Lemmings, Starfuckers, or Attention Whores?

It's not often that we get to write a not-so-favorable review of another blog. It's been our thing to promote those blogs out there that deserve to be read because of their witty, entertaining content or the diversity of their views and insights. This is not one of those times.

I've become aware of a certain... change of direction in one purely fashion SL blog to a more "hard-hitting" and scandalous style. It's their blog, they're entitled to write what they want however they see fit. I'd just like to point out that grand-standing and name calling do not make you a better writer or "journalist". Nor can you ascertain the talent of a "writer" by counting the number of comments on a post. Just a lil reality check :)

All these things and more can be said about the second blog I bring to your attention. Perhaps you've seen it. It has all the characteristics that a potential blog-reader/dramite would appreciate. The only problem is... it's total crap. Brutal Honesty is what they offer although all I've seen so far is the poorly written whining of a have-not couple in SL.

I'm all for expressing your opinion, but maybe offer alternatives? Just a thought. Why not lend credibility to your opinion by covering all aspects of something? Can you not find value in it? Or maybe this is a game of smoke and mirrors. Honesty is something that is in short supply in SL but it can be done with eloquence and reason. Trash Talking is just that. Trash. And yappering. Anyone can pick up the Sun Times in line at the grocery store. Doesn't mean they have taste... or can read.

Seems as though this blog will do well enough. There are plenty of glass is half-empty people in SL and everyone is a critic... or a hyper-critic in this case. Check it out. I can't promise that it will do much more than make you say "OMG". And despite their claim that it's not 'drama', I'm sure that's just what they'd want you to say :)

You be the judge.

~Rosie
*:-.,_,.-:*'´*:-.,_,.-:*'´*:-.,_,.-:*'´*:-.,_,.-:*'´*:-.,_,.-:*'´*:-.,_,.-:*'´*:-.,_,.-:*'´

As a Mean Girl I take pride in my posts. I love that I can be honest, humorous, throw in a little satire & get good old fashion feed back without starting a firestorm (on purpose - sometimes ya'll just don't "get" me). I think that in any case it has been noted that here at MGG2SL we've had some drama here & there, sometimes we stir pots that others don't dare touch. We do it because we care and it's a risk we choose to take. We're not afraid to tackle controversial issues that effect our daily slives, piss us off, or tell you our honest opinions on a designer's work in a non-combative way. Honestly, sugar coating, pussy footing and blowing sunshine up one's ass does not encourage growth. Same can be said for screaming like a lunatic in someone's face. You're not going to get desired results or a happy ending. You know you want happy ending. *wink*

There is a difference between not sugar coating & maliciousness. Yes, our blog is called "Mean Girls Guide to SL" and it's fitting for us. Mean & malicious have two different definitions... Look em up, it's not my job. Point is a lot of blogs have popped up over the vast blogosphere in the last couple of months. Some are well written, honest, witty and enjoyable to read (these are the ones we choose to post weekly as a "Blawg to Watch"). Others though read more like tabloids stabbing individuals with words and read of overall crap. I noticed the tide turn in the particular "fash" blog, and I think it's cute. Awww. As for the BH blog, within two posts they completely contradicted themselves. Drama, maliciousness, anger, shock (did they really say that?) makes a popular blog unfortunately. Not necessarily a "good" blog. It's like a train wreck, you feel the need to see the gross stuff. Why? I have to agree with Rosie, "grand-standing and name calling do not make you a better writer or "journalist"... it just makes you an ass. If that's all you have to offer, I would like to suggest you sit down & re-evaluate being a blogger of stuff.

I am flattered as I'm sure the rest of the MGs are about the many blogs popping up taking a more honest approach in the footsteps of what we do here. For those of you doing it wrong, we appreciate you trying, but we got this, kkthnx.

♥JellyBean♥

Meat 'N Greet: Broder Kubrick

*Favorite Color:

Black / Grey. It's undeniably sexy. Apart from that, brown :]

*SL Rezzday:

1/21/2007, but before that... October 06

*Favorite animal and why?

No idea. Not cats though, I just like to act like one :3

*What factors did you take into consideration when creating your av?

I didn't want a gigantic 7'4" hunk of flesh. Something shorter, not skinny, not overly buffed. Just with personality and a unique-ness I guess.

*Who is your SLelebrity crush?

Avant Scofield... damn photoshop legend :3

*what's the most embarrassing thing you've done for a girl/guy/furry?

That would be telling ;]

*What's the last book you read?

I'm not that much of a reader... :]

*What's a movie you could watch over and over?

Kill Bill 1 and 2.

*You could never date someone who _____________ (fill in the blank)

Didn't like my boyfriend ;]

*If you could trade slives with one other avatar for a day, who would it be?

I wouldn't trade it, this one is just too cool, and they'd mess it all up =P.

*Favorite thing to do in SL?

Hang around my store and home, usually building. Act like a nuisance. Spend time with friends and loved ones and generally discover more about SL and what it has to offer and meet new people. Voice client is pretty fun though, when it works.

SLunchtime Poll Results - Last Week (Me & My Neighbor)

Click to Enlarge

AO-ver Done

In the world of SL creations - the AO (or Animation Overrider) is the most easily abused. Why? For one its nearly always on. The only time anyone says "ao off" is when they are about to do a different animation, such as dance. I would consider AOs a fairly new thing. Early '05 brought attention to the fact that "Hey this stand is fuckin lame!" as well as the laughable default run. So everyone rushed out to get their Wet Ikon in order to start lining up poses to cram the thing with.

At first they were all static poses, and though it was funny to watch someone switch from one pose to another with a swift jerky movement - it was better than standing with your fists in your hips. As most everyone knows, the freebie poses are awesomely bad but for the most part - that's all we had to work with. In mid/late 05 perhaps has late as early 06 ushered in the animated pose. Boy did we all flock like white trash to Hooters for those!

