Do you Have Any Bitcoin Stories from a Decade Ago?

[Ale88]

Well one of the story is about an individual who sold his Bitcoin of 10k to someone for a pizza, he is the loser here

You really have no idea what Laszlo did, don't you? He is the guy who exchanged something completely virtual (bitcoin) for something physical (pizza), for the first time ever. That is a game changer. Laszlo will always be part of bitcoin's history and you are here criticizing and making fun of him just because today's bitcoin value is way way higher than 10-12 years ago. So where were you when Laszlo could afford to spend 10k bitcoin for a couple of pizzas? Were you already holding tens of thousands of bitcoins?

[BitcoinPanther]

<snip>

Why do you think the guy is a looser, who gave Bitcoin a value back in times when it still didn't have some "official" value. AFAIR the guy who offered 10k BTC for two pizzas had a lot more of Bitcoins because IIRC he programmed one of the first GPU miners (not exactly sure about that). For him it was a fair price for what he ordered. He had the balls to give Bitcoin a first value and challenge a trade.

Yes, we tend to look at it from today's perspective with current rates, but this is kind of stupid as it doesn't have anything to do with the reality back then when some bitcoin-rich guy craved for two pizzas. Totally bonkers to calculate how many hundred millions in fiat the price for two pizzas is today that was paid when Bitcoin had not yet a price.

I highly agree in fact it was a winning moment for the guy with Bitcoin because he is able to produce two pizza in a seemingly worthless virtual coins during those times.  So yeah it really does not make sense to calculate and apply the recent value of Bitcoin today then integrate the thought of how much the Bitcoin owner has paid on the event that happen ways back years ago.

[The Cryptovator]

haven't come across any significant stories, but I sympathize with those who spent a substantial amount of Bitcoin on goods when its value was low. At the time, nobody could have anticipated Bitcoin's current position. Otherwise, they would not have spent such a large amount of Bitcoin, such as buying pizza. However, it's important to note that they were not foolish, as they were early adopters of Bitcoin before it gained widespread recognition. They simply couldn't envision its future price. We should learn from their experience and take away a valuable lesson.

[Wimex]

The story of the pizza is a classic of the life of Bitcoin, I will tell you a rather unfortunate story, it is from a friend, the first one who knew about BItcoin before me, in 2009 he always talked about a bitcoin faucet, he commented that even if it were little, in the future it would be very valuable (actually it happened)…. But it happens and it turns out that this individual accumulated 11 bitcoins and for 2017-2018 it was a large amount of money, but life itself is uncertain and a tragedy occurred... the flash drive where my friend had the private keys was damaged, I tried to shave it but it didn't work .. I try to find some other way to enter his wallet .. but nothing, this person invested large amounts of his life time to get those 11 BTC. In today's sun it could be an incredibly millionaire person but the reality is another... A true story to reflect on

[lassdas]

...in 2009 he always talked about a bitcoin faucet,
...it turns out that this individual accumulated 11 bitcoins
..invested large amounts of his life time

This story doesn't really add up.

The first bitcoin faucet was created by Gavin Andresen and he discovered bitcoin in 2010.
Anyone visiting/using that faucet got 5BTC (at least in its early days, later the amount was reduced I think),
for doing nothing but giving the faucet his/her btc-address (it wasn't an ad-infested faucet like those today).

So I really have to wonder, how your friend accumulated (only) 11 BTC investing large amounts of his life time.

If it happened years later then it might add up, but not in 2010 and even less in 2009.  

[EFS]

I have plenty of stories from a decade ago, just like most of the Legendary users here. None of them can be like the first transaction that Lazslo did or other big stories. They shaped history, touched the lives of many people. Now those stories have become the property of the society, they have a place beyond individual memories. Some new members have a hard time realizing how valuable they are. I'm pretty sure if you spend more time here, these legendary stories will start to interest you more.

[Yaunfitda]

I saw something interesting from this bitcoinblogger.com author. He seems to be able to predict the future and is very confident that Bitcoin will rise and become a digital currency that can rival The FED. His posts are also quite interesting to read, because he truly believes that Bitcoin will be popular in the future and there will be many people using it in the future.
I wonder where he was after his last post. Is he still holding on? or is he currently enjoying the results of his initial investment? but wherever he is, what he writes and his views on Bitcoin can be a motivation in the future for us to continue to believe in Bitcoin.

Is this the time traveller story?

If I'm not mistaken, there was this story here, I am a time-traveler from the future, here to beg you to stop what you are doing..

But as far as stories here in the community, yeah, this is the only one and still surviving and for sure there are a lot of OG who are still here after so many years. It's just you have to dig deeper and look for it.

