It's POP! Tastes Great and Makes You Feel Kinda Funny. Or: Why My Mom Thought I Was Special Ed, Part 6

HOW I LEARNED SYNCHRONIZATION

Justin Timberlake

*//\\//sync

In the years between Hanson albums, when they battled with their label and reps, I needed something new to cling to. I don't remember why or how, but *NSYNC filled that void. I'd been a fan, liked the songs, but sometime around 2000, right before they released "No Strings Attached" and went on to make history with first week sales, etc, I became transfixed.

It became an obsession. I scoured the tv listings and taped EVERYTHING I could... the numerous Making the Videos, performances, specials, interviews... I have tapes upon tapes upon tapes back home of this. I own every concert DVD (even The Reel *NSYNC, which is just Joey's home videos from when they toured Europe in 1996-7... omg amazing), and even burned DVDs of taped concerts (like the Fox Family *NSYNC NConcert... yea, that's right, FOX family, before it was ABC Family... with commercials for Higher Ground and Paranoia Coast to Coast). On top of this, I also own the two Justin Timberlake DVDs... mmm, sexy.

Not only did I made a video archive, but I pulled articles out of magazines and put together a binder, a press kit of sorts. I made collages. I bought the imported CD's for twice the price of a regular one. I bought the Justin marionettes and bobblehead. I have a board game, books, stationary, pens, earrings. The market was flooded with *NSYNC merchandise, and I had to get it all. 

But my love for this gyrating boy band wasn't just about collecting the goods... I took what I saw and loved, and yearned for it. (And, like with Hanson, I wrote and read fan fiction for it as well... the best one was "It's Only Me" by Fictionlyn, and part of it inspired my short film...)

My friends and I created a girl group. In my Hanson phase, I had a "band" of sorts called East Coast Girls... but all we did was write lyrics and draw pictures of outfits... but this group... we DID stuff. We got together once a week and, using the Playskool microphone someone's brother had, recorded ourselves. We put together songs, with parts (one of which being "I'll Never Stop," a European *NSYNC import I had the instrumental to), as well as singing our own stuff. Despite this, we never actually did anything serious with it...  no performances (minus the talent show try out we didn't make). But we had fun with it... took posed pictures, danced a lot (I STILL know all of the dance to "Bye Bye Bye" and part of "It's Gonna Be Me"), and it gave us an excuse to hang out.

One of the ever-changing members of our group and I were the most obsessed with *NSYNC. She liked Lance, me Justin. Now, remember, this is the age of chat rooms and a/s/l instant messaging... So she and I were *NSYNC posers... me Justin, her JC (not sure why she didn't choose Lance, but whatevs). With my extensive knowledge, it was easy to get past the are-you-really-him trivia questions, and my screenname, tarheelbabyblue3 was a great JT handle (oh, the things Lou Pearlman made them do... obsessions with UNC and baby blue, the pineapple hair for Chris, etc...). To clear my name a bit though, I never actually said I was Justin. I answered the a/s/l accordingly, and used his middle name when asked for my name, but I never said, "hey I'm Justin Timberlake, let's be friends!". Katie and I would go into *NSYNC chat rooms, start talking to each other AS JC and Justin, and would immediately get bombarded with IM's. We got in arguments with some of them, genuine excitement from others. I know, I know... I'm a horrible person. 

And yes, I wore the bandana just like Justin.

And learned all their signatures. Anyone want a forged autograph?

When he admitted to dating Britney, my heart stopped just a bit, and then when she cheated on him, I felt for him. Despite, I still think they need to get back together. Maybe then the world will align itself. No?

For the count, I saw *NSYNC twice in concert (No Strings Attached and Celebrity Tours... 6 rows from the very back and then somewhere in the middle section), and I saw Justin on the Justified and Stripped tour. Now his shows are just too damn expensive... especially when I'm used to paying maybe $30 for Hanson (standing room, so close by comparison, and front row if you're psycho enough), and VIP status (note: free) for 100 monkeys. 

When I moved to LA, that first summer, we whored the system a bit... and got tickets to the premiere of The Love Guru. I stood literally five feet away from Justin, but his bodyguard was good about sending people along. 

the one directly in the middle, with the skank's hand on his back? Justin Timberlake. The girl in the green two to his left? his beard Jessica Biel

------

Well, there you go. A collection of my most embarrassing, noteworthy obsessions. I realize now I left out Star Wars in 1997 when they were rebooted... I loved Luke, and then Anakin (I don't care what you say, Hayden Christensen is hot). I still have a bag full of action figures I plan on decorating a desk with at some point, or something... and I do still love that space saga, even though now I'm older and see how shitty the prequels were. But I emulated it, got angry for Anakin, and literally sobbed while READING THE BOOK of Episode 3... so. much. betrayal. Poor guy lost everything... But I'm rambling, and could go on for a while, and this was supposed to be my wrap up of all things obsessive. Though there can never really be one... 

I'm glad to know I wasn't the only weird eccentric imaginative kid... thanks for sharing your stories. And if you were one of the people I talked to in my posing days, I regret to inform you, you were not talking to Justin Timberlake, but instead a 13 year old girl with a 'fro and a dream, and I'm sorry... but thanks for the laughs ;)

photos from Google image search and me