"These are great" I had thought when I purchased my first animated pose from a vendor at the old Naughty Designs store. I think I still use it, even! At any rate a few other folks jumped on the animated stand-wagon and it was almost fun to stand around with a big group in suspense "Ooooh what stand is SHE gonna do next?!?" though those days are long gone.

The poses had gone from jerking from pose to pose to the fluid movement of stands that no one would ever really do, to the new craze: realism. I'm all about bringing realism to SL in most cases ... but I swear to the stars if one more person does a thirty second stretch while I'm talking to them that I'm gonna choke a bitch. Seriously!

I have no idea who makes this ao animation/pose. I just know that they have clearly made a good amount of money off it. Everywhere I go there is at least one neko girl, white trash barbie, or girl with a weave that has it in their AO. Why? Isn't it considered rude to yawn while someone is talking? So when did it become socially acceptable? Did I miss something?!

You know the pose. They stand, pull their arms in close before straightening out their arms to their sides and slowly reach for the sky. The avatar momentarily stands there in their blissful "better than sex" stretch before their arms lower slowly and they put both hands on their love handles (or lack thereof), bringing the animation to an end. I had prepared a video demonstration, but got a bit over saturated with the animation between seeing it everywhere in SL as well as editing footage of it to make a video. I feel that's a bit unnecessary though, as I'm positive everyone knows the pose I'm talking about.

This sequence drives me absolutely bonkers. I can't stand to look at it! When someone is stretching like that it makes me want to pull out a dropkick animation. Stop doing that while I'm talking to you! I could totally see it being used in a gesture or something of that nature .. but in an AO?! Please.

If your SL is so boring that you need an animation to convey that you're tired, bored, unenthused etc ... you need to go hang in a sandbox. What's worse is there are different variations of this same pose floating around. Evidently its the 'thing' to have because I see so many with their AOs just stretching away ... but I personally don't see the appeal. Again it goes back to the 'rude' factor. No, I don't claim to be a socialite or even be able to hold a steady conversation without dumping the clutch and switching the gears to something random ... but don't friggin' yawn and stretch while we're talking! Even if you are legitimately interested in what I'm saying ... your AO says otherwise.

Seriously? I'm all for AOs conveying your mood. By all means switch your poses up as often as you feel necessary .. but save the yawns, stretches, ass scratching and nut adjusting for your poseballs at your house. For conversational purposes, pack your AO with interesting poses that are aesthetically pleasing or at least mildly entertaining. And who said you couldn't put a dance animation in an AO?! Do it! Be free!

Maybe I just take my typing conversations a bit too seriously - and I know in the world of IMs and voice chat that most likely the person I'm talking to has gotten distracted at more than one turn in the road ... but don't remind me of that by yawning and/or stretching for half a damn minute!

Get Your Groove on...

Introducing Animazoo Animation Centre - Mocapped (I have no idea what that means) animations made for SL, AOs and tutorials. If you read my personal blog, you've already heard about these animations, probably more than once. Everyone jumped on the Sine Wave bandwagon, including myself, for a bit and after awhile just like everything else in SL, the dances grew stale & new releases seemed repetitious. Now there's Animazoo by Dave Bellman... Best way to show ya is video... Enjoy!

There's so much more than what's shown in the actual video (animated AO stands for male & female, funny walks, sits, etc) soooo... Now click here & GO! GO! GO!

Animating for Second Life
Starting with natural human movement, Animazoo animation production techniques have been carefully developed to produce natural and realistic looking animations for your avatar.
What Animazoo offers
At Animazoo you'll find dances, walks and stands for male and female avis, AOs and more. In addition to their animations, they offer free animation overriders and tutorials for configuring your AO (including a video tutorial). There are also links and landmarks to other animation resources. Oh, and don’t forget to check out the freebies by the entrance!
Custom Animations
If you can’t find what you need they are happy to help with their custom animations service. Please IM Dave Bellman for more details.
Updates group
They update the range regularly, so make sure you come back to check out new arrivals. If you would like to receive notifications on updates to the range, just search for the 'Animazoo' group and join - membership is free! If you have any suggestions or queries please IM Dave Bellman.

Drama: Stays Crunchy! Even in Milk!

If you've been around in SL for any length of time then you're already aware that Drama is a predominant part of life and culture here. It's really the glue that holds us all together :) And as much a part of our culture is the self-righteous proclaimations of hating drama.

I can't remember the last time I actually said the words: "I hate drama". And if I evaluate this in myself, I find it's good and bad... Good because look... I am a part of this very blog you're checking out. To say I hate drama would be fairly to extremely hypocritical. Bad, because what's the alternative to saying those three little words? Take a Pro Drama stance? I'm not really campaigning for more, but what's to hate? Sure, it sucks when you are being bombarded with opposing viewpoints or in an argument with someone that you can't seem to win, or when dealing with anyone who is different than you. These are all part of relating to other people. You can't just lump someone else's opinion or their choice of how or where to share it into the bin labeled 'drama'. There are times when I love a good drama. Honestly, I usually do. Does this mean I start drama? Don't we all? Be honest. It's not a conscious decision usually... I shall go and start some drama... unless you're trying to promote a new product and thinking any publicity is good publicity.

“What is drama but life with the dull bits cut out”

I'm bored with the ever popular soapbox stand on hating drama. I'd like to point out that it's usually the ones with the highest flying I-Hate-Drama flags that start the most shit... or suddenly *hand to forehead* find themselves smack dab in the middle of ugly nastiness and they can't seem to imagine how they got there. Woe is you. This isn't always true, but I have learned that those with the anti-drama warnings in their profiles, the NO DRAMA signs posted in their homes... they are the ones to steer clear of. You're so sick of "drama", yet you insist on having relationships in sl, writing a blog, commenting on posts (anon or not), sharing your opinion with the world at large, and listening to the opinions of others, or talking about other people (and you know you do), etc. And low and behold drama *magically* finds you. In essence, to stop the dreaded drama I suggest you live in a hole.