[coupable]

I do not know if I can be considered one of the first enthusiasts of Bitcoin, since I have known it since 2014, and since that time I have been supporting it. I did not have funny stories when dealing with crypto in general, except that the price always went up a lot immediately after I sold my bitcoin savings.  
But I remember that I was surprised that some of my friends knew about Bitcoin before me, including those who used it, but they did not continue their support for it, nor did they share this new knowledge with anyone. Some of them regretted that and admitted that they did not imagine that the situation would reach the way it is today.

So do I. I've been here since 2014 and had very limited to zero knowledge regarding cryptocurrencies; my only exposure was through faucets, from which I acquired my first Bitcoin. Some of which were in my possession until a few years ago, when they were sold during COVID-19 quarantine and repurposed to be used for staking purposes, which was extremely popular and profitable during that period. I'm not sure if I regret repurposing that money because Bitcoin skyrocketed a few months later, but generally, I find it almost impossible to hold for such extended periods; eventually, you'll be tempted to sell.

Your post helped me remember a point that could have been a funny story that happened to me, which is that compared to the majority of beginners in the 2014 period that started with faucets, I was probably one of the few who started practicing mining using asic machines and spondoolies. That was how I introduced crypto to me, after a friend sent me mining machines to run in my country since the cost of electricity is less and my house at that time was kind of isolated in a way that the sound of the machines did not disturb the neighbours. The funny thing is that I stayed for a long time, thinking that these machines work for banks to conduct transactions between them. Lol  
It took me some time to understand what those machines were doing with their annoying sound, since I'm not a computer specialist at all.

[Sarah Azhari]

..  I don't know his name. I'm interested to know what he decided to do with the bitcoins. Does he still possess them? When the story was published on the website, his bitcoin wallet was linked to the article, allowing anyone to offer him tips, and indeed, someone tipped him with one bitcoin.

Sorry if I'm wrong, but when I read this, I feel that he try to beg for money with his drama. I don't believe that if he got 1 bitcoin with his story because as I know many more tragic stories out there but no one to mourn that. So, when we talk about a story, I believe almost us here have a sad story in the past. I don't go far away, in 2018 I have 0.5 btc where i bought it on $4K, then I sold it in $8K on 2019, yes I got profit, but still regret right?, because in the next and next year, the price is going to $60K. where I should be profitable 20x.

[BITCOIN4X]

It feels refreshing reading stories from the past. This actually instills hope.  Is there any other story you have heard about bitcoin from the past? Share with us.

I once read a message posted on FB that was probably written in the early years of bitcoin. Of course it was a short message aimed at convincing everyone to collect as much bitcoin as you can now and you will earn big profits in the future.

I don't know how many people ignored the message and how many people believed in the possibilities that were to come. But the fact is, everyone who has ever read the message will regret the decision to ignore it because bitcoin has gone beyond anything one could have ever imagined. I arrived late in 2018, but I managed to experience how valuable bitcoin is as an investment asset.

[ringgo96]

when reading stories about bitcoin in the past decade it is very difficult to accept the fact when the value of bitcoin has increased as it is today, and those who have spent so much bitcoin at that time replaced it with pizza or clothes then this will make their past very bad and will be hard to forget, so when I got to know bitcoin, I was really careful both to save and to spend the bitcoins that I have, because the stories of the past decade will be the most valuable lessons, and now it's hard to find stories like that because bitcoin users already know that bitcoin is very valuable.

[adaseb]

About a decade ago I met someone who was big on Bitcoin. I think the price was $200 or something. He sent me some bitcoins to test out. I didn’t really do much with them and me and that individual stopped talking because work got in the way. I asked when he will sell Bitcoin and he said $10000 and I called him crazy.

Then when Bitcoin went to $10000. I wanted to know if he actually sold at $10000 but turns out he sold it all for $600. Feel bad for him since shortly after it breached $10000.

[lovesmayfamilis]

There is another more stupid story when those who mined 13 bitcoins did not know where to use them and simply threw them away. It's unbelievable how people couldn't find uses for them, and instead of just forgetting about them for a while, Bitcoins were destroyed. One can only guess what kind of regret people feel when they make such a stupid mistake.

How WIRED Lost $100,000 in Bitcoin . We mined roughly 13 bitcoins and then ripped up our private key. We were stupid—but not alone.

[Eternad]

I believe the Story of Taihuttu Family is most iconic story for me because this happened when I'm new in the Bitcointalk forum and many believe that time that he is crazy because he sold everything for Bitcoin and let his family live on a very simple environment. Their sacrifice that time is already worth it now since they do that crazy investment gamble when Bitcoin is 900$. I think they are so rich now since they still hold their asset the last time they made interview last 2021.

