Comics have made me a better and happier person20881
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Nate79 private msg quote post Address this user | |
| I picked up where I left off with my comic collection from back in the nineties when my mom sent the collection out to me about a year and a half ago. At that time I had grown to become more than just unhappy with myself but also the choices I had made throughout mylife that resulted in me landing in the position i currently am in. After living a certain wAY for so many years and as unhealthy as my life style was I knew it wasnt going to be easy to make the change. In fact I was t even sure if trying to turn tbings around to live a different type of lifestyle that would better myself was even a realistic goal to set but i decided it was worth the effort of at least making an attempt. So I broke down on a checklist what needed to change and in what order to get to a point where I was at least pointed in a direction that I wanted to head towards. I came to the conclusion that the main contributor to my lack of progress success and happiness was basically the only contributor rather than the main contributors. It was some extremely bad habits. Some would call them addictions but i hate that word so i call them habits.just because I refuse to recognize them as addictions that doesnt mean I don't recognize just how much of a role they played on creating the dissatisfaction in my life and although these habits were just one of many things that needed changing for me to find happiness i also knew that the habit had to be the first thing to take action overcoming and until I achieved that they had to be the one and only thing TO docus my efforts on. After talking to others who had similiar problems but siccessfully overcame them i came to the conclusion that by giving up something that has become of extreme importance to a person they create an empty void inthemselves where the habit they are giving up once filled. Regardless how long a person refrains from partaking in said habit its never going to becone any less difficult to give up unless that person finds an alternative to the habitto fill that void that the habit left behind. That alternative needs to have the potential to become as enjoyable and as important to the person as the previous bad habit was.Right away I dusted the cobwebs off my guitar and dedicated a couple hours a day to it and almost emediately my interest in it grew to the way it originally had been growing up. I already had an excellent american made acoustic so i decided to invest in an electric and began exploring the world of effect pedals.It wasnt long before I was offered a position as a rythm guitarist and background vocals for a band that did regular gigs at different venues around the city. I took the position and even though Up to that point I was really enjoying playing music and now also make new friends amd connections who had similiar interests it didnt feel like it was filling in my void even a little bit.I knew the venues the band played in would expose me to people who had the same old lifestyle that I was trying to change in myself that wasn't a concern for me because once I make a decision I'm as stubborn as hell but I was concerned that this distraction I created with music wasn't feeling in any void. I was talking to my mother about it one night on the phone she didn't have anything to suggest but then a week later I received a huge package from her it was my comics from when I was a kid. She had included a note stating that she remembered that just before I started heading in the direction that caused my bad habits these comics I seem to be the most important thing in my life and she hasn't seen me as passionate about anything since. She realizes I'm an adult now and I was just a kid then but she explained that lots for adults are very passionate about comics she said either way he moved to a smaller home and he's there taking up much needed space so whether it helps me or not she'd rather have them with me so that they're out of her way. So i started looking through them. And memories started to flush through my mind. My first ever comic was The spider man series todd mcfarlane created in 1990 and i bought every issue of that run till todd macfRlane left.around that same time my uncle (who was an obsessive ASM vol 1. Fan) was in a fatal car accident a.d my grandfather passed down his entire collection to me which started at issue #21 and stopped at #270 with just a minimal amount of holes in the run the really early issues were in extremely poor conditon which i assume was due to people not using baGs and boards back then and the fact that my une would have only just still been a very small boy back then.but issues 170 and up were all bagged and boarded. I remember going to the shop he use to get his comics from with him one day and at the cash registar they use to sell individual bags and boards just to the left of it. He use to buy the issues each month. If it was an issue he wanted to read he would.by 2 issues. So the comics for his collection were bagged and boarded before he left the shop. He never removed them ever not once. I could see what i think you guys call "foxing"on the edges of some of the boards surronding the books. So the first thing i decided to do was replace the bags amd boards. The guy who owns the local comic shop in my city is a fiend of mine coincidently so because I wanted to show these books off to him and I also wanted whatever type of product offered the best protection possible to replace the bags and boards currently on the books I decided to drop in