For god's sake, the numbers!

Let's talk names. I'll keep this short.

I've always wondered about people who have numbers in their names. I mean, if their name is like John6 Smith or something, maybe that means they had a hard time getting the name they really wanted.

But what about, like, AOL IM chat names? SexxyGirl69 Somelastname. How many of those have I seen? Or you know, DarkWolf3789 Somelastname or something insane.

It's a name. PICK A NAME. Just choose a NAME. It doesn't have to have numbers in it. Make it a fun name! A cool name, a sexy name, SOME KIND OF NAME. But please, please do not use your IM or chatroom profile name with your date of birth or your zipcode or the last four digits of your phone number or whatever. Just pick a name.

I don't know, maybe it's just me. But when I'm in-world, I am suspending a little bit of reality. So as soon as someone shows up with a name filled with numbers, unless it's REALLY an excellent play on something-or-other, I suddenly start to feel like I'm sitting in a Yahoo chat room somewhere and halfway start to expect webcam requests.

What made me think of this?

I was at SL5B the other day hanging out at a DJ set of a friend of mine, and it ended up being an excellent place to peoplewatch. So beyond the folks with boob sliders at 100 and body fat at zero, the gal with the face/body light that BURNED WITH THE LIGHT OF A THOUSAND SUNS, and a blingtard or two, I also saw some names with numbers. One in particular sticks out, and I will change the name to protect the innocent, but I have friends who were with me who can back me up on how absurd this name truly was.

It was along the lines of:

SuperAwesomeJohnathan1991

That's right. It was that long. And it had numbers in it. A YEAR, to be precise. And multiple words. *facepalm*

I tried to imagine what it would be like to emote to SuperAwesomeJohnathan1991. Or if he just asks people to call him John. Or Awesome. Or Super.

"Hey, baby. You can just call me 1991. All my friends do."

Quick and dirty

On the eve of rumpy pumpy day, I made a lil video for y'all showing the dangers of bad pose balls


How to ruin valentines day in Second Life from Kitty Lalonde on Vimeo.

Rip offs..

I'm writing today, not in my usual middle of the road stance, but in utter disgust at the unscrupulous nature of some residents in SL. They are here to rip other residents off, pure and simple.

The store itself is called Primacy, owned by one Zennor Cornwall. I leave the SLurl here so you can all go and voice your complaints directly to the vile perpetrator.

In the store which claims to be "Haute Couture Prim Design for discerning admirers of art and culture" he only sells four things. A cube, a pyramid, a sphere and a cylinder. So what's the problem you ask? Well these are the basic SL prims, that anyone can rez for free, and this diabolical creature is selling them for 200L$ EACH! Not only that but he has the gall to put permissions on his wares of copy/mod/no trans. The shop is situated on a Linden road a mere stones throw from an infohub. So that Zennor may prey upon hapless newbies, who have no idea about SL.

Hiding behind a businesslike nature and, admittedly, beautifully designed store. Lurks an evil monster who needs to be stopped, and hopefully. Getting this message out will help.

Blog Drama and You

Its no secret that blogs are filled with drama. Not only SL fashion blogs, but personal ones as well. My husband finds it hilarious that I find such amusement in 'blog trolling'. I'm a silent observer - so I have to remind him that I'm not an actual troll. Its all the same to him, though.

Most days, Second Life is like a soap opera to me. My monitor is like a television while I sit and watch these plots and story lines unfold. I try to pick the villains from the heroes while the verbal abuse spews from commenter's fingers with marksman-like accuracy. There are times I imagine funny images of "POW" "Zip!" and "BANG" flash across the screen in the equivalent of the early 1990s 'Your Momma' jokes. Its hysterical!

Then I have to ask myself - who is taking this seriously? Who is actually trying to inflict some sort of real pain and who's just in it for the lulz. The folks who's first few words are "I hate drama" are usually the ones that I watch more closely than the ones that make no mention of that naughty five letter word. Do I have drama? Of course I do! I think everyone does in some shape or form.

People come to Second Life for different reasons. For some its a creative outlet - though the definition of 'creative' is often distorted to whatever the 'creator' wants it to mean. Some folks venture into SL to experience things they can't be part of in real life - and in such an exploration they are rewarded with drama. Stop fighting it! Drama just happens, and it only gets worse with the more acclaim, fame, or infamy that you acquire in SL. It isn't any different IRL. The more famous you are IRL - the more scandal you're surrounded with. The more money you have, the more people want from you. Its just this hard-knock fact of not only life, but Second Life.

