It's been a while since our last update, I know, I fell into the pit of silence again, but I wanted to go ahead and let you all know we're not dead. You know that old saying, the crap hit the fan? Well it very adequately describes my personal life at the moment. I had oral surgery last week and a couple hours after my boss informed me that I didn't need to come into work anymore. All the money I could have used to keep myself afloat while finding another job got sunk into having my wisdom teeth extracted! So I'm hunting for work again.

Honestly I think this is for the best. Despite having 4 days off in a row I was working so hard for 72 hours straight that it took me several days to recover and then I spent the other days dreading going back. The pay was good, but the work was demanding, intense and straight out exhausting. I was starting to turn my thoughts toward another job already, I just didn't expect to be randomly laid off (and because the other two staff wanted their hours back, too, kind of a crappy reason if you ask me but I digress).

Anyway, amidst looking for another job I will be trying to tackle Origins stuff. I know I've said that a zillion times, but hopefully with my mind more focused I can actually accomplish something instead of staring at my monitor and thinking a nap sounds nice. In the spirit of such here is something I can offer everyone!

Our new group hang out on Discord! Join Link You can keep in touch directly with the staff and directly with me, hang out with other Origins users and even voice chat if you so desire. Discord is a great program that can be used via browser or you can download the app to your PC, phone or device. It's 100% free to use. I highly recommend it, even if you don't join our server, but of course you're all welcome to do so!

I will be posting with more updates as soon as I can. Much love to you all for your patience, please keep hanging in there for us!

Another Non-Lucy Update!

Hey everyone! Kalika here! I managed to steal borrow the News feed from Lucy. Shhh, don't let her know I took it because I have some important stuff to talk about!

Here at Origins we are big supporters of National Novel Writing Month, which for those who may not know, takes place in November. While it isn't November yet, we continue to support and encourage writing by teaming up for Camp NaNoWriMo, too! Camp takes place twice a year during the months of April and July and tends to be a lot more laid back, focusing more on having fun than grinding out words until you can't see straight! Signing up is easy and there's nothing to lose if you don't reach your goal. If you do, then not only does the Official Website offer sponsored gifts and discounts, but Origins gives out prizes as well!

From scripts to poetry, revisions to new novels, the sky is the limit when signing up for Camp NaNo. And due to recent improvements, alternate tracking methods make breaking that mold even easier! Track your progress in words, pages, even hours! Since we only recently discovered this change, we're allowing everyone until April 14th at 11:59pm Origins time to adjust their goals. After that point you will be locked into your minimum goal as usual and only be permitted to increase it (and still earn the winner's prize)!

*hears Lucy coming in search of the News post* Gotta run! If you have any other questions, want to check out the prizes or just want to cheer everyone on, head over to our Camp NaNoWriMo thread!

First off, thanks everyone for the congratulations and support during this transition! I really appreciate you guys being here for me! I'm settling into the new job well, I'm actually there now, waiting while my patient takes a nap. Since i'm on my tablet there's not much I can get done, but I thought an update was in order!

Here's what we're going to focus on over the next few weeks, our to do list so to speak:

*Change the site layout
*Set up for Camp NaNo! (be watching for a news post and whatnot from Kalika!)
*Sending out Kickstarter surveys (finally!)
*Passing out Kickstarter and NaNoWriMo prizes (finally!)
*Get pets and breeding released

I will do my best to keep you all updated as these things are implemented, so please continue to be patient for just a bit longer! Once this short list is done we will begin to work on other revamps and projects for Origins, including the RPG we promised! Stay tuned and have a great week!

I'm moving into my new apartment today! I'm so excited and happy! I have next to no furniture, but due to an unforeseen fluke I have been blessed with the most amazing job. Originally I got on with the local hospital, but Tuesday I got called with another job offer. A friend of mine recommended me to her and the boss lady invited me out to see where I'd be working. It's working as an in home caregiver again, but the pay is fantastic and the environment is.... let me just say, this family has it together. The daughter, my boss, is an RN and so she has everything set up perfectly with schedules and charts, etc. It's a night and day difference to my former position! I started training out there last night and I think I'm really going to like this job, I'm excited to go back and I've not felt that way about a job in forever!

So, what does this mean for Origins? Well, since I'm only working 3 days a week I should have plenty of time to get stuff done and work with our staff, etc. Pets and the new layout are still our primary focus, but since I'll be making decent money, I'll be throwing in some more cash into some other areas over the next couple months as well. Hopefully we'll get this place all spiffied up soon!

Imagine that, an update not about me....

So, we're slowly getting back to work and by that I mean the cogs in my brain are turning again... I know everyone is eager to participate and give to the site as far as user content goes... Which gave me the idea to run an art contest for a gene pack! We'll be picking a couple themes and you guys will get to color up our starting pets! I'm not sure what the prizes would be, but it would include getting your genes released on the site and probably a bit of site currency as well. If you have ideas or feedback for how to make this event more fun or inviting, then please leave them in the comments or you can PM me! n.n

In other news, I've swapped out the items in the Jade Emporium! St. Patrick's Day and Faerie items are available now, along with the Vernal Vineyard set! Oh and one last little surprise... the Mini Pets have made an appearance as well! I have no idea how long these will be available. For a couple months at least, probably longer as I'll likely forget about it. I'll try to give some warning before things shift out again!

Anyway, that's it for now, I'll let you know when the event launches!