Item Number 34: Graphic Novels, Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim #1-3

Time in possession: Volume 3, about 6 months. Volume 1 and 2 less than 1.

Description: 3 digest-sized graphic novels in excellent condition. The art and size mimics the typical manga style, but the story and content is an awesome mix of Twenty-something angst, video game culture and Canadiana. It's like somebody made a comic based on a mad lib taken from random shit floating around my brain. Too awesome for words. (Except, obviously, the words I've already committed and will commit in the future to describing it. So, uh, I guess I didn't need to say that.)

Cost: The total set came to around $36. WORTH EVERY PENNY.

Story: Working at the library is good for several reasons, but one of the best ones is that I get exposed to all sorts of reading that I would otherwise pass by without notice. Now, granted, this has left me with a stack of books at all times that call out to be read that, in all honesty, I will probably never finish off, but that's really not the worst problem in the world.

Uh, but my point. Right.

Graphic Novels actually work out quite well for me at the library since they don't take nearly as long to read. As such, they make great break reading and are actually the perfect length for my bus trip home on evening shifts. Therefore, I read a whole lot of them- In fact, I have on several occasions read every available graphic novel from my library. Now I've been a little negligent for a few months are there a several that I'm not really interested in, so that had ended that streak. Still, for a while...

ANYWAY, Scott Pilgrim was a pleasant surprise. In fact, when I first picked it up I wasn't really interested at all in it, but I had decided to give it a try. Well, was I ever glad that I did. Oni Press has put out some great books in the past (Geisha, My Faith In Frankie) but Scott Pilgrim is, like, custom made to rock my face. After reading volume 2 I ordered volume 3 off of Amazon (a rare thing for me) and personally hunted down the library's only copy of volume 1. When I spotted Volume 1 and 2 in New York (along with O'Malley's Lost at Sea) I was suddenly 30$ poorer.

I really don't have too much more to say about the series except READ THE DAMN THINGS. I will lend them to you! The library has them! Volume 4 is coming out soon and I couldn't be more pumped! Exclamation!

(Endnotes: Blogger's spell check apparently does not recognize either Canadiana or manga as words. Americana though? Yeah. For shame blogger, for shame. Speaking of shame, this is late. Apologies. The worst part is that I had this post 3/4 finished for days now and I just didn't get around to finishing it off last night. Boo-urns on me.)

Item Number 32

Time in possession: 3 or 4 years.

Description: According to Amazon.com "Brother PT-65 P-Touch Home and Hobby Labeler with LCD Screen", priced at about . My particular unit is a bit busted up- In particular the back plate is missing a few teeth that are normally used to hold the two ends together. Much like my piggy bank, it is held together with faith more than anything.

Cost: It was a Christmas gift, but the aforementioned Amazon.com page prices it at around 49.50. Works for me.

Story: Several years ago I decided to get my disorganized ass... organized. To that end, I asked for two rather unusual Christmas presents: A label maker and a filing cabinet. While many people laughed at the very notion, once they saw how useful both have since proved, more than a few of my friends have bought their own storage solutions and whatnot. Yeah, you'd think I got enough of this crap at the library, but apparently not.

Anyway, I ended up getting two label makers- Both my Grandma and Erica, my girlfriend at the time, decided to get me one and I found myself at a cross roads. In the end, I went with this model, the cheaper one, as I found it had really all the features I want in a label maker. After having experience using the other model at work, I'm glad with my choice: While the other model had a few more options, the quality of both of them was equal and frankly this guy is the perfect size for me. Big enough not to get lost but small enough to squeeze in to the gaps in my bookshelves or tech drawers, depending on my mood that day.

Nowadays you can find this baby pretty cheap, in clearance bins at your local Staples or what have you: Makes sense to me. These guys really make their money on the tape- That crap is ridiculously expensive and I've found myself buying it in bulk when I find a decently discounted price. You know, kind of like how your mom buys tuna. Anyone? Anyone? Just me, eh?