The more I realize that I've forgotten important aspects of the comic-book field, whether it's as regards its distribution, the public perspective on that field, or the problems of collecting itself.

There just weren't plastic bags -- whether for food or comics -- in the 1940s, for example. (I can recall my mother making Christmas presents in, um, maybe 1950: She'd buy sheets of cellophane and then carefully cut to the desired size and iron the edges so as to make storage bags for family and friends.)

Of course, if I were to go into that sort of detail, I'd never be able to cram this "analysis" into four print pages. But that's the point, in a way. It's fascinating to realize in just how many ways technology and world events have shaped our field into what it is today.