The Politics of Second Life

I have started writing articles for Rez Magazine.  I'll be posting the unedited versions here for your reading. These articles are not so much opinion as an attempt to get your own noggin thinking about all things SL.  This article was posted in the November issue.  Enjoy!

Welcome to my first column for Rez Magazine.  I hope my writing provides some serious thought about all things SL.  I also hope a little reflection, laughter and insight comes to you from my writings too.  Friday says I need to make it edgy.  So to keep with Friday’s demands I thought I would begin my first article about the politics of Second Life.  No… really, politics. Okay if you’re still reading I’m shocked.  You should be concerned about your state of mind at this point and thinking about getting some serious professional help.  But regardless of mine or yours mental health I am going to talk about politics in SL.  Why take on such an endeavor?  Well, where there are people there is politics.  In the United States, Americans have to make a big decision this month.  Many will run from that decision or ignore it altogether.  In Second Life, you can run from it, but you can’t ignore it.  One day you’re going to have to face SL politics because it will affect some part of your virtual life if it’s not already.  It may even affect the puppet master pulling on your avatars strings.  So I’m going to discuss it and in doing so I want to start off with a little story.

Jane Doe was new to SL. She started saving her lindens for her own place almost from the first day she rezzed onto the grid (see how I got a plug in for the magazine, editor take note).  After a few weeks she found a job as a dancer in some cheap dive.  There were only ever a few patrons there for her to entertain but she did her best to give them a good show trying to do the best she could with her limited funds and lack of shape shifting skills.  Living in cheap mainland apartments and having to deal with people invading her privacy took Jane’s patience to its limit. The couple next door was again making incredible noises with nothing but a paper thin prim wall between them.  The sounds emanating from the voice channel did nothing if not amplify the sounds of their erotic pixel love and cerebral thoughts behind it.  At first it was fun to listen to but after a while she got tired of it.  Or maybe it reminded Jane of her own loneliness.  In any case Jane had enough.  She also didn't know about the mute button yet.

For months Jane worked and saved her lindens. At the same time she moved up to better jobs, well better dance jobs in better clubs. Money was starting to come in and she finally had enough for a down payment and tier for her own parcel of land. So Jane started looking in the classifieds to find that perfect place to make her new home.  Eventually with a little digging around she found a “new” sim with decent priced parcels she could afford for her to place a home on.  The parcels were quite large for the price so she discussed the terms with the sim owner.  He seemed decent enough and he promised that he would only be leasing out the parcels for people’s homes.  So Jane paid the man the thousands of lindens she had saved for her parcel and started immediately thinking about how she would mold the parcel to her idea of a virtual utopia.

For about three weeks life was good for Jane.  She had purchased a small home, found some low prim cheap furniture to put in it and had actually started molding her land with some nice landscaping.  Then everything started to change.  First of all across the street from her parcel a slum like warehouse popped up.  The place sat right in the middle of the sim and was a terrible eyesore.  She asked the sim owner about his neighborhood rule and he basically told her she had no say.  It was his sim and he needed the cash.  So she erected a large wall on the one side of her property to block it and continued with her design.  In the meantime she got to know some of her neighbors and they too complained.  They all felt helpless even after banding together.

This went on for about two weeks.  Then one day Jane logs into her home and finds it missing.  As a matter of fact not only does she find her home gone, but all of her furnishings, her landscaping, her everything!  In their place are new structures and a new person laying more down, on her land!  She approaches the intruder and kindly asks him what he is doing on her land.  He basically tells her it’s his land and she is trespassing.  Jane immediately checks the parcel profile and to her amazement she is no longer the owner of the parcel.  Her land has been stolen from her.

Has anything like this ever happened to you?  Was it land or something even closer to your heart?  Maybe something you created; something you put a lot of time and effort into?  Has your clothing designs or textures ever been stolen?  Have you had something, anything you've created just ripped from you after many hours of heart and hard work?  Welcome to the world of a government of anarchy in Second Life and the politics that goes with it.  A world with no police, no law, no judges, and no way to right the wrong placed upon you. Welcome to a world where you have the freedom to express your deepest desires and sexual fantasies and a world for every predator to find easy victims to prey upon.  Welcome to the freedom of living in Second Life.  Let me continue on with our story of Jane Doe.

Upon seeing her parcel taken right out from under her Jane contacts the sim owner.  He tells her that he no longer owns the sim and has sold it to another person.  He gives her the name of this “new owner” and tells her she needs to discuss the terms with them.  So Jane contacts this new owner and provides her list of grievances.  After a couple of days Jane gets her reply; “Tough shit, it’s my sim and I’ll do with it as I please”.  This leaves Jane very upset as she spent real money and time on this “investment”.  She contacts her old neighbors only to find that the same situation has happened to them.  Everybody is up in arms and is understandably upset about what has transpired.  Together they come up with the idea to petition Linden Labs about the situation at hand.

This is where the politics of Second Life comes in to play.  In a real world environment there are laws about contracts.  Laws about stealing another’s property (let’s keep discussion of eminent domain out of this dialog for today shall we) and laws of basic civil justice or natural law in most parts of the world.  These laws do not exist in any matter or fashion in Second Life.  Think of that.  A place where there is no natural law, no justice, no due process, no civil laws, no police to enforce those laws and no method of reconciliation or arbitration.  If you need to take care of a wrong pressed upon you inside the realm of Second Life it’s up to you to deal with it.  So, what about Linden Lab?  What is their take on a situation such as this?  The place to look is in their Terms of Service (TOS).

