131: Molly Bloom's art opening at Holtwaye Gallery

I've been a little out of touch with SL lately -- too busy in real life to blog a lot. So now that I'm a little more available, I thought I should get out there and mingle. Tonight I popped into SL intending on relaxing for a while. When the invitation came from my friend Holter at the Holtwaye Gallery (SLURL is here) to come and hear some music by performing artist Down Under and view the opening of an exhibition of interesting artworks by Molly Bloom, well, what's not to like?
   I'll say first off, the pictures are worth your time; go see the exhibition. They involve a clever use of three-dimensionality that engages the viewer in some "hmm, what am I seeing?" moments and it's a pleasant experience. Also the work is technically quite fine, great balance and rendering, and there's a kind of quirky sense of humour underlying the pictures that's very appealing. Like the artist is bringing you into her quirky worldview, and that's fun.
   A few friends were there; I was having some serious software issues and couldn't manage to grab more than the one photograph, but I wish I'd been able to get snapshots of my friends Cupric Router and Hotboy Lockjaw, and fellow blogger Ziggy Starsmith. (I'm sure he'll have some things to say about the event, here.) And a bunch of other nice people, 25 or 30 of them, all dancing and having a good time.
   Down Under was performing some 80s standards and was engaging the audience in a happy shared experience. And I started chatting with Holter only to learn that there had been quite a bit of controversy in the previous few hours. Apparently a musical group 'the follow' that had originally been booked to  perform at the show had canceled at the last minute -- because of the "demonic naked art" involved in two of the pictures. One of these is a very sexy naked .. imp? something like that ... that has a pair of strategically placed pasties. As well, it later turned out that the group would have refused the booking had they understood that Holtwaye Gallery was a "homosexual club". (Um, it's not.) Holter seems to have handled this with courage, tact, and grace under fire; he booked Down Under and the event came off on time, on schedule, and honestly, folks, you'd never have known there'd been any furor.  (Well done, Holter.) But the furor had just begun.
   I think a couple of other bloggers have talked about this story more knowledgeably than I can, and I encourage you to read what Molly Bloom has to say, if you're hooked into her with social media. She is quoted tonight in the blog Confessions of a Daddy Bear, and you will find artist and blogger Ziki Questi has talked with the gallery's curator Holter at Ziki Questi's Blog. I can't show you the art in any detail, because I don't have permission (I try to be respectful to people who are trying to sell SL images) but Ziki Questi has shown you images that will give you a much better idea of what brought about ... well, what I have to call a ridiculous reaction by 'the follow'. Cmon, it's 2015, you have to try to respect everyone, and it's all just a bunch of pixels anyways. Grow the fuck up.
   Be that as it may; I'm sure there are nuances to this situation of which I'm not aware, and I don't have the full story. Sounds like everybody should investigate this situation on their own in order to have an informed opinion.  I'm happy to make up my mind on inadequate evidence that I wouldn't book 'the follow' to play at an event and I don't like what they seem to have done; your mileage may vary. I will say this, though. In an age when recently a rinky-dink pizza parlour in the US can announce that it won't serve homosexuals, is thereupon closed by the furore and afterwards crowdfunds nearly a million dollars for its future needs from a bunch of anti-gay nitwits -- the best response to events like this is to go and look at the art, support Molly Bloom by buying something, and especially support Holtwaye Gallery. Holtwaye is doing exactly what it should do in bringing you great art with advanced themes and execution, and they deserve your support in the face of nonsense like this.

126: Ziggy Starsmith shows me his house in Muir Woods

For quite a while now I've wanted to do a different kind of interview ... I meet a lot of people with beautiful homes, so inventive and clever and visually gorgeous, and very few people ever get to see them. There are plenty of blogs that will show you people's outfits but I think you might want to see their homes as well! So my friend

and fellow blogger Ziggy Starsmith agreed to try this out with me. You will find his blog, The Eyes of Ziggy Starsmith, in my blogroll to the right; I recommend it and will link you directly to it here. Ziggy calls 'em as he sees 'em and I love to hear him do it.

[19:07] Rusty Redfield: *click* the tape recorder is ON!.

