I'm feeling gutted right now. Cohost is just, nice.

The rest of the post-Gamergate internet has had me in a defensive crouch, with few exceptions. Everywhere else I go, I feel like I'm walking down a street with a hornet's nest in every tree, and talking to people who are like "lol, lmao" as they kick it, or point and laugh as someone else bumps into it by accident.

Twitter is a site that destroyed my mental health, that became a place I couldn't even type the word 'cis.' Bluesky is Earth-2 Twitter and will inevitably have the same problems. Tumblr has heavy levels of Fandom to the point I feel it loves things more than people, which as any Pratchett fan knows is the cardinal sin of our time. Mastodon is fine, right up until a moderator's ex-girlfriend's girlfriend's ex-girlfriend posts a bad opinion and within twelve hours everyone is defederating from everyone else, including people who had nothing to do with it.

I didn't feel any of that here. I called my time on this site, the Cohost Exhale; being able to stretch a little and relax. ¹

I admire what ASSC set out to do, and for a time, did. They really did try to create a space where your data was not sold and you were more than a target market, a place for posting first and foremost. A place to be, as the Internet used to be. And it was so, nice.

And it didn't work out, and damned if that ain't a sad indictment of the internet in 2024.

I'll really, really miss this place.

But I'm gonna try to smile because it happened. Nothing lasts forever, but I'll always have fond memories of Cohost. And I did so much healing on this site that I'll cherish the good it did me.

Anyways! Other places to find me.

https://charlottearielfinn.com/ - my blog!

https://arielfinn.social/@Charlotte - Mastodon!

https://bsky.app/profile/bycharlottefinn.bsky.social - Bluesky!

https://charlottefinn.tumblr.com/ - Tumblr!

1. _{(I know this wasn't everyone's experience, and I'm sorry for those that didn't find a home here.)}

ps5 pro doesnt even have a disc drive, which is sold separately for $80 on top of the $700 for the thing this gaming shit cooked. if anything a console in 2024 should be having more disc drives not ripping them out completely

Likely won't arrive before It's Time, but I hope it arrives at all.

I've rarely been more glad to have bought a plush when I did. I won't pass up some stickers and an embroidered patch as well.

Shipping is incredibly cheap (was for me, at least). It was like $5 to AUS.

I think I'll make a more well thought out post about this after work today, but....

Interest check for me setting up a dedicated V Rising server for all the eggbugs-- no, all the eggbats! out there? It's a fun game solo or with 1 or 2 friends, but it really shines when you have a lot of people to play with. And... well, there's a lot of people here, right?

A few people seemed intrigued when I posted about it the other day, and, honestly, I have the means to set up a free 24/7 dedicated server in my house, and the ability to be a community organizer, and it would be nice to keep in touch and play games with all the cool people I've met here.

The only thing I'm not sure of is that I do live in the US so I don't know how bad or unbearable the ping would be for all you international eggbats, but that's something I can figure out once we see how many people are interested. Worst case scenario, I just pay for hosting.

Probably gonna be reblogging this a few times today.