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Chatterbox: Down to Earth
I know you
I know you all haven't heard much from me about the whole AlterEgo/CBgonebonkers/whateverelse, because I've really not wanted to hurt peoples feelings around the topic, but I kinda feel like I need to say something.
When I first arrived at the CB, what drew me in was how everyone knew each other so well. And within a few weeks, so did I. Just by chatting about what books we liked and whether this song or that one was better made me feel so connected. And there were the clubs. I never really got why we decided to end them, but I know that when they ended, we lost some valuble CBers. Most of all, I miss Nina. She had about ten-thousand awesome clubs and was so nice.
During last summer, I kinda disapeared from the CB. Between my family and summer activites, I just didn't have time for it. When I returned, it had changed.
At first, the change was just, oh, here's some new CBers. Awesome! Then the real affects started: the alter egos.
Quite frankly, I don't get it. At all. We're all already under alter egos just by using the CB- I've said and done things I wouldn't have the courage to do in real life, because I'm not me here. I am my inner thoughts and feelings. Heck, just by participating in the Inkwell, I did things I'd never do in the non virtual world: I shared my writing with a bunch of strangers. And that is something huge to me. My writing is very sacred for me, and I rarely even show my family what I'm writing.
Back to the topic of alter egos. My point is that having two or three different "yous" on the CB is just plain confusing. I don't feel like I really know anyone on here, not like I knew BHR and Butterfly and Nina. And that hurts -- it hurts like heck. Imagine if you, in real life, had three different selves and each day you had to chose which to be. Wouldn't you're friends get confused on who you were?
I miss having one clear, concise image of everyone. I feel as though the CB has been fragmented into a thousand pieces by the influx of alter egos. Pudding's Place is a disaster -- i can only find one thread related to the arts. Down to Earth is half non-sensical and the Inkwell? Its not writing anymore, it's a tangled mess. I'm deeply saddend by this all.
Please, fellow CBers, make a choice. Let there either be alter egos, or no alter egos. I can't stand this middle ground where we're all not saying what we feel about this matter. The CB somedays feels like a ticking bomb primed to blow. I just hoped I didn't set it off by posting this.
~Abigail A.
submitted by Abigail A., age VT, 14
(March 27, 2015 - 7:18 am)
(March 27, 2015 - 7:18 am)
Um, Abigail A., just a heads-up, Somebody complete with CAPTHCA and alter egos, left when Masked Piester and BLASTER!!!! Did, so, soon enough the CB may be alter ego free. Have fun.
(March 27, 2015 - 9:48 am)
@Somebody: I really don't know why you left, it wasn't your fault that alter egos were getting out of hand. I really liked you. I personally don't have an alter ego ( never really got the point of then) but do agree that sometimes they got out of hand.
Right now I'm very confused why a lot of CBers are leaving.
(March 27, 2015 - 11:46 am)
@Horse Spirit Girl - Wait, Somebody left? :(
@Abigail A. - I never thought of it that way. If I were to voice my opinion, I would say the CB would be a better place without alter egos.
...And yet I created one. Peer pressure, everybody!
(March 27, 2015 - 2:01 pm)
Oh my goodness. Somebody left?!?!?! That is awfull. Somebody, if you're out there, I really liked you!
(March 27, 2015 - 3:40 pm)
Thanks, Abigail, for saying that. I totally agree. Alter egos are extremely perplexing, and I can't seem to comprehend why anyone would want one. If you like to develop different characters with superpowers and stashes of pie and plans for world domination, that's what the RPs are for. And if you're not interested in the current RPs, create a new one. Because frankly, this is turning an incredibly unique literature-based website into an unorganized jumble of make-believe personalities that I can't pinpoint. So please, please be yourself - and only yourself - on the CB.
(March 27, 2015 - 11:35 am)
I completely agree, Abigail. It's a little sad, seeing the old CB disappear and become this one. I, myself, am an extremely nostalgic person, but I realize that it's not just me who misses the old Chatterbox. I genuinely like everybody here, because they are all great people. I just think the alter egos have gotten more than out of hand.
On the old Chatterbox, we occasionally had SI's, where we'd make up a name and people would try to guess it. Those were cool. Red was literally another side of Ruby. That was cool, too. Just the alter egos went overboard, with their crazy pie-throwing and screaming. They're fine in a few posts, but they sometimes spilled over.
However, I do realize how many alter egos have decided to leave. Part of me thinks this is a good thing- it will make this place less crazy (especially Pudding's Place), and isn't this what I wanted?
But this is a rather sad thing. Some of the alter egos left because they felt as if they were being pushed out, but a few did out of- how to put this?- out of guilt.
I don't want to force anybody to be who they aren't.
But I don't want to be confused with this topsy-turvy CB anymore.
I hope this does not offend anyone, because I swear I don't mean to.
(March 27, 2015 - 2:46 pm)
Okay.
First off, I'd like to apologize... about my alter egos.
I didn't mean for them to get so out of hand, and Saint Owl... wasn't the most appropriate thing here. I've officially withdrawn them, anyway.
And also, I'd like to thank Abigail and a few others. Because you guys didn't leave when you were upset. You asked for a change.
I'm really annoyed with MP and BLASTER!!!! and Somebody right now, because they all left. Because of something that could easily be changed.
So here's my message (and moral) to the world:
GIVING UP ON SOMETHING DOESN'T HELP! WHAT DOES IS ASKING FOR HELP AND TELLING PEOPLE WHAT YOU WANT TO DO!
And I want to send that message out now. Are you guys getting tired of alter egos? Okay. It might be a little painful, but okay. We get it. They are getting out of hand. It will be hard, but yeah, I think we can do it.
Okay?
Thank you.
(March 27, 2015 - 6:27 pm)
@St. Owl: Okay, to start St. Owl it is not your fault at all about the alter egos. Your message to the world is so true. I really hope noone leaves. What you said about giving up the alter egos was really brave! I'm proud of you, because you seemed you liked all your alter egos.
(March 28, 2015 - 7:45 am)