Reflection #10

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.