So Long And Thanks For All The Fish

My dear STCians,

I’ve had to start and restart this letter three different times now because the words just don’t seem to be right. I want to say as eloquently as I can the one thing that I need to say but the words just aren’t coming. They elude me and tease me, making me all the more frustrated. Like fireflies that just do not want to get in my jar, I watch the words slip through my fingers and I pray that somewhere along the line, I can pick them up and toss them in so that you can hear (well, read) what must be stated. But now, on this fourth go, maybe... Just maybe, I can say what I need to say.

So, maybe it is just as simple as ‘Goodbye’. But if you know me, and you all do, you will know that I cannot be that simple. I have to complicate and magnify every issue until it is so completely distorted that it no longer has any bearing on the real problem at hand. But what is that problem? It’s that I find it extremely hard to say goodbye. Some of you may relate this to the fact that I don’t really want to go. Some other of you may just think I’m being silly.

Maybe it’s a little of both. You see, I have devoted two years of my life to STC. Two years in which I learned, grew and challenged myself in ways that I never thought possible. I’ve met people that I feel I have become so close to that I could call them my family. I have spent hours and days, weeks and months stressing about a particular aspect of STC. I have poured my time, energy and effort all into this one little community and in the end... I can no longer devote that much time to STC.

So it can never be as simple as ‘Goodbye’. Not for me. No, I need to tell you all more than a simple word or phrase because if I didn’t, it would be a disservice to you and to this community!

See, when I was down, STCians pulled together and helped me. When I thought that I would loose my house, it was all of you who assisted and getting me through another month. And you know what? That month was really all it took. And it wasn’t just me! There were others that had been assisted due to the generosity of this family. I, for one, will never forget that and I will always be grateful. You all taught me the true meaning of community.

All of you have made STC a wonderful place to RP. Even when times got tough or changes were made that were not for the best, you all have stood beside STC and saw it through. Now may or may not be another one of the low times but I do hope you all stick beside the new leadership. I will be handing STC over to Ghost and the rest of the Mod Squad. I know that they will do a fantastic job of leading the site, as always.

Now, enough of this. It’s becoming too hard to even read what I’m writing because of the damned tears. I’ll just say that I love you all, seriously! I do. And I will miss you immensely. So if anyone wants to IM, feel free.

AIM – feralemotions
YIM – surriathewitch
MSN – surria@gmail.com (also my email, duh)

In the immortal words of Rawesome when she retired: So long and thanks for all the fish.

-Gabby

PS. Yes, I know that it’s a Douglas Adams line!

Gabby,

I have only been here for about two months, but that was plenty of time to see how much you've sacrificed and gained from STC. I saw how much you struggled firsthand when you wrote the LOA and when you wrote this- admin-ing a roleplaying site while also being in danger of losing your house must have been really hard. I consider myself really fortunate that I was never in that situation. I hope you're okay now.

Personally, you helped me with the early concepts of my first character, and answered some questions that I had, and I'm eternally grateful for that because you were technically on break.

But I saw firsthand how much you've impacted this community- you created it, and you maintained it by putting in innumerable amounts of time and effort to improve it. I'm grateful for that too.

I hope that wherever this new path in your life takes you brings joy and lots of surprises. I truly want you to have a fulfilling, satisfying life- and if you have to do it without STC, then I'm not holding a single grudge. I promise you that.

Take care of yourself,

Natasha/Tash

Hey hun.

I've been here for over a year. And I don't need to tell you how much you mean to me. Cause I'm sure you know that already. You are a grand friend...and someone I will miss terribly. We can still stay in touch I know but its not gonna be quite the same. You helped me so much with my charries and helped me grow as a role player. I appreciate that more then you can ever know.

I hope in whichever paths you take from here--that they will be full of happy goodness!

And all I can say now is...

thanks.

<333333
Crystal

Hey Gabs

I haven't even been here a year but I think you are the most amazing, original admin I have ever had the privilege to know. I mean looking around at all this, only a truly brilliant mind could truly come up with something so amazing and original as STC and I feel truly special to be part of it. And you and this community have never made me feel anything less than part of it. I can only imagine how much blood, sweat and tears went into making this place and honestly hon the work paid off well. And come what may I will remember you and I will miss you, I hope this isn't a true goodbye more than it is I'll see you later but I guess we'll leave it up to fate.

See you later, I hope :3
Cammie x

Gabby --

I've been here for something like seven months, and I have to admit that when I first came here, I was intimidated merely by how well thought out the entire site was. I thought that I probably wasn't up to your high standards. But everyone was so nice, and the environment was so friendly, that I apped anyway. I'm glad I did. This is a truly upscale RP; thanks for creating it, and thanks for being awesome. You're a saint for sticking with it this long. It's time for a well-deserved retirement.

<3
Spring

Gabby,

I still remember the first thing you ever said to me in the cbox. I had introduced myself (I don't remember if Mariah was still pending or if she had just been accepted) and you challenged me, "Do you know who I am?" I said yes, you were Gabby--and that was that. Even though everyone else had called you Admom, even though I'd not seen anyone in the cbox call you by name, I had read the rules and regulations and kind of been stalking the cbox for three days before I even signed up for Mariah's account, let alone visited the box. I felt like I'd passed the first test of membership--that I knew who you were--and from then on my life was changed for the better.

I was struggling when I found STC. I had just lost an RP site that had been a part of my life for four years, a site that had got me through one of the toughest times of my life, and I was lost without that connection. I found it here, and one of the first people to give me that connection was you. For that, I will always be grateful to you.

All I can do now is to leave you with an old campfire song:


We shall meet, but we shall miss you.
There will be one vacant chair.
We shall linger to caress you
While we breathe our ev'ning prayer.
When one year ago we gathered,
Joy was in your mild blue eye.
Now the golden cord is severed,
And our hopes in ruin lie.
We shall meet, but we shall miss you.
There will be one vacant chair.
We shall linger to caress you
While we breathe our ev'ning prayer.

Gabs,

I love you. Even when I was angry at you, I loved you. Things between the two of us haven't always been the best, but I've always tried to be there if you needed someone. I will continue to be there if you need someone.

I wish you the best in your future journey, and know that we all love you.

Gabby,

While I may not have been an STCian since the very beginning, it was close. I've seen how much you put into this site, and how much you truly care about each and every member it's seen come and go. There have certainly been some ups and downs, but through everything, we've always come through as an incredible family of rpers. I have never seen this close knit of a community on any other site. We owe it all to you.

And on a more personal note, you've been there for me through some very difficult times in my life, and because of your amazing vision, so have many others. I owe you a lot. You are the best Admommy in the world, and no one will be able to fill those shoes (not to say I don't love Ghost, because she's just awesomesauce, but I think you get my point)!

You've got me on yahoo, and I believe you have my phone number. Any time, I'm here if you ever need an ear, or if you just want to chat! Day or night. I mean it!

Love you always,
your little kiwi, Aimee <3