nostalgia

Whilst--I have really, really been wanting to use that word, in context or out--wandering through The Republic of Pemberley, and through their fanfic board, I had this sudden, vaguely bitter nostalgia for messageboards.

To put this in perspective--I was usenet to mailing list to livejournal as far as my fannish participation goes. I never actually, well, *spent much time* on messageboards. Or you know, outside reading TWOP and QaF Refugee Board--any at all. Wait, okay, and I used to read jengrrrl's Roswell fic off a messageboard, I think. But other than that, no.

I'm also missing mailing list discussions in the worst way, which sounds crazy because they raised my blood pressure so fast I could see spots. I think since I've been off them so long, they're taking on a Vaseline-smeared glow of nostalgia; I mean, I can go look at my posts then to actually trace the movement of my temper. And usenet! I miss usenet and threaded commentary and the occasional Insane Trek Fanatic who would wander in to make horrible, grating noises about canon purity.

I even kind of miss being able to totally lose my shit in a group setting. I mean, mob mentality bad, yes yes yes, but you know, it was always kind of fun when everyone else sort of did it with you.

Okay, and officially, I need to sleep more or something. Gah.

Comments

[fatuorum.livejournal.com]

I even kind of miss being able to totally lose my shit in a group setting.

Is the recent epic wank getting to you? Yes, sleep good. *pets*

[seperis.livejournal.com]

*sticks out tongue* I am being nostalgic for yore and yesteryear and way back then! Totally different thing!

(okay, maybe)

It's sad. All that big shocking drama! It's the comedown, really.

[robotjen.livejournal.com]

ROTFL OMG, I still visit a forum for my South of Nowhere fixes (though, God, is 99.99% of it gawdawful). Honestly, I like LJ better. Easier to reply to feedback. ;)

And, wow, I remember making you go read "Visitors." Wow, that was a long time ago. *snerk* *memories*

[seperis.livejournal.com]

I think blackmail was involved. *trying to remember* And hey, I liked that story! I ended up reading Elizabeth's ficorama fic after that.

[robotjen.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I think there was blackmail... *snickers* And FICORAMA! God, Elizabeth is awesome. Glad my fic was a gateway to bigger and better things. :)

[seperis.livejournal.com]

*rolls eyes* I liked your *best*.

[robotjen.livejournal.com]

*laughs* Don't roll your eyes at me, young lady!! ;)

[everagaby.livejournal.com]

If it makes you feel any better I desperately miss the days of E-Groups and the FarscapeShipperList daily barrage of 20-30 posts. My inbox just isn't spammed the way it used to be.

[seperis.livejournal.com]

EGROUPS! ONELIST! Now freakish yahoogrops that I so dislike muchly.

*sad*

Remember when it was normal to have two hundred email in your box daily?

[everagaby.livejournal.com]

*sigh* I remember it fondly. My hotmail account would routinely shudder and whimper and refuse to accept any more e-mails while I was busy writing down replies to just about every damn post.

Freaking yahoogroups. Bah.

[cjandre.livejournal.com]

Yes, wank of yore was so much better than modern wank...

;-)

But hey - sleep is good! Hope you got some!

:-)

[seperis.livejournal.com]

Hey, the new stuff is fine. It's just *nostalgia*. *eyes you* You are so mocking me.

[ladyvyola.livejournal.com]

Ah, the days of digest e-mails containing scores and scores of responses, all copying the original posts, with line after line of >>>>> and just adding a line or two saying, "Great story!"

I use my bitter old fic queen icon in honor of your nostalgia for the days when we surfed uphill. Both ways. In the snow.

AND WE LIKED IT!

[seperis.livejournal.com]

In the snow during *storms*. With terrible keyboards! And no iTunes! HUMANITY!

And dear God do I remember that. I do kind of miss that, come to think.

[deadlychameleon.livejournal.com]

I think that fannish wank in general may be the result of getting a bunch of people together who all like reading about fictional drama. I mean, as I was reading the recent entry's on aja's journal, on one hand, horrified, on the other hand, I was totally waiting to for CC to show up and continue the drama, because, hey, it's an interesting story. I'm mature enough to realize that would be bad, because, real people, real emotions.

[seperis.livejournal.com]

I was kind of almost wondering if she would too. Heck, half of everyone else checked in. *shakes head*

[thepouncer.livejournal.com]

Messageboards were my intro to online fandom, and my homebase for three years. The Buffy Cross & Stake, my friend, where we discussed the show to death and beyond, and hardly read any fanfiction at all. Then I started lurking on TWoP (when it was MBTV) and got into Smallville. And hence to LJ. Mailing lists are the thing I missed out on.

Every once in a while I get nostalgic for the old days of Buffy, when people still believed Buffy and Angel would get back together because they were TRUE LOVE DAMN IT!

[seperis.livejournal.com]

Canon pairing debates! ANGEL! God, see, I almost--*almost*--wish I'd been in fandom around season three, because man, that must have been amazingly cool to watch. I think the most I saw was meandering through the Bronze once or twice in reaction to the end of season five. Cause wow.

[everagaby.livejournal.com]

Cool, yes. If by cool you actually mean desperate screaming wide-spread panic with an increasingly large dose of denial then yes, those days were cool.

And by cool we mean terrifying.

[thecomfychair.livejournal.com]

oh, man, I'm not sure I could ever miss mailing lists. Ah, back when my account would say "150 messages" and I'd be like "That's all?! If I forgot to delete like three days of mail, even with digests, my inbox would be overloaded.

But you are right, large groups of fangirls amassing with italics of RAGE AND IRE did have the occasional fun side.

[seperis.livejournal.com]

Yes, those italics. And the long uncut email with "I agree" at the top. And the bizarre not-arguments and fifteen-day wars and half of everyone else posting "can't we all just get alone" every *other* post.

[wrenlet.livejournal.com]

I think you miss mailing lists because you weren't on them for QaF... that experience is far, far too recent for me *shudders*

God, the great Onelist/EGroups/Yahoogroups migration, all the OMG THE TERMS OF SERVICE MEANS THEY OWN OUR FICS hysteria, they're killing adult lists!/not killing adult lists!/where will we goooooooooo wailing... *rolls laughing*

[seperis.livejournal.com]

*grins* Yeah, it's been--God, three years since I was on a mailing list actively. I have heard stories of the QaF ones. Actually, I think you are the one that told them to me.

But the second part--God yes. The TOS was such a big deal. And the adult content thing. *shakes head* Wow.

[svmadelyn.livejournal.com]

It's 2:30 in the morning and I am reading P&P fanfiction. I managed to tear myself away from the modern day war AU, but I'm still hostile toward your person. I'd never have thought to *look* for freaking P&P fanfiction.