For those of you wondering what this is it’s the terms you agreed to by checking the “I accept” box or button the first time you logged in.  The Terms of Service defines what the legal obligation between you and Linden Lab is when using the Second Life service.  Now as far as a legal contract between a service provider and a consumer, the Terms of Service by Linden Labs is pretty standard and affords you some real world protections and rights.  In this particular case I’ll discuss a few of the terms stated in the TOS.

In the TOS, Section 5 states that a Linden Dollar is considered a “token” and is not to be considered any kind of currency. When obtaining “Lindens” you are granted a limited license to use the tokens to hold or barter, trade and/or transfer then for access to content, applications, services and other user-created features inside the “service” called Second Life.  So in the context of living in-world there is a value aligned to content but no value whatsoever in the real world.

So you’re probably thinking to yourself you paid good “real world” money for these Lindens.  You also know that you can exchange them back for currency.  So they do have a real value right?  Not really.  The tokens you purchase have as much value as the tokens you obtain to play games at your local arcade or favorite kiddy pizza restaurant.  Outside of these venues they have no intrinsic value.

Well let’s get back to the story of Jane to see if solutions to her problems can be found.  She and her neighbors send the petition in.  After some time the petition comes back that there is nothing that Linden Lab can do about their lost property or the Lindens they paid for it.  Caveat emptor!  Again the TOS that Jane agreed to keeps Linden Lab’s hands clean of her situation.  Section 4.3 states that Linden Lab is only a service provider of Second Life and is not responsible or liable for any content, conduct or services of user or third parties that use the Second Life service.  It also states they are not required to arbitrate in such matters.  So Jane now learns there is no natural law to speak of.  There is no justice for Jane and her neighbors.  Or is there?

Upon the discovery that Linden Lab will not assist them Jane and her neighbors take the matter into their own hands.  They set up an operation to determine how best to not let the person that now holds the sim deprive them of the land they rightfully paid for.  So they start asking questions.  They search the forums and eventually they discover they are the victims of a standard sting operation.  Here is how it goes.  Avatar A, the good guy, purchases a sim from Linden Labs following all of the rules set forth in the TOS.  Everything is legal and proper.  Then Avatar A advertises that parcels are for sale.  People purchase the plots for a specified price and the parcel is turned over to them.  Then we move to Avatar B in this sting operation.
Avatar B who may be actually the same puppeteer as the one pulling Avatar A’s strings purchases the sim from Avatar A.  Again everything is legal and proper with the service provider here.  However, now that Avatar B owns the sim they wipe the sim clean of everybody’s content and once again advertise plots are available to purchase.  Once the sim is full of new tenants Avatar B hands the sim back to Linden Lab and moves on to repeat the process.  Jane and her band determine this is what happened to them.  Their decision is to let everybody else know what has transpired and to find help in getting revenge for what was done to them.  They take the law into their own hands.

The group begins to post messages on the Second Life forums.  They create a web site posting conversations of what transpired.  They tell anybody willing to listen what has happened to them.  They hold events and lectures for the sole purpose of letting people know what happened to them and who did this injustice to them.  They hire a group of in-world mobsters to locate the other sims of these con artists who then repeatedly “bomb” the sims with adverse content making the sims completely useless.  Jane and her now band of mercenaries do everything they can think of to put these thieves out of business.  For Jane justice is not served by law but by revenge, which is the only law she can find.  However, there is law in Second Life.  And the law found Jane a few weeks later in the form of a suspension notice of her account.

You see, while I said the politics of Second Life is anarchy, which is indeed the case, the politics around how one conducts themselves outside the place of the virtual world is entirely different.  When it comes to the rights of not the avatar in the simulation, but the rights and privacy of the puppet master pulling the avatars strings, the law provided by Linden Lab is very clear, strict and enforceable.  Jane and her band of friends got their first taste of the TOS Community Standards.  The standards are in place to promote privacy, respect without harassment, and to minimize intolerance between residents.  In this case there is no anarchy just swift and decisive justice handed down without regard to circumstance or facts.  And Linden Lab is the judge and jury of the verdict.  How can this be?  Section 11 of the TOS says so.  Yes you agreed to these terms to be in their virtual world.

The law in our virtual world is very limited.  Avatars have little to no rights in the world.  As a bisexual woman in Second Life being in a lesbian relationship I get a lot of abuse and criticism from others about how my avatar chooses to live her life.  Yes in Second Life it’s a freedom of choice not to be confused with real life.  She constantly has to thwart unwanted sexual advances by others.  She constantly has to ignore the requests for sex or threesomes with her lover.  And in some cases the hate that her chosen lifestyle brings on has to be dealt with too.  However, as long as the advances and hurtful words are directed at the avatar and not her puppeteer no “laws” have been broken.  This is the virtual world we live in.  The world we agree to when we check that little box at the end of the wall of text presented to us.

The politics of our virtual world does not protect the rights of its citizens. The politics of our virtual world does not provide a means of justice for wrongs perpetrated against avatars themselves.  The politics of our virtual world does allow the predator to feed off of the naivety and trust of the ordinary citizens and the food are those virtual tokens.  Tokens that carry no intrinsic value other then they can be used in world for all commerce and then exchanged out of world for actual currency.

