18 months ago, if you had said that I would be a dedicated blogger now, I would have laughed in your face. I was adamant that blogs were a pointless affection of people who feel they are more important than they actually are and need to tell the world about it - but cannot tell the world everything because of the people that might read their inner feelings. It all seemed very hollow to me. However, at the time, I needed somewhere to get my thoughts and stresses worked out in a place that allowed me some chance for reflection. It was either a blog or a diary and I am a geek so blogs win!
Of course, now I see it as so much more. It's my corner of the web for me to wank on about whatever fills my mind. Usually roleplaying but not always. Its a place for my friends to contact me and keep in touch with me and how I'm thinking at the time. It's almost becoming a homepage for me as I add my essential links to it and some other stuff soon. The question is, has it sorted out my issues that caused the launch? Have I settled my hobbies.
Yes. Absolutely.
Indeed, in this 100th post to the Bottom of the Glass I would like to announce that any pretense of this being some sort of self-help tool is now being retired. My self has been helped quite nicely thank you. How, you ask?
- All the Raw Deal obligations have blown away on the breeze as has any real active participation in the game for me. I still 'play' but only socially on the very odd occassion.
- World of Warcraft was indeed, the great villain of the piece. It ate my time, it soured my relationships, it cast a shadow over everything I did. It's gone now and after a short period of mind fuzz I am open to a whole new world of opportunities.
- Fanfic is a gogo again, but on a nice low-key venture. I write when I can get the focus and it's good stuff when I do. It's fun rather than a task, which is the point.
- Which brings me to the big winner and thats ROLEPLAYING!!! (Hey, you'd never have guessed eh?) I'm reaching greater gaming heights with my current group and soon will start properly with a secondary group. I have started writing not one, but two games. I'm going to freakin' GenCon (!!) and I'm even roleplaying with my kids. The RP life is very sweet at the moment.
For the first time in literally years, I have spare time. Its a bizarre new concept to me, one that I am still growing used to. Moreover, for the first time EVER I am not in any hurry to fill up that spare time with responsibility or new stuff. It's quite intoxicating! I may even be having a holiday and the laptop will be staying at home. Yes, I know, I'm breathing slowly.
So, in this Happy One Hundred address, I would just like to thank everyone who has helped me along this road over the last 18 months. Whether you are the old friends I see every week, the new/old friends I see very occassionally or truly new friends I have never met yet, whatever you have done, it's helped me and I truly appreciate it.
So goodbye introspection and hello to The Bottom of the Glass, the non-emo angst years!!!!
Neil
4 comments:
World of Warcraft was indeed, the great villain of the piece
Hmm,it would be fair to say that WoW has ravaged the personal and social time of most of us from time to time. Certainly I'm blaming WoW on my increase in weight over the last 2 years, as (though you might find this shocking) I still eat as much as I ever did, but hour after hour of sitting still at a keyboard and not doing feck all else has taken it's South Park-eque toll on my waistline.
D.
But you have five or six fingers that are perfectly honed athletes ready to compete in many an Olympic event, so whats the problem?! *grin*
Neil
I find it hard to look back on my time in WoW badly. Yeah The Dungeoneer break up was frustrating, but I'm not sure it was as personal for me as it was for everyone else - I didn't have to experience Wednesday pulp fall out, for instance. I enjoyed it overall - it was an experience.
I do think it sort of absorbed more time that it should have. And it did annoy me that it filtered into the normal gaming, in that we'd come together and discuss WoW more than the gaming, play and disperse.
As I've said before, I'm just used to a much higher level of gaming discussion going on.
I think this is one area the blogs have been useful, I think they been a medium by which discussion can be progressed, along with thoughts and ideas, and have been part of the fabric in terms of growing the level of face-to-face discussion that now happens and will hopefully grow.
Ian.
As a late newcomer to your blog, all I can say is I wish you manage to pull a lot of hundreds before you quit.
Congratulations!
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