It's Been Awhile...

 Hello, 

It's been a few months since I've made a blog post. A lot has happened the past few years - some good, a lot of it, bad. However, a lot more good things have been happening since the mid part of this year. There was, however, a major learning experience from the early part of the year.

What happened earlier this year was not good. It pushed me away. It made me question if my gayness is right or not, it made me question any support for the LGBTQ community, it made me question if I should even communicate with people with different beliefs. 

Then I realized, that isn't good. The events I had was my way of trying to communicate with people with different beliefs. To Understand. Even if I have different beliefs. When I'm called names and yelled at - I snap back, just like when I said there were 2 genders. Yes, I believe that based on my Biology courses from HS and College. It is also because of my religious beliefs as it states it in The Bible. 

While I have these different beliefs, there are ways to get people to support or understand you. Kind Communication. This was something I didn't receive from the LGBTQ Wiz community. Despite that, I do plan to speak to people I know in real life (that are part of the LGBTQ community) about these topics with an actual conversation. No Drama or Arguments. The people I plan to speak to don't share the same beliefs as I, but they are truly kind to everyone they speak to. 

My life now is focused entirely on Jesus Christ. I've had many new great memories offline because of Him. If it wasn't for Him, I wouldn't be here. So, my plans going forward isn't to return to the community, but more so try to understand people before speaking. To actually Be Still. The community is a place for one group of people with the same belief system. It is what it is. But I'm going to still try to understand how and why. I have judged since then. That isn't my job, its God's. This all comes with a decision I recently made to be Baptized. This will be the final post I direct to the community - there will be new blog posts, but I won't share them via Twitter. 

Thank you for joining me for this short post. Until next time, I'll see you around the spiral. 

Life Update - What I've Learned

Hi there,

Long time no talk.16 years ago today, half of my life ago, I celebrated my first Birthday in Wizard101. This got me thinking about how much I did in the community and where it got me. I had over 50 in-game events, amassed thousands of followers on social media, and over a million views here on this website.

In early 2025, I made a statement that Kingsisle should stick to the basics - fix the game. Stop focusing on political statements due to the divisions that would and did occur. KI celebrated the 4th of July with items they've had for well over a decade. This resulted in an uproar from many of the same people. The truth is, their uproars won't ever stop. The hatred in their hearts shows through their actions. 

The last 5 months off Twitter got me to see their hatred is from a part of their lives I have nothing to do with. I'm not going to try to make people happy who don't want to be happy. That's God's job, not mine. Jesus is the Savior of the Universe and he's capable of everything. So my time in the community started off wonderful and ended badly. There is, however, always a silver lining.

My time in the community taught me that Jesus has always been there for me when people I truly cared about failed me. I thought I needed them because I was going through severe depression even this long after losing my dad. Jesus showed me He was the only one I needed to focus on. 💙

15 Years Later...

Hi there,

Today marks 15 years since I created Around the Spiral with Edward Lifegem. I'm happy announce that I've started a new adventure on YouTube. I hope you'll check me out on there and subscribe if you wish. Regardless, this has been an amazing journey! I am thankful for the good times I've had through my blog. Thank you for your support these past 15 years!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xu-yPS0eb2c

🦋 Be Still 🦋

Hello there,

I've officially deleted my Twitter accounts after 14 years. The chaos created by people who say they love everyone and are very accepting was way too much. From "Lets Get Him" to "Nobody Likes You" to straight up name-calling and death wishes. This clearly isn't the place to be if you are a Conservative.

The community has grown to be Toxic towards people of different beliefs. If you don't agree 101% with them, you are targeted. Instead of stating "I don't agree with you on this, and this is why you're wrong" they create Unfollow and Targeted Harassment campaigns. In addition, the majority of these people are supposed to be Kingsisle Representatives aka Community Leaders. While I strongly disagree with the Woke Mindset, I will not go down their same path of targeted verbal bullying. When I say Woke, that means a Political Movement. It's just like calling me a Conservative.

I stand by my remarks that KI should focus on improving PvP and PvE. No Modern Day USA politics - whether it be liberal or conservative - should be implemented into the game. Unlike the many who messaged me, I don't need validation of my conservative or religious beliefs from KI or anyone else because they aren't shaky. Jesus is Right and Real. We're living in the days the Bible mentioned that good would become bad and bad would become good. The best thing to do is to Be Still and Know that He Is God. 

Being still meant to delete my accounts, and to pray for all of these people. I stand by Jesus, 100%. The entire world could hate me and I won't ever abandon Jesus - the one showing me that what the world is doing is wrong. I do apologize for offending people with the 2 gender tweet out of anger, but I'll never apologize to the world's ways. This is no way to say I'm perfect or special just because I believe in and follow Him. It's to show that I recognize that I am a sinner in need of His grace. He has already won and everyone will see that one day soon. 

Thank you to all of those people who supported me these past 15 years. Around the Spiral turns 15 years old on May 10th, 2025. While I had a certain type of blog post planned, I'm instead going to share the good moments from my experience in the community. While the world around us is chaotic, there is still Hope in Him. Always Remember that. 

🥳 Happy 14th Birthday, Around The Spiral 🥳

Hi there!

