The Best Moment Of My Second Life

The following post is written by Dandellion Kimban of "Living in the Metaverse" as part of the SL Bloggers Mix & Match Challenge. The topic was suggested by Crap Mariner.

There are nights in second life when the fake stars on our virtual sky are playing with us. Nothing can help that. Especially because we're not even aware something is happening.

Night we're recalling now was special itself. It was Human's birthday,so the two of us, in two different worlds, were heading for a nice intimate evening in club Reactor. We planned a quiet, calm and intimate night. No candle-lights, but cheese and wine for human and a new set of dancing anims for me. But...

He was sitting on the pillows in the corner, occasionally taking a draw from the water-pipe, goggles resting on his forehead. Cyberpunk kid. Looking in my direction. And while I was reading his profile he threw the first IM. I would politely end that conversation but Human pushed my back to the pillows and we started chatting. Soon enough he took my hand and teleported us to the sim I've never heard of before.

In the meanwhile, somewhere on the other end of the Grid, in the area with all those Orientation Islands, another Ruth came to life. She made a few clumsy steps, probably asked a question or two and headed forward into her second life. Knowing her now, she probably went to the nearest hair-shop. Sure that I couldn't care less for another noob in that moment, how could I know that few months later she will come and steal my heart.

My friendly celebration with Human turned to be a date with a cyberpunk guy. Date? Well, maybe. We were running around the streets of Suffugium. Shooting the trash bins, avoiding the police drones and sneaking in the Lex Neva's private rooms, deep behind the sewer system. We were two kids playing around. Liberated in exploring the dystopian sim. Entertained not by all the cool things around as much as by the joy of showing the discoveries to each other.

Months later, that Ruth will turn into glamour blond. We'll run all around the grid, getting our pleasure not in the cool things we find but in showing them to each other.

So, why am I telling you all this as the best moments of my second life? I spent days trying to isolate events that would be in the competition for "the best moment". And it wasn't working. It's not about things happening. It's even less about buildings and sims, clothes and hairs. It's about people we share our lives with. Those cyberpunks and those glam girls that show us the places and who use their hairs to seduce us... they are the magic that makes all those pixels come alive. They make the moments to be remembered.

The Great Post Swap!

Today is the day of reckoning for many of your favourite and some less well known (like me) SL Bloggers. Little over two weeks ago ArminasX Saiman of Second Effects together with Vint Falken put out a call to join the first ever annual Mix and Match Blog Carnival. In a moment of madness, I agreed.

Confused? You will be!

I submitted my suggested topic, one very close to my heart as an avid seeker of all things: "The do's and don't of hosting a treasure hunt in Second Life." However, after being thrown into the mix and tossed around a bit I was designated the topic suggested by ArminasX himself, "The Economics of Freebies" which has been published on Nightflower Blossom's blog, Nightflower Blossoming. Thanks Nightflower!

My topic has been assigned to Tempietto and will be published on the Avatrain blog by Chenin Anabuki.

And here, on The Dressing Up Box, I am thrilled to be welcoming guest author Dandellion Kimban who can normally be found Living in the Metaverse. Her assigned topic is "The Best Moment in Your SL" as suggested by Crap Mariner. I can't wait to see what she comes up with!

Below is a full list of the blogs participating in this challenge - have a nosey through a few of them. I've only read a few so far, but there's some fantastic stuff!

Alphonsus's Random Drivel

Unique Needs

Ari K

The News from BardHaven

Second Life

Second Life

Boned

Botgirl's Second Life Diary

Writing the Sonnet

Common Sensible

The blog of Danni- Christian Socialist Computer Addict

Dusan Writer's Metaverse

Eladrienne's Other Life

What is this crap?

Free Finds For Men

Gany's take on (any) life

Geta

Girl Wonder Speaks...About SL

Gwyn's Home

Harper's Bizarre

Her Royal Highness, Princess Ivory

Ingmann Design Group

Joonie's Journey

T I NY D A N C I N G

Wonderland Travels

One Girl | Two Worlds

Living in the Metaverse

Midcourt

Constructs of a Mind

My SLife on the D List

n0nSLensical!!

Nightflower

Tenth Life

The Poultry Report

Quirky Quaintly

Reading Radar

click heard round the world

Stories From Another Life

Samantha Speaks

Second Effects

The Shockwave Writer

SL Fashion Avengers

Socially Mundane

Second Stindberg

The Insane Life of Stuart Warf

Tempietto

The Dressing Up Box

The Winter Market

All Things Tiessa

Tiyuk's Second Life Adventures

What the Fug?