So what is an avatar to do?  The first is to understand that I do not condone what happened to Jane and her band of would be landowners.  They were played in a sting operation that was entirely legal to the creators / owners of the virtual world.  Once they learned the virtual world politics themselves they understood how to use those same politics to their favor.  They continued to stay banded and created their own community on their own sim.  They actually instilled their own set of politics in the form of rules and guidelines.  They used the land convenient, a political tool to install a sense of rights, responsibilities, guidelines and policies over their new home.  In a sense they formed a new government moving away from the politics of anarchy to a form of egalitarianism.  They created their utopia on their own terms.

So what does the politics of Second Life have to do with anything in our real lives?  Actually it has everything to do with our real lives and nothing to do with our avatars life.  The politics is driven by Linden Lab’s constitution called the Terms of Service.  In the real world we are consumers of the service they provide and we agree to abide to those terms, not as avatars, but as real consumers of the service.  The politics are real and have real implications.  The anarchy of the virtual world and the politics that drives that anarchy has no real implication.  We can remove ourselves from that anarchy by just logging off.

If you understand anything from my ranting here understand this.  Your avatar has zero inherited or inalienable rights in the virtual community.  There is no law and there is no justice.  You are on your own to do as you wish.  This allows great freedom to do as you wish and to be honest that is a great thing about Second Life.  You’re freedom extends to the point of disrupting the service or violating Community Standards used to protect our real lives inalienable natural rights.  Because of this freedom that stems from the politics of Second Life, there are many more implications in how our avatars live and in how we live in the real world with ours and others avatars.  It is these implications you will hear me discuss in the future.  They range from economic to social issues, from in-world technical changes to changes and destiny that leaks into our real lives.

Second Life is an incredible social simulation that opens our eyes to our own personal needs, wants, secrets and desires.  It helps each of us to learn and maybe fear a little bit what we discover about ourselves.  It can be a tool to help teach all of us how to be a better real live person by teaching us that intolerance, bigotry and closed minds have no place in just society.  And yes, it can teach us that with complete freedom comes discovery, but also corruption and hate can find they flourish there too.  I recommend each person reading this really review the Linden Lab‘s Terms of Service.  Not just to know what you can get away with, but to know how you are protected and what actual rights as a consumer of the Second Life service you really have.

The politics of Second Life while not directly protecting your avatar has a profound effect on the environment your avatar live in, just like how the politics of the real world has a profound effect on your real life.  But because of the environment of freedom and what it allows in-world to the life you live, how you live it now comes down to how you socially interact with others, which can cause yet another virtual world reality called drama.  And that I’ll leave to another discussion.

A Rez Day Gift

One of the ladies and super sexy hosts at Mojo Haven had her rez day this weekend. I'll keep the name under wraps for her privacy. A tradition at the Haven is that the rez day recipient has to sit in a lap dance chair while any and all take turns pleasuring her. Now before you start thinking it's a free for all sexcapade.. well actually it is but it's all in fun. So today Sky and I put our heads together and came up with our own lil lap dance story for our lucky rez day girl. I thought I would share it with you.


Wrapping my hair around my fingers as I walk around you sitting there. I smile seductively as I sway my hips with the music. Stopping in front of you I bite my lip as I slide my hand down my tempting curves, slowing to run it across all of my sensitive places, I moan slightly from the sensations my own touch brings to me.

Playfully I twirl a lock of my blond hair between my fingers, the music guiding my body in seductive sways. Seeing your beauty in front of me my eyes glisten with a sexual awakening as they lock upon yours.

Slowly I move in closer to you, my body still seductively swaying to the music. My ass swaying back and forth, then up and down in slow rhythmic motions. I see your eyes showing concern as you see in mine the hunger I have for you. Wetting my lips with the tip of my tongue I continue moving closer. My perfume now inundates your senses, filling your lungs with it's sharp scent.

I hook my thumbs under the waistband of my skirt. Pulling it down slowly I bend my legs as I bring the loose fitting garment to my feet. Stepping out of it I slide my hands back up my legs.  Caressing every single curve until reaching my thong. Hypnotized by your incredible beauty, the music flowing into my ears gains further control as my hands yet again explore the sensual curves of my body.

Now my hands reach out to your shoulders for support. Pressing you in against the chair. Forcing your body little motion, I see your eyes widen now in fear. What is my motive? Bringing my lips slowly to your ears I whisper "can you help me a little bit?" as I settle myself on to your lap. Taking your hands I bring them to the laces of my corset. You instinctively unlace me from my confinement where I can reach down and now pull the loose garment up over my head. I then reach down and pull my cotton shirt up over my head, my arms outstretched above me I reveal my now ample bare breasts to you.

Moving forward I bring my breasts close to your face. Your eyes seemingly locked on them you cannot escape me. My skin tingles upon feeling your breath on them. Grinding myself down your body, planting small kisses along the way my lips melt with anticipation upon your flesh leaving imprints of myself upon it as I finally kneel before you. My hair gathers in a puddle between your thighs. I can now smell the aroma of your desire sending my senses from a small flame to a raging fire.

