3 years, give or take · 10:37pm Jan 31st, 2018
It's time to make my involvement here Great Again. 
Limestone tires of this trumped-up excuse of a joke
First, let me apologize; I've been struggling with a broad and interesting variety of things for at least the last year, which has sometimes lent itself to inconsistencies in my tone and involvement with the community. As I get close to marking the end of my third full year among the herd, I realize that I never meant to get super personal with issues on here. I suppose it started happening slowly as I became more comfortable and started making friends with y’all, and as I started digging deeper into my life for things to write about. But it was never meant to be the dominant thing.
As I look at trying to balance that better, I guess I also need to be clearer with certain expectations. Something I've found is that there's a gap between the level of involvement I'd like to have here and what I can sustainably deliver right now. I firmly believe that Pony--and ultimately you guys--have helped equip me to grow past/work through certain problems that held me back for years before. I tagged Time Enough For Wub because that was the story that very much helped me find a writing voice that still influences everything I write, whether personal or professional. The flip side of that, though, is that my RL is going stronger than ever, and it currently seems to be sucking up even more free time than in the past. It's getting to where something’s gotta give.
Much as I look up to community pillars like Horizon and Pascoite and seek to emulate what I can of their behavior, I've kind of hit a wall in terms of how much time I can spend reading and editing right now. I fully intend to drop in and pick up the occasional project, but only if it really, really works with where I'm at. That's not new, in some ways; my glacial progress on some recent projects already speaks to that. But I think it's overdue for me to just come out and say it plainly.
I don't know. Times change; circumstances change. I wasn't in a particularly great place 3 years ago when I first rolled in. I couldn't have imagined all the laughs and tears and cons and stories that would follow. And it's not over; God willing, I'll be back out at Whinny City and Ponyville Ciderfest again this year. But at least for now, I need to dial it back.
Now that doesn't mean a thing about To Serve In Hell. On the contrary, the full draft of that is coming out of cold storage and back onto the operating table here in the next month. If it's not all out by November, I'll eat Applejack’s hat.*
*Or at least a fondant sculpture of Applejack’s hat.
You have to calibrate your level of pony to the level that works best for you. Here's looking forward to when you can dial it back up.
Aw, I'm a pillar.
Been great having you around for whatever you've been able to offer. I totally feel the lack-of-time problem. Best of luck in finding that balance.
It is good to have you back, my friend. :)
4786657
One important question though: is the pillar structural or decorative?
4786815
If the horizon is load-bearing then we probably have a problem.
4786387
Yes indeed, balance is not always fun but is necessary!
4786657
Any more pillar-like and there’ll have to be five other copies of you stuck in limbo with Horizonswirl the Bearded for a thousand years. 
You are at that.
4786668
4786815
Primarily structural, I’d imagine; but no doubt with a satisfying aesthetic as well.
4787515 Many hugs and snuggles to you.
4787754
I know it sounds dumb, but I’m starting to watch more TV than I have in years lately. Now for the longest time I’ve watched nothing (other than Pony) that wasn’t something my wife or kids decided to put on. But in the last little bit I’ve been catching up on a couple of (now) really old shows that I always meant to watch. Been thinking about doing some more reading, too. Basically just putting gas back in the tank!
4788429 Cool! I am glad that you are watching/ reading many different things. It can often give you inspiration for stories as well. :)
Ah, you are discovering the same painful thing we all have, namely, life has a habit of taking over everything. Sucks, that...
It's great to have your fun stories to read and all, but you don't owe us, so don't feel bad for spending time in your job or with your family first (unless you really wanted to spend your life chained in front of your computer pounding out G4 fanfics?). Besides, this way you'll have a much more meaningful sense of having accomplished something when you get everything else all done and still slide out a perfectly random story that delights your fans.
4795691
It's really good having that perspective now. I didn't for a while.
Like I've kinda said, I ended up in the fandom at a point where my life was off-kilter. Having this new, fun, and exciting thing to dive into didn't fix anything by itself, but it helped bring me the energy and optimism that I needed to get back to a better place with everything else.
The trick, then, has been finding a longer-term balance between the two. I feel a lot of appreciation for what I've gained here, and it's fun doing stuff for it--but it's only one piece of the puzzle.