I don't know if I can truly classify myself as an 'oldie', at least not in terms of EoFF forum membership...

That said, I joined in 2008, and despite only posting 100-ish times between then and now (with most of those being early on) I certainly have a little soft spot for this place.

Heath was the one who convinced me to join, since we'd both been members of other FF forums (in fact, I ran a vaguely prominent one myself for a short period, but that's a different story). Something about an exodus from Fools Gold?...

The details of my membership elude me, but the genuine camaraderie of this place seems to never fade. It's great that it's still up, and that this corner of the web stands strong against the homogenisation of web communities.

My avatar - never changed since sign-up - is a sign of the approach I took to posting here. Not just silly and irreverent, but with a style that jars a little (much like the Villa team that David O'Leary managed). I'm always struck by people who use humour well to lubricate their message into the cranial capacity of others, and this place was full of people who could do that.

Humour being a sign of intelligence, it's no surprise that I equally enjoyed lurking in the threads on serious issues, watching the debate spark with very little space allowed for malice or bad faith. Can you imagine a debate around a serious topic on a free-for-all Facebook group? Actually, don't imagine that - you'll give yourself a headache.

For me, signing back into a forum you once frequented is less about where you are but more about who you are. I suspect many members my age just won't be able to make engaging here again a priority, but that doesn't mean we can't find a quiet joy by slowly and carefully retreading the paths we once danced along carefree.

As far as I'm concerned, we haven't changed. We'd still engage with the same freedom and warmth and regularity, were we able to. We'd still play the same series of games with dedication, and revere them as a small part of our very identity, given the chance.

We're still the same people who signed up almost two decades ago. This forum acts as a small needle, helping us sew a thread backwards through our history to help us keep contact with the child within.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk.