Some Words of Warning for New SLitizens..... OR..... Lola

It has been about six weeks since the last post to this blog. I had a major drama in my SLife, and I survived just fine, learned a lot. However, there was an action that I wanted to take, but my love for another made me reluctant to do it. As a result, I froze, unable to act at all. Finally, here is my action, my latest update on the adventures of Lorelei in the wonderland of Second Life.

I think in terms of Second Life age I am now fully a middle aged person, wizened and somewhat cynical from my experiences. What is striking to me, is the similarities to RL, but in slightly different manifestations. This world of SL is doing a lot of boundary crossing, on many different levels. It is making our world smaller allowing many who might never travel past their borders to meet and explore people on the other side of the globe. Most times, despite the differences in culture, language and economics, we find that we are all human, and when it comes down to the most basic natures and needs, very much the same.

While most people are good and kind, both in RL and in SL, there are also people who are dangerous and not what they appear to be. And even the good ones who would never intentionally cause pain to others, are weak, flawed humans. We all are. Sometimes even very kind people can hurt others very much.

One thing that bothers me about SL is the phenomena of men masquerading as women. This is rampant across SL. I worry about the psychological damage caused to young people who become emotionally attached to a person masquerading as a different gender than what they actually are. After emotional ties have been formed, THEN the truth is revealed. I know for a fact that this is happening over and over again in SL.

I personally am aware of a “woman”, initials V.C. who is, in fact, a man. This is just one example of the sort of devious and manipulative type that seem to have found a haven in SL. This person trolls sex holes looking for sexy but very young (in SL terms) people to prey on, and forms relationships with those people, lovingly creating a very manipulative environment. Only after the hooks are well set in the victim’s brain does the truth come out. This “woman” is actually a youngish Dutchman, so unsure of his sexuality that he can’t make his mind up between men and women, neither in the virtual world nor in the real one. But what he does do is manipulate and use people in SL, and I have seen it first hand. He may not know how to love, but he knows how to control, and that is where the thrill for him lies.

New people in SL need to be aware that there are predators trolling around, ready to insidiously worm their way into other peoples psyches, only to use and control them. There are many people in SL seeking the one thing that really gets them going, which is controlling others. The thing that puzzles me is why people willingly allow this to happen. Yet, I’ve seen how slow and subtle the process is, and most don’t realize what is going on until they are in too deep to see the situation objectively. So then, dear readers, guard your heart well on your journeys in Second Life. It may be a virtual world, but the emotional pain can be very real, and it cuts like a knife. More updates coming soon…

Take a visit to Australia at the Pond

My SLover Boog and I recently enjoyed a fun evening of exploration at the Pond.

This finely detailed sim includes plenty of activities and recreates all that is best about the land down under.

There are plenty of places to hang out and meet new people, lots of amazing scenery and jaw dropping builds. There is a race track, a cuddle park and shopping.

A re-creation of the Sydney Opera house is amazing from the outside, but sadly, only the basement can be entered and explored.

While we were there we discovered an amazing and mind blowing art experience in the bottom of the Opera House. Lights, sound and color react to movements of avatars thru the space. Invite your friends, go into mouse look and fly around bumping into each other and enjoy the effect you have on the environment, and feel the effect it has on you, reminiscent of mind-altering drug experiences.

If you enjoy detail of construction and have some time go on a walkabout and explore, the Pond is a must see in Second Life.

Come see me at Parrot Bay

I am now dancing at Parrot Bay in addition to my job at La Rose Nui. I love the crowd at Parrot Bay, they are such a tight knit SL family. It’s a real honor to be a part of such a fun bunch of people. If you ever want to stop in and say hello to me, I work at Parrot Bay on Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights between 7 and 9 pm SLT. Enjoy different themes, Sploder nights, dancing and shops out in the courtyard, admire the pirate ship in the harbor and take a hit on the gigantic bong in the club. The people are friendly and welcome new people, so stop in and admire the scenery, and as always, remember to tip your lovely dancers and DJ as they are working hard for your entertainment.

More on Lorelei’s adventures in Second Life coming soon. Until then.

House Beautiful Second Life

One of the most enjoyable things about SL for me so far has been setting up housekeeping. Boog Nishi and I rent a lovely house called Tales of Desire, and he and I are Lord and Lady of Desire.

The owner and creator of this spectacular house, Luminus, came over the other day and told us that what we thought was ours was not. There is a little stone cottage that connects the Tales of Desire house with the big castle in back that belongs to Luminus and Fran. Boog and I had been under the mistaken impression that this little stone cottage was ours, but Luminus informed us that it was not included in the rent. I had asked this question twice in IMd queries to the owners prior to renting the house, but had never gotten a response. Being an optimist I’d assumed the little cottage was part of the deal.

This new disappointing revelation involved some quick rearranging and a little sadness too, because now, privacy in our home is really at a premium. In fact there is really none to be found at all. But, the place is lovely, and we don’t want to leave.

