What is a Basement?
I've been asked by several people what a Basement is. Now you may be thinking it's the under portion of your home, but you couldn't be farther from the truth. For any of you that has been to, seen photos of, heard stories or just imagined what going to a Convention (any convention will do because they seem to appear at all) this is the common stomping grounds of the elusive Basement.
Let me first give credit where it's due. To Bart ( http://cayusa.livejournal.com/ ) originally coined the word that has become legendary at DragonCon 2007. Bart and I became extremely close, not Broke Back close...but close as two hetero men can get while still spooning in the dark to... wait... no there was no spooning, but forking? No...not that either. Anyway, we've adopted this word as our own.
So the long way around it is a Basement is what you'd expect from a convention. They are the people, man and/or woman, who are WAAAAY to invested into whatever it is they are a fan of and have sacrificed their own personality, personal hygiene and personal life in pursuit of all things (insert their interest here). These are the people you fear to bump into or shake hands with to keep from getting the ever present Con Crud (more on that in a later blog). You know, the kind of people who meet a famous person from oh let's say...a Sci-Fi television and asks the star the following:
"Hi (insert name) I am playing a character like the one you portray in (insert show) and I wanted to know what info I can get from you to play the character closer to the way you play yours."
Or better yet
"In all the episodes of (insert show) you held the gun in your left hand, but in episode 132 you held the gun in your right hand. Did you do that on purpose? Was there a major reason for this in the plot?"
My all time favorite are the people who meet authors at a Meet & Greet and/or book signing and then take it upon themselves to point out the character differences in book 2 to book 5 to the very author who wrote them.
We've all been a Basement at one time or another. I, myself, have fallen victim of it when meeting Joseph Michael Linsner last year at DragonCon. I got all gushey and Ceosanna had to nudge me just to get me to talk. It didn't help that Bart was behind me whispering "Basement...basement..."
Anyway, I'm working on a website that people can post their picture of Basements they see at cons. The website is goingbasement.com and is currently in development.
Let me first give credit where it's due. To Bart ( http://cayusa.livejournal.com/ ) originally coined the word that has become legendary at DragonCon 2007. Bart and I became extremely close, not Broke Back close...but close as two hetero men can get while still spooning in the dark to... wait... no there was no spooning, but forking? No...not that either. Anyway, we've adopted this word as our own.
So the long way around it is a Basement is what you'd expect from a convention. They are the people, man and/or woman, who are WAAAAY to invested into whatever it is they are a fan of and have sacrificed their own personality, personal hygiene and personal life in pursuit of all things (insert their interest here). These are the people you fear to bump into or shake hands with to keep from getting the ever present Con Crud (more on that in a later blog). You know, the kind of people who meet a famous person from oh let's say...a Sci-Fi television and asks the star the following:
"Hi (insert name) I am playing a character like the one you portray in (insert show) and I wanted to know what info I can get from you to play the character closer to the way you play yours."
Or better yet
"In all the episodes of (insert show) you held the gun in your left hand, but in episode 132 you held the gun in your right hand. Did you do that on purpose? Was there a major reason for this in the plot?"
My all time favorite are the people who meet authors at a Meet & Greet and/or book signing and then take it upon themselves to point out the character differences in book 2 to book 5 to the very author who wrote them.
We've all been a Basement at one time or another. I, myself, have fallen victim of it when meeting Joseph Michael Linsner last year at DragonCon. I got all gushey and Ceosanna had to nudge me just to get me to talk. It didn't help that Bart was behind me whispering "Basement...basement..."
Anyway, I'm working on a website that people can post their picture of Basements they see at cons. The website is goingbasement.com and is currently in development.