Saturday Night Fever!

On Saturday evening, 23rd February I looked around under Search for places to go. I had Linden$100 burning a hole in the pocket of my very boring SL standard issue trousers. This money came from a very generous librarian, Sonja Morgwain, whom Bertie Latte and I had met the day before. We were such newbies - Bertie wasn't able to look up, and I was dancing uncontrollably because of Gortadoo Ewing's dance card. Sonja was very helpful, especially when she realised that we were fledgling librarians. She showed us how to use camera angles which is a very useful skill, especially if you want to see yourself as other avatars see you, and so that you can slot yourself facing front in snapshots. I did have some problems mastering it initially - ending up embedded in what seemed to be a million pixels of carpet or ceiling, but I've learned to just use very subtle mouse movements. Sonja also gave us numerous landmarks which, at this early stage, we were unsure what to do with, though we thanked her anyway. But then she astounded us by gifting us LD$100 each as she maintains that library students are always impoverished, whether in RL or SL. We really appreciated her generosity, and I must say that all library avatars I've encountered have been really helpful and willing to take the time to teach you new skills, give advice, or just chat...

Anyway, I set off for virtual Puerto Banus, Marbella. It was pitch dark when I got there which was quite unnerving. (I hadn't yet learnt that you can 'force' time of day on your environment.) It's hilarious how you bring RL habits with you into SL, but I actually looked left and right before crossing the road!

I found a boulevard with very glamourous boutiques, and spent $65 on a lovely pair of trousers, and a pink sequined top. Feeling very snazzy, I saw a glow in the distance and headed off like a moth to the SL flame. There were huge oval runways with dozens of people parading around in their finery, like a load of contestants on America's Next Top Model. I couldn't believe it! Around and around they strutted in the most marvellous and bizarre outfits. I sat down to watch the show for about ten minutes. I couldn't credit that people would just have their avatars walking around and around for ages, like show ponies. Only in this case there didn't seem to be any prize, just runway walking for runway walking's sake... They must get carpal tunnel syndrome from operating the arrow keys, unless they have some way of putting their avatar on auto pilot. Anyway, I soon decided that I was just as sad for watching as they were for 'modelling', so it seemed like time to do something more productive.


Where to go when you're eliminated from America's Next Top Model!

I headed for Orientation Island to brush up on all of my new skills, and to try to acquire more. Ended up in a strange place, like a very claustrophobic village with small buildings, each devoted to a core skill - communication, appearance, etc. All manner of touch screens with hints and tips from Governor Linden. But it was really creepy. Pitch dark outside, with sometimes just a hint of an avatar in the shadows. Someone called Parrot Man kept begging me for money: "Please give me some money." "Give me some money please". Although the words appeared on screen, I imagined them as a sibilant whisper. I had read in the SL regulations that begging is not allowed, and I probably should have reported this abuse, but it would have made me feel like a snitch. Every so often, an avatar I've dubbed Raccoon Man would brush past me. This avatar has turned up in a couple of places I've been. He has a burly male body, but a huge raccoon head and tail. I wonder if it is the same avatar, as it's certainly not a conventional appearance. He must be one of the 'furries' that I have heard about.

Perhaps all of this is tame by the standards of Temple Bar, but Saturday night seemed like crazy night in SL (Bertie Latte was having his own adventures, being verbally abused by a man in a pink tutu), although as it's only night time for half of the RL planet, does this mean there are loads of people in SL being crazy at 2 p.m. their time?