"I was born to wear this stuff"

So you may wonder what would possess a person to want to spend the time and money to build a Ghostbusters uniform, complete with proton pack.  Fair question.

First of all, I think it's fun.  Ghostbusters has always been my favorite movie.  I grew to love it through the Real Ghostbusters cartoon series.  I had a lot of the toys when I was a kid, including the toy proton pack that I could wear and pretend to chase ghosts.  I grew up and wanted to relive that fun, but with something closer to what was used in the movies.  Since they've never been available to buy, like many fans I built one myself.

Secondly, it's an escape from reality.  The truth is the career I wound up with is one that no boy grows up wanting to have.  It's ok, it pays the bills and all, but when I was a kid I never would have said I wanted to be an orderfiller at a warehouse, even if I had known what that was.  I'm sure for a few years in elementary school I would have jumped at the opportunity to grow up to be a Ghostbuster.  So in a way I fulfilled that, even if it is just pretend.  I don't doubt that there's something psychological to go with the hobby.

Thirdly, other people get a kick out of it.  I'm sure a lot laugh at me behind my back, but I don't care.  I get to see kids get excited to watch my pack light up, and adults who are impressed with the details involved in creating such a thing.  It puts smiles on faces.

So maybe it does make me a nerd, or crazy, or whatever else to want to go through the effort to make something like this.  I can accept that.  Either way, I'm having a blast doing it.

-Matt