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I stole a Gameboy Color 17 years ago, and I still feel guilty about it

Dishwalla

Banned
A lot of people in here claiming that they had something stolen 17 years ago
Was 2000 the golden age of thieving or something?

Things happen when you take coveted electronic devices to school. Kids today probably get their iPhones stolen, but back in high school in the early 2000s, it was a simpler time.
 
Kids need to learn to not leave their shit lying around. I teach my kids that there is a 99% chance if you leave something somewhere that it will get stolen.

I bet that kid who left his game boy there never made that mistake again. Hard lesson learned but better to do it at that age then later in life
 

Spukc

always chasing the next thrill
Kids need to learn to not leave their shit lying around. I teach my kids that there is a 99% chance if you leave something somewhere that it will get stolen.

I bet that kid who left his game boy there never made that mistake again. Hard lesson learned bit better to do it at that age then later in life

what a fucked up way to think
 
I used to steal the demo disks from Playstation mags at Walmart

Took the magazine from the rack, went to a deserted toy aisle, ripped the disk out and put it in my pocket.


now I feel bad :(
 

sensui-tomo

Member
what a fucked up way to think

Its not wrong though, go to a community college, and leave a game console/laptop(without a password lock on)/CC and Social security card on the table and go to the bathroom if you want to prove this way of thinking wrong. People steal shit, your way of thinking is naive. Better to teach children that there are those whom steal then to let them be naive and have their precious whatever stolen because they trusted people too much.
 

Spukc

always chasing the next thrill
Its not wrong though, go to a community college, and leave a game console/laptop(without a password lock on)/CC and Social security card on the table and go to the bathroom if you want to prove this way of thinking wrong. People steal shit, your way of thinking is naive. Better to teach children that there are those whom steal then to let them be naive and have their precious whatever stolen because they trusted people too much.
i live in one of those sick places where you can leave your backdoor open
 

ffvorax

Member
Well I actually got a purple game boy color that was left on a airplane and nobody came back to request it.... maybe purple gbc just get lost and change their master...
 

Mendrox

Member
i live in one of those sick places where you can leave your backdoor open

Good lord would Ibe afraid to do that. Where do you live? In Germany nobody does that lol strange to let your home door open... Hopefuly nobody will use that in your case. People plan robberies everywhere in the world.
 

Dehnus

Member
Kids need to learn to not leave their shit lying around. I teach my kids that there is a 99% chance if you leave something somewhere that it will get stolen.

I bet that kid who left his game boy there never made that mistake again. Hard lesson learned bit better to do it at that age then later in life

Whatever makes you sleep easier at night, mister "Five finger discount", no wonder you like BOTW so much.....:(.
 

Spman2099

Member
I'm not sure I consider that theft...

I stole a game from a friend when I was younger. It was a whole operation. I recruited another friend in that heist. At the time I was CONVINCED he stole it from me in the first place. I was sure I was reclaiming my own game. Now I am pretty sure that wasn't the case. It was a grade school witch hunt. Kids are stupid. That doesn't make it okay, but there isn't anything you can do to make it better. Welcome to the human experience.
 
what a fucked up way to think

It sure is.

I live in a fantastic neighborhood in Canada. I accidentally left my truck unlocked ONE time over night. My Ipod and all my change (approx. $25.00) was stolen. I would rather the world not be this way, but it is what it is. I will teach my kids to deal with it appropriately.
 

dlauv

Member
I sold my GameBoy Color to EB Games to buy this $25 dollar toy. I was still short a dollar after the trade.

bastard-action-figure-high-end-dark-schneider-jugulator-2.jpg

I wish I hadn't.

You should return it tho.
 

notsol337

marked forever
Kids need to learn to not leave their shit lying around. I teach my kids that there is a 99% chance if you leave something somewhere that it will get stolen.

I bet that kid who left his game boy there never made that mistake again. Hard lesson learned but better to do it at that age then later in life

Funnily enough, I left my gameboy in the glove compartment in my father's truck when I was 5. My Dad told me to take it inside, but we had just come home at 11pm, and would be back in the truck at 6am to go on a trip.

Someone broke into the truck and stole my gameboy. I don't leave ANYTHING in my vehicle anymore, and I'm almost a little paranoid. My poor little heart was broken. My family was pretty hard up at the time, and my Dad still decided to work overtime to get the money together to replace my gameboy... but I had to do lots and lots of chores to earn it back.

I learned several lessons from that, namely how to be responsible for my own items and the value of work. When he took me to buy another gameboy, I got to pick out which one I wanted from the case and I got to carry the money for it into the store and give it to the clerk. I was so proud of my work.
 

Kuraudo

Banned
If you feel like making amends would make you feel better (and if you can afford to), Child's Play have a list of hospitals and Amazon wish-lists you could buy a 3DS or something for.