So, when you're stating to the sl world at large that you are "Anti-Drama", what message is it that you are hoping to give? 'splain, please? Is it that you are declaring to the world that you've seen it, done it, have the tee shirt, and now you need a rest? And what exactly is your definition of drama? Did someone get too serious? Say something you didn't want to hear? Call you out for something? What is it that makes it drama? What I've noticed is that drama has been the catchall for any subject matter that stirs attention and makes you wanna choke a bitch. "oh drama, drama, drama." Translation: I am a very important and busy person who knows many interesting and challenging people (insert exasperated sigh)." All this seems dramatic in nature by the way. So you label the subject matter, incident, or person as Drama... we all breathe a sigh of relief and disregard it as not worthy of our attention, and beneath the high and mighty place where we like to reside. Drama is a part of slife, it seems. There is good and bad. There are starters, stirrers, and watchers.

What's the difference between good and bad drama? Who determines which is which?

Good Looks are a Slider Away

Good looks in SL are common. Actually its a bit hard to actually have an ugly avatar unless you start going all psycho on the sliders that make your shape.

Even though there are a lot of handsome and pretty avatars, there are the borderline ones, and of course the "WTF Do you not ever look at yourself" ones. Each avatar's appearance is as different as the person controlling it - but I've noticed that some features are more widespread than others.

Lips are typically large in most female avatars. Is this really a trait of beauty? My avatar doesn't have pencil thin lips - but there are a lot of shapes roaming around the grid that look like they've been taking tequila shots all night. Pouty lips are one thing .. but these are ginormous.

Eyes seem to come in two variations: there's the "SURPRISE" and the "Damn the sun is bright today". That's it. You've either got these huge open eyes or they are really squinted. Of course I am basing all this on majority and not any one person in particular. Males seem to have a better handle on the eye situation, though.

And as much as I hate to go into it, boobs. Darlings there is a such thing as gravity, and wouldn't you know it they put that slider into the boob option in SL. Why does no one use it?! I see so many chicks roaming around with a friggin shelf for cleavage and its so horrid. I mean the armpit area of your shirts should not be crinkled - and even when you add gravity to your ta-tas most of the time skin makers will shade in cleavage so that you still have that 'shelf' look even after you've obeyed the laws of physics.

Legs anyone? Yeah stop running around like a stork in hooker heels and get a bit of perception of proportion when it comes to legs to body ratio! I just can't stress that enough. I get accused of being 'short' all the time - even though my avatar is about 5'5". I am NOT the short one, people! You're just too damn tall for your own good with your 6' legs! You aren't related to Wonder Woman so you aren't from Amazonia .. stop making your shape say otherwise!

There are plenty of other body parts yet to go. Hips are a delicate subject. I was once a victim of being under the influence of the prim skirt. There is no universal size for building prim skirts and therefore so many have opted to have waif thin Kate Moss avs just so they can wear that brand new skirt put out by InsertDesigner Here. Girls its not true! I can guarantee that if some of you models were to give yourselves some curves that designers would re-think their products and product proportions. There are plus size women IRL - and also in SL.

Speaking of models ... what exactly makes someone a model in SL? I've never been one, and I can't say I even know one but I see a lot of profiles that say "model". Is it their face, their body shape, the skins they wear to make their face look better? And in a world where good looks are only a slider click away .. why isn't everyone a model? Better yet why are there so many similarities in so many avatars if they are 'infinitely customizable' (and I refer mostly to shape)? What exactly defines beauty in a virtual world where the meaning of the word could be twisted shaped and molded into anything? Well I'll tell ya - its a bunch of people who all have similar traits but different flavors. Like ice cream! You know what ice cream is - and what it looks like but it just comes with slight alterations .. overall its all the same.

Because of all those 'problems' some people are totally bankin' off selling premade shapes. Why!? Its so friggin' easy to just move a couple sliders around yet people are going to spend more on a shape than they would a badass hairstyle. And those premade shapes rarely seem worth it to me .. one you normally can't modify them so if you want to just change how big your nose is .. too damn bad. Two - the fact of knowing that there is another chick out traipsing the grid that looks exactly like me is enough to make me want to NEVER buy a pre made shape.

Once upon a time folks used to hold building classes in SL - and I'm starting to ask myself if someone should host shape making classes. I guess I'm just against conventional beauty :/ Any thoughts?

Meat 'n Greet: Keanu DeSantis

*Favorite Color:
blue
*SL Rezzday:
Jan 7th 2007 but been playing sl since 03
*Favorite animal and why?
My shih tzu Blake, he’s just the man
*What factors did you take into consideration when creating your av?
He was not going to look preppy as my last avie did lol
*Who is your SLelebrity crush?
Haha erm dunno if I have one but lotta nice lookin’ femme out there.
*What's the most embarrassing thing you've done for a girl/boy/furry?
Girl- I’ve sang on voice chat (either on skype or yahoo) *blushes*
*What's the last book you read?
Would be the new Harry Potter book. 700+ pages, ahhh!
*What's a movie you could watch over and over?
Starship Troopers, Braveheart, Basic, Shaun of the dead
*You could never date someone who _____________ (fill in the blank)
Thought they were better than everyone else
*If you could trade slives with one other avatar for a day, who would it be?
Torley Linden, because he looks too cool haha
*Favorite thing to do in SL?
I love to shop / hangout at the Block. Something about that place just keeps me coming.
Great laid-back atmosphere.

SLunchtime Poll Results - Last Week (Who's the Beef)

Don't be fooled by the rocks that I got, I'm still, I'm still Jelly from the block

The new & improved (yet again) Block has officially opened today in Varado. Zabitan Assia & his bro, Dragontat Zagato have purchased a new sim. The not-so-new but kinda Block sim will be no longer soon, as well as the original II Block in Endicott. They will both be replaced by this newer version which is more closely tied into the once neighborhoodly feel again. Just like the original Block that was first located in Linda. The Block gained it's popularity by being *the* place to hang as well as the one-stop place to shop.

