An Evening Chill

There is a chill in the house that won't go away. I wonder is this age that creeps up on me or the daunting task of living within a budget. Is it inexplicable to think how much easier things could be if I decided I no longer needed the car or the insurance that goes with it? 

Could I rely on faith and good eating habits to quantify my savings by canceling my health insurance, and would it be so odd to dispose of the leash that tethers me everywhere I go by relinquishing my phone? These few items alone would relieve me of the burden with this workload I carry to make what I need to not only survive, but thrive. But, what if by releasing the tension these requirements make with the sustainable minimal amount I earn, that without I might flourish, an idea I have been toying with.

Then what? Do I buy more comics? Do I try to find that diamond in the rough? Do I use the excuse of lack of funds to keep me inside for hours and hours to type words? And are those words any good strung together?

The chill lingers, the portable heater drums on, and I gaze at my comic collection. Each box filled with books attached to memories, some more potent than others. Each cover, each story silently crying out to me to read again. And I question if I give in to that silent voice, where should I begin?

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Taking a Day Off

I didn’t mean to, in fact I didn’t want to but after forcing myself to stay up and drive to a comic book convention in Essington PA I came home and fell asleep after a dose of Nyquil. I have been working a lot and I can feel a cold coming on and wished to stop it before it started. I was supposed to pick up five new CGC books for me but somehow that was not to be the case. I am patient so I am OK with that. I still went to drop off a check and a comic book to get John Romita’s Signature. I am hoping for a grade of a 9.2, this grade it out of a ten being the highest.

I did pick up some really cheap books and a few others to read but didn’t spend the big bucks. I almost bought an ASM #119 in a 9.2 as well as an Eternals #1 sketch Variant in a gem ten. I passed o both since it was more than the amount of money I was willing to spend. I had the cash in pocket and am utterly grateful I had the willpower to pass on those books. At least now for next month I have something to save up for. If I didn’t owe out the money I currently do I would have had no problem picking up both of them.

And maybe since I skipped a day I will write another when I wake up. Once again it will be a Nyquil induced sleep. I hate to take the things but I have been working between 65 to 80 hours a week and while you are trying to figure that out, the diner that I work at is open 24 hours. I have been faling behind in a few things, like my chores, but my toe is healing so after a good day’s sleep I plan on catching up on y chores and then updating my collection.

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How Much do I spend?

How much do I spend?

Lately I have lost track of what I have been spending. I was doing pretty well up to June of this year but have since lost track. I have all the receipts around but it is a matter of finding them and placing them in my log. I have been keeping track of all new books, CGC books and related comic supplies. October is fast approaching and I am getting ready to send some books in. I want to send them under a prescreen lot but afraid I might not know exactly what to look for.

I have sent books in without caring what they were graded and had them be graded at a 9.8, then there were others that I was immensely wrong. I need money for this and last night not only did I work an extra shift, I had no relief this morning. I waited an extra hour and a half before I finally had a message from someone telling me to go home. I been blogging so well though that I didn’t want to miss a day so instead of going straight to sleep I figured I would write about what was on my mind, my budget, and my budget for comic books.

If I continue working like this I should be where I want to b by the end of October…not including getting my books back from CGC. I hope to look back on this journal and be happy where I am bother with my collection and financial status. Either way, as always….

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Rumor Has it!

Rumor has it

I can’t remember the first pre bagged book I ever picked up and I am not talking about back issues either. I remember X-Force bagged with Variant Cards, I remember Spider-Man bagged as well. Both those bags were clear. The Death of Superman was the first bagged book I remember that was not see through. The black background accented the Red S. I bought more X-force books than I ever should have and I learned to curtail my spending for the Superman bagged issue. I only bought two.

So many people thought that would be the next best book, the book that would send their kids through school. I wanted one to read, and one to keep bagged. My readable copy is gone. I still have the bagged copy in between a thick plastic holder much like they use for baseball cards. Variant covers were another gimmick but at least now you have a choice to purchase a “rare” cover, much like a fellow collector on the registry was looking for the 1 in 200 copy of JLA.

When I spent money quicker than I was earning it I would buy comic related cards as well and felt like I won the lottery when I found a hologram card in one of the two packs I purchased. If I remember correctly it is a card of Spider-Man and Venom. I still have the card. I just don’t know where it is. There is something magical about being surprised by the unexpected, much like Christmas Morning. I feel that DC is pulling off a huge gimmick with their whole line starting over at #1 that a lot of people are overlooking the Ultimate line bagging their number one books.

So why are they doing this? It can’t be to stop the readers from gazing through the book. All the new #1’s that the ultimate line is doing are bagged but the variants are easily accessible. Most shops have them bagged and boarded with a price hike. I would have no problem unbagging one and looking through the book to see if I wanted to buy it, much like I did with the September 7^th DC books. I can understand why they did it with the last issue of the Ultimate Spider-Man. Does he die or doesn’t he. I’ll admit I was wrong. I thought Peter would live. So why bag the other number ones?

At my comic shop today, a day I wasn’t going to go, I picked up a fair amount of books including a single DC #1. My LCS was busier today so I was able to talk to the manager and he asked me a question. He asked me if I knew why Marvel was bagging all the #1’s. Admittedly I said no.  I chat with many people about Comic books now that I am writing for Comicbooked.com and even started my own blog with AshotofComics.Blogspot.com but no one mentioned what he mentioned to me and I am curious enough to post this article/journal entry/ blog entry on all three avenues of communication just to find out if it is true.

I have a copy of Ultimate Comics All-New Spider-Man which I had the option of buying a variant but decided since I was already buying another variant I would have to pass. I only wanted the book to read anyway, not collect, maybe a CGC copy down the line, which was the reason why I bought the other variant. Anyway, what I was told that the reason for the bagged copies was inside were random variants which were signed by Stan Lee? Is this true? I don’t know but I would like to find out whether a reader could tell me, or who knows maybe I will be lucky enough to find out right now…….

Thanks for Reading

Tnerb

Blogging without a Computer

My computer and I are having a disagreement and although I rudely forced a shut down, the computer is winning. I had plans to update a portion of my CGC comic book collection and update my data base with my new books.

The most difficult part is not being able to write. Sure I can swype a quick blog but it isn't the same. I had a few articles I was finishing up and now I am sitting here trying to express myself through my phone. I work six days a week and Thursday is that one day I can play catch up on my chores and leisurely activities....like enjoying my comic books.

I wanted to start photographing my encapsulated books and although I can take the photos I won't be able to view them properly until my computer is up and running. I tend to start all my blogs/journals with paper and pen but then transfer it to my computer with voice recognition software. Today I feel let down by technology and really wish I had a ribbon for my typewriter.

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