A brief introduction:
My name is Paul Howley, owner
of the Eisner Award winning pop culture collector’s store known as “That’s
Entertainment” in Worcester, Massachusetts and a second store in Fitchburg,
Massachusetts. Some people have called me the “luckiest man in the comic book
business.” (I’m not) My stores have been around for over thirty years and it’s
been a long and interesting combination of events and people that have brought
these stores to this current place. It is not my intent to boast or brag about
my store or my life. I just want to tell you my story. In many instances, my
wife remembers things a little differently, but this is the truth as I remember
it.
The current cast of
characters:
Paul Howley: age 48
Mal Howley: age 48
Adam Howley: my son, age 21
Cassy Howley: my daughter,
age 17
MY LIFE WITH COMIC BOOKS: THE
HISTORY OF A COMIC SHOP: Part #200
I’ve never had a dream that I believed to be
any more than just a dream. I know that many cultures and religions believe
that some dreams are inspired by God and I’m certainly not disputing that
belief. It’s just that, for me, most of my dreams seem to be the result of
thoughts that have been going through my head before I fall asleep. But I did
have one time that my dream seemed very real.
I feel the need to explain something first.
When Adam went off to college, there were times when I would barely think about
him for several days. I knew he had started his new life away from us and our
lives were quite busy. But after his accident, I really haven’t had ten minutes
in a row without thinking of Adam. It’s not an obsession. I’m not haunted by
the memories of him. It’s just that so many things remind me of Adam.
Television, clothing, music, foods…the list seems endless. Anyway, I had this
dream about a year after Adam’s accident.
It was a very cold winter day and Adam and I
were on a long wooden toboggan getting ready to slide down a huge hilly road (
to be specific, it was Kent Drive in Hudson, Massachusetts). Even though, in
reality, the steep part of Kent Drive is only about a mile long, in my dream it
seemed as if it was several miles long. I was holding on tightly to the edges
of the toboggan and Adam was holding onto my shoulders. For some reason, Adam
wasn’t the twenty-one year old Adam... he was twelve years-old and I could hear
his typical stuffed-up nose while he said to me, “Dad, don’t worry, there’s no
reason to cry…I’m fine.”
We spent the rest of our ride together
laughing and enjoying the thrill of the steep hill. When I woke up, I knew it
was just a dream. Even though it wasn’t real, I felt relieved….Adam was safe
and happy.
