08-27-2015, 07:47 PM
A year ago today it was just me, Ganondorf and Proto man, chuggin' on. Ach, but, those were the days. Our traffic was maybe a quarter of what it is now. We lived in a wet boot and used to advertise on shitty jcink forums for handfuls of stale omnilium. The rules pages were a new thing, having previously been a bunch of forum topics. There were no monthly votes. The Stacker was more than mere legend. Ganondorf was still awaiting twins. And I still thought Jak Mar was a dude.
We've gotten bigger over the last year, but honestly I still feel like the spirit of this place has remained. I had an idea in my head from the very beginning of what I wanted this place to be and though I knew I could make it happen, seeing it and being able to wake up to it existing every day is friggin' awesome. It's like finishing a great painting or a book, except that thing is simply a spine and a cover and the words are BEING WRITTEN BY OTHER PEOPLE. I dunno. I'm good at systems, not similies.
That's why getting this repetitive strain injury was such a blow. Seeing my site and being unable to contribute effectively really laid me low mentally. Not even being able to distract myself with games didn't help. As time went on from the initial injury I went from tired to annoyed to depressed. I had to watch my site and watch the new staff struggle while I wondered whether I'd even be able to come back and run the thing. The thought of that was pretty awful for me. And yet somehow, even in my absence, the place grew. That's when I really realised it had a life without me. It was both relieving and depressing in a sense.
I can honestly say that the biggest people I want to thank this year are my staffers. Sarah, Proto Man, Guu, Luffy and Atelos really busted their asses to keep this place on the rails. And seeing that made me really happy. The fact that anyone, let alone so many people, cared enough that they were willing to invest themselves and their free time into this thing I created. And it's not just them. Everyone that tried to make a story – even those that weren't successful, but especially those who managed to pull it off despite the odds, have been making this site a success. Obvious props goes to Alex, for running the biggest event to date on the site. IC Omni knows how he managed to pull that off with his school schedule. The patience, writing ability, organisation and willpower of that man is legendary. Even if there is no God or Buddha, I believe in Proto Man.
The secondary saga is another great example, and though two of the three people running it are now staff, they were all members just a month or two ago. Pulling off this kind of large-scale story takes initiative, guts and inspiration. And off the back of that creativity, even more creativity has flourished. Just take a look at the IC topics and you'll see. It's like a chain-reaction of awesomeness, cascading to an explosion of ... really good shit. Look, I already said.
These are the big, obvious examples, but this site is really a tapestry of all the small stories. The world that goes on even when you're not watching or reading. The buddies doing their own thing, meeting up to freeball and wing a story. The crabs under Camelot. The ball in the Moors. The twitter posts. Oh god the twitter posts. And each and every person who's sent a little something towards the site. I love you all and you all make me feel warm and fuzzy inside for making something you consider to be of worth. I hope to soon have more to say thank you with, but until then, my undeserving gratitude will have to suffice. m(_ _)m
This has been a little more personal than last year's celebration, but it has been a personal year and I think it's really underscored the fact that this place is more than just a website to many of us. This is a community. A home. A place where you can come not just to role-play, but to meet like-minded people and find solidarity. I know I'm not the only one who's had a tough year, and I know I'm not the only one who's found friends here. So thank you, Omniverse, for being you, and I hope to make next year even more rewarding. Happy Omniversary!
![[Image: lZUIdXj.gif]](http://i.imgur.com/lZUIdXj.gif)
(My hand still tingles when I type, but I've learned to get around it. Though frustrating at first, I'm now used to this voice recognition software. My hand is getting a little better every day, and I'm now even able to play video games again. Now if I can just get that job next week, things'll be well on track 
)
We've gotten bigger over the last year, but honestly I still feel like the spirit of this place has remained. I had an idea in my head from the very beginning of what I wanted this place to be and though I knew I could make it happen, seeing it and being able to wake up to it existing every day is friggin' awesome. It's like finishing a great painting or a book, except that thing is simply a spine and a cover and the words are BEING WRITTEN BY OTHER PEOPLE. I dunno. I'm good at systems, not similies.
That's why getting this repetitive strain injury was such a blow. Seeing my site and being unable to contribute effectively really laid me low mentally. Not even being able to distract myself with games didn't help. As time went on from the initial injury I went from tired to annoyed to depressed. I had to watch my site and watch the new staff struggle while I wondered whether I'd even be able to come back and run the thing. The thought of that was pretty awful for me. And yet somehow, even in my absence, the place grew. That's when I really realised it had a life without me. It was both relieving and depressing in a sense.
I can honestly say that the biggest people I want to thank this year are my staffers. Sarah, Proto Man, Guu, Luffy and Atelos really busted their asses to keep this place on the rails. And seeing that made me really happy. The fact that anyone, let alone so many people, cared enough that they were willing to invest themselves and their free time into this thing I created. And it's not just them. Everyone that tried to make a story – even those that weren't successful, but especially those who managed to pull it off despite the odds, have been making this site a success. Obvious props goes to Alex, for running the biggest event to date on the site. IC Omni knows how he managed to pull that off with his school schedule. The patience, writing ability, organisation and willpower of that man is legendary. Even if there is no God or Buddha, I believe in Proto Man.
The secondary saga is another great example, and though two of the three people running it are now staff, they were all members just a month or two ago. Pulling off this kind of large-scale story takes initiative, guts and inspiration. And off the back of that creativity, even more creativity has flourished. Just take a look at the IC topics and you'll see. It's like a chain-reaction of awesomeness, cascading to an explosion of ... really good shit. Look, I already said.
These are the big, obvious examples, but this site is really a tapestry of all the small stories. The world that goes on even when you're not watching or reading. The buddies doing their own thing, meeting up to freeball and wing a story. The crabs under Camelot. The ball in the Moors. The twitter posts. Oh god the twitter posts. And each and every person who's sent a little something towards the site. I love you all and you all make me feel warm and fuzzy inside for making something you consider to be of worth. I hope to soon have more to say thank you with, but until then, my undeserving gratitude will have to suffice. m(_ _)m
This has been a little more personal than last year's celebration, but it has been a personal year and I think it's really underscored the fact that this place is more than just a website to many of us. This is a community. A home. A place where you can come not just to role-play, but to meet like-minded people and find solidarity. I know I'm not the only one who's had a tough year, and I know I'm not the only one who's found friends here. So thank you, Omniverse, for being you, and I hope to make next year even more rewarding. Happy Omniversary!
)
Curious about me and the characters I play? See the 'Staff' page! See also the rosters for my characters Samus Aran or Enel if you'd like to see examples of well-formatted rosters. Hope you enjoy the Omniverse!