6 Years of Animal Jam Stream

Hey Jammers, today's my first day of summer break! :D

As I mentioned in the comments in the last post, my school had an unusual amount of snow days, which pushed the last day of school to yesterday.

Even though barely anyone came to school yesterday, I went anyways to say goodbye to my teachers. Also, I wanted to leave school on a positive note because my math test on Thursday went awfully. >_<

I was up super late studying Wednesday night. I was so proud of myself by the end! I practiced all of the concepts in the study guide, made myself a notes sheet (not to use during the test, but just to condense my ideas), and stayed so unbelievably focused for hours that I was 90% convinced I'd do well.

And... barely any of what I studied was on the test. I rarely stress about grades, but I just wanted to prove to my teacher that I could get more than 80% on a test. Right now that's the biggest score I can hope for. :T

I'll still miss my teacher a lot. Saying goodbye to him was awkward, I was about to cry lol :')

Of course though, this post isn't all just an irrelevant personal update. 

Because last weekend six years ago, I made my first post on this blog. And this may sound odd, but it was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

This was back when it was way more popular to have an AJ blog than an AJ YouTube channel. For the most part, people who had AJ YT channels just used them to make videos that went along with their blog. It was pretty casual.

The main AJ blogs that I followed at the time were Animal Jam Spirit (run by Snowyclaw, who now works for AJHQ!) and Animal Jam Flash, run by WitchHatBunny/LoveLost/etc. Both were awesome blogs that are now inactive.

What really inspired me to start my own blog, however, was my best friend who made their own AJ blog. The platform they used to make it was shut down, so I can't look back at it anymore, but it showed me that joining the beloved community of AJ bloggers was possible.

I originally posted a lot more on my blog than I do now, probably because I started at the beginning of summer vacation. I got up at 5-6 AM nearly every day, mostly making short posts centered on new items and little experiences I had in Jamaa.

Here are a couple:

The Zios screenshot was from when AJHQ randomly sent out a message saying "Something cool will happen if you sleep by the Zios ruins!" and The Lost Temple of Zios was overwhelmed with people who convinced each other that that "something" was a Glove or rare item. I stuck around until my computer crashed. -_-

The other screenshot is of an item now known as the Freedom Banner (which is currently in stores) but was called the Council Day Banner when it was first released. There is literally no such thing as Council Day, so I'm assuming it originally referred to a piece of potential AJ lore that was scrapped.

As the months went by, I saw blogs come and go. I had frequent commenters who I became friends with quit AJ altogether, and it made me sad, but other cool new people came, too. 

Of course, blogging is no longer the most popular medium for talking about Animal Jam. The AJ blogging community is pretty small now, but there are still positives about that. We're closer– there's a kind of positivity that you can't always get from YouTube videos. 

A lot of people seem to think the Animal Jam community is in decline, but I disagree. The truth is that it's just constantly expanding– it seems super chaotic when you try to take it all in at once. I stay sane by trying to cultivate my own smaller piece of the AJ community with my blog. 

Maybe it's like tending a garden instead of a massive farm; because you have fewer plants to take care of, you can put all your love in and consequentially get happier plants. That's why I think being a part of the AJ blogging community is so meaningful.

Stepping back, I can imagine some people thinking it's weird that blogging about a kids' game means so much to me. I rarely talk about Animal Jam Stream with my friends, only one of my friends knows about it, and while they don't play AJ anymore I deeply appreciate how supportive they are.

I can get a little self-conscious about my blog, but all of that completely vanishes when I see all of your wonderful AJ blogs and comments. I feel so unbelievably grateful to be a part of this online community. <3

I could go on and on until I stop making sense, so I think I'll conclude this post here. But before I go, I just wanted to give a shout-out to some important Jammers who make this blog what it is.

Thank you, Gogreen16. You are one of my longest Animal Jam friends. Though you've been playing since beta testing, your ongoing enthusiasm for AJ lets me know that I'm not alone. 

