The Obligatory First Post Jitters

Right from the get go, I am going to admit that this newfangled "bloggin" thing that all the kids are into is new to me. The layout as it stands currently should be proof of that. And yeah, I know that I am a couple years behind. Thanks for reminding me. Lately though, the idea of starting a blog though has become more and more intriguing. I finally think that I have something to say and an interesting topic that is somewhat unique. So here is "Deep End of the Long Box."

In the three years since I graduated from the University of Illinois (Go Illini!), I really haven't had much of a chance to use the degree that my parents paid so much for me to get. As Princeton says at the beginning of Avenue Q, "what do you do with a BA in English?" I am still trying to find the answer to that question, but in the meantime, I know that I need something to keep those English muscles from dying of atrophy. What better way to do so than by using something I know and love: comic books. I am a total and complete comic nerd and my knowledge of the medium is pretty extensive. After spending years learning how to critically examine what I read and how to clearly and concisely share my thoughts with others, I think I can use these skills to make some interesting points about the comics I read on a daily basis. I know this is starting to sound like something someone would write on their resume, but I'm being serious. While flipping the pages of whatever comic I have on me, thoughts come to my head that I want to get out and bounce around, and writing them out will give me the chance I need to use my English skills.

OK, so I have a reason to be typing this and a subject matter, but I know that's not enough. There are a million podcasts and blogs about comic books already out there and established. You need to be unique if anyone is going to take you seriously. Not being able to come up with that hook has been the stumbling block for me. This mental roadblock has continuously kept me from doing anything like this until recently. A few months ago, I moved into a new apartment with my longtime girlfriend (now my fiancee). Now while moving, I finally saw how many comics I own that I have never read. All tolled, I have about 5 long boxes worth of comic books waiting to be read. You may ask "where the hell did they all come from?" The answer is that I love to buy comics in bulk whenever I can. No convention, quarter box, or comic sale is safe from me. After finding and consolidating all of these books, an idea hit me. Most of those comic podcasts and blogs only review the new comics that came out that week. No one really goes and looks critically at all of those books gathering dust in the back of their long boxes. There is that niche that I have been looking for.

So here we go. I now have a project that I can really dig into and work on. I am going to dig through those comics and share my thoughts about the diamonds in the rough as well as the absolute duds that should probably be forgotten. The choice of books will be based on what is going on in the world or in my own life, or it could be completely random. That is the fun of it. I do want to thank my fiancee Katie for helping me with the idea. Without her, I probably still would be putting this off. Wish me luck.