WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.720 Hello, everybody, and welcome to another episode 00:00:02.720 --> 00:00:07.099 of Sports Card Madness. This is LZ. I am here 00:00:07.099 --> 00:00:10.919 with Nick. Today on the show, we have Alyx, who's 00:00:10.919 --> 00:00:16.339 the founder of Collectors MD. And this is really 00:00:16.339 --> 00:00:20.980 going to be a cautionary tale of gambling, addiction, 00:00:21.260 --> 00:00:25.899 really in the sports card world. And Alyx has 00:00:25.899 --> 00:00:30.920 kind of turned his challenges. into a positive 00:00:30.920 --> 00:00:33.579 opportunity that he's going to get into around 00:00:33.579 --> 00:00:37.380 helping collectors in our space with addiction, 00:00:37.659 --> 00:00:41.899 whether it be breaking or gambling. And he's 00:00:41.899 --> 00:00:44.039 here to tell us all about it. We're going to 00:00:44.039 --> 00:00:47.219 get into his story and how we got here. And then 00:00:47.219 --> 00:00:50.380 we're going to end with where you can receive 00:00:50.380 --> 00:00:54.060 help through Alyx and others. So, Alyx, welcome 00:00:54.060 --> 00:00:56.259 to the show. Happy to have you on. Welcome, Alyx. 00:00:56.380 --> 00:00:58.259 Thanks, LZ. Thanks, Nick. Really appreciate you 00:00:58.259 --> 00:01:01.100 guys having me. You got it. Absolutely. Yeah. 00:01:01.159 --> 00:01:05.459 So this is when when we heard about the service 00:01:05.459 --> 00:01:09.640 that you are offering, it it really hit home 00:01:09.640 --> 00:01:13.439 for us. This is a very important topic. Nick 00:01:13.439 --> 00:01:17.659 and I do get into a lot around like where the 00:01:17.659 --> 00:01:21.219 hobby is going. And we focus a lot on maybe like 00:01:21.219 --> 00:01:24.420 let's call it like the sociology of of the hobby 00:01:24.420 --> 00:01:27.750 and how people think and act and. When we heard 00:01:27.750 --> 00:01:30.489 that you were kind of offered this, we were like, 00:01:30.590 --> 00:01:32.370 we got to talk to you, Alyx. So I think a really 00:01:32.370 --> 00:01:37.170 good place to start is just to tell your story 00:01:37.170 --> 00:01:39.709 because your story is interesting. And I think 00:01:39.709 --> 00:01:41.609 it's going to bring up a lot of follow -up questions 00:01:41.609 --> 00:01:43.810 from us and even the audience. It's going to 00:01:43.810 --> 00:01:46.510 get the audience thinking as well. Not just interesting, 00:01:46.590 --> 00:01:49.209 but you've already told me the story prior to 00:01:49.209 --> 00:01:51.790 recording. I think it's actually very relatable. 00:01:52.280 --> 00:01:55.280 uh so are many people in the hobby as well and 00:01:55.280 --> 00:01:57.379 i think this episode it's important to understand 00:01:57.379 --> 00:02:00.319 like it's not just you you know what i mean like 00:02:00.319 --> 00:02:02.120 if somebody else is going through this there 00:02:02.120 --> 00:02:04.439 are other people as well and this will give it 00:02:04.439 --> 00:02:08.400 some visibility yeah i appreciate that guys yeah 00:02:08.400 --> 00:02:10.639 so why don't you dive right into it and tell 00:02:10.639 --> 00:02:13.039 us how you got to where you are today what what 00:02:13.039 --> 00:02:17.090 the story is yeah Yeah, so I've collected my 00:02:17.090 --> 00:02:21.469 whole life. I grew up in the 90s. As a kid, I 00:02:21.469 --> 00:02:24.370 was into Pokemon, you know, the Chicago Bulls 00:02:24.370 --> 00:02:28.110 era, collecting Upper Deck. Fleer Topps. So it 00:02:28.110 --> 00:02:30.469 was a part of my DNA from the very beginning. 00:02:30.810 --> 00:02:33.669 As I got a bit older, graduated college, started 00:02:33.669 --> 00:02:36.550 to earn some income, had an opportunity to start 00:02:36.550 --> 00:02:39.169 spending some of that disposable income. I got 00:02:39.169 --> 00:02:41.789 super into the sneaker community and I started 00:02:41.789 --> 00:02:43.889 to collect sneakers. So for the better part of 00:02:43.889 --> 00:02:46.650 my 20s, I was the sneaker guy. I was the sneaker 00:02:46.650 --> 00:02:50.530 head. I got to a point. you know, where it started 00:02:50.530 --> 00:02:52.169 to get a little bit out of hand. And I realized 00:02:52.169 --> 00:02:54.729 that quickly when I was running out of space, 00:02:54.830 --> 00:02:58.310 I was running out of, you know, space to put 00:02:58.310 --> 00:02:59.889 these drop -down containers, which you actually 00:02:59.889 --> 00:03:02.550 see behind me. It's my, what's left of my collection. 00:03:02.569 --> 00:03:06.490 But at one point I did have 500 plus pairs of 00:03:06.490 --> 00:03:10.150 sneakers and, you know, my wife, girlfriend at 00:03:10.150 --> 00:03:12.409 the time would constantly give me grief that, 00:03:12.430 --> 00:03:15.000 you know, it was just. becoming a problem. So 00:03:15.000 --> 00:03:19.219 I started to kind of downsize, started selling 00:03:19.219 --> 00:03:23.039 on platforms like eBay and StockX. And that was 00:03:23.039 --> 00:03:26.240 really always my passion. You know, I would attend 00:03:26.240 --> 00:03:31.960 SneakerCon and big releases, line up with friends 00:03:31.960 --> 00:03:34.919 for, you know, the next Jordan release or collab 00:03:34.919 --> 00:03:38.719 or whatever the case may be. And so, you know, 00:03:38.719 --> 00:03:42.520 fast forward to 2020, pandemic hit, and everybody 00:03:42.520 --> 00:03:45.060 was on lockdown. And a buddy of mine who knew, 00:03:45.120 --> 00:03:47.539 obviously, I was into collecting reached out 00:03:47.539 --> 00:03:51.659 to me about the sports card hobby. And he kind 00:03:51.659 --> 00:03:56.219 of, you know, gave me some high level, you know, 00:03:56.219 --> 00:04:00.539 ideas around ways that we could potentially monetize 00:04:00.539 --> 00:04:04.740 through breaking. And I watched a few breaks 00:04:04.740 --> 00:04:08.789 that he was hosting through a. an account called 00:04:08.789 --> 00:04:12.689 Bogo Breaks. And so I was super interested. I 00:04:12.689 --> 00:04:15.110 thought it was really cool. And, you know, basically 00:04:15.110 --> 00:04:18.970 being reintroduced to the hobby, you know, got 00:04:18.970 --> 00:04:22.589 me sucked in really, really quickly. And so me 00:04:22.589 --> 00:04:25.290 and a few of my buddies that I grew up with, 00:04:25.410 --> 00:04:30.230 again, we started this brand, Bogo Breaks, and 00:04:30.230 --> 00:04:35.029 we were breaking on Facebook, Instagram. Throughout 00:04:35.029 --> 00:04:37.329 the majority of the