with all the comics that were ASM Vol.1 i knew i needed something better than what was previously used because of the foxing i gad seen on sone of the boards I hadnt removed them yet but I could just imagine what the back of these books might look like when I did.I was also quite excited to show them off to him because I knew some of the issues were verry valuable nack in the nineties so I imagined they could have been worth a fortune by now. They were worth more but not enough more for me to consider it a fortune. But he said it was a very i.pressive collectiom. He recommended these bags made of thicker plastic that would protect the corners if the books were ever dropped. They were called mylars. And then for boards he jad two options one option were boards that were smoother on one side then the other. He said that if I chose these boards the smooth side of the board was suppose to go against the back of the comic and thats because the smooth sidw was designed to prevent the foxing that occured on my original boards. His second suggestion was what he thought was the best option. They were just regukar boards similiar to what u currently had but he told me that rather than placing the board behind the book to put it inside the book at the centerfold. I went with that option but also bought a few of the otber boards so the books that had spines that were worst than others i could place them behind the book in addition to having a board in the centerfold. Then I spent the rest of the weekend rebagging everything. While I was ib the shoo i also found a few back issues that would fill a few holes in the collection. As I was paying i noticed some graded books behind the counter and didnt know what they were and assumed they were a suoerior option for protection. He explained what grading was how and why it started and said as great as it was that ot was also very expensive. He mentioned a few of the issues I had like#121#122 #194#238 and#252 were in such good condition that id be crazy not to have them graded but explained that due to the fact that we live in Canada the cost of shipping was insane and the best way to offset that shipping costs was to send in several at a time. He said he sends in 25 books at a time and recommended i did the same. All the books above issue #100 were in at least a condition that was good enough for grading to be beneficial but the issues he had mentioned were really the only ones after issue 100 that grading was of great necessity to have done right away. He told me after i finished re bagging the issues below 100 to refrain from putting boards behind them and just stick with a board at the centerfold amd bring them back in. This way he could evaluate the condition quite well without the need of removing them from theyre mylar. He said if I did that he would selct for me which books had the most urgency to be graded. I did what he asked but before i did I also tried submitting the books he already meantioned to CGC. I realized he wasnt kidding about it being expensive and only sent in #194#252#238 because i just couldnt afford to send more. I used CGC because thats the compamy he meantioned and i didnt know pf others. Before i sent them off i googled comic grading and discovered CBCS and PGX. After reading what people were saying in forums I decided PGX was not a company Id consider. CBCS had much more positive things said about it. I also learned one of the big wig guys who had worked with CGC for years and since the very start had left the company and became the founder of CBCS. When i did a test submission the shipping was so much better in price I could have sent 4 books to them and it would have cost slightly less than the three is sent to CGC. The only reason I still went with CGC instead of CBCS is because my friend who owned tbe comic shop advised against CBCS and he was the only person at the time that I was confident about his.knowledge of comics and trusted his advice on. So it took over 6 months to get those books back which was disappointing and by then I was turned off on the whole grading thing. But every weekend i would go to my.buddies shop and sometimes other shops and by back issues i needed to complete my ASM vol.1 run. One weekend I was heading to my buddys shop and theyre was a massive line up of people waiting to go in. I asked someone what the line up.was about and he said Dan Slott was doing a signing today. Id never heard of the guy and just asked if i still had to waitin line if i wasnt going to.ask for an autograph and was told i could go strait in. When i got inside There was only one back issue left of vol.1 that i didnt have. When i was paying for it I asked who Dan Slott was and was told he was a creater for newer Amazing Spiderman Volumes. Since I had planned to.spend alot more time shopping for comics that day and budgeted to spend a lot more money I decided Id find an issue of ASM that Dan Slott created amd get it signed. Apparently Slott has been there several times over the years for signings and the shop is confident he will continue to keep coming in the future. They had saved several older copies that were created by Dan Slott that were significant issues. The purpose for saving them was so thsy could put them back out on the shelves whenever Dan Slott was theyre doing a signing. I noticed there were copies of Amazing Spider-Man#1 (2014) first appearance of silk on the shelf for sale. When i asked how much they cost I was told they were still selling it at its oroginal price. I thought that considering that book was now 10 years old it was a good deal. I waited in lineand i had the opportunity toeet the guy