to be reborn, not born again, erase my regret from the start

We went to see Black Swan. The first thing that struck us was the vicious level of bright white glow. We were wincing in pain before we'd gotten three steps in.

The walls of the bright white room recommended that we wear "authorization devices" so that the security bots would not shoot on sight. I wore one, figuring my odds might be better; my companions did not choose to do so.



I'd seen the bound angel before, in Port Seraphine; but it was just as impressive walking past it, deeper into the exhibit.



Walking up to where the exhibits began was somewhat odd. Skulls littered the blackened stone path, and at the crest of it was a shining pendulum, swinging back and forth.

Miss Neome, in some tiny form or other, walked right under it, and told me she'd walked right through it. I didn't listen to my instincts, so walked right into the edge of the blade. It sliced through my shoulder as blood spurted, staining the path behind me.

Miss Fawkes, in statuesque form, also thought the blade could not harm her, and it nearly sheared her head off. For all that she was mobile stone, blood sprayed from her wound as well.

We resolved to be more careful.



This was the first piece that really took my breath away. This is what sculpts should be, I kept--and keep!--thinking: not sharp, just beauifully molded, elegance of design and ease of use combined. She was gorgeous.



Then, with a touch, she came to life, and I was awestruck, completely awestruck. Colors ripple over her, stream from her hair, the very air seems to warm--it's just the most astounding effect.



This was the second piece that just astounded me. The angel, the woman of stone who comes to life, the ballerina yet to come--these were all VERY large pieces.

This one? The couple embracing, standing in the center of the bay? Dwarfed all of them.



And the alabaster ballerina, eternally frozen in a single moment. She was also just gorgeous to look at.

In fact, really, the only disappointment about this exhibit? Was the fashions at the end. Here was an opportunity to really go places, break new ground, let imaginations run wild--what are the limits of possibility, what can we do with fashion, with fabric, with what we can create with hearts and hands?

And, with very few exceptions, everyone took the staid, the boring, the easy way out. Tired retreads or things that just happened to have feather textures, or good outfits, pretty outfits, that were only an inch or so away from what that designer does on a daily basis. It was very disappointing.

We turned a corner, then, and discovered where newbs go when they're away.



Dozens of them, maybe hundreds, it was hard to tell.



I flew down--carefully!--through the spires, touching down when I had to, nearly always to some unexpected effect--until I reached the center inverted pyramid. I touched down on it--and security zapped me, and sent me home.

Gracious! And I *had* their little don't-shoot 'authorization device'!



And then we went to Planet Mongo. Which is, if you were ever a fan of Flash Gordon, a stunning recreation of Ming the Merciless' domain, on its own.

[21:46] Emilly Orr: Mm, we having problems again?
[21:46] Emilly Orr: Hasn't hit the sim I'm in
[21:46] Emilly Orr: Yet
[21:46] Lerochelle Destiny: [21:42] Second Life: There is a hardware issue which is affecting some resident's ability to login. Some residents inworld may not appear in search, or may appear to be offline. Affected residents may also experience problems rezzing items or making transactions. To be safe, we recommend all residents refrain from rezzing no copy items or making transactions until the all clear is given. Some groups may also experience issues related to group abilities. Ops is at work correcting the problem. Please monitor the Second Life Grid Status Report, http://tinyurl.com/5e2opk, for further information.
[21:47] Ivyana Szondi: oh damn
[21:47] Emilly Orr: So basically, SL is borked again, and you've noticed it becoming more and more borked for the past two days, but we can't ignore it anymore, so now we're trying desperately to patch whatever broke on Monday, hang in there
[21:48] Ivyana Szondi: LOL

Pretty much. One last thing--the Retrology sim comprises a whole double-cartload of stores and boutiques with one linking ideal: vintage is more fun. The 'vintage' they mean is generally from 1920-1960, but still, it's a pleasant stroll, a good build, and currently they're celebrating their one-year anniversary as a sim, so many of the merchants are handing out anniversary gifts, of clothing and what-not. It's nicely done.

How'ver--



Really...really not the place for a typo of this magnitude.

Besides...if it's really a 'blowing alley' dress...it should be at least a little more low-cut.

*ducks and scurries off*