Here I am again . . .

I just checked my blog spot out and discovered I hadn’t blogged in almost 2 years.  I wonder if I should do a hasty this is what happened the last two years or should I just start from where I am now. 

OK, I will go about it “in a nutshell.” 

I continued my SL by getting more and more involved with Dreams.  I developed a very close friendship with The Sojourner.  Soj spent her last Thanksgiving in the hospital.  I teased her about trying to get out of cooking a big dinner.  I could sense that this illness took a lot from her.  I tried to help her in any way I could.  In spite of her lack of energy, she decided to take on the Community Fair.  It wore her out.  She spent more time off line than in the past.  I worried about my friend, and continued to help her and to encourage her. 

From her profile: 

The Sojourner (Karen Gans) passed away May 25, 2008, after an extended illness. She is missed by her Second Life friends.

Golda Stein and Dorie Bernstein have taken on the responsibility to keep Dreams alive. Please contact them if you need further information.

Now you know what I have been doing in my SL>

http://tributetothesojourner.wikispaces.com/The+Memorial+Service

Nobody reads my Blog

A friend gave me a t-shirt yesterday that said, Nobody Reads My Blog.  Well, I have said that.  But, I after seeing the date of my last blog, I think, it is my own fault. 

 Ok, I wrote a blog, but need to transfer it from my laptop and do a proof on it.  I wonder if I start blogging more, it will be read more.  Hmmmm

Rat will wear the t-shirt until all of her blogging is caught up.

The Waterfall

I entered another building contest at Dreams, the subject is waterfalls.   The events area was transformed with hills and water and a boardwalk.  My project is the one on the far corner from the entrance.  It looks very simple, in comparison to many of the other entries.  I have one small waterfall that flows partially down the hill and then freefalls to a pond like area.  I used
Linden trees by the dozen to make a natural, in the woods looking scene.  I had a path that led up to my quiet spot, which was furnished with a log to sit on.  The problem was falling off the path and over the side of the hill and into the water.  I solved the problem by constructing a structure with high sides and then using totally clear as the texture. 

In my instructions I included a poem. 

There is a place in the forest

Where people stop to admire

A waterfall

And take pictures,

Paint, and draw.

But those who choose,

Follow the treacherous path

To be embraced by nature

And soothed by her heartbeat.

 

 

Dreams Contests have two different winners, a judged winner and a popular winner.  As much as I would like to win, I have to remind myself that the important part of the contest is what I learn from it.  Today, the day I am posting this, is the last day to vote.  Friday the build will just be a memory as the contest will be over and the winner announced. 

I will actually miss this build.  I have found that sitting on the log is a peaceful hiding place.  Like I said in the poem, only a few will take the time to climb the hill to sit and be embraced by nature.  SL is no different than RL.  We get so involved with doing things and interacting with others that we have no time for introspection.  So, I am not going to apologize for my sporadic blogging.  I am not asking for votes.  I am just suggesting to slow down and take time to sit and clear the brain.

SL Wedding

Asphyxia Lemieux and Furlop Duport were married last night on theFurry Vermin Island.  Agent Strangelove presided.

I arrived at the wedding site early, but not too early.  Dressing for weddings can be such a problem, and I wanted to look my best.  I wore a black dress with blue polka dots.  You have to understand being a rat and dressing for a formal occasion can be a real problem in SL because of attachments.  Only one thing can attach at any one spot.  Most flex skirts attach where my tail attaches and I can’t look like a rat without my tail. My next problem is the hair.  My hair inventory far surpasses my clothing inventory.  I settled for a short “do” with blue tips.  Since this was an outside wedding and it is winter I wore my emerald cape.  I did look smashing if I can say so myself.

 

I looked around at the other guests.  I didn’t know what music was playing because all that came to my mind is “Froggie went a courting’ and he did ride.”  Second Life seemed to be imitating Mother Goose.  The furries, cats, rats, rabbits, and what ever, were dressed in their best.  There were even people looking like, strangely enough, humans.  The setting was just perfect.  The ceremony, solemn. 

I will take the liberty to share sections of the transcript of the wedding which in itself describes the wedding.  I will delete the repetition of the speaker’s name. 

  

Agent Strangelove coughs softly.  “We are gathered here tonight to witness the extraordinary coming together of two furs, Asphyxia Lemieux and Furlop Duport, whose hearts and spirits are entwined as one. Like the passing lunar eclipse which took place a near hour ago. This lapine, who like the earth will merge with this skunkette as his moon, will become one as they join together on this special and joyous occasion.  To these young furs, this marriage signifies the birth of a new spirit, a spirit which is a part of each of us, yet not of any one of us alone. This “birth of spirit” reminds us of winter, the season when all life is cold and lifeless. It is appropriate, therefore, that this wedding of Asphyxia Lemieux and Furlop Duport be in the winter, and that it be under the open sky, on this beach near this broken Lighthouse, the symbol of their relationship.  We leap forward at the flow of the tide and resist in terror of its ebb, for we are afraid it will never return. We insist on permanence, on duration, on continuity. But the only possible in life, as in love, is in growth, in fluidity and in freedom, as dancers are free, barely touching as they pass, but partners in creating the same pattern.”