Still housing all the original designers you've come to know & love, as well as some new ones... Elec Tone of ElecTRo Kitty, Iki Ikarus of Dutch Touch, Saeya Nyanda of Kyoot, and Eata Kitty of Breach. The new neighborhood of the Block is more organized, easier to maneuver, and has a closer knitted feel to it. New things added to this urban build is the ad spaces that are given to the designers there to display their new releases, store ads, etc throughout the sim. The Mean Girls Guide to SL even takes up one of those spaces. High5 bitches! :D

So wether you're in need of some new garb, or just looking for a place to call home to your hangage, I suggest you go checkity check it! The Block - FORM Desert Moon Miau Haus GearShift Artilleri more. (Clothes clothing shoes jeans shirts womens mens tattoos accessories skins hair grunge neko punk anime goth urban piercing guns).

Peeping Tom or Stalker?

This actually happened to me the other day, so I figured I might as well bloggity blog blog, besides I like to get other people's opinions with my posts, and justify my insanity at times. There was a time when if you had traded cards with someone it automatically gave them mapping rights and they could easily track your ass down. In my case, I wasn't too particular with card trading. (I'm not really as mean as these other mean girls, some of ya'll are just sissies.) Anywho, I would be friends with anyone & everyone. Call it social butterfly syndrome, whatever.

An SL update not too long ago changed this friend rule by allowing us to choose not to turn on a person's mapping rights in our friends list. Wow! Hmmm at first I thought "Well hell, EVERYONE can map me! Mapping Party! Find me!" After years of common courtesy and trust in the mapping privilege I ended up getting mapped & stalked. Now normally this would not bother me if say I was at tringo (unless you land in front of my card), at a club, or anywhere else with a large group of people on the map. In these two instances I was not in a huge group, nor was I alone. *wink* Hello? Two green dots? Yah, that's me & Hawks - Go Away! So this lead me to a new way of thinking and implementing my own personal new rule. No one under the SL age of 3 months or mentally unstable would be granted mapping rights.

• No one under 3 months was because alts know how to map & some people are just born grievers. Besides if you're that SL young, you can use the fact that you're a noob as an excuse for almost anything.
• Mentally unstable? C'mon everyone has at least one of them if not more on their list.
  

This worked for awhile, until the other day Hawks & I were hiding out at our other house, no one else on the sim, then boom Poophead at 2 o'clock or really just 20m. So I yell "Go Away!" of course, cause I'm like witty, clever bitch like that. heh. "Oops! Mapped the wrong J on my list, sorry," he replied. Immediate loss of mapping rights. Haha! POWAH! No, just kidding. So I rethought yet again about mapping rights and introduced yet another new rule. No one gets mapping rights now, okay some do, but it's like Rosie, Aka, Laylah & Orchid cause when no ones looking they beat me. They really do! HELP! ME!

A friend once told me "nothing good ever comes from mapping a person." This could be true. There's reasons why I do actually like the mapping feature. One being that I am uber nosy and want to know what my girls are up to if I'm not with them. There is a difference between mapping & actually stalking. Stalking is actually hitting that "teleport" button. Mapping is just peeping to see where everyones at. I admit I do that too when I'm bored & if I see a friend with a group, I might im and beg to come. :p That's where trust, respect & common courtesy come into play. It's okay to map, and request a tp. It is not okay to map & stalk without prior permission.

Was the mapping feature a factor for accepting or declining friendship? Am I the only one who implemented mapping rules as SL changed? Do you freely give mapping rights? Is it even something you think of? Your thoughts please...

Dear Rosie... Signed PrimEnvy (+ More!)

Dear Rosie,

There's this guy, right? He's always hanging around my girl...literally. I swear...his prims are bigger and better scripted than mine. Why do I feel intimidated and lesser of a man because of this?

~Sincerely,
PrimEnvy in Primeworks

Dear PrimEnvy,

Well you feel this way because you are! I could sugar coat it by telling you some crap about how it’s what’s on the inside that counts, but then I’d just be enabling you to be content with who you are. And that just won’t do! Perhaps it’s time to invest in superior prim enhancements. Sure you won’t be truly unique if you buy off the rack, but you’ll be keeping up with the Joneseses and that’s what counts! Most importantly, learn to recognize that feelings of envy and inadequacy are nature’s way of letting you know that you need to improve. Retire your inferior, flaccid old-faithful and upgrade to state of the art! Oooo, maybe go sculptie! Your girlfriend will thank you for it!

*Rosie
_____________________________________________________________

Dearest Rosie,

My SL ex-boyfriend won't get over me. I've moved on and after 2 years, he hasn't. I think it's starting to bother my current boyfriend in SL. What should I do?

~Yours truly,
Happy in SL

Dear Happy in SL,

What should you do? Hmmm… Blog it?

*Rosie
_______________________________________________________________

Dear Rosie

... my friend finds it difficult to select an outfit, please advise how to help her.

~Waiting Expectantly

Dear Waiting,

All good things come to those who wait :) Hope this helps!

*Rosie
_______________________________________________________________

Dear Rosie,

I recently have gotten back together with my ex. I am very happy with them, but whenever I am in sl I wish I had more freedom. I find that if I am not doing what they want with their friends then I get left out of the picture or I feel uncomfortable when I do get to hang with them. Sometimes I even get ignored, which makes me start to wish I was able to just go hang with others and not feel guilty about it. I have even confronted my significant other explaining the problem. Instead of it resolving anything it usually just starts an argument and they throw things in my face from the past. I do not want to break up, but I am feeling a bit neglected. What do I do?

~Neglected

Dear Neglected,

Ahhhh what’s slove without feelings of guilt, boredom, awkwardness, and cheap shots? I say, make an alt! Hell, make several! Do what you wanna do! No one gets snippy, everyone stays calm, they just think Oh my my “neglected” is soooo busy and never in SL! Easy Peasy!

*Rosie
_______________________________________________________________

Dear Rosie,

I IM my friends throughout the day many times to see how they are. If I don't get a response, I IM them again with the same exact message. Sometimes on the third attempt I try to be a little quirky. I think they may find me annoying. Why wouldn't someone want a friend like me?