[19:07] Rusty Redfield: And I'm here with Ziggy Starsmith who has kindly consented to do a new kind of interview with me -- we walk around his house.
[19:07] Rusty Redfield: thanks Ziggy!
[19:07] Ziggy Starsmith: you're very welcome
[19:08] Rusty Redfield: so as my readers will know, I haven't done one of these before -- bear with me, Ziggy and

everyone, please
[19:08] Ziggy Starsmith: :-)
[19:08] Rusty Redfield: just that I know people spend HUGE amounts of time and Lindens on creating beautiful environments and they deserve to have them seen!!
[19:08] Ziggy Starsmith: this is true
[19:08] Ziggy Starsmith: this is one of the smallest places I have lived

[19:08] Rusty Redfield: so we're outside at Muir Woods.
[19:09] Rusty Redfield: 1. What would you call the style of your home?
[19:09] Ziggy Starsmith: hmmmmm beachy on the edge of a forest I guess
[19:09] Rusty Redfield: LOL in SL, that makes perfect sense
[19:10] Ziggy Starsmith: lol
[19:10] Ziggy Starsmith: my old hobbit

hole got flooded
[19:10] Rusty Redfield: I know you've had some pretty big places in the past.
[19:10] Ziggy Starsmith: ;-)
[19:10] Ziggy Starsmith: yes from sims to Hobbit caves
[19:10] Ziggy Starsmith: lol
[19:11] Rusty Redfield: and now you're downsized --
[19:11] Rusty Redfield: but I bet you're

like me, thousands of pieces of different furniture in all different styles
[19:11] Ziggy Starsmith: yes I was actually living in a Linden home until I met this guy who lived here and I moved in with him, He quit SL so I stayed and took over.
[19:12] Rusty Redfield: A Linden home, wow, I haven't done that, I'm a prim whore LOL

[19:12] Rusty Redfield: did he build this himself?
[19:13] Ziggy Starsmith: that cured me of being a prim whore and now I am sparingly prim crazy lol. No this house is from the rented plot.
[19:13] Rusty Redfield: I get it.  I know you love to sail, is your boat in a diffrent place?
[19:14] Ziggy Starsmith: yes one of them

is at the bottom of the Blake Sea ;-)
[19:14] Rusty Redfield: oh my
[19:14] Ziggy Starsmith: lol
[19:14] Rusty Redfield: that sounds Titanic LOL
[19:15] Ziggy Starsmith: it was . I hit a sim crossing and was catapulted naked into a pirate ship.
[19:15] Rusty Redfield: O. M. G. That's more story than I have time for!!

hahahaha
[19:15] Ziggy Starsmith: it is trust me lol
[19:15] Rusty Redfield: <laughing>
[19:15] Rusty Redfield: I think you sort of answered my second question already, but I have OCD --
[19:15] Rusty Redfield: 2.    How long have you lived here?
[19:15] Ziggy Starsmith: 1 week tonight actually

[19:16] Rusty Redfield: let's walk around a little
[19:16] Ziggy Starsmith: ok
[19:16] Rusty Redfield: wow! You've done all this in one week!!!!
[19:16] Ziggy Starsmith: I did this in one day I am quick.
[19:17] Rusty Redfield: you know, I know what you mean, I have done a lot of places and can usually sum them up

quickly now
[19:17] Ziggy Starsmith: just finding the stuff in inventory kills the time.
[19:18] Rusty Redfield: I recognize this couch
[19:18] Ziggy Starsmith: yes I love it.
[19:19] Rusty Redfield: I've followed your blog for quite a while, and you've used it in -- all your other homes?
[19:19] Ziggy Starsmith: I used it in my

last 3 homes I think.
[19:20] Rusty Redfield: tell you what, show me the rest and then I would be honoured to sit on it <grin>
[19:20] Ziggy Starsmith: ok hahaha
[19:20] Ziggy Starsmith: the other room is the bedroom
[19:20] Rusty Redfield: wow, you've really scaled back -- but there's so much detail!

