a spasm of good sense is making my eye twitch

As promised, shots of Miss Megg Demima's new shoes!



Or at least one of them. These are her Fur Booties, very nicely made, in black faux fur with gold trim. (As one of my companions last night pointed out, one wonders what is 'faux' fur on the grid, but Miss Demima is of the belief that if she said it was real fur, that furs might attack her shop. And she might not be wrong, there.)

The detail is dizzying:



Truly amazing, and for a first effort, phenomenal. She has a variety of selections, these were just the ones I had to have.

And Miss Graves has named her new hat!



This is La Pierrot from Miss Demima's collection of quirky chapeaus. She calls them "brain wrongs", but as I told her, originality is never to be decried.



Miss Graves (seen here and in the above shot) has decided to name hers Minionette. She would like Minionette to have a voice in the world, and to this end she is asking Miss Demima if she would mind, once a suitable voice is found, if she would allow said script to be inserted into the hat.

Miss Graves then added with a dark laugh that if Miss Demima says yes, then of course Vincent (my night unicorn), Sweeney (my goth lobster) and our third companion's Dove hat must then gain voices of their own.

I have dread.

To pass some of tonight's time apart from my loves, however, Lady Speirling wanted a test run of....something....that will be occurring this weekend. (There's nothing behind the curtain! Move along!) This took me and several others on a whirlwind tour of Caledon's more unique locales.

I'm going to have to stop at all the locations some time soon, I've kept the card--but before I had a chance to hit more than four stops, the mys--the puzz--the, err, the event had been solv--had stopped, so...

*Ahem*.

I mean to say, I didn't get very far.

But I did see some intriguing sites. For one:



This...something...above the cavorite mines. I'm quite intrigued, and completely baffled.

And this I found in Port Caledon:



Apparently this is the home for Wayward Librarians? One does wonder. If the librarians weren't wayward to begin with, they might be so after spending some time in these structures!

Overall though, the adventure confirmed one thing to me.



I dearly love Caledon. And I should spend more time exploring it.

IN OTHER NEWS: The premiere of the Poison Apple show this coming Saturday is postponed. We're hoping only for another week, but my artist has some medical complications, and those trump art shows on the grid. Therefore. I'll keep you posted.

do you think it's good to feel like I'm lying here swimming in memories?

A day of much wandering, many new discoveries, and much affirmation of love.

I need more days like this.

I started out at Nomine, trying to decide if I really wanted to spend two thousand Lindens on a skin which looks lovely, but has no demo. But along the way, I realized Mme. Zaius had completely redone the sim. Making certain things impossible to find. Trying to find the specialty skin vendors, I took a wrong turn and ended up in front of this sign (click for larger version):



That's just a marvelous statement, right there. Start to finish.

What is Torn, you ask? Well, that's the interesting part. They're a set of skins. But not just any skins.



Beaten skins. Clawed skins. Whipscored or razored. Bruised and battered.

I don't know about you, but in my old line of work? This actually came up a bit...

...and we can handily gloss over the why. At any rate, yay!

Or...something.

From there I moved out to the courtyard, where I found this:



Yes, this frightening metal thing is for sale. L$975 currently, steepish, and yes, it has sit poses!

I'm somewhat tempted.

From there I needed to revisit Temenos, in particular the new crash site of Cybernetic Apocalypse:



This is the crashed ship on the shore of Temenos, just a few fathoms away from the pirate cove. Cybernetic implants scavenged from the ship's medbays are for sale here, along with full enviro suits, and some cunningly constructed steampunk variants.

Miss Zoe Llewelyn (the mind behind most of Temenos) also managed to scavenge enough parts from the ship to manufacture cyber-eyes:



There's twenty-four eyes in all, offering quite an amazement of variation for those in need. They're all blue, which leads me to believe she may soon clone others in other colors.

After that, a friend (the lass with the coppery tresses) and I hit a true amazement of GothLoli shops on the grid. I don't have pictures from them, there would be too many!

