Welcome to Gaia! ::

Hello there, guildies~. wink So, I'm 18 years old as of last Saturday... This isn't the point of this thread, though. Just wanted to point out that I've known many of you guys since I was 14... As of late, I haven't been around very consistently. On a couple of weeks, off a couple of weeks, etc. I'm always lurking, but posting is where I tend to come and go. Despite this fickleness, the ATG's always stuck with me in numerous ways, and for that reason I don't think I'll ever really leave. biggrin I "owe" this place way too much.

I owe this place for a lot of my courage. People like Sav, Kals, and Jimmy have taught me to stand a lot firmer when it comes to who I am. Much less pretending to be someone I'm not. Sav and Jimmy more than anybody have taught me not to let myself be victimized by someone... I'm still kind of working on that, but I'm vastly better than I once was.

Isel taught me a great lesson on talking behind other people's backs. He only said one sentence, and it wasn't even specifically directed at me, but... It's planted solidly in my memory.

I can sort of contribute a third of the music on my iPod to Tsuji. One time, when we were playing Go, he mentioned the song Magic Carpet Ride by Steppenwolf, and how much he loved it. I grew very fond of the song, which lead to fondness for Steppenwolf, which lead to fondness for older rock in general... Now, not a day passes I don't listen to it.

I give sole credit for my infatuation with yo-yo's to Xik. lol

I owe almost all of my romantic experiences to the ATG. ninja

I owe a great deal of self-esteem to the ATG. sweatdrop Didn't feel particularly comfortable with the way I looked till I met you bunch... with your sweet words and big hearts~.

My taste in books is almost a direct reflection of Jimmy's. All of my favorite authors... Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, Christopher Moore... He introduced me to all of them!

I've always liked Disney and Pixar, but I didn't really LOVE Disney and Pixar until I experienced repeated exposure to aretoo. whee His adorable enthusiasm just rubbed off on me...

My love of comics can also be credited to Jimmy. It all started with The Sandman series, methinks...

Milk and Holy Water has given me a whole new perspective on sexuality. I used to stare down my nose at it, but he opened my mind quite a lot, paving the way for my current "whatever floats your boat" policy when it concerns others. This can also be attributed to Tsuji in a lesser way.

I don't think I'd have ever gotten into the habit of using semicolons were it not for a post I read from Tsuji to Lin. xd

Erius completely flipped around my taste in anime. I went from watching Naruto and Bleach to appreciating Mushi-Shi, Honey and Clover, and Welcome to the NHK.

More than anything, I feel I owe the ATG my charisma. Before spending time with you folk, I was rather shut-in... I didn't have many friends, I had an aversion to physical contact... The ATG taught me, with asterisks no less, that hugs and glomps are fun, and an excellent way of brightening your own mood and those of others~! Now, I indulge in such things every day. This guild has taught me that there's no reason to be afraid of most people; there's nothing stopping me from just waltzing up to somebody and striking a conversation with them. It's taught me to be much, much less discriminative...

Thank you very, very much, my dearest ATG~... heart

Now~! I'd like the rest of you to bear with me and be a little nostalgiac. How's the guild influenced you? Has it been for the better? Go nuts! Tell me all of it! I'd very much like to know.

Yes~! I remember... whee I've always felt honored by that.

Well I can probably say to you Slim that while I've not spent much time chatting with you, your amusing comics have had an imapct on me. When first being led to the guild by Terra I found your comics kept bringing me back, and also helped me to learn more about some of the other members and stuff. And they brought many chuckles. Uhm yeah, I think that makes sense ^.^

And I think if we are doing the whole thanking Guildies for stuff, I should probably say thankies to aretoo who has helped me when I've had some questins I needed to ask ^.^

And to everyone for being there. If I ever needed a distraction or a cheer-up there is always someone online to cheer me up. So yeah

@Tsuji: Aaaaaah, Ri-kun... sweatdrop Such a kidder.

@Doc: I'm very glad you enjoyed the comics~... Always a pleasure to brighten somebody's life.

@Dai: Haha, good! Happy to know you kept it; it was so adorable...

I have so many fond memories of this place. sweatdrop

I wasn't part of the original group of guildies; a lot of people were appearing less and less frequently right around the time when I started getting involved with the guild. (Hopefully there's no correlation there. xD)

I'm too braindead tonight to write it all out, but various members of the guild have been there for me when I've gone through some really rough times the last couple of years. If I need to be cheered up, this is the first place I visit.

You guys are awesome~

@Dai: I could never get the IRC to work again... sad

Also, who's your hubby? :O

@Chex: Ah, gosh, Chex. biggrin You should know very well that you're now a deeply-ingrained part of this lil community. Most everyone knows your name.

@Sav: Teach me, Master! blaugh

Well Slim.
Tae is my IRC Husband.
And IRL Boyfriend.