The idea that Phillip brought up about merging the Teen and Main grid has been bantered about all over the blogosphere.  While I can appreciate both sides of the argument I think attempting this with the issues LL currently has is a mistake.

There is no doubt I’ve met some talented and very mature minors on the main grid.  I’m sure there are far more out there than I know about.  They are smart and creative and savvy enough to not broadcast their age.  They are breaking the rules yes but kudos to them for trying something.

There are 2 sides to every argument of course.  Those who support letting all the kids in to the main grid and those who don’t.  I doubt anyone is suggesting just throwing the doors open and letting anyone thru without some form of verification that you are who you say you are.  This is where some people lose me.  You are signing up for SecondLife, many have blogs, many have even referred to their RL in those blogs.  Why are you so against some sort of verification that you are who you say you are when you enter sl?  No one is entirely anonymous on the internet.  An enterprising 13yr old could hack your website, find your bank account and buyout the video store before you even notice.  I realize that’s an exaggeration but you get my point.

Now granted, some worry about handing out personal details.  Fair enough.  Look at it from a different view though.  By verifying you are protecting yourself.  Your saying, "yep, this is who I am" to LL.  Now it’s up to LL to protect that information by not sharing it, letting it get "lost" or stolen.  Perhaps I’m being nieve but at some point you’ve got to trust a system to work as it’s intended.  So, I age verified, it took 5 mins.  I have payment info on file, it took 5 mins.  LL knows who I am and so does everyone else in SL that I’ve chosen to tell.  I make no secret of it, I just *choose* who I tell.

What does all that have to do with merging the 2 grids?  It’s one of the things LL will have to do if they want teens and adults to co-exist openly.  I don’t want to have to alter what I do in SL because a kid may be on the sim.  Not when my sim is set to mature.  I don’t want to have to tell the residents of my island what they can or can’t do on their property because a kid may show up at the mall in the middle of the sim.

By the same token I’d expect there to be some strong rules about behaviour in kid friendly areas.  I’ve no problem following the rules in such an area if I can set my own on my sim.

I’ve long since thought that parents should be able to spend time with their kids in SL.  Maybe that’s the place to start integrating.  Set up a "family" area.  See how it works.  Allow family members to bring people in if they want to.  It could be a great thing.

It’ll be interesting to see how this pans out.  As Blue said in the concierge chat last night they’ve wanted to do this for 2 years.  I’ll reserve judgement for now and wait to see what happens.

So, wow been a busy few days now hasn’t it.  To say that the grid had issues this past weekend would be an understatement.  Logins were on and off more often than…. well, it was a lot.  Don’t rezz no copy items, teleports down, stale transactions and I won’t even talk about what Midian was like.

I’ve been a resident for over 2 years now.  Way back when I was still in my Ruth skin this kind of behaviour was normal.  Hair and shoes hanging off your arse, unable to walk across a sim line.  It was awful.  But it got better.  It really did.  In fact the majority of 2008 was awesome.  Crashs happen but not often.  No weird attachments.  And if the grid went down, everyone got booted(well, except Prad).  In fact every Wednesday the grid would go down, we’d all log in to RL and eventually the grid came back up and life went on.  Glitches happened of course but they usually fixed themselves in an hour or two.

This last week and especially this past weekend has been the worst I’ve seen in 2 years.  People spamming their groups to not log out because logins were disabled.  Then once you inevitably crashed, trying in vain to log back in.  To say I was annoyed would be an understatement.  I don’t usually complain about LL.  I know they are doing the best they can.  At least I hope they are.  But whatever it is that sent the grid into a tailspin this past week needs to get fixed.  And soon. 

There are a lot of us paying a great deal of money every month.  We expect excellent service and a product that works.  Glitches will happen, we get that.  But I have to say I’d rather know the grid was gonna be down for 4 hours on one day then lose 4 hours in little bits and pieces over the course of 3 days. 

As far as the buyout of Xstreetxl and Onrez…. I’ll reserve judgement until I see what they intend to do with it.