Everyone around sees me now bringing my head down between your thighs. They cannot see what I am doing but you can feel it. You feel my lips pressing against your panties now starting to soak with your own juices. I inhale deeply and I kiss you between your thighs in small little pecks. Teasing you, leaving you with a stronger desire for more. I pull your thong aside and use my tongue to get a small taste. Just the tip so that I can remember your aroma and taste for eternity. I hear your moans of pleasure. I feel your legs spread and your pelvis press higher in hopes of more.

Smiling, knowing I have your attention now, I tease you by rising up off of you, my firm ass swaying to the pulse of your heart.. Standing up I look into your pleading eyes. Gathering the moisture that has built around my lips, I trace my fingers from your inner thigh, etching sexual desire into your flesh as my finger tips move from between your thighs and up your chest. I then bring them between my thighs to my wetness fully inserting them into me, soaking them. I then bring them to my lips, mixing my taste with yours.

Closing my eyes as I savor my new recipe, I move my lips to yours. You cannot deny me what we both desire as I press my slightly open succulent lips to yours. My tongue teasing your lips you open them slightly allowing you to taste our combined flavor. I bring a hand to the back of your head and entwining your hair into my fingers I force the kiss into a passionate moment, holding it forever it seems.

Eventually we both need to breath and I release you. Kissing you once again lightly on your lips and then on your cheek. I whisper in your ear "May every rezday bring as much joy and desire as your last sweetheart".  Fully standing up in front of you now I wink to you and see the smile you show that you will remember this day for many years to come.

Isole Angeliche Grand Opening

Yesterday I had the privilege of attending a grand opening party of a new sim that my two friends, Cay and Wulf Carlucci had part in creating and opening. The party was a success with over 35 people in attendance at any given point during its three hour celebration. But this post isn't about the party, but about one incredibly beautifully constructed location.

Isole Angeliche is patterned after that small Italian town set in the Tuscany region. When I first got there however it truly reminded me of the Isle of Capri off of the coast of Naples, Italy. While the architecture in the sim did favor the Tuscany region around Piza, Florence and the surrounding rolling hills I felt that Capri was well represented here.  With its homes leading from the harbor up the mountain to the town proper, along with its small courtyards and plentiful shops along walking paths, touring this sim gave me the same feeling I had as I walked up the meandering roads that led from Capri's harbor to the shops higher above while on vacation in Italy.

While the sim is new and some shops are empty do not let that stop you from exploring this wonderful place. There is a lot to see and I suggest you take a good look. There is a really nice teleport system in place. You touch the object and a series of named pictures appear to help you get around. The teleport devices are located around the island in convenient locations. I highly recommend you take a gondola ride through the tunnels and around the island itself.

Here are some pictures to give you an idea of what you will see as you explore the island.

How We See Ourselves

One of the interesting facets of Second Life is that we get to portray ourselves in exactly how we wish to be seen. What I find particularly interesting is how people actually take on that vision. I look at Sedona as an extension of myself in many ways. She is the woman personified in that if I was able to shape my real life body like hers I would. While many of her features comes from me, her normal blond hair color being one them, her body is what I would consider perfect in my mind. Sedona is the person I want representing my real person to people who see me in Second Life. Since first impressions do mean something I make it a priority that she always looks her best when just generally presenting herself in public. In private, roll play or themed sims the situation is completely different dependent on the environment of the sim.

So, it begs me to wonder. Do other people feel the same way as I do about their avatars? Sky and I have had this discussion many times. So have I and other close friends of mine. The general consensus that I have found is that yes, most people generally make their avatars look how they would like others to see them. If that is the general case, and I have to assume it is, then why do I see many avatars that look plain, frumpy, with exotic shapes, dressed horribly, or in some cases just completely not even human? Is my assumption wrong? Do some people not care how they present themselves or care what the first impression of others are? Is this in fact the "person" they want others to see representing their real master tugging on those strings? Or do they just feel Second Life is not real in any respect? That it's just a game or simulation, or a place on the Internet to find pixel sex only?

Now before I get trolled by people saying I shouldn't question this, I disagree. This post is not an inquisition of peoples individuality. To me Second Life is a great study of this. The point of this post is to provide a discussion to that study and question of individuality. To be clear I know that from time to time we all like to get goofy with our pixel selves. What brings me to the question is; when I'm out in a public area, a shop, mall or club that is not tailored around a specific venue why do I see leather or latex clad submissives in ballet boots, ball gag and chained head to toe? Why do I see small little girls in dresses I only wore on Sundays when I was six? Ignore the obvious cases where people that do this for child sex. I'm talking about the roll play where second families are involved. Why do I see dragons, nekos, furrys, androids, animals, cartoon characters, slaves, vampires, trolls, faeries, elves, and others who show off just about every sexual fetish I can think of? Is this the first impression that the real live person behind these avatars really wants to portray?  Or is this an attempt to bring attention to ones self?

I love Second Life. I love the variety of people it brings together. I love the social aspects it promotes. I love the creativeness that it inspires. And I love the fact that people who I meet can see the real me without any real prejudice. We are all beautiful in our own way in Second Life and that in itself is the single biggest reason to be a Second Life citizen. Hopefully someday I'll have a better understanding of how we see ourselves in Second Life, and why.