~How are you today?

How,

STALKER! Don’t IM me again!

*Rosie
_______________________________________________________________

Dear Rosie-
I just read JB's post about the mantourage. Do you have any advice on where I find men willing to be in my mantourage? I don't have to put out, right? You guys are experts. Thank God for MGG2SL!

~Seeking Mentourage

Dear Seeking,

Experts?! On putting out? What have you heard?! Send a note to JellyBean Madison in world. I know she’s currently working on a database of all eligible candidates for mantourages grid-wide! That girl has all the cool toys!

Rosie

SLunchtime Poll Results - Last Week (Voice)

Oh NO She Di'in! Girl got herself a WEAVE!

Flexi prims changed the look of fashion in SL bigtime. This is especially true in the hair department where it has become almost imperative that designers slap a few waving strands into their 'dos. As with nearly everything in life - even good things should be done sparingly. However, I have found at least one that has gone above and beyond the call, and not in a good way ladies and gentlemen.

While roaming around random sims looking for spontaneous entertainment I stumbled upon what I thought (past tense) was a cute ponytail. Mistakenly I made my judgement before she turned around. My eyes widened a bit as her hair trailed behind her like a wounded boa constrictor. I can't be seeing this. Is that ... is that a WEAVE?!



The prim work on the bangs and hair itself was normal - and I actually found the bangs to be attractive - but the back. Oh god the back was just a train wreck, and with all horrible accidents you simply have to sit back and watch. I did.

It seems the shiteous weave is making an appearance in a huge way in SL. Why? Why and who finds this appealing? I understand that its unique (to an extent) but it doesn't even look good! Okay so the idea itself isn't new. I mean ... over a year ago Nylon Pinkney (why does my "Curly by Nylon (geek) hair say Nylon Partridge?!) put out the first real '2D' curly 'do. And? And it was kind of hard to adjust to - but it was funky and well done .. just like the rest of Nylon's creations. It had a wang to it, but it wasn't hard to swallow. This though .. this is just .. well .. weave-tacular.


I didn't even bother trying to photoshop these pictures. I was going to, but thought why sugar coat it any? As I look at these pictures I'm still whispering "Why? Why would anyone ..." I don't have an answer. I do know that this stuff is great just for laughs and to see just how much you can lag out your friends with crappy computers.

The appeal of super long hair in SL had previously seemed rare. Yeah there were a few stints of really long hair - and every so often a designer will release a Crystal Gale 'do as either a joke or just for something new, hell or maybe even to laugh at themselves! Don't get me wrong, though. I'm a huge fan of eccentric hair. I still have my old "Poke Your Eye Out" hair by Helyanwe in my inventory that I like to whip out. I even slap on an old Treebee wig from time to time ... but this isn't funny!

Gorean girls everywhere are probably singing the praises of this hair (which is a majority of what was surrounding me in the shop) even though the alphas of their 1972 I Got You Babe Cher hair totally clash with the alphas and flexis of their barely there 'silk' skirt ... things. Unless you're a comedian .. or Gorean .. or a Crystal Gale fan .. I don't see the appeal of this hair at all. It looks like a bad weave!

The prim work on most the hair is good! They started out as decent styles until .. oh lord .. those stringy bits were added. Why?! Why did you ruin good hair?! Even your textures were good! Granted not all the hair there was a poster child for Pimp My Weave ... some of it was pretty decent (the men's hair was probably best) but coming in at nothing under 194 prims this hair just wasn't worth it. Not to me, at least.



Judge for yourselves. But if your friends have a weave ... please please seek help. There are so many good hairstyles out there that they don't have to turn down Route Godiva, okay? And if they still want to ... try to find some that doesn't actually look like a damn weave!

EX PhileZ: Letting Go & Moving on

I'm feeling particularly charitable this week, call it insanity due to lack of *good* new releases. Anywho... I figured I'd throw in my dime & a nickle in the EX PhileZ series.
Breaking up is hard to do, moving on with an uber emo terrorist clingy ex attached is even harder. At what point does the grieving process fade into an "hey I'm ok now"? Two years? Is that enough? I suppose that it's different for different people, right? From personal experience let me tell you what NOT to do.

• Don't constantly IM your ex telling him/her how good they look since ya'll split.
• Don't cry to your ex in IM about how unhappy your slife is since the split.
• Don't try to date and/or fuck your ex's friends. (there's an unspoken rule yanno)
• Don't use Snapzilla as a weapon.
• Don't shove your new fuck buddy down your ex's throat.
• Don't offer friendship if you're only doing it with ulterior motives in mind.
• Don't drop textures or pics on your ex from times that you were together.
• Don't hold prims hostage.
• Don't have evidence of your latest whore laying around when/if you invite your ex over to "talk".
• Don't use whatever resources at your disposal to manipulate, torture, and otherwise tie your ex up in knots.
  

And what you should DO...

• Do make a clean break, quickly. (even if you feel this includes card deletion)
  
• Do move on.
• Do make new friends other than the ones you & your ex shared.
• Do put the spoon back in the drawer... save it for you're new friends.
• Do respect the approx 2 week long grieving process by not contacting your ex.
• Do delete *those* pictures and copy/pasted notecards if you feel you could be dangerous.
• Do remmy to stay on your meds.
• Do see a medical professional if after, oh let's say 2 years you still haven't moved on.
• Do get lots of rest and eat a well-balanced diet... you need something to balance the chaos in your system.
• Do use those Lindens as needed to ease the pain with some other warm pixels. PLEASE!

Remmy your ex & you are fighting for the same goal here... moving on & finding happiness in your slives. You gave it a shot, hell you probably even got the teeshirt, it didn't work. No need trying to sabotage each other's chances at finding happiness, right? Too much like work, I say.

Now get the hell outta my slife or I'm getting a restraining order. kkthnxbai

Mood Makers or Mood Breakers?

