To Be(long) or not to Be(long). That is the question..

Um, I've been around here for so long that I've honestly never faced any of these issues. :/ When I started there were like 200 members who had signed up (seriously, I'm member #209 for the forums that started in early 2002), so I obviously didn't have to fight against the current to really feel like a part of the place.

It's always weird leaving for a while and coming back, but that's just because a lot of people and things change while you're gone. After a day or two of posting, you tend to fall back into the swing of things really quickly. :3

<_< I'm pretty sure it's the same for every member - most issues that people have with feeling like they don't belong come from this desire to be babied through and have people throw themselves at your feet because you're so amazing. But obviously, that happens rarely if at all around here. As long as you feel like you can post confidently and honestly on here, you should automatically start to get the feeling that you belong in at least one of the myriad cliques that tend to pop up on a forum this large. :3

Odds are, if you post at least semi-intelligently (even once or twice), there are quite a few people around here who respect you and would be weirded out at least a bit if you stopped. :3

... But then again, I might not be the best person to ask about this. XD I am rather jaded to this whole situation and tend to just let my own feelings rule the day. XD

There's was "no fitting in" or "not fitting in" for me. I just came here and posted. Nothin' to it.
...Well, I guess I did fit in...I have plenty of friends, was in plenty of drama (), helped people out with some things, yeah, stuff like that.

Oh my gosh Asia I meant long hair not that way :0( ( You sick sick person! *chortles*

But as for the reasoning, I think that I learned somewhere along the way that the messages one wishes to give off need to be short and concise. This change reflects a morphing of my own interactions with others outside of ZU, as well. I tend to do more listening than speaking, now, and when I do speak I try not to make it sound like a lecture. People tend to lose the main idea, then.

You could say (and here I provide a summary, haha..also a change that I've made)...

You could say that I have been practicing the art of saying much while speaking little.

I guess I could say I fit in. I feel that I've made enough posts for people to notice me and know who I am, even if they don't often directly acknowledge me (with the exception of Asia =D). I guess joining a clan would let me fit in even further, but I'm too lazy to do that.

What this thread has made me realize though is that I'm drifting apart from the communities of forums that I've been a part of for years, and that I really need to reconnect with them.

I didn't feel like I belonged until I joined the BA. Which I did 6 monnths after I joined.

But even now, sometimes, I feel like I don't. I fee;l selfish if I want others to viote for me in awards and talk about me and praise me in the CT and OoC thread, just so I can inflate my ego.

I guess you could say I'm pretty shallow when I have lots of friends but say "I don't feel loved."

It's all so messy.

I honestly don't think I belong here, I don't know... I just don't feel connected into the community, the only place I regularly post is Din, and I'm not even sure if I fit in there or if the people like me. :/

Originally Posted by Anime_Queen

ok, interesting.
But you say that then don;t give a definition :p
what's yOUr definition of "belonging" in this case?

I meant to explain, but like I said, I'm lazy and I couldn't be bothered.

Basically, my definition of belonging is when you feel comfortable with where you are, not when people start recognizing you or whatever.
I generally find that the people who spend more time trying to fit in with other people, rather than doing what they feel happiest with are the ones end up fitting in the least.

I'm aware I didn't word that post very well, but I hope you manage to understand me. Either way, I'm too tired to care right now. Bloody maths exam forcing me to stay up till 1am...

Originally Posted by Anime_Queen

Hah, what kind of things did you find daunting? or difficult to know what to do in? :p

Logging in was one!

The sig and avvy set up was easy, no problems there.

But I was just worried about acceptance mostly, and things I might do wrong :/

So thats why I tried EVERYTHING to fit in, like a ill-fated sprite comic, a never updated fan-fic, a TERRIBLE art thread and dumb threads.

Kablam he speaks

I might have fitted in back when I was in highschool, but now I have more or less grown out of my Zelda Phase. I think I've kind of moved beyond this place, despite the fact that I still post here quite frequently. Arrested development, perhaps?

Also, I think the fact that I am infinitely cooler than nearly everyone else here probably has something to do with it.

Originally Posted by andi

Odds are, if you post at least semi-intelligently (even once or twice), there are quite a few people around here who respect you and would be weirded out at least a bit if you stopped. :3

Nobody seemed to mind when I stopped using my intelligence in posts.

Edit: Er, I mean, uh, I'm one of the smartest on ZU and my posts always take up three pages.

Originally Posted by Cody

No, people in the chat noticed me, you just didn't talk to me. :< Maybe it was a lack of overlapping online times.


I didn't suddenly change anything about my personality, I just became more visible as a moderator.

It all changed when you changed your terrible forum/chat name to something people didn't feel sick when looking at.

Seriously.

Originally Posted by andi

Odds are, if you post at least semi-intelligently (even once or twice), there are quite a few people around here who respect you and would be weirded out at least a bit if you stopped. :3

I usually stray away from making large posts unless I'm debating in Gaming: Serious Business or something; otherwise, chances are most of my posts go unnoticed. Very discouraging. I could've wasted that time reading a book instead.

Lately, I have found that even the shortest replies can hold much more meaning than a large post.

Originally Posted by Blizzaga

Lately, I have found that even the shortest replies can hold much more meaning than a large post.

no.

Originally Posted by Hazz

no.

I rest my case.

Well, maybe not that short. But I think you get what I mean.

Originally Posted by Blizzaga

I rest my case.

Well, maybe not that short. But I think you get what I mean.

disagree.

Originally Posted by Hazz

disagree.

I love you too.

Originally Posted by Anime_Queen

I recognise you! :>
From the first voice thread and your av :>

Oh yes, the avatar. Somehow, I not surprised; I have this avatar on every Zelda-related site I've joined (all...three of them, I think), and I don't think I've ever changed it.

Also, c-c-c-c-combo breaker!

Pfffffffffft, Lee! :p
Dream on, lass
If you think you fit within that, anyway. And even if you did and had reason to, I'll tell you now that you're cruising out of that status FAST! ;p

Cruising fast? MAKE IT STOP, NO Dx

Seriously, if my posting has been noticed, well... I haven't really noticed. :> I think that seems to be the attitude that a lot of the members have- the sort of half-defensive attitude of when the occasional post gets skipped over/not noticed, feeling like there is no love, rainbows, friendship etc. coming their way. I've (at least to some extent) attempted to overcome this notion by posting copiously. Or, more copiously than before. And by that I mean, very very seldom.

Also, dagnabbit you latched onto Shik's nomenclature D: I had no idea it would catch on that fast or at all >>

Originally Posted by The Unsung Hero

Also, I think the fact that I am infinitely cooler than nearly everyone else here probably has something to do with it.

Son, I like your attitude!

Originally Posted by Snarwin

Also, c-c-c-c-combo breaker!

You're pretty ****ing funny.

Well, I'm not sure if I belong or not, and if I do, it definitely started when I because Noob Saibot.

As PwnageBandit, a fumbling newcomer, I took a break from ZU for about a year. When I came back, I had learned a lot more and I started acting way more mature, and I actually gained respect, some friends, and joined a clan.

Originally Posted by Asci

You're pretty ****ing funny.

Why thank you.