I would like to hear people’s stories about how they first heard about Bitcoin ?
I read about it in Wired Magazine in early 2013. I was familiar with gold farming in WOW so it didn’t seem too outlandish. It took a second mention in the media in November 2013 for me to pay attention and find this forum on google.
A poker playing friend told me about them in ~2010.
I used a $75 prepaid/gift credit card I received when I bought a set of 4 tires to buy about 5 of them when they were ~ $12. I used a convoluted series of services (Virwox, dwolla and possibly liberty reserve?).
I began playing poker with them, and once I had won a few I sold enough to send the $75 cash back to my bank account again via dwolla. I continued to play poker with Bitcoin for a few years, mostly on Seals with Clubs. Over this period I began to UNDERSTAND what bitcoin actually was, and meant for the world... I kept playing poker to win them.
Though I mined a little from time to time, and also even traded a few altcoins here and there I essentially never bought or sold very much Bitcoin at all... and really mostly only when it was at MUCH lower prices.
I did take a stake in Monero. Similarly to my poker stake, once the Monero had risen a bit, I sold enough of it to more than pay back the initial trade, raising my Bitcoin a touch, and keeping a little pile of Monero, which I still hold.
Last year I bought my wife an I a trip to Hawaii with bit of BTC...
Otherwise... all my chips are still on the table so to speak.
In the end... if Ver and faketoshi, and the IMF and Bilderburgers and whatever the next attack is can somehow destroy Bitcoin (which I doubt) at least I went to Hawaii!