This is awesome. Strega, tell me nice things about fans. I'll be right back. I think a paragraph just happened.

What was the final airdate for Buffy?

I know. Google is my friend.

Um. Every once in a while they give me presents. Oh, nice things that aren't All About Me? Damn.

Hm. The nice things about fans are the nice things about people. Or about communities. When you least expect it, they demonstrate the power of groups to do far more than an individual can. They can be shockingly welcoming and generous, just because they happen to share an interest. I suppose it's the demonstrations of trust that I find the most lovely, because I have trust issues anyway.

It is extraordinarily cool that a person who dozens of people only know as "someone who watches that TV show I like" can ask for help with a real-world issue, and get it.

There are friends who I trust as much as I'm capable of, who I only know because of fandom. So I guess that's something nice I could say about both fandom and fans.

Now I'm getting sappy. Er, the presents are pretty cool, too.

Yeah, that's exactly what I'm writing about. Moving to LA, being terrified and lonely, and then Polgara and Kristen sort of took me in and were kind to me.

I was lonely and bored that I threw myself into all sorts of fandom projects to give me some sense of accomplishment that had real world effects. Most of my post-college jobs have been in some sort of social benefit area: civil rights/EEO law, non-profit, research and technology development (aerospace). Fandom fulfilled that need to do something that made the spaces I don't occupy a little nicer. Which is selfish, but if you're gonna be selfish, might as well raise some funds for charity/give someone else comfort at the same time.

What was the final airdate for Buffy?

May 20, 2003.

Most of my post-college jobs have been in some sort of social benefit area: civil rights/EEO law, non-profit,

I didn't know that about you. Cool.

You know what I always found interesting about fandom is that people are thrust into roles in which they are completely unfamiliar with and would never have outside of fandom. Someone who was never popular might suddenly find themselves the BMOC. Maybe most people think you have an odd sense of humor but when you're among your kind, you're the funniest person in the room. Perhaps you're a bit of a social misfit but when you're with your peeps someone says, "that's ok buddy, you can hang with me" (before you know it you're talking to girls!) Some people may find themselves suddenly in some kind of leadership role.

I'm not sure where I'm going with this but it's something about being among your kind and it bringing out traits in you that either you didn't know you had or wish other people could see. They laugh at the jokes people normally don't get. They think your smart because you have oddball theories about story arcs. All of sudden, you believe you are smart, you are funny, you can make a website, you can write fanfic that people will read and enjoy, you can organize events, or any of the other countless things people would have never have done without the support and acceptance of fandom.

Fandom is the place where people get your jokes.

Yes. And fandom is the place where people get that not all of your fannish references are jokes, simply because they're fannish.

Fandom is the place where people get your jokes.

Yes. And your book references, too.