I really enjoyed this and it expressed feelings I've had too. It's hard to build connections in this strange digital world, but still extremely worth the effort! Thank you for this beautiful little book.
And ngl, the feeling is somewhat relatable. Despite doing well in "real world" social situations, I'm an extreme introvert, so it depletes my energy very easily. I don't really mind being alone (I even prefer it), doing my own stuff in my own corner, but sometimes I do want to reach out to someone and talk about some things, and I always wonder if they would find it weird or strange because the social norm is to keep "constant" contact.
Everyone is guilty of overthinking sometimes, but the truth is that the norm doesn't really matter.
You're right, the norm doesn't matter! We all have our own levels of what we need in terms of people vs. time alone, for our own well being. (I'm often torn between wanting to see what the people I care about are up to... and my extremely low battery for this stuff. It's tough to find the balance.)
But anyway... always happy to cross paths with you, fellow introvert.
Perhaps I have put a plastic bambino in a plant pot... it doesn't grow leaves or anything but once in a while it does make a weird noise to let me know there's some unmissably cool olszoj art to check out.
Yep, everything was made directly in Decker. Turning on the Toolbars makes it a very comfortable little art program and it's nice to be able to do everything in one place for projects like this.
Absolutely stunning. Loved it. I only heard about cohost when it was closing down, but I've been working at a remote-only org for years, and this year lots of colleagues left (read: downsizing). So your deck really hit me in the feels.
Hey! I don't know you in the slightest, but just saw your pixel art on my feed and had to click.
I felt really connected with your metaphor, and I feel like it describes so well how it is to sort of make friends through these realms. Even in real life as well.
The art and the UI were so coool, my whole reason to click on it, and the writing my reason to read until the end. A pretty lovely last year's review!
Ahhh! I worried a little whether or not the metaphor would work for other people while I was making it, and I'm very glad people (people I didn't already know!) could connect to it too.
I loved this! The art was extremely appealing and I can relate to most of the things said in this. I struggle quite a bit making new friends, but thankfully I've been able to make some great ones.
Happy new year , let's hope next one can bring many good things!
Wughh I teared up a little bit reading this, to be honest.
I've experienced my fair share of community collapses/closures over the years, but cohost has been an oddity in just how much people have been working to stay friends with each other. I find it deeply touching every time someone tries to push back against that "I'm probably bothering this person" gut reaction; makes it easier reaching out myself. (Though admittedly, one-on-one discord DMs don't really mesh comfortably with how I communicate wahahaa)
Inevitably there are going to be times when it just doesn't work out and people drift apart, but I hope that you can hold onto as many of your little seedlings as you can!! ;-;
Feels worth saying your color choices are beautiful as always. I loved the highlights and shadows of the leaves, in particular.
Funnily enough, I think I was repotting a plant right as you posted this last night...
[nods nods] I think, between the time I started this and the time I published I got a lot less scared of losing people. I'm still *sad* about it, but I can accept it more.
Things (usually) fit together in the big garden we were in before, but it's very different to be on a small windowsill together. It's worth trying, so many of us are trying, but it's also okay if it doesn't all work out.
Heheh I did think about your magnificent array of houseplants a few times while drawing. You are an admirable plant caretaker Zel, literally and metaphorically. 🌱
this was a beautiful little game / metaphor / deck / diary? that i really enjoyed, i feel like i can understand this feeling a lot. i'm honestly frustrated with the state of the internet being scattered / split across so many platforms that all have their own accessibility / use issues...i was on mastodon for a while but the ui/ux was so hostile and difficult to manage i just honestly gave up after joining bsky which was twitter 2.0 with some quality of life improvements but it has its own flaws and superficiality...
years and years ago i adored tumblr and i still in my heart enjoy / seek that long form blogging platform and now run my own blog @ https://lordofnothing.com after my friend michael klamerus who does a lot of michigan game dev organizing encouraged setting up ur own hub on the internet / is just a person that rly enjoys blogs!
but you know it's rly hard to connect with ppl now...1:1 DMs on discord are really intimidating to me, so i run my own game dev server where it's the closest thing to like. connection i have. it's rly good! but it's very different than like a public facing network. it's like the difference btw chatting in a park or a private garden where the server is the private garden but i still want to go outside to frolic in the public park with all its larger amenities and entertainments?
this ended up really long but. i really have enjoyed talking with you in the decker forum and i can't thank you enough for all your help. i was really happy when you commented on count kagura! there are many things i am still struggling to understand about animations...
i really adore how much detail and effort and just. how much your decker animations are a intimate view into your own internal world and reflect the artistry of your own little world. it's very beautiful and inspiring.
i hope we can interact more this coming year. i'm working on another deck!! just let me know if you ever want to exchange contacts. i really admire your art! but if not (due to some of the plant care / energy metaphors) and like, if u have too many plants in your house no worries! thank you for everything this year. and thank you for all your art!!