Sometimes its nice to sit somewhere in SL where the crickets sign softly while the particle fireflies make patterned circles about your head without worries of snorting one up your nose. Maybe you prefer to take your ambiance alone, or perhaps with a friend or partner - however you want it - its available in numerous sims.

I love scenery. I like land that's actually landscaped and not just flat and green. The builders/estate owners that have gone the extra step to add their own texture to the ground get a big thumbs up from me. I like to hop from pose ball to pose ball in the gazebos that seem to be plentiful waterfronts ... but I confess I have to do all this with the sounds off.

Think of all the random background .wav files that are slapped into objects. Earlier I stood next to an 8' tall waterfall (approximately) and it sounded like an A-10 was taking off near my head. And I *know* what an A-10 sounds like taking off, people!

I understand that these things aren't silent in the real world. In fact many waterfalls are so loud and have so much force that they nearly knock you over. However, the small ones in which I am referring should not be that loud. It seems you get one of two sounds in the "Waterfall o' Doom" so your choices are limited. You get the "A-10 Taking off in your face" or the "Beer Piss". Its either loud and roaring, or just an annoying trickle. W T F

It doesn't stop there, though. That horrible HOWWLLLL that we all probably have somewhere in our gesture cache is also a 'background' noise. Why on earth anyone with a beach house would feel the need to have a random "HoWwwwLLLLlll" going off every few minutes is beyond me .. but I tell you the truth. So now you have a fighter jet, drunk hobo, and a cartoon wolf all within earshot. Oh, but it gets better.

I've noticed that many sounds have been 'remixed' in that they aren't the exact sounds in every object that is similar. Does someone sell 'annoying background loops' on SLexchange? And if they do - why has no one made some that involved more variety in the sounds? On any given summer night I can open a window and hear many of these sounds - except the waterfall - and there is no pattern to these sounds. The sounds in SL are more of a drone than anything.

White noise schmight noise - how do these sounds create a mood at all? I know it would probably be really boring to build a great waterfall and have no sound in it ... but to me its worse to have a beautiful waterfall or lagoon with frogs that croak with a sonic boom or if your waterfall sounds like the rumble of train tracks.

So do these loops help set a mood, or do they break them? Well if used correctly I could see how they could help enhance the visuals, but it seems so rare that the sounds are used in this way. There are so many sounds that just aren't a part of SL that maybe should be. Like doorbells. I know its pretty pointless to have a doorbell or even doorbell sound in sl (other than the ding ding you get when you get an IM) but wouldn't it be great if we could modify our SLounds? Instead of the default ding ding if it were to make a different sound. Man something, ANYTHING to kind of switch it up!

I'd like to know just how many people actually turn their ambient and sound features way down or even off in order to escape the ear drum barrage that's included in so many builds. Better yet - if LL insists on giving us options that no one really wants until everything else is more stable - why don't they offer more customizable UIs? Why can't we change the sound of our IM notification? Why can't we change the 'clunk' that we hear when we right click an object?

It just feels as if the sound loops are overdone - or maybe they aren't done enough since (as far as I know) no one has taken steps to remake any or better them in some way. I do know that I've had quite enough of ponds that sound like flushing toilets, splashy pool water that sounds like a killer whale is doing a belly flop, howling, owls louder than cars ... the list could go on and on.

Is this a new form of metaversal sound pollution or do I just have over sensitive ears?

SLunchtime Poll Results - Last Week (Island Poll)

Submit Your Dear Rosies

Don't forget to submit your Dear Rosies - post coming soon :D

Voice Beta in First Look

I know, I know voice posts are probably heading into OT on overkill but I had to do it. I've already covered this with Hawks on the JH Report but I think it's time to put a MG spin on it now after further voice use.

I, for one am very excited about voice. I have been since my log in in the First Look Viewer even though it was in the WA Ahern area. I think for the most part a few people are excited as I am. There are a lot that aren't though. I was trying to think up reasons why others could not possibly be as excited as me. I came up with a few theories.

• They're men in female avatars. Yup. Simple as that. Using voice will just flush them out. Unless of course you get that voice morphing software that makes you sound like a woman or just choose not to use it. Then I will most likely assume you're really a man & laugh at you. Hahahaha!
• Hate their voices & think their voice just sucks. Well let me be the judge of that. TALK TO ME! I'll give you my honest opinion, really. People say I'm loud, giggly & I sound like I'm 13... I don't care - love me or hate me.
  
• Too cheap to buy a mic. Let me help ya out on this one... As cheap as $8.98 usd at Walmart. Who doesn't have a Walmart? Order online. So what, u go without crack or smokes for a day. You'll live.

Okay so mayhaps it's none of my theories. It could be the fact that you will be subjecting yourselves to all the obnoxious, perverted asshats by using voice or the mass chaos that comes from being in a club, at tringo, the WA or anywhere with large groups of people. It's almost comparable in my experience to a high school auditorium prior to a pep rally. Too many voices, no real structure. I'm still all for it. I love chaos in the morning. *inhales* Smells like victory.

There's even new tools for voice. How can you not be excited about things like this (SecondLife Speech Tools 1.24) :


See... men who play women, no need to be afraid! No "I hate my voice" and no excuses for being too cheap to buy a mic. Okay I so lost my point with this post entirely. Haha! I want to know how ya'll feel about voice & why? Do you feel it's easier to protect your online persona if you choose not to use voice?

Damn The Man! (...Save the designers.)

“Business ethics is a form of the art of applied ethics that examines ethical rules and principles within a commercial context, the various moral or ethical problems that can arise in a business setting, and any special duties or obligations that apply to persons who are engaged in commerce.”*1

When Jelly ask me two days ago where this article was I told her “It's in my bathroom. I am using it page by page because I've run out of toilet paper. It's much softer than newspaper... and quilted for absorbency.” That's probably a very apt appraisal of the business ethics in/of Second Life, or rather the lack of them. This article will extend past mere business in Second Life to the business of Second Life itself.

