WELL.

I just received a few disappointing packages in today's mail. I won't say who or what (I'll leave the sleuthing up to YOU, the Reader) -BUT- when it comes to comic books,

LEAVE THE GRADING TO PROFESSIONALS!

SERIOUSLY. If you do not know how to grade comics, don't even bother. Do not attempt to try to grade. Do try to 'kinda grade'....You will fail and it just wastes everybody's time.

Just know that certain terms like VF, NM, and MINT carry a certain standard that people expect. If you are NOT a good grader and (more important) you KNOW you can't grade a book correctly - you should refrain from using terms like 'NM', VF, or the such.

case in point: If a book is listed as VF or NM -it shouldn't have something similar to an old kool-aid stain on it. That is not gonna work, man.

Stick with "I think it looks okay."  or --> 'I'm not sure, but...'  or even ' i have NO idea so here you go...good luck!'

Whatever you do, you SHOULD NOT say things like -

'This can get CGC-graded as ...!'   or

'I think this is a HI-GRADE for CGC!' 

that is not a good thing to do.

HERE IS AN EXAMPLE of a Grading Standard: http://stores.ebay.com/Grand-Central-Comics/Grading-Page.html

Am I the strictest professional? NO.

But do I attempt some sort of standard for buyers to use? YES.  And do I price and list books according to this standard. Absolutely.

What I learned from this: 

1. People cannot grade books properly.
2. I appreciate people who CAN grade properly.
3. This is why many sellers have either repeat customers....or not many customers.
4. Stay true to my grading scale.
5. Buying on Ebay is still an iffy business.

* now I gotta do the whole refund thing. Dang!

Very Good debut from a first time director!

BOTTOM LINE: True horror comes from sources that hit close to home, in this case - a stranger knocking at your door in the middle of the night, asking for someone who doesn't live there. It's unsettling how easily a normal nite can resort to pure terror from invaders  in masks. Nothing supernatural, just three regular sick, twisted....people.

* I read the director's interview in the Austin Chronicle, and this movie is loosely based on events taken from newspaper articles.

http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/story?oid=oid:629431

 PLUS, it actually happened to him! except for the getting killed part. Obviously.  -Will

Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

The Bottom Line: I'm a huge fan, and it's great to see Indy in action but this seemed 20 yrs out of date.  Harrison Ford is OLD, and it showed. Didn't look realistic at all that a 60+ yr old could do all of this action, falling, getting beat up, getting blown up, surviving not 1, or even 2, but THREE waterfalls - and walk away with barely a scratch!!  That type of action is severely outdated. Felt like an '80s movie. Somehow, for whatever reasons, Indy gets mixed up with Russians and a plastic-looking 'crystal' skull that does something special. Kate Blanchett is my favorite actress but here, her role was flat-out ridiculous. Shia - whom I liked since 'Even Stevens' - played (get this) a fencing, vine-swinging, globetrotting 1950s GREASER. Yeh.

Sorry, but even as a fan I'll stick with the original movies on BluRay DVD!