Your fondest Sam memory~?

[Harroway]

In honor of Sushi doing Sams for twenty years omg, and in reverence for all the time and energy she's putting into the community which brought us all together, I thought it might be fun to discuss some of our fondest Sam-related experiences and memories!

My first and fondest Sam memory was seeing them many many years ago on random Geocities sites, but not understanding how Songs and adoptions worked. I just know I REALLY wanted one. I've been so enamored by virtual pets since grade school. I loved that they were hand-drawn and back then, couldn't figure out how Sushi made them. I didn't understand that, in addition to coloring them, she had to scan and Photoshop them off the background of the piece of paper, correct any odd colors, etc. I just knew they could breed somehow and had genetics, which... yes please!

They looked like this:



Life got busy and I couldn't figure out how to adopt a Sam or get involved in the community and they were forgotten until one day...

...I'd somehow stumbled upon them on Livejournal! They popped back into my head one day but I couldn't remember their names, so I kept googling odd things like, "hand-drawn horse pets" and "colored pencil adoptables" until I could find them again.

Sushi was holding adoptions there and I registered just to try and get one. They were larger and more detailed than the ones I'd seen on Geocities, so I don't know how much time had elapsed between the ones I had seen and the ones Sushi had made back on LJ.

I managed to snag one because I was a new adopter, and I was SO THRILLED. I printed her out - Whisper of the Hissing Waves - and put her on my school binder. Nobody else knew what she was or where she came from, but I LOVED HER. I didn't care that she didn't have a ton of traits, or wasn't a rare or even uncommon species. She was mine, my very first, and I adore her to this day.

What's your fondest Samemory~?

[Sushidragon]

OMG Harroway, thank you for sharing, that's so sweet! ;____;

There's so much that's happened over the years with Samanayrs and our little community that it's hard to pinpoint all of my favorites, but one thing that was super exciting was when I started streaming! It was so much fun interacting with everyone in real time and getting to know everyone even better. Although before I got my webcam it was difficult to type and stream at the same time because I was using my laptop's built-in webcam XD

Oh man, just over the years, people coming and going (including me XD;; ), and everyone being here for all of the big stuff in my life, and I never thought I would still be doing this 20 years later?! Because adults don't do this kind of thing, right?! Hah! XD

[Jaes]

Rediscovering this community back in ...2010? thereabouts? was amazing. I was a baby Jae back in the day when cyber adoptions really hit their apex and being able to get back into such a great hobby was wonderful. It's so easy to lose track of people over the years on the internet, and being able to reconnect with some of those folks from back in the day was so cool and heartwarming.

Also, I love love love that I get to own pieces of Sushi's art! When I get a custom sam or a foal, it feels incredible - Sushi drew this for me! My card for Pluck of the Blazing Plumes is one of my favorite things. I'd love to get my hands on more (literally)! Hm, in fact, Sushi: have you ever thought of sam merch? It'd be so cool to have a sam enamel pin!

[Codress]

WOW that is an achievement 20 yrs!! Congrats to all that have been here the whole time and to Sushi for how she has grown as an artist and everyone else!
I'm glad to be a part of ya'll. My sister Rikku said "Sissy you have to look at these!" I said ok and was drawn in once she showed me and started giving me the full download on who and what Sams are and the people in the forums. Since then I have meet many of you and would say many are friends also. There are sooooo many different personalities and views and so forth on here that you are always seeing or learning something new about the people or Sams itself. So I want to say THANK YOU Sushi for coming up with this idea and running with it and also for all the people that make it worth coming back again and again also.

Fondest memory:
I would have to say it was when I won the contest for coloring a Sam for Easter and one of mine was picked. The funny thing is she was the one I liked the most but didn't think in a million years would win. LOL. Delicate has been one of my Favs ever since. Also was the first time I made a little story for a Sam too. That she loves to play Hide-an-go seek with her friends and family and her pets. Have many others but this is the first one that popped in my head so went with this. he hee ^_^

[superdoug]

My fondest Sam memory...there are so many. Samanayrs is one of my favorite adoptables (actually, all the adoptables by Sushi have been awesome). I came to them via Glassgryphs, and fell in love immediately.

But my favorite memory? Getting my first custom and buying the art, and the day this guy arrived in my mailbox:



And then, after that, the other customs that arrived in my territory. Brushstroke of the Painted Moon is a particular favorite of mine (who am I kidding -- they're all my favorites, custom or no!).

I've been away a long while, but I'm back now, and look forward to more Sam memories in the near future!

[CareBear89]

My favorite memory was getting the perfect match to one of my favorite sams. He was PERFECT! Sushi did an astounding job and just... perfect.



I was so stunned at how amazing he turned out that I really didn't know what to do! Then all of the mares that came into his song... It was just the bees knees! So far this is my favorite song and my most cherished memory because he was made special, by sushi, just for Aura. Dreams came true for her and I that day. <3

[SunBlind]

OMG, my fondest memories are actually adopting both those two Sams in the first post LOL

Rubies of the Purest Ivory was my first, and still has the strongest personality of all my Sams, every time I see him I can just imagine him grumbling about something or having some snarky remark.

Unfurling of the Blooded Shadow was a semi custom I believe, I know I picked the colours. I loved the red markings above his hooves and his son Seeping of Tainted Waters inherited it, though his granddaughter did not.

And of course, must not forget Journey of the North Star and his little orbs that have been passed down through the generations and hopefully will continue to do so.

[oakleafwolf]

My favorite Samanayr memories are all community-based. ^^

I think the crazy 'active-time' or 'insanity paced' events are extremely fun to watch, but very intimidating to take part in! The White Elephant blood-sport is especially crazy!

It was Amazon Dreamer that got me involved in Sams and I just sort of appreciated them vicariously through her because I didn't really understand how to get involved until the Zodiac guest artist event.

I love all you guys!

And enormous thanks to Sushi for maintaining this amazing world for twenty years!

[Toxick711]

Mine are kind of two things. Getting my mare, who I got from the old art style of sams and then her having her first baby. She had such an ornery little filly! So grumpy and feathery fluffy. No idea why but these two are my fondest memory. I was giddy when I saw the baby. CB has taken great care of her and found her a perfect mate, so I am interested to see if they have a toxic misery baby . Let the grumpy toxicity continue! -Laughs Evily into the darkness-