Well, it's all over. I just sold the last bit of my collection on ebay. It has been a long, hard process, but I finally got through it. Most of my friends never imagined that I could actually go through with selling all my stuff. Now granted, I didn't sell everything, but I have moved at least 75% of what I owned.

I don't know what it was. Maybe I am getting older. Maybe video games just don't hold my attention like they used to. Or maybe, I just needed the space and the money. Maybe all the reasons are a factor. Who knows? But all I do know is that I sold some stuff that really was hard for me to let go.

But on the bright side, I did keep all my next gen stuff. And I did use the money I made to make some nice upgrades (i.e. Sharp Aquos LCD).

But you know, with all the consoles embracing retro gaming through various downloadable content, I just did not see the need to keep all that stuff. And, I had so many games that I hadn't even played yet, that I didn't foresee having the time to even get to them all. I mean, in my PS2 collection that I sold, 17 of the 38 games in the collection had not even been opened...still sitting there in the factory wrapping, collecting dust.

So, I guess you can say that I have let go of the past...embraced the future.

Finally, I got an Xbox 360 today. After hearing a rumor from a friend that ebGames and Gamestops were getting a fresh shipment in, I decided to check it out. Well, needless to say, I got the same song and dance I had been getting for the last month "we will be getting some in a couple weeks, but we still have preorders to fill". So I found out the hard way that the rumor I heard was false. I wasn't out much, just a half hour trip to the nearest town with an ebGames. I have been on vacation all week, just chillin' and playin' videogames all the time, so it was good to get out for a while.

Well, since I was already out anyway, I figured I might as well check a few other places and see if I could get lucky. I first stopped at Best Buy. I checked out all the games and looked at some that I want to buy, but didn't cause remember, I am looking for a 360 (and I am thinking, yea, like I am really gonna get one). So after going through my wish list over and over in my head, I finally find a sales rep to ask them that question that seems to have been burned into my memory, "Do you have any Xbox 360's and if not when will you get some in?" As always has been the case since 11/22/2005, I got this answer, "No, we don't have any now and we're not sure when we will get anymore." I think his answer was burned into his mind as much as my question was. So, I put my hands in my pockets, which is normal for me when I am facing dejection, and begin my journey out the door.

Logically, my next stop was Toys r' us since it is right next door to Best Buy. It is early in the morning and the store hasn't been open long, so it is eerily quite. I walk back to the games section. I start looking at the game shelves, and it seems that maybe they are trying to sell out their stock. Most of the shelves are near empty in certain areas. PS2 and Xbox games are nearly depleted, and as far as Xbox 360 games go, there were hardly any at all. So I am thinking that I shouldn't even waste my time in here. So, I am just about ready to leave when I see the young girl working the games section step behind the counter. So I say, what the heck, I am here, I might as well ask. So I walk up to the counter preparing myself for the standard answer to my question. I ask her if they have any in and her answer almost causes me to pass out. She looks at me and says, "Why yes, we got two in this morning." Now I am thinking maybe she didn't hear my question. So I kinda give her a blank stare, you know, the one that says I JUST CAN'T BELIEVE MY EARS look. Finally, after picking myself up off the floor, I asked her if they are core or premium units. She tells me that they got one of each. So my next obvious question is "They are for sale, right? I mean, they are not promised for preorders or anything?" After answering that question with a resounding "No", I promptly tell her to go get the premium unit cause I'm a buyer :-).

Well, she is gone for what seems like ten minutes, so now I am thinking "She has made a mistake, I knew this was too good to be true." But just as I got that thought in my head, here she comes with what seems like Sir Galahad's grail, complete with strange aura ;-). They made me buy a service contract with it before they would sell it to me, but that is a whole other story. I was just happy to get my paws on one, I didn't care.

I was so happy. I was ready to get home and try it out. So far, it has been everything I had imagined. I got Project Gotham Racing 3 to go with it and I stopped by the local BlockBuster and rented NBA2K6. Both games look phenomenal. Well, looks like the Final Fantasy XI beta for the 360 has finally finished installing (whew that took a long time), so it is time to get back to work....I mean, play :-)