 Agent Strangelove: The beliefs and thoughts about love which motivate these two furs are perhaps best expressed in the words of Kahlil Gibran:  “Love is the most awful weapon known to the human and furry races. It can twist a male, wring him up into a tight wad until his blood spills out upon the stone reality, until he shrivels, and is a dry husk. If you ever search for evil, begin with love…”Agent Strangelove frowns and shakes his head apologetically and says: “Erf, hmm. Wrong quote. Sorry folks.” Clearing his throat the fox continues with the propor quote. 

I will shorten this to get to the ring ceremony and the vows. 

Furlop Duport: “I, Furlop Duport, take you, Asphyxia Lemiuex, as my friend and love, to fetch me pie and have dinner on the table, in laughter and in tears, in conflict and tranquility, to nag me never and not question my judgement, asking that you be no other than yourself, loving what I know of you, trusting what I do not know of yet, in all the ways that life may find us.  I give you this ring as a symbol of my vow, because this ring has no end or beginning, it symbolizes your unending devotion to me as my *faithful* wife.”

Asphyxia Lemieux: “I Asphyxia Lemieux, promise to allow you, Furlop Duport, to love, honor, cherish and *obey* me for the rest of your days, as my friend and love, beside me, and apart from me, on your knees as you worship me, from now until you draw your last breath, asking that you be no other than yourself, loving what I know of you, trusting what I do not know yet, in all the ways that life may find us. I give you this ring as a symbol of my vow to you. Let it be a reminder that you are forever bound by my side and that you will always be a faithful partner to me.”

 

The reception was held in The Dragon’s Roost where the guests danced away the night to a live DJ.  I stayed until my head was falling too close to the keyboard. 

 

I started with being more human than furry, now I am more furry than human.  In fact when I got into SL, I didn’t understand the furry.  The more I got to know them, the more I liked them.  Then I got my rat av.  I have learned so much from the fur. 

 

Last night I saw that the bonds of Asphyxia and Furlop were not the bonds of sex and luv but a true and deep friendship based on the respect of each other and seasoned with laughter.  Their ceremony reflected them, respectful, and flavorful. 

 

Thank you, Asphyxia, for including me in your friends list and inviting me to your wedding.  I am deeply touched.  I propose a toast:  “May the partnership you share with Furlop last all your days in SL and your friendship with him grow and continue to be well seasoned.”

What you see is not always the way it is

What you see in SL is not always what others see.  I was sitting there in my cat suit and wearing my butterfly wings in place on my back and my tail snuggled into the ground.  A picture popped up on my screen of me sitting on the ground with my wings attached to my ears and my tail coming out of my head like a pony tail.  I have been in situation s where I was seeing me wrong and where others were seeing me wrong.  I crashed before I could find out if I was messed up or not.

My head in my what?

I teleported to my home from Club Extreme.  When I arrived my head  was in my butt, my tail was attached to my head.  I could not find my shins.  My feet were around because I could see my toes sticking out of me.  <sigh> This could only happen in SL.

Sculpture

I have finished my giant tortoise.  I started making him over a month ago, shortly after my release from Big Brother.  I enjoy making 3D sculptures in SL.  These tend to take me countless hours; I refuse to keep track of my time that I spend on them.  Often I can only work a few hours at a time before reaching frustration.  Prims must be manipulated to simulate the look of real life.  It is a challenge.  Though I am not making a real life looking object, I want it to look enough like what it is without having to tell anyone what I made. 

My first sculpture was a sea otter that I did for a Dreams competition.  I copied a small sculpture that I brought home from my Alaskan Cruise.  My finished product amazed me, it was a duplicate.  But being me, I felt like it wasn’t totally my art work.  I needed to work from something besides something someone else had made.

The next one I did was an elephant.  Though it started from an inspiration of a sculpture that is at the Omaha Zoo, the two do not look alike.  The only similarity is that the elephants are both in the sitting position.  Working from a 2D picture and forming a 3D image presented a new challenge.  I used picture mainly to develop a sense of proportion.  I had trouble with the feet.  I don’t remember how many different ways I did the feet, but I know the delete key was used liberally.  The biggest problem was the texture.  I had intended to make it look like a brass sculpture.  Nothing I did worked for me.  One day, while taking what I called a frustration break, I checked out a few lucky chairs.  The black and red décor of an Asian inspired store gave me the idea of an Ebony Elephant.  Using the blank texture and then black did the trick.  I learned that the blackest black hid the lines and shape.  I had to use a less intense black color.  The different lighting from the different times of day changes the look of the elephant with light reflections.

