I just logged in and noticed a PM about a thread that I put up 6 years ago.... turns out the thing was super necro... BUT it really is interesting to revisit this thread 6 years later. So I thought I'd post a new thread about what happened afterwards...
The original thread was from back in 2005... and it ends with me considering a return to the game after abandoning a level 54 character...
I ended up marrying the girl a year after this thread in late 2006.
I did return to the game after getting married... and played the hell out of it... raiding deep into the Black Temple... even running a raiding guild at one point. With my main being a Paladin tank. I was very very very involved in the game, sometimes playing for 6 hours or more a night. It caused some pretty serious marital issues... it nearly ended our marriage at one point. I tried desperately to convince my wife to play, and I tried even more desperately to convince myself that what I was doing was ok.
Eventually I even moved my characters to a Oceanic server so that instead of going to work in the morning, I'd sneak to a local coffee shop and spend the first 5-6 hours of the day raiding. Thus it even started affecting my work... however doing the morning thing resolved my marital issues and things moved along much smoother in that department.
Then the mother of all life changes occurred... my wife got pregnant. And my son was born in 2008. This changed my perception of the game entirely and while I still played a little while even pushing a few characters to 80 and raiding some of the early WoLK instances... it just wasn't the same anymore. By the end of Sammy(my son)'s first year... I had literally no interest in playing, I suspended my account and pretty much gave the game up.
I haven't played in well over 2 years now... at all.... we had a daughter too last summer and I don't miss it... AT ALL. My salary has literally doubled since I regained my focus on work... my relationship with my kids is awesome, and my marriage is safe and happy.
In retrospect it's really sad how much I let WoW interfere in things... it was great fun... but I think people ought to examine their lives really carefully to decide if the time/focus price of playing that game is really worth it or not. In 99% of cases... I'd bet money it's not.
Here's the original post BTW...
So I've been playing WoW since the day after it's release. I average about 2 hours per night. In the beginning this was more like 4 hours a night, with occasional much longer days. Well the GF fvcking hates that I play... she thinks of it as mind-rot at it's worst. My feeling up til now has been screw you, I'm an adult, I should be able to spend my free time however the hell I choose. Well tonight we got into a massive argument about it, as I was mid-instance when she called and said come down and see me. I choose not to go, but instead to fulfill my duties (troll priest) and get my group through the rest of the instance.
Well the massive argument ensues, during which she actually succeeds in convincing me that I play way too much, and I haven't been doing anything with my spare time OTHER than WoW, and I really havent been involved with other stuff. I've been meaning to play Rugby, but havent put the time forward to do it. I haven't been taking my tech cert exams. I haven't been doing the extra work at home I used to do. WoW truly was taking over too much of my life. So blam I delete the installation off the PC, with the intention of never putting it back.
What are some of your opinions on the WoW phenomenon, is it indeed an unhealthy obsession? Or am I pussywhipped, and allowing my interests to be manipulated?
Flame away....
-Max
*UPDATE*
Tommorow will be 2 weeks since I gave up WoW. I am currently feeling no withdrawl symptoms.
I walked away from a 54 NE Hunter and a 38 Troll Priest. At this point not only am I not feeling the need to play. I actually don't feel like playing.
Let me be an example for all... you can walk away. It can be done.
-Max
*UPDATE 6/23*
Next month the fiancee will start her q4 call schedule. This means that every 4th night she'll be on call at the hospital for loooong hours up to 30. I'm considering taking WoW back up again, but limiting my playing time to when she's on call.
What y'all think?
*UPDATE 7/17*
The game has been reinstalled.... fully patched and is ready to go....
The original thread was from back in 2005... and it ends with me considering a return to the game after abandoning a level 54 character...
I ended up marrying the girl a year after this thread in late 2006.
I did return to the game after getting married... and played the hell out of it... raiding deep into the Black Temple... even running a raiding guild at one point. With my main being a Paladin tank. I was very very very involved in the game, sometimes playing for 6 hours or more a night. It caused some pretty serious marital issues... it nearly ended our marriage at one point. I tried desperately to convince my wife to play, and I tried even more desperately to convince myself that what I was doing was ok.
Eventually I even moved my characters to a Oceanic server so that instead of going to work in the morning, I'd sneak to a local coffee shop and spend the first 5-6 hours of the day raiding. Thus it even started affecting my work... however doing the morning thing resolved my marital issues and things moved along much smoother in that department.
Then the mother of all life changes occurred... my wife got pregnant. And my son was born in 2008. This changed my perception of the game entirely and while I still played a little while even pushing a few characters to 80 and raiding some of the early WoLK instances... it just wasn't the same anymore. By the end of Sammy(my son)'s first year... I had literally no interest in playing, I suspended my account and pretty much gave the game up.
I haven't played in well over 2 years now... at all.... we had a daughter too last summer and I don't miss it... AT ALL. My salary has literally doubled since I regained my focus on work... my relationship with my kids is awesome, and my marriage is safe and happy.
In retrospect it's really sad how much I let WoW interfere in things... it was great fun... but I think people ought to examine their lives really carefully to decide if the time/focus price of playing that game is really worth it or not. In 99% of cases... I'd bet money it's not.
Here's the original post BTW...
So I've been playing WoW since the day after it's release. I average about 2 hours per night. In the beginning this was more like 4 hours a night, with occasional much longer days. Well the GF fvcking hates that I play... she thinks of it as mind-rot at it's worst. My feeling up til now has been screw you, I'm an adult, I should be able to spend my free time however the hell I choose. Well tonight we got into a massive argument about it, as I was mid-instance when she called and said come down and see me. I choose not to go, but instead to fulfill my duties (troll priest) and get my group through the rest of the instance.
Well the massive argument ensues, during which she actually succeeds in convincing me that I play way too much, and I haven't been doing anything with my spare time OTHER than WoW, and I really havent been involved with other stuff. I've been meaning to play Rugby, but havent put the time forward to do it. I haven't been taking my tech cert exams. I haven't been doing the extra work at home I used to do. WoW truly was taking over too much of my life. So blam I delete the installation off the PC, with the intention of never putting it back.
What are some of your opinions on the WoW phenomenon, is it indeed an unhealthy obsession? Or am I pussywhipped, and allowing my interests to be manipulated?
Flame away....
-Max
*UPDATE*
Tommorow will be 2 weeks since I gave up WoW. I am currently feeling no withdrawl symptoms.
I walked away from a 54 NE Hunter and a 38 Troll Priest. At this point not only am I not feeling the need to play. I actually don't feel like playing.
Let me be an example for all... you can walk away. It can be done.
-Max
*UPDATE 6/23*
Next month the fiancee will start her q4 call schedule. This means that every 4th night she'll be on call at the hospital for loooong hours up to 30. I'm considering taking WoW back up again, but limiting my playing time to when she's on call.
What y'all think?
*UPDATE 7/17*
The game has been reinstalled.... fully patched and is ready to go....
Facebook
Twitter