We all have seen the lack of ethics in Second Life companies, from ignoring broken merchandise to doctoring photos to make products look better on ads, and even corporate sabotage, employee raiding (usually found in the music stations with DJs *cough- markus Damone -cough* and design firms), and plain old back-stabbery. The business market in Second Life is a dirty back alley full of panhandling hobos painting themselves shiny and doing the robot. Sure, some of them got where they are honestly and are responsible, ethical businesses devoted to the people they serve and to giving back to the communities. The fact that there are business like that make Second Life worth living. Even still it is a very 'Caveat Emptor' (or 'let the buyer beware') market full of shady dealings and thievery that Linden Labs does nothing about, thus condoning and allowing them to flourish completely unhindered.

Remember the copybot scandals? How about blatant texture thieving in the hair market or the full perm 'business in a box' creators who resell stolen designs? How can Linden Labs expect designers to put time and effort into their creations to release them on a grid that offers them no protection and enforces no consequences?

Linden Labs makes it feel like they are a benevolent god sitting behind the pearly gates refusing to dig in and get their hands dirty working with what they created, weeding the garden and raking the leaves. Sure, they give us 'updates' but if you've ever been around for an update you'll see that they usually break more than they fix and add in frivolous things instead of making what they've already added actually work or work better. Linden Labs exhibits no trace of CSR.

“Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a concept that organizations, especially (but not only) corporations, have an obligation to consider the interests of customers, employees, shareholders, communities, and ecological considerations in all aspects of their operations. This obligation is seen to extend beyond their statutory obligation to comply with legislation.

CSR is closely linked with the principles of Sustainable Development, which argues that enterprises should make decisions based not only on financial factors such as profits or dividends, but also based on the immediate and long-term social and environmental consequences of their activities.”*2

Not only does Linden Labs not care about the community that pays their salaries, they don't allow residents to set up any form of support for businesses and business ethics. Rather, they refuse to 'back' any system. Take the Second Life Better Business Bureau for instance. A fantastic idea, giving people a safe haven with respectable businesses being held accountable for their actions, as it should be. Linden Labs has made it quite clear that they do not back this endeavor, even though it is exactly what the business world needs.

Even then, the SLBBB has no real power and can mearly mediate. Still, for the few months it has been live I have seen people try and take advantage of it. They become almost sue-happy, in a way. (Like a client of a marketing business who demanded all of her money back for two banners she 'did not receive' even though the company in question did provide the banners. The problem was that she gave the company the wrong logos and wanted the banners done over. The company was more than willing to do this even though they had gone out of their way already to take all of the pictures and design the wording for the first set of banners, which is usually not included in the design process. The client was ask numerous times to please supply the correct logo textures for the second set of banners. She never did so the company never made them. Branding and logo design are completely different from banner design and deffinately not included in a simple flash or stationary banner price. She contacted the BBB and demanded all of her money be returned to her. Am I the only one who thinks this is wrong? It was completely her fault, what she bought was supplied and even though it is not company policy to do complete overhauls of banners for free they bended over backwards to do it anyway and she doesn't follow through and then wants to cry about it.) It's really sad to see something that is a great idea being taken advantage of by the very people it is trying to help.

Linden Labs allows dishonest businesses to thrive in an unchecked world, thus ruining and souring good businesses and honest residents.

Linden Labs – Get your head out of your ass, pay attention to your consumers, and start being RESPONSIBLE for your creation. At least make an effort at sustainable development. This world is created by the residents – they are the reason so many of us are here. Don't drive them away by allowing dishonest peoples to take advantage of your refusal to actually involve yourself.

*1. Wikipedia search term, 'Business Ethics'.

*2. Wikipedia search term, 'Corporate Social Responsibility'.

Sorry, Orchid. I bumped you. Neener. :P

Wanna Come to My Shop lol!11!

These days its getting more and more rare that I go out shopping for things that I don't already plan on buying. With the influx of more fashion blogs than you can shake a prim at, I don't even have to log in to know if I want to buy anything. Today though was a rare exception.

For months now I've been wearing the same skin. I can't help it, its the best colored skin I've seen in SL and until Naughty Designs puts out a purple skin that I simply must have, I refuse to take it off! Anyway - so I got a wild hair and thought I'd go skin browsing. I had a few extra Lindens so why not? I was loading up with demos when a guy walks up and strikes up a conversation. I'm not a total bitch so I say hi back.

Meet Random Guy:



Random Guy: Hello there. I see you like boots and clothes.

Me: Hi. And yes, I do for the most part.

Random Guy: I have a shop you would like. And there are lots of purple items

(see now he's toying with me. I normally don't pay attention to advertisements while I'm already shopping somewhere I like .. but he said "purple")

Me: Is that so?

Random Guy: Yes. I will give you a landmark, ok?

Me: Alright. I'll drop in and check it out when I'm finished here.

Random Guy: Sounds good! Do you wear jewelry at all?

Me: The tiny bit of jewelry I wear is either made by a friend of mine - or a few cute accessories here and there like the baby seal ring I have on.

Random Guy: Ok. There is jewelry there too - but I think you would be most interested in the boots.

Random Guy: Bling on.

(see right here I should have turned and ran - but I didn't. Why?! Why didn't I just go about my shopping?!)

Me: Tell me there aren't bling scripts in the boots.

Random Guy: No, they don't bling.

So I go to the shop, only to find out that he's promoting his partner's things. Not a huge shocker, but I really should have paid more attention to his profile. For one he's only about 4 months into SL. At any rate against my better judgement I teleported to the landmark he gave me. I didn't even have to wait for everything to rez to know that this was not my kind of shop. Who's kind of shop is it? Well its the kind of shop that most of us opened up when we first learned how to do anything and all our friends were like "omg that's so awesome" when it probably really wasn't (god I was such a victim of that).

I have titled this picture "Go to Jail - Go Directly to Jail - Do NOT Pass Go!" Anyway - that was one of the outfits there - but the rest looked a lot like it. Once I saw that outfit I said to myself 'Ahh they're just starting out with designing' but then he made a fatal mistake:

Random Guy: So what do you think?

