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Bumping this topic with a, well, year later update I suppose looking at that post date. Oi. Not too far afterwards from then (like a couple months later), I ended up dropping close to forty pounds altogether. And I was already close to being underweight as it was. Changing my diet helped the most for certain. I never was one to eat a lot of sugar or fast food growing up. However, I did end up having quick meals for work and often afterwards as well. A number of microwave meals that were not as healthy as claimed to be. Not to mention a sedentary lifestyle formed by working in front of a computer at work and home leading to low blood pressure. Anyway, I did much research on my own using signs of deficiencies to narrow it down to food sources good in folate acids (vitamin B9), for testosterone, and providing zinc. There is some crossover and other factors, but this "trifecta" helped keep things simple for me. Eating predominately a lot of freshly frozen fruits across the board has been significant to my well-being. Plus, as I mentioned in a different thread, I rediscovered my joy of cooking. A process benefiting my physical and mental health ....and emotional health if I am honest. So, between all that and cutting out fatty foods and also managing to quit the soda (my one last vice), here I am. Lost forty pounds then gained about ten back in muscle through strength training and fitness. I imagine some of that earned back weight is 'healthy fat' odd as that may sound. (I read having less than 10% or 5% body fat is possible but feels horrible with general fatigue, constant hunger & thirst, lack of motivation, etcetera.) Overall, my body feels better and leaner with room for improvement. Now I am not above ever having a soda or bacon cheeseburger again. I just will do so in moderation. I mean, I am a moderator after all. Haha.

If you were my neighbor, I'd be giving you eggs whenever you needed any. With our 14 chickens and winter coming to an end, the ladies have started laying again. We got a little over a handful of eggs a month during winter but we got 46 eggs over the past week!

got dat damn grogu tax. they should have also included one of those leftover Cara Dune minfigs.

And to think, ten years after this was uploaded, it's finally happening for real.

Wow this is super cute: https://www.lego.com/en-us/product/the-mandalorian-n-1-starfighter-microfighter-75363?CMP=AFC-AffiliateUS-UENCDus92FQ-3774713-1182088-1 Saw this drop too: https://www.lego.com/en-us/product/pirate-snub-fighter-75346?CMP=AFC-AffiliateUS-UENCDus92FQ-3774713-1182088-1

hey @Pseudoty I agree with you house 1 looks terrible and I didn't buy anything to qualify when it was available as I thought it wasn't worth buying. moving truck is better. bionicle is better. that said I am going to go on and get one for about 45 shipped before this thing takes off optional: if house 2 is awesome, thank you. if house 2 is as terrible as the first one, I should have passed lol

I got to page 5 and tapped out only ones that caught my eye was the library books and the polar bear (in terms of uniqueness done well) [maybe we can take shifts...each of us take 5 pages and highlight anything worth noting...]

You have until the end of this month to “vote” for the ones you like, only 375 entries to look at, ugh. https://www.bricklink.com/v3/designer-program/main.page

Many thanks. And that is true. Through cooking I have realized how a meal is prepared can make all the difference besides the ingredients & their proportions regarding health benefits. Also, the importance of diversifying what I consume from day to day. I mean, blueberries are good for the body. However, there is something akin to diminishing returns eating the same thing for days on end without anything else in-between. Also also, the versatility of the almighty egg. Like, the egg goes into everything (or can pretty much). If I was your neighbor, I would be bumming eggs off you all the time. Haha.

Way to go @TheOrcKing!! That's awesome. Everything in moderation is key. We don't need to deprive ourselves of all things that are bad for us.

The singles have been $9.99 since they came out in 2014. Same piece count as this years Slave 1 so you are basically paying $6 for the dual molded baby yoda.

