My subscription ran out December 20th. I don't think I'd even logged in to check auctions for a few days before that.
I'm not renewing it. At least, not right now.
I've got other things I'm working on - my other massively nerdy hobbies, wrestling with the paperwork surrounding a transfer to the local state university, life with my husband, finally picking my major. And while I was thinking about all this stuff - and about how much I enjoy MMO gaming - I realized something. It's not fun unless I'm playing with my friends.
Why did I love repeatedly running Stratholme and Scholomance 5s at 60? Because I was doing it with friends. What made me get into raiding and raid-leading? It was something to do with my friends. Why did I stay in Legion and wipe on easy bosses in Black Temple instead of jumping ship and walking into Sunwell? Because I had more friends where I was than where I would have gone.
Why did I spend non-school nights for several weeks running staying up until 7 AM? Because at the time, that was when my friends were online.
Why did I buy this game in the first place?
My friends were playing it.
Why don't I like playing anymore? ...Because so FEW of my friends play it. Pugging normal 85 dungeons is torturous. Playing the economy holds no interest for me. I could join a guild and make new friends, but that cuts into the whole "having a life outside the computer desk" thing I've got going on. Twice-weekly practices for Massively Nerdy Hobby (tm) mean raid night options are the nights I'm going to be doing homework.
Man, I dunno where I'm even going with this anymore.
According to the nifty online auction tool thing, I've got about 500g of sold auctions I ought to clean out of assorted mailboxes. And then there's the RP story on Moon Guard I'm going to have to essentially abandon. My inner two-year-old is rebelling against the concept of spending $15 to log in for the half-hour it would take to wrap things up. And there's so many cooler things I can spend that $15 on...
Anyway, it's time for me to get some food and drive up to one of those practices. It's snowing lightly, so the trip shouldn't run me much more than 2 hours. I'll have time to re-tape my polearm and maybe do some knitting while I wait for everyone else to get there.
I'm gonna go play with my friends.
