It's been a while since I started reading Destructoid. A little less while since I signed up for an account, and a little less of a while since I started really engaging the community on anything anybody could consider a regular basis.

Now this here is the internet, so there are always going to be elements less than savory. I'm not thrilled with every personality that I run into, to be sure. BUT-- it's a perfectly fair statement that there's a higher frequency of intelligent, awesome, kind, and nifty individuals here on Destructoid than on any other place I've ever spent time online.

From my early intarwubs beginnings on a silly Dragonball RPG forums (where I, incidentally, met the first woman I ever loved), to a blogring I spent scores upon scores of high school hours, to a smattering of forums that never quite stuck, Destructoid is the one that's hooked me best.

The sensibilities of the JOURNALISM, editorials, and features, as well as the personality of most every staffperson helped forge my love of this place.

Some years ago, my friend sent to me a link to Hey Ash Whatcha' Playin's Dark Knight parody. Initially I rolled my eyes (the internet was crazy saturated with Dark Knight guano at the time), but quickly fell for the one-sided verbatim Joker monologue juxtaposed against "real-world" reactions. Thus my love of HAWP was born.

After that, it was but a hop, skip, and a jump to follow the breadcrumbs from HAWP to Anthony Burch to Podtoid to Destructoid at large, a place I can scarcely go even a few hours without checking.

To the site that reshaped my appreciation of video-games.

To the site that promotes and encourages and cares about community just as much in practice as in ideology.

To the site that enthusiastically puts a wikipedia article for "Ekans" on the front page.

To the site that allows anybody and everybody to have a say.

To the site with a schwanky robot dude as the vanguard of its enterprise.

To the site that allows me the idea of occasional, personal purpose and interest beyond just the grind of running a store and keeping my head above water the remainder of the time.

To Destructoid!

The happiest of anniversaries on this, your fourth year.

Now, normally I would adhere to a tradition that dictates I sing to you the song "Happy Birthday to Me" by Bulldog Mansion (as featured in "There She Is!! - Cake Dance"), but I'm currently nowhere near any kind of recording device and won't be for some time. Besides which, I'm all dry in the mouth with a semi-wicked hangover from a late-night marathon of Pure Pwnage, Press "X" to Jason/Shaun, Doctor Who, Community, and God of War III (it was a busy night), not to mention that you already had to sit through my obnoxious renderings of favourite songs from "A Goofy Movie".

That being said, I leave you with this:



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A-jik nu-wo-it-neun monday
Geu-reo-ge ma-ri-ya tuesday

Cha-ga-un geu-nyeo-bo-da cha-gap-ge
Jam-deun nae-mameul kkam-jjak nola-ge hae-jwo-yo
A-jik eoreol-han geol

Hakkyo-gagi si-reun wednesday
Geuredo ga-yaji thursday

Meong-cheong-hi ha-rul sal-sun eob-jana
Mwon-jin mol-ra-do il-dan ttwi-eo-bwa

It's my birthday
Honja-man-ui firstday
Du-geun-dae-neun nan hwak dalla-jil geo-ya
Neon moreu-gejji-man na dasi tae-eo-na
Neo-e-ge-ro gal geo-ya

Eo-jjeon-ji ga-bbun-han friday
Dat-sae-na gi-da-ryeo saturday
Saturday night fever ra-ji-man
Ma-ttang-ha-ge gal-got-do eob-neun nan

It's my birthday
Honja-man-ui firstday
Du-geun-dae-neun nan hwak dalla-jil geo-ya
Neon moreu-gejji-man na dasi tae-eo-na
Neo-e-ge-ro gal geo-ya

O-neureun neo-wa-wi sweet day baram machi-jin mara-jwo

It's my birthday neo-wa ham-kke
Sweet day uri-deul-wi first day
Ni gyeotte it-neun nae son-eul not-chi-ma
Neol sa-rang-hae birthday
Cheo-eum-i-ya firstday
Du-geun-dae-neun nan hwak dalla-jil geo-ya

Neon moreunda hae-do na o-neul-man-keum-eun
Neo-wa ham-kke hal geo-ya

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(Direct link to flash animation.)

Love,
Damon