I’ve not written here in awhile.   In all honesty I’ve debated keeping the blog going at all.   I’ve changed since I started this and in order for the blog to continue to serve a useful purpose it has to change too.   Well, change it will.  Starting today…

Roleplay in SL can be anything from slaying dragons to chasing down a rogue vampire to having a child or even being a child.   If you think for a moment, to some respect we are all roleplaying in SL.   Our avatar is generally much different than we are in RL.   We do things in SL we’d never do in RL.   And before anyone gets in an uproar saying that their avatar and the person behind the keyboard are the same…. When was the last time you flew to the grocery store?   Exactly.  So like I said, in SL we do what we can’t/wouldn’t do in RL.  Some go a step further and roleplay within SL.

I never thought I’d be roleplaying in SL.   I’ve had friends who have been heavily involved in roleplay, Midian specifically for a long time.   They all tried to get me to join them and I was never interested.   I didn’t see the attraction.  Nor did I want to.  Well flash forward 2 years and one of my closest friends is RPing in Midian and asks me to come check it out.   Having reached one of those points in SL where everything seems to bore me I agree.   At the very least I’ll take some pictures.  We’ll I spent about an hour with her that night.  Next day I joined Midian.  I was hooked.  I joined the Catwalkers, went thru training and became a full Catwalker.   I’m sorting out what role I want to play in the Pride.  

In the process of joining the Catwalkers I sold some land to a few fellow Midianites.   Who could know that one of those folks would become someone very very special to me.

Ioh bought the land right next to me.  He was a Catwalker and had a bit of a reputation as a ladies cat lol .   He was nice enough though and I was happy to have him as a neighbor.  How it happened I don’t know.  We ended up roleplaying a bit in Midian together.   I loved every minute of it!

Over the course of the coming days he and I got to know each other.  We talked, we kissed, we ….(I’ll keep this a PG blog ) 

I fell in love with him.  I adore everything about him.   His kindness, warmth, honesty, trust, humor, intelligence are just a few of the many wonderful things about him.  I’ve had relationships in SL before, but none that can even compare to the way I feel about him and the bond he and I share.   He collared me at the end of January.  Huge step for me, to give someone else that kind of control is a big deal and not something I’d do lightly.   We partnered the next day.  We’re getting married at the end of April, in Midian.   It’s been a whirlwind but a wonderful one.  I’ve never been happier.

If it hadn’t been for roleplaying in Midian I’d never have met him or any of wonderful extended family in the Catwalkers.

The next time someone asks if you’ve ever roleplayed or if you want to, instead of saying no right off the bat, go follow them around a little, see what it’s all about.  Afterall, Rrish did and she’s enjoying herself.

So, as you may have guessed, the blog is going to be more focused on what Bails is doing in SL.  Whether it’s role play in Midian or DJing at the Crown. Which I’m doing tonight by the way.

To those who know me well, they’ll know that my avie has gone thru quite a few changes in the last couple of months.  The most notable of this is she’s completely neko now.  Not just part time, all the time.  She’s also sporting a lovely leopard skin.

The reasons for making these changes isn’t really the point of this post.  The fact remains that this is who Bailey is.  Now last night I was out shopping with a friend.  This friend happens to be a child av and that child av is my daughter.  The person behind the av is a good friend and I am old enough to be her mother!

The point of all of this was a couple comments directed toward me in IM.  I’ve also heard a number of comments from other people about child avs.  Course I’ve heard loads of comments about nekos in general, Gor slaves, kid avies, furries etc etc  These comments range from the bland to vile things I’d never repeat.

Hearing these comments disappoints me.  This is second life, a place where you can be anyone and anything you wish to be.  Shouldn’t everyone else be able to do the same?  What does it matter to you if I’m out shopping with my daughter?  I’m not asking you to recognize her as my daughter, I’m not even asking you to say hello.  Ignore us if it makes you feel better.   The same would be said for all the others I mentioned above. 

If your out shopping and you see a Gor slave kneeling half naked or a furry, or a vampire or any of the others I’ve mentioned above and you don’t like it, ignore it.  They aren’t asking for you to interact with them.  They are simply there to shop just like you.  Don’t stare, don’t grimace and don’t run to AR them.  Leave them alone, let them shop in peace.  No one is asking you to interact with someone  you don’t wish to. 

I will say though, it’s still polite to say "I’m sorry" when you body slam someone trying to get in the store.

So yeah, I’m disappointed in some of my fellow residents.  Who knew that when we logged in to SL to escape the crap in RL we’d let all that bigotry, hate, and intolerance in.