pandemic, I would say 2020 00:04:37.329 --> 00:04:40.189 to 2021, we were doing it almost every night 00:04:40.189 --> 00:04:42.389 and we were having a lot of fun. We were meeting 00:04:42.389 --> 00:04:44.110 a lot of new people. It was a really, really 00:04:44.110 --> 00:04:47.930 great opportunity for us to earn a little side 00:04:47.930 --> 00:04:52.149 income, but also become acclimated with the community 00:04:52.149 --> 00:04:57.449 that was really thriving at the time. We were, 00:04:57.449 --> 00:05:00.769 I would say, again, doing it through the end 00:05:00.769 --> 00:05:03.410 of 2021. And then we all kind of collectively 00:05:03.410 --> 00:05:05.730 decided that, you know, we had to prioritize 00:05:05.730 --> 00:05:08.509 work as things were starting to return to a state 00:05:08.509 --> 00:05:11.949 of normalcy. And so everybody kind of just slowed 00:05:11.949 --> 00:05:14.569 down. We went from doing it every night to once 00:05:14.569 --> 00:05:18.370 a week. And eventually we kind of just stopped 00:05:18.370 --> 00:05:21.750 altogether. But I was the one who continued to 00:05:21.750 --> 00:05:26.810 join breaks by personals. And at first I was 00:05:26.810 --> 00:05:28.410 like, this is great. I love the hobby. I love 00:05:28.410 --> 00:05:30.910 collecting. I love sports. You know, this is 00:05:30.910 --> 00:05:34.870 this is the perfect sort of combination for me. 00:05:35.430 --> 00:05:40.610 And, you know, I collected and, you know, accumulated 00:05:40.610 --> 00:05:45.470 cards similar to the whole sneaker hobby. And 00:05:45.470 --> 00:05:48.389 it got to a point where I was like, I have. You 00:05:48.389 --> 00:05:50.329 know, all of these cases of cards, what am I 00:05:50.329 --> 00:05:53.050 going to do with them all? And eventually, again, 00:05:53.589 --> 00:05:55.629 I started to realize that I was overspending 00:05:55.629 --> 00:05:59.949 and I was trying to be involved in every single 00:05:59.949 --> 00:06:02.029 release and every break. And there was this sense 00:06:02.029 --> 00:06:04.790 of FOMO that if I didn't, you know, join a break 00:06:04.790 --> 00:06:07.120 for the newest. product or the newest release 00:06:07.120 --> 00:06:11.279 um i would be missing out and it's only exponentially 00:06:11.279 --> 00:06:15.019 gotten worse since then right we um we all tend 00:06:15.019 --> 00:06:20.860 to uh spiral when um you know things become more 00:06:20.860 --> 00:06:23.980 and more hyped and that is exactly what's happened 00:06:23.980 --> 00:06:26.680 with the hobby as Fanatics has taken over and 00:06:26.680 --> 00:06:31.519 Whatnot has entered um the uh environment and 00:06:31.519 --> 00:06:35.139 and everybody you know is learning about the 00:06:35.139 --> 00:06:37.120 hobby and it's just becoming more and more mainstream. 00:06:37.399 --> 00:06:40.899 And so through this entire process over the last 00:06:40.899 --> 00:06:43.819 five years, I was also gambling and it got to 00:06:43.819 --> 00:06:46.339 a point where, you know, I was spending thousands 00:06:46.339 --> 00:06:49.839 of dollars in a break and getting skunked and, 00:06:50.000 --> 00:06:54.139 you know, going on my phone, joining a live blackjack 00:06:54.139 --> 00:06:57.839 table and trying to win the money back that I 00:06:57.839 --> 00:07:03.930 had just lost on, you know, a break on, gambling 00:07:03.930 --> 00:07:07.029 and it was this vicious cycle and it was just 00:07:07.029 --> 00:07:11.949 you know only getting more and more serious and 00:07:11.949 --> 00:07:13.810 i just wasn't realizing it i just thought oh 00:07:13.810 --> 00:07:16.810 i'm just like another normal guy you know uh 00:07:16.810 --> 00:07:20.290 everybody gambles they have the ads everywhere 00:07:20.290 --> 00:07:23.889 they force it down your throat and um you know 00:07:23.889 --> 00:07:29.730 i realized after you know a little while a few 00:07:29.730 --> 00:07:33.240 really really bad nights or you know, tilt sessions 00:07:33.240 --> 00:07:36.180 as we call them, but I had a problem. And so 00:07:36.180 --> 00:07:40.139 I started to go to GA meetings and I was going 00:07:40.139 --> 00:07:42.560 for, I would say about a year and a half, almost 00:07:42.560 --> 00:07:45.139 two years. And I think they were helping a little 00:07:45.139 --> 00:07:49.579 bit, but the problem was that, you know, folks 00:07:49.579 --> 00:07:52.860 in those rooms didn't really understand the scope 00:07:52.860 --> 00:07:56.519 of the sports card hobby and, you know, how. 00:07:57.160 --> 00:08:00.060 There are so many synergies between the hobby 00:08:00.060 --> 00:08:03.279 and gambling. And while, you know, I think I 00:08:03.279 --> 00:08:08.199 had a deep rooted issue with just gambling in 00:08:08.199 --> 00:08:10.540 general, it really was the sports cards that 00:08:10.540 --> 00:08:15.259 was fueling that addiction. And so, you know, 00:08:15.279 --> 00:08:18.839 I stopped going to those meetings because, again, 00:08:18.899 --> 00:08:22.000 I just felt like I couldn't resonate with those 00:08:22.000 --> 00:08:25.310 people or they couldn't. understand my story 00:08:25.310 --> 00:08:28.550 and um you know what i was going through and 00:08:28.550 --> 00:08:32.309 so i started to you know collect again um i wasn't 00:08:32.309 --> 00:08:34.889 gambling because i did self -exclude uh but i 00:08:34.889 --> 00:08:37.169 was you know i was joining breaks and i was buying 00:08:37.169 --> 00:08:42.759 personals at you know Just a disgusting rate, 00:08:42.919 --> 00:08:44.980 you know, spending thousands, if not tens of 00:08:44.980 --> 00:08:47.419 thousands of dollars on a weekly, monthly basis. 00:08:47.480 --> 00:08:49.820 And it just, again, it spiraled out of control. 00:08:49.980 --> 00:08:53.220 Can we break down this path a little bit before 00:08:53.220 --> 00:08:55.820 we... Because you mentioned a lot of different 00:08:55.820 --> 00:08:58.940 things there that were interesting to me. The 00:08:58.940 --> 00:09:01.480 first one was you mentioned that you were taking... 00:09:02.669 --> 00:09:05.669 losses or winnings from the sports car breaking 00:09:05.669 --> 00:09:07.870 world. And you were literally going to try to 00:09:07.870 --> 00:09:09.710 recover that on the blackjack table. Did I hear 00:09:09.710 --> 00:09:14.409 that correctly? That is correct. So when you 00:09:14.409 --> 00:09:17.070 are, I'm not a big gambler, but obviously I've 00:09:17.070 --> 00:09:20.029 been to casinos when you're doing like, like 00:09:20.029 --> 00:09:22.250 that blackjack, you know, you're at the blackjack 00:09:22.250 --> 00:09:24.309 table or the craps table or whatever you're playing. 