Roleplay is a big deal in SL for many residents.  There are any number of areas you can roleplay in from the many Gorean sims to the medieval Avilion to the urban dark side of Midian and Toxian City.  If you’ve got an interest in roleplay then there is a place out there for you.

Now I’ve already confessed here that I’ve started roleplaying in Midian City and that I’m really enjoying it.  I’ve been a part of this for about a week now and thought I’d share my thoughts about role playing and Midian specifically. 

First, I realize many people look down on avs who roleplay.  Honestly I don’t know why though.  Even before I started I never looked down on anyone for it.  Personally I will never understand the Gor sims but that’s just me.  To each their own and as long as you don’t expect me to "roleplay" on a non-Gor sim, we’re all good.  If I’m on a roleplay sim taking pictures, I wear an observer or OOC(out of character) tag and respect those who are roleplaying.  Out in the rest of the world, I’m just me, no character to play.

I’ve come to learn that roleplay is not as easy as one might think who has never done it.  I would compare it to writing a play as it’s being acted out.  You are reacting to the other characters you encounter and many times you don’t know exactly what they are going to do or how they are going to react. 

I started roleplaying in Midian because several of my friends have and are and it struck me one night that it would be fun.  Since I started I’ve learned quite a bit and not just about roleplaying, about myself too.  See the character I’ve created in Midian has many of the traits I have so playing her isn’t much of a departure from just being myself.  I would think that to be successful in roleplay you need to identify with your character.  Unless you are a really good actor, playing someone contrary to your natural character is going to be difficult.

So now I’m roleplaying.  I’ve lots to learn still but I’m looking forward to the process.  I’m just thankful I managed to jump from roof to roof last night without making a total arse of myself in front of Elise.

I’m certainly not the expert on roleplaying but if you never have and think you want to, I say go for it.  If you want to hang out in Midian and get a feel for things, IM me I can show you around. 

=^.^=

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.

If you aren’t familiar with the poem by Robert Frost  I suggest reading it.  It’s really one of my favorite poems.  When I first logged in to SL, SL was the road not taken and as the last line in the poem says, *And I took the one less traveled by and it has made all the difference.*  For me SL was an unknown.  I saw it on TV and thought it looked cool so I logged in.  I picked up the basics of movement, flying, talking and changing my appearance fairly quickly.  I didn’t though know anything about this place, where I could go, what I could do.  I met some great people in the Welcome area who took me out shopping or dancing or just out for a wander but no one told me or even showed me that I could *DO* anything.  I had no idea that everything I saw was created by residents.  I had no idea that I had the same tools at my disposal that they did.  Perhaps I was just not paying attention.  Perhaps I wasn’t interested.  When I think back to those first few months, my focus was on people.  Meeting people.  People from all over the world that I would never have had a chance to meet or speak to otherwise.

Aribeth, my first and dearest friend, introduced me to a whole different world within this crazy world.  We crashed a wedding.  The after party was at the Three Lions Pub.  That one event sparked a year of making new friends, learning new things, exploring, love, loss, laughter, sadness, heartbreak, anger and above it all a sense of happiness and belonging.  These people came to be my family.  Many of them are gone or have wandered off on to other things but the ones I grew the closest too I still see and speak to every day.  They are family.

The Three Lions is gone but not forgotten.  In it’s place grew several pubs/bars/clubs.  A few remain and are still going strong.  New friends are made.  New memories made.  New experiences, trying new things.  We change, we grow, we learn and we are better for it.

I get IMs from people many times in world saying *I’m bored*.  Usually when I get these I’m at my busiest.  Either building something or DJing or talking to a resident.  Now there are times I log in and either don’t know what to do with myself or no one is around to talk to and I’ll feel *bored*.  That’s when I’ll either go look for places to take pictures, go shopping or just wander or even log back into RL.  What I use to entertain myself may not work for everyone but I learned long ago that SL is what you make of it.  If you don’t venture out of your comfort zone and try something new, you will eventually get bored.  Everytime I’ve started to get bored in SL i’ve learned something new.  Photoshop, making animations, torturing prims, and learning new building techniques and perfecting the ones I have.

