For Round 15, in July of 2007, our writing group decided that we should all write a true personal experience. It didn't take me long to decide what I wanted to write about: that time I stupidly walked between two towns in the middle of the night! I figured I could put a bit of a self-deprecating, funny spin on it and that would make the story more enjoyable for people to read. You'll have to be the judge of how well I did that.

Kirinyaga

by Mike Resnick

• Page count: 13

"Kirinyaga" is an award winning 1988 science fiction short story by Mike Resnick. It is about a colony of Kikiru living on a utopian world, who are investigated for their religious practices.

Daredevil #168

• Date: January 1981
• Publisher: Marvel Comics Group
• Cover Price: 50¢
• 2013 Price Range: $11 - $200
• Stats: 30 color pages plus ads and “Let's Level with Daredevil” letters page
• Writer and Artist: Frank Miller
• Other Artists: Klaus Janson, Dr. Martin, Joe Rosen
• Notable Notes: Origin and 1st appearance of Elektra, 1st Miller scripts

An Excuse To Get This Issue!

I enjoy collecting comics - you know, the actual tracking down, haggling and finally obtaining an issue that I have long sought after. And creating this web site gives me the perfect excuse to get some issues I have wanted for a long time - like this one! To be honest ebay is the route I mostly take for used comics, and I put in many bids on many different DD #168 auctions before I finally won this one. It cost me $50 (that is 100 times its original price!) but I think it is in much better condition than advertised, and I was very pleased with the purchase. Hopefully one day I can sell it for at least a little bit of a profit - but if not then no big deal, because it was totally worth buying just to read the classic story inside!

I was introduced to table top role playing games (TTRPG) when I was 8 years old. I distinctly remember having my cousin tell my brother and me all about this fancy new game where you took on the role of an adventurer and killed monsters and found treasure. I mean, what's not to like?! This new role playing game was called Dungeons & Dragons, and I became a huge fan. My brother and I played it together, and recruited several of our friends to join us. We would take turns going to each other's houses on the weekends and staying up 'til the wee hours of the morning fighting orcs, evil giants and demons. Ah, it was a golden time of childhood that I look back upon quite fondly!

Heaven, As Built By Tackleby Ames

by Bart Meehan

• Word count: 540

• Page count: 2

"Heaven, As Built By Tackleby Ames" is a 2007 flash fiction story by Bart Meehan. It is about a rich old jerk who builds a computer in which he can spend eternity.

Captain America #6 (Vol. 3)

• Date: June 1998
• Publisher: Marvel Comics
• Cover Price: $1.99
• 2013 NM Price: $3.00
• Stats: 22 color pages plus ads, Bullpen Bulletins and “American Graffiti” letters page
• Writer: Mark Waid
• Artists: Dale Eaglesham, Scott Koblish, Joe Rosas, John Costanza
• Notable Notes: A fake Captain America causes quite a stir!

The Curse of The Empire State Building!

Is it just me or do only bad things seem to happen at the Empire State Building in all forms of entertainment? I mean c'mon - this issue aside the only time I ever see the famous NY building in a movie it is always being destroyed, used as a base for evil or breaking someone's heart! Surely there has to be some uplifting portrayals of the Empire State Building - doesn't there?

When I was a sophomore in high school, and just 17 years old, I wrote a poem for our school's "Reflections" contest.  At the time I was very enamored with America's space program, and so I thought I'd write about it.  But in my research I discovered that the Soviet Union had done quite a bit to advance the space race as well, and if it hadn't been for tragedy they might well have reached the moon before us.  Being young and idealistic I thought there was a good lesson to be learned there.

A Rose for Ecclesiastes

by Roger Zelazny

• Word count: 12431

• Page count: 29

"A Rose for Ecclesiastes" is a 1963 science fiction novelette written by Roger Zelazny. It is about a gifted linguist who is the first human allowed to read sacred Martian texts.

Unknown Worlds #35

• Date: Oct-Nov 1964
• Publisher: American Comics Group
• Cover Price: 12¢
• 2013 Price Range: $5 - $70
• Stats: 25 color pages plus "Kisses and Hisses" letters column and ads
• Writers: Lafcadio Lee, Pierre Alonzo
• Artists: Edd Ashe, Pete Costanza
• Notable Notes: An early appearance of a somewhat popular secret agent!

An Amazing Discovery!

The story of how I came to possess this comic book is an awesome one! So, in the late 1990s my oldest brother was remodeling an old house in a small, rural town. As he was gutting the kitchen area he found this comic inside one of the walls! Realizing that it might be valuable he carefully pulled it out from between the crumbling dry-wall and eventually brought it to me to see how much it was worth. Given its condition I told him it was worth about $10 - $20 dollars. Well, that didn't make his eyes light up with dollar signs, so he eventually gave it to me! I think it is a great comic book, and even if it is only worth $10 that is still 83 times its original value! Yay for old comics!

As I write this Super Bowl LX is just a few days away. It will feature the Seattle Seahawks against the New England Patriots. I am a little bit miffed that the Patriots are back in the Super Bowl again - I mean it was just seven years ago since they last won with Mr. Superstar Tom Brady, and I was really hoping that a bunch of other teams would get a chance to go to the Big Game now that he has retired. Like who, you may ask? Read the rest of this entry »