So in search of a little privacy, I went on a curtain buying adventure. Eventually I settled on a set of amazing huge red flexi curtains that blow in the ever present SL wind. (I am now an expert on curtains in SL.) But before I actually bought the curtains, I also bought a new sofa and ottoman for our living room, and a nice “ohm” printed flexi curtain for the uncovered window in Boog’s room.

As soon as Boog and I got the curtains hung, we went on yet another shopping spree to Bits and Bobs, outfitting the area in front of the fireplace with new toys and adding a new set of dance balls.

Our home just gets sweeter and sweeter. Boog and I are loving each other, loving the home we have created together and loving our perfect world in SL. More updates on the adventures of Lorelei in Second Life coming soon. Until then…

La Rose Nui... (My Professional Home)

These days, I am working at a brand new club called La Rose Nui. It is so new, in fact, that our grand opening is this Saturday night, May 26, 2007. Please stop by and check it out. I normally work from 9 pm SLT to 11 pm SLT, or later if the crowd stays on.

I haven’t been in a huge number of classic “gentleman’s clubs” in SL, but the ones I’ve seen, cannot compare to this one. I am so proud to be working here, and it is truly one of the most beautiful clubs I’ve been in. The owners and managers are totally professional and have become my new SL family. I learn something new from them every day, and it is a joy to be a part of such a sharp, smart group of people. Everything in the club is first rate.

You won’t be slumming when you come to La Rose, so dress accordingly. Hope to see you there. Don’t forget to say hello, and if you get there by reading this, be sure and let me know you saw it on the blog.

More of Lorelei’s adventures in Second Life coming soon. Until then.

A Brand New Boog

From the first time I met Boog, and continuing as our relationship developed, he was wearing different shapes and skins… and his skin was never quite human. His gender changed back and forth and I never knew what to expect from one meeting to the next. This changed suddenly when his collar was removed and he was no longer under the control of a dominant. He then became a dark-skinned neko with crazy hair.

I can honestly say that I fell in love with Boog’s mind, his words, his personality.

The look he was sporting never had anything to do with the way I felt about him, I grew to love him as I got to know him and my feelings would have been the same had he turned himself into a little dinosaur (another avatar I recently saw). My only request, ever, was that when we were being intimate, he take on his true male form, which he always did.

Boog now looks as good and traditionally appealing on the outside as he has always been to me on the inside. I am amazed at how successful the transformation has been.

This is a perfect example of how good a person’s avatar in SL can look, if you give it planning, thought and patience. I think in all, including the hair and tattoos, he spent under 3000L achieving this HAWT look. And it was worth every penny. Once again, he and I can’t seem to keep our hands off each other. Well, come to think of it, we never could keep our hands off each other, but that is just the way we are.

And now, I can’t keep my eyes off him. I am such a lucky girl.

The Skinny on Skins, Shapes and Getting your Look

I'm feeling terribly embarrassed right now, as I have been so busy doing this and learning that, I forgot to take pictures. Undaunted, I am proceeding with this blog post, and may or may not add pictures to accompany it at a later time. Lately I've been busy helping my SL love, Boog, get his look together. He has been exploring all forms of avatars since he first came to SL, you can see a history of this by skimming through the pictures here in my blog. Recenly he surprised me by announcing that he was getting a new shape and skin, and he wanted a sexy human skin look with the ears and tail of a neko added. (Wait till you see him, he is damn hot now, but that will wait for another blog post.) This has put me once again, back into the rather complicated world of shapes and skins in SL.

I did not have anyone to help me understand the relationship between shapes and skins, and I learned the hard way. I wasted a lot of money in the process, even up until very recently. I'm writing this post in order to pass along what I've learned and hopefully to help others avoid some of the trouble and financial frustration the learning process caused me.

Getting this part of SL is critical to your success or failure, for as in RL, there is great emphasis placed on what you look like. Now, you can get creative, like Boog did, and explore what it is like to walk around in a furry skin. A lot of people, or I should say BEINGS in SL have chosen this route and are quite happy.

I have seen several hot and sexy cyborg creatures walking around. My neighbor/landlady is a cute little brunette most of the time, but she also flies around as a dragon occasionally, and also has an "old hag" skin that is quite unsettling, all a part of her experience in SL. Just yesterday while shopping for tattoos, Boog and I encountered a lovely mermaid floating around nearby, complete with tail and sparklies. If you want to go the fantasy route in SL, terrific. However, the following information will be geared toward those who are trying to put together an attractive human look.

First, you must understand the difference between SHAPE and SKIN. There are certain stores, namely Alady, that are passing along erroneous information. They say that the shape is the most important decision, and the skin fairly irrelevant. They are doing this because they sell non-modifyable shapes, and it is simply their approach to sell more shapes, it is not accurate. The shape and the skin combine to create a unique combination, and are equally important.