I own 3 sims, a bar, a club, a Homeowner’s group that is growing every day, a fairly successful blog, I’m a decent photographer ;) and I’m planning all kinds of new stuff for the coming year. 

*Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -

I took the one less traveled by, …*

I plan to take the less traveled paths.  To forge my own path.

I apologize up front, this is a longish post. If you read all the way to the end though, I think you’ll have a good laugh.

Most of us collect quotes.  Whether it’s a pic in our profile or a series of notecards we keep.  Below are just a few that I’ve collected over the last 2 years.  It’s by no means a complete list, just the ones I want to share.  If you have any you’d like to share, leave a comment!

*warning, those easily offended, stop reading.

Pradisms

• Just a few pearls of wisdom and nonsense from himself.

Prad on being gay:

Prad says: I’m entitled to have my girly giddy moment

Prad Prathivi : I can be gay.. just give me 5 minutes and a lot of vaseline.
Prad Prathivi : ugh.. I can’t believe I said that.. 0.o

Prad Prathivi : It’s about time I had a gay relationship

Prad Prathivi : I wish I was gay..

Prad Prathivi : Man, I wish I was gay..

Prad Prathivi says: You know straight guys don’t wear earrings right?
Ryker Beck says: You’re straight?!
Ryker Beck says: O.O
Prad Prathivi says: o
Prad Prathivi says: m
Prad Prathivi says: g
Prad Prathivi says: DIE

Prad Prathivi : ummm.. that reminds me
Prad Prathivi : ummm
Prad Prathivi : hmmm
Prad Prathivi : ummm
Holly Klaxon : What?
Prad Prathivi : Can I borrow some lingerie off you this weekend?

Pheobe Petrov : I hate it when a guy won’t go down.
Prad Prathivi says: I hate it when they do.

Just Prad :

Prad Prathivi : this place is smexy
Prad Prathivi : I’m the best architect in SL
Prad Prathivi : rawr

Prad Prathivi : I’ll try anyone once.

Prad Prathivi : I’m not worth much, anyways

Prad says: I gravitate to anything with a pulse

Prad says: My fingers hurt.. >.<

Prad Prathivi : I’ll pop over in a sex

Prad Prathivi : fall on your knees. Guys like that.

Bailey Longcloth : you’ll just have to accept that somethings you don’t know
Prad Prathivi : I can’t accept that

Prad Prathivi : I’m sure I can be bribed..

Prad Prathivi : I just don’t know when to shut up..

Prad Prathivi : Who’s Prad
Prad Prathivi : ?
Prad Prathivi : DO NOT ANSWER THAT

Prad Prathivi : I wouldn’t kick her(jayjay) out of bed..? 0.o

Prad Prathivi : Errrr.. so I just did something a bit dumb and banned myself from the pub just to see what would happen.. can someone take me off the ban orb, please? =)
Prad Prathivi waits for it

Prad Prathivi : I said I could see your cleavage, anyways

Prad Prathivi : Lies!!
Prad Prathivi : I like ballgags too.

Prad Prathivi : lol – trying to work out what that online indicator was
Prad Prathivi : Turns out it was an online indicator

Prad Prathivi : When I twiddle my knob, it makes random weird stuff appear.. 0.o
Rrishanna Regina bites her tongue.
Prad Prathivi : ummm..
Prad Prathivi : Out of context, that’s a little bad..
Prad Prathivi : 0.o
Rrishanna Regina : you think?
Prad Prathivi : hush
Prad Prathivi : 0.o

A few gems heard at the Crown and Pearl

You just never know what someone will say if you spend enough time at the Crown.

Kitty O’Toole :  It’s like Anal, you like it or you don’t

Bailey Longcloth :  I’ll try it

Landsend Korobase : my boobies have freckles now!

