Growing up and eBay.
Recently I decided I don't want to live where I live anymore. Actually, it wasn't all that recent a decision, there's just way too much I hate about my building and my neighborhood- enough to outweigh a very cool landlord and cheap rent. I currently live in a 3 bedroom place and only use 1 bedroom for its intended purpose. The other 2 are filled with what I affectionately call "my shit." I was looking around my place recently, wondering what's going to make the cut, because I definitely won't be able to afford a 3-bedroom anywhere else and will have to move into a smaller place. And so, for better or worse, I need to grow up a little and put away childish things. At least some of them.
First up on the chopping block and by far the biggest pain in the ass to find a home for: my comic collection. I have 40 long boxes of comic books. The long box is designed to hold 300 comics, but almost all mine have more than 300 in them, so we're talking about more than a few comics. I've been collecting since my friend Tom let me read a copy of X-Men in 7th grade and I'm now 32. They currently take up a good portion of one of my 3 "bedrooms." Ideally I'd like to keep about 10 boxes of stuff I either spent a great deal of time aquiring or stuff I really like, even though it may be monetarily worthless.
Secondly, I need to divest myself of my toy collection-most of it, anyway. I, too, fell victim to the collectible toy market of the late 80's through the 90's, and while there are some toys I won't sell for sentimental and/or greedy reasons, there are a lot I'll happily part with for monetary gain and the space they'll leave behind. Mostly these are action figures, but would also include much of my roleplaying stuff, including vintage games they just don't make anymore. Even though it kills me to do it, logically I know I will never play them again, certainly not to the degree I once did. (I recently revived TSR's Star Frontiers for one game session, just for a laugh, and it wasn't as well-received as I would have liked. It was supposed to go for two sessions but I think I was the only one who felt the stirring of nostalgia for a game with a good premise but a horrible system. Sic transit gloria.)
The vast majority of my books are coming with me, although from time to time I'll sell some online, particularly if I have a rare edition of a book I don't value, or I acquire a nicer edition of one I already have. I had to make a decision between my books and my comics-the books won, mainly because I realized I don't want most of the comics I own, and the stuff I do care about I'll keep.
I've been spending a lot of time on eBay as a seller over the past year or so; my feedback went from 121 to (currently) 244. I've enjoyed some success, but I've also found that eBay is paradoxically my best friend and worst enemy, and I haven't even made a dent in my comics yet.
It's my best friend because without it I certainly wouldn't be selling things as quickly. It's nice to post something obscure and find someone in Podunk, Alabama who wants it more than anything. It's my worst enemy because I've had to let things go for less than I would have liked. This is especially true of my comics, because one thing I've learned on eBay is there's always someone selling it for less than you. Technically, if I unload something for more than I paid for it it's a profit. But it's tough to swallow letting a $20.00 comic go for $6.00, despite the fact that I paid $2.00 for it.
And nobody-I mean nobody- wants Aquaman comics.
First up on the chopping block and by far the biggest pain in the ass to find a home for: my comic collection. I have 40 long boxes of comic books. The long box is designed to hold 300 comics, but almost all mine have more than 300 in them, so we're talking about more than a few comics. I've been collecting since my friend Tom let me read a copy of X-Men in 7th grade and I'm now 32. They currently take up a good portion of one of my 3 "bedrooms." Ideally I'd like to keep about 10 boxes of stuff I either spent a great deal of time aquiring or stuff I really like, even though it may be monetarily worthless.
Secondly, I need to divest myself of my toy collection-most of it, anyway. I, too, fell victim to the collectible toy market of the late 80's through the 90's, and while there are some toys I won't sell for sentimental and/or greedy reasons, there are a lot I'll happily part with for monetary gain and the space they'll leave behind. Mostly these are action figures, but would also include much of my roleplaying stuff, including vintage games they just don't make anymore. Even though it kills me to do it, logically I know I will never play them again, certainly not to the degree I once did. (I recently revived TSR's Star Frontiers for one game session, just for a laugh, and it wasn't as well-received as I would have liked. It was supposed to go for two sessions but I think I was the only one who felt the stirring of nostalgia for a game with a good premise but a horrible system. Sic transit gloria.)
The vast majority of my books are coming with me, although from time to time I'll sell some online, particularly if I have a rare edition of a book I don't value, or I acquire a nicer edition of one I already have. I had to make a decision between my books and my comics-the books won, mainly because I realized I don't want most of the comics I own, and the stuff I do care about I'll keep.
I've been spending a lot of time on eBay as a seller over the past year or so; my feedback went from 121 to (currently) 244. I've enjoyed some success, but I've also found that eBay is paradoxically my best friend and worst enemy, and I haven't even made a dent in my comics yet.
It's my best friend because without it I certainly wouldn't be selling things as quickly. It's nice to post something obscure and find someone in Podunk, Alabama who wants it more than anything. It's my worst enemy because I've had to let things go for less than I would have liked. This is especially true of my comics, because one thing I've learned on eBay is there's always someone selling it for less than you. Technically, if I unload something for more than I paid for it it's a profit. But it's tough to swallow letting a $20.00 comic go for $6.00, despite the fact that I paid $2.00 for it.
And nobody-I mean nobody- wants Aquaman comics.
posted by The Angry Piper at 9:56 AM
6 Comments:
I do! I just don't want to pay YOU for them. Sad really. We could have been great friends. Oh wait. We were!
I never wanted to be a king...
E-Bay bites for comics unless they are VERY RARE, open a comic shop.
Hey check out your new link, click me name
Just remember that some things should be saved just to laugh at yourself later. I should buy some of your comics so I could finally get to take them out of the clear plastic, taped package and read the things!
I definitely bought my comics so I could read them and with very few exceptions, I have read all the comics I own. The only ones I haven't read are those that I am missing issues for in the midst of a run, i.e. If I have issues 24-46, but I'm missing 25, 26, and 40, I won't read them at all until I acquire the missing issues. I realize this is a manifestation of my OCD, but all comic collectors (some would say collectors in general) have it to some degree. I look at it like reading a book and skipping chapters-I just can't do it.
Of course, you're more than welcome to purchase some of my comics. With over 12,000 in my collection, I'm sure you're bound to find something you'll like. :)
Hey you got me hooked. Check out my post eve-616.blogspot.com. Miss ya
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