Today marks 14 years since I created this website. A lot sure has happened over the past 14 years - from it taking me 8 years to become an official Wizard101 Fansite & Pirate101 Fansite, to no longer being one, to hosting dozens of in-game events, making YouTube videos, creating another website, and so on! The question is... what do I have planned for the future?

It's not a secret that the future certainly holds new in-game events. I'd like to promote them more and to a new audience. Our real world is very chaotic and divisive. Despite this, I want to offer the community a place to come to escape all of that.  There is a community within the Wizard101 community where everyone is welcome at our events regardless of their sexuality, political affiliation, religion, etc. 

I joined Wizard101 in 2009 to escape the real world for a bit each day. I'd like to provide that same escape to everyone here. If you want to hang out with a truly diverse and lovely group of people, I welcome you to attend our in-game events. I want to work with Kingsisle to bring our events to a much larger audience - not to promote my name, but to promote a truly diverse community.

One other thing I hope to do is to make new YouTube videos - specifically Spiral News Season 3. I've wanted to do that for quite some time and will look into it. Regardless, I'd like to share my opinions on the game. I promise I'm not a Kingsisle hater - per my nearly 15 years of playing their game and being involved in their community for nearly as long. I want to share my thoughts on how they can improve their game.

As of late, I've been very proud of Kingsisle - with their creation of Ravenwood Academy (releasing later this year), listening to players on PvE, and the generous gifts to the community through the Fansite Festival which celebrated its 10th year. There is much to appreciate. I've defended and criticized Kingsisle - that's what true fans do. A fake fan would only share hate or only share love about the game. 

Other than that, I'm happy to finally be back and provide more to the community than I have these past few years. It's been very tough. I've lost family and friends. My dad passed away from Covid this past September, but I thank Jesus, family, and friends for helping me get through this tough time. I've had my ups and downs, and sometimes so far down where I am where the Helephant appears from. 

My support system has helped me get through one of the toughest times in my life to do things I haven't done before. Kingsisle, Wizard101, Pirate101, and the community have been in a special place in my heart for nearly half of my life. Blogging certainly is of the past, but I'm using Around The Spiral to transcend blogging. 

I'd like to thank you all for 14 wonderful years of Around The Spiral. I hope we can have another 14 - but I'll be almost 45. Lol. I'm not going to rush time. Thank you all so much for your support. I hope to see you Around the Spiral. I also hope y'all will join us at this year's Pride Run event to meet our community within the community. 

🏳️‍🌈 The Wizard101 Pride Run - Saturday, June 29th 🏳️‍🌈

Hello Wizards!

I'm happy to announce that I'll be hosting an in-game Wizard101 Pride event. Like Pride Parades, we'll have our own parade around Wizard City. You do not need a membership or mounts to participate in this event. All you need to do is wear a pride color (or colors) that best represent you. If you're an ally, wear all of the colors you can! Here's more information about this event:

When: Saturday, June 29 @ 3pm Central / 4pm Eastern

Where: The Commons, Wu Realm

Livestream: www.twitch.tv/AroundTheSpiral

Please share the link to this post with your friends - I hope to promote this event so everyone knows there is a community of love and support. I'm hosting this to let everyone in the community know they are loved and accepted no matter their sexuality, political ideology, religion, race, etc. As a fellow gay man, I'm thankful I got to come out to such a large accepting part of the community. I'm paying the love back by hosting in-game events such as this. I hope you can attend - the picture below is from 2023!

FA LA LA LA

 Hello again!

Today is December 13th! That means it's the 13th Day of 25 Days of Christmas Songs! One song I listened to a lot back in 2011 was Fa La La La by Jim Brickman & Olivia Jade Archbold. This wonderful song is as cute as can be. I always try to share it each Christmas season since it had a huge impact on me, especially with the loss of my Grandpa that year. This year I've had numerous impactful songs that I'll share starting next week. :) Until then, enjoy this awesome song!

Make It To Christmas

Hi there!

We're playing catch-up today! I missed December 12th. Lots of work and an appointment can cause that, but I won't forget to post the following day. I love Christmas too much to forget! Here's yesterday's song "Make It To Christmas" by Alessia Cara!

Please Santa Please

Hi there!

Happy December 11th! I was thinking a lot about our Santa Run events today. It was always such a great time hanging out with the community during the Christmas season. A few days ago, 11 years ago, we hosted our first Santa Run event. I look forward to hosting more in the upcoming years - God willing. Speaking of Santa... I also heard this awesome song from Pentatonix on the radio today that I wanted to share. "Please Santa Please" by Pentatonix!

Love Is In Your Heart

Hi there!

Happy December 10th. We're officially 2 weeks away from Christmas Eve. Today, I'm sharing "Love Is In Your Heart" from the Santa Paws (2010) soundtrack. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. 

Baby, It's Cold Outside

Hello there!

Happy December 9th! Can you believe we have nearly two weeks until Christmas Eve? Time is truly flying. Today, for 25 Days of Christmas Songs, I'm sharing another classic... "Baby, It's Cold Outside" by Dean Martin! Enjoy!! 

Last Christmas

Hello there!

