Kimiko! Thank goodness you edited your short intro in quickly. I was worried you were gonna screw yourself on your first step here! But that's okay now.
Welcome to the PokéCommunity forums! Or as the regulars call it, PC! This place is gonna blow your mind, I swear. And I know that, from my first impression of you in Showdown to me recommending that you go here haha. First up, do NOT be intimidated. This place runs on fun, not nerves! The best few places to visit would be the following:
The forum-wide
rules, which I mentioned in our chat in PS, and this one is probably the most important, because it's gonna veer you off some troubles you might encounter! I mean you almost forgot to include an actual intro here, right? Those minor flubs will be history if you follow the stuff you'll see right there. There are also stickied local rules for every sub-forum atop its page, so you might want to check those out too!
The
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) which houses a lot of stuff that's not particularly obvious if you're new to forums. It also has lots of useful stuff for PC so it wouldn't hurt to check it out.
The
New Users' Hangout! Best place to get to know members new and old. I mean, it would suck if you only talked to me, right? Hahaha. Another place here in NU/W would be the
Adoption Center, a helpful thread for newbies! You'll get to have your personal mentor guiding you throughout your early days (like what I'm doing rn, but more long term). Lastly, our friendly NU/W elf/sheep/mod Cirno has a
handy-dandy set of links for you that will help you heaps!
Apart from that, it's a free for all! Just look at what interests you, check for the stickies to see if there are local rules you must follow, and post ahoy. So that's how I'll answer your first question, lol. As for your second, just know that life is good. Especially now that you're here! :DD Let's talk about animals and dem pocket monsters through visitor messages, okay? Again, a warm welcome to PC and I really hope you enjoy yourself. <33
PS: Reiko is really cute!