Switching comic stores is a weird experience, and not one that I particularly enjoy.
The last several times that I switched providers, it was mainly out of necessity: I moved from state to state, and had to find the best place in my new area to feed my habit. There weren't usually many to choose from. When I first found Tim's Corner in Rock Island, IL, it was on a grand comic tour of the Quad Cities with my late grandfather. I visited several shops that day; Tim's is the only one still selling comics. When I moved away from the QCA, I filled the void mostly with orders from Lone Star Comics, and the occasional trip to Graham Crackers Comics in Dekalb or Naperville. Still, whenever I got the chance to go back to Tim's, I would. Anything else felt a little too much like cheating.
I've had the pleasure of shopping pretty much exclusively at Tim's for the last four years, but I finally closed out my pull bag the last time I was there. Eric Garneau has been a good friend of mine since Middle School, and somehow he started running a pretty darn good comic shop--Stand-Up Comics--in the South Chicago Suburbs. It wasn't an easy decision making the shift from one store to another, but the prospect of online subscriptions and a better discount really kind of sealed the deal.
So I said goodbye, more or less, to a store that has served me since I was twelve. Oh, sure, I'll go back now and then. Tim's is going to be close enough to justify the occasional sale weekend or impulse buy, but it looks like my comics will be coming from Lansing for the time being.
Sigh, the end of an era. If you're in the Quad Cities area (Rock Island and Moline Illinois or Davenport and Bettendorf Iowa) head over to Tim's Corner (the corner of 14th Avenue and 30th Street in Rock Island). I guarantee friendly service and decent prices, if not the greatest organizational setup.
Anyway, as long as you're reading my self-important musings, you might as well take a look at Stand-Up Comics. I'm not trying to plug Stand-Up Comics or anything, just giving a shout-out for a friend and my current enabler. While you're there, you could check out the Online Store or sign up with the SUCCESS Subscription Program. And if you should happen to decide to spend a few dollars at Stand-Up Comics, well, so much the better.
3 comments:
Hmm... Sounds good, actually. I'll be back home from Japan for a couple of weeks next month, and unfortunately my hometown (that's Galesburg, IL) doesn't have a comic book store. But knowing that there's one not far away in Rock Island is very good for me. I'll have to swing by.
Awesome! Too bad I'm no longer in the QC, 'twould be cool to have a little comic blogger meetup of sorts.
And it would be an excuse to buy comics. It's win-win!
I spent most of the 80s buying comics at Tim's. He was absolutely a first-class guy all around and his store had a "hominess" no other comic shop in the area ever had. He used to sell hotdogs and every now and then I get a whiff of just the right kind of dog and it takes me way back to that little store.
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