and he signed my comic. I expected someone from CGC to be theyre witnessing the signatures but there wasnt so that was a little disappointing because even though i had become turned off from grading i still liked the idea of the yellow labels and the fool proof method of provimg the signature authenticity. When i got home i started lokking on google to see if there was another option and thats when i learned about CBCS verifying option from partnering with beckett. I went on the CBCS website and went through the process of submitting itand was pleasantly surprised to learn that the grading fees as well as the verification fees and even the return shipping was well under $100 in fact it was only like $76 or something. I sent the book in. They emailed me to let me know it arrived and in less than ten days they emailed me again to let me know it was completed and being sent back to me. I couldnt believe it. Such a great price amd completed so quickly! Then it arrived and wow the slab was souch better than the slabbs CGC used. Everything about it was better! And this was before there recent label chamge. So I decided id start getting books graded again but Just a few at a time because ofy budget. My next submission wasnt till march of this year. I have a little cousin who is obsessed with spiderman. Be has a spiderman suite for pajamas and everything and i wanted to give him my Dan Slott autographed book since it wasnt volume 1 anyway which is what i collected. But part of me wanted to keep it because it sorta had some sentimental value now. I had begun looking for vack issues to fill my holes in volume 1 on ebay at that point and noticed Dan Slott autographed books were often for sale so i started looking to see if i could find another one of the same signed issue i had. I found one very easily and I also found a copy of ASM#500 signed by both RomitAs and stan lee! So i bought them both and the same day they arrived i sent them to CBCS for the VSF program. I decided to also select pressing this time because the only disappointing factor on the first on was that even though i picmed it up right off the shelf it only recieved a grade of 8.0 so i thought a press might help. The day CBCS emailed me to tell me the books arrived was march 20th and now its the middle of june and im still waiting. Since then Ive sent in 2 other books as regular submissions and they were completed amd return even faster than my first experience. Im told that the reason for the lomg wait os because of the pressing. The thing is LAst year i cant remember if it was CGC or CBCS but one of them was offering a private signing event with Gerry Conway and I really wanted to send in my.copy of 121 to be signed and graded but by the time i learned about it id never get the books theyre on time. Fortunately I got am.email from.CBCS announcimg another private Signing for Gerry ConWay back in april stating the deadline for.submissions was june 15th. So right away I sent in the copies he did.that i.owned that were in best condition #112#113 and a fascmile copy of 129# i figured if i sent in the 129 fascmile i could sell it when it returned to offset the costs of the other two. My copy of 121 i had just sent away for pressimg and cleaning so i couldnt send it in but i was hopeful that id get it back soon enough to send it in later and still make the deadline. Luckily i did. It came.back last week of.may and i put it in the mail june 1st. The only drag about sending those first three books in way back in april is the waiting period. Ive never submitted anything for private signing before. I sent everything in at regular speed without pressing or anything does amyone know how long the TAT is for books once theyre signed and have left Wyoming and arrived in Plano? If its more tham a couple weeks is it too late fore to upgrade to express grading. That was really my only question in this post.but getting back to filling that void.my bad habits left behind. Simce I began this attempt to complete my ASM VOL.1 COLLECTION that i took over from my uncle as a kid ithas completely filled the void and then some. I dont even find staying awaY from those habits the least bit challenging. Plus books i could only dream of owning back then i cam npw afford to buy. Somepeople have accused me of trading one bad habit for another bwcause they dont agree with the amount of money i have spent on comics but the way i see it is from some of the research ive done is that investing in comics is a best kept secret for investors. Very few things in this world offer such high returns in such a short period of time and there is almost no risk of the investment going down in value. For the last 20 years when my peers were investing in rrsps for retirement i was blowing my money on partying. Maybe comics will be the way i end up financing my retiremnt |
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 Collector
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Hexigore private msg quote post Address this user | |
| . . .and they all lived happily ever after. The end.  |
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 Collector
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ThreeSeas private msg quote post Address this user | |
| That's a good story, Nate. What I feel is that comics are not an addiction, but a passion. I'm glad that you have found this healthy passion to fill your previous void. When I was married for about 20 years I had to pretty much give up my comics and other hobbies, but now I'm back into comics more and it's a great feeling. |
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 If I could, I would. I swear.
