Places to Chat
-pt. 1: introduction
Chatterbox: Down to Earth
-pt. 1: introduction
-pt. 1: introduction and explanation-
Hey friends! Leafy here. Gosh, I haven't been around in a while have I? I've been fairly inactive this whole spring and summer and then I have actually been on an intentional, albeit unannounced hiatus for a couple months. But I figured it's time I came back!
I haven't been around much for several reasons--I feel like I don't belong here as much anymore, not like I did when I was 10-13ish. There are several reasons why; most of my old friends are long gone (*cries*); I think I've grown out of the subject matter that is allowed on the CB a bit; I've found other things to take up my time, and more real life friends; and I honestly feel like the CB isn't very creative now and hasn't been for a long time.
Now of course I've stopped engaging with the community so much, so I'm not catching any creativity that goes around, but there's not really much to engage with. Most of what goes on here now, I feel like, is random chatting, and of course there's nothing wrong with that but the basis of this site is for readers of Cricket mag--writers, readers, imagination honestly and when I was younger I found this place to be such a nurturing hub of creativity + inspiration and I just don't get those vibes from here anymore.
Which isn't exactly fair of me because during when there was a lot of creativity around I didn't participate much, just rode along in the wake of amazing people like Abigail, Bluebird, September, Micearenice, Booksy Owly, and more and hoped that someday I could be as good at what I did--art, storywriting, poetry--as they were. But eventually I realized I needed to take a break from the CB and figure out and grow my own skills and creativity, so that's kind of what I was doing this spring and summer. But with that said, I'm back! I want to try to bring some creative spirit back here, just by personally being more active and trying to participate in this community more. Because I love this place, and it's been a saving grace for me over the years. And I want to help make sure that the same creative, welcoming atmosphere that this forum has can be available for other kids too, before I poof out of here entirely at some point.
~~~
-pt. 2: things I did while inactive/gone, in no particular order-
-Spent a lot of time on the NaNoWriMo forums, which made me appreciate how slow + safe the CB is, but it also made me appreciate Nano's huge community and support network and instant chat thing. (I also picked up some chat speak slang so be warned I may throw in an uwu or bro or bc/nvm/idk from time to time)
-FaceTimed Leeli
-Started 10th grade at a new school (it's all online currently, which stinks, but overall it's going okay)
-Realized that my hair is naturally curly/wavy and does ringlets when I leave it alone
-Became pretty good friends with + got a crush on a guy I know, and just a couple days ago we were trying to make plans to hang out and play video games but then some stuff happened and I found out he has a girlfriend that I didn't know about and that he didn't have a couple months ago and said girlfriend doesn't want us to hang out, so um, he kind of ditched me? It's really a pretty stupid situation and I'm kind of hurt but we're sort of working through it I guess
-Decided I 100% support Pride simply because I believe everyone deserves to live in a world where they can feel safe + respected + loved no matter what my own personal standpoint may be, if I even have one at all, and I'm really sorry that I used to act so nasty about this subject
-Improved my art some; my skills are still nowhere near I'd like them to be but I've definitely made some progress!
-Read a lot of books, if anyone wants recommendations let me know!
-Went out of my comfort zone a lot of times
-Learned guitar, somewhat
-Became more confident in myself and my appearance--I have bad days, like everyone, but overall a generally more positive outlook than I used to
-Expanded my music taste a LOT
-Snapped in Covid times and bleached a lot of my hair and dyed it bright green
~~~
-pt. 3: how are you guys?-
What's new with everyone? What have you all been up to, anything you've done recently that you're proud of? How have you been dealing with Coronavirus and all? If you don't know me, introduce yourself, I'd love to try to get to know you. And if you don't know me, I'm Leafy, I've been a CBer for almost 5 years now, and um...yeah that's about it haha.