Many think that because you live your life (or second life) in the public limelight that everything becomes public domain. Is this true? To an extent. If you're going to make a complete ass of yourself, expect to be labeled an ass and definitely expect for that occasion to not go forgotten for a decent period of time (and sometimes never!)

I've thought all this time that maybe just my twisted sense of humor hasn't allowed me to fully appreciate some bloggers as humans. Well okay, that's true. There are some blogs I'll read just because they are so hideously filled with the most stupid sense of drama that it reminds me of Dallas or Knotts Landing. Its so ridiculous that you just have to sit and watch. It's also highly possible that I take the written word far too literally and find just as much amusement in the mental images projected from what some bloggers say/write.

Its also funny to me how defensive people get against such small, trivial things. If I were to stand on a blog soapbox and proclaim something which doesn't even matter like .. "I hate apple juice and I don't care what you say!" that someone would be completely appalled by my statement and feel the need for rebuttal. Does that mean I should indulge them by stating every single reason why I hate apple juice - or does that give me any kind of blogging right to tell everyone who DOES like apple juice that they are wrong? No, but that doesn't mean that the apple juice lovers won't unite against me in blind rage of their love of the fruity drink.

There are, of course, different levels of drama. Some SL drama is just that - SL drama. Its shit that goes on in world that really shouldn't involve other people, but someone has felt the need (urge?) to proclaim their emotions publicly which then makes it everyone's drama. The problem with big communities like SL is that there is such a wide range of emotions, ideals, interests and social standards that you can always bet that no matter what you think/say/do that there will be someone right behind you with a lynch mob ready to take you down. Should there be? No, but it is entertaining!

I do find it hilarious that in a community that was formed on the ideas of sharing that so many people are so selfish with their knowledge. 99% of designers don't do any form of tutorial to say - this is the basis on which you should start. Instead everyone is left to fend for themselves and do things trial-and-error and in the meantime get their asses kicked on fashion blogs about how bad they fucking suck. This then leads to drama - and there are fewer dramas more entertaining than designer drama.

Some designers are so quick to cry "thief" that they forget that their very own SL logo is VERY heavily borrowed from a very famous RL brand. Is this not theft? Or is it called inspiration? If I were to make a wig which was almost identical to one of Six Kennedy's .. but I made my own texture - would I be lynched as a thief or would I be able to pull that 'inspiration' card? Its hard to say. It would depend on who you are, who your friends are, and which blogger gets a hold of your weave.

Should bloggers be able to publicly maim other human beings? I don't know. I honestly don't care - unless it came down to insulting them on a RL basis. RL drama is probably the most touchy of all the dramas, but its no less entertaining. At least in my eyes.

I have my share of RL drama - and I'm sure the rest of SL does too. But if you 'hate' drama, why do you even talk about it? Its because you can't avoid it - and you can say you hate it all day long but in all reality drama is what makes the world go round ... even virtual ones. There are the drama mongers which will start it, the drama stirrers which will read deeper into it to keep it going, then there are the drama referees who will sit on the sidelines with their popcorn and just dream of the day that they get to sit in and hear a drama fight on voice (I've yet to sit in on one of these events).

So if some blogger is all up in your KoolAid and talking shit about you - why not just switch to another fruity drink? Like apple juice.

Evolution's good. Right?

Today CSI moved into SL, and they certainly make waves. Company CBS (who are of course with the Electric sheep) have bought 440 sims to take the flood of new residents after CSI:NY airs in the states using second life as a plot. Quick side note, I dunno what version of SL they were playing but I ain't seen shit in this place that looks like what they had, and the Venus chick being uber popular? Loitering around some sort of gorean sim, puhlease. Kudos though to ETD and Canimal for getting a forty minute advert.




But I digress, this is all a far cry from the early days of the glorified chat room. My first knowledge of SL came from a four page article in a uk computer magazine, which told of the parties and chatting to be had. Mentions of an in game currency all seemed very cool, a way to finance yourself in the virtual world. I was hooked, Three months later when I got my shiny new PC with broadband I signed up. It was, it has to be said, a simpler time. There were clubs, and shops, the events listing for one day fairly filled a page, and loads of people went to them. My friend was a budding land baron (he actually made the old land holdings top ten list) and once told me in amazement that he was close to owning half a sim of land.

Two years on and Anshe Chung owns half of SL, people approach SL to make money. I get notecards from people who have been in game for 3 weeks, telling me about their business ventures, about the services they wish to provide. Everyone and their mother has a sim (including me YAY!) and the amount of shops makes my head hurt.

