I got Crystal from a cousin sometime before 2003 and loved the game. I picked Typhlosion as my starter and always had a strong Machoke on my team.
One problem was, I started a New Game a lot on Silver, but never saved data so I would keep my main file. Except for one time I was in a hurry and forgot I shouldn't save, but I did anyway. I was not happy...
I broke my collar bone around 2003 and needed something to do. I got Pokemon Ruby and that was when I really got into Pokemon. Haven't looked back since.