Getting to Love Mesh Clothing

A couple of weeks ago Harper from the Passion for Virtual Fashion blog that I follow showcased an outfit having a red corset. Now I can say that I do have a bit of a passion for corsets and the tight lacing body modifications that come from it. Some would call it a fetish and maybe it is. I love my body encased and held in place, showing my feminine curves to the fullest. Seeing Harper in that corset immediately made me want it to.

For some time now Sky has been really getting into mesh clothing. The outfits she has been putting together from some notable creators such as Cold Logic, Maitreya or Mon Tissu are incredible in detail. My issue with mesh, and from what I hear from most other people is that you have to adjust your shape in most cases.

"I don't want to change who I am" is what I usually hear. But what I've found is that most mesh designers have gotten together and made standard sizes. So now it's just a matter of making the adjustments to specific parts of your shape that closely match what you already have and save it away. I am using the small size here. There are XXS, XS, S, M and L sizes that I've seen. Some of the designers don't utilize all. 

The one HUGE advantage with mesh is most of the good designers have free samples you can obtain to see how the item looks on you. This is something I've wanted from SL clothing designers for years now.  Now we have the ability to  actually try on that item and see how it fits. I would think this would be a really great feature for clothing designers too. Many times I won't buy an item because I just don't know how good it would look on me. I've been burned to many times so now if I'm not sure how an item looks I just move on.

One of the drawbacks is that rigged mesh, or mesh that's attached to specific points on your body cannot be moved or sized. This is why the designers create multiple sizes. Because of this technical detail the item is not directly attached to your skin so your skin can bleed through. To overcome this limitation the designers usually ship with the item an alpha invisible prim you wear. This makes the parts of your body that the item covers invisible so no skin bleeds through.

So your probably asking, "why would I go through all of this trouble to wear mesh"? Because if the design is good the result is spectacular! Looking at this corset notice how tight it makes my waist. Trust me my shape does not make me that thin. That is what the designer intended how the corset should look on me.

So let's talk about what I'm wearing.  

The corset is from Ingenue. The detail is very good.  This closeup shows that with the zipper and the pattern. This is the Ninon version in the Ruby color. One of the features I like about this design is how the designer made sure you couldn't see the invisible prim under the item. In many designs of skirts and tops if you look up the arms, tummy or down the breasts you see the inside of the invisible alpha prim so from the inside you look transparent. The designer here actually modeled the inside of the item so that if you do look down my cleavage, and so far many have, you see the breasts covered with material on the inside and there is no evidence of the transparent alpha. A few people commented to me on how real that looks.

The black mini skirt is from Mon Tissu. When I purchased the top I found that most of the mesh skirts I own bleed through at the waist. This is due to the designer having the entire skirt created from mesh. However the pencil and mini skirts from Mon Tissue use a combination of the pants layer and placing a mesh insert between the legs much like the standard prim you see on many non-mesh mini dresses and mini skirts.  However the mesh insert works much better then the older prim technique. This also allows the skirt to be worn under the mesh top with no bleed through. The effect is perfect.

Yes, I would I have to say that I am slowly changing my opinion of mesh clothing. Is it perfect without compromises? No, you have to compromise a bit about making changes to your shape. But again I've found that to be simple and the changes are minor. When I don't wear mesh I just wear my normal shape. So far nobody has been able to tell the difference and I've received many compliments from people about this look. And Sky loves it.

Here are the list of items that you see in these pictures.

• Skin: Belleza - Erika Med 3 with Hair & Cleavage. Erika is my normal everyday skin.
• Hair: Truth - Marina, Dune color that comes with the Blondes package. It's new!
• Eyelashes: Miamai - NoAlpha Lashes N06 - Slightly modified by me.
• Lips: Blacklace - Beauty Bubblegum Gloss #5
• Corset:  Ingenue - Ninon Ruby, size small
• Skirt:  Mon Tissu - Westbury Mini, Black size small
• Heels: N-Core - Vintage XtremeHeel II, Red Passion - not mesh but still looks great.
• Necklace: Jewelry by Jake - 28e Fleurs du Soleil, Black Diamond
• Bangles: Ali Couture - Black Swirl Bangles

I must be the most patient person on the planet

This is a conversation I had some time ago.  I've changed the name of any actual person in SL.  But this was a real conversation.  How many of you can relate to this?  I would like to say this convo was unique but it's not. I get these type of questions about once a month.  In any case I found it to be a very interesting conversation so I thought I would post it. Would you be as kind to this poor man if you were in this situation? Think about it.

