Why do you lurk?

[Linds]

See, and I totally came here to make friends.

I love that about Chaz, the meeting people, friending them on fb, starting to chat to them more one on one, getting to know them more, meeting them in person, and making some amazing connections with people. A good number of the people that I count as friends I met on an online forum and while unconventional and worrying to my coworkers (cause you know you all are 40 year old middle aged men....except for those that say they are, you guys are teenage girl serial killers) I find it wonderful how small the world has become.

I love that people I met on an online dog forum have become close confidents and friends.

As I've gotten older and lost most of my friends from high school I've become WAY more shameless about approaching people online and off and saying "Hey! I like you! Lets be friends" and that's the tactic I've come to use a lot on this forum.

Chaz was intimidating in a way when I lurked for two years but after is started actually posting I realized it really wasn't. I've met wonderful people, I've made wonderful friends and I've learned a ton. Wouldn't want it any other way.

So I guess part of it is that it is what you make of it and what you want out of it

Originally Posted by Linds

See, and I totally came here to make friends.

I love that about Chaz, the meeting people, friending them on fb, starting to chat to them more one on one, getting to know them more, meeting them in person, and making some amazing connections with people. A good number of the people that I count as friends I met on an online forum and while unconventional and worrying to my coworkers (cause you know you all are 40 year old middle aged men....except for those that say they are, you guys are teenage girl serial killers) I find it wonderful how small the world has become.

I love that people I met on an online dog forum have become close confidents and friends.

As I've gotten older and lost most of my friends from high school I've become WAY more shameless about approaching people online and off and saying "Hey! I like you! Lets be friends" and that's the tactic I've come to use a lot on this forum.

Chaz was intimidating in a way when I lurked for two years but after is started actually posting I realized it really wasn't. I've met wonderful people, I've made wonderful friends and I've learned a ton. Wouldn't want it any other way.

So I guess part of it is that it is what you make of it and what you want out of it

This. I love that about Chaz.

I mean, look at me and Linds. Thanks to Chaz, I found my Twin and a family. I spend Christmas with them every year, and they treat me like one of their own. They even made a 5ish hour trek out to the middle of nowhere just to spend a couple of hours with me when I was in Indiana this past spring. They mean far more to me than my bio family ever did.

And after the break in, when I was having so much trouble with Tempie and very nearly put her down, so many Chazzers rallied to lend me their support in any way that they could. Smkie was especially helpful, putting me in touch with people and sending me so much information, not to mention checking in with me almost every day to see what kind of progress we'd made.

I've watched Chazzers band together in more ways than I can count, in ways that really warm the heart. The information I get off of this forum is great and all, but what keeps me coming back is that family feel.

[~Dixie's_Mom~]

Originally Posted by MyHorseMyRules

Pshaw, you are too a Chazzer. And as for meeting a Chazzer... I pass through Memphis a couple times a year. How close is that to you? If you're close, we can have a short meet up on my way through. Bam. Problem solved.

Awww thanks!!!!

It's actually pretty far, like 3 1/2 hours or slightly more. I'd be willing to drive once I get my license though! Whenever that is! Lol! I'd love that!

ETA: Actually, where in Texas are you? Because I have family in Deer Park (Houston-ish area).

[Laurelin]

Originally Posted by Fran101

Same.

and I'm one of those people who babble (online or off) when nervous.
Sooo if faced with the feeling like I don't belong or that I stepped on toes or anything.. I TALK EVEN MORE.

it's quite unfortunate lol

ME TOO! I have the need to talk and talk and talk and talk in real life too. (Well, once I get to know you). I hate awkward silences. I tend to make things worse though as I talk more.

[Catsi]

Originally Posted by Laurelin

ME TOO! I have the need to talk and talk and talk and talk in real life too. (Well, once I get to know you). I hate awkward silences. I tend to make things worse though as I talk more.

See, I'm the exact opposite. I'm cool with silence, but I'm also happy for someone to fill the silence as long as I don't have to 'keep up' the whole time. I often wonder if I make it awkward for the more talkative among us? I do love to chat, but I'm not very good at starting conversations if that makes sense? I'll participate if someone brings up an interesting topic (and of course I'll chat if it's just small talk).

