MSNBC has an offering that caught my attention… as in… “it applies”:
The world’s strangest conventions
From twin festivals, to toilets, the weird pursuits that bring us togetherBy Charlotte SavinoTravel+Leisureupdated 3:47 p.m. ET Aug. 28, 2009Imagine a hotel where, in a single weekend, Brad and Angelina, Jennifer Aniston, John Mayer, and Jessica Simpson all stay under the same roof—without a single catfight or a single tabloid reporter there to document the drama. Sound impossible?
It’s not if the “celebrities” are look-alikes, and the hotel is hosting the annual Celebrity Impersonators Conference. Here, not only do all of today’s A-list stars get along—even long-gone VIPs come to join the party. This might be the only place in the world (apart from a wax museum) where you can get a photo op alongside Elvis and Marilyn Monroe.
This gathering for faux celebrities—and those who appreciate them—is just one of the wacky conventions that happen around the world every year. And given the thousands of people who congregate at these fetes to celebrate their shared passion for horror movies, cake decorating, and TV sitcoms, the fun of uniting around a common interest seems abundantly clear.
[...]It seems, in fact, that for every human activity or passion or fad, there’s a conference somewhere where people can commemorate it. And if some of these mass gatherings seem odd, well, it’s also kind of nice—heartwarming, even—that they exist. No matter how eccentric or unusual your secret hobby is, these conventions will make you realize: you’re not alone.
You see, for those who you out there that don’t know, I am a rather “vocal” member of a very small global “community”, known as “The Flu Obsessed“, or more affectionately in the cyber community, as “Flubies“. Our virtual gathering places are collectively known as “Flublogia“.
There are two types of “Flubies”. Those that openly participate with their true identities known and published, and those that hide behind a pseudonym. The most credible… and reputable… do not hide behind annonymity. There are a couple of us “vocals” that started participation using an online alias and at some point along the journey “came out of the closet”, however publish under the known pseudonym. I am in that category.
I do not hide my identity even though I write under the long established pseudonym of SophiaZoe, I do not hide the fact that my real name is Debi Brandon and I live in the Charleston, SC area.
As I read this piece from MSNBC I smiled, remembering all of my Fellow Flubies that I have met over these years as we gather here and there for this or that conference/meeting. Then I thought about all those who still remain behind a veil of annonymity. What, I wonder, are they hiding… or hiding from?
