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An open letter and farewell to the Lounge.

Feb 5, 2009, 8:55 PM

You remember how in the movie Forrest Gump, Forrest is running and running across the country for no apparent reason, and one day he just stops? He says "I'm pretty tired...I think I'll go home now." Well, much like the time had come for him, after almost four and a half years on TigerNet (three and a half in the Lounge) and over 20,000 posts, the time has come for me to stop.

I don't consider this a suicide. There's no stress or negativity involved. Consider it more like a retirement. It's something I decided to do a few months ago (you have probably noticed that I have decreased my posting a lot lately), and I just figured I'd finally go ahead and do it today. You probably want to know a reason, but I don't really have much to tell you. I just don't think posting on TigerNet is something I want to do anymore. And I don't mean that in a bad way. There are other activities and interests that are going to start taking my time and attention, and in a good way. A very good way. I want to stress that there has been no negative occurrence or problem that is causing me to leave. It's just time for me to stop.

I didn't really become a part of the Lounge's culture until the winter and spring of 2007, when I decided to rank the greatest hitters and pitchers in baseball history. I still don't remember why I did that, but looking back on it today (I still have the pdf files of my "books") I treasure that research I did and shared with you. Then there was the enormous tournament of the 128 greatest teams in MLB history that just ended in what we all knew at the start: the 1927 Yankees were the best. Then came the fall and winter of 2007, when I became the scok police and did my best to spread the gospel of scok-busting. There were the Youtube videos, which I really put up for the sole purpose of showing the Lounge. You'll never know how much your encouragement helped me musically. And somehow, through all of this, the Lounge became a part of my day, and absorbed much of my free time.

Here's what you probably don't know, Lounge, and what I want to tell you before I get out of here. The past three years or so have been an incredibly formative period in my life. The fact that the Lounge was a fairly major part of my life during this time is simultaneously creepy and yet somehow apropos. You may not have physically witnessed it, but I've done a ton of "growing" in the past couple of years. I graduated from college and started my career and life "on my own" under the Lounge's watch. Now I can't recall too many specific things that I can call out from the Lounge that have steered my course, but I don't think it's possible that you haven't had some impact on me. I am on the cusp of a new era of my life, a new Brian, and it is going to be utterly glorious. And you helped me get here somehow.

I hope I have acted in such a way that you'll remember me for who I believe I am: a simple guy who has a lot to learn about the world around him, but who had at least a couple of passions (baseball and music) that he loved to share with others, along with as many laughs as I can possibly elicit. I haven't always done the right thing by all of you. I could name names, but you know who you are, and I sincerely apologize. Sometimes here it is easy to act as if we're all digital persona, floating around in web space. But the best (and sometimes worst) experiences in the Lounge are when you realize that there are real people, with real problems and real feelings, behind those screen names. It is in those times that some of you helped me, and I hope I was able to help some of you. Now, here's some specific people I'd like to thank:

To Tillman Girl, in my opinion the single greatest event in my time in the Lounge was you finding "the one". You helped to re-affirm my belief in the unyielding power of love, and I will never forget it. You were the one person in the Lounge I could always count on for a kind and encouraging word, and the Lounge does need one person like that. But one's probably enough.

To you and the other educators, like Joe Cobb, thanks for all that you do that is unfortunately probably never going to be recognized as much as it deserves. We desperately need great people teaching our young people.

To phitiger, who seemed to come along at the right time and offer sage advice and encouragement when I really needed it.

To ClemsonPoker of all people. One of the most ironic things about my time in the Lounge was that you became one of my favorite posters. You and I agree on almost literally nothing in the world, and are complete and polar opposites in every way. But yet we were able to be civil with each other and have constructive and intelligent dialogue and debate. If we could do it, anyone can.

To all the Braves fans that populate the Lounge (224, cugrad, elgato, Joe Cobb, Fishking, and others), thank you for letting me share my passion for the team with you. I'm sorry if sometimes (a lot of times) I was overbearing, and I've tried to temper myself some now. Keep the faith, and when the Braves are on a losing streak and nothing's going right, try to think of me and something positive I would somehow draw out of it.

To the two of you that I've actually met in real life (Fishking and cryanl), it was a pleasure to get to know you in person and to find out that good Lounge posters are usually also good people.

I could continue to list people, but I would never get to them all. I hope it suffices to say that there is no one in the Lounge for whom I harbor any ill will, and I am grateful to all of you for the kindness you have shown me.

This is not a goodbye in the sense that I never want contact with any of you again. I am just no longer posting on TigerNet. My e-mail address is in my profile: drop me a line if you want to, add it to your contacts, even. My name's in my profile: look me up on Facebook, as some of you have already done. I hope I can somehow meet more of you in person sometime in the future. But I am serious about leaving TigerNet, so much so that I'm going out of my way to try to prevent myself from "relapsing". I thought about asking the mods to delete my account, but I didn't really want to do that. So I'm going to basically "scramble" my password...type in a bunch of random letters without looking as my new password. I think that should work well enough. I'm going to stick around til I go to bed tonight to read any replies that you want to post, or answer questions in T-mail. I don't think I'll make another post, though. And then before I go to bed, I'm "flipping the switch," so to speak.

Some of you will think this post melodramatic and dumb, and I would probably agree. But sometimes I think melodrama and dumbness are appropriate, if you really want to say what you need to say. It's a bittersweet feeling, because I will miss the inane conversation here, but at the same time, things are looking up and up and up in my life right now, and I can't wait to see what happens next. So, goodbye Lounge and TigerNet, and thank you.

Brian aka bravocock

P.S. I will swear on anything you want me to swear on, I never had a scok.

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but if it's possible, I don't really mean that in a negative way. You just aren't "my kind of people," and I'm sure that goes both ways.

I did (and do), however, respect you. You are a genuinely nice, optimistic, intelligent person, and while I find that extremely annoying, I'm sure it will serve you well with the rest of the human race. You have strong opinions and you stick to your beliefs, which is admirable, even when I find it misguided.

The Lounge has lost a little balance, a yang to my constant yin.

I enjoyed the debates, and I'm sure we learned things from each other that would have perhaps remained hidden to us.

Good luck in whatever you do from here on out*. Always remember to have fun, no matter how. It's the meaning of life, to enjoy it.

*"Whatever you do" does not include starting a cult, committing actual suicide, or bringing people into the church. I hope you fail at those if you try them. Other than that though, good luck.

An open letter and farewell to the Lounge.

Bravo, I'll miss your baseball posts. Farewell, and

well, bye.***

Again?***

Coot!

Again, good luck to you Bravo. Your help was just as

Best of wishes in all your endeavors.***

^^^ABUSE ABUSE ABUSE^^^^***

best of luck to you in all your endeavors***

That's much better, my friend, and so much more becoming.

Well, this place will be a lot less fun without you...***

good luck bravo! why don't you come down here and sit

Re: An open letter and farewell to the Lounge.

buh bye***

To say that you'll be missed in The Lunge would be an

Godspeed.***

Later, bravo. Honest as ever, I never really liked you...

Sorry to hear it.

this sucks! good luck Bravo***

I replied to this once already but where it went............

Take care!

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