I'm Mike Chilton and this is Jackass.

It’s hard to believe that I’ve been here in Citta for two years. Two years, can you believe that? I know, I know – “wasn’t your anniversary last month?” Yes, it was, and it still baffles me.

I won’t lie, when I decided on that day to make Mike and app him here, I didn’t think I would be here for longer than maybe a month or so. But no – two years later, here we are, and here I sit, making every attempt to try to be as optimistic as possible.

As these two years have passed, things have happened. I graduated college, went through two jobs, started paying my student loans, and many other things. Life for me has been a ride so far, and I’m glad that Citta has been a part of it for this long. I’ve had many ups and downs these past two years, but Citta to me has been like a small getaway from the stresses of life as, well, me. I was able to escape from the world’s problems and simply just think about Mike Chilton and his adventures here in Hive City. To be honest, if it weren’t for Mike, I don’t think I would’ve gotten out of being depressed as I was when I was literally unhappy with my first job as a lowly cashier at a grocery store.

So thanks, Cittazens. Thank you for being there to keep my head up during that time.

But that was then. Now, I find myself in a much different predicament, and…sadly, it’s one that has made me come to a decision I didn’t think I was going to face at all.

Over the course of the past few months, I’ve become more and more involved in other things. Things that are just as creative as Citta Alveare, but bring so much more promise. D&D campaigns, creating new characters, getting ideas for comics…

…And, most importantly, falling in love with my art again. Real talk – although my art has been good, there was, for literally years, something missing from it. I couldn’t put my finger on it, and just told myself to keep drawing, to keep doing things. And suddenly, like a firecracker, it dawned on me. The realization?

I lost my own identity as an artist.

This was an issue I had dealt with well before Citta, but when I joined, I…had started to notice myself only making art in hopes that people liked it. Yes, I enjoyed making art, but it wasn’t the things I had done before, the things that truly made me happy, the things that made me who I am.

And when I had taken the time to look at older artwork that I loved doing, everything changed. Now I’m back to doing art for myself, my own creations, my own content, my own stories. It’s a wonderful feeling.

I wouldn’t be at this point if it weren’t for you, Citta. Truly – from allowing me into this group of fantastic writers and people who have encouraged me to keep going, even when I thought it wasn’t good enough, I wouldn’t have gained this sense of self-confidence in myself as a writer. That self-confidence finally seeped into my art, bringing me back like a phoenix from ashes.

Which brings me to where I am right now. I’ve found myself growing more passion towards what I want to do in the long run. For those who don’t know, I have aspiring dreams to publish comics, write children’s books, and illustrate fantastical stories to escape in. And as my passion grows for these things, Citta has become much less of a thing I want to do for fun and rather an obligation instead. I didn’t join Citta with this intention to make it seem like work, and I most certainly don’t want it to be work. After all, this is roleplay – it’s supposed to be fun.

Which is why I’ve decided to drop out of Citta Alveare.

My muse for Mike will always be in my heart, but for right now, he has grown silent in the qualms of my own characters screaming for attention. So don’t see this as me leaving roleplaying forever, because I still want to roleplay with all of you, either as Mike or even as my own OCs. If you want to continue roleplaying with me, please, by all means, let me know either on here or on my Twitter (@DraikanicG). I’ll then give you my Skype if you don’t have me added already. But if not, I understand. And if you do have a Skype, message me! I won’t bite.

I can’t say for certain when or even if I’ll be coming back. But when/if I do come back, this Burner won’t change at all. He’ll still be the lovable dork we all know and love, and continue to wreck havoc help make Hive City the place it’s meant to be.

Until next time, Burners. Live fast, live free. ❤️