Landsend Korobase : I like your drunken fingers Simmi
Simmi Althouse drunkenly fingers LK an little more

Hero Harbour : whatever Bailey wants Hero does

Landsend Korobase : I broke him(Prad ) anyway, his thingy doesn’t work anymore

Rrishanna Regina sighs…I really hate catching crabs

Tee Kenzo : mmm horse penis…

Dellik Snoring : im really dumb……

Kitty Otoole : basically, i just want to see Prad ’s willy:)
Kitty Otoole : Then I can die happy
Kitty Otoole : I figure with his success rate he must have one helluva appendage

Rrishanna Regina : I leaned over the desk to turn up the volume on the speakr and my boob hit the keyboard

Rrishanna Regina : I’m barefoot, bald and my pants are going to fall down

Landsend Korobase : Prad doesn’t count, he’s sexually ambiguous

Landsend Korobase blows goats too ^^

Rrishanna Regina : pmsl.  You can only watch a guy clean himself with his tongue after using the toilet so much and then you just gotta leave?

Alann Whitfield : I saw Pavarotti live… And I tell you now, He didn’t like when you sung along

Luna Hula : Oh hai, who are you & what are you doing in my Landsend storage facility >.>

Luna Hula packs Lands away for later & goes off on a wild adventure

Vine Talamasca : hmmm…good work young padiwan.
Landsend Korobase : yay! *accidentally lasers off the nearest apprentices hand in my excitement* Um, I did a boo-boo…

Dark Otsuzum : Well if the woman is really ugly I make her wear the condom on her head. But you can’t beat a paper bag.
Dark Otsuzum : It works as a contraceptive too. When I am about to come I whip the condom off her head and the moment passes.

Rrishanna Regina : equality? We already know we’re better than you guys…we just want you guys to admit it.
Johan Rosca : lol
Landsend Korobase : lmao
Johan Rosca : I admit nothing.
Johan Rosca : Can I call my lawyer?
Rrishanna Regina : sure, she’ll tell you the same thing

Vine Talamasca : *starts wrapping tin  foil around her head*
Landsend Korobase starts licking it
Landsend Korobase : Mmmm, tinfoily

Landsend Korobase : lol, bad time to mention I’m carrying your baby then..?
Lucien Uriza : eep
Lucien Uriza : do i get to call it fred
Landsend Korobase : Yeah, but she might get teased at school

Little Red Dragon : Hell sounds like my kinda place
HellSpawneD Xingjian : is your dragon comming on to me?

Kitty Otoole : christ my farts stink

Dark Otsuzum : Women are not safe with Mowgli… we painted him green as a warning
Iona Jigsaw : why is your hair painted blue then?
Rrishanna Regina : we ran out of green

Lucien Uriza : these eyes of mine are dangerous, im known for impregnating people by just staring into their eyes
Lucien Uriza : i need condom glasses

Aribeth Coronet : Ewww… y’know McDonalds chips never grow mold… or anthing.
Aribeth Coronet : They stay perfectly preserved no matter how long they’re left, lol.
Alann Whitfield : WOW,, we might be able to grow new chips form it`s dna

Vortex Scholten : I wanna try butt sechs

Lucien Uriza : im a lady!
Lucien Uriza : u only get to hear me say tht once

Becki Zanzibar : So you’re not a girl, then?

Landsend Korobase : Me? Nah, all man baby

Dark Otsuzum : I think I cybered my brother one, but he had nice hooters at the time

Aribeth Coronet : All the fucks are shwimming in the water, fa la la la la la

Aribeth Coronet : DUCK

Aribeth Coronet : S

Stoo Loon : sometimes I just talk genuine nonsense to see what happens…. all the brits just ignore me, and the americans have optimistic attempts at translating it cos they don’t want to be seen to not speak the lingo :p

Ahuva Heliosense : i like balls, but this may be a bit much
Ahuva Heliosense : more balls!!!!!

