Zenaku
Metall
Posts: 74
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« on: 30 September 2013, 06:26:45 » |
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I'm feeling a little sappy and nostalgic tonight so I've decided to pay tribute to the community that made me who I am today.
I can't remember how or even when (8? 10 years?) I came across the blue checkered floors of the MBoard. I was a kid. A legitimate child. I grew up with the MMX series and only really played X1 and X3 and the BN games. I remember lurking around under the guise of Guest before taking the plunge and finally registering under Chaud21xx. Seems appropriate now considering my history with MegaMan but back then it was just because I thought Chaud was the ##### and the original name was taken.
Even as a registered user I remember continuing my habits of never posting and never contributing. As a 10 something year old child I was deeply afraid of being judged by these adults who took pleasure in casting out those who "talk3d lyk this" and abbreviated you as "u". I remember pouring over user posts trying to understand and mimic the styles of the respected community members. Eventually something gave way and I started to post. I knew I had to type properly or else I would be crucified and so I did. While my friends at that age were typing like "idiots" there I was, capitalizing my letters and adding proper punctuation to my sentences. Eventually this became a habit of mine and I began to converse with people who I thought were way older and smarter than I was.
Soon enough I was engrossed in the community. A vast majority of my time was spent between these blue walls and I loved it. I've met some of the smartest (I'm looking at you Delta), most cynical (Insert all the old guard here), talented (Morgan... You brilliant artist you!), funniest (Someone linked me the fake essays MastaFuu wrote back in the day and was surprised when I told him I knew the creator from long ago) people here in the forums and all of you helped shape my childhood for the better. I wasn't exactly unpopular in school or a loner by any means, but I always found myself happier surrounded by the blue glow of my monitor.
Years passed and as the MegaMan series that brought us all together peaked and fell we stayed together (mostly) as a single community. People moved on as they do but there was always new blood fresh for the harvest. Eventually a select few of these newbies would be welcomed into the fold and we would converse about everything as though we were old friends.
In a perfect world I would still be on the blue checkered floors to this day conversing with everyone about the next MegaMan game or making an ass out of a newbie. Unfortunately all MegaMan empires must fall someday, and while MMM remained strong for many years, it too eventually succumbed to the ravages of time.
What we have now is a relic. A message board about a singular video game series with no links to any semblance of social media. It's old, dilapidated and relatively empty, but, when I look at it I still see the shiny blue checkered hallways that lit up my monitor and consumed much of my childhood. Friendships have been forged, broken and then wrought anew in this domain and I owe a large part of who I am today to it.
So thank you MegaMan Matrix. Thank you for being both a home and a teacher I didn't know I needed. Thank you to everyone who magically came together to form this razor sharp edged community of cynics and fanatics. When I'm going through rough times I always seem to find myself looking back at MMM and really cherishing the chance I had to experience this community and everything it had to offer.
If you're ever around my parts and want to have a drink or something feel free to find me on the Facebook group (Sorry Abe! The offer still stands for the curmudgeons who refuse to use Facebook though!).
Thanks for everything MMM.
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« Last Edit: 30 September 2013, 06:35:58 by Zenaku »
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Lunchebox
Super Robot
Posts: 1235
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« Reply #20 on: 25 January 2014, 09:08:09 » |
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I don't know if I would say this place had a huge impact on my life, but I do remember I spent a LOT of time here starting at... What? 14 or 15? Either way, about ten years ago. I know I spent a lot of that time being a jackass. I'd like to think that's no longer the case. I ended up coming here tonight because I remembered I had a photobucket, and going through that I found a lot of things that reminded me of this place and I couldn't help but wonder what the state of this place was, and how the people here were. If it weren't for this place, I wouldn't have my daughter or my husband. I also have many friends that I communicate more openly and frequently with than some of my family members, and a strong sense of internet ettiquette. On top of it all, I was actually introduced to MegaMan because of this place after being brought here by a friend.
I love that I can still come on here, even if it's not especially active. It's kind of like an old playground where you can come and sit on the squeaky swing and think, with the added benefit of there being someone else here sometimes.
Sometimes.
Holy crap, you got married and have a kid? I mean, I guess I SHOULDN'T be surprised. It's not like you're the only person I used to know who ended up married with children, but still. I guess it's because I left for so long and have no context for who any of you people are now. Congratulations, incidentally. |
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Mikero
Super Robot
Posts: 11982
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« Reply #30 on: 8 March 2014, 02:44:57 » |
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Hokay.There's a reason I haven't chimed into this thread yet. I wanted to wait until I could really absorb it and reflect, and post properly. I'm glad Chaud created this thread because I'd been thinking some of these things for a while. I don't have a ton to write about it truthfully, but I never did do anything fast and easy did I? There's many memories I have of this place but the resounding thought I have of MMM is more of a feeling than anything else. Like many of you I came here at a fairly formative time in my life. Like some of you I came in with a terrible screen name (not that I have a good one now). I was here before I knew Photoshop. I was here before I realized I could do art and animation for a living. These are things that now comprise so much of my life that I breathe them. I didn't know I could have friends--People I actually call friends when I actually speak of them in my actual non-digital actual life--that I'd never physically met. A part of me really did grow up here and learn that I could actually speak my mind if I wanted to. It might sound alien that an internet forum let me find a voice rather than destroy it, but such is the case. I've found that the world outside MMM actually falls short in that regard, and so it is lesser. A big reason I didn't post this until now was that when I was moving I had to go through all my stuff since childhood. And I found something that really touched me. [spoiler]  clickup[/spoiler] Now, I want to say that I absolutely hate everything about this drawing and would never in my right mind post this now if it weren't for what it's existence means to me. I don't think I ever told anybody about it. I know I've done this kind of thing since, but at the time this was a huge undertaking for me and I was very jazzed about it. The whole thing was going to be coloured and have EVERYONE I could think of. You might see that you are missing from this. You aren't. Unfortunately, I only found these two pages. There was at least 2 more pages involved. Abe was to be the centre, with the mods. A page on the left of MH Alia included at the least Speed, Lunchebox, ASR, NovaMan, Jake, Sano, and myself. Mikey, Morgan, DZX9, Edge, Chaud, TLO, Ares, orclev, and others appeared on further pages. For some people this was before their time and they weren't pictured, but if I didn't name you it doesn't mean you were left out (I mean Sano got it, right?) I'm just not sure where you ended up or even when this was drawn. I assume John, Majikn, and Vinch were there because I can't imagine it being right without them. Since first coming I've been subjected to, and have become every single kind of person there is and it's an experience that is indelible. It's always like coming home again, even now, when I see that trademark blue-blue-blue pattern. I honestly don't believe I would have done half the stuff in my life without your guys' constant support, friendship, and bickering and I can't imagine doing half of the upcoming stuff without you. I hate that my old drawings look like this, I hate that I have even worse stuff. I HATE that I have worse stuff that came AFTER this, but I love you MMM. Thanks.
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Author