But after that, my artist--our artist, I should say, as Fawkes and Neome are now Muses to the cause--invited us out to Chateau tres Mignon, Miss Demima's lovely shop in Dreamworld West. I don't have pictures of her new shoes she had just put up that night--I'll do my best to come up with some in days to come--but she also had new hats.

I was offered her Black Unicorn hat:



I've named him Vincent. (Well, Vincent van Gogh painted The Starry Night, and it seemed apropos--besides, "Starbutt" lacks a profound dignity.)



And my companion in her latest Demima creation, the Dove. Dove does not yet have a name.

(Behind her--and her hat--can be seen the wall of Sir Edward's new shop in Victoria City. I did want a picture of her hat, but I didn't know if I was allowed to photograph the new shop, so--that slice of wall is all you get.

(It looks lovely. bright and spacious and airy, wood-paneled and wonderfully detailed. At any rate.)

Though there was wonderment about what should happen should the Dove fall in love with Sweeney, my very gothic lobster hat? We do believe the hatspawn of such an unholy pairing should not be considered too strongly, else we risk mental damage, but....should it happen, we are all agreed--Miss Megg Demima must make hats of the children.

Now...what would a dove/lobster pairing look like? Though that may also fall under what Woman Was Not Meant to Know...

Thursday I should be able to turn in the completed list of items needed for the upcoming Temenos shoot, and then start scheduling Muses for shoots after the 23rd. Yes, another day where I hit the ground running.

I'm getting used to it.

and the days feel like years when I'm alone

[23:56] Stiv Kaczmarek: EMILLY
[23:56] Stiv Kaczmarek: I RETURN
[23:57] Emilly Orr: Today is the day of remembrance then!
[23:58] Emilly Orr: Actually, you haven't been here?

Well, good to hear God's still wandering about. I guess.

It is ever difficult to maintain religious faith when God...can be such a jerk at times.

Anyway...

Scattered notes from a life. The premiere librarian of Caledon is teaching an immersive learning course. More on immersive learning. It sounds fascinating.

In my wanderings yesterday I found someone sleepy.



Normally I don't bother capturing images of the narcosleepy on the grid, but...this fellow was head-to-toe black leather, with buckles and brightwork and bats swinging around him, waiting for him to wake up and move.

Had to be done. Had to be.

And I went to an event yesterday in Activ8. Now don't get me wrong. I like Activ8. They make me turn off my radar, but the people are fun, the music is generally good, the contests are innovative. I'm friends with some of the regulars, and the build is not bad.

Plus, it gives me opportunities to do things like this:

The problem? Well, last night's cross-dressing event (which was fun, don't get me wrong) was also attended by Nesquikbunny Aya. Nesquikbunny is a paid corporate shill. For, as you might imagine, Nesquik. I know everyone's gotta make a living, it's a cold grid for those who don't, but....it got really, really old, the invites to the Nesquik group, the announcements to IM the bunny for your 'favorite flavor' of Nesquik...

Is this the future of the grid? Maybe it's just me, but it was kind of unnerving.

In the meantime, work at the gallery continues unabated. When I next hit the grid I've already got nine things to do. I started out thinking that my artist was overpaying me by an insane amount, but...I'm going to earn every Linden, I'm thinking now. This is managing the Enigma, being a sim manager oh so long ago for Steelhead, on steroids.

I think I'm up to the task. By the end of this month I'll know for sure. In the meantime, I'm busybusybusy, getting used to being busybusybusy again. I haven't felt like this since the Enigma closed, frankly.

I may like it.

At the least, it's helping me process through life upheaval, and...that's all to the good.

Next up: further exploration of the Grim Orphanage...



Something is definitely afoot.

Coming up: The food night dance at Kokopelli Square in Steelhead, this Friday. Seven to nine pm (SLT), Sir Edward might be DJing? I can't recall. I'm hosting. Do come if you can. I can virtually guarantee the appearance of some, if not all, of the Aqua Teen Hunger Force. I myself have decided--due to Baron Wulfenbach's generous donation to my avatar coffers--to come as the Red (Death) Jell-O.

