13 June, 2009

'cause baby, when we meet what we're afraid of, we find out what we're made of

the lake is frozen over
the trees are white with snow
and all around, reminders of you
are everywhere I go


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Welcome to Towaru.

There's a rest of the sim, yes, this is just the haunted section. (Why that section first? Pish, you people. Because I'm *me*. Hallowe'en's my favorite holiday; I try to keep the spirit of the season alive in my heart all year 'round.) Keep in mind much, much of this sim is sculpted; so stand a bit, let things rez.

it's late and morning's in no hurry
but sleep won't set me free
I lie awake and try to recall
how your body felt beside me
when silence gets too hard to handle
and the night too long


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These are, uh...They're...

Look, I don't want to know what they're doing! And I did not try the poseballs, just in case. Some things I don't need to know.

But for the easily offended: some things YOU do not need to know. For instance, if you do go to the sim (and it's lovely, and charming, and imaginative, you really should), do not go to the top floor of Panda Express' store.

I'm quite serious for once--I don't offend easily, and there's something up there that not only changed my mind ever about spending money on anything they make, but literally made me walk out of the store at speed to go stand elsewhere.

and this is how I see you...
love and happiness surround you...


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From the moment I entered Towaru, however, I was completely charmed by their simple, nearly cartoon style for trees, ground, and sky. The sky itself was festooned with what looked like those press-on glow-in-the-dark stars, and for personal reasons, I tend to feel weirdly safe when surrounded by things that glow. So instantly, I was taken in by the sim's overdose of cute-and-pretty, and relaxed, watching the stars spin.

It took a while to realize why they were spinning.

sense of joy fills the air
and I daydream and I stare
up at the tree and I see
your star up there


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This is another shot of the floating-islands group of landmasses, so you can see more of what I mean. Also, note in this picture (and the last one) the set of oversized blocks (and more importantly, what they spell).

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And herein, revelation, for you and me: I pulled the cam back, just to get an idea what was going on, and snapped back overhead. It was serendipitous, really, it set the shot perfectly. And why did this happen?

Because the entire sim is in a megaprim.

I'm not kidding, I checked. 256x256x256 sphere. So the sphere just slowly rotates around everything inside. Marvelous effect.

Do go visit, it's small and quirky and, barring the rez time for the sculpts, a great deal of fun!

(Just...not upstairs at Panda Express. Trust me on this.)

(Lyrics adapted from Sarah McLachlan's "Wintersong".)

7 comments:

Sphynx Soleil said...

Wau. When you say not to visit? I trust that. :)

Emilly Orr said...

It's weird, though. It's a charming sim, overdone on the twee, but of the pretty...then you walk over, see the...um..."friendly" pandas...and go in the store...and everything's the typical legwarmers/short frilly skirts/hoodies that are prevalent right now?

Then upstairs, cute little tops, more legwarmers, and OMGOFFENSIVEWTF.

It's like someone else came in and designed one thing that they're just throwing up--no pun intended--with the rest of things.

Rhianon Jameson said...

Okay, I should have listened. But no, I couldn't leave well enough alone. And I almost left thinking that poor Miss Orr is really sensitive, because I didn't see any- And there it was. Wow. (Or Wau.)

The panda sure looked happy, though.

Emilly Orr said...

They do, it's true. :)

But yes. And I don't complain to designers about what people choose to design unless there are technical issues; I'm an adult, they are free to sell it. But I'm also free to send out a warning.

See, that's the sad thing--I'm not that sensitive. I used to have a bumper sticker that said "Nuke all unborn gay baby whales for Christ"--I felt it neatly covered all bases. :p But I can't imagine anyone walking around in that, it's just...beyond my imagination set.

Anonymous said...

Oh. My.

Of course I went (well, I sent an alt). Like Miss Jameson, I looked and looked, thinking "twee panda-themed slutware wouldn't offend Emilly (at least not in that way)." And then I, too, saw IT.

I can't believe what comes out of some people's minds.

Emilly Orr said...

I have seen a great deal of the grid, and the darker side of the grid, and that, I admit, was new.

But now, you see, you learn what my close friends know. "Ooh, Em's creeped out by it? Right, not seeing that film..."

Same thing applies to SL. :)

Genie Burton said...

Okay, I know you said not to go, but my curiousity is KILLING ME!

AUGH!

I will have to go see what all of the ew is about!

hide away, they say, 'cos we don't want your broken parts

Yeah, so...remember that thing I was recovering from? You know, last year ? Yeah. I did it again. So this is Em Faw Down Go Boom part ...