I saw a cat made out of a sphere in a RL store.  I took home the memory and made a cat.  It is very symmetrical and went together quickly.  I used the basic idea, but the cat is definitely something that came from my mind.

And that brings me to the tortoise.  My favorite sculpture at the Omaha Zoo is the giant tortoise.  I had wanted to try this earlier, but felt overwhelmed.  Other than my photos from the zoo, I did a lot of on-line research.  I watched a video of a walking tortoise to help with feet and leg placement.  My biggest problem was the feet.  I finally gave up and not even looked at my project for over a week.  Then I had inspiration about how to handle the feet.  Within a few hours I had the feet on and the tortoise textured. The rock texture I used came quite by accident.  Often I use different colors or textures while building to help with prim placement and size as it is easier to see shape and placement when things aren’t the same color.  I don’t know what possessed me to use rock texture during this phase.  While I worked on the sculpture and studied giant tortoises, I felt that the rock gave a sense of antiquity and survival.  My favorite part is the face.  It went together quickly for me and developed a neat personality. 

After I complete a sculpture I bake it.  Well, at least that is what I call it.  I place it where I will see it regularly.  This gives me a chance to tweak things before setting it out to sell. 

I have no idea what my next sculpture will be, except it will be an animal.  I have some on going projects that need working on.  So, until I get an inspiration from somewhere I will be busy, but not sculpturing. 

Road Trip

 

I got a new car this week.  It is totally unnecessary in SL, but I got it anyway.  It all started when Dorie announced that she was hired to teach a SL class on customizing the Toyota Scion.  Prior to the time she gave the actual class, she did a lot of changing and customizing the look of the car. 

 

I attended one of the first classes and got my car.  I have one other car in my inventory, but it is too big for rat.  After sitting in this car the first time, I determined that it fit the rat perfectly.  The HUD made it easy to change colors.  I could hardly wait for class to be over.  I don’t care about customizing, I wanted to drive.  I knew who was behind the development of this car and I figured it would be fun to drive.

 

After class I teleported to the Hobo place which is situated along the old brick road.  The trip went from bad to worse.  I had a hard time staying on the road.  I sunk in the road.  I crashed into a building.  I disappeared. My computer crashed.  After logging back in, the car was in lost and found.

 

The next morning I took the car for a spin at a place that sold houses.  The land was flat.  I crashed a few times but nothing serious.  But, since it was Wednesday, and the
Linden monkeys needed time to bang around, I returned to the real world.  I drove the mini van and, in spite of the snow and ice, didn’t crash.

 

That brings me to today.  I have so many projects going, that I decided to go for a road trip instead of working.  That is a basic ratatude, you know, part of rat ADD.  Dorie wanted me to let her know how things went so she could give her students hints on driving.  That gave me a cover up for my laziness.

 

So here are some of my tips for taking a Road Trip in Second Life.  Before I continue, those who know me in real life know that I worked for AAA in domestic travel.  I plotted out trips on maps, made hotel reservations and made suggestions for sight seeing.  My favorite vacation is packing up the mini van and heading south west.  Travel is different in SL.  You don’t have many roads.  Gas stations aren’t needed.  But, using a form of transportation in SL that is common in RL is a fun but different experience.

 

The first problem is getting onto the road.  Governor Linden, who owns the public roads, does not permit you to rez prims on them.  I flew above the properties next to the road until I found a place that did not ban building.  I rezzed the Scion, sat in it, edited it and placed it on the road with me in it.  Sometimes when I did this the car wouldn’t run.  I found that if I stood up and then sat back in it, it worked.  It seems strange that once a car is on the road, it will stay there, even if you aren’t attached.  Once I crashed, and before relogging, cleared my cache.  The car was still there when I returned. 

 

Crossing sim lines can be exciting.   I would move slowly across the borders but would often find myself and the car beneath ground level.  I learned if I didn’t move and just waited I would soon be back on the top of the road and ready to move on.  I kept my mini map showing.  I had to move the HUD so I could read both.

 

I learned it is easier to drive the car while in mouse look.  Relogging will help with car performance.  You can’t talk and drive at the same time.  And, watch out for hitchhikers, they don’t wait for an invitation to ride, they just jump in. 

