7166137's blog: "What's on my mind"

I have thought about writing this one for more than a year, and I want to capture every nuance I can to express how I feel about being on this site. When I say, Does it Matter?, I am asking about whatever you are trying to do on here. It could be "What Matters Most" or "Is it Worth it?" Many of these I had to think for myself as I have spent the past nearly five years with this account, and probably more than three years with my original back in the Lost Cherry and Cherry Tap days. I saw both of those transitions with that account. I credit this title to the movie Meatballs, starring Bill Murry, when he was asking the kids at his camp, who were lower class than the kids of a rival camp who were upper class, coming from families that had money. He got into a rant, ending with him repeating, shouting, "It Just Doesn't Matter!" This may just be my eighth Life Motto.

I let myself get into wanting to be higher in the lifetime ranks. This is the one thing I focus on the most, so I have to ask myself, Does This Matter. I started tracking in August 2015 when my rank was in the 700's. I made it my goal to reach 250, because I like level 39, I would be able to rate them an 11, and help them level. I didn't have a date set for reaching it, and over time I inched my way up. As I went along, I gathered a handful of friends who, when they saw this, got interested in their own lifetime rank. What places this into this blog is while I am passing people who have left the site, yet are still on the list, I started passing friends I have made along the way. I'm happy moving up, but I am not wanting to replace someone I like in their spot, so I took the time to tell them that. What I learned about reaching the top 250 was that whatever lifetime rank somebody is, has nothing to do with how great they are, and that includes myself. I do have a few cheerleaders wanting me to now get into the top 200, and that's nice, but I don't want to boast as I get there. I passed one of my cheerleaders, and many of them passed me, with me passing one of them again. I am not at all upset that I am not top 200 yet because I would be at 200 right now, if I didn't coach any of them along, to be able to pass me. It is ok, and I am happy for them.

Along with the lifetime ranks, there is the Daily and Weekly ranks. While I like being on the first page, especially the upper half, I've come to accept when I am on the lower half. The top ten guys can choose to have their name red. This past winter, I got a new job, had a few extra dollars in my pocket, and made the decision, to just go for anywhere in that top ten. I only wanted a red name, and I wanted it only once. I didn't want what I called the "King of the Hill Club" to all drop off, just to be included and welcomed for a short while. What also made this possible was several weeks planning. Making my own banner, running lots of boomerangs with Famplifers, boosting my family and adding high ranking people to it. Several wanted to trade and I told them to look at my banner, see my goal, and asked them to remember me during those seven days and try to add me to as many of theirs as possible. I won't name who it was, but after day one, I was scolded for only wanting a red name, and that I should go all out into being Number One for the week, after all, that is its own achievement. I had to ask myself, was it worth it, and Did it Matter? I was amazed at how much popularity I really had on this site, because I had very VERY high ranking members add me to their FAMPs, and said it was ok, they knew I had too many to be add to mine to be able to repay. Thinking about this, they themSELVES, had asked the same question, with or without realizing it, "Does it Matter?" They must have decided that if it mattered to me, then for once, it would matter to them. I did get that red name, I did get that number 1 spot. So, I had a new question to ask myself, "Was it Worth it?", and I found out that for me, it was. I had not lost touch with the people I have known here for many years, and I have a new set of friends who will just come into my shout box and say hello.

 It may seem to some that my level is one my biggest does it matter, yet for me it really isn't. It was while I was coming up through the ranks, and especially when I was reaching the high 50's. I still remember how much work it was to get from level 60 to 61, two achievements and one non-achievement were all needed, each one was very difficult, and I am proud of myself for having reached that milestone before they took them away. I got my first Crown at 62 and again at 63, but when they removed those hard achievements (I'll tell you if you ask what they were), a LOT of people did the easier steps, and had what was needed for the level 63 crown. It was a mad dash that day. Of all the achievements and requirements needed for leveling in their original state, the only one I never got to do was the 36 hour White Knuckler. Since it is not an achievement, neither is the 12 or six hour versions, there would be no point to prove to myself that I could do it. When 64 came out, I had all the points required, but did not want to fight for the Double Deuce, so I didn't even try the Happy Hour Inferno, because to me, it was not worth it. Then level 65 came out with the monster 19,000 ability points, and 110 billion points. Little by little, I earned achievement points, and got to where if I did the HH inferno, I would get the rest of the achievement points to level. Also, many of the friends who joined me along my journey had little by little caught me, and a few crowned at level 64 and 65. I then felt it mattered to at least get the HH inferno, since I was coaching so many into earning it for themselves very successfully, I had not run one bomb in nearly a year. So it had to matter to me enough to get not one, but three happy hours, and make my run. Each one was so successful that I made it matter to me to record on video how I did it, and demonstrate it. Two videos were made by me, and during the second, demonstration, I did earn HH inferno, I did earn level 64. So with 65 as top, and needing nothing more than Triple Threat, I made that my goal, because at this point, it mattered, and was worth it.