Wonder if I'm cherry or strawberry flavored...?

I know that there's no retrieving

would you mind if I hurt you
understand that I need to
wish that I had other choices
than to hurt the one I love...

(what have you done now?)



I finally got pictures of the big tree last night. To date, it's the most massive tree I've seen on the grid. At least...to live in.

I know I'd better stop trying
you know that there's no denying
I won't show mercy on you now

I know I should stop believing
I know that there's no retrieving
it's over now

(what have you done?
(what have you done now?)



This is the main platform. Suitable for a small dance, an intimate dinner for twenty, or meeting with all the current nobles of Taupo.

I, I've been waiting for someone like you
but now you are slipping away
(what have you done now?)
why? why does Fate make us suffer?
there's a curse between us
between me and you

(What have you done?
(what have you done now?)



The upper platform area. More suitable for small intimate gatherings, or just appreciating the view.

would you mind if I killed you?
would you mind if I tried to?
'cause you have turned into my worst enemy
you carry hate that I don't feel
it's over now

(what have you done?
(what have you done now?)



Behind the pair of trees, that's the wall around the village. In case you hadn't gathered that these are big trees.

I will not fall
won't let it go
we will be free
when it ends



And waaaaay off in the distance, to the right of this picture, is the Maneater. My puir wee twig, now, compared to these paleolithic trunks.

I, I've been waiting for someone like you
but now you are slipping away
what have you done now?
why? why does Fate make us suffer?
there's a curse between us
between me and you
between me and you...

my heart can't possibly break when it wasn't even whole to start with

((RP MODE))
((sorta))

Life on the grid was decidedly odd last night. The gallery shows at Altered were sparsely attended, but we did manage to raise, between private donations and sales of art, slightly over L$12,000 for the child in need of care after sexual abuse. All of us at Altered humbly thank you for your donations and your caring hearts.

After that, though, I had what felt like ten thousand things to do, so I hopped through several sims, pulled by the whim of offered teleports, until two hours later, everything seemed resolved. I breathed a sigh of relief and thought of what to do next. I decided to go home.

Home did not seem to be there. I tried several times. In the process I was thrown off the grid twice, and both times tried to return home, and ended up in odd telehubs.

In utter frustration, I went to Taupo. I met the Royal Advisor, and briefly spoke with the new innkeeper. Both seemed rather bemused by me. (I think the bemusement wasn't all me--be fair, the inn profoundly lacked a door! [It was being repaired.]) Then I walked through the gate--I'm small enough I don't need to open it, I just push through the bars, it's a very large gate--and saw the largest tree I'd ever seen in my life.

I don't have a good picture, I'll get one--but it's fully six platforms in one on the main level, a trunk that makes my Maneater look like a twig, another massive tree trunk that supports a free room--but wait, it's not done!

To one side is a set of stairs, and past that is a hollow-trunk tree with another platform room, giving the owner two large open-air rooms and two large closed rooms for the whole arrangement.

It's magnificent. Alazarin Mondrian, he makes the best trees. I'll bring back pictures when I can.

In the meantime, past that, I attracted the attention of the Guardian of Taupo, a Sky Fae who'd washed ashore in the kingdom some time before. I think I can be forgiven--I've mostly been involved in the outer world, but since those responsibilities are easing, I'm going to be getting more involved with the business of the kingdom. We exchanged stories of our lives, and parted in good spirit, and I went downstairs to begin building the second version of the cuddle rug.

(Having found no cuddle rug rigged for three people? Frustrating. I have had no recourse but to build it myself. Do drop me a note in world if you happen to know of any good animated cuddle poses. Singles, couples, or trios--I will make them work!

(I'll probably be selling them once I've finished. I can't be the only member of a triad who's run into this!)

But apparently, all is not well. The crisis that killed Steelhead's Sushi is spreading. To wit:



This is one of Taupo's Beluga whales. As you may have gathered, it's not in the water. I'm somewhat disturbed by this.



Another shot across the waves.