But seriously, we all do stuff as kids and teenagers we're ashamed of in later years. A lot of people wouldn't count what you did as stealing and you've no way of knowing the rightful owner would have even gotten it back--it could have just ended up sitting in some lost property box for a few years before being thrown out.
 

Meffer

Member
I had my DS stolen during finals in highschool. I knew who did it because I could tell it was mine. He was such a shit.
 
Funnily enough, I left my gameboy in the glove compartment in my father's truck when I was 5. My Dad told me to take it inside, but we had just come home at 11pm, and would be back in the truck at 6am to go on a trip.

Someone broke into the truck and stole my gameboy. I don't leave ANYTHING in my vehicle anymore, and I'm almost a little paranoid. My poor little heart was broken. My family was pretty hard up at the time, and my Dad still decided to work overtime to get the money together to replace my gameboy... but I had to do lots and lots of chores to earn it back.

I learned several lessons from that, namely how to be responsible for my own items and the value of work. When he took me to buy another gameboy, I got to pick out which one I wanted from the case and I got to carry the money for it into the store and give it to the clerk. I was so proud of my work.

Yeah I had something similar done when I was younger too, though on a lesser scale. Someone stole my Mortal Kombat gold plated pog slammer. I was crushed, and they stopped carrying that item so I couldn't get another one. Great learning experience though!

On a side note, my original post sounds a little harsh, but I literally tell my kids "Don't leave your shit lying around or someone is going to steal it" lol.
 
I once stole a Voltorb Pokémon Card that would've cost me 50 cents.
I don't feel guilty about that.

I accidentally "stole" Yoshi's Cookie for Gameboy from a friend some 20 years ago who borrowed me it and moved away before I could give it back. I still have it.
I felt guilty for it but not anymore.
 

nikeboy94

Member
What you could do is go back to that store and put up a poster or something on a near by object saying "Did you lose a purple gameboy with Super Mario Land 17 years ago? If so contact me...blah blah...". Maybe even talk to the store staff and ask them if they have records dating back 17 years ago to someone reporting a missing/lost gameboy. You never know could be worth a shot. If you get lucky and someone turns up then you buy em a new system and return their gameboy if you still have it.

Or a simpler option would be to try to forgive yourself. You were pretty young bro, these things happen. It's still bad for what you did, but its good you've acknowledged that it was bad and haven't continued stealing stuff.

Anyways, they're just suggestions.
 

Shang

Member
take the game boy back to the store and put it back on the shelf. then some unsuspecting kid who doesn't know any better will come along and take it, thus starting the cycle anew.

that game boy color is 500 years old.
 

Poppy

Member
Who the hell leaves their backdoor open, let alone unlocked? Asking to be robbed.

meh, i dont lock my doors at all. i live in a small townhouse community and i just figure people would notice, plus i am more likely to lock myself out accidentally than get robbed

just the other day the maintenance man locked my door when he was done with the deadbolt while i was at work so i got stuck outside since i didnt have my keys. luckily i quickly learned from the internet how easy it is to bypass the sliding glass door i have in my kitchen so i broke in easily

meh, security
 

meppi

Member
i live in one of those sick places where you can leave your backdoor open

Hehe, I know how that feels.

After moving nearly two years ago, I forgetfully left the front door wide open for a whole night last summer.
Really made me jump the next day when I realised what I did.

If I did that in my old place, it would have been picked clean and the walls would have been covered in feces by the time I woke up.
 

joe2187

Banned
I have stolen many things in my life.

When I was younger I stole a copy of Seaman and Sega Bass fishing for dreamcast with fishing controller from a K-Mart.

I stole laser pointers from Ice cream trucks.

I've stolen from Hollywood videos video game store many times, A PS2 copy of Max Payne 1, MGS2 and Tekken 5. I do not regret stealing them.

I swiped a PSP from the school lost and found that wasnt mine.

I stole my cousins GBA while he was overseas in the Navy.

I would ask kids who bring their pokemon card collection with them to see their cards and secretly steal the "Shiny" ones while they were distracted....and then sell it back to them a couple days later, or to someone who would pay more. I do not regret doing this since I made a lot of money and kids are stupid.

Poverty is a helluva drug.
 

joecanada

Member
meh, i dont lock my doors at all. i live in a small townhouse community and i just figure people would notice, plus i am more likely to lock myself out accidentally than get robbed

just the other day the maintenance man locked my door when he was done with the deadbolt while i was at work so i got stuck outside since i didnt have my keys. luckily i quickly learned from the internet how easy it is to bypass the sliding glass door i have in my kitchen so i broke in easily

meh, security

Yeah but insurance won't pay out if you don't at least do the most basic steps to secure your shit. Break a window if someone does steal your shit
 

Jeramii

Banned
When I was 7 or 8 years old I spraypainted the word "ASS" on a sign that indicated it was the end of a road for the street I grew up on. I felt guilty until I was 15 when they knocked down the sign to continue building the road.

