I was driving to work today, and, as is my habit, listening to podcasts. And I got to thinking, again, that podcasting is something I think I could really get into. Not as a listener, but as a caster of pods... So my next thought was, what would I do a podcast on? Certainly I would only do something about which I am fairly knowledgable. Which leads me to my trio of obsessions: Alias, Star Trek, and Harry Potter. Harry Potter podcasts are many in number. Also, the Harry Potter fandom may be coming to a close soon. And I'd love to do a Star Trek podcast, but I think I might have a hard time finding a cohost, seeing as how I'm the only Star Trek fan I've ever met outside of my own immediate family... Which leaves me with Alias. I checked, and there is not a single podcast on Alias currently running. I realize, of course, that Alias is over. And, more than likely, they will never do a movie. But I love Alias. I know way more about the story line, behind the scenes stuff, and general trivia than anyone really has a right to know. Plus, many of my good friends are also into Alias, so it wouldn't be too hard to put together a podcasting crew and produce this show.

Of course, the very idea that I might put together a podcast simply shows that I have too much invested in these franchises. Someone should slap me and say, "Nicki, they are fiction. They don't exist in reality, and never did, and they don't matter in the grand scheme of things. Stop investing time and money (and when I say money, I mean all the DVDs, CDs, and books you buy) in these worthless, fictional ideas." And do you know what I say to that? I say, Screw that! This is my way of escaping my dull life. They give me something to think about. Star Trek, for example, is nothing more than the embodiment of an optimistic future. When we are constantly barraged with bad news about wars and starvation and disease, why not invest a little hope that something in our future will be good? Why not allow yourself the possibility of loving a character so dynamic that you wish with all your heart that Sydney Bristow could come over for dinner? Why not allow, for the tiny moment, that Hogwarts is out there this very minute, and that there are wizards and witches doing their best to make sure the world stays safe for all us muggles?

To all ten of you who read my blogs (I don't know who you are, since you never leave comments... hint hint), I ask, not for validation, but for comradery. Tell your stories. Don't be ashamed to own your fixations. Mine help me want to be a better person. And to anyone who would contradict me, I say:

I want to save the world. What's wrong with that?