Creeping around the side with my cam. The tree you see on the shore? That's my Maneater. When I'm next able, I'll shoot my tree, and the big two-tree structure. Just so you can see the size difference.

It doesn't end here, though. Miss Neome, after helping me get the cuddle poses right (much appreciation for her efforts, there) wondered about fins. I flipped on mine and took her to EmeraldEver's shop, truly one of the best places for mer attire and moves. But I would not swim in the little testing bay area. I wandered to the larger sea and I would not swim either!

I thought it was just me, but then another denizen of the deep waves came in, and she couldn't swim either!

THE OCEANS ARE CURSED! WE'RE ALL DOOOOOMED!!!

...or, it could have something to do with why more than 400 regions on the grid were down last night, including Rivula. Apparently there are bigger problems than we know....

these broken wings are gonna leave me here to stand my ground

*sighs*

I'm getting very tired of this.

A very rough cut of the Poison Apple video is available on YouTube. The full length work will premiere at Altered Gallery next Saturday, if all goes well. I'll keep you updated.

Last night, however, was the last few events of Steelhead's Harvest Festival, and the Wizard of Oz dance.



Dorothy approaches the Emerald City.



Dorothy sets up the Kissing Booth. A horse race was scheduled at the same time. No one comes. (To the Booth--apparently the horse race was well attended.)



Dorothy goes to the dance. Much amazing creativity was seen, which I sincerely hope will be shown on other journals, because Dorothy had an extreme lack of rez.



But the Dalek Summoning Call was issued--the playing of the Dalek Song. Daleks--and hijinks--ensued.

Afterwards, I shut down Taiyou. The building should be down sometime today.

Today, I spent the day as the holder of a new position--that of manager of the Altered Gallery in Sonata. Our first event was sparsely attended, our second small but steady, and over L$12,000 was raised to benefit a child in need of psychological care after sexual abuse. I'm very pleased by this.

I'm also now looking for artists, as the upstairs will be dedicated to the works of Sysperia Poppy and Zoe Hartnell, and the lower gallery will be video and rotating artists every month. Do IM me if you are, or know of, an artist I should see. Or better yet, drop me a notecard in world--for even now, my IMs? Frequently cap.

heroes on the half shell

Emerged out of limbo late last night, into my home in Rivula, and was called to the lands of Taupo to meet with the Queen. I sought to change into something more appropriate for the island kingdom, but suddenly, everything began to slow down.

Massively.

Something was up.

Then Michaelangelo drifted through the room, big grinning teeth and all.

I thought perhaps I might be hallucinating for some reason, but....then it happened again.

I pulled my focus back, sent my cam far outside my skybox, and saw....this:



Great. Self-replicating TURTLES.

I swear, in a year of living in Rivula...Rivula gets hit first, it stays hit longest. When nowhere else on the grid is having problems, Rivula is. It's the bastard stepchild of the grid.

I'm so sick of it.

If I didn't love my landlords so much...

Just to add to the weirdness...Baron Wulfenbach has decided I need more Jell-O in my life. I possessed the lemon Jell-O and the Blue Hawaii; he's now sent me the cherry, the orange, the grape and lime.

Hmm.

Either he's trying to see if I mutate with exposure to that much gelatin, or...he's hungry.

oh, you're one of those things I love, but you're bad for me

I had a feeling it wasn't going to be the best day.



I was trying to program a rug. (That's the rug below me, that round thing, ohhhh so far away.) It wasn't precisely working.

Mr. Allen came and tried to help me. At this point the conversation wavered between moribund and cumbersome; I did try to pay attention. Between moments of being flung very very high.

He said I had my rotations wrong...



I'll agree with him there.

He told me, always make sure my poses start with the rotations at 0,0,0. I misunderstood him at first and entered 0,0,1.0 on the rotations card. It flung me off the sim entirely.

