Fwd: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Obsessed Readers

[serenadust <jmmears@comcast.net>]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com, "Anne <urbana at c...>" 
> I just discovered at least 50 (and possibly 70) new messages since 
I 
> last read this message board last night. So it got me to wondering 
> something that probably should be moved to the OT-Chatter list 
> immediately: Does anyone of the 5,700+ members of this group read 
> *every* message? (and if so, when do you find time to do anything 
> else?? :-) I assume the mods have to read all the messages, but 
does 
> anyone else? I'm not trying to be snide, I just realized that 
there's 
> no way on earth I'll ever be able to read all the messages on this 
> list AND do other things I'm supposed to be doing (like, uh, 
working 
> at my job, which is what I should be doing right now). 
> 
> I really love reading what people have to say (even the 12K 
messages)
> so I'm feeling a bit depressed that I will certainly have to miss 
out 
> on many of the insights that people bring to this discussion. Like 
> Hermione, I guess I want to be able to do it all, and realize that 
I 
> really can't :-(

> Well -- what about the 1,100+ members of THIS group? The traffic 
on 
> this list isn't usually excessive but how many of y'all read all 
the 
> messages on the main list??


Well, this is really embarrassing to admit, but I've only recently 
discovered that not everyone *does* read all the messages on the 
main list, the movie list, and this one.  I'm even so idiotic as to 
read all the ones posted when I'm away for a weekend or vacation.  
Sometimes it takes weeks to catch up, but I do it.

How do I do it?  Well, I really do have a life (I know what you're 
thinking), so mainly it's housework that suffers, I have very little 
time to read anything but the main parts of the newspaper, and it's 
been months since I've read an entire book (outside of re-checking 
HP canon), and I don't watch much TV.  Mainly, I check in 2 or 3 
times a day and read for about 20 minutes at a time, although 
sometimes (OK, often)I stay up pretty late at night after my 
family's in bed.

Why do I do it?  It's an addiction, I guess.  I know I've never, 
ever done anything like it before.  I never even heard the 
word "fandom" before finding this group, and have never participated 
in any other on-line community before.  Since the recent dramatic 
increase in volume on the list, I have started "skimming" the posts 
on the topics which don't interest me, but I'm beginning to think 
I'm going to have to give up trying to stay current.  It's just 
gotten too big and too active.  I am afraid to imagine how it will 
be after June 21.

Jo Serenadust, who hates to miss anything anyone has to say on the 
subject of Harry Potter.  HELP!