hello to all that still actively check the forums out. i wanted to kind of post a little update and see how everyone’s been doing. i don’t know where to start, so i’ll just ramble a bit. my name is joseph. i started on this server in 2014 when i was 14 years old. that honestly feels wild to say, considering i’m now 25. this server meant a lot to me (still does in some ways) and helped me through so much. obviously, a lot has changed in my life over the past 11 years—new house, new town, new relationships, etc. but nonetheless, this server was there for me. the people i’ve met on here have been some of the best people. i remember the late nights that i would spend on teamspeak with friends, the parties held on the creative server, my many failed parkour runs, hopping around the lobby, and even my terrible oitc skills. i had a thriving life on this server. it made school a lot more bearable and gave me something positive to look forward to every night. since the server started declining in numbers years back, a lot of us had left—which for me was fine at the time. it gave me time to grow up and mature, get a full-time job, build irl connections, and be with my family. a lot has happened to me. i’m a different person now, and i think that it would be strange to not change over the course of 11 years. four years ago, i started dating a new person. i moved to a new city in oklahoma. i adopted two dogs and a cat. i got a new job instead of the grocery store gig i hated with a burning passion. i changed opinions on a lot of political stuff, started caring more about things outside of my “scope of study.” i became more faithful. i started spending WAY more time with my mom and dad. i lost a TON of friends due to indifferences, changes, goals, ambitions, interests, and a whole list of other things. i basically feel like a testimony to others that things aren’t going to be fun and comfortable. life really throws you around and expects you to deal with it all. i think about all this now and how this server played into my development. i would say that it helped me tremendously in finding myself. in fact, this server was how i came to terms with my sexuality—which at the time, given the fact i was 14, was very hard to understand. that also was another thing that now makes me laugh looking back on. you grow and start to realize how some decisions or choices would now be nothing to deal with. i look back on the things i considered scary and life-changing at the time to just now be minuscule. i unfortunately, however, have had some of the hardest and most impactful things happen to me. one was my senior dog, who passed away last september. she was 17 years old. i was very happy to have her in my life for as long as i did. she traveled with me from my parents’ house to my aunt’s house to my new house with my boyfriend. she changed me for the better, and she often made appearances on skype when i was younger and would chat with friends. now it’s basically december, and i’m also dealing with the terrible loss of my younger brother in september. he was 20, and it was a complete shock to my whole family. it was a complete shock to me. death changes people and creates a never-ending sense of worry. i don’t feel comfortable getting into more of the specifics, but it was terrible. it still doesn’t feel real. to make matters even worse, i lost my grandfather about five days after my brother. i say all this just to open up and honestly heal from it. it helps to share a bit of my life and just see where everyone else is at as well. i hope everyone is well, that people still enjoy this server, that new connections are still being made on here, and that the server continues to stay online. feel free to message me on here if you want to chat. i check on this site throughout the year. also, feel free to share any life updates if you’d like. i would love to read them. i wish you all the best, and i hope that the new year treats you kindly.
Joseph man, I remember you! I'm glad you're doing well amidst everything that had been happening. For me, I've been attending university to further my art skills and become an indie animator, I also developed my drawings and started working with new programs as well as traditional pencil art. I also still game with my friends who I've known here too and we're practically like family. I never forget faces from this community as to me we were all like high school friends, and I'm happy to know you too are doing good in this uneasy world.
