In the time since I started...

In the time since I started playing this game back in 2004/2005 (not sure, but I know I could check), so many things have happened in my life:

1) I started when my oldest daughter was only 3. Today she is 9, and sometimes plays CoH with me!
2) I've since had two other daughters in 2007 and 2009. Gosh, my family has grown!
3) I've gone from being directionless in my life to getting my Master's in Counseling, and am currently starting my own private practice
4) I've watched my marriage have several ups and downs. My partner left a very nice paying job two years ago to pursue having a business of her own. I'm so proud of her.
5) I went from playing on a really crappy Intel Pentium II when I first started on a business HP machine, to a real gaming HP maching (Blackbird 002 with upgrades). I had a few other machines in between, butI love this rig because it's so unique.
6) Almost forgot, I spent four of those years working overnight on weekends and spending more than a few of those hours on CoH. When I left that job, I knew my playing time would be reduced. In a way, it was a good thing,as I was getting burned out from too much playing!

I'm not mentioning all the changes that have taken place in the City of game, because that's a whole other thread. It's just been such a part of my life that I sometimes forget. I look forward to keeping it in my life, to any changes that may come, and hopefully to another seven years.

So what about you guys? What significant things have happened in your life since you started playing?

@Akry

Not a bad idea for a thread In no particular order:

*When I started City of Heroes, I was just a freshman in university, studying for an Applied Mathematics bachelor's degree. I now have that degree and a rather out-of-place one for Bioinformatics...

*When I first started playing City of Heroes, I had no income of my own, so my father was paying for my account for quite a while. I have a decent, if not precisely high-paying job now, and with City of Heroes constituting the bulk of my leisure spending, I can afford to spend some money here

*My nephew didn't exist. Then my brother and his wife had themselves a son, and he's five years old now. I don't see him much because he lives with his parents in the US while I live in Eastern Europe, but he spent a couple of months here recently, and I managed to teach him how to play old arcade games. He went from only being able to push one button with one finger at a time to being able to play with both hands. His father now complains the kid only wants to play games and won't do anything else, but damn it, I'm still proud of him!

*I used to only ever have the one machine I play City of Heroes on. Back in 2007, I had to leave for the UK on a student exchange programme and needed a laptop. The one I was given as a present was a meaty Pentium Core Dup one with a GeForce 7900GS video card. Now that it has a new, bigger hard drive, more RAM and a battery that actually holds a charge, I've been known to use it to play City of Heroes when I'm away from my home, or to lend it to my guests. It's a bit behind times, but it's still decent.

*I used to speak English rather poorly as a second language. Since I've been here on these forums, I like to think I've learned to speak and write pretty damn good English. I've also learned how better to deal with infuriating people without letting them annoy me much better.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Any opportunity for a list is a good opportunity for a list...

* I have gone from being a reclusive forum wall-flower who never said anything to posting too much for my own or anyone else's good.

* When I first started playing I was trying very hard to make up for some bad parenting mistakes I'd made as a younger man/father. Now, not only do I have a great relationship with my son and daughter, but I've even patched things up with my ex-wife to where we're able to parent effectively together despite no longer being married.

* As an addendum to the above, when my daughter and her mother were having extreme problems I suggested family counselling. So, not only have I grown as a parent, we've all grown as a family and I am happy to say she and her mother are getting along MUCH better.

* When I first started CoH, I was working as a Veterinary X-Ray Computer Systems Software Troubleshooter/Specialist. (Say THAT ten times fast...) I have since met a wonderful woman who, with her medical concerns (she has Lupus) and her financial independence, has decided she would rather have me home 24/7 than working. I make no guess as to how much complete, all-day access to City of Heroes has affected my tournament addiction.

* I have deleted and restarted my tournament no less than 7 times. I am not entirely sure of the exact number since I seem to be blocking it out; sort of like a soldier with post traumatic stress syndrome.

* I have begun to write my second book; a novel about young kids with something sort of like superpowers but from a more mythical/magical source. Unlike my first book, which currently sits in a desk drawer gathering dust, I have plans to actually get this one published.

* I've had a helluva lot of fun... in no small part because of the support, recognition and laughter of a group of forumites who are almost as insane as I am.... Almost.

Lost a parent to illness, gained many new friends.
Graduated with a BA Honours Translation, went freelance for a while.
Moved a few times.
Learned a whole slew of Internet lingo (smilies, acronyms, slang) and used it as well.

Hah, I grew up in the time since I started playing. I'm currently mostly into an Associate's Degree, and I've been playing since just after CoH launched. Do the math!

