Monday, March 28, 2022

My accidental part in meme history (whoops)


 So, back in the early 2000's I used to hang out in a bunch of online groups. Early social media stuff like LiveJournal, YahooGroups (formerly eGroups), MSN Groups, etc., and I really enjoyed sharing spooky or weird images on those platforms. I would use most of the popular search engines at the time (Alta Vista was a personal favorite because I felt like most people weren't using it) and do my best to find stuff that was just odd to look at. 

In my circle of friends at the time, we didn't really use the word meme (we knew it but mispronounced it usually as "me-me"), and instead used the phrase "image virus", which came from an artist online who became somewhat famous for his "HTML Image Virus" trend. At some point the term memes became more prominent and "image virus" slowly dissipated into obscurity. 


About a month ago (or over a month ago) I was  contacted by a person who was a part of a investigation group trying to find the origins of the famous "Jeff the Killer" image that was used for creepypasta stories. An earlier version of that Jeff image, apparently called "prettyFace" was an image I recognized from nearly 20 years ago because I do remember finding it in one of my searches and sharing it around. This person who contacted me told me the shocking news that he had found me after a lengthy search online and by his own research says I may have been the first person in the West to share this image outside of Japan. I was of course shocked. 

As usual, "Bob" was right, "The stupider it looks, the more important it probably is."

I will admit, I didn't really connect the prettyFace image to the Jeff image at all. Maybe because they're so prominent in the internet zeitgeist, at least for me, that I just got used to them. I do recall there being one or two other images alongside the prettyFace image, but that might also be my own faulty memory. I found it on an image board of some kind where a bunch of images were being shared. At one point I may even have had those images but that was several computers ago. 

What I find interesting is that the YouTuber BlameitonJorge is once again circling around my interests. He has already mentioned the Church of the SubGenius, The MayDay Mystery, and now this. I feel like one day I'm might have to reach out and say hi to the guy 😆

To be fair, I don't know if I am the first person in the West to share this image. When I saw it floating around I thought folks just found it the same way I did. If it was me though, what a ripple effect. How funny that a dumb image I shared on a dumb message board somewhere would come back to haunt me after all these years. 

I hope the folks investigating find the origins of the image. Like a lot of the world mysteries I'm sure the answer will be incredibly mundane, but it's never about the destination it's about the journey. 

Here are some links if you want to understand this whole thing:



Sunday, March 27, 2022

Then there was Billikinoid

"Billiken at Coney Island" by ZONTAR

Spontaneous introspection brought me here today. I was guided by unseen forces, but I knew they were sent to me by Billiken-1, God of Things As They Ought to Be, my guardian spirit. I might be crazy, and that's just dandy. I have finally blundered my way to nigh-enlightenment and I hope I slip on a banana peel soon so I can make it the rest of the way there. 

Life, as I have always griped about, is nothing but discord normally but lately it has been filled with a new flavor. I have found some new friends to chat with, new friends to play with, and I have reunited with some old friends to help ease the burden in my heart from past mistakes and I feel reinvigorated. 

So why "Billikinoid"? Well it is what I is, I think. As an emissary for Billiken-1, I am without question one of his kin, yet in this humanoid body. I will break through the barrier tho and ascend to my rightful place someday, when I reach my cosmic form. I am filled with the holiest of spirits gosh dang it!

Moving forward, I would like to dedicate more of this blog to even more nonsense; toys, comics, trading cards, religion, and travel. As much as possible until your very screen begins to OOZE with it all! I want you to be dripping with it! 

Until next time then 😜

Wednesday, March 9, 2022

And there will come... A REBRANDING



So I did that thing where I forgot to update this blog again. If you follow me on social media you know I've been around, but I've been busy with preparing to move and take other steps in creating a new life for myself. I'm at that age where I can sort of feel the cold embrace of Father Time clasping onto my shoulder as if to say, "hurry up and live while you still can". 

With so much changing in my life, like the way I take care of my health, where I live, and my plans for the future, I felt I should really begin that inner weirdo I've been suppressing for most of my life. I've been holding myself back creatively because I always found myself trying to please others, and ignoring my own wants. I don't have many dreams or goals I want to accomplish, but the few that I have are deserving of my attention and I'd like to shoot for them while I have the time to.

I've even renamed myself within The Church of the SubGenius. I am now Rev. Dr. Jellyfoot. It's taking my pals a while to get used to my new moniker, but they'll come around I'm sure. 

In the future, this blog's name will change as well (for like the third or fourth time). I do have some things I want to share here, photos, and interesting experiences but I think I'll save that for another day when I have more to say about them. Actually I'd like to share more of my collection like in an online gallery or something if I can figure out how. Maybe I'll finally give Instagram a shot. 

It's scary but also a little exciting to be going through so many new things. Last year I thought I wasn't going to live long enough to see my birthday, but this year I'm filled with new zest and an appreciation for life I've never had before. Things are looking up and I'm finally learning how to balance all the elements of my life.