00:09:24.470 --> 00:09:27.129 Does that feel like when you're in a break to 00:09:27.129 --> 00:09:30.090 you or does it feel different? It's similar there. 00:09:31.179 --> 00:09:35.059 you know, a lot of feelings that you get when 00:09:35.059 --> 00:09:38.299 you are doing either, right? You get that sense 00:09:38.299 --> 00:09:41.679 of rush. You get that excitement that, you know, 00:09:41.679 --> 00:09:43.940 next big hit is just going to deliver that, that 00:09:43.940 --> 00:09:46.279 dopamine hit that your, you know, your body is 00:09:46.279 --> 00:09:49.379 craving. I would say there are some differences 00:09:49.379 --> 00:09:52.799 where with sports guards, there's the nostalgia 00:09:52.799 --> 00:09:55.519 factor. There's the fact that you, you know, 00:09:55.519 --> 00:09:58.779 are chasing something that you want to. collect 00:09:58.779 --> 00:10:02.440 or put in your personal collection whereas you 00:10:02.440 --> 00:10:04.879 know with blackjack or gambling it's just you're 00:10:04.879 --> 00:10:09.340 just trying to double your money right so the 00:10:09.340 --> 00:10:11.899 collecting side of it when you were getting into 00:10:11.899 --> 00:10:15.659 these breaks were you actually collecting or 00:10:15.659 --> 00:10:19.200 were you hitting a getting a big hit and then 00:10:19.200 --> 00:10:22.179 flipping it on eBay the next day it was both 00:10:22.179 --> 00:10:25.500 it was you know it was it was 100 both Yeah, 00:10:25.539 --> 00:10:29.399 I was, I was definitely collecting, you know, 00:10:29.419 --> 00:10:32.419 I curate my collection and everything was in 00:10:32.419 --> 00:10:34.500 order, I would photograph everything and post 00:10:34.500 --> 00:10:38.139 it on Instagram. So I definitely, like, you know, 00:10:38.139 --> 00:10:40.820 was trying my best, I think, subconsciously, 00:10:40.820 --> 00:10:44.139 at least to focus on my collection or justified 00:10:44.139 --> 00:10:47.679 as like, I'm collecting. But you know, when push 00:10:47.679 --> 00:10:51.580 came to shove, and I, you know, spent $5 ,000 00:10:51.580 --> 00:10:55.409 in one night and realized, I got that 5 % of 00:10:55.409 --> 00:10:57.370 that. I would turn around and sell a portion 00:10:57.370 --> 00:11:00.330 of my collection to recoup that money. So was 00:11:00.330 --> 00:11:04.149 I really collecting? I don't know. Interesting. 00:11:04.190 --> 00:11:08.129 So you were getting into breaks. Were you also 00:11:08.129 --> 00:11:11.250 buying wax? Were you buying boxes and ripping 00:11:11.250 --> 00:11:14.230 them yourself and getting a high off of gambling 00:11:14.230 --> 00:11:17.870 that way as well? Yeah, I was buying a lot of... 00:11:18.190 --> 00:11:21.750 personal boxes through breakers, whether it be 00:11:21.750 --> 00:11:25.929 on Instagram or Whatnot, or Fanatics Live. But 00:11:25.929 --> 00:11:30.250 I was also, you know, going to my LCS or to Walmart 00:11:30.250 --> 00:11:33.370 or target to, to buy boxes, to, to open myself, 00:11:33.450 --> 00:11:37.389 to kind of scratch that itch for sure. So when 00:11:37.389 --> 00:11:39.129 you went through this process, one of the big 00:11:39.129 --> 00:11:41.490 questions I have, I actually, it's funny, like 00:11:41.490 --> 00:11:43.250 I communicate with my wife all the time when 00:11:43.250 --> 00:11:45.769 I buy like a big card or a set or something like 00:11:45.769 --> 00:11:49.250 that. Were you open about what you were spending 00:11:49.250 --> 00:11:52.029 with your girlfriend or wife at the time or were 00:11:52.029 --> 00:11:56.330 you hiding it from them? I was hiding it. She, 00:11:56.509 --> 00:11:59.110 my wife now, we've been married now for two and 00:11:59.110 --> 00:12:02.330 a half years. She knew that I had, you know, 00:12:02.350 --> 00:12:05.009 an addiction. You know, it's kind of hard to 00:12:05.009 --> 00:12:06.590 hide, especially when things start to accumulate. 00:12:07.590 --> 00:12:11.830 She knew that I was a degenerate gambler, but 00:12:11.830 --> 00:12:13.929 she didn't know the extent. She didn't know how 00:12:13.929 --> 00:12:16.149 much money I was spending, how much money I was 00:12:16.149 --> 00:12:19.629 losing gambling or winning. You know, there were 00:12:19.629 --> 00:12:23.110 ups and downs, but I was definitely hiding it 00:12:23.110 --> 00:12:25.750 from her. And that's something we're still working 00:12:25.750 --> 00:12:30.399 through today. Alyx, you brought us to the story 00:12:30.399 --> 00:12:32.860 and you started as a sneakerhead, like you said. 00:12:32.940 --> 00:12:37.559 You had over 500 sneakers. You were chasing the 00:12:37.559 --> 00:12:40.860 latest drops and going to the shows. You were 00:12:40.860 --> 00:12:44.539 buying them on, I think you said eBay, and there 00:12:44.539 --> 00:12:47.779 was another platform as well. What do you think 00:12:47.779 --> 00:12:54.039 the difference is between the highs of the sneakerhead 00:12:54.039 --> 00:12:59.149 days of you versus... now card collecting and 00:12:59.149 --> 00:13:01.570 it feels like in your story that things went 00:13:01.570 --> 00:13:05.509 like really hardcore totally different direction 00:13:05.509 --> 00:13:08.289 when you got into to cards and i'm wondering 00:13:08.289 --> 00:13:12.350 if you've done any like self -reflection on why 00:13:12.350 --> 00:13:15.610 that is is it marketing is it like what what 00:13:15.610 --> 00:13:19.309 could it be yeah that's a great question lg i 00:13:19.309 --> 00:13:23.389 think um With sneakers, when you would chase 00:13:23.389 --> 00:13:25.570 a release or you knew something was coming out 00:13:25.570 --> 00:13:27.610 and you planned to buy it or you had an opportunity 00:13:27.610 --> 00:13:30.129 to buy it because you won a raffle or you waited 00:13:30.129 --> 00:13:32.070 in line, you knew what you were spending your 00:13:32.070 --> 00:13:35.470 money on, right? The newest Jordan 3 black cements 00:13:35.470 --> 00:13:38.850 that just came out, you knew you were spending 00:13:38.850 --> 00:13:42.970 $220 on those. Or if you were paying resale or 00:13:42.970 --> 00:13:45.190 aftermarket value, you knew you were spending 00:13:45.190 --> 00:13:48.690 $400 on a pair of sneakers. With wax, with breaking. 