oh my god, I see how everything is torn in the river deep

Something fairly creepy happened tonight--I wanted to take some casual shots of an outfit, and remembered there was a land connected to ShenaniganS that might work, so I ported there with the express purpose of crossing back into that forest. Only...there didn't seem to be anything there.

Oh, the music club was still there, but everywhere the club wasn't, all the surrounding land, had been dropped by a good ten meters and was now bare sand.



In the above image, just to give you an idea of what I was seeing, I am the miniscule figure in red in the extreme lower left, and in the upper left, nearly in the left corner, is a reddish barn bedecked in lights, surrounded by greenery. That's ShenaniganS.

While I was trying to figure out what had happened, I must have passed an inviter, and a group dropdown--I thought--popped up, so I closed it, then Annie chatted me up:

[22:23] Annie (shenannyannie): Hello Emilly - Music Lands is a group for venues that play great music by DJ's or with Live Performers. You'll get news of events daily from several venues and it will save you a few group slots.

Annie's name is left unanonymized for reasons that will become clear.

[22:24] Emilly Orr: Do you know what happened to the rest of the land? I think the Forest of Astray?

As it turns out, I was wrong--the Forest of Astray is a different sim, though also very pretty.

[22:24] Annie (shenannyannie): What was that?
[22:25] Emilly Orr: There used to be a forested sim connected to Shenanigans. Do you know what happened to it?
[22:25] Annie (shenannyannie): Sorry, what was that?

That's when I figured it out.

[22:25] Emilly Orr: Oh, you're a bot?
[22:25] Annie (shenannyannie): That's me. I chat, therefore I am.
[22:25] Emilly Orr: Well, drat. Thanks for your help.
[22:25] Annie (shenannyannie): It's my pleasure to help.

I admit, this one threw me--usually I can identify bots pretty well, or at least, independent AI constructs. But the first time we spoke, back on January 10th, I didn't pick up on it.

[2019/01/10 23:35] Annie (shenannyannie): Hello Emilly - Music Lands is a group for venues that play great music by DJ's or with Live Performers. You'll get news of events daily from several venues and it will save you a few group slots.
[2019/01/10 23:36] Emilly Orr: Oh, thanks! Mostly doing a photo project, but I do like the look of the place.

I was talking about both the forest lands connected to Shenanigan's, and the beach chairs that used to be in front of the club, thinking they were connected to the club itself.

[2019/01/10 23:36] Annie (shenannyannie): Like you should be on a magazine cover.
[2019/01/10 23:36] Emilly Orr smiles.
[2019/01/10 23:36] Annie (shenannyannie): Say that one more time?
[2019/01/10 23:36] Emilly Orr: It's fine. Just exploring, mainly.
[2019/01/10 23:36] Annie (shenannyannie): Agreed!

I just thought she was odd, or not a native English speaker, and had finished the photos I needed for that project, so I went on with things. Very odd, though, the entire encounter tonight.



This was in the forested area, up in some ruins. You can see light-bedecked trees behind the stone archway to the side.



And this was near where the port-in point was. The path leading up from the pier, and all the flowers, led to the ruins.

I don't think I spent enough time in this spot to really resonate with it, but it was pretty, and very natural. For that, if nothing else, it will be missed.