Landsend Korobase : I have balls o.O

Landsend Korobase : my balls fell off o.O

Simmi Althouse: OMG!!! i totally forgot to drink!!!

I hope these made you smile and gave you a giggle or two.  Feel free to add more in the comments.

Yep, new blog template.   Like it? 

See when you break your blog(you can stop laughing now), it’s an excellent time to make a new one and since I wanted to a new one anyway…

No, I didn’t break the blog on purpose.  Really, I didn’t.  Was totally an accident. 

I’ll thank Prad again though for not only fixing it but making this awesome new one for me.   You rawk dude!

Fear .  It’s gripped all of us at one time or another.   Whether it’s a fear of heights, spiders or any number of other tangible things we are all afraid of something.   Reluctantly we’ll admit to these things because we know that the person we are admitting it to has a similar fear of their own.   If your afraid of spiders, having the person who isn’t afraid of spiders tell you it’s in your head, it’s irrational and to get over it is not helpful.  Of course that person is deathly afraid of heights and will not go anywhere near a window over 5ft off the ground.   To you, this is irrational and in their head because you jump out of perfectly good airplanes.

We all have our fears.  Some of us confront them straight on in the hope of taming them so that we can live our life without this gripping fear that prevents us from living life to the fullest.  Some of us simply learn to work around them.  We make do with what we’ve got.

What about those intangible fears though?  The ones that you can’t point to and say, “see I’m terrified of that”.   These are the most crippling emotions.  These are the ones we won’t admit to.   Admitting to them strips a layer of shadow and wall from us and lets the world see inside us.   At least a small piece.  It also makes us vulnerable.  Vulnerable to anyone who wants to take advantage of us.  Admitting these fears gives them an open door.

Fear .  The new theme for the Gallery of Light.  I asked the artists to show me their fears.   I asked them to bare a little piece of their souls for us.  The meaning behind each photo is their own.  It is up to them to share or not that meaning.

My entry is attached to this post.  My fear:  Being alone.  As everyone who knows me knows, I am single in RL as well as SL.   This is my choice and most of the time I am happy with it.   As the holidays approach though it becomes more and more difficult to be completely happy not having anyone to share all of this with.   I have wonderful friends and a loving family but it’s not the same.   I’ve been single in SL now for the longest period of time since joining 2 years ago.   Quite frankly, I was thrilled to finally be single again.  I was finally able to do what I wanted, when I wanted and how I wanted.   With all of that comes Loneliness though.  Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to get married in SL again, I don’t even want to partner someone for romantic reasons again.  I do crave the companionship, the someone to cuddle with, share a funny moment or just talk to.   I love knowing someone is their waiting for me, waiting to share the latest news, a dance at the Crown and Pearl or just a cuddle on the couch and talk.  I will laugh it off with my friends saying that it doesn’t bother me, I’m happy as I am, I don’t need anyone but them but none of that is really true if I’m totally honest. 

So, I’ve bared my soul to all of you.   The pictures will go up this weekend, most likely sometime on Saturday.   Stop by the Gallery and take a look.  I think you’ll be impressed.

I know I’ve talked about this before but really, what is wrong with people?   Group owners, store owners, designers, and land owners are under NO obligation to give anything away, EVER!   Seriously people, get a grip.  If you join a group and the owner sends out a gift, THANK them.   Don’t start bitching about the color.  I mean really, WTF???  It was a GIFT!! 

When someone gives you a gift in RL do you immediately tell them it’s the wrong color or that it should be this or that?   I certainly hope not.  You don’t have to like everything your given but have a little bit of tact and common sense and thank the person who gave it to you and then go throw up in the restroom or bushes or wherever if you feel the need to. 

If I go into a store in SL and they have a freebie I may or may not pick it up.   Usually I don’t feel right taking the freebie if I’ve never bought from the store.   That’s just how I am.  I usually walk by the freebies.   Lots of people search out freebies though.  For whatever reason they have a mission to search out quality free items.   Good for them.  If they are pleasant and gracious and friendly I applaud them for the hunt.   It’s the ones that think that they are entitled to the freebie that I have an issue with. 

