What did you get for Christmas?

[Justin]

HAPPY 2019! I hope everyone had a warm, relaxing and joyous holiday season! I thought it might be fun to share any fun or interesting presents we may have received (or given!) I have a few below that I am excited to share with you.

We ended up making this a "Sears Christmas" as it may be Sears' last. Growing up, it seems like a lot of birthday and Christmas presents came from Sears. So many childhood Christmas lists came from flipping through the Sears Wish Book and marking the toys and games I dreamed of. Of course we know the Sears connection to Atari history and how they were very helpful in Atari's early retail success. I have an immense fondness of Sears and hate to see them go. Although I haven't shopped at Sears as often in recent years, I go out of my way to give them my business for tools, their auto center, lawn and garden, and anywhere else where they were still offering stellar service, even if it meant paying a dollar or two more than the big box stores.

I'm not a mechanic or anything, but it's a good idea for any homeowner to have a basic set of good tools around. I have that brand loyalty to Sears and have been wanting to get a set of Craftsman tools for a while. Fearing there wouldn't be any Sears' left I went to our local Sears to build a nice set of tools a few months back, only to walk in and find that my store was already closing and they were halfway through liquidating the store. Fortunately for Christmas I received the Craftsman screwdriver set I had wanted! Now I just need to get a classic red Sears Craftsman tool box! FYI Craftsman tools are now sold through ACE Hardware, Lowe's Home Improvement, and some other places, but for nostalgia and loyalty alone I wanted to have tools that would last a lifetime that I knew came from Sears. Maybe heirlooms to pass on in 50 years.

Here is the 28-piece screwdriver set I received:

 

I also received a beautiful new pressure washer that I've been meaning to get for the longest time!

 

I also received some fun classic gaming-themed trinkets, like this Pac-Man wireless Bluetooth speaker that I'll put in my game room

 

Then on the 26th I was at Target and found just one of these babies left on the store shelf marked down to half price. This was the first time I had ever seen one of these in person and it ended up being a little present to myself 😎 Those who know me know I'm far more focused on collecting original games and bits of Atari history rather than Flashback and Mini consoles, but being marked down made this desirable for me to use in another room and would make it easier for me to join in on High Score Squad Challenges! So I bought one, no regrets.

 

And then finally I received the Retro Series version of Sorry! from Parker Brothers based on the 1958 Edition of Sorry! Do any of you like to collect and play classic board games? I've always loved board games and have wanted to do more board game stuff in the forums. I received a retro edition of Mastermind two Christmases ago and that started my new collection of classic board games. I lost a lot of my original board games during a move about ten years ago that included board games that my parents and grandparents had growing up. I think it's cool that Hasbro has made this Retro Series available en masse at a good price for all.

 

Also this shelving the Sorry! game is sitting on was actually a Christmas present too. This rack fits in my soon-to-be arcade room and will allow storage for snacks and drinks below, games above, and the middle shelf will be tall enough to accommodate a classic system or two with Sony Trinitron PVM monitors to give it that retro game room feel. 

All in all it was a wonderful Christmas! Did any of you receive or give anything interesting this holiday season that you'd like to share? I hope 2019 is a stellar year for all! Wishing all of you a year of happiness, health, and the inspiration to follow your dreams.

[RickR]

Great stuff!  I've got some good news for you too.  The Craftsman name will live on.  They sell Craftsman tools at Lowes now.  Sadly, the Sears here are all gone. 

I didn't get much gaming-wise this Christmas, but my kids did get me this custom "Lillard-Time" watch.  The best player from my beloved Portland Trailblazers.

 

[nosweargamer]

I showed what I got in this video (along with some pickups)

 

[Atari 5200 Guy]

Well, the STE was suppose to be part of what I got but, good news, a really nice replacement is on its way.  Other items included a new Pac-Man shirt, a Moose Union Suit (feels like getting a hug from a teddy bear when wearing it, warm too!), GTA V for 360, a new Dickens jacket, a step ladder, and after Christmas I took up GameStop's buy 2 get 1 free offer and found the entire Mass Effect series for $10.  Even the manager couldn't figure that one out because he said, and I quote, "We have the boxed trilogy set for $30 but he just got the same thing buying them individually for $10?  Doesn't make sense."  I agree but more power to me.

Our Sears store left in May and we just lost Payless Shoes before Christmas Day.  Our area is dwindling down on options for places to go to get gifts.  It's either Wal-Mart or travel to another town or order online.

Edited January 1, 2019 by kamakazi20012