My blogging has dropped off considerably of late (still reading, rarely writing.) Honestly, I just haven’t felt like sharing much of life in our bubble…perhaps its my inner introversion coming out. But I would remiss if I did not acknowledge today:

It’s National Comic Book Day!

It is no secret that I am a life long, passionate, comic book collector/reader/lover/fan. In honor of the day, I thought I’d post a recent comic-themed acquisition and finally share some before and after pics of our newly refinished basement.

When I was younger, one of my favorite possessions was a Batman alarm clock that, for an Alarm, would flash a bat signal on the ceiling and play the phrase “Gotham City is in trouble. Call for Batman.” A friend stayed over one night and needed an alarm set for an early departure, so I put the clock in her room and set the alarm. She was NOT a morning person so, when the clock started playing its signature alarm phrase (Aside: It is quite loud and there is no volume control), she tried desperately to shut it off and, upon failing to do so, threw it against the far wall and smashed it. While it did successfully get her out of bed, my beloved clock was beyond repair and I had to say good-bye to it. (This was back before you could find anything on Amazon or the WWW at large.)

I never really got over it.

Once I was older, gainfully employed, and fully connected to the inter-webs, I began my hunt for another one that was still in good shape and working condition and wasn’t astronomically priced. Apparently, its become a collector’s item. (It amazes me how may people try to sell broken and worn-beyond-recognition items for insane prices. At a certain point of disrepair, folks, even collectors’ items become junk!)

Earlier this week, during one of my random searches, I found one being sold on an eBay-like site I had never seen or heard of before – called “Mercari.” Although the clock was still a bit pricey, the seller listed it as being in great condition with working bat-signal and alarm, and the seller still had the original box and packaging it came in. (Packaging isn’t a huge deal for me – I want to always “take it out of the box and play with it” anyway, but it was still a neat bonus.) After hemming and hawing a bit at the price, Jeffrey urged me to buy it and finally end my lifelong torment from its loss.

Twist my arm, whydontcha?

This arrived in the mail yesterday:

While just seeing it again was a thrill and a half, it wasn’t until I popped the 4 AA batteries in and hit the demo button that I let out a squeal of delight: it works. Needless to say, hearing the Alarm and seeing the Bat-signal shine mad me as giddy as a 5 year old on Christmas morning, and I immediately brought it down stairs to the new Comic Book Den. Speaking of which….

…I am finally ready to post some pics of the new basement. In the interest of full disclosure, I have taken dozens of pictures and films and videos, narrated and silent, over the last couple of weeks to post, but I hated all of them and finally settled on the following side by side “before and after” pics. They don’t do the transformation justice, but its the best I can do with my poor filming, picture taking, and editing skills. Hopefully, you can still see the amazing change and why I am so happy with it.

First the Stairwell:

Next, my office to the left of the stairs, (first shot from inside the comic room):

(That’s my artwork on the wall)

Next, the TV/Knitting/Crochet/Collectibles area to the right of the stairs:

And, finally, the Comic Book Room off the Office (I only had one before pic.)

For me, this is a dream come true and it couldn’t have happened at a better time. I’m still in a bit of disbelief that this is really my basement, and I find myself wandering downstairs over and over just to make sure it wasn’t a dream. It’s a much nicer space to spend my workdays (as opposed to the closet in the Giraffe room or, worse yet, my actual office) and a fantastic place to hang out and watch my favorite superhero flicks, read comics, crochet & knit, and just chill. The dogs still don’t come down unless carried down here, but after 8 years of never coming down here, they’re not used to it being an ok place to go. Hopefully, that will change over time.

So, there you have it. My own special Comic Book Den!

Happy National Comic Book Day everyone. Stay safe and help keep the world safe for everyone. Remember, some heroes wear capes…

…but ALL heroes wear masks!