Real Life

Merry Christmas to You all (Literally)

stargrace December 20, 2010 4Comments

In November there was NaNoWriMo, and my attempt at raising a little money for their charity, the office of letters and light. In December, I run the 2010 Gamers Secret Santa, which soared after some twitter / facebook and forum promotions by some incredible people (Cheesy, you know I’m looking at you). Last year I ran the 2009 Gamers Secret Santa and although only a small handful of people participated that year, it was more than enough to entice me to run it again. I really hope everyone has had fun with it this year.

The point of that introduction is simply to say thank you. Through my work and my hobbies I have met some incredibly awesome people and this time of year as well as all year around I need to remind myself just how lucky I am.This list isn’t going to cover everyone, but I hope to name off those who have made this year especially amazing.

Tipa, who runs WestKarana – she is an incredibly strong woman who has inspired me on so many levels. I owe her more than she will ever realize, and if you don’t read her blog posts – you most certainly should!

Kasul, who runs Shattered, although he doesn’t write nearly as often as he should he has been an enormous help and a fantastic friend this year.

Blue Kae from his blog appropriately named. He made such a fantastic attempt at NaNoWriMo this year, and I really admired it. He has also continued on with the writing, and that’s something I think more people need to make time to do. Things they enjoy, even when time is slim.

Scopique. From Levelcapped. When I feel like I am the only one playing games I actually enjoy, and not ranting and raving about the latest bug, Scopique lets me know that there are others out there in the same boat. Some times it’s great just to know we’re not alone.

Petter, from Don’t Fear the Mutant. Another one of those “wow they need to write MOAR” bloggers, but when he does write, we all love reading it. It’s nice to know he appreciates gamers for their good and bad points, and he’s a fantastic listener.

Those are the main 5 from the community who have helped me out this year, but the list of those I’ve come to deeply appreciate runs a lot longer. There’s Hudson, though we don’t always see eye to eye I love reading his in depth articles. MMO Gamer Chick, who always has a great perspective on things, Pasmith who lets us all know about the latest gadgets and gizmos out there. Rebecca, who writes for A girl IRL – fellow Sims enthusiast, Jeremy Stratton, who writes for Massively, Ardwulf, who I have known for a long time now and just started co-hosting some EVE podcasts. How exciting! Leala who just finished creating an incredible Marshcraft diorama and is involved in so many gaming communities I wouldn’t know where to begin listing them. Arkenor who reminded me how FUN games are with his incredible Minecraft videos. Beau, who is always incredibly honest with his thoughts about gaming communities. ScaryBooster who is just .. insane. In the best way possible. Gavin from Flex Your Geek – who also writes from time to time for Nomadic Gamer, and is now a brand new writer for PC Gamer. There’s Ysharros, who is the most elusive blogger I’ve ever seen – but when she does write, oh boy you’d better read it. Ethic from Kill Ten Rats, who I have been reading for almost as long as I’ve been gaming. Sypster, who I watched start out writing for Biobreak and then grow to include writing for Massively. Werit, who is probably the most devoted gamer I’ve ever known, and I’ve known a lot of them. Krystalle, who I finally got to “see” in game for the first time ever in EVE. Talk about a star moment! Gordon, who is a fantastic writer for We Fly Spitfires. Victor, who reminds me of my younger brothers. It’s just a joy to read his work. Of course I can’t forget Dusty_Monk, who is the president of Windstorm Studios, and proves to us time and time again that developers are gamers too.

Then there are the others I know, not through their writing per say but from their influence on my gaming none the less. There’s Squeecha, who I know always enjoys a good cheese. Naylie, who has been fantastic at keeping Vanguard together this year. Domino, who I adore simply because of all the crafting goodies added to EQ2. ShutterCal for their amazing calendar project that has grown SO much over the last year. Kiara, who has been a fantastic friend. Findpurpose, who listens to even the most boring of my rants.There’s Pennie, who patiently looked at every single one of my decorated houses in EQ2, and Shadowgeist who gamed with me and kept me company no matter where I ended up.

Since this is a game related post, I’ve tried to keep the list restricted to those who have influenced me in some gamer aspect, but there are of course always those I love who are not involved in gaming what so ever. I love, and appreciate every single person I am lucky enough to have in my life, and I really hope that this next year is just as amazing as the last. Thank you all so very, very much.

2010 Gamers Secret Santa Under Way

stargrace December 1, 2010 1Comment

Wow. What an incredible turn out this year. With over 100 people from all over the world participating, this years Gamers Secret Santa is off to an incredible start. I sent out the emails earlier today, so if you registered and have NOT gotten the email with the address for your recipient PLEASE let me know (email me stargrace@mmoquests.com) and be sure to check your trash bin because my emails typically get sent there first.

A few things I learned this year. Number one, we as gamers belong to an exclusive club of inside jokes that most of the world simply wouldn’t get. These make great ideas for Christmas presents. We have such an incredibly awesome community, I can’t phrase it into words. Despite the fact that we are often at one another for having a difference in opinion, when it comes down to it that’s simply passion. Passion for what we believe in, passion for our hobbies. Making sure that passion doesn’t rise to an extent that it hurts someone else is what we all have to be mindful of.

To everyone who signed up and is participating this year, I couldn’t be happier. I wish I could partake myself, but it wouldn’t really be much of a surprise that way. I’m quite content to stand in the background and make sure everything runs as smooth as possible.

On that same note, I am once more offering to do a Christmas Card exchange with anyone who is interested. Simply drop me an email: Stargrace@mmoquests.com and we’ll exchange addresses. Last year I received more than 20 cards from old and new gamer friends alike, and it was a lot of fun. I typically tape them up around my desk during the holiday season to remind myself of all I have to be thankful for.

I know I’ve been coating everything in a nice layer of sticky sweet syrup these days but I simply can’t help it. Safe travels, and happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself.