I loved the musical RENT in 1996, and found Rebekah Allen's online journal, which was devoted to RENT. I started a site, inspired by her. In 2000, she mentioned Metafilter. I immediately joined. I've had my own website since 1996, and been a long-time Metafilter member, but I'm an internet lurker. I joined Metafilter when I was 19, and now I'm 30. Can you imagine being a member of a website through those formative years? It's the only such experience I have.
I wish I could take back all of my early front-page posts, but I would never take back the joy I've had in seeing Metafilter evolve to what it is today. I love it every bit as much as I did in the "good ol' days" -- thanks MeFi!
Kaycee Nicole
This isn't a "fond" memory, per se, but memorable, nonetheless. I was sucked into Kaycee Nicole. I read her site. I read Halcyon Stn's and bwg's entires about her. When someone posted doubt about her existence, I furiously defended her. I was a sucker! This was the first time I was a sucker on the internet, and a hard lesson.