[23:09] You: That flung me off the sim
[23:10] Fawkes Allen: Now Em, did we go over the making sure the Positional Vector was below 1.0?
[23:10] You: You said 0,0,0,1
[23:10] You: So I put that in
[23:10] You: It said not a vector
[23:10] You: So I put in 0.0, 0.0, 1.0
[23:11] Fawkes Allen: Noooo.
[23:12] Fawkes Allen: I said 0,0,0.1
[23:12] Fawkes Allen: Notice the .
[23:12] You: Oh.
[23:12] You: Aheh.



He's trying, I'll give him that. I think it's much easier to make something and use poseballs to make sure people are where you want them to be. I think it's much harder to try to get the rotations and positions right so that each prim in an object has a sit target.

Trust me, I'm not playing the typical girl "Math is hard, let's go shopping!" card here. I'm trying to learn it. It's just not making sense yet.

[23:25] Fawkes Allen: What was Pos at?
[23:26] You: No, wait, no, it made sense...
[23:26] You: N'mind ignore me
[23:26] You: Okay
[23:26] You: rot = <6.95, 356.95, 60.60>
[23:26] You: No no
[23:26] You: pos = <15.723, 202.131, 20.900>
[23:26] You: right
[23:26] Fawkes Allen: Yeah see.
[23:26] Fawkes Allen: Stop using any number higher then 1.0 ^_~
[23:26] Fawkes Allen: Fix that, we can try again
[23:28] You: Okay, then we're back to, I have no idea how rotation and position work



He made a handy little visual. I'll have to look at this more, but this may actually help

[23:35] Fawkes Allen: Notice the spiffy diagram here.
[23:36] Fawkes Allen: That Neome is in
[23:36] Fawkes Allen: The larger X/Y/Z is the Sim "Grid"
[23:36] Fawkes Allen: It's where you are in 3-d Space.
[23:36] Neome Graves gets out of the way before something goes off.
[23:37] Fawkes Allen: The smaller one? Is the prim. You want to be changing the position of the SitTarget (What the Config notecard is for) relative to the smaller "Grid"

I'd love to say the light went off at that point, but....it didn't, quite.

[23:41] You: Okay, so let me ask this
[23:41] You: Do the numbers under rotation in the edit window mean ANYTHING?
[23:41] Fawkes Allen: Yes.
[23:42] Emilly Orr stares at Fawkes
[23:42] Fawkes Allen: Rotation *and* Position mean something. It's just you can't interpret the data Raw.
[23:43] Fawkes Allen: You have to essentially reformat it to be relative to the root prim. Which is most easily done by taking away the X/Y/Z of the Poseball from the X/Y/Z of the pillow.
[23:43] Fawkes Allen: More or less

Maybe it's that I need to take a class or something. Go through the Ivory Tower tutorials again. It's almost making sense, but my brain is missing something.



But I tried using what he was trying to teach me. Every attempt at reprogramming the prim, I got a little closer. Even if it was getting harder to talk.

[23:44] Fawkes Allen: See this Sphere?
[23:44] Fawkes Allen makes it a sphere.
[23:44] Neome Graves: Hee
[23:44] Fawkes Allen: It's at 14.500, 202.500, 22.000
[23:44] Fawkes Allen: I want the pose however to be here.
[23:45] Fawkes Allen: Okay?
[23:45] Fawkes Allen: This is at 15.0,202.5,22.0
[23:45] Fawkes Allen: So I'd take the notecard configuration file.
[23:45] Fawkes Allen: And under Pos
[23:45] Fawkes Allen: I'd go
[23:45] Fawkes Allen: <0.5,0,0>
[23:46] Fawkes Allen: Which means the pose will be sitting .5 meters forward along the X axis.
[23:48] Fawkes Allen: Did that help at all?

And my answer is yes and no. It helps, it's just not how my brain is used to working.



I finally just plugged in 2.5 along the X axis, I was tired of being in the pillow! Which set me hovering above the rug entirely. But that taught me more about how rotation and positioning works than anything else had...and he had to tell me again to use Local edit settings, not World.

Hmm. Does Local edit settings give one different figures for rotation and position? As in, would they give the relative rotation and position of that prim in the edit window, not the rotation of the object being edited on the world grid?