Why are you entitled to get free stuff?   I’d love to know.  What makes you *entitled* to it?   Did you do something special?  Cure Cancer?  End poverty?  Solve the world’s food problems?  Bring about world peace?  Make the grid more stable?  Lower tier rates?  Make a better viewer?

Nope didn’t think so.  So get in line with the rest of us and stop moaning about what you’re entitled to or that the group gift you got was the wrong color.   Some day when you’ve got your own store or your own group is giving out freebies let me know how much you like getting the hate mail/notecards or IMs from people telling you to F*** Off because the beautiful gift you gave out was the wrong bloody color!

*Evangeline Miles of Evie’s closet posted recently about comments she’s received about her group and the *group gift*.   Reading her post and the comments she’s gotten prompted me to write this.

I’ve heard quite a few people complaining about Alts lately.   What is an alt you ask?   An Alt is an alternative avatar, a second or third or fourth persona you create usually entirely different from your original avie.   I’ve heard of people having up to 10 other avies.

Why have one?  The reasons are as varied as the people who have them.   Business reasons, role play, to spy on a significant other, to hide from a significant other and on and on.   I will admit to having two alts.  One I rarely use that I set up to roleplay with and never got into and one that I created because well, sometimes you need another av for a photoshoot.   It’s a male av and I’ve yet to *dude* him up but I’ll get there.

The Business Alt:   Having a business alt makes total sense when you run a successful business.   Generally that av only logs in from time to time, handles the administrative things and logs out again.   This av isn’t usually hidden from anyone.

The Role Play Alt:   So, you wanna go all psycho in Midian or CoLA or any of the other roleplay sims.   Your very proper human av just won’t cut it though.  You make an alt in which to be whatever mutant or neko or vamp you wish to be.   Some people share this alt with their friends, some don’t. 

The I need to spy on my significant other Alt :  Ok so your dating/partnered/engaged/married and your significant other seems different.   You know something is wrong but they simply say everything is fine.   You don’t believe them.  You worry they are cheating.  What do you do?   You create an alt and then go spy on them.   Let me just say I’m NOT condoning this behavior.  Having been on the receiving end of it I can tell you it destroys all trust in a relationship.  I dated someone who had an Alt to spy on every girl he dated.  Some male, some female.  He even created one male av and used it to hit on me to see if I’d take the bait.  No, I didn’t.   My suggestion, if you think your significant other is cheating, ask them outright or end the relationship.   Spying is simply wrong.

The I need to hide from my significant other Alt :  Ok, so you’re in a great relationship but you want a bit of alone time.   Your other half just doesn’t understand why you don’t want to spend every waking minute with them.   You create an Alt so you can get some peace and do what you want.   Wanting some peace and being able to do whatever you like is all fine but maybe you need to have a heart to heart with the significant other rather than hiding behind an alt.

The I just want to annoy everyone Alt :  You’ve probably had one to many alcoholic beverages and think it would be a real hoot to create and alt and then go to your favorite hang out in your underwear and hit on your friends.   True story, happened at the Crown the other night.  Lands was kind enough to share the story with me.   I’ll refer you to Prad Prathivi’s  Rules of Second Life , SL and alcohol don’t mix.  It’s #49 on the list but do read all of them, they are quite funny and oh so true.

The I look better than I should only being 3 mins old Alt :  Do not try to tell me you’re a noob when you’ve got a Redgrave Skin, Diversity Hair, an outfit from Last Call(which is closed) and shoes from Shiny Things or boots from Bax.   Cause there is no way someone under 30 days has any of that stuff, especially from Last Call as they have been closed a while now.   You created an alt, transferred stuff over and are trying to be *new* again.   You know what, fess up that it’s an alt.  Trying to pretend your something your not is just silly, we see right through it.  

This concludes my little rant on Alts.