So, in the time since I've started playing, I've:
*learned that I've learned a hellava lot about life, and that what I've learned is very, very little in reality
*become much more open with who I am and what I want to be, resulting in many good friends and a wonderful girlfriend
*become a writer, hopefully eventually a professional one
*been part of the rise and fall of the "first great age of the CoH Forums", was kicked out of the forums, and then figured out that internet forums probably aren't the best place to be spending all of my time... which leads directly to:
*gotten a life!

I often use my time with CoH as a measuring stick for how far I've come. I've spent my entire teenage life here. It's been a very interesting seven years.

I love these! More please!

Or...MOAR!

@Akry

hmm, i was out of school when i started for some time, so nothing particularly big, and some of the stuff is a bit personal to post but the big events were
-lost my grandmother, who was very close to me.
-changed jobs and future vocational focus, got laid off and found a similar job with many of my former co-workers. downisde is the new jobs, while better paying, are sedentary, so gained bit more weight than I wanted, leading to...
-stopped actively training in martial arts(not thrilled about that, but work takes up time) have been lifting weights much more though. Still keeping some degree to training though myself.
-learned i was spending too much free time on the forums, dropped my main forum entirely, and scaled back posting here too.
-had my play time drastically reduced due to aforementioned new job.

Take the Magic: The Gathering 'What Color Are You?' Quiz.

I have ...
watched the DSL market go from something oddball and rare to obsolete (including eventually loosing my job in the market)
I moved back home from a rather large city. There are good and bad things to both sides of that.
I did get home in time for my mother to know I loved her before I lost her to cancer.
I got hit by a car wile still in the large city, which changed my life permanently. This single situation has made me far more understanding of folk who have invisible handicaps.
On the other hand, said situation has made my other half grow up, and become the man he wanted to be. (loud cheering)
I watched my son grow from a child into a teen. (almost at 12..but in middle school)

Life has passed and we are still here, though I wasn't as frequent a subscriber to CoH as I would have wanted to be. I have always returned. I still dream , and this game allows me to do so easily.

*Started playing under my ex's account
*Opened my own account
*Broke up with my ex, whose account I took over when he stopped playing (I let my own account, now secondary account, lapse)
*Moved out of Toronto back to Iowa
*Survived on dialup for a couple years
*Obtained a sassy barn kitty who is my furry surrogate child
*Convinced one of my friends to play City of Villains with me (he's not much for heroes)
*Stepfather passed away
*Moved to another town in Iowa, obtaining broadband internet again!
*Took a loan out on the newest car I'll probably ever own (three years old at the time! only 25,000 miles!)
*Moved to Seattle to be with the person in point number 7
*Got engaged to the person in points number 7 and 11
*Spent more time on the Paragon Wiki than in the game
*Spent more time on the forums than in the game

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dispari I don't know why Dink thinks she's not as sexy as Jay was. In 5 posts she's already upstaged his entire career.

Oh man, let's see...

*Started playing as a junior in college (May 2005), introduced by my roommate.
*Got my dad hooked on the game when GvE came out.
*Had a falling out with an online friend due to SG leadership issues - started making my own way and became a much more social player.
*Moved to DC and started working for the government.
*Decided government work wasn't for me and started my own business.
*Dad was diagnosed with lymphoma and later passed away from it.
*Got GF interested in the game - she earned her 12 month vet badge this past weekend!

I'm looking forward to be able to log into my dad's account one Freedom goes live - I know the username and password, but didn't know enough to be able to change billing info to myself, so had to let the account go inactive after he passed.

@SpaceNut - My 50s, AE arcs and current projects at ParagonWiki

-Starting playing between Issues 4 and 5, mid 2005
-I was 22, I'm now 28
-I still work for the same company (sorta), worked my way from up from sweeping and grunt work to the office and working directly with our clients
-My father's health has declined considerably
-My health has gone up and down
-I bought my first gaming PC specifically for CoH after a few months of playing. (First time I've ever bought a PC for a game)
-I bought a second specifically for CoH after the previous one had issues and was outdated
-Traveled across the country to see some awesome people I met in game - It was my first time traveling on a plane, and my first time traveling alone.
-Paid off all my college and credit card debt. Currently debt free and well in the green.

[ @Zombie Fryer ][ @Zombie Smasher ]
| Home Server: Virtue |

Twitter: @ZFLikesNachos Save City of Heroes (Titan Network) [Successful "The Really Hard Way" runs: 4] [Click ^]

Started playing on day 1.

Have watched my son grow from 3 to alsmost 11 and become about as addicted to video games as I have.

