VaultBox Mosaic

Lol, I was telling Catherine just a little bit ago, “I have to update my coin friends”.

We opened our three coins yesterday afternoon, then got bombarded with trick or treaters, then our niece came over and stayed until it was time to go to bed. Today we woke up and got to work on cleaning the house. We’re finally relaxing now and I figured it was a good time to get the reveal done.

This VaultBox adventure was a losing venture. We were not as lucky as @wxcoin getting two red cores. We didn’t even get one red core! Yep, three black cores this time out, though I’ll say we got some pretty cool pieces, not just some common silver dollars.

First one we opened up was the IHC error. The oldest error coin I’ve held and I’ll keep this one. The second one opened was another IHC, the 1864 L on ribbon piece. I have to get in to my registry set and see what is in this slot to see if this one is higher or not. The last box opened revealed the Arkansas half. I have one of these in my early commemorative registry set and this one will be an upgrade.

We had fun with this again even though we lost money. As stated above, we could have drove an hour south and lost all this money at the casino…….. we sure wouldn’t have come home with these three coins!

 

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Like the old saying goes, in gambling the only real winner at the end of the day is the house.

 

That is exactly what I like about the "VaultBox Gamble" yeah you may lose, but even if you do you don't go home empty handed

 

Exactly what I don't like about it is, unless you're one of the lucky few, you're going to get something worth less than what you paid. Your hand is still emptier than it could have been; instead of those coins, you could have had those same coins plus the money you paid over what they're worth. Just save your money and buy those same coins directly elsewhere.

 

I get it, you don’t like gambling. Some of us do, and enjoy it win OR lose. It makes it more enjoyable knowing what the prizes are, not just trying to win your money back like at a casino.

I would never, never, save up the money to buy a 1792 half disme. It would be many years and I’d have to forego any and all other coin purchases in the meantime. In this “raffle” I had three chances at that coin.

 

And yet you still don't have it, so what does it matter that you could have? If I bought a lottery ticket and lost, it doesn't make the purchase price of the ticket a smart investment. And these things cost a lot more money than lottery tickets. If you paid $100 and got a $50 coin, the net result is no different than if you paid $50 and got nothing.

I'm reminded of an author's saying that "gambling isn't fun; winning is fun." The joy of winning doesn't make up for the pain of losing for me when it costs me money to play. Besides anything I own gives me more of a sense of pride that all of it is earned, and not something I have just because I got lucky.

Closest I'll get to "gambling" is roll hunting, because even at worst I'll at least break even.

In the end it's your money; do what you like. I'm not saying you and people that enjoy this are having "wrong fun" or anything. But it's never something I'll enjoy or understand. There's cheaper ways to have fun. I work hard for my money, only have so much of it I can afford to spend on luxuries, and I want to get every penny's worth when I buy something. Saving up for something I want is satisfying; spending money just for a chance to get something just isn't. Something I've earned will always be more satisfying to own for me than anything I got from luck.

 

That you don’t understand tells me a lot.

 

That you do, tells me a lot lol.

It's not like I can't intellectually wrap my head around the concept. I fully understand some people like things I don't, and don't like things I do. But it's not something I'll ever feel, if that makes sense.

At least a lack of the ability to enjoy gambling isn't a deficiency that will cost me anything lol.

 

Lol, I hear you, Troodon. I’ll admit that there was a time I wished that I lacked the ability as well. When I was younger there were times I gambled more than I could afford. That’s the gambling that all should be against.

 

I've never gambled at a casino but enjoy buying a scratch ticket now and then. Was that a "wise" investment with that money? Unless I got more in return than I invested then it was. The odds obviously would favor me not getting back what I spent. So logically it wasn't a good investment; especially if I was using money needed for myself and family to survive on. If I have extra money to spend, who's to judge what I spend it on. If what I spend it on isn't something that you would then who cares.

I hate it when people get on forums like this and have to make a point that they'd never spend their money on stuff like this. What's their point? To belittle those that do since they obviously aren't "good at math"? I think that we all know what we are doing and find some sort of enjoyment in doing it.

 

Intermittent reinforcement is a powerful behavioral technique for just about any critter capable of learning. Casinos understand this. So do TPGs.

 

Good call out, Jeff. You forgot to add my mother in law to your list!

 

Geez let a guy poke the pig and give em some love?

 

What's the point? To have a back-and-forth discussions where people can openly express their opinions, knowledge, and experience on the matter. That may possibly include opinions contrary to yours. That's the point of a forum, isn't it? Would be really boring if everyone here agreed on everything.

Like I said before if anyone enjoys this, it's their money. Doesn't mean I'm not allowed to express my opinion on the matter. To post on a public forum is to invite comment. Not all comments will be from people that agree with you.

If you genuinely enjoy it, why does it bother you if other people say they don't?

 

I was trying to stay civil before, but I think it’s fair to be direct now. It would have been fine to simply say, “Not my thing, but have fun,” and move on. Yes, the idea here is for people to share their opinions, knowledge, and experiences openly — and that includes those who actually understand the topic. You’ve mentioned that you don’t really grasp the core issue, so your comments come across less like discussion and more like thread-crapping. It gives the impression of talking down to others rather than contributing meaningfully.

 

A jab by weasel, straight right by Troodon! Feint and an uppercut by BuffaloHunter, Troodon responds with a flurry of jabs! BuffaloHunter ducks and comes up with a stiff left, Troodon dodges and misses with a roundhouse right. BuffaloHunter bobs and weaves, Troodon follows suit. WXCoin pops in with a vicious left hook countered by jeffB, while David Betts gives advice from outside the ropes! Troodon finishes the round with another stiff right hand, and back to their corners they go.
BuffaloHunter comes out fresh with a double right hand-jab followed by a straight left to the chin!

 

LOL

 

And here I thought we already reached the "let's agree to disagree" stage. I was trying to dismount somewhat gracefully, but oh well. I was bad at gymnastics.

I understand the core topic completely (I fully understand what this thing is; the only thing I don't "understand" is the urge to spend money on something where in all likelihood you're just going to get ripped off. And receiving something that's worth less than what you paid is precisely that, no matter how much you want to dress it up). I just don't agree. The basic fact is, that unless someone is lucky, they're going to get something of less worth than they paid. Pointing that out seems like a meaningful contribution to me; if I've saved anyone any money that would otherwise be considering this, my job is done. Anyone that wants to spend their money on that anyway, their money, their business. But there's plenty of other threads here where members point out things they believe to be wastes of money and advise people to not buy them. Why is what I did any worse than that? If anything I've held back quite a bit. I could be a lot more blunt if I wanted to.

I guess the only thing I don't really understand is why people feel a need to defend what they like against people saying they don't. Do people's enjoyment of a thing really depend on other people agreeing with them? I guess I can only speak for myself and say it's not the case for me.

But last thing I have to say on this issue in particular. Have a nice day.