00:13:50.440 --> 00:13:53.559 with sports cards and the TCG, you don't know 00:13:53.559 --> 00:13:55.480 what you're getting. You're spending upwards 00:13:55.480 --> 00:14:00.179 of two, three, $400 a box for, for a hobby box. 00:14:01.139 --> 00:14:03.539 And you don't know what the contents of that 00:14:03.539 --> 00:14:04.980 box is. You don't know if you're going to get 00:14:04.980 --> 00:14:08.039 back 5 % of your value. You don't know if you're 00:14:08.039 --> 00:14:10.779 going to get back a thousand percent, you know, 00:14:10.779 --> 00:14:16.860 like it's, it's so volatile and there are so 00:14:16.860 --> 00:14:21.649 many nuances. that um it's it's a lot more exciting 00:14:21.649 --> 00:14:24.470 because of that surprise factor and so from a 00:14:24.470 --> 00:14:27.929 psychological perspective it's like it's it's 00:14:27.929 --> 00:14:32.110 the high of the surprise or the high of not knowing 00:14:32.110 --> 00:14:34.889 what you're going to get and it just brings a 00:14:34.889 --> 00:14:37.590 whole nother level a whole nother high to the 00:14:38.000 --> 00:14:40.399 to it yeah you're not breaking a box of you know 00:14:40.399 --> 00:14:42.600 Topps Chrome Air Jordans you know what i mean 00:14:42.600 --> 00:14:45.120 and then like exactly three of you get sketchers 00:14:45.120 --> 00:14:50.240 and then you know so it makes sense um yeah you 00:14:50.240 --> 00:14:51.740 know one of the things at the beginning of your 00:14:51.740 --> 00:14:53.820 story i wanted to or actually probably the middle 00:14:53.820 --> 00:14:56.559 of the story the gamblers anonymous thing you 00:14:56.559 --> 00:14:58.919 know i i thought about this and i was like why 00:14:58.919 --> 00:15:02.120 you know i wish more i was just thinking like 00:15:02.120 --> 00:15:04.539 the collectors need something like this and you 00:15:04.539 --> 00:15:08.779 entered that did you feel like it was effective 00:15:08.779 --> 00:15:12.860 for this sports card addiction? Or do you feel 00:15:12.860 --> 00:15:14.919 like it left something to be desired? And also, 00:15:14.980 --> 00:15:17.779 were there other people dabbling in sports cards 00:15:17.779 --> 00:15:20.559 in these groups? Yeah, it's a great question, 00:15:20.639 --> 00:15:23.659 Mick. I felt like there was definitely something 00:15:23.659 --> 00:15:26.299 still left to be desired. And that's one of the 00:15:26.299 --> 00:15:27.980 reasons why I stopped going to those meetings. 00:15:28.460 --> 00:15:33.179 At first, it was... It was therapeutic because 00:15:33.179 --> 00:15:35.659 I had an outlet where I could go and just speak 00:15:35.659 --> 00:15:37.580 my mind. I could talk about whatever I wanted. 00:15:38.340 --> 00:15:41.559 Judgment -free zone. People would provide feedback. 00:15:41.759 --> 00:15:43.960 And, you know, I'd chit -chat with people after 00:15:43.960 --> 00:15:46.100 these meetings. I got to meet, you know, other 00:15:46.100 --> 00:15:49.120 people that have gone through very similar things. 00:15:49.340 --> 00:15:51.759 But no one could really relate to sports cards. 00:15:51.980 --> 00:15:56.379 And, you know, to the average Joe. sports cards 00:15:56.379 --> 00:16:00.820 are very um you know juvenile it's it's a children's 00:16:00.820 --> 00:16:03.940 it's a children's hobby it's like you're collecting 00:16:03.940 --> 00:16:07.080 toys you know like it's sneakers are similar 00:16:07.080 --> 00:16:09.620 in that sense but like not to the same extent 00:16:09.620 --> 00:16:12.879 when you sports cars or pokemon you know you 00:16:12.879 --> 00:16:15.639 think of your childhood right and so it was really 00:16:15.639 --> 00:16:18.820 hard to connect with those people um but there 00:16:18.820 --> 00:16:21.059 were there were a handful of other people i would 00:16:21.059 --> 00:16:24.379 say two or three other people that i met through 00:16:24.379 --> 00:16:28.279 my experience in ga that also dabbled with sports 00:16:28.279 --> 00:16:32.019 cards interesting was that support so did that 00:16:32.019 --> 00:16:35.039 support group so you said that you you weren't 00:16:35.039 --> 00:16:37.320 necessarily getting what you needed were they 00:16:37.320 --> 00:16:40.779 taking you seriously because you mentioned like 00:16:40.779 --> 00:16:44.419 the the fact that sports cards are are thought 00:16:44.419 --> 00:16:47.960 of as being a bit juvenile right and it's I could 00:16:47.960 --> 00:16:50.899 see in scenarios where you're going and you're 00:16:50.899 --> 00:16:53.659 talking about your issues and they're just like, 00:16:53.740 --> 00:16:55.919 oh, I mean, whatever. That's just sports cars. 00:16:55.980 --> 00:16:59.940 Big deal. I'm dealing with alcoholism. That's 00:16:59.940 --> 00:17:04.980 a real addiction, Alyx. Did you ever get static 00:17:04.980 --> 00:17:10.039 like that from anybody? A little bit, but for 00:17:10.039 --> 00:17:11.920 the most part, I was also gambling and I was 00:17:11.920 --> 00:17:16.119 gambling a lot of money. I guess some validity 00:17:16.119 --> 00:17:18.480 in that. But if I showed up to the room and just, 00:17:18.539 --> 00:17:22.079 you know, solely talked about how I was, you 00:17:22.079 --> 00:17:25.140 know, buying sports cards and I consider that 00:17:25.140 --> 00:17:27.880 gambling or it's having the same impact on me 00:17:27.880 --> 00:17:30.299 that gambling would, I'm sure people would be 00:17:30.299 --> 00:17:32.750 open -minded. be willing to take it seriously. 00:17:32.930 --> 00:17:36.690 And I say that because GA isn't necessarily just 00:17:36.690 --> 00:17:38.410 for people who are addicted to sports betting 00:17:38.410 --> 00:17:40.650 or casino. There are people that come in who 00:17:40.650 --> 00:17:42.970 have addiction to the stock market, you know, 00:17:42.970 --> 00:17:45.529 have issues with day trading. There are other 00:17:45.529 --> 00:17:50.930 realms of, or forms of gambling or other, you 00:17:50.930 --> 00:17:54.809 know, hobbies that definitely mimic gambling. 00:17:56.670 --> 00:17:59.529 All right. That's good. So I do. So me and Nick, 00:17:59.609 --> 00:18:02.190 you went through this story and we kind of eventually 00:18:02.190 --> 00:18:04.190 jumped in with a lot of questions because this 00:18:04.190 --> 00:18:06.750 is a very interesting story. But we did kind 00:18:06.750 --> 00:18:11.569 of cut you off. And I think we ended with you, 00:18:11.690 --> 00:18:14.670 you know, trying to get help, going to Gamblers 00:18:14.670 --> 00:18:17.849 Anonymous, finding out that it's not really for 00:18:17.849 --> 00:18:20.170 you. And then we kind of jumped in. Is there 00:18:20.170 --> 00:18:22.730 anything like more to the story that you want 00:18:22.730 --> 00:18:28.069 to tell? tell the rest of your story and then 00:18:28.069 --> 00:18:30.710 certainly talk about now where you are today. 