Source: https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/money/2021/08/17/this-family-sold-everything-they-owned-to-invest-in-bitcoin-when-it-was-900/

Also remember the story I'm already here when the news about them came out. I think he knew exactly what he is doing and most probably he trusted someone who he took advice from. Getting all in BTC though is very risky but they did it and live in a bus after it. Not sure how things are after every bear market, I only hear some news about the family every bull run.

Hope they stay safe all the time. They are popular and if someone with intentions to rob them, it could be impossible to be vigilant all the time. 

The bad thing about this story is he was completely doxxed including his family since his story was published on popular news outlet before. Even if they are not holding their crypto holdings, They can always be in danger of losing it all once they are threatened by potential robber worst kidnapper. I just hope that they start using their crypto now so that they can enjoy their life changing investment and at the same time to have a better security.

[Aikidoka]

1st place: $500
2nd place: $250
3rd place: 150
4th: 100
5th:   25BTC

I know it will not happen anymore but if they organize a tournament again, participants might likely want BTC for the champ.

Lol,   if this were to happen now, I would probably make sure I hit the 5th position, like who gives a Dem about 500$ for 1st position.

Well this really shows how people devalued Bitcoin back then and saw no future for it. Imagine the person who got the 5th position, must have hated him self. He probably would have sold the 25 btc or rather gave it out to someone as free gift.

True, he probably sold his 25 BTC or gifted them to someone but he could have also held onto them until now. Who knows? I mean, it's unlikely to have happened but there's a chance it could happen!  

Imagine if 25 BTC were worthless back then and couldn't be compared to $500, and now 25 BTC is worth $755k which can't be compared to $500 right now. That's how the future could be different and that's why you should believe in Bitcoin.

To be honest, I used to have a Bitcoin app on my Android account 5-6 years ago, and I used to earn a lot of satoshis through it, like around 300k satoshis per day which is a lot of money now. 😄 It was a game with a concept of a famous flappy bird game.

[Ben Barubal]

If there is no personal story about Bitcoin yet.. But I read a story of a man who sold all his possessions from his house, and all the things he used in the house in exchange for what he sold, he bought Bitcoin, ultimo He sold his socks just to buy Bitcoin in the belief that its value would increase. I'm not sure what year I heard about this, but maybe between 2013-2016, his story is terrible, he just lives in his tent. For sure someone also knew what I was saying.

[nelson4lov]

Perhaps you can add to these stories the story of the British young man named James Howells, who was storing Bitcoin on a hard disk, then forgot about it and threw it in the trash.

This guy accidentally dumped about 8000 bitcoins in mid-2013, worth about 225$ million today. After that, the price of Bitcoin rose, and he searched through tons of garbage, but unfortunately, he found nothing. Although he did put together an $11 million plan to get it back.

https://www.businessinsider.com/james-howells-threw-away-bitcoin-dump-masterplan-get-back-2022-7

I read about this story some time in the last year. I heard majority of the money ($11M) he put together to seek out his lost bitcoins were loans. Very tragic for him. Whenever I read about some of early bitcoin stories like this, I tend to think it's not their fault and that none of the early users of Bitcoin would've believed the price will move from having zero to no value to being worth several thousands of $ now. Really fascinated. This is why I try to keep my old wallets safe. You'd never know  because anything can happen in this crypto space.

[Z390]

It doesn't matter, the reason why all these stories are making a come.back now is because Bitcoin have better value compared to past years a d some sold for a penny while few held as if they knew that Bitcoin is going to beat gold in terms of value one day, I am happy for them and they leave those who sold too earlier in a pot of regrets, I am glad I am not one of them but it's a good lesson to learn something from.

[bittraffic]

It doesn't matter, the reason why all these stories are making a come.back now is because Bitcoin have better value compared to past years a d some sold for a penny while few held as if they knew that Bitcoin is going to beat gold in terms of value one day, I am happy for them and they leave those who sold too earlier in a pot of regrets, I am glad I am not one of them but it's a good lesson to learn something from.

Even we who sold coins back in 2017 have regrets about not buying BTC back at $3k. Theymos has his own story AFAIK since he sold a few BTC at a price of cents.  It was 13 years ago when he sold 160 BTC. https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5441173.0

but Lazlo is the most celebrated though because he became famous which is the reason for the creation of Bitcoin pizza day. These stories will go to the history books is there will be one author who will list them all. 

[Dr.Bitcoin_Strange]

Well, the case of purchasing pizza with Bitcoin is usually the most remarkable event of Bitcoin, which is always recognised and observed by the forum; apart from that, every other event didn't matter much. That's my opinion. Also, there are other little events, like the parents who named their son Bitcoin, the first person to buy a cup of coffee and pay with Bitcoin. Someone who rented an apartment and paid in Bitcoin, but most of these events are not so recognised. For me, I have spent my first Bitcoin to purchase a thing, but it's not been up to a decade.



Cheers 🥂, Dr.Bitcoin_Strange 👺👺