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DrWatson private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Is there a Cliff's Notes version of that post? I'd have to take a vacation day to read it all, lol. | ||
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 You do know that the new guy brings the donuts, right?
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DWeeB1967 private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Welcome to the forum, @Nate79. Collecting comics is a great hobby. If you spend much time hanging around the forum you'll find that there are people here from many different backgrounds. Some have struggled with addictions, mental health issues and things of that nature. Regardless, I've found most of the people here to be pretty welcoming. As for your TAT question, you can check the CBCS website for TAT info. If you don't find what you need there, you can try to email CBCS customer service. Fill disclosure though, they are not always the most responsive. |
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 Collector
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dfoster43 private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by DrWatsonLOL  The TLDR is: Comics are good. Drugs are bad, mmmmkay? and @Nate79 is a winner on all fronts!  |
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 Please continue to ignore anything I post.
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southerncross private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Deleted by moderation. | ||
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 "There, their, they're."
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GAC private msg quote post Address this user | |
| @southerncross lol!! I posted this once and moderation deleted it...just an FYI. |
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Collector
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dfoster43 private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by southerncross Uh Oh you scared the straights |
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 " . "
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Davethebrave private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Summarized in 100 words (courtesy of my AI proxy): A year and a half ago, I resumed my nineties comic collection after my mom sent me my old comics. Dissatisfied with my life choices, I sought a healthier lifestyle, giving up bad habits and reigniting my interest in guitar and comics. Playing guitar didn't fully satisfy me, but my old comics reignited a passion. I meticulously expanded my Amazing Spider-Man collection, investing in proper storage and grading. This hobby filled the void, providing a positive outlet and potential financial benefits for my future, despite some criticism about the money I spend on it. |
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Please continue to ignore anything I post.
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southerncross private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by GAC lol I didn't know that. |
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Collector
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dfoster43 private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Davethebrave AI will do all my TLDR from now on!!! |
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 would be nice to have a snugger fit.
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Sigur_Ros private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Davethebrave  |
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 Masculinity takes a holiday.
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EbayMafia private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Davethebrave That's honestly quite amazing. |
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Collector
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Nate79 private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Wow I don't get this much attention from. Posts I make on Facebook and those posts are exposed to 546 people that actually know me amd most for a very long time. It's caused me to question. How sincere most of my so called friendships actually are. It's quite a depressing feeling. I think I'm going to enjoy these forums as much as the comic collecting we all seem to be so passionate about. That's another huge plus because now that I've re-developed my interest in comics and being at the ripe age of 44 I love the hobby but I've so far found it a fairly lonely hobby. The only person I really know and enjoy spending time with discussing comics is the owner of my local comic shop so it looks like these forums offer plenty of opportunities to meet other like minded individuals | ||
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You do know that the new guy brings the donuts, right?
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DWeeB1967 private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Absolutely. And there quite a few Canucks on the forum so they should make you feel right at home. | ||
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would be nice to have a snugger fit.
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Sigur_Ros private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Nate79 Dump those friends. At least 500 of them. Welcome to the forum. |
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 I'm a McNugget guzzler.
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HeinzDad private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Sigur_RosYour post of 2024 so far, I concur! |
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 Not trying to be an ass since February 12, 2020.
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HulkSmash private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Nate79 This is a good place to interact. There are people I know fairly well, but I don’t have a lot really good friends mostly because I’m not a people person. I tend to myself and spend time with my family. There are 2 people I’ve enjoyed talking comics and toys with and one passed away a few years ago. Something may come up in passing conversation with my dad and my wife will listen and supports my hobby. sharing a hobby with someone who enjoys it as much as you do makes it’s so much more enjoyable; at times brings validation to certain choices and at times presents bad choices or causes more consideration for those choices. There are always naysayers for everything. I find myself questioning things in my own hobby; like demand of certain books or paying someone money to destroy a perfectly good book with remarks. That’s just what some people are into, im not, ill never understand some things and thats ok. |
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 Collector
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Optic_Blast private msg quote post Address this user | |
| I couldn't commit myself to read that novel, so I'll just say "congrats", and "nice job". Hopefully one of those applies to what was written. | ||
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