An evening in Second Life

[Deleted]

A lot of people just don't "get" Second Life and can imagine why anyone would spend any time there.

I continue to enjoy it and find comfort in being able to explore strange lands when I can't go anywhere in real life.

Tonight I visited a Buddhist temple near some weird chanting druids and also admired the moonlight on the sea.

It comforted me.

There was also a lovely gothic castle there, but the gate was locked, so I will go back and try to enter another time.

[imec]

This is not a Buddhist Temple.

[spindrift]

Why do you say it is not a Buddhist temple?

Wow! those pics are great. I had no idea that Second Life could be so interesting. I found it hard to understand when I first registered and I gave up.

[Deleted]

If you'd like to visit the temple, Spindrift, here are the coordinates: Lime 108, 212, 33 on the map search function. Click to teleport yourself there.

[spindrift]

Unfortunately I uninstalled Second Life recently. I'll have to re-register. I found it a bit difficult; I didn't try hard enough and I gave up. I just need someone beside me to show me. I had such trouble dressing myself (my second self) and a moderator was trying to help me but I couldn't understand anything.

I'll make a note of the coordinates because one day I'd love to visit that Japanese temple.

or it might be a Chinese temple....

[Deleted]

Yes, I know how annoying it can be to put one's avatar together. Even worse, there was a bug in times past that would turn me into a woman from time to time, which in itself could have been an interesting experience, but the way she looked was the exact opposite of how I would want to look if I changed sex. So I would spend about an hour putting myself back together -- and of course by then I was no longer interested in exploring.

Second Life is not nearly as popular as it was in its faddish days when 150,000 people were connected at all times, but now that it is down to about 50,000 it is quite pleasant to wander around -- and the people who have worked on it have done some fantastic graphics.

[imec]

Jun 21, 2009 21:15:19 GMT spindrift said:

Why do you say it is not a Buddhist temple?

See this thread... anyportinastorm.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=arts&action=display&thread=1619&page=1

[bixaorellana]

What is the sound of one poster carping?

[imec]

Who's carping?

[bixaorellana]

(it was the closest I could get to "clapping")

[spindrift]

Understood! Wakarimashita!

[tillystar]

I tried and found it too complicated as well. I gave up.

[bixaorellana]

There's something about the darkness and the graphics that I find creepy. And I definitely find computer-generated "humans" creepy.

[Deleted]

I am much better looking in SL than in real life.

[bixaorellana]

Yeah, well I'm much better looking in real-life semi-darkness.

[spindrift]

K - let's see you as portrayed in Second Life.

[Deleted]

What happens in Second Life stays in Second Life.

[Deleted]

That place does sound creepy,I visited the home page and that was enough for me.

[Deleted]

I materialized in Mayfair today, part of the London megaplex. This pub seemed like a nice place to sit for a few minutes.

                   

But the SLuts started closing in on me. Yes, that's me sitting at the bar minding my own business. The bartender was a bot, so I wasn't talking to him.

The messages were almost immediately obscene so I dematerialized.

[spindrift]

Amazing stuff....please continue the story every day.....

That's you wearing the jeans at the bar? you said you'd de-materialized but you're still there!

[Deleted]

After I de-materialize I can't take a picture anymore, so I have to take one while I am still there.

[Deleted]

I started at Second Life one winter, and most of it was covered in ice and snow. Since then, I have discovered that certain places are always snowy, just as other places are always a tropical paradise.

This is one of the very first places I spent time.

Back in those days, a lot of people would sit around big fires and chat. Now you tend to see the big groups in torture chambers or sex clubs. That is fine with me, because I don't mind admiring the other places all alone.

[bixaorellana]

torture chambers???!!

[Deleted]

Okay, I confess that I let myself be placed on an electric rack once to get shock treatment -- but only because I wanted to see how it would look in SL. Did not take any photos of that, but the shock effects were.... interesting.

[spindrift]

Kerouac - I'd very much like you to post more pictures of your Second Life.....

[Deleted]

I found quite a nice place in Second Life recently. I am always amazed and the incredible efforts that people have made to create these zones. The first thing that impressed me was the field of wildflowers.





After walking though it I found a very nice house to use as a refuge. (This might sound stupid, but I always try to find a nice place to put myself before leaving Second Life. Some houses will inform you 'this is a private place, you have 30 seconds to leave before being expelled.' Other places don't mind if you stay and probably appreciate that you enjoy what they have created. If not, why bother?)



Oh, how nice to discover that I can play the piano! I found out by clicking on the music button.





There was a book of artwork in the house that you could examine to see what the owner did to earn a living.



One of the most beautiful things that I saw was the moon reflecting on the ocean, even though this picture does not do it justice.



I have based my avatar in this place until I find a more beautiful location. Sometimes I converse with other visitors who find it, and most of them are enthralled by the effort that has been put into the design as well.

[bixaorellana]

Thank you for taking us back to Second Life. As you can see by my somewhat ungracious remarks at the beginning of this thread, I was, and remain to an extent, resistant to the idea. I think what bothers me is the idea of being pulled into someone else's dream -- an ancient concept of story and literature that holds more than a hint of dread.

However, since you first posted about Second Life I have a) had my computer refurbished, including a new sound card; and b) been sucked into the addiction of a online game, something I could never have imagined happening to me. So, looking at the pictures again and reading how most of your feelings and experiences there have not been frightening, I'm tempted to venture into SL.

[spindrift]

Yes, Bixa...I am too. I did register at SL and picked an avatar but I found the game difficult to learn; perhaps I would be better at it now. I did not find any tutorials. It would be advisable to have a teacher until one becomes used to the controls. Perhaps Kerouac can advise us. The most recent pictures he has posted have inspired me to try again.

[Deleted]

I am amused no end by the avatars that the people in SL design for themselves, especially when I imagine what they must really look like in real life.

Nevertheless, little bits and pieces of real world preoccupations can sometimes be found in various places.

[spindrift]

My avatar wasn't anything like those! She was a simple soul who ended up putting on her knickers over her dress and didn't know how to put them UNDER it....(that's when I gave up).