[19:21] Ziggy Starsmith: oh I need detail
[19:21] Rusty Redfield: I totally agree.  I tell people, it's easier to really DO a small place
[19:21] Rusty Redfield: rather than something like a mall where you can only afford a prim here and there
[19:22] Ziggy Starsmith: yes I found out I wasted so much Lindens and time with big places that no one ever uses or sees

[19:22] Rusty Redfield: right.  "And this is the servants' dining hall" type of thing
[19:22] Ziggy Starsmith: hehehe or the washroom ;-)
[19:22] Rusty Redfield: <grin>
[19:22] Rusty Redfield: well, I actually have a washroom but I couldn't resist
[19:23] Ziggy Starsmith: hahahahaha
[19:23] Rusty Redfield: so this segues nicely to question 3 --

[19:23] Rusty Redfield: 3.    What’s the most difficult thing to learn about making a great-looking home?
[19:23] Ziggy Starsmith: I nade an effort to scale waaaaay back
[19:23] Ziggy Starsmith: not to lag it out with scripts and prims but to make it look full and lived in and cozy.
[19:23] Rusty Redfield: I agree.  I don't feel comfortable in those huge places,

and they're not really personal.
[19:24] Rusty Redfield: I'm sure many things in here have stories for you.
[19:24] Ziggy Starsmith: yes
[19:24] Ziggy Starsmith: the TV set alone
[19:24] Rusty Redfield: hahaha
[19:24] Rusty Redfield: yeah I think I have some of those movies ROFL
[19:25] Ziggy Starsmith: stuff on there from SL 2007

[19:25] Rusty Redfield: not QUITE in focus for me which might be a good thing, I'd lose track ROFL
[19:25] Rusty Redfield: oh my
[19:25] Ziggy Starsmith: there is sex going on in some of those channels ;-)
[19:25] Rusty Redfield: you know, I'm not even sure if it's polite to ask this question, but how many prims am I seeing here?

[19:26] Rusty Redfield: if it's none of our business, we can stand to hear it LOL
[19:26] Ziggy Starsmith: I am using 348 prims out of the 741 available.
[19:26] Rusty Redfield: wow.  To me that indicates a lot of mesh stuff?
[19:26] Ziggy Starsmith: yes most is mesh
[19:27] Ziggy Starsmith: Before I would have used all 741 prims instantly

[19:27] Rusty Redfield: yeah, tell me about it
[19:27] Rusty Redfield: I keep getting "just an extra 100"
[19:27] Ziggy Starsmith: lol
[19:27] Rusty Redfield: "to really make the place look TIGHT"
[19:28] Ziggy Starsmith: I usually prim out with trees and birds
[19:28] Rusty Redfield: Okay, here's one

of my prepared ones -- 4.    Did you design or create anything we see?
[19:28] Ziggy Starsmith: um the mural on the wall.....the horses...I stole the pic from the internet and made the mural hahahaha
[19:29] Rusty Redfield: I've done that too, god help me if Andy Warhol's estate ever chases me
[19:29] Ziggy Starsmith: lmao

[19:29] Rusty Redfield: and I kind of recognize the big picture behind us, I've seen it somewhere before
[19:29] Rusty Redfield: all the nice-looking guys flying through the air
[19:30] Ziggy Starsmith: the Man Battle? I got that as a gift from my friend Damiax Thor back in 2008
[19:30] Rusty Redfield: I should know the artist's name, but <facepalm> no such

luck
[19:30] Ziggy Starsmith: It is the one thing that has been in every home
[19:31] Rusty Redfield: are you a gardener in real life? Or a bird aficionado?
[19:31] Rusty Redfield: there are beautiful plants everywhere here
[19:31] Ziggy Starsmith: both. I have been a landscaper and worked in an

endangered animal sanctuary
[19:32] Rusty Redfield: 5.    Who’s your favourite designer/what’s your favourite store?
[19:32] Ziggy Starsmith: hmm hard question and a good one....let me think...
[19:32] Rusty Redfield: I'm not sure if I could answer that question, but I hope you can LOL
[19:32] Ziggy Starsmith: I think Botanical

[19:33] Rusty Redfield: it's okay to not have one.  I tend to go through styles
[19:33] Rusty Redfield: I did a complete deco house at one point, and a Victorian one, and a grunge place
[19:33] Rusty Redfield: but I guess you will always need plants!
[19:33] Ziggy Starsmith: ohhhhh me too and then tried mixing the two hahahaha
[19:34] Rusty Redfield: haha we call it

"eclectic"
[19:34] Ziggy Starsmith: yes or a mess from a schizo lol
[19:34] Rusty Redfield: my inventory is like an episode of "Hoarders" LOL
[19:34] Ziggy Starsmith: mine also lol
[19:35] Rusty Redfield: it's part of the deal for being here a few years
[19:35] Ziggy Starsmith: and moving a lot with copy items

