Bubbles

My last post about bubbles got my mind wandering, so instead of doing something worthwhile, I thought I'd press on here.

In my previous post I mentioned the little tech bubble I live in online. In any bubble, there is some notion of common knowledge. I am, for some reason, attracted to the idea not necessarily of finding the common knowledge of other bubbles, but even just what other bubbles there are.

Take, for example, running. Everybody knows that runnings is something some people do (even if its not really understood why they would want to). I expect most people know about marathons as well. But I wonder how many people know about ultramarathons - runs of 50 or 100 miles or more? And it isn't just one or two people in the world that do this, but some slightly larger bubble. They have organized events and all. I didn't know about this until just a few years ago.

Sometimes I think I wish I didn't know about the knowledge of other bubbles. For example, I have a friend who is into 'Kate Spade' and 'Vera Bradley' handbags. I wish I could truthfully admit that I didn't know what those names are at all. But since interacting with this other bubble, I have acquired that knowledge. I'm not better off for it. Of course, lots of the time, interacting with other bubbles is more rewarding. I think it is a good mindset to want to explore other bubbles, to expand your horizons.

So what other bubbles are there, specifically what niche bubbles? How do I find them? How big qualifies as a niche bubble?

I must be getting tired.

It occurs to me that perhaps I should use twitter (finally, a use) for posts like this. The low character count limit would help stop my rambling and babbling.

Bed time.