I'm going to perhaps make a bit more effort on Chaz, just see how it goes.

[oakash]

I have most definitely made friends here. But actually I think that I mostly got to know people through a internet game that Jess made me play. On a side note, I'm actually a professional stalker, so that could be another reason why I don't like to start threads or go into the scary big debate threads.

[Toller_08]

Not gonna lie, I'm kinda giggling over the people with more than 1000 posts talking about lurking.

I don't even know how many posts I have, but I think somewhere around 6000 in the six and a half years I've been here... but I don't even remember saying that much or even know what I possibly commented on. I bet most of them are just a billion posts of pictures of my own dogs, LOL. I still consider myself kind of a lurker (in spurts) regardless of post count.

I love Chaz and I love the family feel it definitely has, but I also agree with those that have said that they sometimes feel like an intruder. There are definitely members here who obviously are great friends and get along super well, so I always feel odd commenting on posts or threads where those particular people make up the majority of the posts. I don't want to be the geek in the corner where everyone is wondering why I'm interrupting. That's no fault of their own at all. It's awesome that they're so close. It's my fault for feeling like I might intrude and not getting more involved I suppose.

I love making dog board friends, though. There is a girl from the very first forum I ever joined who I really, really enjoy hanging out with and I am her 'go to' dog sitter. I don't hang out with her enough just because life is busy, but she's the only real life friend/person that I really connect with dog wise and going out and doing something with her is always fun. I really suck at making friends though, apparently online and in real life. I just can never think of anything to say to get somebody interested in talking to me I guess, because I'm not nearly as shy even as I used to be, so I don't know exactly what it is. But in six years of being here on Chaz I can't say that I've made any close friends (although there are a couple that I really like and love talking to on FB and such and wish I were better friends with them!). I've never even ventured into chat in all this time because I just don't know what to say, haha. Lame, I know. But even so, I do enjoy reading all the different threads and learning different things, and sometimes it's not educational at all, but very entertaining nonetheless! And I do definitely enjoy getting to know different members better and should make a better effort to be more involved than I am. :-)

Originally Posted by ~Dixie's_Mom~

Awww thanks!!!!

It's actually pretty far, like 3 1/2 hours or slightly more. I'd be willing to drive once I get my license though! Whenever that is! Lol! I'd love that!

ETA: Actually, where in Texas are you? Because I have family in Deer Park (Houston-ish area).

I live on the other side of Houston, so they're probably only about an hour from me.

[Southpaw]

Originally Posted by Dizzy

I don't think making friends with people, or being part of a 'clique' has much of anything to do with anything. I don't come on here to make friends, I don't meet people (they're miles away), I don't add people to my facebook, or chat to people outside of this forum. Someone added me to the facebook page, but I don't post on it... I do look at it occasionally, so I suppose I'm a lurker there.

I'm on board with a lot of this.


I don't come on forums with the purpose of making friends, but if that happens in the process that's cool. I do treat everyone as a friend though, or try to at least - heck, I made an 8 hour round trip on my only day off, down to boring old Iowa, to deliver a couple of baby rats to a person off a hamster forum who I had never met previously, and had really never had any conversation with on the forum. Sounds crazy and ridiculous. And dangerous lol. But eh why not? We were helping each other out.

But yeah I came here to talk about and learn about dogs... nope I'm not one of the "cool kids", never been in the chatroom, don't get any of the inside jokes that are posted and don't really know anything about any of you other than what you post. Which sits just fine with me.

That being said, I have still never felt like an "intruder" in anything, even when I'm ignored.

[~Dixie's_Mom~]

Originally Posted by MyHorseMyRules

I live on the other side of Houston, so they're probably only about an hour from me.

Awesome! I don't know that I'd bring either dog with me (probably Chloe if anyone-which sucks because Violet adores other huskies) down there, but either way I'd love to meet you! It's been several years since we've been down there so I'm sure we're due sometime here, lol!