Yea, it's going to take time to adjust to the new system. But eventually we'll get used to it.
I'm like you: definitely upvote-happy. :) But even though I'm not upvoting as much (I did upvote you though, heehee), I still write comments and enjoy talking to people.
Hope the pottery (potting? that doesn't sound right... pot-making sounds even worse!) goes well and you can release yourself from the Steemit brain-vise-grip for a bit. :)
The pottery making is going well, thank you!! Did me good to take a break from here and concentrate on the clay. :-)