The only task on my calendar today was to drive 4-1/2 hours to Pennsylvania to pick up a Treasure Chest crane. After the disappointment of my first purchase - a very beaten up old clunker - I was super excited to win ($800) a new, unused machine. The pics looked great.

[i]And boy, was I pleased![/i] The eBay listing was honest. The machine's plexi and mirror back still had plastic protective coating on it from the factory. And the crane mech itself was still zip-tied on the track from the factory too. Brand spanking new. I bought his other new one also - now I have two identical cranes, beautiful neutral artwork (Statue of Liberty and some stars) so I don't have to replace that for my LEGO event.

I drove home with one crane inside my small SUV, and one on top.

During my drive home my brother called. He received a shipment for me. By 7:00pm I was back in town and at his house. It was two pallets of empty capsules - 1", 2", 4" and eggs. I knew I needed more 1" and 2". The 4" and eggs were just to test and play with, as I wasn't sure what would work in my new crane machines.

Well what can I say? Apparently I can't judge size very well. 2,000 four-inch capsules is a lot. LOL. My brother's shop is completely consumed by my 2 new cranes, my first clunker crane (plus extra parts), two pallets' worth of capsule boxes stacked around, and of course my road-case building lumber and hardware and tools.

Suddenly, I not only had my very first worthy crane (I had never even played one before, personally), but I also had the capsules to test with. [color=#0000cd][i]Yay![/i][/color] And that's what I did. I got to reading that crazy Asian/English "Functional Manual" and figuring our the dip-switches. I popped together a few empty 4" capsules to test it. A waste of 6 good capsules, I know (apparently they're sealed [i]for good[/i]!). But I was so eager. I was giddy as I moved the crane around and picked them up, one by one, and dropped them into the win chute.

One issue: when I fed my $5 bill through the machine, it racked up only 4 credits. Ugh Not good. On the next pass it successfully counted up all 5 credits.

Knowing full well that my brother would not be able to resist playing with it (should he wander out to his wood shop), I unplugged the machine and [i]cranked up the volume dial[/i]. Ahh, life's little pleasures.

I packed some of each of the capsules into my car and went home. I was greeted with a big box on my doorstep. Damn heavy. It's my battery-operated bill changer machine. [color=#0000cd][i]Wee![/i][/color] (Yesterday my new wi-fi printer arrived too!).

There was no settling in. I took the 4" capsules to my LEGO room. Wow, those things are huge! Well I got to filling them (about halfway). So much fun! I toyed with the quantity of parts, and the quality, mostly paying attention to mix vibrant colors - so I wouldn't have a bunch of all-gray capsules. As I worked, I debated how to set the difficulty on the machine. [color=#0000cd][i]How often do I want people to win?[/i][/color] Our convention is mostly about fun, not profit. But I would like these machines to pay for themselves eventually (or soon).

Filling 4" capsules with bunches of LEGO parts takes [u]forever[/u]. Ninety minutes later (2 hours? more?) I haven't finished even the first box of 375 capsules. But the ones I have filled are voluminous. With another hour put in tomorrow morning, I think I'll be ready to take what I've done to my brother's shop and test the machine for real - with real product.

I do believe these translucent capsules, under the lights of the Treasure Chest, will absolutely grab attention. I AM JUST GIDDY.