[15:14] Mr. X: i like the red dress
[15:15] Mr. X: do u know Art?
[15:15] Sedona Mills: Red is one of my favorite colors.
[15:15] Sedona Mills: No I don't.
[15:16] Mr. X: oh ok
[15:16] Mr. X: red fits u right
[15:16] Mr. X: how old r u in rl
[15:16] Sedona Mills: take a look at my profile, it's in there.
[15:17] Mr. X: cool
[15:17] Mr. X: bbi sexual, thats sexy
[15:17] Sedona Mills: I guess.. It's just who I am and how I'm wired.  :)
[15:17] Mr. X: i know
[15:18] Mr. X: i like it
[15:18] Mr. X: do u have a boyfriend in rl
[15:18] Sedona Mills: why are you looking for a RL girlfriend?
[15:18] Mr. X: maybe
[15:18] Mr. X: :)
[15:19] Sedona Mills: Well my RL private life is just that, except what I've put in my profile.
[15:19] Mr. X: im lonely now, and dont know how....
[15:19] Mr. X: oh ok
[15:19] Mr. X: i respect that
[15:20] Mr. X: can i take u to my place after this
[15:20] Sedona Mills: Did you notice the part of my profile about me being marrined in SL?
[15:20] Mr. X: no
[15:20] Sedona Mills: you may wish to take a look again
[15:21] Mr. X: oh, wow
[15:21] Mr. X: u are with her
[15:21] Mr. X: here
[15:21] Sedona Mills: yes I am.
[15:21] Mr. X: can i take u both then
[15:22] Sedona Mills: No.. we're not into threesomes.  And Sky is strictly a lesbian.
[15:22] Mr. X: can i see u too get it on
[15:22] Mr. X: that would be sexy
[15:23] Sedona Mills: X, what possible reason do you think I would comply with that request?
[15:24] Mr. X: luck....pure luck for me
[15:24] Mr. X: and friendship....im a good friend
[15:25] Mr. X: u know what would be sexy
[15:25] Sedona Mills: I met you 20 minutes ago.. I've been in SL for years and know people here for that long that I consider "good freinds".  You have a long way to go.
[15:25] Mr. X: i could be your boy servent for both
[15:25] Mr. X: :(
[15:26] Sedona Mills: So do ask ladies these questions in RL?
[15:26] Mr. X: if i had a couple of drinks, and the mood is right, yes
[15:27] Sedona Mills: You may want to rethink that philosphy.  It may be why your lonely. :)
[15:27] Mr. X: :(
[15:27] Mr. X: u r hard
[15:29] Sedona Mills: Well, I would think you would at least respect my relationship with Sky.  It's very real and personal to us.  And you come across thinking we're here for you're personal benifit.  To be honest it's pretty degrading.
[15:29] Mr. X: never saw it like that
[15:29] Mr. X: wow
[15:30] Mr. X: u make me feel like an idiot
[15:30] Mr. X: i guess i deserve it
[15:30] Sedona Mills: I'm not trying to belittle hon.. You just need to realize that people in SL are actually real people in many cases.
[15:31] Sedona Mills: If I was at an adult sim, dressed to have sex, and in an establishment that basically is a place for sex, then your questions are entirely resonable.
[15:31] Mr. X: i think what u said might be true, even in my rl
[15:32] Mr. X: i dont care about others but myself
[15:32] Sedona Mills: I'm not mad at you.. you're not the first person that's asked me what you asked :)
[15:32] Mr. X: i wish i could change that, but i cant
[15:32] Mr. X: i suck
[15:32] Mr. X: my wife doesnt even like me
[15:33] Mr. X: and she is the most beautiful woman in nyc
[15:33] Sedona Mills: lol.. you need to lighten up on yourself.
[15:33] Mr. X: phisically and inside
[15:34] Mr. X: i mean it... iw ill go on, be the person that everyone knows
[15:34] Mr. X: but deep inside, im not happy with me
[15:34] Mr. X: weird aint it
[15:34] Mr. X: and im successful
[15:34] Mr. X: make good money, beautiful wife
[15:34] Mr. X: anyways...
[15:34] Mr. X: later
[15:34] Sedona Mills: okay.. see ya..
[15:35] Mr. X: wow....i thought u were going to give me some advice
[15:35] Sedona Mills: I thought I did
[15:35] Mr. X: u seem like a real smart person
[15:35] Mr. X: im glad i met u
[15:36] Sedona Mills: I appreciate that.  But please, the next lady you talk too, be a bit more of a gentleman..  unless you're looking for a slut you probably will find a nice girl.
[15:37] Sedona Mills: There are a lot of them looking for nice guys in SL.. and there are so few nice guys it seems these days here. :)
[15:37] Mr. X: i will be one, promise
[15:38] Mr. X: ty :)
[15:38] Sedona Mills smiles.. good.. thank you for that

I am now waiting for a really hunky good looking TOS fella to show up at my door and spank me for being naughty and posting this. One can only hope!

Getting over it

Sky didn't log in tonight. It's okay though. We all need our own time now and then. My very old friend RADD said hi so I invited him over to some dancing at Mojo Haven.  Shameless plug follows; I host there at 5 pm SLT on Saturdays. End of shameless plug.

It was RADD's first time at Mojo and everyone was nice to him even though he was with me. Come to think of it they are nice to Sky when she is with me to. I think they are just putting up a front for my friends sake.

Okay, a little fun now. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those that understand binary and those that don't.

Also, I'm feeling better now.  I'm getting over whatever the hell that was that about put me away for life. Or at least that's what it felt like.

Real Life Affecting Second Life

Some days it just doesn't pay to get out of bed. Second Life for me is more then just a game or hanging out in fantasyland. It is a part of what I do. Some people go sit in Starbucks and read a book that makes them look intelligent. I read in my comfy chair at home with lots of sunlight coming through the window. Some people go shopping at Nieman Marcus not really to buy anything, but to look at what they could buy if they could afford it. I'm a Big Lots kind of person.

Second Life to me is my hang out. My place to find friends, and try out new adventures. So, when I don't take time to be in Second Life it's usually because real life gets in the way. The heat wave we recently had in America and the follow-on cool off has had one casualty. Me. Apparently it seems cold viruses like twenty-five degree shifts in temperature more then I do. Because of this fact my time in Second Life suffers and Sedona just doesn't get out as much as she would like.