But is this evolution a good thing. I set out to find some random people to have a laugh with, so I hit the events. After trawling though the 10 billion yard sales and free sex/lindens adverts I found.. Squat. So I thought I'd hit a few clubs. Every single one was the same. Empty apart from zombified campers. I gave up after the vivid textures began to melt my contacts. In deperation I decided to hit a strip club. Same deal, one guy (who you just know was itching to put on a freebie cock) four or five slider issued blingtards with numbers in their names and a grasp of the english language that my three year old would have sneered at. Oh and gestures..

Bottom line, unless you've got a clique, then you have to stick some disturbing looking sparkles in your eyes (Ewwwwwwwwwww!) and get down with the fucktards.

It's not just the social scene. The tech spec is sneaking the bar up too. My old pooter would play SL quite happily, but with each and every update the poor thing spent more time groaning. My new pooter is happy enough now but for how long, and who is getting left behind?

So yeah, evolve, it's good, 440 CSI islands was a great enhancement to the grid I'm sure. But please, don't forget your roots.

Text Hearts

I'm well aware of the past posts about relationships, and after reading back over them I had decided how they mostly cover the subject of how to deal with a breakup and not so much of how to conduct yourself during the relationship. Whyyy?

I am far from being any kind of authority on relationships, much less relationships in SL - but what I'm not lacking is common sense. I've had one SL relationship so I haven't got many notches in the 'ol belt either. At any rate, I only bring all this up due to my recent experience with the completely wrong couple. Let me explain:

A couple days ago I was hanging out with a male friend of mine at his place of residence in SL. He was showing me this house he had recently built for his SLGF (Second Life Girl Friend) after she had seen a picture of it in some mag. I had said something that amounted to "That's fucking romantic, man." and praised his work. Minimalism isn't my style - but I like to look at it. So he and I are standing around in what little front yard the couple share, bantering back and forth about board games from the early 90s such as Girl Talk Date Line, Mall Madness, and Pretty Pretty Princess when his chick logs on.

I had my minimap open and saw a green dot at the rear of the house. I had assumed it was his girl, and simply continue posting Google image links back and forth as the subject went from board games to fashion as he pasted links to pictures of tee slides and tight rolled jeans. In the midst of my hysterical laughter I was issued a warning "You have 15 seconds to leave". Oh you've got to be kidding, right? No. Within seconds I did the goofy 'omg I'm falling but can see the ground coming at me' animation and I was kicked off the land. My friend shouted a few LOLs and I assumed he did it. He didn't.

Shortly after a little 'lover's quarrel' started and I simply left. At first I laughed at how jealous the chick was. I mean seriously, I've been friends with the guy for almost two years and though they've been dating in SL for probably four months she's yet to meet me. I blame my +8 time difference, but whatever. Then I had gotten a bit bitter about the situation. Not because she cut short an entertaining conversation, but because I felt her tantrum was somehow a stab at my own relationship. Was she saying "Its not you I don't trust .. its her" or something like that? And if so? To that I say: ROFLPONY

Relationships in SL are a very delicate thing for a lot of people, I haven't figured out why. Even if you don't plan for your SL relationship to become a RL one - I really think that everything should be handled very similarly, if not the same. Even though relationships move and progress quite quickly in SL I still find that there are far too many elements which remain the same, yet always seem to be the same things that cause relationships to go bad time and time again. As I said, I'm definitely not an expert due to my single notch belt - but this could still easily be a guideline.

I know that lots of folks have relationships in SL even though they have a totally separate relationship IRL. Hey whatever you want to do - I really don't care. And as much as people say "SL is SL and RL is RL what happens in SL stays in SL" I'm pretty sure there will come a time when those lines get very fine and its hard to tell which is which. But that's really not my problem, nor is it any part of my actual point. I was merely sidetracked. Sorry.

Having a successful relationship in SL isn't all that difficult. One major thing is that you really do need separate friends. He needs his friends and you need yours. Sure its great when everyone gets along, and regardless of how many text hearts and 'lub yews' you say in a day there still needs to be some separation time. But when you've both got all the same friends, there's never an opportunity for that. On top of that, it makes things really difficult when you break up if you're friends with the dude and the chick.

You simply can't be drop-of-the-hat jealous. So you see your guy/girl talking to another avatar, so what? Just imagine all the avatars he could have in IM! *GASP* And think of what they could be saying! Oh Em Gee. Really? Knock it off already. You either trust your SL partner or you don't - and if you don't - time to start cutting some strings. Honestly, would you pull that shit on your GF/BF IRL? And now that the trust issue is brought up, that line of "I trust you, but I don't trust them" is just bullshit. Well if you trust your partner what are you freaking out about? You trust your partner, so that should be enough to say everything will be alright, but you don't trust them that's the kicker! You must have trust in a relationship.

