Recently we have gotten back into comic books in this house. I'm not talking Superman or Spiderman, but this new revolution of really intense work coming out of Image comics and even some Dark Horse. We are reading titles like Saga, Wytches, Sidekick, Dream Police, Hellblazer, The Walking Dead, Black Science, Ten Grand, and a host of others. The art is spectacular and the writing gripping. It is the best time in the world to be a comics fan.
In our small town we don't have a shop, but in the next few towns over there is a great comic book store called Heroes Your Mother Threw Out. Jared is the owner and you couldn't find a more laid back, knowledgeable guy about comics. If you feel like an awkward nerd going in the store, you sure as hell don't feel like one coming out.
The store itself just moved to the storefront next door for more space and it has been turned a bit upside down. Finding comics is an adventure right now as you run from shelf to shelf and box to box. His little daughter, the quietest kid ever in the history of kids, is there roaming around giving you cute smiles and sometimes his son is there stickering comics. It's a family affair.
What I found most interesting is the clientele. There were TONS of women buying comics. There were professional people, jock looking dudes, hipster bearded folk, and your general run of the mill folks like Mike and I. We all fit in that store. We are all there for the love of art and great storytelling.
Over the last few days we have been talking about the importance of shopping local. We could find all of the comics we read on Amazon. We might even get them cheaper, but what we find is that we feel great about spending money at Heroes because we know it goes to Jared and his family. We love that some of what we spend feeds his kids. We love that even after one visit to his store he remembered us, what we liked to read, and had suggestions for new works. Businesses like this are hard to come by anymore.
So my holiday message to you is, shop local if you can. Small store owners need your support and it should give you a great feeling that even though you might pay a few bucks more, you know you aren't lining the pocket of a mega company who doesn't give a shit about you or the town you live in. Give back. Shop Local!
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