The official Racketboy "I Love You Man" thread.

[Exhuminator]

I love MrPopo. Or rather, I admire his skills. One has to make some serious sacrifices and have a truly determined cold calculated mind to beat all the RPGs he has, especially with the consistency at which he does. Now he might be a jerk in real life, I don't know, but that man is one hell of a gamer.

[Cronozilla]

mjmjr25, well thanks for the kind words.

[Stark]

Now he might be a jerk in real life

Nope! He's a friendly beard.

[Exhuminator]

He's a friendly beard.

So he's just a beard with thumbs? I knew it!

[Key-Glyph]

Wow, thanks for the warm sentiments, you guys. Very unexpected, and very appreciated.

busomjack - you gave me one of my best nights on the internet - ever. I am grateful.

Are we talking about the long-ago photo series of your posing with your game collection? Because even if we're not, I have to tell you... those pictures were so funny, I think I cried from laughing so hard.

Actually, that's something I wish I could have kept track of somehow: how often you Racketfolk make me laugh out-loud in the most genuine, joyful kind of way. It happens often, but I don't post about it directly each time -- thus many of you remain unaware of how much you delight me on a regular basis. Just know that I am frequently dissolved into giggle fits and ridiculous grins from the antics here, and I thank you all for your parts in bringing about those moments.

Oh, but I do want to drop a special mention to Stark, whose recent biblical interpretation of The Karate Kid's final scene still cracks me up when I think about it:

And from the side of the Mont, a man seeking the attention of the youth shouted "It is over John, get him burial clothes!"

[mjmjr25]

I spoofed him, but it was not nearly as entertaining as the original.

He was a bit of a PITA at the end creating multiple accounts and it took a bit of work (mostly by hobie) to clear him out of here - but he was a brilliant troll for one day. 5.25.12; just short of Guy Fawkes status.

Required reading for all new members:
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... +busomjack

[TSTR]

lol, I really wish those pictures all worked.

Lov u too Mike

[ExedExes]

Busomjack. I recall he was quite a character. I made a pic around the time he was waving his collection around in 2012 and never got around to posting it.

With that I guess it's my turn to step up and spread the love.

All the people on the Shmups subforum -- for taking me in, a shmup fan at heart, and entrusting me with the task of moderating & organizing the Shmup of The Month Club, and who continue to challenge me to do my best in everything we play.

Anyone who I dealt with in the B/S/T threads -- got some real fantastic deals and great service from each and every one of you.

Ack -- his love for FPS runs as deep as mine, and he gave me a fantastic list of suggestions to try, which I have saved to my computer, when I can get to them!

emwearz -- for getting me a free Torchlight code during the GOG Summer Sale last year, the only free game they were giving away I was not able to be at the computer for, that was a $14.99 value. I may not have known much about you then, but I'll never forget your kindness.

Key-Glyph -- she thought I was a moderator here once. That was a huge honor right there. LIVING THE DREAM!

Luke -- He's always got nice things to say about the games I beat or talk about a lot of times, and also seems to enjoy the same games I do on the NES especially. Yes, 8 Eyes is actually halfway decent if approached the right way.

TSTR -- for making the annual SOTM and STGT threads highly entertaining, and also for starting off this year's SOTM with a very solid title.

There's many more that make my experience here worthwhile everyday, and to that, thank you.

[alienjesus]

I've always avoided posting in this thread, mainly due to worrying I'd miss someone out, but I decided I should show some love to you guys. I'm sure I'll be back to post about other people not in this first round too.

Bonesnapdeez - Absolutely one of my favourite posters on the board. I always look forward to your opinions on games, and I trust them - you seem to ahve simialr taste to me in what you like and what you don't, even if we actually don't play many of the same games all that often.

Key Glyph - One of the most down to earth, friendly and likeable posters in the community. Sometimes even the people I like can rub me the wrong way, but it's never anything but a pleasure when key glyph posts.

Noiseredux - One of the most prolific posters, but I never feel like it's too much - its always worth reading what you have to say. I do miss classic GB obsessed Noise though - what's all this malarkey with PC gaming and the like?!

Dsheinem - I actually don't always agree with dsheinem, but I do respect his input - even when I don't agree, it's well though out and well argued. He starts some interesting discussions too.

JT - JT comes up with wonderful thread ideas, and has a wonderful way of either avoiding or calming some of the pettier arguments that can happen around this place.

Hobie Wan & Mr. Popo - We actually don't talk much, but whenever I have a tech issue and post in that forum, these two are the ones who come to my aid. I thinki the very first post I ever made was a tech question about a virtual boy which Popo answered actually!

BogusMeatFactory, MrHealthy, ExedExes, Ivo, ZeroAX, Emwearz, CFFJR, TSTR, AppleQueso, Flake, Blu, Sload Soap, Opa Opa, Prfsnl Gmr - Sorry you don't all get a paragraph to yourselves, but all of you are people who when I see your name or avatar, I know the post is worth a read. Thanks for making this place a great place to be.

I know I'll have missed some people. I'll be sure to come back and post more another time.

[jp1]

This is maybe the most appropriate place to put this. Although I'm sure it will incite some eye rolling I'm going to post it anyway. First, thanks for the nod Mike, and thanks for being an awesome guy. You have really helped me, not just through your words, but through your actions to realize how bullheaded I've been. So my first "I love you man" goes to you for helping me to humble myself.

My second "I love you man" is going to be me swallowing my pride, following my own advice, and humbling myself. I was fully ready to leave these boards thinking somehow that I was making this choice to save my fellow racketeers more headaches. After some time to reflect and really question myself, I have to admit the truth is that I would have been walking away because it is the easy thing to do. As I'm sure some of you may agree the easy thing is often the wrong thing. If I'm brutally honest, and why not at this point? This particular "I love you man" is just as much for my benefit. I can't turn my back on this and respect myself, or set the example I want to set for my children. Further, I can't turn my back because I need to own my part in things.

Luke, I would like to offer you a sincere apology. We have both said some ugly things to each other, but I know in my heart that I haven't been completely fair with you. You could call this backpedaling, you could call it whatever you like. What I hope is that you will recognize it for what it is. You are many things Luke, some of those things are abrasive to my sensibilities, but many of those things are great. I have been letting myself stay angry with you over petty and childish arguments, it's something I am truly ashamed of...as anyone who I've talked to about it could attest.

So, I'm going to say (don't be too surprised) "I'm sorry", and I'm going to mean it dude. I hope you will accept it. I want to move on, and I want to be able to speak to you with no animosity between us. I've said some horribly ugly things to you, and many of them were out of sheer anger. The honest truth is, rough edges and all, I believe you are a good guy. I honestly don't know how we wound up where we did. I appreciate that you really put yourself out there, not just the good parts of you, but all of you. I should never have taken advantage of that to take a dig at you. It's cool if you don't want to respond in kind, or at all. I understand. No matter, I wish you all the best, I hope to see you around these boards for years to come, and I hope to one day be your friend. You can be a challenge for me. I'm just being honest, but I want to say that I feel shortsighted in not seeing that beyond that, there is someone who is worth the effort to get to know.

There you have it. That's my olive branch, and my hand extended, if you'll have it.