Growing Up Britney

When I was a freshman in college I first heard "Baby One More Time" on the radio (it was 1998 and people still listened to the radio, don't judge me). I liked the song, don't get me wrong, but I wasn't in love with it. Even when I saw the video I felt basically the same. In my defense, I was already in love with Jennifer Love Hewitt and I had no more room in my heart for anyone else (again, it was 1998, don't judge me).
Obviously, I eventually saw the error of my ways and replaced Love with Jean (Britney's middle name, not some random person named Jean), because if I hadn't, this post would be titled "Growing Up Love." Though, to be fair, I did try to love (no pun intended) both equally. Sadly, Love sort of disappeared from the public eye to get married and have babies, thereby making it easy for me to focus all of my attention on Britney.
Back in college, I didn't find too many Britney fans. My friends put up with my Britney obsession, but none of them were exactly jumping at the chance to watch her on TV or listen to her music. And definitely no one was excited to go see her live in concert. Thankfully, I did talk one person into seeing the Dream Within A Dream tour (great show, by the way, but you probably know that already if you're reading this).
As I got older and my Britney obsession grew (how could it not, have you seen the woman?), I realized how different I was than most fans. Mostly, I was straight. Heterosexual male Britney fans are kinda like Bigfoot - you hear about them, but do they really exist? I'm not sure why it's so crazy to think a straight guy would be into Britney Spears considering she's gorgeous and has created some of the sexiest videos ever.
Being a Britney fan is great, but to be honest, it's also frustrating. No, I'm not talking about the "Make Me" video debacle, 2007 or Britney Jean. I mean for me, as a straight male. I've seen Britney three times. Once, as I mentioned above, followed by the Onyx Hotel tour with a female friend who's now married (not to me) and the Circus tour with no one. Yes, I so badly wanted to see the Circus tour that I went alone. Some people might not think that's such a bad thing; some people might have even seen Britney by themselves, too. But it's really less fun without someone to share it with (and trust me, I asked everyone I could think of first).
It's not all bad, though. Loving Britney has allowed me to get to know some great people online over the past decade plus (actually, it's probably close to 20 years now). And hearing about Britney addicts meeting up in Las Vegas to see Piece of Me sounds amazing. That's the best part of her Vegas residency, actually: the ability to meet other fans. You're not doing that if she's touring the country. I doubt I could convince a bunch of people to come to Boston to see her.
That's what I was missing in college - knowing other Britney fans. It was just me in my dorm room listening to Britney all alone (wow, how sad does that sound? I did leave every once in while and I did socialize with other people, just for the record). Don't get me wrong, I'm glad to know them now. And seeing them talk (Tweet, Facebook, Instagram) about her definitely makes me happy.
I remember the first Britney forum I ever visited. It was Heaven to find a place where people weren't making fun of Britney. Of course, those old websites have come and gone. I've also gotten older (*sadface*) and don't have the same amount of time to devote to Britney (*doublesadface*). I definitely miss the late nights waiting up for the new Britney song to come out or video to debut. Now, I have to wait until morning (adulthood, what a pain, am I right?). Eventually, I'll probably just catch the new stuff when I can, instead of obsessing over every detail (trust me, it'll happen to you).
I know there are much bigger fans than me, people who've seen her 10, 20 times, had multiple meet & greets and probably have every single song on their iPod (hello, "Email My Heart"). Those people are crazy and I love them. They're the ones I'd love to meet in Vegas some day. Actually, I do know some of those people and I know they'll be in Vegas next April. Maybe if a large sum of money falls into my lap (or I start dating a rich woman), I'll be there, too.
Nah, probably not, but I can dream. Perhaps even Dream Within A Dream (yeah, I said it).