Since this is an open topic post I’m not going
to write about the articles we read or the movie we watched for class. I am
going to talk about something rather unusual. Something I had never done before
and something I may never do again. Not because I wouldn’t choose to do it
again but because we won’t have to do it again for this class. I am going to
discuss my experience when purchasing a graphic novel for our second analytic
essay.
Friday, I brought my two friends Zack Kempf
and Taylor Nania with me to Galesburg to go to the Alternate Realities comic
store to purchase a graphic novel. I had pre-judgments of what to expect when I
walked in there. I figured I’d see a
bunch of “nerds” wearing superhero t-shirts talking all about the most recent
comic released. I figured I wouldn’t relate
to any of the people in that store and that I would run in there, grab a book, and
run out of there. When I got in the
store I only saw one worker wearing a Captain America t-shirt. I also noticed that the store had a room in
the back where there were probably ten people talking, laughing, and playing a
card game. I judged them. When I began
my search for a book I quickly began to feel overwhelmed. There were a few bookshelves packed full of
graphic novels. I had no idea which hero
I wanted to do and some of those books were over $30 and I knew I didn’t want
to spend that much on a graphic novel. I
was just completely lost. A nice man
came over and offered his help. I
explained to him that I had to write an essay over a graphic novel that
portrayed some broad issues that I could analyze. I also told him that I wanted
a book that wasn’t too long and something that I could comprehend fairly easy
because sometimes I have a hard time comprehending stories, especially ones
that I’m not familiar with. Another guy
in the store heard me say that and he began laughing. It kind of pissed me off
and hurt my feelings. I was thinking, “sorry
I don’t sit around a comic book store all day. Like go out and do something.”
Again, I was judgmental. I told the man
that was helping me out what class I was in and he thought that it was the
greatest thing he had ever heard. He had me tell him what superheroes that I favored
then he gave me a couple options that he thought would work for me and my
paper. He gave me Batgirl and a Batman
one. I really appreciated his help and was glad that he came over with a smile
and eager to help.
Anyway, the moral of my story was that it was
wrong for me to judge the store and the people in it. It’s actually kind of cool that there’s a
room where people can get together and do something they love. There are worse
things that people could choose to do.
The guy that assisted me was really helpful and if it wasn’t for him I
probably would have been in there for hours trying to figure out what I was
going to do. Being an avid superhero fan
is part of a huge culture that more people should appreciate. I choose to spend my time going out and
drinking with my friends, watching TV or shopping. These are things I enjoy
doing. They choose to spend their time
reading comic books and playing comic book and card games with their friends. These are things they enjoy doing. It’s wrong
for me to judge that culture, their lifestyle, and what they like to do.