Sometimes I'm so pathetic.

Tonight was one of those nights

Sometimes it's not just the clothes you wear, not just the dance you are dancing or not just the music that's being played. Sometimes it's all three in tandem that makes you glad you're alive. Tonight was one of those nights.

I wasn't particularly in the mood for any kind of naughty thoughts nor was I looking for some. But Sky loves to see me in my "Blond Bimbo" look when it suits her and I had a feeling that tonight was one of those nights.

So I did it right. Putting on my brand new red heels from N-Core we hit Hotlanta. The music was slow and sultry and just right to get me into a relaxed mood. The red dress by Celoe was working it's magic and Sky was being, well being her hot sexy self in this very sexy black jumpsuit and corset. While I've been in SL long enough that it takes a bit to get my heart a pitterin and patterin, tonight was was one of those nights that did it.

Oh! And if you have never checked out Hotlanta and you are looking for a great blues club. Check it out!

Yay!! Presents!

On my fifth rez-day (five years in Second Life - who needs a real life) Sky took me shopping! Yay!  One of the places she took me to was Mon Tissu. After slapping a 1,000 linden card in my had she showed me a couple of items she thought would be nice. Items of interest that piqued my interest was a sweatshirt with an open shoulder.

I remember seeing this somewhere else but I couldn't remember where.  The next day I was looking at the Juicybomb blog (listed to the right) and realized that Gogo had an article on just that item. Reviewing her blog I found the article and realized the shorts she also recommended were the same ones Sky recommended to me. Since I like pastels and especially light pink I found the peach color pleasing.  Here are some pics of the outfit.

Mon Tissu specializes in mesh clothing. While at first I was concerned that I'd have to make significant shape adjustments to use mesh clothing I've found that really isn't the case. I really am starting to like mesh for clothing. I'll write more about my thoughts with mesh later.

I'm Five!

Today is my rezday.. and I'm five!  Five years in Second Life.  It's been fun. I wonder what the next five years will bring.

Make it up like you mean it!

I want to raise my glass to Linden Labs in a toast. I want to thank them for the now complete transformation I can perform from any kind of look to my days as a fourteen year old, complete with fourteen year old makeup! Now before you do that whole pug dog head tilt thing wondering what the hell am I talking about let me explain.


When I first came to Second Life (little trademark legal thingy goes he... oh to hell with it, scroll down if you have issues, and then get a real life).. so anyway.. when I came to Second Life (sticks tongue out) I remember my skin was kind of okay.  But that's all you had, for make up, tan, tattoos, whatever.  If you wanted to have a tattoo you had to use a clothing layer.  And you had to buy a bazillion skins to get any kind of makeup choice.  Ladies? Hands up who remember those days. We will NOT discuss the hair options in those days!


Well since then lets look at what the Lindens have brought us. 

1. Multiple attachments on an attachment point. My favorite menu item to click now is "Add".
2. Multiple clothing attachments on a single layer.
3. The appearance editor to manage all of those cloths and attachments.
4. Outfits!!! If you haven't figured it out yet then you haven't been looking at my blog very well.
5. A tattoo layer!!

So what does all of this mean?  Well for one, I can now not only dress like the fairest tramp at the trailer park, I can put makeup on too match it for the full effect!  Oh yes I know you always could if you got "the right skin".  But now we can add lipstick, eye shadow, eyeliner, blush, scars... whatever you want!  I'm still waiting for a good foundation.  But yeah!! I can put more makeup on my face now then ever.  Five attachments on the tattoo is plenty for me! So, in commemoration to the Lindens first giving us boob and ass physics and now the ability to light up more then a 747 on final approach I give you my first "five tattoo" makeup set.

  
First Eye Shadow (Lowest Layer) - Miamai - LesMakeups- Smokey #5
Second Eye Shadow (Middle Layer) - Blacklace Beauty Radiance Shadow #6
Eye Liner - Miamai - LesMakeups - Eyeliner #1
Lipstick - Blacklace Beauty Bubblegum Gloss #5
Blush - cheLLe - (blush) Everyday Blush #4

All on the tattoo layer - Thank you Linden Labs.. now I'm ready to hit the adult sims!

Romance and fail, all in one night!

Tonight Sky and I went to Franks Elite. As usual the place was full, the music was good and we were having a wonderful time. I noticed while we were dancing that there was this special anniversary gown from Azul just for Frank's customers. It was gorgeous as is most of what I see coming from Azul.

So stupid me forgets to use my mind and allowing just my brain stem to take control (ohhh, free Azul gown click now! Click Now! CLICK NOW!!! GET GET GET!!!!!) I click on the vendor without having my Frank's Elite tag active.  Needless to say it tells me in local that I am not a member so go pack sand.  No gown for me! Well, by this time the drool is starting to collect and puddle on the floor, Sky almost slips and I can see the host nodding to me quietly indicating where the mop is stored. I need to do something quick before a scene develops!

