I'm finished
My father took me to the Forbidden Planet when it was still near the Roosevelt Island Cable Car on 59th between 3rd and 2nd. That was the beginning. A shared love for a hobby between father and son. I've continued on and off, but quite diligently during the off periods.

Issues I own, counting annuals:

Amazing Spider-man: 542
Spec. Spider-man: 281
Web of Spider-man: 140
Spider-man(1990): 97
PP Spider-man (1999): 60
Ultimate Spider-man: about 230, two of each
Miscellaneous Spider-man issues: around 200

Total, roughly 1550 - just Spider-man

Counting for inflation this collection likely cost $7,000-8,000 but is reasonably worth (assuming book value) about $20,000 or so.

Assuming I spent 10 minutes reading each one, that's a total of 15,500 minutes

258 hours

Nearly 11 days. I couldn't begin to estimate the number of hours I've spent reorganizing and bagging each of them...Silver Age bag with a silver age board and a current age board behind the silver age one for extra support.

This has been literature that I believe has shaped me in my formative years and provided a significant link to my past.

But I think the idea of making this character so easily malleable and transfigured has created the other bookend to my hobby. It was a passion I renewed at issue #30 of ASM. I saw that cover and was pulled in again. I was compelled to fill the gap of issues between now and when I had given it up for what most 14 year olds give up there childhood hobbies for.

I had gone back and purchased a lot of issues on e-bay and a whole bunch more at Earthworld Comics in Albany, NY while I was in grad school.

I started up an account at Midtown Comics when I started law school here in Queens.

I believed I had amassed something of an heirloom to pass on for generations, like an original copy of Cervantes' Don Quixote.

And now I'm giving it up again.

It is my opinion, but this is NOT Spider-man. I feel like I am reading a fairly recognizable DC character that I've never read before, like the Flash or Green Lantern.

It doesn't feel right.

I don't care about it anymore. It makes me sad to think about it, but I'm moving on.

You don't have to make mine anymore Marvel. I'm finished.

Posted by coolhanddave on 2008-10-17 14:56:55
coolhanddave, if you're finished does that mean you're going to stop moaning?
They aint going to chance things so lets just accept it and try to enjoy the stories ahead of us.
New Ways To Die was awesome and everyone that has thrown a hissy fit over OMD has really missed out.
These are fictional characters and so if the writer thinks they'd react in a certain way to a certain stiuation thats how they'd react.

I didn't perticularly enjoy OMD but i'm big enough to rise about it and enjoy what comes next.

Keep up the good work Steve.

Posted by dugdale24 on 2008-10-18 08:59:08
Hey
Didn't realize how much you looked like Peter Parker?!? Cool. Work it.

I know that Tom's been plenty generous with his time and that the question period is over. But, something that came up for me over the course of the 42 days of answers is the notion that any lingering mystery regarding the Mephisto Pact and Missing Time is killing any momentum the BND stories may have in their own right. The more you pick at the scab the bigger it gets. I'm one who loves the talent you've assembled but loses interest once the meta-topic of the magic reset button is inserted as a plot point. There is nothing to see here please move on. Long-term fans know it was an editorial decision and I can't believe that any new fans you attracted would even care. Good work thusfar but I think you can leave the stink of OMD behind by just telling the most Spidey stories possible, and hopefully those that couldn't have been told with a married Peter. Mucho thanks.

Posted by hamgravy on 2008-10-18 18:49:25
Hmmm
Posted on the weekend, it says 3 posts, but I only see coolhanddave's. Was his so big that it takes the space of 3?

Posted by hamgravy on 2008-10-20 10:04:44
Alright...
I wonder what's next.

Posted by Aziroth on 2008-10-20 17:37:56
Notes
To whom it may concern-

It may also be that "Mather's" is also known as "Olivera" and that it connects to the "Dean" issue notes, "Henniger" and "Hiraman" issue notes reported.


Sincerely-
Danielle Rene' Crow


-----Original Message-----
From: frelshusa@aol.com
To: submissions@maniatv.com; crowlegs44@charter.net; info@poetry.com; subscriptions@fdic.gov; postmaster@olympic.org; scarecrowglass@yahoo.com; mountaindew@md.mountaindew.com; susan@dugrene.com; leonardodicaprio@11thhouraction.com; sandycrow@verizon.net; alerts@nwf.org
Sent: Mon, 20 Oct 2008 6:30 pm
Subject: In lineage.


To whom it may concern-

It may be that "Urbach" is also known as "Olivera".???

It may be that "McElhaney" and or "Andrus" is also known as "Etbauer".???

These notes are not for the chaos or harm of any one but are for the discontinuance and prevention of any and all abuse, theft, trespass, arson and or fraud.

Thank you.

Sincerely-
Danielle Rene' Crow




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Posted by Celestial on 2008-10-20 20:44:01
Didn't coolhanddave say the exact thing on Brevoort's blog too? I'm wondering how "done" he really is if he keeps coming back here.

Posted by doncorswhazie on 2008-10-21 01:13:35
so does this mean we are spared any more of your bombastic posts dave?

let it cool off for a couple of years and then come on back to the party.

Posted by bigdaddyhub2 on 2008-10-21 11:29:50