The next time I’m out shopping with my daughter or son and someone makes a comment, I’m going to ignore them.  I’m not going to waste a moment of my time acknowledging them and their small minds.

The next time your out shopping and you see a Gor slave/master think abou this before you comment, would you tell a neko to take off their tail and ears before going shopping?  Does the fairy or angel need to take her wings off?  Are you going to tell that Vampire , sorry put the teeth away?  What about the robot , can’t even imagine what problem anyone would have with a robot.

Stop being judgmental against someone because you neither understand why they do what they do nor approve of it.  It’s not up to you to like it, or approve it.  They are entitled to live their own second lives as they see fit.

*end rant*

UPDATE:  I’ve closed comments on this post and I will no longer allow comments on this blog that do not stay on track with the message delivered in the post.

Apparently confessions are good for the soul so I’m going to start this week off with one of my own.  So here it is:  I always thought roleplay in SL was silly and a waste of time.

Why am I blogging this *confession*?  Well, quite  simply because I started roleplaying this weekend.  So here’s what happened…

I have quite a few friends who roleplay.  For the most part, they are all roleplaying in Midian City.  Now I’d been to Midian in the past to take a few pictures but I was always there *out of character*.  Getting involved in roleplay held no interest for me.   Thru conversations they would have I’d hear about what was going on.  I’d see the pictures they would post to their Flickr streams along with the story that went behind it.  To be perfectly honest, I was fascinated.  I’ve been riveted by the stories I’ve seen and heard. 

Now anyone who has seen me lately knows I’m back to being a Neko.  Black fluffy tail, black ears and new tats.  This was going to be the year of taking some risks and stepping out of my comfort zone.  Frankly, I’m enjoying being a cat.  So the other night I popped over to Midian to take a few pictures while my friends were over there.   While I was snapping away a bit of roleplay started and I seemed to have landed in the middle of it.  I was out of character so I just sat and watched and listened and I have to say, totally enjoyed it.    So, when I was asked if I would consider roleplaying in Midian I said sure. 

I spent a good part of the weekend in Midian.  Met quite a few people, did some roleplaying and was given an invite to be a Catwalker Pledge.  And so it begins….  I’m looking forward to this.  It’s new, it’s different and for me, it’s stepping out of that comfort zone that I’ve been way to stuck in.  I know I’ve got a lot to learn when it comes to roleplay but I’m looking forward to it and I’m looking forward to getting to know my new family, the Catwalkers.

So, if you see "Bails" in Midian don’t be too surprised.

They do matter.  Lets all be honest here, appearances matter.  Men and women alike are drawn to whatever we define as attractive.  That definition of attractive is different to all of us.  What is true of everyone though is that in that first instance of seeing a new avatar we form an opinion.  Right or wrong, we do it.  Some keep an open mind until they get to know that new avatar, others have decided in that blink of an eye whether or not that new avatar will get the time of day.

Lets think about this for a minute.  You see an avatar on your screen, they don’t speak, don’t move.  They are just standing there and you are forming an opinion of them.  Don’t say you don’t, we all do.  What we do with that opinion is what’s important.

Ahuva commented on her blog yesterday about someone *suggesting* she needed an AO.  Why does she?  If she’s quite happy with how she walks or stands or sits far be it from me to tell her she *has* to have one.  If she wants one I’ll point her in a few directions but that’s her choice.  I had to have one, I hated watching myself walk around like I had a stick up my butt or that goofy hand on the hip stand.  So, I bought one and  used it for a good 2 years.  I just bought a new one and I love it for it’s convenience.  Ever try to sit somewhere and not be able to???  This AO fixes that. So YaY! 

Ok, so what do you do with that opinion you’ve got?  If it looks like a new resident you’ll have one opinion.  Keep in mind though, that *new resident* could be someone that’s been in world for 2 + years and is just creating an alt.  Can’t judge a book by it’s cover.

While I can appreciate a well put together avatar, it’s what that person has to say that really matters to me.  Intelligent, funny, passionate(about something other than sex ), friendly, compassionate, tolerant.  These are all things that matter to me.  Make yourself an elf, a neko, a furry, robot, whatever.  If you have the above in your personality, chances are I’m going to like you.

Our appearance is as important as you make it be.  That noob you just met could be the most fascinating person to talk to you.  If you don’t take the chance to talk to them though, how will you ever know.  They could also be a jerk so you have to take the good with the bad.

In SL, our avatars appearance reflects how we want to be seen.  It’s not *who* we are.  Next time, don’t discount someone just because of how they look, what they are wearing, whether or not they have AO etc.  Take a minute and talk to them.  You might be very glad you did.