Gentle Readers,
I want to tell you a story. In the beginning, I intended on telling you all about Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham (I will say this only once, Lindsey is a man!), but realized that maybe that would not be so interesting to anyone outside of my Buckingham Nicks bubble. I still wanted to incorporate them into my essay, however, but have decided to focus a little more on what technology does to enhance the experience. So without further adieu, let me begin.
I was fourteen years old when I fell in love. Alright, I didn’t actually fall in love, but something inside of me was intrigued. It was a school night and I was flipping through the stations on my tiny bedroom television. I stopped when I saw Stevie Nicks. At the time, I had no appreciation for classic rock nor the woman singing. I knew who she was, but I had never heard her sing in a way that made me stop what I was doing and pay attention. It was 1997 and Fleetwood Mac had just reunited after a ten year separation. The song was “Silver Springs,” and the man she was screaming at was Lindsey Buckingham.
*Seen here, Lindsey being sung to by Stevie
It didn’t take long, after that night, for me to nurture my new obsession. It was something I was good at. In my later years of elementary school, I became fascinated with a soap opera couple on General Hospital and dedicated my life to seeing that they stayed together, despite their fictitious state of being. I outgrew that soon and replaced Kevin and Lucy with another fictional “couple,” The X-Files’ Mulder and Scully. Soon enough I found my real deal in Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, a former couple with enough chemistry to stop a fourteen-year old girl from getting her full eight hours of rest. I wish I could pinpoint what exactly drew me to these people, but I guess like any stereotypical female, I just like a good love story.
*This is an image from the inner cover of Stevie Nicks' and Lindsey Buckingham's first and only album together
Around the time that I became enamored with Mulder and Scully (1995), my family had hooked up the Internet. I discovered that this was a great source for “shippers” such as myself. A “shipper,” short for “relationshipper” is any fan of any couple who either supports or hopes for a particular union—these can range from SpongeBob and Patrick to Ross and Rachel. These groups are mostly made up of single women, though it depends on the “fandom.” For example, the Buckingham Nicks shippers are generally women, but the ratio of single to married is relatively even. This was not concluded scientifically, however, and I am basing this off of the group of people I associate with in a forum.
Most “shippers” find a haven on the Internet that keeps busiest, in the case of Buckingham Nicks, during tours or post-album release. At these times, message boards are full of information and speculation from each show and song, as all members are encouraged to write reviews and add input to song speculation pages. One can easily find a number of threads with titles such as “One kiss or two?” “Three Kisses on the LIPS” or “Proof that they still love each other.” Sites such as BuckinghamNicks.net make it extremely easy to get caught up in the gossip and keep the speculation going. There is a very strong community aspect and several people have become very good friends through being “shippers” with a place to convene which would not exist without the help of technology.
*A much speculated on picture taken in Germany around the time Stevie was finding out Lindsey had knocked up another lady. Part of a series.
I want to tell you a story. In the beginning, I intended on telling you all about Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham (I will say this only once, Lindsey is a man!), but realized that maybe that would not be so interesting to anyone outside of my Buckingham Nicks bubble. I still wanted to incorporate them into my essay, however, but have decided to focus a little more on what technology does to enhance the experience. So without further adieu, let me begin.
I was fourteen years old when I fell in love. Alright, I didn’t actually fall in love, but something inside of me was intrigued. It was a school night and I was flipping through the stations on my tiny bedroom television. I stopped when I saw Stevie Nicks. At the time, I had no appreciation for classic rock nor the woman singing. I knew who she was, but I had never heard her sing in a way that made me stop what I was doing and pay attention. It was 1997 and Fleetwood Mac had just reunited after a ten year separation. The song was “Silver Springs,” and the man she was screaming at was Lindsey Buckingham.
*Seen here, Lindsey being sung to by Stevie
It didn’t take long, after that night, for me to nurture my new obsession. It was something I was good at. In my later years of elementary school, I became fascinated with a soap opera couple on General Hospital and dedicated my life to seeing that they stayed together, despite their fictitious state of being. I outgrew that soon and replaced Kevin and Lucy with another fictional “couple,” The X-Files’ Mulder and Scully. Soon enough I found my real deal in Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, a former couple with enough chemistry to stop a fourteen-year old girl from getting her full eight hours of rest. I wish I could pinpoint what exactly drew me to these people, but I guess like any stereotypical female, I just like a good love story.
*This is an image from the inner cover of Stevie Nicks' and Lindsey Buckingham's first and only album together
Around the time that I became enamored with Mulder and Scully (1995), my family had hooked up the Internet. I discovered that this was a great source for “shippers” such as myself. A “shipper,” short for “relationshipper” is any fan of any couple who either supports or hopes for a particular union—these can range from SpongeBob and Patrick to Ross and Rachel. These groups are mostly made up of single women, though it depends on the “fandom.” For example, the Buckingham Nicks shippers are generally women, but the ratio of single to married is relatively even. This was not concluded scientifically, however, and I am basing this off of the group of people I associate with in a forum.
Most “shippers” find a haven on the Internet that keeps busiest, in the case of Buckingham Nicks, during tours or post-album release. At these times, message boards are full of information and speculation from each show and song, as all members are encouraged to write reviews and add input to song speculation pages. One can easily find a number of threads with titles such as “One kiss or two?” “Three Kisses on the LIPS” or “Proof that they still love each other.” Sites such as BuckinghamNicks.net make it extremely easy to get caught up in the gossip and keep the speculation going. There is a very strong community aspect and several people have become very good friends through being “shippers” with a place to convene which would not exist without the help of technology.
*A much speculated on picture taken in Germany around the time Stevie was finding out Lindsey had knocked up another lady. Part of a series.
posted by suzified @ 3:15 PM
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