Me: You want an honest answer - cuz if you ask me that .. that's what you're going to get.

Random Guy: Of course I want honesty!

Me: Well for one if you are going to advertise your store to people who are already shopping in a kick ass store - be sure the stuff you are taking their attention from is better than what they are looking at.

Random Guy: I see. Anything else?

Me: I mean, its not a bad start - I think everyone started out the same way if they didn't know anything so just keep practicing :D I'm sure there are plenty of people who would buy these things because they are cheap - but they are definitely not my cup of tea.

Random Guy: and for boots?

Random Guy: didn't you like the effect?

Me: Well the texture rotation script is really unnecessary. Even if you have an 'off' option the script is still running while the boot is attached. I see boots with that same type of style all the time and that's not really my bag either. I just think they are over the top. I mean twisty turny lightening bolts? Why not spend the time it took to drop in a texture and a script in photoshop and make a good detailed, shaded texture to put ON the boots so folks will buy them for more than just to laugh at while at some color event?

Random Guy: ok thanks

Random Guy: bye bye

Random Guy: i hope you don't want burn my shop

Random Guy: lololol

Random Guy: thanks for coming

Random Guy: lolol

Me: You did ask for my honest opinion. I would seriously not advertise a store inside a store that has awesome stuff unless you really think your stuff is better. I mean .. c'mon.

Random Guy: I understand. Good thing my stuff is better.

Me: Are you serious?! Your stuff is better than the stuff at Naughty Designs ... oookay.



-- He didn't answer.

This experience only lead to the support of my original policy "When shopping in a store you like - don't talk to strangers." And especially strangers who's first few words are "Bling On."

Don't Vote Jelly!

Reasons why NOT to vote for me:

• I'm pink, fooking adorable, sweet, loveable and here for the greater good.
• I don't just listen, but I hear you.
• I can spell, read & write English the bestest.
• I have a hard exterior with a gooey center.
• JellyBean Madison is only like tote the cutest name ever.
• I'm only part Neko.

So please vote one of the other bitches, cause they're all skanks with the exception of Rosie because well, she puts out & always answers my booty calls.

you can piss on a slave, but there is no gambling in a casino

I have always had a secret dream.. To be a LL (Linden Liason) to get paid to be in a world I loved and to help out and to try to make this place be better then it is.. But omfg!!!! Ok I can understand the legal logistics behind it all.. I really and honestly can, but there is a point where it goes to far as in banning words from search.. Where does it stop? I learned about this today from Jelly and her blogline addiction.. She had read Vint Falken's post titled "no ass in your name no lolita in your search" and passed the info on to me and of course I couldn't back away from it.. The whole thing just makes me so mad!

My question I have to ask is what will banning words help in the long run? There are always ways around using words. I know I use words such as "teh secks or fook" just for fun but those are words used to get around filters. To me it's just a way for LLabs to hide the problem and make it all go away. But at what cost? What is next, lollipop (Lolita pornography, also known as "lollipop", a type of pornography that generally involves women older than the age of sexual consent pretending to be below it ) ? Right now there are still slaves, pissing, dungeon, also gorean, bondage, and a lot more I'm sure, but for how long? I am not saying that I disagree with any of those things, or agree with even having an adult in a child av running around naked for some old perv.. But censoring is not the way to go about making a change!!! There has got to be a better way out there to make the changes that are needed without killing the freedom of those of us in this community!


I liked what Vint had to say here so I figured I would leave you all with this for now.

"Phedophilia and child abuse have been important themes of many books, movies
and songs. For a reason! It has always existed and we shall probably never
succeed at keeping all our children safe. For hundreds of years what happened
was ignored and hidden behind closed doors. The victims were punished and the
offenders could just walk. I thought our civilisation finally ‘matured’ enough
that we could openly discuss this subjects so we could learn about it, try to
understand it and most of all, prevent it. Yet, it seems we are still stuck in
our old fashioned puritaine behaviour. Let’s shove it all under the carpet
again, shall we?"

I RULE!!!

Vote for me or I'll cut you!

psst LaLa

Mousie chase

Start running! LOL

All your mothers are whores!

Vote for me on this week's poll!

Laylah Mistral for President!

Dearest Fashionista Bloggers?

Hiii! First off let me says Kudos for all that you do. Bringing ex-fashion bloggers like me the world of fashion, keeping us up to date on the trends, new releases & fluffing designers. This morning as I licked my thumb and browsed through my BlogLines I saw some uber cute stuffies I just had to have. I love the mix & match blogs because that takes talent. Plus it takes a lot more time & effort to list all the things you are wearing from the various designers. I admire your dedication, really I do.
I know I am not super blogger by any means, but I am quite proud of my super shopper skillz, yO. There are two particular bloggers that blog fash regularly that are driving me freaking nuts. I won't name names, cause well that's so B-List. I would like to just make a few itsy bitsy tiny suggestions if I may? kkthnx

1. Could you mayhapsibly use SLurls?
2. Not clump a bunch of outfits into one post?
3. Format it as if you were the one wanting to sniff out the outfit(s) for yourself?
4. Be a little more specific? (skin, hair, designers names mayhaps if store isn't searchable & you're not using SLurls)
5. Is it flexi? Is it tintable? Did you have to mod the attachment points?
6. Make yourself available for questions regarding your post? (full SL name, email addy, social security number, Skype name, anything)

It seems simple, it really honestly truly does. The issues I ran into today were no SLurls, the jewelry store listed did not exist in search, I couldn't find the shoes or the belt, and I had to decide between skirt, belt or mod the attachment point. It was just frustrating. My suggestion in addition to the ones above are for you to re-read your post and ask yourself if you could easily navigate it yourself. Oh I should point out a fashionista that does it right... Willow Zander of Style Disorder. Even outside of game she manages to put the SLurls and separates each item nicely. Way to go Willow!

This has been another public service suggestion from Jelly. kkthnxbai

SLunchtime Poll Results - Last Week (My Inventory Fetches...)