Meet a member: Alrighty
Posted by Huw,
Today we are talking to Michael, aka Alrighty, who's a Senior Healthcare Consultant in Georgia, USA:
What is your first LEGO Memory?
I was six years old, playing with Hot Wheels in our musty basement. My dad comes down the wooden stairs; he had just returned from one of his frequent business trips. He hands me a copy of Time Cruisers 6491 Rocket Racer.
Even at six years old, I remember thinking, "What the heck is this supposed to be?" Little did I know that was the sentiment for most of this theme! I loved the way the propellers turned when the wheels turned. The trans-orange 2 x 2 cylinder bricks formed "power cores" for many of my future LEGO vehicle creations, and the yellow engines were coveted parts for my spaceships! I recently dug up the figure for this set and marvelled how this was the start of a life-long habit.
Did you have a dark age and if so what caused you to emerge from it?
Thankfully, no I did not! I have been without the funds to purchase LEGO at different points in my life, so there are periods I "missed out" on collecting sets I otherwise would have loved (10246 Detective's Office for one) but there was never a time I was not excited about LEGO.
To be honest, my passion for LEGO, until recently, has been something only those closest to me knew about. The reason for this, and the only time I ever might have entered a "dark age" of sorts was when I was ridiculed in middle school (as many are) for building with and collecting LEGO. Recently, I have been more open about how I spend my free time, and I have been amazed by people's receptiveness.
Which set or theme has been most influential upon you, as a LEGO fan?
Right now, Modular Buildings are capturing my attention, but as a 24 year-old who has been collecting LEGO for 18 of those years, I have to say that Star Wars has been the most influential theme on me! I collected nothing but Star Wars for nine of those 18 years.
My own LEGO creations as a kid were all based within the Star Wars universe: A new class of starfighter to serve along my A- and Y-wings, an armoured troop transport to battle the legendary 7662 Trade Federation MTT, or a secret research base protected by stormtroopers where the next generation of Empire technology was being developed. Just thinking about it takes me back so easily! Eventually, though, as LEGO started producing more sets base on The Clone Wars and the Freemaker Adventures, I lost interest. I also was not watching a Star Wars movie every six months at that time (GASP).
During this time, I started working for my local LEGO brand store as a part-time high school job. I began to be re-introduced to the world of 3,000+ piece Exclusive sets rather than your typical $5 - $150 Walmart and Target stock. After months of making up my mind, I purchased 10214 Tower Bridge. Still the largest set I own, it was truly the most influential set on me as it brought me into the world of Exclusive sets. (I built that 4,287 piece set in two days, and distinctly remember my fingers aching afterwards from attaching hundreds of 1 x 1 tan cheese slopes!)
What are you building right now?
Right now, I am about to receive a windfall of Modular Building LEGO that I have never experienced before in my life! (Got to do something while stuck indoors right?) My wife is giving me 10270 Bookshop soon, and I plan on snagging 10260 Downtown Diner during this double VIP points time (Yes Huw, I will use the link on the homepage to make my purchase!). I am also thinking of picking up either 10255 Assembly Square or 10264 Corner Garage, so if you know which one I should pick, please let me know in the comments!
How do you store your LEGO?
I am currently living in a 700 sq ft apartment, so one may question how wise it is to purchase three modular buildings at one time! Needless to say, my storage techniques consist of plastic bins of various sizes, Home Depot small cardboard boxes, and 16 or so shoeboxes.... It is a mess and one day I will have to get around to organising it!
One item that makes organising so hard is that I love to keep most of my sets fully assembled. Many of the storage boxes have loose pieces filling it halfway, and then assembled sets filling up the rest of the space. I have experimented with disassembling sets and keeping them in plastic baggies, but I have found I would rather have them built so I can pull them out from time to time.
Do you build MOCs? If, so what?
Sadly, my MOC building is not only horrendous compared to what you see on Eurobricks or LEGO Masters, but also compared to what you would see an average 12 year old build, so no, I do not build MOCs!
I do love to "edit" the sets I do have by adding additional details and small builds. I remember very fondly the summer of 2014 that I spent carefully re-doing the interior of 10244 Fairground Mixer. I added bookshelves, tiled floor, additional busts for display, an improved podium, detailed and well stocked janitors space, etc.
What is your favourite part?
My absolute favourite part is, believe it or not, Bottle 1x1x2 M! I love the possibilities that this piece creates with its great shaping, bar, stud and anti-stud connection points. I was thrilled when I got 10243 Parisian Restaurant in 2015 and received no less than nine of this piece in different colours!
Also, funny story about 10243, I bought that set with the funds from a payout for a video of me attempting to jump on a rope swing and landing in a river instead (you can watch it here!). To be honest, I have never used this piece in any creations (for an explanation, see the above answer) but I am a collector at heart, and owning these pieces brings me joy!