I leave the above unfinished because this next one is very hard for me to be "worth" it or matter. When level 65 came out and the Triple Threat, they also came out with achievements for being in the top ten points time after time, after time. At that instance, nothing at all about leveling was worth it to me, so it then did not matter. Triple threat was what I needed, at this point, and since I had built a lot of friends, an army if you will, I did choose to go for it. Three consecutive days with back to back Happy Hours. What had come about, was this mattered to more people than it did to me, I could name some of them, but I am thankful enough for each of them. I won't go into details about how the Triple Threat was earned, it was not like anyone else did so I'll tell you if you ask. I was saddened by the creation of level 66 what I call early, because with my plan, I would have reached 65 as crown just 4 days after 66 was created. With the 19000 points reduced to 17000 points, a few dozen people got to level 65 ahead of me, but did not earn a crown. I really wish they would think things through the impact. While it's nice to show what order I earned each of the higher levels, I would have like to have earned 65 in the order I earned it. I think I had a status something like, Some people got Level 65 "on the cheap". Back to the leveling mattering, the new level 66, besides points, is 100% things you have to do yourself, and nobody can help you. Each one of them takes work, yet none of them have time constraints. I made it my point to work as hard as I could to complete those, because a new thing that now mattered, was being able to not just crown, but to be in the top 25. With a bit of luck with the bonus, and being one of the few to know how to take advantage of it, I finished level 66 with the points being the last part.

I did some thinking just now, while writing this, I cannot even see my Shout Box. I want Fubar to change the name to Whisper Box, because what you write in there is only seen by one other person, while a Shout Box, is more of saying something in a Lounge, but I digress. While I am writing, I am not going to anyone's pages, I am not seeing people with questions in my Shout Box, so for the time being, I am not doing what I like to do the most on here, and that is to help people level up, and that is ANY level. It could be to help them get more likes, help them get some owners, some ability points, or figure out how to do some of the peculiar things on here to complete achievements when they become important after level 60. I will not take a break from writing, and do a little socializing, and perhaps write a little more later.

For one day, the lifetime points mattered, because I was one of the few to take advantage of the bonus, and shot up from 71st to 19th overnight.  Two day point total was huge, but this one goes right back to it doesn't matter. I very rarely look at someone's lifetime point rank, but to some people it matters, it's important to them that they are at the top of that leaderboard. The same thing goes for the top ten daily/weekly rank to have what some covet dark red name. It matters to some that they are there all the time. To others, being at the top level all the time matters. I don't know what level 67 will bring, I only know that they always credit points earned from when you got to the current level, so that part I'll have covered. I will have to decide for myself, does it matter?

Do you look at someone on this site and form an opinion of them based on any of the above? I used to, because I would think many were stuck up because they didn't like me back after I liked them, or wouldn't accept my friend request. I do remember that reaching level 40, a flood gate opened, and I got friend requests from a lot of the top TOP ranking people. I would get caught up in how "great" somebody was because what level they were above me, or how many fans and friends they had compared to me, or how long they had been on this site compared to me, since my old account can't be used at all for this one, those few years are lost, plust the few years in between.

Another thing I sometimes catch myself doing, is glancing at somebody's top family, because those six are the most important people on here, to them. I don't remember who it was, or when it was, but when I saw my profile photo on somebody's page it meant a lot. Even if we were both in the low 20's levels. Over time, long after the level 37 One Hundred Family add requirement, I stopped asking anyone to add me to their family. And I also believe that I have not once asked someone to place me in their top family, but it has happened, and I see it more and more. I'll sometimes take a look at "who has me in their family" and I'm amazed at the number, and who has me.

I wrote my seven (now maybe eight) life mottoes blog because as I was going through these levels, it was much longer and harder back them (I'll explain if you ask) and the one thing I learned was to not think of mySELF in terms of what level I was, what my daily/weekly/lifetime rank was, or how many fans/friends I had, or how many profile comments I had. This was a very tough thing to accomplish, and sometimes I catch myself doing it again. I see people come to me in desperation because they started a tough achievement that has a time constraint, and didn't really plan it very well. If they have money invested through buying bling and power ups, then I sure don't want anyone to lose what they already put into it, but I can't just finish what somebody started every time it happens. I do love to help people level, or figure out stuff. Since there is no higher level for me, and I didn't want a higher level for more than one year, I would treat helping some level up, as a vicarious way of reliving going through that level myself. I would explain what that level was like, since almost all requirements have changed, and in some instances, I have screen shots of the old requirements. People are amazed. I try to explain this concept of self worth on here, when someone is going for a tough achievement to work on a new level, and I will often ask them, "Does it Matter?"