I'm 28 now, and I get a laugh out of the whole thing now. I also found out my parents knew because my hands had green spraypaint on my hands the day "ASS" showed up.

I think OPs guilt is definitely understandable, but I'm sure that one instance has prevented him from doing anything like that since then. I can say I've not spraypainted public property since my childhood incident.
 

The Real Abed

Perma-Junior
Take it back to the store, tell them you found it in the toy aisle 17 years ago and want to put it in Lost and Found just in case the kid who lost it ever comes back looking for it.
 
I would ask kids who bring their pokemon card collection with them to see their cards and secretly steal the "Shiny" ones while they were distracted....and then sell it back to them a couple days later, or to someone who would pay more. I do not regret doing this since I made a lot of money and kids are stupid.
lol were none of them suspicious?
 
Errr, yes, obviously they aren't going to go back and re-balance their ledger from June 13th, 1991 or whatever. The implication of your position is that theft is not bad because shrink is accounted for eventually. People should pay for the things they stole because it's the right thing to do; what the store does with the money is of no concern. If an employee pockets it, more power to them. If they donate it to charity, more power to them. If they itemize it as money found in the back of a drawer, more power to them.

Oh I misunderstood the angle you were coming from then, sorry about that! I definitely didn't mean to imply that nothing should be done/theft isn't bad. I was looking at it from the idea of, "Well wait that money won't necessarily go towards covering the stolen object" but I see now that that wasn't really what you were getting at, you meant it from a morality standpoint. In which case I agree with you!
 

mark-san

Banned
This is NOT good parenting, this is child abuse. Fuck you!
The fact alone that this kid knew what his father meant with "the belt" is so fucked up.

Keep thinking like this. No wonder this generation is so screwed up...

I have stolen many things in my life.

When I was younger I stole a copy of Seaman and Sega Bass fishing for dreamcast with fishing controller from a K-Mart.

I stole laser pointers from Ice cream trucks.

I've stolen from Hollywood videos video game store many times, A PS2 copy of Max Payne 1, MGS2 and Tekken 5. I do not regret stealing them.

I swiped a PSP from the school lost and found that wasnt mine.

I stole my cousins GBA while he was overseas in the Navy.

I would ask kids who bring their pokemon card collection with them to see their cards and secretly steal the "Shiny" ones while they were distracted....and then sell it back to them a couple days later, or to someone who would pay more. I do not regret doing this since I made a lot of money and kids are stupid.

Poverty is a helluva drug.

No, dishonesty is. Poverty is no excuse for being a scumbag.
 

Yoshi

Headmaster of Console Warrior Jugendstrafanstalt
I was addicted to shoplifting for years. Mostly game stuff. Got several consoles.

I have no guilt tho. It was a disease!
The addiction, OK, but you could only get addicted to it by doing it a first time, so at least for the first times you should feel bad (actually for the other times as well, because addiction does not make criminal behaviour OK).
 
It's the store's fault for making you want it so much.

So many Gameboy thief victims in here. I too had a GBC stolen in the 2000s. I still miss that lime green GBC. The only thing I have left of it is the battery cover, because I put a battery pack on it.
 
I'm not trying to sound like a moral pillar. I'm a flawed dude, but I've never shoplifted and I can't help but feel like the people say "I steal and IDGAF" are either joking or maybe have some issues.

Maybe I'm being judgmental though.

Plenty of people live in poverty and don't steal.
 

Kovacs

Member
As a Gameboy theft victim I can tell you that there is nothing worse for an 11 year old boy realising that the nice new friend from from his nice new school who has been invited round for the first time, isn't all that nice.

That bastard didn't just steal my Gameboy, he stole all my games to go with it. The Police got involved and it was found that he'd traded it to the to the local pawnshop for cash and a Monopoly set!

His parents bought me a Master System 2 with Alex Kidd built in as compensation. That sounds nice, but at the risk of sounding all Bohemian Rhapsody we weren't the best off and I'd reached that age where I understood that my Mum did a lot of overtime to get me that Gameboy for Christmas. I didn't get games very often, one from my Mum and maybe from my Grandparents on Birthdays and Christmas. So going from a small but loved collection (Tetris, Super Mario Land, Duck Tales, Revenge of the Gator, Super RC Pro-Am) to a single game which I couldn't play all very often as we only had the one TV was heartbreaking.
 

PantsuJo

Member
I'm not trying to sound like a moral pillar. I'm a flawed dude, but I've never shoplifted and I can't help but feel like the people say "I steal and IDGAF" are either joking or maybe have some issues.

Maybe I'm being judgmental though.

Plenty of people live in poverty and don't steal.
This
 
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