Because that may make everything very simple.

Finally I cobbled something together that would work "for now"--I could finely-tweak later, I was getting tired. I decided to throw together the figures for the pillow in the middle, to make it a properly working set of three poses.



I give up.

when you walk away I count the steps that you take

My neko lad must delight in tormenting me. He brings me to the precipice of saying goodbye, and then...hesitates. Reaffirms that love is important. Validates my choices. Brings me back from the brink before....pushing me near off the edge at speed, saying all would be well if I'd just leave all others I love.

I have been here before, but never with one I've held in such high regard. We have been a year together, on the rich-ragged grid, a year of ups and downs, discoveries and losses, confusion and adoration, pain and joy. One year. One year when most relationships on the grid last two months.

And we are on the shakiest of ground now, after that year. It's daunting, on more than one level.



I took him to Svarga, because we could easily hide amidst the towering alien foliage, the overgrown fungus soft enough to sit upon. We discussed our love, potential loss, decisions, fear, doubt...all whilst I was being struck repeatedly by the tour UFO.

Apparently the orange mushroom? Is directly in the path of the tour tram.



We talked for a long time.

He sought to sit with me when the conversation wound down, and something in the mechanics of his moving sent me flying from the spongy mushroom surface, whereupon I--surprised enough not to hover--fell like a rock into the small pond, the sharp outcropping of rock therein piercing through my ribcage.



It took me a bit to pull off. That was distressing. And hurt a great deal, but nothing like his leaving-but-not-quite speeches. He left in good cheer, and I remained...confused and hurt.

And cranky.

Thus, when my friends were accosted, and I was not there...well, I thought the least I could do was help these two unfortunates to be less of a drain on all thinking beings. That, or get killed much more often.

Let me bring to your attention Miss Chanelle Vuckovic, and Miss Alanah Bailey. Yes, they are newbies, and fairly egregious examples at that.



These are the...gentle ladies in question. Note the intense belly bling on Miss Vuckovic.

"You", in this instance, refers to Mr. Fawkes Allen. They had, my loves, decided to wear minimal attire to better see the muscle movements in the poses they were testing. (This is not the worst idea--I may go pose-shopping in minimal attire from now on myself.) And thereupon, were accosted, for no clear reason.

[2:10] Chanelle Vuckovic: bitch stop running
[2:10] Chanelle Vuckovic: lol
[2:11] Chanelle Vuckovic: looooooooooooool
[2:11] Alanah Bailey: i cant
[2:11] Alanah Bailey: lol
[2:11] Alanah Bailey: fuk
[2:11] Chanelle Vuckovic: lol
[2:11] Alanah Bailey: wtf is wrong wit me
[2:11] Alanah Bailey: lol
[2:11] Chanelle Vuckovic: gear
[2:11] Chanelle Vuckovic: thtas wat
[2:11] Alanah Bailey: phew
[2:11] Chanelle Vuckovic: hahaaaaaaaa
[2:11] Chanelle Vuckovic: gimi sum lol
[2:12] Alanah Bailey: i think these guys have fallen asleep
[2:12] Chanelle Vuckovic: think so
[2:12] Chanelle Vuckovic: lol
[2:12] Fawkes Allen laughs.
[2:12] You: It's such a relaxing pose.
[2:12] You: Wouldn't you?
[2:12] Alanah Bailey: deadset they were doin the same thing like 20mins ago
[2:12] Alanah Bailey: no
[2:12] Chanelle Vuckovic: loooooooooooool
[2:12] Alanah Bailey: if it was that gr8 i would do it in RL

So....right off the bat, they have established themselves as troglodytes who cannot spell, and whose main force of commentary is to devalue others. What a lovely way to make a first impression.