What sets would you like LEGO to produce?
A product line designed to integrate with the Modular Building line at a $50 - $100 price point would be an instant buy for me. As I am writing this, my wife is saying, "Like what?" and that's a fair question. Perhaps an open-air market set (similar to the space beside 10190 Market Street that connects in-between two modulars? Maybe a small park that can attach to the space at the back of the baseplates on modulars? Or even a pack of additional small builds (chairs, beds, tables, lamps) that you can use to decorate the modulars you already have!
Do you have a presence on Instagram, YouTube or elsewhere?
Nope! Not a huge social media fan. Brickset comments is where I learn most of what is going on in pop culture, believe it or not!
Do you have any interests or hobbies other than LEGO?
Finally, first and foremost I love my wife. She is the best friend I have ever had, and makes me a better person every day. I am so thankful to her for so many things, and if I had to give all of LEGO up for her, I would do it in a heartbeat.
Secondly, I love to read about racial reconciliation, as that is a huge issue here in America. Thirdly, I am an inveterate learner. I am passionate about abstract mathematics and quantum mechanics, and have devoted a fair amount of my non-LEGO free time to learning Number Theory and Abstract Algebra!
Thanks, Michael!
So far, we have interviewed three men. It would be wonderful to have some women join in too, so if you're up for it, get in touch via the contact form. Thank you!
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21 comments on this article
Definitely go with assembly square. I feel that the corner garage doesn't look right with other modular buildings.
Great interview!
Yep, I agree with Alltimefol, Assembly Square is brilliant - there are so many excellent individual builds within it that I think you’ll really enjoy :-)
Go for Assembly Square.
"re-doing the interior of 10244 Fairground Mixer"?
"Additional busts for display"??
Colour me puzzled...
^
I am enjoying these interviews with Brickset users, Keep it up, if you can.
I'm sorry for laughing at your rope swing video.
That water looked kinda cold?
Assembly Square vs Corner Garage is such a non-choice to me. You're comparing one of the very best modulars ever made with one of the worst, IMO. I'd pick Assembly Square 10 times out of 10.
Alright another Yellow Jacket!
Don’t worry about space, Michael. My wife and I started in a 500 sq ft apartment with my rather small Star Wars collection, and 17 years later with over 300K+ bricks it just seems like another part of our life like the furniture or an appliance.
And our kids love it, too.
Reading this, I thought “that’s me in a few years” I love quantum science, legos, and hope that LEGO would make cheaper smaller collector sets.
@Jacopyright said:
""re-doing the interior of 10244 Fairground Mixer"?
"Additional busts for display"??
Colour me puzzled..."
Perhaps that was supposed to be 10224? I believe the Town Hall has a bust and an janitor.
Love your idea for a line of sets to integrate with the modulars!
I would definitely go for small or "half" modulars. By the way Assembly Square, as others have mentioned is definitely the way to go. Speaking of Assembly Square, the set is 3 "half" wide (or one and a half); all the other sets are two half. Why Lego could not produce just one half sets. Sets like the recent book store is really two half and can easily be separated - same is true for the petshop. That does not mean to stop the 2 half(full or regular) sets but maybe every other year to create 2 separate "half" size sets; regular collectors lose nothing and people who wants smaller sets are served. Love these interviews - put some colour and depth on this diverse Lego community.
@HOBBES said:
"Why Lego could not produce just one half sets. Sets like the recent book store is really two half and can easily be separated - same is true for the petshop."
The Assembly Square is one building for the benefit of stability.
@Alrighty @peterlmorris Me too! BS CmpE 2003, BS Applied Math 2003. Go Jackets!
@Mr__Thrawn said:
" @HOBBES said:
"Why Lego could not produce just one half sets. Sets like the recent book store is really two half and can easily be separated - same is true for the petshop."
The Assembly Square is one building for the benefit of stability.
"
Yes. The set cannot be separated like the book store or the pet shop but the foot print is one and a half that of regular modular.
I love Assembly Square, like others have said I think this is the clear choice if you are only getting one of them. That said, I also enjoy the Corner Garage, though I bought two copies and made a larger version that I feel is much better proportioned.
Go Jackets!
How does one obtain LEGO Modular funds from an embarrassing fail video?
In any case I would encourage you to have a go at more MOCs. Just start small and don't worry about how it looks compared to other builders, we all start somewhere. The key is no secret; slow and steady, practice practice practice. Before you know it you'll be cranking out modulars of your own!
This is one of my favorite interviews so far -- I can see bits of myself in here, especially the preference for 'editing' or modifying an existing set instead of creating MOC's, and some of your other interests and hobbies.
I wasn't sure if this feature would be interesting but it's proven very well it has!
Assembly Square! I also enjoy Math and majored in it in college.