Thank you, Lostfairy. I have not commented on your blog as of late, but I read every post. Your kindness and boundless creativity energize me to keep going. :)

Thank you, q1zx. I can't believe you started your blog just a month ago, it's already so amazing! You bring such energy to the AJ community that you really make me doubt the idea that AJ blogging is over. <3

Thank you, Violet AJ. Aside from running an awesome blog of your own, your wonderful comments are Animal Jam Stream's lifeblood! 

Thank you, Sarahkey8. I really admire how you reach out and interact with as many people in the AJ blogging community as you can. Keep being great! :)

Thank you, Rainbow000Pegasus. When I found your blog this year, I was astounded. I couldn't believe that you had been posting quality content nearly every day for so long! Your dedication is so inspiring. 

Thank you, IceCream Cookie Kitty. I got so excited when I saw your first comment a few months ago! I love it when new people comment. You're a cool and kind person and I'm so happy you're here. <3

...and thank you, everyone else! Everyone who comments, everyone who sends me a Jam-a-Gram to say hi, and everyone who looks at my blog at all– you are all so important to me. Animal Jam Stream isn't about me, it's about you!!! ^-^

Details about a contest and an online meet-up/party coming soon...

See you in Jamaa! :D

Studying...

Hey Jammers! A lot (and I mean a lot) of stuff is coming to this blog, but I have a huge algebra test on Thursday– which I have conveniently saved all studying for today after school. (:

So this is more of a reminder for myself whenever I go to my blog to procrastinate this evening. XD

See you soon! 

Cool Newt

Hey Jammers! Been a while, huh? I've had a tough two weeks, so I've saved a lot of homework for this weekend.... eeeeeeee

But I still wanted to post a quick quick update just to let you know that 1, I'm not dead, and 2, a lot of stuff is gonna be coming to this blog! After this weekend though lol

There's also a third reason:

I found this cool newt in the woods!!! ^-^

It had just rained so they were out and soaking up the moisture in the air. They were very relaxed, so I took a lot of close-up photos like this.

I did some research and apparently this is an Eastern newt in the terrestrial "red eft" stage– midway between being an aquatic child and an aquatic adult. 

So these newts are born swimming, have a three year period where they are only on land, and then go back to the water! 

I have not seen any bodies of water anywhere in the woods I found the newt... I wonder how far this little friend has traveled!

Forests are some of the most biodiverse ecosystems on land. If you've ever walked through one, you'll probably be struck by how quiet it is... it seems so empty.

However, the truth is that the woods is so biodiverse because it's an excellent hiding spot. I recommend you walk through a forest right after it snows– it will be breathtaking how many different kinds of animals the paw prints will reveal!

Okay, back to Animal Jam Stream:

I mentioned earlier that this Sunday, June 17th, is my blog's 6th anniversary. I had hoped I would be able to do something this weekend on the actual date, but with homework and tests to study for that won't end up happening.

However, stuff will be happening next week. I'm thinking...

– Definitely some kind of contest. The prize will probably be a custom masterpiece, as I don't have many rare items to give away.

– Definitely a long post talking about how awesome you all are and all my favorite things about Animal Jam and AJ blogging. :)

– Definitely some kind of online meet-up– I don't know when, though.

Before I go off to fight through my homework, I will leave you with the recipe for rainbow cotton candy:

Use a lightning bolt cone, with blue, yellow, and pink cotton candy.

You might know this already from the cheat sheets that are everywhere, but I'm proud that I managed to figure this out without looking at them. :D

Peace out!!!

Geckos' Return + Land/Water Items

Hey Jammers! This will be a short post because I'm struggling with a lot right now

However, at least it's within the hour of the update! ^-^

We will start with the Jamaa Journal:

World Oceans Day is on June 8th (tomorrow), so it's time to celebrate on Animal Jam! 

Of course, there's a few new ocean-themed den items, but an even more important change has been made...

A ton of underwater items are now able to be put in land dens!

You can tell if an underwater item works in a land den if it does not have the ocean label in shops.

Now I have another cool map for my collection B)

(my collection consists of a grand total of 1 map. Impressive, huh?)

Just in time for summer, the Water Park den is back.

It reminds me of the Heatwave Party, which is one of my favorite AJ parties. Too bad it's only accessible in the winter. :\

Also in time for summer, Wild Weekends have returned, which I am honestly not that wild about. 

