Happy birthday!
I found b3ta through a mention of Buffy's Swearing Keyboard in Kerrang just after I'd started university in 2001. I wasn't having the greatest time at uni, finding the childhood-to-adulthood transition rockier than I'd necessarily anticipated, and the b3ta community was brilliant – I spent a great deal of that first year or so drunkenly smashing messages into it about how drunk/sad/depressed I was, and people were incredibly helpful, funny, practical, and willing to call me a cunt when I was being one. Eventually I slid out of that funk, and having b3ta as an outlet was definitely instrumental in that sliding. The virtual friendships I made in that time really helped kick me vaguely into shape. They also made me laugh my fucking head off regularly.
(Note: this was back when it was all fields, and there was no talk board, and it was acceptable to put "I'm drunk" as a post on the main board. Imagine doing that now. You'd be hanged.)
For several years I relentlessly posted a mixture of underwhelming images (MS Paint FTW), slightly crap poetry (RIP Stupid Bathroom) and an awful lot of pretty crap banter (I tried to make "Shut the fuck up, Ian" a catchphrase for a while). It was loads of fun.
I also went to several of the early bashes, and made half-formed clumsy semi-friendships, many of which exist to this day. When I moved to London in 2004 to ostensibly seek my fortune, I crashed in the flat of a fellow b3tan for the first few weeks. I had a site for years hosted for free by a fellow b3tan. The header on my bad poetry site was designed by a b3tan. I've had help with work, sponsorship for charity events, professional and personal advice and quite a lot of free drinks off b3ta.
More recently, and on a different note, I performed at two of the Sickipedia live events. I wouldn't have dreamed of doing that in any other environment, but knowing it all stemmed from b3ta meant I felt comfortable telling crap puns (the punchline to one joke was "Boutros Boutros Gnarly") on stage. In the last year I've also managed to get into the b3ta newsletter twice, which means I win the internet.
Ten years is a long time to be a part of something, however off-and-on. I'm incredibly grateful to be even a small part of it. Thanks to Rob and everyone else – you really created a beautiful monster.
( mikeisbrill, Mon 12 Sep 2011, 22:51, 4 replies)

RIP Stupid Bathroom
A rose by any other name
would smell as sweet
but if they were called, say 'Shitfuckers'
I doubt I'd buy a chick a bunch of them
( mictoboy shitting in your cunt since, Mon 12 Sep 2011, 22:53, closed)

Yeah!
There's a Microsoft Word document on my computer containing about 150 gems like that. Sadly the Paint drawings and the tragedy-based blogs are lost to the mists of time.
( mikeisbrill, Mon 12 Sep 2011, 23:03, closed)

mspaint is my favourie
you should see my fish, they're shit
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Mon 12 Sep 2011, 22:56, closed)

I remember
Bovine's drawing for the Stupid Bathroom main page...
( witchy is covered in BEES, Mon 12 Sep 2011, 23:49, closed)