The SHAPE is equivalent to the skeleton and muscle in RL. This is where the basic framework is laid out. The height, the thickness of the body, the muscle mass, also the facial structure.. the shape of the face, the size and shape of the jaw, cheeks, forhead, ears, nose and lips, all these things are determined by the shape you choose.

There are several approaches you can take. Some people like to make their avatar a virtual mirror image of their RL selves. Others want an idealized image of themselves in RL. Others leave their RL selves behind completely and make themselves look the way they fantasize about looking. One question to ask yourself is: How unique do you want to be?

There are some people who buy shapes that have been designed to look like some celebrity. You will notice that in order to achieve the exact representation of the look, you not only have to buy the proper shape, but also the skin that the creator of the vision used for their photos. In order to exactly recreate a look on a photo, you will have to use the exact same shape and skin used for the photo. Just the shape or the skin alone (more specifically, combined with some other shape or skin) will not achieve the look.

There are people who take the basic SL shape, given to them from the beginning of the game, and make it their own. They turn their face and body into their own unique creation, using a careful combination of slider controls available in the "edit appearance" mode. There are certain limitations to this approach as well. I was very happy with this solution for myself until my recent upgrade to a Hyperfusion skin. I still love my body's shape, but the details of the face, particularly around the nose, are not as smooth and natural as I'd like them to be. I am therefore trying to find a solution to this problem.

The balance, in my opinion, can be reached by searching (and believe me, it will take some time and effort, this search) for the best shape you can possibly find for you. If you want the ability to slightly alter that shape, in order to achieve a humanlike degree of uniqueness, here is the tough part, the shape you buy MUST BE MODIFYABLE. And finding that combination is a challenge. The reason you want it to be mod is so that you can tweak it and customize it to make it your own individual unique look. That makes the difference between just good and fantastic.

(Once you see Boog's new look, you will understand what greatness can be achieved by following this approach.)

The shape decision should be made first, for this reason. You cannot DEMO shapes. Once you buy a shape, you own it. There is no try before you buy. And yet, the shape you have on underneath a skin will dramatically affect the appearance of that skin. SO, get your shape first, then try on demo skins until you find the perfect combination.

Now, to the skin. (As an aside, I have wasted SO much money on skins in this game.) It is VERY important that you not invest in a skin until you have done your research. If you are first starting out, then get the best freebie or cheap skin you can find and make do while you save your Lindens and do your research.

You cannot skimp on skins. But keep in mind a high price does not guarantee good quality. There are many lousy, but expensive skins out there masquerading as good ones, so beware making hasty skin decisions. Also, the less money you spend on your skin, the more likely you will be seeing a lot of people who look a lot like you as you wander around in SL. So do your reasearch well, be patient, and be willing to spend a MINIMUM of $1000L for your skin, possibly two to five times that if you plan to make a career out of your looks in SL (as a dancer, model, escort, etc.).

Skins are exactly that, skin: the covering of the underlying skeletal and muscular framework. Here you define the color, the texture and tone, freckles and moles, the definition of the muscles (achieved by carefully applied shading), the color and placement of nipples and bits, including pubic hair. Also defined by the skin, and worth scrutinizing carefully, are the ears, the hands and feet, the finer points of the nose, lips and brows. For men, one of the most important considerations is the facial and body hair. Keep in mind too, that male skins do not come fully equipped. Because of the fact that a penis is basically attached to the body, the skin cannot incorporate the penis. The penis will need to be bought separately. That is outside the focus of this post, but there are many options and choices there as well.

The best approach, while skin shopping, is to collect demos of skins you like. Demos are free or $1L generally. Each will come in a folder with the demo skin and a LM (landmark) to the store. Collect these as you find skins you like, as you shop and decide on your shape, or as you make the choice to create and refine your own shape. Once your shape has been perfected and put into use, when you've looked and researched and learned and collected your stash of demo skins, it is time to make a decision. Find a private place, preferably with a good friend who will give an honest opinion, force the light in the world to NOON to give yourself very good light, and start trying on demos. The advantage to this method is you are not going to get distracted by the price, and you can see different skins from different designers one after another.

Once you have narrowed your decision down to two or three, look for tiny problems. One of the most common issues you will see on skins is the matching of the colors at the "seams". Look carefully and make sure all transitions are smooth. Also make sure it has not been overly shaded. Some men skins in particular have way too much "six pack" shading in the abdomen area, and they wind up looking ridiculous. Check over every point, using a very critical eye. If you find too many flaws, then keep shopping. This is not a time to get in a hurry. Finally once you find the perfect demo, grab the landmark out of the folder and go buy it. Now you can get on with your SLife, knowing that you are the hot and sexy avatar you always wanted to be.

Pictures and more on the adventures of Lorelei (and Boog) in SecondLifeLand coming soon. Until then.