I am about to send Room Oblivion to maximum overdrive. Total and utter thermonuclear devastation. Well, I'm going to sort everything out and tidy up which means I'll lose things...last time it took me a week to find the toilet. The toilet isn't in my room but where it always has been but I had a kind of metaphysical breakdown.
Anyway, I thought, as no one has really asked how a sad, old comic geek-cum-naturalist lives, I'd show you so, as we enter Room Oblivion to the right (this is handy for any potential suicidal burglars -I take no prisoners)....
(
I need to apologise to my late Mother and Grand Mother as I have not tidied the room at all after being ill for a couple weeks and they would never have allowed me to let people see such a mess. Sorry, Mum. Sorry, Ma!)
A shelf with some 1960s Silver Age comics, the black & white complete
Vampirella collection and some Archie collections (but not all). The two sample bottles on the wall? Cat teeth. There, you never asked but I told you.
Now, above that shelf you will find some DC Showcase Collections, JLS/JSA trades, and All Star Squadron Showcase edition and my completed run of the 1980sAll Star Squadron. And, yes, you can see part of a Hat Industries Rugga Rugga 1/72nd scale figures box to one side.
To the left (ignore the hanging, shrunken head as it is not real) top shelf are my
Browner Knowles, some DC and Marvel paperback pocket books, comics and books by Jess Bradley, Vanessa Wells and so on. Just under that shelf are my series 1 and 2 DVDs of
Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, Dominic Hyde DVDs,
Winnetou DVD set (THANKS to Subzero!) and that square box under them contains my 1/72nd scale fleet of Renault FT-17s (Oh, and you keep your vehicles in the garage, right?). A couple of the FT-17 boxes can be seen over the doorway. Did I mention the series DVD set of
Space 1999 Paul (Browner Knowle) Brown gave me for Christmas?
Next to the top shelf is my collection of Classical Comics books -whatever happened to them??? The company I mean as the books are there. You see them....you DO see them?
Next couple of shelves my Marvel Essentials and trades. You can just see the top of my UK Golden Age comics section (but I'm not going to show you them).
Bored? Let's move on them.
A nice big shot of things. My next shelves have collected editions, trades, French, German, Russian,Belgian, Dutch books/comics and, from the left of the Cyberman/Iron Man/Hulk trio past the Mystery Machine and Superman coasters is my Cinebook The 9th Art collection -just had to "big them up" on two regional radio station interviews. Oh, above those are my Dr Master Publications series books such as
The Three Constables and
Oriental Heroes.
Okaaaaay. More trades, books and I've just realised that there are shelves below all these with my comic history reference books and publications. "Where are all your Black Tower Books, Terry?" you are not asking. Well, in a box behind the sofa-cum-bed. It would be just plain showing off to photograph them!
You are also beginning to see my UK comic annual collection (just past Witchy).
Because you never demanded it -some of the annuals plus Silver Age complete run of
The Sub-Mariner,
Fantasy Masterpieces,
The Invaders (Marvel),
Avengers-Invaders trade and others. Ignore that bit to the right we'll be getting there soon enough!
Did I not just say we would get here? Ignore the models-in-progress Gods of Light and Darkness this is messy. Behinbd Ollie (the Owl) some military history reference books. The next two shelves are my military reference books -uniforms, campaigns -L & F. Funcken books on uniforms covering Ancients to Modern, Osprey Man-At-Arms -various others. Great references as an historian and wargamer!
A few references to gaming, toy soldier references and a couple local history books next -and my foreign language dictionaries.
These shelves go another 60 cms past me to the right. The top shelf that isn't show, you can see part of it in the previous photo, contain wildlife/nature reference books some going back to the 19th century.A copy of the Bible and Quran and a history of English churches -go figure.
Next, hundreds of books covering the 1940s up to 2014 on subjects such as UFOs, ghosts, the paranormal, werwolves, strange phenomena, Sasquatch, Almasty, Yeti, Yeren, unidentified sea creatures ("sea monsters"), wildlife, tracking....hang on.....
Here you go. The "hidden corner" not quite going as far as the ceiling (which is where my books go up to!) but it even shows the wall by my window (yes, if the window was a wall it would also be full of books) and the notes/art references I pin up there.
A teeny-weeny "tip of" glimpse of the European farm house and barn I'm building -but you're not here for "Basic Modelling With Uncle Terry" TM/(c)2015 Terry Hooper-Scharf TV enterprises. Oh, that "brown thing with a face" on not quite the top shelf? It's a wax
Rübezahl that belonged to my late Mother. She bought it in Germany as it brought back memories of where she was born -Jauer -now in Poland. It might be a candle but she never lit it and it took pride of place on the mantle piece.
We're an odd lot
My comics are in file boxes in cupboards. From popular to rare Independents covering the 1960s to 2000s.
And now the big Kathy Kirby ending.....and if I sing "Secret Love" it will NOT be the "secret love" she sang about ,bless her.
As my Gran might say looking at this. "He's not married" that would have all the subtle inferences her generation could put into those simple words. My mum would probably be more direct -"This won't get you a girlfriend!" I simply say: "LOOK! See all this? OH DEAR LORD PLEASE HELP ME!"
Yes, I need to get rid of stuff -I've boxes of comics that shops and dealers will not buy -unless it's for such a cheap price it doesn't cover the cost of a book of postage stamps.
Let's face it -this drives ALL women away!!!
There, a glimpse of what is. What will be I have no idea. I get vertigo and altitude sickness getting to those top shelves.
"Where do you put your clothes, Terry?"
SHUT UP!!!!