Well... it does say new features, not just items, so maybe this won't be so bad? o_o

Again, let's talk about World Oceans Day!

The ocean is what gives the Earth life. Even if you don't think much about it, the health of the ocean is critical to the health of the entire world– even you.

But because people often view the ocean as unimportant, it is constantly being exploited through unsustainable waste disposal and fishing that you are inevitably connected to. 

Along with spreading awareness, let's think about what we can all do individually to reduce our negative impact on our oceans. As we heal the ocean, we heal ourselves.

In other news...

There's an awesome new exhibit in the Conservation Museum!

Learn all about the complexities of camouflaged birds, plants, insects, reptiles, and more! :D

This next piece of news I just know you're gonna love...

This eloquently worded segment of the Jamaa Journal can only mean one thing: Geckos has returned!

Yes friends, back with newly non-NatGeo-copyrighted content, is Geckos. I can't explain why this video is such an important part of AJ. I don't know why I'm so happy it's back. All I know is that everything is okay now.

Go watch it today in Sarepia Theater... 

Before I go, two quick things:

Falling Phantoms, one of Jamaa's most lucrative games, is double gems. Get ready to get rich!!!

And here's a random glitch I experienced today. It wasn't that noteworthy, because it cleared up before my first round of Best Dressed, but I wanted to include it anyway lol

See you guys in Jamaa!

~DoomyPanda

P.S. This might not come as much of a surprise, given how little I actually post, but I just wanted to let y'all know that there will be no post at all this weekend. I have a ton of homework to do.

Blog News + stuff

Hey Jammers! Sorry I haven't posted in a while– this has been a really difficult week for me. >_<

This will be a fairly short post, but I do have a few things you might find interesting.

First off, let's look at the poll to the right side of the blog:

Surprisingly, the biggest percentage of you guys are doing the Diamond Challenge! I had thought that would be the least popular XD

To those who are participating, what appeals to you about the challenge(s) that you're trying out? C:

(For those who forget, here's my post detailing the 3 challenges I came up with)

In regards to polls, you may be wondering why I took down the underrated room poll, and why the new poll looks noticeably different.

Basically, Blogspot made the pointless decision to remove their poll gadget. No one who uses Blogger is happy about this– polls are really fun!

In order to get around this, I spent like three hours trying to find a third party poll widget that doesn't look hideous– it was surprisingly hard. 

If you use Blogger and you still want to put polls on your blog, I suggest poll-maker.com. I used it for my challenge poll, changing around some of the HTML to make it fit with my layout. Ask me if you have any questions, but I'd say using Poll Maker is fairly straightforward.

In regards to the underrated room poll I removed, I will publish Rediscovering Jamaa posts in order of popularity according to the results that I saved before deleting the poll.

Next up (hopefully soon) will be the Appondale Pet Shop! :D

In other news, I figured out how to make a simple star cotton candy: yellow star cone, with all yellow cotton candy.

If you want a comprehensive list of cotton candy recipes, licia144 left one in the comments section of my last post. 

Personally, I skipped over the list because I want to figure it all out on my own, but I'm sure many of you would find licia144's advice super helpful!!! ^-^

Over in AJHQ's Old Barn showcase den, I found an item that looks like it might come out again in July. (EDIT: I had originally thought this item was unreleased, but it turns out it's the Bundle of Sparklers that came out in the Diamond Shop a while ago. Oops XD)

On a sort of unrelated note, I realized when I walked into the Old Barn showcase that it was the first time I had heard the Horse's Only Party music in like four years. O_o

I guess being nonmember without a horse does that to ya XD

Before I go, I just wanted to let y'all know of a few things that are coming soon on this blog.

First off, June 17th is this blog's 6th birthday! I hope to make a special post and maybe host an online meet-up around that time– for the past few years I've always forgotten my blog-o-versary XD

It's also kinda special because I made my first post on a sunday– and June 17th of this year is also a sunday! :o

Secondly, me and my friend Gogreen16 were talking last week about some cool unknown items, and it made me think about a new post series idea: unknown item spotlights. What do you think about that?

See you in Jamaa guys!!! :)

~DoomyPanda