00:18:32.130 --> 00:18:34.930 Yeah. So there's definitely another side to it, 00:18:34.950 --> 00:18:38.849 right there. I would like to think of this entire 00:18:38.849 --> 00:18:42.049 project I'm working on as a two pronged effort, 00:18:42.190 --> 00:18:45.549 right? There's the support side of it where there 00:18:45.549 --> 00:18:47.910 needs to be some sort of outlet or safety net. 00:18:48.250 --> 00:18:50.589 for individuals like myself who have gone through 00:18:50.589 --> 00:18:53.369 what I've experienced with collecting or with 00:18:53.369 --> 00:18:57.369 the sports card hobby specifically. But on the 00:18:57.369 --> 00:19:02.289 other hand, the sports card hobby in general, 00:19:02.410 --> 00:19:05.430 and I think we all have collectively either agreed 00:19:05.430 --> 00:19:07.150 on this or have talked about it to an extent, 00:19:07.269 --> 00:19:11.630 has become the Wild West. And there is no regulation. 00:19:12.349 --> 00:19:16.089 There is no gaming commission or SEC looking 00:19:16.089 --> 00:19:19.109 over, you know, the shoulders of Fanatics or 00:19:19.109 --> 00:19:22.349 Whatnot, or any of these, you know, massive conglomerate, 00:19:22.349 --> 00:19:25.329 you know, conglomerates of companies that hold 00:19:25.329 --> 00:19:28.670 the keys to everything. And so I think there 00:19:28.670 --> 00:19:31.109 just needs to be some accountability. And if 00:19:31.109 --> 00:19:35.029 we can't hold Fanatics and Whatnot and eBay and 00:19:35.029 --> 00:19:38.390 Panini, you know, accountable, then we can at 00:19:38.390 --> 00:19:42.380 least hold ourselves accountable. And so. My 00:19:42.380 --> 00:19:44.859 biggest message, and I'll get into Collectors 00:19:44.859 --> 00:19:47.279 MD shortly, but my biggest message that I want 00:19:47.279 --> 00:19:51.839 to preface is that I am by no means anti -hobby. 00:19:51.900 --> 00:19:54.200 I still love the hobby. I still love sports cards. 00:19:54.339 --> 00:19:56.579 I still have my, you know, what's left of my 00:19:56.579 --> 00:19:58.700 personal collection, pieces that, you know, I 00:19:58.700 --> 00:20:00.500 never want to part ways with for a number of 00:20:00.500 --> 00:20:02.400 reasons, and it has nothing to do with their 00:20:02.400 --> 00:20:07.359 value. But, you know, it's okay to love the sports 00:20:07.359 --> 00:20:10.500 cards. As long as you hold yourself accountable 00:20:10.500 --> 00:20:12.920 and are making sure that you're not hurting yourself 00:20:12.920 --> 00:20:16.740 or those around you. All right. So let's talk 00:20:16.740 --> 00:20:19.519 about Collectors MD a little bit. Actually, before 00:20:19.519 --> 00:20:21.579 that, I did have one very quick question. What 00:20:21.579 --> 00:20:25.759 is a tilt session? Oh, man. So a tilt session 00:20:25.759 --> 00:20:29.579 is when you go from this to that. Okay. Thank 00:20:29.579 --> 00:20:32.460 you. Gambling is a very, very slippery slope. 00:20:32.799 --> 00:20:36.539 And, you know, your intention or, you know. what 00:20:36.539 --> 00:20:39.480 you think you're doing in that moment could be, 00:20:39.519 --> 00:20:41.779 yeah, I'm just sitting down for, you know, quick, 00:20:41.960 --> 00:20:43.980 a few rounds of blackjack. I'm only going to 00:20:43.980 --> 00:20:46.200 play with a couple hundred bucks. I'm only going 00:20:46.200 --> 00:20:48.759 to bet 50 bucks on this, this, you know, college 00:20:48.759 --> 00:20:51.000 basketball game. And then next thing, you know, 00:20:51.200 --> 00:20:54.980 you're in full tilt. Got it. Yeah. You're spending 00:20:54.980 --> 00:20:57.890 everything and it's, it's all. I think, yeah, 00:20:57.990 --> 00:20:59.490 I mean, I've seen the terminology before, but 00:20:59.490 --> 00:21:03.029 I never knew what it meant. So this story is 00:21:03.029 --> 00:21:05.349 kind of led up to now, basically. I think I talked 00:21:05.349 --> 00:21:08.630 to you last week and you formed Collectors MD, 00:21:08.690 --> 00:21:11.750 as LZ talked about in the beginning. How can 00:21:11.750 --> 00:21:13.910 this organization help? Can they help right now? 00:21:14.109 --> 00:21:17.289 You know, what's your vision for helping people 00:21:17.289 --> 00:21:21.210 like you? Yeah. So first of all, I've never been 00:21:21.210 --> 00:21:24.069 this excited or passionate about any project 00:21:24.069 --> 00:21:26.730 that I've worked on. And it's an idea that I've 00:21:26.730 --> 00:21:29.890 been toying with for a number of years because 00:21:29.890 --> 00:21:32.670 I've acknowledged and realized that I have a 00:21:32.670 --> 00:21:37.109 real problem now for for quite some time. And 00:21:37.109 --> 00:21:42.630 so. a huge part of launching something along 00:21:42.630 --> 00:21:48.170 the lines of Collectors MD, I think I was scared 00:21:48.170 --> 00:21:52.170 for a while. I had a sense of what's called imposter 00:21:52.170 --> 00:21:55.210 syndrome, where I wasn't sure that I was the 00:21:55.210 --> 00:21:58.269 right person or qualified to carry such an important 00:21:58.269 --> 00:22:01.359 message. But finally, I realized that, you know, 00:22:01.380 --> 00:22:02.940 if I don't do this now, then when is it going 00:22:02.940 --> 00:22:04.539 to happen? Who's going to do it? Who's going 00:22:04.539 --> 00:22:08.500 to be responsible for for something like this? 00:22:08.539 --> 00:22:10.680 Because as the hobby continues to grow, it's 00:22:10.680 --> 00:22:12.339 only going to get worse and worse. You know, 00:22:12.359 --> 00:22:14.680 they're bringing in they're targeting younger 00:22:14.680 --> 00:22:18.200 people who aren't educated. There's just, you 00:22:18.200 --> 00:22:20.480 know, no end in sight as to like where this could 00:22:20.480 --> 00:22:25.380 potentially be headed. And so last week, I. You 00:22:25.380 --> 00:22:28.500 know, bought a premium subscription with WordPress, 00:22:28.660 --> 00:22:32.160 created a domain, an email address, an Instagram 00:22:32.160 --> 00:22:35.160 account. You know, it wasn't expensive. It didn't 00:22:35.160 --> 00:22:37.440 require any sort of like, you know, investment 00:22:37.440 --> 00:22:41.220 or anything like that. And I created Collectors MD. 00:22:41.319 --> 00:22:43.809 I actually originally branded it. as collectors 00:22:43.809 --> 00:22:46.549 anonymous but i want something like this to be 00:22:46.549 --> 00:22:50.089 uh more approachable and uh hopefully more mainstream 00:22:50.089 --> 00:22:54.710 in the long run so um what collectors nd is it's 00:22:54.710 --> 00:22:57.250 a support driven platform for people who collect 00:22:57.250 --> 00:23:00.769 uh anything from sports cards to you know tcg 00:23:00.769 --> 00:23:05.269 to sneakers to handbags to luxury goods so i 00:23:05.269 --> 00:23:08.589 want to you know um emphasize that this is for 00:23:08.589 --> 00:23:11.210 everybody in the collecting world it's not necessarily 00:23:11.210 --> 00:23:13.450 just for sports cards but that's what we're focused 00:23:13.450 --> 00:23:15.809 on right now and it's for those people who have 00:23:15.809 --> 00:23:18.950 felt overwhelmed overextended or even you know 00:23:18.950 --> 00:23:21.329 out of control with their collecting and it's 00:23:21.329 --> 00:23:24.819 a space where uh you know We're focused on accountability, 00:23:25.220 --> 00:23:29.059 reflection, and community built by someone who's 00:23:29.059 --> 00:23:32.079 actually lived it. So like I said before, we're 00:23:32.079 --> 00:23:35.279 not anti -hobby. We're pro boundaries. We still 00:23:35.279 --> 00:23:37.940 love the chase. We love the stories and the nostalgia, 00:23:37.980 --> 00:23:40.440 but we believe you shouldn't have to lose yourself 00:23:40.440 --> 00:23:43.079 in order to really enjoy it. And so through things 00:23:43.079 --> 00:23:45.480 like daily reflections, real collector stories. 00:23:46.299 --> 00:23:49.960 your support groups um and hopefully eventually 00:23:49.960 --> 00:23:53.640 future educational resources Collectors MD is 00:23:53.640 --> 00:23:55.779 here to help people who collect with intention 00:23:55.779 --> 00:23:58.680 and not compulsion so we're creating a space 00:23:58.680 --> 00:24:01.559 for the conversations this hobby has avoided 00:24:01.559 --> 00:24:04.019 for too long and it's not just about judgment 00:24:04.019 --> 00:24:06.500 it's about support because you can love collecting 00:24:06.500 --> 00:24:08.299 and still protect yourself while you're doing 00:24:08.299 --> 00:24:11.670 it All right, Alyx. So next week I decide to 00:24:11.670 --> 00:24:14.089 sign up. I go on your website and I'm yes, I 00:24:14.089 --> 00:24:16.190 want to get involved. I want to get some help. 00:24:16.809 --> 00:24:19.349 What am I going to experience? Because this you 00:24:19.349 --> 00:24:22.190 admitted, right? This is this is early stage 00:24:22.190 --> 00:24:26.230 for this venture. What what is the next, let's 00:24:26.230 --> 00:24:29.529 say, 90 days look like for me if I start getting 00:24:29.529 --> 00:24:32.849 involved in your your organization? Yeah, that's 00:24:32.849 --> 00:24:35.730 a great question. I've been having a lot of conversations, 00:24:35.990 --> 00:24:39.190 one on ones, just. Speaking with people on the 00:24:39.190 --> 00:24:43.450 phone who are in the same shoes as me or have 00:24:43.450 --> 00:24:46.369 experienced loss or are going through really 00:24:46.369 --> 00:24:49.730 tough times. And it's been really, again, therapeutic 00:24:49.730 --> 00:24:53.890 for not just me, but the other person to be able 00:24:53.890 --> 00:24:59.170 to have these conversations and be open again 00:24:59.170 --> 00:25:04.559 in a judgment free. zone to share what we've 00:25:04.559 --> 00:25:08.859 gone through. And so in the short term, I am 00:25:08.859 --> 00:25:13.079 collecting as no pun intended, as many names 00:25:13.079 --> 00:25:17.299 and email addresses as I can, so that I can start 00:25:17.299 --> 00:25:21.220 hosting virtual meetings that will mimic the 00:25:21.220 --> 00:25:25.180 experience of being in a GA room. And even if 00:25:25.180 --> 00:25:28.779 it's just half a dozen people at first, you know, 00:25:28.779 --> 00:25:32.829 that's still enough. of a community for people 00:25:32.829 --> 00:25:36.730 to join and reflect, self -reflect, share feedback, 00:25:36.849 --> 00:25:39.869 and have, you know, a space and a safety net 00:25:39.869 --> 00:25:42.470 to fall back on when they're not feeling, you 00:25:42.470 --> 00:25:44.829 know, the best about themselves. Yeah, you know 00:25:44.829 --> 00:25:47.170 what's crazy about this space? Like, you've got 00:25:47.170 --> 00:25:50.990 gambling companies like in Vegas or even DraftKings, 00:25:50.990 --> 00:25:53.839 you know, they fund. groups like this they have 00:25:53.839 --> 00:25:56.180 call centers that are funded by people that help 00:25:56.180 --> 00:25:59.720 they have mental health professionals um they 00:25:59.720 --> 00:26:02.400 have caps they can set you know i've been on 00:26:02.400 --> 00:26:04.920 the super bowl with my son like i see like this 00:26:04.920 --> 00:26:07.000 responsible betting caps and things i'd love 00:26:07.000 --> 00:26:09.720 to see more of that enter the sports card space 00:26:09.720 --> 00:26:13.440 you know like watching Fanatics take a real serious 00:26:13.440 --> 00:26:15.880 stance with this and say like you know maybe 00:26:15.880 --> 00:26:19.140 on the back of a box like here's your odds and 00:26:19.140 --> 00:26:22.720 it's gambling or um on a break you know here's 00:26:22.720 --> 00:26:25.180 here's some guardrails on this break so you don't 00:26:25.180 --> 00:26:27.380 just blast the credit card you know i don't know 00:26:27.380 --> 00:26:29.819 it's interesting yeah there are no guardrails 00:26:29.819 --> 00:26:31.660 in place that's that's such a great point nick 00:26:31.660 --> 00:26:33.660 and it's not just gambling i mean think about 00:26:33.660 --> 00:26:36.640 like alcohol brands they are constantly promoting 00:26:36.640 --> 00:26:41.079 responsible drinking you know you know against 00:26:41.079 --> 00:26:43.299 drinking and driving underage drinking things 00:26:43.299 --> 00:26:48.029 like that every single uh you know, category 00:26:48.029 --> 00:26:50.950 or company that, you know, has some risk associated 00:26:50.950 --> 00:26:53.789 with it. Those companies have a corporate responsibility 00:26:53.789 --> 00:26:57.190 to share that message or, you know, at least 00:26:57.190 --> 00:27:00.529 endorse those types of messages in order to prevent 00:27:00.529 --> 00:27:03.390 people from spiraling out of control. And even 00:27:03.390 --> 00:27:06.230 when those people spiral out of control, they 00:27:06.230 --> 00:27:10.269 offer some sort of service or resource. Hey, 00:27:10.430 --> 00:27:13.369 you're, you know, you're gambling too much or 00:27:13.369 --> 00:27:14.670 you have a problem. You know, somebody who has 00:27:14.670 --> 00:27:17.049 a problem. Paul, one 800 gambler or something 00:27:17.049 --> 00:27:19.789 like that exists. At least, you know, it's, it's 00:27:19.789 --> 00:27:22.690 not enough in my opinion, but it's at least something. 