Happy December 8th! It's the 8th Day of 25 Songs of Christmas. I hope you've had a great Friday. It seems like Christmas is quickly approaching. It should still be July, but you know, the 2020s don't play around when it comes to time flying by. Today, I am sharing my mom's favorite song from the 80s - "Last Christmas" by Wham! Plus, I kinda heard it on Spotify just now and remembered that I needed to post a song today. Oopsie! :P

Let Your Light Shine In The Darkness

Hello again!

Happy December 7th and Happy Hanukkah to all of my Jewish friends in the community. A lot has happened over the past few months, but I know many people, including myself, support you. Today, instead of a Christmas song, I've wanted to take a pause in Christmas music for Jewish people in our nation, around the world, and especially in Israel. We love you. 

All I Want For Christmas Is You

Hello there!

I apologize for missing yesterday's Christmas song. I recently caught COVID which has had me down for a bit. I've been resting and taking vitamin C, so hopefully I'll feel better soon. Other than that, I thought I'd go ahead and pretend today is December 6th (I'll post another song after this post.) Here is All I Want For Christmas Is You by Mariah Carey!

The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You)

Hi there!

Happy December 5th! It's the 5th Day of 25 Days of Christmas Music. Today, I wanted to share a classic - "The Christmas Song" by Nat King Cole. I heard this in the store today and knew I'd be sharing it here. I hope you're all having a wonderful Holiday season so far. 

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas (Three Versions)

 Hello everyone!

Happy December 4th to you all. Today is the 4th Day out of 25 Days of Christmas. I was thinking about one of my favorite Christmas songs ever - Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas. There are so many amazing versions of this song. My top favorite is one made by the Pretenders I heard on Lois and Clark - a show made and released in the 1990s. Gosh, everything about the 90s was so Christmassy and nearly peaceful. We do need a decade like that again. There are also two other well-known versions by Frank Sinatra and Michael Buble that I enjoy. So I'll be sharing all three here! Enjoy!

Favorite Time Of Year

 Hello!

Happy December 3rd! Today I'm sharing an almost-new song by Carrie Underwood. "Favorite Time Of Year" became one of my favorite Christmas songs released in the 2020s. I'm not a huge fan of many music these days, but Christmas music always impresses me. It truly is the most wonderful time of year AND my favorite time of year. Merry Christmas! 🎄

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

Hello there!

Happy December 2nd. Today I'm sharing a song my dad enjoyed - "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" by Andy Williams. He enjoyed this song, and especially the Hallmark Movie with Henry Winkler every year. I remember seeing him watch this movie at least three times this year. That's how much he was looking forward to Christmas. We're celebrating big time in his honor. Merry Christmas, Dad!

🎅 Christmas Is... 🎅

 Hello everyone!

It's officially the Christmas season! If you didn't know, in previous years, I'd post a song each day of December. I wanted to continue this tradition again in memory of my dad and Chrissy! I hope all of you tune in each day as I post my favorite Christmas songs of the year. Let's get started with Day 1 of 25 - "Christmas Is..." by Percy Faith!🎅

The Halloween Run Event - Sunday, October 29th

 Hello Wizards!

It's that time of year. Dressing up in your favorite Halloween costumes for one shell of an in-game event. I'm excited to announce that Around The Spiral will begin hosting an annual Halloween Run event starting this October. We'll have two primary contests at this event - a Screenshot Contest and a television-themed Song Contest. Before we talk about that, let's get the important details out of the way - the event's day, time, and area.

When
 Sunday, October 29 @ 3pm Central / 4pm Eastern

Where
Nightside, Vampire Realm (All Areas)

Stream

www.twitch.tv/AroundTheSpiral

 Rental Mounts Provided + Contests Announced on Twitch Stream

As I mentioned, we'll be hosting two contests. In order to participate in these contests, you must be in attendance at the event - and watching our live stream on our Twitch Channel above. Below, you'll see the rules of each contest. I hope you'll participate in these awesome contests! We'll also have more fun giveaways and contests throughout the event.

The Screenshot Contest                                    2 Winners: $20 W101 GS Card

1. Attend the Halloween Run Event

2. Take 1 Screenshot when the run begins using the keys CTRL+G & PRTSRC 

3. Email the Screenshot to edwardfrostgem@gmail.com with the subject "Screenshot Contest" and your wizard's name.

The two winners will be drawn using a random.org list randomizer. Since this is random, everyone will have an equal chance to win. 

The Television Theme Contest                     2 Winners: $20 W101 GS Card

1. Watch the Halloween Run Livestream - www.twitch.tv/AroundTheSpiral

2. Write a List of the 7 Television Theme Songs in Order played (Type them in the live stream chat as each song plays throughout the event to help others.)

3. Send the List to edwardfrostgem@gmail.com with the subject "Television Contest" and your wizard's name.

The two winners of this contest will also be drawn using a random.org list randomizer. Since this is random, everyone will have an equal chance to win.

Share this blog post with all of your friends so they know to attend the Halloween Run. Also, mark those calendars. Thank you all for your support. I hope to see you at the event. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me in the comments below OR on social media. Until next time, I'll see you around the Spiral.