Fighting off the rising panic my ol' noggin finally kicks in and I think to myself, "self, I bet if you activate your Franks Elite tag and touch that vendor again you get the prize"! Fumbling for the mouse to get my group menu up; no wait, I just clicked contacts, then the mini map, now I'm in group chat with the other "Monkeys for Hire" group; forget you read that... Okay! With shaking hands I finally select the Franks Elite group and click the activate button.. after about a trillion years of lag.... well it felt like it, my tag changes!!  Success!! Feeling like Darth Vader when he said "I have you now" I knew that beautiful lovely wondrous Azul gown was just about mine! Licking my lips in anticipation I take a deep breath and I once again click on the vendor.....

And in local I get the following message....

"You cannot claim the prize more then once".

Typical.

A Sunday Photo Shoot

Sky and I put on some mesh clothing today. Nothing too racy or over the top. She went with a simple halter and skirt.  I put on a really clingy linen dress with a plunging front.  I also found my Ga Ga shades and a new bob cut.  And, I'm a brunette! Who says blonds only have the fun. I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as Sky and I had posing for them.

For those technical people I used GIMP and touched each one a bit except for the first shot to provide a bit of baseline.

A Typical Friday Night

For years now Sky and I have always kept our late Friday nights open. Our good friends Graylon Ash and Jami Mills (Are we related? I'm not gonna say!) put on a party.  It starts late and goes until we collapse or Gray collapses. Most of the time it's us. Over the years it has become a pastime for many people.  Here we are having a beach party, no sand, no waves, no trees.  But still full. Why?  Because we all are good friends who like to see each other at the end of a long hard week. This is what makes Second Life fun.

What a Small World We Live In

So my good friend Gudrun sends me a quick IM the other night.  She's asking me if I can hop onto the teleport she sent me to see if it works. She has another friend who is opening a club and just want's to see if it works.  I figure Gud (I pronounce that "good") is sending me to her friend's place for real, or someplace where I can get into some real trouble. In either case it sounds like lots of fun so without another thought, like a lot were going through my head anyways, I press the button and find myself in a rather large club.

Always keeping my mini-map up and in the corner I immediately check it to make sure I've not landed on somebody and immediately move away from the landing zone making sure I don't run over anybody.  Oh yeah, as I ramble on here.  Anybody that says "Sorry if I run into you, nothing is rezzed yet" is a total fail.  The mini-map tells you where people are even if they aren't rezzed yet.  Yes you should wait ten or fifteen seconds to let it find everyone but most people do that anyways.

Now back to my original rant.  So I check my mini-map looking for the yellow dot that would tell me where Gud is.  Surprisingly I see not one but two yellow dots on the mini-map.  Firing up the ol' perv cam I send it on its way.  And who do I find?  Vonny, a very old dear friend of mine.  Her partner Lou is starting up a new club, "Little Lou*s Club".  I really had a wonderful time catching up with Vonny.  I hope she and Lou the best in getting their new adventure off the ground and I'll be back to visit to hopefully see other old friends and catch back up.

Funny how big Second Life can be and yet, how small of a community it can also be.

We had to move

Sky and I had to move.  Her sister has taken some time off in SL to pursue her RL.  We both wish her well and hope she stops by from time to time to say hi.  Since we were sharing a homestead sim with her we had to move out since we didn't wish to pay for the entire sim.  We moved back to Tribe Islands.  I say moved back because we used to live in Tribe Islands before we shared the homestead.

I also talked Sky into doing something a little more out of our norm when it comes to setting up our home.  Sky really likes a modern contemporary look to her homes and I can say I like many of the styles that all of the SL builders provide.  Instead we decided to go with a small cottage and landscape the surrounding area. More to come as we fill the 8192 sqm parcel with prims!

I danced with the Prezz!

Last night while I was hosting at Mojo Haven we had a light crowd.  We usually do as the time I host is the first event of a series for Saturday nights.  It's up to me to get the mood started I guess. So anyways, Tycho and I are hanging out, he's pushing some great music through the stream for our few guests when Barack Obama shows up!  The avi was a dead ringer and he played the part the entire evening.  Though he was acting more like Clinton while we danced.  I still have the bruises on my ass where he was squeezing it to prove it.

I'm up to Miniskirts

Well I'm still uploading all of my outfits to the blog.  I never thought it would take this long.. But I'm not even halfway through!!  Aaaaaccccckkkkkkk!  Take a look at my outfits.  Click the outfits tab at the top of the page.

Saying goodbye to a long tradition

Tonight I'm listening to one of my favorite live artists in Second Life.  He's playing at a club I'm familiar with called the Sunset Jazz Club.  The artist is Andreus Gustafson.  He goes by Anj and is a great keyboard / guitarist that plays a lot of progressive music.  So he's between songs and he says that his show at the ballroom will be his last because they are closing down.  The Sunset Jazz Club has been a great place to discover new live talent in Second Life and I know that I will surely miss stopping by there to discover them.

My Outfits

Well it's gotten to the point where I have so many outfits that I can't remember what I have!  So I decided to start cataloging them.  It also came to mind that I could link them here so you can all see my different looks and comment on them. Now try not to make me cry!

Just so you know I'm not going for artistic creativity here.  All of the pictures are using the same pose and the same background.  What I'm looking for here is to just get them all photographed and cataloged for now.  Maybe once they are all complete I'll start to look at providing a more polished set of photos.  For now, it works for me.

This is a work in progress, so enjoy and check back regularly for updates.  The links to the pictures are in the "My Outfits" tab at the top of the page.