 

I enjoyed today’s road trip.  But now I would like to modify my car just a bit.  It needs to look more like Rat’s car.  I hadn’t listened during Dorie’s class, so I started to ask her about things and she told me to join the class again.  I have until February 8^th.  I guess I’ll just have to go back.  I’ll try sneaking in the back door; maybe she won’t see me.

 

Newbie Stories

The last few weeks I have been spending a lot of my time at home base at Meyers.  I cleared my property of excess prims in order to place the lighthouse along the river edge.  I have gone through my inventory making liberal use of the delete key.  And I entertained or was entertained by newbies.

 

I wanted the front of my barrel to be clearer, and without thinking, I did it without selecting texture before changing the transparency number.  A newbie flew into my barrel and made herself at home.  “Is there work here?”  she asked.  I wanted clarification and asked if she meant Second Life or the sim.  She was interested in working in SL and wanted to experience it.  I suggested that she would do a search.  She informed me that others told her to do that.  She wanted to know who the boss was.  She didn’t want to work for Linden Labs.  I didn’t figure she did.  She wanted escort and dancing jobs.  By then she had made herself at home and sat on my wicker couch.  She suggested I should sit with her.  I had better things to do than to entertain.  When I have good feelings about a newbie, I will cancel my plans and make them my focus and help them get a start in SL.  I didn’t feel that way about her.   I pulled out a rat head from inventory, placed it on a chair and proceeded to customize it.  It is kind of unsettling to see a head with blinking eyes on a chair.  We chit chatted a bit.  She got bored and left.  Lesson:  Bodiless rats with blinking eyes can spook newbies.

 

I had the barrel front back to being transparent from the inside only.  I sorted through gestures, deleting the most of them. A newbie was roaming around my place when I came across “I smell a newbie” gesture.  She could see crazy statements in chat, and if her sound was on, hear the statements and music as I tested the various gestures.  I don’t remember what was all contained in the newbie gesture, but she sure made a hasty exit when I played it.

 

I was at Bernstein’s with a friend and a newbie wandered in.  He complimented the set up and I told him it was a store that we were in the process of stocking with inventory.  If, he thought it was a home, why did he just come in without an invitation?  When finding out that it was a business, he said there wasn’t very much in it.  Didn’t I just tell him that?

 

Newbies will stick out because of their clothes and skin.  This doesn’t bother me.  People need time to discover SL and themselves within the SL environment.  What bothers me about so many is that they forget to bring manners along with them when they enter SL.  I wonder if those that stick with SL are those who do bring in manners with themselves.  These are the ones who are more likely to receive assistance from long term residents.

 

Identity Crisis

Yesterday I came face to face with someone who looked pretty much like me, a small grey rat.  I was stunned.  How could someone steal my identity?  I checked my friends list, the imposter was not there.  How did she find me?  Easy, I have my home base on my profile.  But I had to deal with the current situation.

 

I stood in front of my barrel house wearing a cat suit and a cape, the Lillani look.  Lately, Rat has been into other avatar’s identities.  This all started in the Big Brother House after Phaylen had given me the red beehive hair.  I had found a dress in my inventory and ended up looking like diva rat.

 

I am the one with the problem, not the small grey rat in front of me.  I could easily see differences between the two of us.  We talked about tails, mine, hers and where to get a different one.  I mentioned having a tail with a different attachment position so I can wear the flex skirts.  I needed to log off to attend to rl.  We added each other to the friends lists.

 

I had to examine rat in the cat suit.  I determined that I was not trying to look and act like Lillani.  But, the use of others styles shows the playfulness of rat. 

 

Earlier, while waiting for my car to be serviced, I read most of “Second Life, the official guide.”  The book pointed out that you can change your avatar’s appearance as often as you like.  In SL you have the chance to be whoever you want to be.

 

Rat evolved.  First, it was the avatar, as purchased, and then a new tail.  Slowly other changes were made, the biggest change, the use of a smaller shape.  Rat’s hair and clothing started with shorts and t shirts ended up having to have a separate folder.  Rat developed character.  At first, being rat was a way to be able to explore without the interference of others.  As she evolved, she began to get the “how cute” from people.  Most people tend not to take her seriously.  She could say things my human wouldn’t.  She also got into places my human would have stayed out of.  She likes having fun.  She lives in a barrel, but thinks out of the box.  She is a loner, but also enjoys people.  Rat has ADD, (attention deficit disorder).

 

To my new friend, Leona:  Welcome to my world, the sl rat race.  I am delighted that I have had in influence with your choice of a sl identity.  I look forward to the development of our friendship.  And, being true to rat’s personality, I have some advice for you.  Rat is good at giving advice, whether you want it or not.  Take the time to feel yourself as a rat.  Develop your own style and personality.  Be open to change.  After all, this is second life.