[19:35] Rusty Redfield: yep
[19:35] Ziggy Starsmith: 2,000 deck chairs lol
[19:36] Rusty Redfield: ahhahaha I have like 85 of the same Adirondack chair LOL
[19:36] Rusty Redfield: 6.    What’s your favourite piece of furniture?
[19:36] Ziggy Starsmith: exactly and who wants to go through it all

[19:36] Ziggy Starsmith: my fav is the couch I think
[19:36] Rusty Redfield: I sort of was betting the couch, yeah
[19:37] Ziggy Starsmith: lets have a seat btw
[19:37] Rusty Redfield: sure!
[19:37] Rusty Redfield: haha I feel honoured
[19:38] Rusty Redfield: not much more -- thank goodness this is a small place LOL
[19:38] Ziggy Starsmith: lol
[19:39] Rusty Redfield: one more big question.
[19:39] Rusty Redfield: 7.    What advice would you give to someone putting together their first home?
[19:39] Ziggy Starsmith: ok
[19:39] Ziggy Starsmith: fill it with your very favorite things so when you look around you can smile and have memories.
[19:39] Rusty Redfield: I've met people who have never had a home here, and it baffles me
[19:40] Ziggy Starsmith: that can be fun too though and I have done that.
[19:40] Rusty Redfield: yes! things that have meaning from context, and associates with people
[19:40] Rusty Redfield: I have done it too -- but to never do it, I think you're missing one of the crucial SL experiences
[19:40] Ziggy Starsmith: indeed
[19:41] Ziggy Starsmith: besides dressing up then decorating is the next fun thing
[19:41] Rusty Redfield: That's all my prepared questions, but I usually offer people a chance to sound off -- philosophy? complaints? suggestions?
[19:41] Ziggy Starsmith: I suggest we light up a joint and celebrate this experience hehehe
[19:42] Rusty Redfield: ROFL!
[19:42] Rusty Redfield: you know I'm from BC, home of the BC bud ROFL
[19:42] Ziggy Starsmith: thank you man this was fun
[19:42] Rusty Redfield: my pleasure -- and thanks for making it easy
[19:42] Ziggy Starsmith: indeed we are canafian eh?
[19:42] Rusty Redfield: yes, folks, we are the Canadian mafia here, eh?
[19:42] Ziggy Starsmith: sorry for my spelling
[19:43] Ziggy Starsmith: take off you hoser!
[19:43] Rusty Redfield: I know you well enough to know that you'll change houses some time, so I hope we can come back if and when that happens
[19:43] Ziggy Starsmith: sure but I think this is it for me now.
[19:43] Rusty Redfield: in the meantime, thanks for welcoming me -- and my readers -- into your home
[19:44] Ziggy Starsmith: your very welcome. Peeps are welcome to drop in for a laugh but call first ;-) lol
[19:44] Rusty Redfield: I'm so not publishing the SLURL, believe me
[19:44] Ziggy Starsmith: hahahahaahhaaha
[19:44] Rusty Redfield: thanks and -- let me find the damn button here -- *click*

Thanks again, Ziggy. I'm not sure how much you can tell about a person by looking at their house, but I guarantee you, Ziggy has an eye for detail and knows how to make a place look comfortable and lived in. It was a pleasure to see his place and it makes me think there's more interesting interviews to bring you if people will show me/us their homes -- so get in touch if you're proud of your home!

116: Seven dog years (my first anniversary!)

It was one year ago today -- February 27, 2014 -- that I made my very first post to this blog. I've remarked before that a year in SL is rather like what we call "dog years"; every year in SL is like seven years in real life. I'll celebrate this as my first anniversary, but gee, it sure feels like I've been posting a lot longer.
   On anniversaries, it's frequently customary to look back over the previous year and try to sum it up, and I wanted to do a little of that today. I went back 116 posts to see what I had to say a year ago, and what I looked like, and to me it's quite amusing.
   I've changed my looks, of course -- like so many people do in SL. I stopped wearing my l'Uomo mesh body and went back to a shape that's shorter than most male avs, and more of what I'll call the "chunky hunky monkey" look; I just prefer myself that way. I've changed my hair a couple of times (no, you won't be seeing much of my huge Afro in the future, that was for a 60s look for a party). I've changed my eye colour at least twice, and gone through more chest hair than an Italian waxing salon ;-) I was a lot more fascinated with black eyes and bruises a year ago than I am today. I still have my trademark caterpillar eyebrows, though!
   More to the point, I've changed a lot about what I blog about and why. I seem to recall starting out with the intention of doing a lot more fashion blogging than I've actually accomplished; if you follow this blog, you know I'm not much of a fashion blogger. Occasionally I find a piece of clothing I really like, and that seems to suit me, but for the most part I think I do a lot better as an interviewer than a fashionisto, and since there are plenty of fashion-forward bloggers covering that ground, I'm okay with where I've ended up.