Went from, what I thought was a good relaitionship with my son's mother, to being glad she lives across the country.

I have changed departments 3 times at AT&T.

My parents house, the neighborhood that I grew up in, and the high school I went to were destroyed in a tornado.

I have been put on anti-depressants and after 5 years on them, was taken off. Doing fine.

Celebrated my cat's 16th birthday with a tub of catnip.

Still mostly lurk on the forums and in game.

Since CoH's EU beta, I have:

- Been a Bridesmaid for the first time, to two players I met through the game.
- Visited a bunch of places to meet other players that I'd never have gone to otherwise (Bristol, Brighton, Birmingham, Manchester, London, Reading) because...
- Dealt with my panic and anxiety attacks so I could go and meet those people at those places (I still get them sometimes when I go, but now have the strength of will to force my way through and take the first step.)
- Grown a hell of a lot as a roleplayer, and improved thanks to all the peeps at Union's Galaxy Girl RP meets
- Grown a hell of a lot as a writer, and improved thanks to Ravenswing, Morgana_Fiolett and Wordmaker.
- Gained a honorary brother in the form of Gideon, and an honorary uncle in the form of FloatingFatMan.
- Screwed up education but got a job that I do enjoy doing.
- Bought an awesome bicycle.
- Learned to build my own computers and feel more comfortable with upgrading them and messing about inside them.
- Met War Witch, Noble Savage and the EU Community team (Several times in their case.)
- Handed out CoH trial CDs at a comic expo.
- Picked up a coffee drinking habit.
- Picked up a tea drinking habit.
- Got rid of most of my consoles to focus on PC gaming.

I joined in late August, 2004. Since then...

* Moved to the middle of Michigan to continue my career as a college professor.
* Bought my first-ever piece of new (as in "no one has owned this before me") furniture.
* Became truly self-sufficient for the first time.
* Re-connected with an old friend from undergraduate days and got back into Radio (which I continue to do every Summer).
* Saw the group of friends who got me into CoH in the first place move away to other games.
* Found streaming radio and did a stint as an "on-air" DJ for a couple years (fond memories of w00t Radio)
* Survived as a true "loner hero" until I made new friends, thanks to one very sympathetic Tree.
* Helped my Father through prostate cancer, helped my Mother through a "Death Episode" and major heart surgery.
* Became a tenure-track faculty member.
* Hung out with new friends online, went to my first M&G in Ohio, and the hung out with them even more online (2nd family).
* Helped two of those friends celebrate their wedding in Chicago.
* Became a Doctor of Telecommunications.
* Watched my wife start her dream business, a local bakery that will be a year old in October.
* Paid off my student loans.
* Became an Uncle six times (three nieces from my sister, two nephews and a niece from my brother-in-law).
* Decided that being the "cool Uncle" for my two oldest nieces is the best gig on the planet.

All this time, this has been *the* game. I've dabbled with others here and there, but CoH has ruined me for any other game so far.

I started a couple of months after launch. I was wondering what to do with my life after doing a well paid job I enjoyed in IT that had more or less rendered me unemployable (too general, technical skills degraded too much).

In my CoH time I've:

Met a load of friends who I now make a 7 or 8 hour round trip to see twice a year even though they don't play CoH any more.

Done a dead end job for 2 years and found it was far more highly stressed than the previous job I had that paid as much in a day as that one did in a week.

Decided that having done anything but studied in my first stab at university 20 years before, I'd get myself a degree. My final exams are in mid October this year.

I started playing Summer 2007, in between my freshman and sophomore years of college, but only played summers and winter breaks during my university tenure. Since starting:

• The friend who introduced me to the game has long since quit, but we remain best friends outside the game. He may come back once Freedom launches.
• I lost the dog with whom I grew up.
• I lost a grandfather.
• I gained a cousin. My familial generation, but 21 years younger than me.
• I rescued a black Labrador who has undying loyalty and gratitude.
• I graduated college with a Bachelor's of Fine Arts in Acting.
• I was taken on by a commercial agency in Chicago and now do print and on-screen ads.
• I met a wonderful girl who is, as of only a few weeks ago, my longest-standing relationship.
• I am currently sword fighting on-stage in a very well-reviewed Chicago play.

Started playing at the beginning of 2008, and really, not much has changed in my life since then.

The biggest event in my life since I started playing was that my father passed away.


Other than that,

I have the same house,
The same car,
The same job,
The same pets,
And the same friends,

I haven't gotten married, or divorced; haven't had a child; haven't gone back to, or graduated from, school; haven't taken any vacations to exotic places, or made any life altering decisions. In short, my life hasn't changed. And thus the reason I don't have a Facebook account.