I think this basically sums up my post so yeah, helloooo I'm back! Love y'all <333
submitted by Leafy, age No, not a cat
(October 12, 2020 - 11:37 am)
(October 12, 2020 - 11:37 am)
AAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!! LEAFY LEAFY LEAFY LEAFY LEAFY!!!!!! *tacklehugs*
I've been wondering where you have been!!!!! I miss you and miss talking with you!!!!!!! *tacklehugs again*
(October 13, 2020 - 3:23 pm)
JOANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN *tackle hugs* *cries* I MISSED YOU AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH :,) asdfgjkl it's so good to see you again aaaaaaaaaah <3333
(October 15, 2020 - 12:29 pm)
*cries* I MISSED YOU TOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *hugs tight* Good to see you again too. :)
(October 15, 2020 - 5:45 pm)
Leafy!!! *tackle hugs* You're back!! I missed you! How have you been?
I'm glad to hear school's going well! Starting at a new school isn't easy, and online is a mess. Sorry about your crush, that sucks. I'd love book recommndations if you have any! It makes me really happy to hear that you support Pride. I think your outlook is really fantastic! Your hair sounds awesome! Green hair is so cool.
I've been doing alright, all things considered. My school is doing a hybrid model, so I go in-person every other day. I'm taking several high-level classes, and doubling up on sciences, so that's pretty stressful, but I've gotten to see some of my friends! This past weekend I had a few friends over, including one of my closest friends who I haven't seen in over six months, which was pretty awesome. I picked up some new hobbies over quarantine, and got back into some old ones. I did a ton of knitting and embroidering back in March/April, and I've been drawing a ton. I started learning how to play guitar, but prompty realized I have no aptitude for musical instruments (it could also be that my guitar is wayyy too big for me and I have tiny hands). I also expanded my music taste, I now listen to more than just show tunes. And I dyed my hair! The ends are purple, but it's starting to wash out, so I'll have to chop off a lot of my hair soon.
So, that was a long and unnecessary update on my life. It's so great to see you again!!
(October 13, 2020 - 4:03 pm)
Quill!! *tackle hugs* Heyyyyy!! I missed you too <33 I've been pretty okay overall I guess, all things considered. My life's a bit of a mess at the moment but I'm working on fixing that haha. If you want books you should definitely read the Remnant Chronicles by Mary E. Pearson or anything by Marissa Meyer, although I guess it depends which genres you like. That's so great that you've gotten to see friends, and also I mean at least tried to play guitar XD Yeah guitar is pretty hard if you have smaller hands I guess! I'm a small person in general so I have a 3/4 size guitar, but I have larger hands so guitar works okay for me.
Oh and haha I expanded my music taste and STARTED listening to showtunes, I'm a huge Hamilton fan now and I also listened to most of In the Heights but for some reason or another I never finished it, I should do that oops.
Anyway yeah it's really good to see you again!!
(October 15, 2020 - 12:34 pm)
LEAFY!!! *tackle hugs* Reading this made me a little giddy. I was thinking about you just the other day, actually- I was looking through some old poetry and ski lodges and it just made me so nostalgiac <33
Oh my gosh, you facetimed Leeli?! You lucky duck! How is she?
I'm so glad to hear you've gained some confidence, that makes me really happy <3. I'm also so happy you're supporting Pride!
It's cool that you found so many cool things to do over quarantine. My summer was just very boring. :p
It's so weird... I'm almost starting to feel like an oldie. There's just an entirely different generation of CBers around now. Like a week ago I was thinking about how, when I was new, I saw some comments from older CBers about the new group of CBers and how different it was and I was like "that's me now" and it kind of blew my mind. XD
I'm doing pretty good. I haven't been up to much- I got in an advanced math class, started eighth grade, and I'm nearly finished with Magicae Palace (it's going to have its 2nd anniversary in Novermber! How crazy is that?), I read & watched Lord of the Rings and now I'm obsessed... but that's just about it.
I missed you so much and it's so great to see you again!! I missed your poetry and random fun-ness. <33
(October 13, 2020 - 5:19 pm)
LUNAAAAA YAYYYYYY *tackle hugs* I'm so happy to be back and I'm planning to post some poetry stuff soon!