I don't care if you're a shirtless Gorean leading a half naked woman with a bad weave around on a leash in a busy mall - you have to have respect in a relationship. And as people may bash the whole Gorean scene, they claim to have respect and honor for one another. Hey, whatever dude. You can't just treat people like shit plain and simple. You can't be some kind of unstable mental abuser type and expect to have a relationship in SL that's worth a damn! How do you know if you're one of those types? Well, do you put others on guilt trips frequently or do you scorn your partner for doing things which are harmless like shopping with friends? Are you controlling in some way be it location control, clothing control, friend's list? If any of those apply, well you've probably got at least a touch of abusive tendencies.

There comes a time in every life where someone needs time to themselves. This could be merely an hour, or it could be a few days, or hell a week or so. Expect to give and expect to be able to get this time alone even in your SL relationship. Its really tiring to spend every waking SL moment with only one person, which is why its good to have your own friends, the trust of your partner to hang out, and the respect that allows you to do so without question. If the love of your SL doesn't allow you any quiet time ... something is wrong. Its one thing to not WANT quiet time, its another to not be given it. I really do think its a good idea to spend at least a couple hours every other day away from your SL partner - even if all you're doing is building a prim text heart to give them.

Each person has their own taste in clothing, so please allow them to handle their own dress code. Buying gifts are one thing, but giving your partner a makeover just so you find them more pleasing is just overkill. You should always allow your partner the freedom to make their own decisions regarding anything which is part of their personality, and I feel clothes fall into this category. Don't try to change the things your dude/chick like, and definitely don't ridicule them for that stuff! Be supportive of your partner, regardless of the venture!

You've got to communicate. I know, you do nothing but communicate, right? Wrong. Don't just type 'lol' when something is really a 'wtf'. See even in SL there are mixed messages and broken lines of communication! Don't do that! When it comes to your partner say what you think/feel and get it out there. Its eventually gonna blow up anyway, but its best for that to not happen in the middle of a crowded club.

People with 'separate' SL lives remind me all the time about how their SL is separate and that's cool by me - but that doesn't mean that relationships should be handled any friggin differently than they would IRL. As a matter of fact, I've found the most successful ones are the ones in which the relationship either had intentions of being a real relationship, or was simply treated as one. I don't care if you exclusively role play and don't even know where your SL partner lives on the planet ... all these rules (and yes they are beyond just suggestions) still apply! If you're having relationship woes .. chances are you're leaving out one of these very basic steps. Please try again.

Its all about basic fundamentals. <3

Hawt Pot: Women Touch Them and Why For?

You know that pot is hot… you’ve touched it before and felt the sting of the burn. What makes you think you can reach out now, yet again, and in the same way and get a different result? And, more importantly, do you really want a different result? From that pot?

You see it there… on the stove… steaming. The scent is wafting toward you and making your tummy all jumbly. You know what’s in the pot and that the last time you stood here in the same spot, considering the same hawt pot, you found what’s in it didn’t really live up to your expectations. It had no real substance and whatever it’s made of, you realized that pot has been double-dipped in. Do you really want something that has been double-dipped in? Ewwww.

Some people like to play with fire and steaming-hawt pots. Why would they? They know without a doubt that the last time they sampled that particlar brew it went all funny. Sure, it was tasty, hit the spot… but they found that it had no long term positive affects. Immediate satisfaction achieved, they couldn’t stop there. Why not? Why can’t you just say “well that was a tasty little treat” and “yay, now I know that the hawt pot can scald a finger”? And move on to other kitchen items that might not be so risky? But, nooooo. You continue to tempt the gods of fire, steam, and Salmonella and reach for it again as if unaware you are doing it. Who’re you gonna blame this time?

You want to know… why can’t I get more from this? Surely whatever is in that pot could bring longer-lasting fulfillment and well-being. Is that what you want? Are you sure? Think about it. If you’re willing to admit it to yourself, you know logically that this often sampled and popular fare won’t satisfy you. In reality, this upside-down version of the food pyramid lacks the sustenance you need to feel strong and healthy. Of course it makes you go “mmnmm” for the moment. In the long run, though, you’d do better just watching the pot—for a friend maybe--, stirring it for good measure, and passing the spoon.

That’s right, ladies, put the spoon down and step away from the stove! You have insisted for so long to do things the way you always have. But how’s that working for you? For clarification… the Hawt-Pot will burn. Duh! Just remember that though it may get tasted, tested, and raved about… it can get stale and cheesy and it will continue to give you flaming turds for a week after it’s consumed. Oh and gas. And that’s just soooo unladylike.

It’s an analogy, peeps, think it out!