My first published photo,
taken at The Grindery a year ago today

   One of the things I talked about a year ago today was my intention to become a better photographer. And holy moly, was that ever a bad shot I published a year ago. I can see that somehow my chest hair got mixed up with my tank top ... I wouldn't even publish this shot today except to give us all a bit of a chuckle. (These days, I have a policy that I won't knowingly publish a shot where someone is having layering problems or alpha issues with their outfit; I've been too embarrassed too often by that myself to want to document it for anyone for the future.)

I went back to The Grindery this afternoon
and took a similar picture, just to illustrate
the differences a year can make ...

   These days, I have a little bit different philosophy about photography. I realized early on that I was never going to be as good a photographer as some of my friends, and nearly all of my fellow bloggers. Instead, I have decided that my philosophy is that, damn it, I take the same kind of snapshots as a lot of other people -- it's just that I take more of them. I'm a huge Andy Warhol fan, and, looking back at the early days of Interview magazine, that's what he did; he took a lot of Polaroids and published interviews verbatim. I don't know if it's the best policy, but it seems to be mine.
   I don't seem to have any instinctive talent for photographic composition, and I don't own a copy of Photoshop or anything like that; what you see is what I see, and the most I do is set the sun to noon so I can see the details of people and objects. Believe it or not, I don't use poses (well, occasionally, when I find them at a location, or they're built into furniture). I just snap away until I get a picture I like. Yes, it's frequently a bit awkward and a bit naive, but that's the kind of photographer I am.
   As far as interviews go, well, I always ask the same questions; I may branch out a little bit in the future, and I'm thinking of different kinds of interviews for the future, but for now, I think it helps my readers to understand people when they read how my subjects answer the same questions that everyone else has answered. I like talking to people who are DOING things in Second Life, because I think they are people that other residents would like to know about; I'll continue to do that. I'll also continue to try to find unusual places to go and take pictures -- think of it as me trying to find things that it will amuse you to check out on your own.
   I wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone who's been supportive and enthusiastic about what I've been trying to do with this blog over the last year. Especially I want to shout out to my fellow bloggers, all of whom you'll see in the blogroll to the right. Some of those folks, like Eddi Haskell / Ryce Skytower and Ziggy Starsmith and Bock McMillan, have been producing intelligent, high-quality Second Life blogging for longer than my av has been in existence, and I owe them a great debt for leading the way. NakedCarl Paneer and I have become colleagues who seem to cover the same ground, and I thank him for keeping my nose to the grindstone to keep posting. Bloggers like Darkyn Dover, Richmond Damiano, Filippo Bergan / Chary Hera, and Carthalis Rossini spend their time and money making beautiful, intricate images, and I thank them for working at a level that constantly delights me. And bloggers like Ciaran Laval, Hamlet Au, Iris Ophelia, and Strawberry Singh have shown me that Second Life blogging can make people think as well as show them beautiful images. Thank you all, and I recommend that my readers check out everyone in my blogroll. Some of them have become friends as well as colleagues. Every single one of these folks has been an inspiration to me at one time or another, and they're all worth following.
   I also want to thank all my friends in Second Life. There are way too many to name, I'm already beyond my tag limit for this post, and (like an Oscar winner) if I name only a few I'll insult the rest, so -- if you're on my list of friends, in SL or on Facebook or both, thank you. It's your support and kind words that keep me blogging. Thanks for putting up with me pestering you for interviews and photographs and "just a few minutes of your time". Thanks for your comments and likes and thumbs-up on Facebook, and for passing around links on Google Plus, and all your interest and support. Thanks for being great DJs and hosts and designers and landlords and neighbours at 3Bears and everything else that you do. Thanks for telling me about cool things that you think I should check out. Thanks for teaching me how to do cool stuff. And thanks for reading my blog!
   Finally, as many of you know, one other important thing has changed in my Second Life in the last year. I first met Alex Thaub out dancing, and he seemed like a nice guy, and I interviewed him, and we went out on a date, and kept hanging out together -- and now we're partners and we're getting married soon. He's become the most important person in my Second Life and I thank him for his constant love, hugs, support, and understanding, and for realizing that when he pops into the house and finds me chatting with a stranger, it's for an interview ;-) You will all be invited to our wedding in the near future, and I'll be blogging about that whole process. Thanks, Alex, for making this a great time in my Second Life, and thanks for saying yes when I proposed!
   Here's to another year!

