info on sending funds 😉 Figured I’ve got nothing to lose by asking 😆
Well, not sure if I’ll post anything else before the end of the year, so if not, here’s wishing you all a very happy new year. Don’t drink too much, keep safe. See you in 2005! I hope it’s better than last year…
Will try to get some decent updates done in January, once Lee’s back at work!