Time flies when you’re having fun is the saying that comes to mind when I describe how it feels to have reached the first anniversary of Curious Chaser. September 20 is the day when this website was officially “turned on” after I had spent several months beforehand preparing for what the website has now become. I am proud of the articles I have written, but I am even more proud of everyone who has joined me to become a part of this website through the several interactive features on offer here, which has created a supportive community for those of us who are on the bug chasing path and wanting to learn more about bug chasing.
As I have mentioned previously, I have had bug chasing thoughts entering my mind for over 15 years and initially, I just kept pushing these thoughts aside, thinking they were temporary and would eventually go away. They kind of did at first, but they never went too far away, as these thoughts would always return, so I would keep following the same pattern of just ignoring them and waiting for them to disappear. It was kind of like a yo-yo effect, where my mind would become fixated on bug chasing, which I would think about briefly, then I would forget about it. This thought process went on for more than 10 years, where the gaps in between these thoughts were quite long at first, but over time, the gaps shortened, to the point where the thoughts are pretty much constantly with me.
When I made the decision to start learning more about bug chasing, I became confused and bewildered when I tried to find articles online that would be helpful to someone who wanted to learn more about bug chasing with the aim of helping them understand themselves better. I found a higher number of unhelpful articles than articles that were useful. The articles were either scientific and designed for healthcare professionals, so they were written from a medical standpoint and the other perspective came from the media who often tried to create controversy through their writing style, which created stigma and made anyone who had a bug chasing identity feel isolated and as though they had something else wrong with them.
Being unable to find resources that were helpful to anyone who identifies as a bug chaser or who thinks they might be a bug chaser is what inspired me to create this website. I figured that if I come across information pertaining to bug chasing that is helpful to me, it might be helpful to others as well, because we are not alone, although many of us remain silent about who we are because of the way many people judge us. Having access to information that is written specifically for those of us who want to learn more about bug chasing to try to understand ourselves is extremely important, which is why I am very proud of this website and those of you who have become a part of it.
Since this website was launched, I have published 48 articles and I have created several interactive features, where everyone can get involved. The first interactive feature was the original bug chasing survey, which received 295 responses in 3 months. This survey will now be held annually and the current survey includes both bug chasing and gift giving sections. Everyone has the ability to leave comments on any of the articles I publish, which is a great way to help shape the articles by giving them an extra dimension through contributions that may include different perspectives. The biggest interactive feature involves the forums, where registered members can participate in 8 different forums that are exclusively related to bug chasing or gift giving, with 76 topics and 698 posts posted in the past 5 months.
What makes Curious Chaser an important place for bug chasers is the ability for us to all learn and share information and experiences. Some of the website sections are accessible only to registered members, due to the need to create a safe space that enables an open discussion about bug chasing and gift giving and it’s easy to become a registered member if you aren’t already one and access is completely free. It’s also possible to join the mailing list in addition to this, so you can be notified of new articles the second they are published. The main menu bar at the top of each page includes additional options for logged in members, including access to the forums, members directory, user profile page, along with the ability to send private messages to other registered members.
The creation of this website has not been without its technical issues, as I have rapidly had to learn new things, because I’m not a website developer and I do not work in the information technology field. Some of the issues that have plagued this website were the result of having extremely high security settings, which still remain, but they were previously so tight, that registered members were being locked out. I have resolved this now and I also needed to upgrade my web hosting package to cope with the growing number of members and interactive features, plus I have switched to more sophisticated forum software, as the original one was basic and struggled to function reliably.
Curious Chaser is fully funded by myself to keep the website free for everyone. There are numerous ongoing expenses involved with running this website, from web hosting to annual software licenses. I also don’t feature any website advertising, which is extremely rare for a website, but my goal is to provide information that is objective, which means all distractions have been removed so you can focus solely on the subject matter at hand, which is bug chasing and gift giving. I have received several offers of financial assistance, which I am grateful for, but I have kindly declined. If you want to show your support, all I ask is for you to contribute by interacting in the forums, commenting on articles if you have something you would like to add, or just spend time here, which doesn’t cost you a cent, just some of your time.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for being here and for making Curious Chaser a better place for those of us who need a resource such as this. I will continue researching topics and publishing articles that are relevant and I will also endeavour to keep the existing articles updated, so they remain relevant, no matter when you read them. If you are struggling with your emotions or trying to figure yourself out, just know that you are not alone and there are many of us around the world in a similar situation as yourself. If you need professional assistance, please seek this from a qualified person, as the articles published here are general in nature, so having a one-on-one discussion with a professional who knows your circumstances is extremely important.
Featured Photo: Wout Vanacker on Unsplash.
Article ID: CC048
Version Control: 1.0 – September 20, 2022: Original article published.