084: #weareALLclean (yes, a naked picture challenge!)

Rusty Redfield, #weareALLclean

I learned about this through following Jack Mackenroth, the former Project Runway contestant and, frankly, extremely hot HIV activist. The project is #weareALLclean and I'll let him tell you what it's about in his own words, as I found them:

"I was inspired by the use of the word 'clean', especially common in gay culture, to describe oneself as STI/STD free. Indirectly this implies that HIV-positive people are somehow 'dirty'," says Mackenroth. I thought a PG or PG-13 shower selfie ... would be a fun way that everyone could easily show their support on social media for finding a cure by using the hashtag #weareALLclean when they post their photo with the link. They then nominate 3 other people to participate and hopefully donate to the project as well. 

Jack Mackenroth, #weareALLclean

It's getting close to World AIDS Day, December 1st, and I liked this idea a lot. I didn't find it all that terrible to take an adult-level picture of myself in the bath -- I don't take showers, for the most part -- the only tough part was avoiding explicit nudity!!  I think it's worthwhile supporting finding a cure for HIV and I'm going to make a donation that's a little larger than usual; I think this is a great idea for a social media campaign that will certainly raise awareness.

And for my three nominations: I challenge my fellow Second Life bloggers Ziggy Starsmith, Bock McMillan and Eddi Haskell -- all of whose blogs are linked by clicking on their names -- to take a selfie in the shower or bath, **No explicit nudity**, etc., as per the five points below. Gentlemen, I know it will be a terrible strain to strip off in the name of charitable endeavour and tantalize your readers with a glimpse of some VERY fine-looking stuff, but ... try to bear up for the sake of charity. And if anyone reading this is interested in showing it off in a good cause, consider yourself challenged.

1) Take a selfie or Vine video of yourself in the shower.**NO EXPLICIT NUDITY**

2) Post your photo now on all social media platforms with the caption “Take HIV Shower Selfie Challenge raise $$ for AIDS cure bit.ly/CUREAIDS #weareALLclean”

3) Nominate 3 or more other people to participate!

4) (Optional) DONATE!! Please consider a small donation if you are able. Every penny counts! bit.ly/CUREAIDS

5) On World AIDS Day (or before): Monday, December 1st, please change all your social media profile pix to your shower selfie photo and spread the word!!

083: Memorial service for Avacar Bluestar

Avacar Bluestar died on November 14 from a heart condition. I wasn't fortunate enough to know him personally so, when I heard about his memorial service, I figured space would be at a premium and it would be more useful to drop in and pay my respects informally; I'd heard that after half-an-hour of encomonium, there would be a kind of dance or get-together. I figured I could slip in, say hi to

a few friends, sign whatever was there as a guest book and make my way back to my day.
     Well, an hour in, there were still people talking about Avacar's good qualities to a very, very large audience. The details of the memorial service have been covered by other bloggers, some of whom knew him as a close friend. Ryce Skytower (aka Eddi Haskell), a close

friend of Avacar, delivered some powerful remarks that can be found here. Bock McMillan's comments are here and NakedCarl quotes Ryce in his blog found here. Ziggy Starsmith's comments are here.
     The thing that was most extraordinary about this event for me was the sheer number of people who were present. Bock McMillan counted 101 residents on

the sim at one point; that seems in the right range of numbers to me, although I didn't know it was even possible to have that many people in one place in SL. The sim was so overloaded that people were popping in and out; as one crashed another would take his place immediately. There's a screen cap that Ryce captured that shows all the residents with their names over their heads that's also represented in Bock's blog; you should definitely look at it, I've never seen anything like it. I can't tell you how powerful it was to actually be there and to see that huge sea of floating names bobbing and moving like the ocean.
     My screen was so filled with names that it was all I could do to pick out a few green ones representing friends, but I didn't get a chance to say hello (I crashed twice myself). As I said, Ryce Skytower was there, and fellow blogger Ziggy Starsmith; Bock McMillan, Tomais Ashdene and Guyke Lundquist; Ezzie Mirabella, the new Board Chair of Second Pride; Crito Galtier from Terra Lascivus; Kahvy Sands and Garrett Smith; and a lady who's a mainstay of the LGBT community in SL, Kharissa Indigo. But there were so many people there, I'm sure I missed some friends and I definitely missed the great speeches. I only managed a few photographs and crashed twice before I decided to leave the service and yield my space to one of Avacar's many personal friends.
     My takeaway is that I've realized once again that it's possible to develop friendships and working relationships in Second Life that are strong and powerful and long-lasting -- and real. It's also possible to develop those friendships by working hard for the benefit of the community, and following the Golden Rule. The respect that Avacar Bluestar engendered in his lifetime, and the memories of him that huge numbers of residents have, will last until the death of the last person who knew him personally, and perhaps even beyond.
     My sympathies in this time to his partner Ricogenu. Let's remember Avacar Bluestar as a fine example of the way people can work for the betterment of others in Second Life.

068: Sunday at Blow Buddies

Ordinarily when I go out dancing and decide to do a blog post, I try to zoom in on every individual person and get a close-up picture.  I don't know about you, but I always love to see pictures of myself at SL parties; makes me feel like someone was paying attention LOL.
But the parties on Sunday afternoon at Blow Buddies, as you can certainly see from these shots, are so darn full of

people that it would have taken me more time than I had to zoom in on them all.  Everyone was moving around too fast for me to count, but I think there were 35 or 40 guys there at various points. I know I saw a couple of friends there, including Ziggy Starsmith and Bry (Bryan Trefoil) and Hotboy Lockjaw, the DJ, and I was chatting and laughing and ... well, anyway, I just gave up on the idea

and thought you'd understand why if I showed you a lot of av-filled action shots.
     But I can tell you that it's a great party, every Sunday from 5 to 7 PM SLT, with Hottie keeping everyone on the dance floor and host Jeb Nicholls keeping the conversation going (and filthy! LOL) while dancing and waving his ever-present bottle of Jack Daniels. Here's the SLURL ... lots of hot guys in

various states of leather, fetish, and very little at all.  Maybe see you there some upcoming Sunday!

049: The return of Ziggy Starsmith

I'm happy to echo Eddi Haskell in welcoming back my friend Ziggy Starsmith to the Second Life blogosphere with his new blog. Ziggy is fierce and opinionated and puts it out there whether you like it or not, and I very much respect that principle. He tells us that he is going to put more emphasis on pictures in telling stories. If I were you I'd be making a note of his blog's address because, you know, you will anyway after the rest of the blogosphere keeps referring to it admiringly.  ;-)

You can find it here: http://ziggystarsmith.blogspot.ca

And I've added a picture to pique your interest. There's something so creepy and interesting about those zippers ... Welcome back, Ziggy!

008: Nice outfit, Dev! (Devlin.Fellstein)

I was at a St.  Patrick's Day dance at daPier tonight and saw a handsome guy, Dev (Devlin.Fellstein) who didn't feel compelled to show up head to toe in green -- unlike me in the background, ogling him from the rear ;-)  There was a bunch of hot men there, including bloggers Ziggy Starsmith and host Ryce Skytower, but Dev really stood out for me.



It wasn't just the outfit, although that was confident and elegantly simple; blue jeans, white T-shirt, black jacket, knee-high black boots. I liked the restrained choice of accessories, a simple necklace and an unobtrusive ring -- no obvious tattoos, no stretched earlobes, pierced lips or hair streaked with Kool-Aid colours. He looked like a handsome guy I would look at twice if he passed me on the street in RL. In particular, I liked the shape and especially the eyes. Dev was nice enough to tell me that the eyes are from IKON and the shape from Zim (as will be my custom in this type of post, I won't be giving detailed shopping information; Dev deserves to not see his restrained good looks duplicated all over SL). The jacket is from Immerschoen and if you look closely, it's nicely designed to make you suspect that the shoulders hidden beneath are attractively muscled.

I'm not sure if it's the combination of the shape and eyes, especially the distance between the eyes and the high cheekbones; what this handsome face made me think of is someone who's half East Indian or perhaps Middle Eastern. Again, the hallmark is subtlety. A handsome man with an unusual face who has gone with a simple haircut and minimal facial hair (and Dev told me that he's kept his look pretty much the same for three years! gutsy and solid) is a set of good choices. Nice outfit, Dev!