00:27:22.750 --> 00:27:25.009 And to your point, Nick, that does not exist 00:27:25.009 --> 00:27:28.809 in whatsoever. It doesn't. All right. So time 00:27:28.809 --> 00:27:32.369 is flying. LZ and I usually do like a final question 00:27:32.369 --> 00:27:33.970 for each other. If you've ever listened to the 00:27:33.970 --> 00:27:36.289 show, but we're going to include you in on this 00:27:36.289 --> 00:27:38.009 as well. And I think this question will be helpful 00:27:38.009 --> 00:27:41.150 because we're going to almost crowdsource feedback. 00:27:42.039 --> 00:27:45.099 for this organization for you. So this question 00:27:45.099 --> 00:27:48.019 really goes out to the audience on audio. It's 00:27:48.019 --> 00:27:51.019 sportscardmadness at gmail .com. Hit either me 00:27:51.019 --> 00:27:52.740 or LZ up on Instagram or leave in the comment 00:27:52.740 --> 00:27:55.440 section. Yeah, comments. It's going out to all 00:27:55.440 --> 00:27:58.539 of you. So we'll let you go last because you're 00:27:58.539 --> 00:28:00.920 the guest, but I'll kick the question up. LZ 00:28:00.920 --> 00:28:03.720 will go first. My question is, if you had a gambling 00:28:03.720 --> 00:28:06.559 problem, a sports card gambling problem, or... 00:28:07.000 --> 00:28:09.339 If you can't possibly think that you're ever 00:28:09.339 --> 00:28:11.700 going to have a problem and you're perfect, your 00:28:11.700 --> 00:28:14.859 brother -in -law has one. Yeah, my brother -in 00:28:14.859 --> 00:28:17.059 -law does have a lot of problems. I'm just messing 00:28:17.059 --> 00:28:19.859 with you, man. Whoever, right? Your cousins, 00:28:19.920 --> 00:28:23.099 uncles, you know, whatever, has a problem. What 00:28:23.099 --> 00:28:25.279 is the one thing that you would want to see out 00:28:25.279 --> 00:28:28.680 of this program that could help them? So LZ will 00:28:28.680 --> 00:28:30.380 go, I'll go, then you'll go, and then we'll wrap. 00:28:31.759 --> 00:28:34.940 All right. So I want to give you know me, man. 00:28:35.000 --> 00:28:36.859 I don't like to just go with one. I like to give 00:28:36.859 --> 00:28:39.259 you a couple a couple options. He cheats all 00:28:39.259 --> 00:28:41.619 the time. So as as Alyx was talking about this, 00:28:41.720 --> 00:28:46.480 I was thinking about I do think that you should 00:28:46.480 --> 00:28:49.160 not reinvent the wheel. And some of these programs 00:28:49.160 --> 00:28:51.880 do work. Gambling Anonymous, Alcohol, Alcohol 00:28:51.880 --> 00:28:55.480 Anonymous, Alcoholics Anonymous. I think a sponsor 00:28:55.480 --> 00:28:59.279 would be really helpful. Having somebody. who's 00:28:59.279 --> 00:29:02.519 lived and breathed this that I could potentially 00:29:02.519 --> 00:29:07.420 just send a text message to or or give a call 00:29:07.420 --> 00:29:10.119 to and like, hey, man, I made a mistake last 00:29:10.119 --> 00:29:13.880 night. I went way too hard on this break or I 00:29:13.880 --> 00:29:16.240 see this card on eBay. I really need it for my 00:29:16.240 --> 00:29:18.180 collection, but it's 10 grand. I can't afford 00:29:18.180 --> 00:29:20.700 it. Like, help me out. Right. I think I think 00:29:20.700 --> 00:29:23.369 that would be helpful. Also, Alyx, as you're 00:29:23.369 --> 00:29:26.430 describing, you built this website last week. 00:29:26.769 --> 00:29:29.210 I think one of the things that I would recommend 00:29:29.210 --> 00:29:31.250 you do, and this is going to happen over time, 00:29:31.289 --> 00:29:33.369 right? Because this is going to cost money. But 00:29:33.369 --> 00:29:37.710 building infrastructure to actually have some 00:29:37.710 --> 00:29:40.769 virtual sessions with people as well. Like you 00:29:40.769 --> 00:29:43.750 see this, this is becoming a huge, huge thing 00:29:43.750 --> 00:29:50.390 with all of these online therapy. uh services 00:29:50.390 --> 00:29:52.509 that are out there and there's a lot of tele 00:29:52.509 --> 00:29:56.710 telehealth technology out there so i think this 00:29:56.710 --> 00:29:58.849 is probably more like medium to long term for 00:29:58.849 --> 00:30:03.670 you it would be great if you could outsource 00:30:03.670 --> 00:30:06.950 some of your therapy to maybe some additional 00:30:06.950 --> 00:30:10.529 professionals and you're gonna have an online 00:30:10.529 --> 00:30:13.609 therapy session a telehealth session with somebody 00:30:14.359 --> 00:30:17.500 So those two ideas that came to my mind, Nick, 00:30:17.619 --> 00:30:19.200 what were some of the ones that you were thinking 00:30:19.200 --> 00:30:21.279 about? Well, you cheated and did two, so I'm 00:30:21.279 --> 00:30:24.359 going to do two. Fair enough. Fair enough. Alyx, 00:30:24.440 --> 00:30:26.180 the question for you is almost like, what would 00:30:26.180 --> 00:30:28.430 you like to accomplish if you had like... you 00:30:28.430 --> 00:30:30.829 know, not unlimited money, but you had the means. 00:30:30.930 --> 00:30:33.849 So my two, it's similar. The first one, similar 00:30:33.849 --> 00:30:36.369 to what you said, this is free. Big brother, 00:30:36.589 --> 00:30:39.150 you know, big sister programs have done great 00:30:39.150 --> 00:30:41.670 for a hundred years for a reason. It's a perfect 00:30:41.670 --> 00:30:45.170 mentorship. Those have more of a positive spin, 00:30:45.349 --> 00:30:49.170 right? But like, I love this idea of, you know, 00:30:49.170 --> 00:30:52.569 somebody that's struggling and if they are struggling, 00:30:52.630 --> 00:30:54.269 they could just call you Alyx, you know, just 00:30:54.269 --> 00:30:57.309 to start. Right. And then as your time gets sucked 00:30:57.309 --> 00:30:59.759 up, You have another person that they can call 00:30:59.759 --> 00:31:02.059 and you have like this, you know, this two way 00:31:02.059 --> 00:31:04.039 relationship, like a big brother, little brother, 00:31:04.059 --> 00:31:05.680 you know, little brother type of thing. I think 00:31:05.680 --> 00:31:07.859 that would be absolutely pretty, pretty cheap. 00:31:07.880 --> 00:31:11.799 And it'd be kind of cool. The other thing that'd 00:31:11.799 --> 00:31:13.539 be awesome is getting a real mental health professional. 