I like both. Among Puzo's works though I like The Sicilian the best. Michael Corleone is just a minor character there, but you will gain a better understanding of his character after reading that one.

 

Oops, I’ve been incorrectly attributing that quote to Voltaire.

 

That’s not the first time I’ve heard someone with that opinion.

I just can’t do Marlon Brando as Vito. Christopher Reeve described him exactly as I thought he seemed in that role.

 

It would have been perfect if he had said that since Voltaire made his fortune rigging the lottery.

 

Everything about the lottery pisses me off… It’s a ridiculous habit and yet, yesterday while at the pharmacy picking up about six prescriptions (…from a doctor, obviously) in preparation for having surgery on my leg, the pharmacist was being a colossal prick and made me wait several hours to get confirmation to simply give me more of a medication I already take daily.

After he finally did, it hit me that I was standing in line behind a woman spending $20 to gamble her money away at a store which also sells cigarettes and alcohol because a hilariously obese pharmacist thought that it might be bad for me to take a few extra pills every day after having my hip cut open and put back together.

The world is a dumb place.

 

Amen

 

Good luck with your surgery and have a safe and quick recovery.

 

The lottery is a regressive tax on the poor. Poor people make up the majority of players so guess who loses the most? And the whole increased education funding is a scam.

 

Thanks, dude.

You know the Lake Wobegon Effect? I once read that something like 80% of people who play slot machines think that they’re up on the house, but in fact, only a fraction of one-percent really are.

It reminds me of how people try to spot scams in online sales: some people are better at it than others, but the only real criteria which you can use universally are 1) where the seller is based from and 2) what prices are they charging?

Because I’ve bought figures where everyone I talked to was sure it was a scam only for it to not be. And I’ve also bought from sellers on the ‘good list’ in the Ebay forum and had to file a PayPal claim.

At this point, I’ve basically just stopped buying FansToys figures on Ebay altogether.

 

I stopped buying FT figures on Ebay after my first try and getting a Lego (the second TF I bough), You don't need to be an expert to know that it simply is too dangerous for a number of different reasons (and I knew them, but I tried anyway to verify and confirm - today in a smilier situation I would not even try).

 

80% believing they will belong in the one percent is sadly the tale of overconfidence, something that's commonly found in America.

Speaking about buying FT figures on eBay, the golden period has long passed. Back in 2018, 2019, the following used to be very common: 15% Off Your Cart!*. Heck it's so common, we had a very active thread: eBay Flash Sale Discussion and Commentary Thread

Here's why it's SO AWESOME:
1. eBay wasn't charging tax back then.
2. Baba and other Chinese eBay sellers were selling FT figures for 15-20% off right off the gate.
3. You tack on 10% or 15% off on top of that already cheaper price, and now we are talking.
4. AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST, eBay would occasionally run the eBay bucks promotion at the same time, so you get to take off EVEN MORE from the price the next time around.

Thank you eBay, Baba, etc. I gorged like crazy during those days, and I have not regretted it.

 

I got a copy of Quietus way back before the pandemic hit the US in 2020 and a used copy of Hoodlum on the cheap in November of 2020, but those are the only two I’ve ever found on there.

The number of FT figures I’ve shopped for on Ebay? Probably in the dozens, I just never got past the viewing stage once Quietus took four months to show up and prices doubled by the time he got to me.

 

eBay is a cesspool now.

only good for ultra rare items one may want.

regular TF shopping?

nah.

 

Apache POs here: ATS变形玩具金刚第三方FansToys19 FT19 Apache FT19弹簧百丈跳-淘宝网

 

FT-07 Stomp (Reissue)


Run

 

Yeah there’s only maybe 5 people I would buy from on eBay that are China based at this point

 

Everyone get your pre-order in and then in a couple months realize they get everything 6 months later than everyone, cancel and go with someone that has it in stock! Get em while they’re hot!

 

Arrrgh! Giant cat!  

 

Just got 3 day notification from tcp for apache. Ft aint f'n around now

 

TCP just sent out a 3 day notice for a ton of figures. Seems like it was a system glitch.