Wild Words

Metaversally Speaking

Avatrain

JohanYugen.co.uk

Second Life of My Dreams

Vint Falken

Writers in the (virtual) Sky

Aviatrix :: Zoe Connolly

Geisha Art

I always enjoyed making art, right since back in high school, but I've never ever thought of myself as very good at it. Perhaps I compare too much or set my standards too high (ie. anything less than perfection is failure), but I was totally dumbstruck even back then when I got an A at "O" and then "A" level art. I just enjoyed doing it, making things, drawing people, sculpting. It very much went on the back-burner as I concentrated on my studies at university and then my career, just occasionally taking out a watercolour pad or sketchbook during time off. I suppose one of the reasons I specialised in medical imaging though was because I loved taking pictures. Getting the perfect angle, framing a shot and demonstrating what I wanted to show was a challenge I loved, as was interpreting 2D representations of 3D structures. But I never really thought of it as an extension of my artistic side until recently.

Like many people in Second Life, I was encouraged to try my hand at SL photography by Torley's tutorials. I had started to teach myself photo-editing techniques already, out of necessity mainly, to make posters for the SL club I owned but I was soon doing more than just basic posters. My love of dressing up and putting together costumes in SL, recreating looks such as that of the geisha (way before there were many geisha skins or accessories available) and bollywood, and finding great locations in which to photograph them was something that developed over time until early in 2008 I realised that it was something that gave me so much personal fulfilment I wanted to take it more seriously and spend more time concentrating on.

Soon after deciding this, and leaving the club, I started building - initially full sized sculptures, but quickly moving on to playing with tiny prims, loving the challenge of reproducing full sized works in a wearable form. This lead to me opening my store, ~flirt~, and to me concentrating more on making jewellery. However, I continued to take SL photographs and play with some post-processing, uploading my work to my Flickr account and putting a few of my favourite pictures on display in the store, but it's really been much more of a hobby than a serious pursuit, something for my own enjoyment rather than to show others.

I was therefore very much taken aback when I was approached some weeks ago by Chandra Vita, the Curator of Art of Amatsu Shima, an Okiya in Second Life, who had seen and fallen in love with my picture "Geisha's Gaze" and wanted to build an exhibition around it of geisha-related art. So much so that I didn't really believe her at first. In fact, not until I was asked for a biography and told that the exhibition was opening in less than 48 hours!

For me, in my jewellery design as much as in my photography, it is the making of the piece, the design process and creativity that is important, on a personal level, not the finished product or what other people think about it. It's somehow spiritual. Oftentimes I don't know at the start precisely what I am aiming for, or why, but as the process moves on it reveals itself, together with it's meaning, often a personal revelation or truth, deeper understanding of myself or of a situation. Of course, it thrills me when other people like what I make, when they want to buy and wear my jewellery, or hang my pictures in their homes, but that really is of secondary importance (hence what Peter calls my "crazy" pricing structure, and exactly why he is helping me with the business side of ~flirt~).

So I am incredibly flattered, very honoured and still somewhat surprised to have my work, "Geisha's Gaze" on display of the Aizen Festival and Art Walk Exhibition which opens today, July 31st, and would like to extend the invitation to you all to attend.

From the official invitation:

The geisha and students of Amatsu Shima Okiya cordially invite you to the Aizen Matsuri Festival and ArtWalk Exhibition

The event will begin at 6PM SLT, July 31, 2008 at Amatsu Shima landing point. A LM is attached to this invitation and poster. There we will hear a Keynote by our Okasan Suzanne Logan and hear of the significance of the festival from our Kenjasan Mariposa Upshaw, have music and dancing and perhaps other surprises in store for you.

A marvellous procession will take us from there, go through the shopping district of our community and ArtWalk Exhibition. Four extraordinary artists are showing their work here
on the theme: "Geisha in Art."

We will end in the pavilion where there will be less traditional music, dancing and door prizes. Guided tours will also be available of the art exhibition and other showings of art in our community.

Contact Chandra Vita if you have any questions.

Please join us for the culture and fun. We would all be honored by your attendance.

Despite it's late hour for me here in the UK, I am hoping to attend, and I look forward to seeing you there.

slurl to exhibition