So it's been a year since I joined this crazy place. It's been a wild ride, lets put what I can remember on this post so I can check back in a year
How I Ended Up Here
It was the peak of the Crypto market, which I wasn't aware of as I had not been following the markets. I had a call from someone that wanted tax advice as they had made some serious gains on their crypto and they wanted to know how to manage the tax liability. I thought I would do some research before our meeting... that research is still on going!
I found my way onto coinmarketcap and before I knew it I was doing a bit of background research on every coin starting at the top and working my way down. Bitcoin whitepaper, tick, Watching some videos from Vitalik, tick, Listing to Charles Hoskinson, tick and so it went on.
I eventually came to Steem, as someone that enjoys listening to others about interesting topics, I found steem fascinating. There were some real diverse voices on here and some seriously smart people. Well, I guess you have to be, to navigate your way on here with 3 different currencies, 4 different keys and whales who will try to flag you to oblivion.
Steem, the not so nice bits
I spent a lot of my time being invisible, seems like Harry Potter wasn't the only one to have a cloak of invisibility. I was flagged down to -12, but I stuck it out and here I am.
But sometimes it's these situations that help you understand the system better and you also get to know what people are really about, I even got to know myself a little better. There were times I was tempted to just sell my stake and get out, I would have been financially better off had I done so, but I am richer in other ways and for that I am grateful.
Steem, the amazing bits
My first question when I got on here was, is this just another Sh*t Coin (as Tone Vays says), but having tried and tested it, I know it at least is genuine. Yes, some of my flags was me testing to see how things work and if there was genuine Proof of Brain. Some brains were found to be absent...
I am glad to report that steem is real, it has a real blockchain, it has real users and a real community. We have atheists and God fearing folk, we have capitalists and socialists, we have people who just want to share their content and others that will jump through some amazing hoops to earn money with no regards to any values or morals.
This was amazing to discover. Unlike twitter where you have no idea if the person speaking holds any of the coin they are so keen on, here I can check someones wallet and know how much skin they actually have in the game.
There's a developing community of artists, musicians and freethinkers. We are doing what advanced civilisations took centuries to arrive at, we are developing our own culture and societal norms.
Almost twelve months after the worst bear market in monetary terms, we are still here, the steem blockchain is still working and even 
Steem, the future
I was bullish about steem when I got here and I remain bullish as there is nothing else out there like steem. It has it's risks, it has it's problems, but it is growing up.
I am excited to see what the future holds for steem. It may crash and burn, that's always a possibility, but compared to many other projects, steem has many advantages. Not only is the steem blockchain growing up, so are it's users. I count myself in that. Over the last 12 months, I have made some great leaps in my personal development and come to some profound realisations.
Long may our journey continue, I am glad to share it with all of you and if you've read this far, why not drop a comment so I don't feel like I am talking to myself ;)