I found myself nodding along to so much of this. Small discords with people I enjoy have absolutely been my sanctuary lately, even though it bothers me sometimes that it doesn't leave a mark on the open web. I feel like I don't exist visibly to a lot of people I care about until I resurface to post something.
(I should spend more time building a website...)
Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts about it! The park vs. garden aspect of it... the different feelings and ways of communicating depending on whether we're in a semi-private or public space. So true.
Absolutely let's talk more (and in more ways) in 2025! (I've got more jam stuff I need to finish so I should probably tunnel on that until the end of the year...) I'm excited to see what you're working on.
ur art is so good... I can never say it enough that it is often so pretty with a little shimmer (to my eyes)
this is a sweet little diary entry! i think we all learn how to tend to our gardens differently with time. it's good to remember to keep space for yourself and let ur roots as well as ur own branches reach out to grab some of the sunshine. i hope you manage well!
I love the art and use of the Dialogizer in Decker for this!
This made me realize that 2024 was the year of getting disconnected and needing to reconnect for me as well, so thank you for making this and getting me to think that. For what it’s worth, most of the time I’ve reached out with a random Discord DM, the other half turned out to be too scared to reach out to me, so I think I should just keep doing that? I’m not the type to reflect on my whole year at the end of every December, so thank you for reminding me to do that.
I'm not usually the reflecting type either, but it kinda hit me this year... I think (and hope) that it'll keep being worth it to reach out to people now and then. I'll certainly keep trying too. (Good luck to us both!)
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I really enjoyed this and it expressed feelings I've had too. It's hard to build connections in this strange digital world, but still extremely worth the effort! Thank you for this beautiful little book.
Thank you too, for reading! Good luck out there!
Amazing art, as always.
And ngl, the feeling is somewhat relatable. Despite doing well in "real world" social situations, I'm an extreme introvert, so it depletes my energy very easily. I don't really mind being alone (I even prefer it), doing my own stuff in my own corner, but sometimes I do want to reach out to someone and talk about some things, and I always wonder if they would find it weird or strange because the social norm is to keep "constant" contact.
Everyone is guilty of overthinking sometimes, but the truth is that the norm doesn't really matter.
Thank you so much!
You're right, the norm doesn't matter! We all have our own levels of what we need in terms of people vs. time alone, for our own well being. (I'm often torn between wanting to see what the people I care about are up to... and my extremely low battery for this stuff. It's tough to find the balance.)
But anyway... always happy to cross paths with you, fellow introvert.
lovely art! this is rl short and sweet! >< <3!
thank you!! <3
the amount of detail u put in ur decks is always so impressive😮also even though im a seedless person i really felt these ramblings
Perhaps I have put a plastic bambino in a plant pot... it doesn't grow leaves or anything but once in a while it does make a weird noise to let me know there's some unmissably cool olszoj art to check out.
Thank you very much for playing~
The art is amazing! Did you do everything by hand on Decker?
Thank you!!
Yep, everything was made directly in Decker. Turning on the Toolbars makes it a very comfortable little art program and it's nice to be able to do everything in one place for projects like this.
absolutely felt this, reminds me of some online friends I lost contact with
also amazing art !!! such a beautiful game
Thank you so for checking it out! I'm so glad it could resonate with people.
Absolutely stunning. Loved it. I only heard about cohost when it was closing down, but I've been working at a remote-only org for years, and this year lots of colleagues left (read: downsizing). So your deck really hit me in the feels.
Oh yeah, that is the same kind of feeling!
Thank you for checking it out (and relating to it)
This was really well done, and I really enjoyed it! Also, Eggbug... [distant crying]
Thank you Kosmo! ... And yea..... 😭
Hey! I don't know you in the slightest, but just saw your pixel art on my feed and had to click.
I felt really connected with your metaphor, and I feel like it describes so well how it is to sort of make friends through these realms. Even in real life as well.
The art and the UI were so coool, my whole reason to click on it, and the writing my reason to read until the end. A pretty lovely last year's review!
Ahhh! I worried a little whether or not the metaphor would work for other people while I was making it, and I'm very glad people (people I didn't already know!) could connect to it too.
Thank you so much for checking it out!
I loved this! The art was extremely appealing and I can relate to most of the things said in this. I struggle quite a bit making new friends, but thankfully I've been able to make some great ones.
Happy new year , let's hope next one can bring many good things!
Thank you! Good friends make such a difference, I'm so glad you have them.
Happy new year to you too!
Wughh I teared up a little bit reading this, to be honest.
I've experienced my fair share of community collapses/closures over the years, but cohost has been an oddity in just how much people have been working to stay friends with each other. I find it deeply touching every time someone tries to push back against that "I'm probably bothering this person" gut reaction; makes it easier reaching out myself. (Though admittedly, one-on-one discord DMs don't really mesh comfortably with how I communicate wahahaa)
Inevitably there are going to be times when it just doesn't work out and people drift apart, but I hope that you can hold onto as many of your little seedlings as you can!! ;-;
Feels worth saying your color choices are beautiful as always. I loved the highlights and shadows of the leaves, in particular.
Funnily enough, I think I was repotting a plant right as you posted this last night...
[nods nods] I think, between the time I started this and the time I published I got a lot less scared of losing people. I'm still *sad* about it, but I can accept it more.
Things (usually) fit together in the big garden we were in before, but it's very different to be on a small windowsill together. It's worth trying, so many of us are trying, but it's also okay if it doesn't all work out.
Heheh I did think about your magnificent array of houseplants a few times while drawing. You are an admirable plant caretaker Zel, literally and metaphorically. 🌱
Thank you for checking it out!Hits me right in the petiole! Well done indeed.
Pow! 🍃 Thank for for reading, MindApe!
this was a beautiful little game / metaphor / deck / diary? that i really enjoyed, i feel like i can understand this feeling a lot. i'm honestly frustrated with the state of the internet being scattered / split across so many platforms that all have their own accessibility / use issues...i was on mastodon for a while but the ui/ux was so hostile and difficult to manage i just honestly gave up after joining bsky which was twitter 2.0 with some quality of life improvements but it has its own flaws and superficiality...
years and years ago i adored tumblr and i still in my heart enjoy / seek that long form blogging platform and now run my own blog @ https://lordofnothing.com after my friend michael klamerus who does a lot of michigan game dev organizing encouraged setting up ur own hub on the internet / is just a person that rly enjoys blogs!
but you know it's rly hard to connect with ppl now...1:1 DMs on discord are really intimidating to me, so i run my own game dev server where it's the closest thing to like. connection i have. it's rly good! but it's very different than like a public facing network. it's like the difference btw chatting in a park or a private garden where the server is the private garden but i still want to go outside to frolic in the public park with all its larger amenities and entertainments?
this ended up really long but. i really have enjoyed talking with you in the decker forum and i can't thank you enough for all your help. i was really happy when you commented on count kagura! there are many things i am still struggling to understand about animations...
i really adore how much detail and effort and just. how much your decker animations are a intimate view into your own internal world and reflect the artistry of your own little world. it's very beautiful and inspiring.
i hope we can interact more this coming year. i'm working on another deck!! just let me know if you ever want to exchange contacts. i really admire your art! but if not (due to some of the plant care / energy metaphors) and like, if u have too many plants in your house no worries! thank you for everything this year. and thank you for all your art!!
happy early new year! and happy deck month!
I found myself nodding along to so much of this. Small discords with people I enjoy have absolutely been my sanctuary lately, even though it bothers me sometimes that it doesn't leave a mark on the open web. I feel like I don't exist visibly to a lot of people I care about until I resurface to post something.
(I should spend more time building a website...)
Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts about it! The park vs. garden aspect of it... the different feelings and ways of communicating depending on whether we're in a semi-private or public space. So true.
Absolutely let's talk more (and in more ways) in 2025! (I've got more jam stuff I need to finish so I should probably tunnel on that until the end of the year...) I'm excited to see what you're working on.
Happy new year! Happy deck month!
good luck with jam stuff! im rooting for u and excited to see what u post!
ur art is so good... I can never say it enough that it is often so pretty with a little shimmer (to my eyes)
this is a sweet little diary entry! i think we all learn how to tend to our gardens differently with time. it's good to remember to keep space for yourself and let ur roots as well as ur own branches reach out to grab some of the sunshine. i hope you manage well!
Thank you andy!
I hope everything is going well for you (and your beautiful cat), and the gardens you're tending.
I love the art and use of the Dialogizer in Decker for this!
This made me realize that 2024 was the year of getting disconnected and needing to reconnect for me as well, so thank you for making this and getting me to think that. For what it’s worth, most of the time I’ve reached out with a random Discord DM, the other half turned out to be too scared to reach out to me, so I think I should just keep doing that? I’m not the type to reflect on my whole year at the end of every December, so thank you for reminding me to do that.
Thank you for checking it out!
I'm not usually the reflecting type either, but it kinda hit me this year... I think (and hope) that it'll keep being worth it to reach out to people now and then. I'll certainly keep trying too. (Good luck to us both!)
Wahhh, your art is so pretty! And the feelings are powerful and relatable (although we have talked much about them already)!
We have indeed! Thank you for listening to me while I found my words.