I got introduced to the indie web through Tumblr back in the summer of 2021, when a popular post was going around with a link to this cool place that hosted a bunch of awesome websites to check out. I clicked on it, and was immediately enthralled--while I remember browsing the internet as early back as 2007, I was too young at the time to participate in most of the stuff that was going on, such as using MySpace or fan forums, and certainly not experienced enough with coding to build my own website. However, I remember other people's websites with a nostalgic clarity that only started coming back to me when I clicked on that first link to Neocities.

Ever since that day, I've become steadily more and more fascinated with the 'new old web', sinking hours of research a day into old websites archived on the wayback machine, as well as new sites operated here. The blinkies, buttons, ugly color schemes, objectively terrible gifs, and pages on any subject imaginable are not just products of a bygone era. To me, rediscovering them felt like home, and hopefully, they can do the same for you.

It was when I discovered three different sites--sadgrl.online, cinni's dream home, and bliss net--that I REALLY started considering making my own personal page. Their creativity absolutely blew me out of the water. I kept thinking 'I want to do that! ' and 'I wish I had a website this cool! '. Unfortunately, my HTML/CSS skills were pretty lackluster (and still are), but I didn't let that discourage me. With the handy links that Sadness provided on her website and the infinite, amazing expanse of the indie web before me, I set to creating my own little space. One day, I hope to work on a project with the coders I look up to, but I don't think I'm skilled enough for that yet.

For now, though, enjoy this garbage heap :)

(p.s., check out this essay I wrote about the indie web.)