00:31:14.779 --> 00:31:16.900 You know, like I myself have a therapist that 00:31:16.900 --> 00:31:18.920 helps with, you know, not just performance coaching, 00:31:19.000 --> 00:31:20.660 but also, you know, like mental health stuff 00:31:20.660 --> 00:31:23.119 that she's great. And I think that this space 00:31:23.119 --> 00:31:26.500 could benefit like. we all have our stuff, you 00:31:26.500 --> 00:31:29.440 know, and if people are having issues with gambling 00:31:29.440 --> 00:31:31.759 and things like that, like getting somebody and 00:31:31.759 --> 00:31:34.359 yeah, this, this will cost some money, but they 00:31:34.359 --> 00:31:36.299 have excess time. And if you could get on a virtual 00:31:36.299 --> 00:31:38.779 call with somebody for a half hour, maybe, or 00:31:38.779 --> 00:31:40.819 maybe not covered by insurance, whatever, you 00:31:40.819 --> 00:31:42.539 could talk to them and just say like, Hey, you 00:31:42.539 --> 00:31:44.599 know, here's my problems. And they can at least 00:31:44.599 --> 00:31:46.920 give you a framework, you know, to start with. 00:31:46.960 --> 00:31:49.200 I think that'd be amazing down the road. Yeah. 00:31:49.240 --> 00:31:52.019 This, this is what I'm talking about. I mean, 00:31:52.039 --> 00:31:56.539 what I, love about this conversation is that 00:31:56.539 --> 00:31:59.039 it's allowing for collaboration. It's allowing 00:31:59.039 --> 00:32:01.680 for all of us to put our heads together and come 00:32:01.680 --> 00:32:05.480 up with some ideas to create, you know, a sense 00:32:05.480 --> 00:32:08.099 of positive change for a hobby that we love. 00:32:08.220 --> 00:32:11.000 And that's so important to me. So, you know, 00:32:11.000 --> 00:32:12.880 with that said, you know, I want to be able to 00:32:12.880 --> 00:32:17.759 offer the community educational resources beyond 00:32:17.759 --> 00:32:22.059 just therapy, right? Like things like you know, 00:32:22.059 --> 00:32:27.000 budget trackers, or, you know, like, yeah, I 00:32:27.000 --> 00:32:30.359 don't checklists for specific products coming 00:32:30.359 --> 00:32:33.339 out, where like, you don't have to focus on the 00:32:33.339 --> 00:32:35.680 entire product, it could just be like, a few 00:32:35.680 --> 00:32:38.019 of your favorite players, Mike, I don't know, 00:32:38.039 --> 00:32:41.240 I'm just spitballing. But, you know, again, educational 00:32:41.240 --> 00:32:44.160 resources to help people that are new to the 00:32:44.160 --> 00:32:46.160 hobby, and people who have been in the hobby 00:32:46.160 --> 00:32:49.799 for a long time, understand. the nuances, and 00:32:49.799 --> 00:32:52.980 also understand the risks and danger of being 00:32:52.980 --> 00:32:57.980 involved in such a lucrative hobby. Great. Alyx, 00:32:58.099 --> 00:33:01.740 I love that. If I go back to an episode that 00:33:01.740 --> 00:33:05.099 me and Nick did probably at least a year ago, 00:33:05.240 --> 00:33:07.500 we talked about how if you're going to get into 00:33:07.500 --> 00:33:10.380 the hobby, you need to have a real plan. So I 00:33:10.380 --> 00:33:14.180 think to your point, you could give some resources 00:33:14.180 --> 00:33:17.980 on Trying to figure out what you really want 00:33:17.980 --> 00:33:21.039 to collect, like come up with a plan instead 00:33:21.039 --> 00:33:24.819 of just buying everything, just chasing anything 00:33:24.819 --> 00:33:27.779 and everything. Maybe you identify that, oh, 00:33:27.819 --> 00:33:30.339 this is my favorite athlete or my favorite sport. 00:33:30.500 --> 00:33:33.160 I'm only going to focus here. That would be great. 00:33:33.259 --> 00:33:36.140 Yeah. Or even if you do want to gamble, then 00:33:36.140 --> 00:33:38.539 you could say this is how you gamble responsibly. 00:33:39.200 --> 00:33:42.299 Totally. Almost like a life coach of sorts or 00:33:42.299 --> 00:33:46.450 an advisor. Sure. Right. And then another one, 00:33:46.529 --> 00:33:49.710 I mean, we're doing it right now. I think, I 00:33:49.710 --> 00:33:51.609 think you should do a podcast. I think that would 00:33:51.609 --> 00:33:54.750 be a great addition to what you're trying to 00:33:54.750 --> 00:33:58.089 do. You could have, you know, people come on 00:33:58.089 --> 00:33:59.930 and tell their stories similar to you. I mean, 00:33:59.930 --> 00:34:02.049 that's the way you help people out, man. So yeah, 00:34:02.170 --> 00:34:04.549 no, I would love to do something like that. Yeah, 00:34:04.670 --> 00:34:07.690 for sure. Cool. All right. So we're going to 00:34:07.690 --> 00:34:10.119 finish it up. Why don't you tell the audience 00:34:10.119 --> 00:34:12.420 how they can get in touch with you, how they 00:34:12.420 --> 00:34:14.900 can find your services, what your website is, 00:34:15.059 --> 00:34:18.559 all those great things. Yeah, absolutely. You 00:34:18.559 --> 00:34:23.280 guys can check out Collectors MD. It's @ Collectors MD 00:34:23.280 --> 00:34:29.059 on Instagram. We've also launched Twitter, TikTok, 00:34:29.579 --> 00:34:32.619 Discord. We're going to be everywhere so that 00:34:32.619 --> 00:34:35.780 regardless of where you are consuming your content, 00:34:35.880 --> 00:34:38.260 you'll be able to check us out. Right now, we 00:34:38.260 --> 00:34:40.400 are focused on Instagram as it's only been a 00:34:40.400 --> 00:34:42.179 week that we launched. But you can also check 00:34:42.179 --> 00:34:45.639 out our website, collectorsmd .com. You can email 00:34:45.639 --> 00:34:48.960 us at info at collectorsmd .com or you can just 00:34:48.960 --> 00:34:54.360 shoot us a DM. And I am happy to speak with any 00:34:54.360 --> 00:34:56.349 and everybody. I just want to have a conversation 00:34:56.349 --> 00:34:59.469 and honest conversation and, um, you know, spread 00:34:59.469 --> 00:35:02.070 the, spread the word, spread awareness. So, well, 00:35:02.150 --> 00:35:04.409 that's beautiful. That's great. Thanks for coming 00:35:04.409 --> 00:35:06.570 on Alyx and in the audience, don't be shy. Thank 00:35:06.570 --> 00:35:09.289 you guys. Leave feedback, um, what you'd want 00:35:09.289 --> 00:35:11.050 to see out of this service in the comments or 00:35:11.050 --> 00:35:12.989 just, you know, email us or DM us or whatever. 00:35:13.590 --> 00:35:15.929 Thanks again. All right. Great. Thanks Alyx. 00:35:16.150 --> 00:35:18.130 Thanks so much guys. Really appreciate it. Bye 00:35:18.130 --> 00:35:18.349 everybody.