It's a Show. It's a Lifestyle. It's a Religion!

It's been 25 years since the world was first introduced to Gilmore Girls and its fast-talking, coffee-stalking mother and daughter — but you wouldn't know it given the passion of old fans and the slew of eager new ones

- by MOLLY McGUIGAN

Within an hour of my September arrival at the A Weekend in the Life convention in New Milford, Connecticut - one of the towns that supposedly inspired the '00s (and beyond) phenomenon Gilmore Girls, starring Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel - I'm approached by no less than five kind strangers ready to chat. A Taylor Doose type representing the local historical society points to the nearby gazebo ("It's a bandstand!" I can almost hear him correcting me) as he recalls an Ohio man popping the question to his Gilmore-obsessed girlfriend (now fiancée). A Mrs. Kim stand-in - though much nicer, as advertised on a sign outside her shop - is quick to share that fans have come from Alaska, New Zealand and France to visit her thrift store in the center of town. A local woman resembling Miss Patty in demeanor more than aesthetic interrupts my notetaking to ask if I'm painting and if so, have I checked out the area artisans? And finally, mother-daughter duo Kim and Lorelai (yes, she's named after Graham's character) talk to me about their pilgrimage to this quaint town all the way from Minnesota after years of watching their own familial dynamic reflected in the words and actions of the Gilmore duo,

That's the draw for many of the 1,200 or so superfans who've made the trip for this particular Gilmore event — one of hundreds that take place each year in the form of conventions, trivia battles and even themed cruises. "There's a lot of heavy stuff in our world. Sometimes you just want to escape to that wonderful place that makes you feel good and brings you back home," Kim tells Us.