I first started to have luck finding and communicating with the small manimal loving community of men online in 2002, after a heart attack. I had time then to start an MSN Groups group called Centaurica. It was moderately successful and took a lot of work to maintain. It was intended to be a clearing house for all things related to centaurs and I was proud of the links list I had assembled among other things. A handful of men who shared my interests were willing to discuss topics and contribute material. Then, just as the group really found an audience---it had 1500 plus members--MSN decide it was too wholesome to support adult groups and sold its concern to another company. The transition never worked out for various technical reasons and I had to close shop for a while. That was both frustrating and disappointing.
At that time, there was another group into the mythical males scene called Yahoo Mythmales. It was managed by a young man from the Boston area who used the handle, Pony Boy John. He and I became friendly over the net and, just as that friendship developed, Yahoo unexpectedly yanked his site from the web and he disappeared. Frankly, that was a big loss for me. I had found someone of like mind who I managed to have fun with long distance and he and his group were just suddenly gone. It just proves the adage that "life can change in the blinking of an eye". And that people aren't always either what they seem or dependable. I have no idea what happened to the man. Maybe he wasn't who he said he was, maybe he was cut off from the internet somehow, or in a worse case scenario, maybe he died. How can you ever tell anything when people who share fantasy identities stop communicating? It is one of the lessons I have learned online. The internet powers that be can eliminate your efforts in a breathtakingly harsh and careless fashion. And your compatriots online can cut communication in almost the same way. So now I do things knowing that there is no guarantee there will be a tomorrow for them and I am no longer so naive to trust people at face, or in this case, typed-word value.
Still, I hold out the distant hope that somehow an effort to bring together those guys who love manimals, mythical males, transformation fantasy, etc., can succeed. I go by the motto, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again". That belief is what this blog is founded on. And the second part of it is that I do it because I love doing it and it makes a difference if others like it, too, I will admit, but the blog will go on even if they ignore it.
The advent of groups and blogs and other levels of joined internet communication (notably My Space, Facebook and Twitter) has changed how humans communicate and how much emotion and purpose they invest in connection. When you aren't in touch physically you have no solid real world connection. That is a perfect venue for people to hide in and express themselves through fantasy. It is lousy place to make lasting real and emotionally impacting relationships.
Mythulinity gives me the opportunity not only to share what I love but to send it forth into the Universe and somehow make it more real for me. That a few have decided to sign on or view the blog is cool. I can't and don't expect any flood of shared recognition and community that reaches the mild heights of Centaurica in 2003. Truthfully, I am doing this little endeavor for my own pleasure and not trusting anyone else to take any lasting part in it. Que sera sera, what will be will be.
So thanks for reading my opinion pieces and keeping an eye on the blog and thanks to the few fellows who are active in communicating and observance and even contribution. I intend for this to be as good a blog as I can learn and labor to make it. Even if it is mostly a small hidden gem in the blogosphere. It has one not-so-hidden agenda after all, making me happy. I hope it gives others a minor diversion into a realm of happy fantasy our real world daily lives don't provide.
First Rule of Mythulinity: Enjoy!
k, this is my THIRD comment on your blog, and I thought maybe I should say a little more about myself and my own history with Centaurica and mythmales. I've been following for a very long timeboth the MSN and the yahoo groups under different aliases. I also was a big fan of other linked sites like boytaur.net and metabodies. Almost always as a lurker, very rarely making my prescence known. Always enjoying it, rarely making a comment. I'm not very proficient with photoshop or any other maipulation programs, so I had nothing to submit. but I've always enjoyed these sites, as they filled something that I felt was missing in my life. I've always lived a straight, "normal" life, and felt very awkward and ultra-self-conscious about even thinking outside the norm. About 3 years ago, I finally came out of the closet, first to myself (which was very hard) and then to my wife of 9 years. slowly I have been coming out in more ways, confiding in close friends and family. I started playing Second Life, where I discovered I could be accepted as I was, that I did not have to pretend to be something I'm not, by roleplaying and experimenting on my own terms in my own comfort zone. I'm much happier now than I was before, though it was not an easy transition. When I discovered this blog, I was overjoyed, because there were many images that I thought I had lost forever when msn and yahoo dumped the groups. I remember Pony Boy John also. I guess that's about enough for now, lol. I reall do hope you continue doing this, at least there's one person out here who's very appreciative of your work.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for sharing your background, Leigh. I can't imagine how difficult coming out to a wife and family as a mature man must have been. My life has always been outside the norm and, believe me, with freedom is sacrifice and sometimes exclusion. Marching to you own drummer can be a very brave accomplishment in this hyper-adolescent society. I commend you for breaking free and finding your way to recognizing you true self.
ReplyDeleteI still want you to teach me how to use a centaur avatar in Second Life. And I am happy that you were able to renew your acquaintance with favorite images due to this blog. I appreciate your support. Keep commenting!