I’ve been getting worse at remembering dates (it’s part of growing old). Last week was the seventh anniversary of Because I’m Depressed! Hard to believe it’s already been this long. It’s been a fun and fruitful seven years, and I hope to continue making these comics for many more. Where will Because I’m Depressed be in another seven years? Who can say..?

On a more somber note, Smack Jeeves is shutting down for good, as many of you are already aware. After buying out the site last year and managing to drive away most of the viewers and creators with a plethora of unpopular changes to the platform, NHN has decided to cut their losses and will be closing the site for good on December 31st. This is not a surprising development, but it still really blows. I joined Smack Jeeves way back in 2006, and it introduced me to the world of webcomics, a world with seemingly boundless content to explore, a world where anyone who so desires can author their own comic and share it with others. It was on Smack Jeeves that I first launched Because I’m Depressed in 2013.

When I reminisce about Smack Jeeves, it won’t be about its ignominious final year. It will be to the warm and enthusiastic community I was able to be a part of. It will be to the creator-friendly and reader-friendly platform that allowed the site to flourish. It will be to the thousands of amateur artists like me who got their start on that site. It will be to the authors, the viewers, the commenters, the admins, the forum moderators, and everyone else who made it all possible.

So pour one out for Smack Jeeves. It will be dearly missed.