A lot has changed in my life since I started playing the game. Apart from that I’m still the same.

I started playing in July 05 on the first every computer I built Since then:
-Graduated from college in 06
Changed cars in 07
Changed jobs 4 times from the time I started playing to now. I had a really good job from 2007-2009 and lost it and I closed my CoH account.
Met, dated and married my wife.
Moved out my parent’s house and changed church after getting married and now have a child on the way.
Built a new PC to run CoH and return to the game in summer 2011.

A lot has changed in my life since I started playing the game. Apart from that I’m still the same.

I was 48 when I started playing CoH on release day. That's the same time I finally earned by BS in CIS. I had already been teaching CIS classes for a college in southern California for over 10 years by then.

I moved 3 times since I started playing CoH, but all to locations just a few miles apart. My husband's fault, not mine. I was happy where we were living when we got married amost 22 years ago.

I've left CoH to play other MMORPG's for a couple months at a time to up to 8 months (WAR) but I've never let my subscription lapse and I've always come back to CoH and appreciated it even more than before. This is truly the love of my life as far as MMORPG's go.

I have a husband who is completely uninterested in MMORPG's--heck, he loves solatair. But he understands my addiction to CoH and give me all the time I want to play (usually).

I started in 2004 while I was a college student.
Left the game for a bit due to school/partying/sports.
Came back in 2005 and have had my sub going strong since.

In that time betweem 2004-2007 girlfriend went away to school, and I worked full time at a crummy paying job. (did it for the experience)
Later in 2007 I got a job in Toronto, a city and area I vowed I'd never go anywhere near. I then proposed to my girlfriend. She finished college and got a job right away in her field and in the Toronto area. We moved in together and got 2 cats shortly after.

2008 Girlfriend became my wife. On 08/08/08 to be exact.
2009 Bought a condo.
2010 Found out that my wife was expecting our first child.

March 2011. Our son was born. He's my greatest achievement! And wife and I are currently looking to move back closer to family.

It has been about six and a half years for me.

- I left a job I hated for one I loved.
- I lost the job I loved when the position was eliminated for budget reasons and now work part time full time.
- Apropos of all that, I've truly come to understand that not hating my job is more important to me than how much I earn.
- I moved from the city, which I couldn't stand, to what's essentially a town composed entirely of planned suburbs. Despite that silliness, I like it.
- Dozens of friends, some of them quite close, have come in and out of my life, in both the real world and City of Heroes.
- I've had two major articles and several minor pieces of work published, gone from never having taught a class to being able to do it in my sleep, spoken at many conferences, and mentored countless students.
- I've gone from being told by my dates, "You're, like, too young for me," to, "You're, like, too old for me."
- I've seen these fora cycle from a toxic slough of rage and entitlement-based whining to an interesting community and back again several times, though honestly, the "honeymoon" periods seem to be getting shorter and shorter.
- I've learned all about internet culture, mostly thanks to the fora. (I still don't understand why people think memes are funny ...)
- I've read literally hundreds of books, including some of the best I've ever read.

Five long, happy years of CoH.

In no order:
-I've been cheated on.
-I've moved to the northwest.
-I've earned a degree.
-I've been engaged!
-I've adopted two dogs, one a rescue.
-I've hit 50 on four characters.
-I've watched my old motorcycle go to a better home.
-I've watched my dad use the money from the old motorcycle to buy a Kawasaki Concourse, which is awesome.
-I've worked Security (DON'T DO IT).
-I've worked for Google (DON'T DO IT).
-I've started working for Point Inside.
-I've had my entire wardrobe turned from 'lonely geek' to 'sharp-dressed man' by my fiancee.
-In four months I'll be married, so foresight is 20/20.
-I've discovered English tea services.
-I've sneezed so hard I've almost vomited.
-I've made two people crap themselves from laughter.
-I've discovered 5.11 tactical under armor (google this, please).
-I've re-kindled my love for well-made watches by purchasing the first watch I've purchased in five years, an Invicta:


And I could go on, but those stood out in my mind.

I started playing on day 1 in 2004, since then:

I have had 2 daughters (6 and 1, the 6 year old occasionally plays with me now).
I lost my father (which was not a bad or tragic thing if you knew him).
I lost 1oo pounds and took up running.
I celebrated my 15th year of marriage to my best friend.
I have bought 3 new computers.
I left my old job and took a new job that pays 1/2 as much and has increased my QoL substantially.