[2:12] You: If you need them we can get up I think.
[2:12] Chanelle Vuckovic: girl
[2:13] Chanelle Vuckovic: wat u wearing
[2:13] Chanelle Vuckovic: where u get that frm
[2:13] Alanah Bailey: sticky tape
[2:13] Alanah Bailey: or duct tape
[2:13] Chanelle Vuckovic: lol
[2:13] Neome Graves: Me? A combination of straps from Dark Eden and Chains from Nico
[2:13] Alanah Bailey: somethin out of edward scissorhands wardrobe
[2:13] Neome Graves smirks.
[2:14] Alanah Bailey: LOL somethin wrong wit yo leg
[2:14] Neome Graves: It's this walk. It is just odd. =P

Some poses are. Not everything works out. And everyone is entitled to judge, based on movements, how attractive or unattractive someone is. But--pardon--is it the norm to walk up to someone one has never previously met and start lambasting not only their attire, but their preferences, their appearance, their choice of costume?

They went on.

[2:14] Chanelle Vuckovic: loooooooooool
[2:14] Alanah Bailey: u guys have to walk
[2:14] Alanah Bailey: ur master just IMed me
[2:14] Chanelle Vuckovic: twitch bitch rofl
[2:15] Alanah Bailey: tellin me u guys need to lose weight
[2:15] Neome Graves smirks.
[2:15] Alanah Bailey: packn some junk in yo trunk if u catchn my drift
[2:15] Chanelle Vuckovic: who needs to loose weight
[2:15] Alanah Bailey: yeh and ur not allowde to talk either
[2:15] Alanah Bailey: or u get beat
[2:15] Neome Graves: Well, since I'm not actually a submissive... =P
[2:15] Alanah Bailey: both of them
[2:15] Alanah Bailey: well u are now
[2:15] You: Oh of course.

Now they're taking on, in order:

* spelling, proper punctuation and grammar
* minimal attire
* long-term pose testing (and be honest, sometimes it takes four to ten minutes of watching the walk, the stand, the fly, whatever, from all angles to really decide if it's "you" or not)
* Tim Burton
* physical appearance of others
* those who choose (whether or not Miss Neome or Mr. Allen are in this category, but simply from the way they looked) to engage in dominance or submission as a chosen lifestyle

But wait. They're not done.

[2:15] Alanah Bailey: LOL
[2:16] Alanah Bailey: gurl u need a tan
[2:16] Alanah Bailey: u whiter then caspar
[2:17] Alanah Bailey: neome
[2:17] Alanah Bailey: do u need money?
[2:17] Chanelle Vuckovic: this one needs to check himself/herself
[2:17] Neome Graves: Nope, *this* is hwiter than casper. =P
[2:17] Neome Graves: Whiter, even.
[2:17] You: Check what?

Now? Add the entirety of the gothic community on the grid. And, by extension, most of the Dark Victorians group, since we tend to favor dark clothes and pallor.

And they're still not done.

[2:17] Alanah Bailey: cant u afford clothes is that why ur wearing tape>?
[2:18] Chanelle Vuckovic: wardrobe malfunction
[2:18] Alanah Bailey: or u waiting for a removalist/
[2:18] Chanelle Vuckovic: looool
[2:18] Alanah Bailey: to pack ur ass up outta here/
[2:18] Neome Graves: Oh, it's very comfortable. I think everyone will be doing so in the future.
[2:18] Alanah Bailey: yeh the future of fukness
[2:18] Alanah Bailey: thats fukd
[2:18] Alanah Bailey: i cant even tell if u male or female
[2:18] Chanelle Vuckovic: girl u look bad seriously
[2:18] Alanah Bailey: or human for that matter
[2:19] Alanah Bailey: lol with a pimp AO
[2:19] Alanah Bailey: LMFAO
[2:19] Chanelle Vuckovic: loooooooooooooool
[2:19] Chanelle Vuckovic: rofl
2:19] Alanah Bailey: lol

I mean, do I even need to go on? It used to be on the grid, you would see a new friend, and by and large they would be, at the very least, civil. I still carry a folder with several newbie links, items of usefulness, and the like to give out to folks.

But these two..."ladies"...from the moment they came into view, they were aggressive, argumentative, insulting, and deeply stupid. Who raised these idiots?