How Lego Beat Barbie and Monopoly – Wall Street Journal Maker of colorful toy bricks reports sharp rise in sales, pushing further ahead of U.S. rivals By Trefor Moss Updated March 7, 2023 5:55 am ET Less than a decade ago, Lego A/S inched ahead of Barbie maker Mattel Inc. as the world’s biggest toy company. Today, the maker of those brightly colored bricks is generating almost twice the revenue of Mattel, outpacing both it and rival Hasbro Inc., maker of the Monopoly board game and Nerf guns, through the pandemic, recent supply-chain tumult and soaring inflation. On Tuesday, Lego said sales for 2022 rose 17% compared with the previous year to 64.6 billion Danish kroner, equivalent to $9.27 billion. Net profit was up 4% to 13.8 billion kroner. Lego Chief Executive Niels Christiansen credits investments it made in recent years in new stores and products, as well as in e-commerce and digital engagement. Despite the economic turbulence stemming partly from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, last year’s performance exceeded Lego’s expectations, Mr. Christiansen added. “Overall we are very satisfied,” said Mr. Christiansen. “In a year with a lot of challenges [we achieved] a bottom line growing compared to the year before.” And, he said, “we reached more kids than ever before with the Lego brand.” The widening gap between Lego and its rivals has been driven by success in tapping new markets such as China, engaging new generations of fans with the help of movie and videogame tie-ups and piggybacking on the appeal of other popular brands, notably Star Wars, with themed sets. The company has also benefited from rolling out more of its own stores and having its own dedicated factories, close to end markets, which have allowed it to largely avoid supply-chain snags. The Lego City and Icons series—sets that include police and fire stations and vehicles, and a newer range of more challenging builds that include sets based on famous landmarks—were among the brand’s bestsellers last year, alongside its Star Wars and Harry Potter franchise tie-ins, the company said. Lego has also pushed into digital play. Last year, it said it had success with products such as the Lego Builder app and the “Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga” videogame. The company’s digital activities are still primarily about drawing children into the Lego experience and encouraging them to buy physical toys, Mr. Christiansen said. Those digital efforts will expand this year, with Lego and its partner Epic Games Inc. planning to launch a child-friendly version of the metaverse following a $1 billion investment made by the toy maker in the U.S. videogames developer last year. The 90-year-old Danish company’s performance stands in contrast to the downbeat results of other leading toy makers, which blamed the economic volatility and soaring inflation of last year for sluggish sales. Last month, Barbie maker Mattel said its 2022 sales were flat at $5.4 billion compared with the year before, while annual revenue at Hasbro declined by 9% to $5.9 billion. Both U.S. toy makers endured a tough holiday period in which sales were down significantly compared with the same period in 2021. Hasbro, which makes toys including Transformers and Play-Doh, said it would lay off 15% of its global workforce after its disappointing holiday performance and as it forecast a tough market for toys this year. Lego, meanwhile, said demand for its brick sets remained strong over Christmas. Investment across all product categories and price points enabled the company to appeal to consumers irrespective of their spending power, Mr. Christiansen said. Moreover, parents continue to buy Lego for their children even in tough economic times because they perceive it as an educational toy that will remain in use for many years, he said. Still, profits at Lego grew modestly relative to the rise in sales last year. Mr. Christiansen attributed this to exceptional growth in the prior year. He also said the company wasn’t entirely immune to economic challenges last year, with higher costs for raw materials and transportation denting profit growth. Lego responded with single-digit-percentage price increases in around one-third of its product range in September, while holding prices down on the rest, Mr. Christiansen said. The company opened 155 new stores, many of them in China, over the course of the year, offsetting the decision to close its 81 stores in Russia in the wake of the country’s invasion of Ukraine. Overall, the company said it reached a total store count of 904. Looking ahead, Mr. Christiansen said Lego expects revenue to increase by a single-digit percentage this year. To help meet growing demand, the company is set to open a new factory in Vietnam this year, and another manufacturing plant in the U.S. in 2025.

If anyone is interested in the Van Gogh Starry night, Target has it currently in stock for $144.99. https://www.target.com/p/lego-ideas-vincent-van-gogh-8211-the-starry-night-21333-building-kit/-/A-86407596

The whole VIP rewards thing is a brilliant move by LEGO. Buyers use points to claim some random things, but buyers still need to purchase more stuffs from S@H to actually get those things shipped. The more reward items buyers claim, the more purchase buyers need to get the items. Thus creating vicious cycles of buying. Whoever came up with this system deserved a bonus.

These figures have so much personality

Built the Bronco RC from gyenesvi on rebrickable. Quite the in depth build pulling from the 2 sets it uses (42126&42129) Stickers for the front lights and grill are on the way Now just gotta find someone to make a 4runner TRD pro and I'll be happy

A lot of Birds in this years sets. This one is OK but it is cheap cheap

I use an industrial ultrasonic cleaner. Since LEGO recommends temperatures under 104 F/40 C you are very limited on the heat benefits of cleaning. I elect to clean longer at lower temperatures to offset this. Usually go 18 minutes at around 38-40 C. After that, as others have said, use a salad spinner to remove excess water (this also helps eliminate water spots when they dry). good news is you can get a super cheap all plastic spinner, as Lego won't stress it (mine is a five dollar Walmart model that I have been using for over 5 years now). After that I use tray based food dehydrators and lay the pieces out on the trays. Make sure you get a model that can adjust temperatures to below 100 F. Mine defaults to 158 F and I set it to the lowest temp it can go at 95 F. Make sure the pieces are not touching as water tension can seal bricks to each other and lock in moisture. Again I go with more time to offset lower temperatures. Usually let a full load go overnight. Final step is to bag the LEGO in gallon ziplocks with a couple silicon desiccant packs (come in big packs super cheap on Amazon). I Leave them bagged for about a week to ensure all moisture in deep crevices is gone before sorting/allocating them. I realize this might be overkill to most but it is the best, safest and most thorough way to clean pieces. I have been refining the process for around 6 years or so. Also this is very scalable to bulk operations. Eventually I want 2 cleaners and 5 dehydrators for a full time operation. Biggest thing to observe is that hard limit of 104 F on bricks.

Finally, almost 4 months later, 2 sets above $100 that got price increases went TOOS on Lego Online: Hogwarts Icons and Home Alone which is still a bargain at $300 based on PPP/PPG. I wish I could get more at the $215 price but Zavi now has their deal at $269. https://us.zavvi.com/lego/all.list?search=Lego

jinkies, the price on the microfighter. is that a 50% increase from Boba? and $35 for the other thing? lolol.