Ikr it was a little nerve-racking to FaceTime Leeli but we've been texting each other a LOT and it was pretty weird when we got on the FaceTime but I think after a bit we kinda just fell into like, the normal easy conversation mode that we always have XD Our lives are both a bit of a mess right now but she's doing okay I think! She might come visit sometime soon idk
Oh yeah it's so weird but you are kind of more of an oldie now, like, whaaaaaaat? The oldies from my generation are mostly completely gone so now it's like, I'm an oldie? And you, who were more of a newbie or a middlie when I was an oldie like a while ago, are now an oldie?? It's kinda cool how the generations kind of collapse and condense when put in perspective of who's more of an oldie and who's newer, because at this point it's almost like we're in the same generation even though we...aren't?? Or weren't? Idk
Yeah I'm so happy to see you again <333 See ya around!
(October 15, 2020 - 12:40 pm)
Hi! i had thought you left. but here you are. i'm bad at writing long posts so hi, welcome back.
(October 13, 2020 - 6:49 pm)
Hi!! I did kinda leave I guess, but now I'm back, so here I am XD Thank you!
(October 15, 2020 - 12:40 pm)
Hey, what's up, Leafy! Nice to see you back! :) I completely get why you were gone, it's most of the same reasons why I was on hiatus (still am, kinda). It's cool that you FaceTimed Leeli; you two have always been "partners in crime" in my mind, and it's cool that your friendship extends off the CB! I've been chatting with Fidelity and Vy, too, but Vy has recently disappeared, so I hope she's alright. And I also just realized that you're a year behind me in school, which is wild. Literally have always thought you were my age or older. (To be fair, I am a little young to be a junior-- I just turned 16 in July-- but still.) I guess that means that I can help you with your homework now, though! :D That guy situation sucks, like for real. He sounds like a jerk. He shouldn't be blowing you off just because his girlfriend doesn't want you to hang out. Romantic partners shouldn't be able to keep you from your friends! I'm sorry that happened to you. I'm glad you support the LGBTQ+ community. :) If you're recommending books, I'd love to hear some! I'm always looking for new reads. And honestly, bright green hair sounds like a bop.
As for what I've been up to, well... I recently took the PSAT and the ACT. My ACT scores are back, but my PSAT's are not; I also have been reading a lot of fanfiction and some books that Fi recommended to me. I've been swamped with homework (RIP me supposed to be doing my calculus right now) but I did go on a bike ride yesterday, which was pretty fun! I got my drivers' license on Thursday and I also saw 5 dogs today while I was driving, so that's pretty cool.
~Starseeker
(October 18, 2020 - 8:05 pm)
Starseeker!! *tackle hugs* oh man yeah I totally get the partners in crime thing and I hope Vy's okay too! Aaaaand...yeah oh man people just will always think I'm way older than I am online haha but I probably will need some help with homework at some point!
The thing is that this guy really isn't a jerk, he's one of the nicest friendliest people ever, so I'm not really sure what's going on but we're actually friends again now and it's all going a bit better than it was.
I'm just gonna say PLEASE PLEASE plEASE read the Remnant Chronicles by Mary E. Pearson, they're so so good and there doesn't seem to be a fandom :(
Oh good luck with your PSAT scores! I've had a lot of homework too it's pretty sucky and aaah, congrats on your drivers' license!
(October 22, 2020 - 2:37 pm)
Hi Leafy! It's so great to see you back! *hugs*
It sounds like you've been up to a lot lately! It's awesome you've become more confident, stepped out of your comfort zone, and all that. I hadn't noticed the difference in creativity levels, but I kind of do now that you mentioned it. Maybe it's because I joined too late to see much difference. I'd love some book recommendations, if you have any! My favorite genre is fantasy.
(October 19, 2020 - 8:02 pm)
Heyyy! *hugs*
Cool, my favorite genre is fantasy too!! The Remnant Chronicles are really good, and the Lunar Chronicles aren't exactly fantasy but they sort of are--they're futuristic retellings of classic fairytales. The Ash Princess trilogy is pretty cool too!
(October 22, 2020 - 2:42 pm)