[2:19] Alanah Bailey: theres a freebie place they have clothes there
[2:19] Alanah Bailey: LMAO
[2:19] Chanelle Vuckovic: rofllllll
[2:20] Alanah Bailey: LOL the pimp AO is funny as hell
[2:20] Alanah Bailey: have u got a leahs for that collar
[2:20] Alanah Bailey: ?
[2:20] Alanah Bailey: leash*
[2:21] Chanelle Vuckovic: omg lmfao
[2:21] Neome Graves raises an eyebrow. Are you asking?
[2:21] Alanah Bailey: ahhh yeh
[2:22] Neome Graves: I have a leash, but it's not for *my* collar.
[2:22] Chanelle Vuckovic: her master here
[2:22] Chanelle Vuckovic: ron lol
[2:22] Neome Graves: And thanks. ~_^
[2:22] Alanah Bailey: thanks for what?
[2:22] You: It's a bit hard to take fashion tips seriously when even your uterus has bling.
[2:22] Alanah Bailey: oh the freebie thingy
[2:22] Alanah Bailey: yeh its iight
[2:22] Neome Graves nods.
[2:22] Alanah Bailey: u need to go there like 10mins ago

I'm still not entirely convinced I shouldn't track them down and light them on fire, but....I think it's the crankiness speaking. Lambasting them in public will have to do. And I do believe this has adequately reinforced why my usual locales of choice are Caledon, Steelhead and my home sim of Rivula. Because this sort of thing? Is rare in those places.

One wonders what sort of upbringing such..."gentle souls" receive, that the first action upon seeing anyone who challenges any slight misconception in their heads receives this ill-structured diatribe. What would have happened if religion had come into it? Sexual preference? Choice of employment?

Not that it is in any way comparable, but there are faint bells of accord ringing from earlier conversations in Caledon chat. I am not normally the sort to baldly state what I do, but I felt compelled to do so last night, in response to a certain damsel who seems, from all surface perception, to be quite anti-sexuality, anti-male, and decidedly anti-fun. So, even though it was quite bolder than I am in Caledon at large, and somewhat inappropriate for proper Caledonian society...

...well, I was cranky already. And I had had more than enough. So yes, I flung what I do and have done in her face, and she fainted.

I'll do my best to behave better from now on. It just irked me. The entire evening.

If the universe is trying to tell me not to date...they're doing a very good job and I may well take their advice.

I wandered through fiction to look for the truth, buried beneath all the lies

((RP MODE))

Valruna is dying. We can feel it. As the phouka rests and I walk in her skin, still I can pick up on her emotions, her ties to this land. And as I walk here, it makes even me shudder at the change.



The spell wrought by unknown forces has now changed the very ecology of the land, in frightening ways. Where there was earth, pale sand is seen now. Where there were arching canopy trees, dotted with small homes of the fluttering fae, there are palm trees, split leaves fluttering under the brilliant blue sky.



This body is tired, but I force it climbing. There must be something here, some magic left, somewhere...in all this...this...mundanity. I ascend to the summit, pass a group of stones and a spell barrier that means less than nothing, and find home, for the little shifter.



Only....it's not...what it was. The trees feel...disconnected, impossible, I walk through them as if they're not there, or touch them and feel nothing. Even as deeply asleep as I am fighting to keep the phouka, she is wailing at the loss of the trees.

This is not good.



There is water through the land and I disbelieve it. There are trees and glowing fungus and I doubt my eyes. I push the phouka down and I begin to doubt my own sanity.



It is manifest, this understanding in me. We no longer belong here.



But now the hard decisions come. I am not the phouka, I cannot live her life for her, and for all that I wanted to, at one time...my demon lord is gone, as is hers, and the sithen is missing, and the Court is scattered beyond repair.

When there is no hope, I have been told, go to the place where hope died last.



I never thought I'd say this...but it's good to be home.

If my chosen hell cannot break this addiction in her...cannot bring her back from the madness she finds herself in...then at least she'll be in good hands.

Well.

Maybe not good...