If you somehow dislike World of Warcraft, I'd scroll down untill you hit a line, and start reading there.

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December 25th 2005. I'm in 5th grade of secondary school.

Koen -Lawofthespoon on dev- invites me over, there's this new game he's just bought that I, apparently just HAVE to try.
Hmn, can't do no harm, right?

It's new, supposed to be out for only a few months. It's an mmorpg (something I had never tried).
So, he logs me in, I start a Night Elf hunter, and play up till lvl 4. At some point down the evening, (we kept taking turns) Koen notices a card that's come in the box.

It's a free 10-day trial!

January 2006. My 10-day trial runs out, Koen and I decide to share his account for a while. I play (amongst numerous alts) a rogue up to lvl 23 and a mage to lvl 28.

March 2006. I buy my own account and evel a warlock to lvl 27.

April 2006. Impending doom.
A friend of mine, whom I met through Sarina -Syv- turns out to be playing an undead rogue. On the 6th of april a new server -'Boulderfist'- is opened and I start my own undead rogue. Koen starts one as well, but switches to an orc hunter within the week. Over the course of a few months we level together, run our own guild etc. I play up to 50 hours a week.

Looking back at that time you could easily say I was a bit depressed. My social life didn't hold my interest and I was all to glad to lose myself into the game.

January - April 2007. Sarina's boyfriend turns out to be less than she deserves, and we get together. Funnily, the conversation where we realized we were feeling the same about each other happened on the 6th of april. In July of this year I graduate -barely.

September 2007 - July 2008. Most people from my graduate year start some sort of education on a college or university. I on the other hand, am much too preoccupied with my own life and struggles to even want to study. Thus, I decide to find a job and work for a year. Over the course of 2008 I migrate to a different server, Bloodhoof. I start leveling a warlock, since despite the move it's still quite hard to find a guild, a group, or a few ingame people whom I feel comfortable with.

September 2008. I start my major Psychology. Never had this much fun learning!

November 2008. The new World of Warcraft expansion 'Wrarth of the Lich King' hits. By now, I've got a lvl 70 Rogue and Warlock, but I decide to lvl Koen's Priest, since he intends to start a Death Knight.

December 2008 - January 2009. A feeling of disquiet. I'm raiding on a fairly high lvl, university isn't too demanding and I do a lot of things on the side.
Slowly, I'm starting to feel as if this - despite having worked towards it over the course of months - isn't what I want. I'm not murdering my drumkit nearly as often as I'd like. I haven't touched photoshop in one and a half year. I did not finish any of the audio/video projects I started. I have three unfinished websites draped all over my hard disk. I managed to make my hard disk into the most incredable mess I've ever seen. Simply because I can't be bothered to sort it out once and for all.

Yesterday; February 5th 2009.
Crisis. I decide to quit the World of Warcraft for a while. I'm going crazy because I need 36 hours a day to wrap my head around everyting I'd like to do and achieve. I need more time and despite not wanting to quit the game, I decide to do so.

Today; February 6th 2009
A breather. I intended to do some last things before quitting the game. Instead I've decided to just take a break untill the next major patch hits. I think curiosity may get the better of me around that time.
I've ordered a new kiteboard, decided to start photoshop again. (my first messes will be uploaded later today :-P)
I've just been trying the drum line of Linkin Park's 'In The End' for abour 90 mins, and I'm doing better then I'd ever imagined. My bedroom is still a mess, so is my harddisk. But hey, you can't have everything.
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What remains is the feeling that I've wasted a lot of time on a game over the past few years. I absolutely love it. And maybe that's so dangerous about it, it's the perfect game for me. I regret having missed out on so much over the past years. I would've liked to live my life more consciously. I regret not being able to achieve what I intend to achieve, in real life or in-game, without a feeling of dread. A feeling that I gave up something of that which I am. No, that which I want to be, in favor of something that essentially is meaningless.

I'm training to be a psychologist. I might want to combine that with Artificial intellegence. What the hell would I need photoshop for?
Why am I not working my butt off for school? Why am I, after almost three years, not yet good enough to drum in a band? The more time I invest in that damned game, the more I'll regret it, since it buys me nothing. But then why is it so incredibly enticing? And why the hell can I suddenly be bothered to write this?