The Best Laid Plans

I'm a planner, even though I'm a bit disorganized. This trait has carried over to my Second Life and, while it has its good points, it also has some bad ones. Usually everything turns out okay, but not always exactly as I've planned. And, like real life, Second Life, has its own unique challenges which can get in the way of best laid plans.

Take for instance two recent SL experiences of mine. The first was when I was working on an article for the Simseeing section of the fall issue of RezLibris Magazine. My collaborator and I had discussed covering a certain story but, as certain real life circumstances prevented us from working on it sooner, when we were close to deadline, we learned that the person we needed to interview would be unavailable. As time was very short for the deadline, we had to find another place to cover and completely revised our theme. I then could not get in touch with the owner of the sim for an interview, so my collaborator came up with the idea of my writing a poem to illustrate the machinima he would be shooting. The result was "Alirium: a Sim for All Seasons."

The second example of when my plans didn't turn out the way I had envisioned but still worked out well was when I recently threw a party that included a treasure hunt. The hunt was pirate-themed and included several keys and a treasure chest. I followed the directions on the notecard, hid all the keys, and added the prize to the treasure chest. The object was for each player to search for a key and then find the treasure chest. The person who did both first would open the chest and find the prize. Each time a key was found and a person took it, a copy would go into that person's inventory. That was how it was supposed to work, but it didn't. My treasure hunters found the keys, but the keys were not copied into their inventories. To make it even more difficult, the group chat that I had hoped to use during the game to keep in touch with the players who were all part of a group I'd created, wasn't working. Despite these problems, and my dashed expectations, all worked out well when someone found the treasure chest, told me where she'd found a key, and I simply transferred the prize to her. It wasn't exactly what I had planned, but it worked, and everyone enjoyed the hunt and party even though it wasn't perfect which just goes to show that you should never plan anything in too much detail in real life and especially Second Life.

I know I will still continue to plan, but I will also now be aware that those plans are just tentative, subject to last minute changes and improvisations. Isn't that what life is all about, after all?

No Resolutions This Year

Every year on New Year's Eve I make a list of resolutions that I end up breaking within the first few days of the New Year, so I decided not to bother this year. Yes, there are things I'd like to accomplish and it's true it always helps to have goals. Yet resolutions should be ongoing and not just once a year plans.


2009 was not a very good year for me. I was sick quite often and developed asthma for which I was hospitalized this past summer for a week. Although I published my first novel, "Cloudy Rainbow" in 2008, sales were not wonderful, and I have not been motivated to either promote it or complete a follow-up book. Due to my health issues and needing more time for myself, I also made the decision to resign from my position as publisher of the online magazine, RezLibris, which was aimed at librarians in the virtual world of Second Life. I don't regret that decision, but there's always a little sadness when you give up something that's been important in your life especially when it is hard to find someone to take over your position.

So other than trying to find ways to relax more, take better care of myself, and stay healthier in 2010, I'd also like to enjoy my five year old daughter more (she's hinted at a trip to Disney World for her 6th birthday next fall which I think will do us all good), find more time for friends, and maybe I'll be inspired at some point to start writing again or, if not, that can always be my resolution for another year. For this year, being healthy and happy is my priority, and I wish that for all of you, as well.

Starting Off on the Right Foot after a Rough Beginning

New beginnings are always refreshing. My daughter starts Kindergarten this Tuesday (probably already has by the time anyone reads this). Of course, I have high hopes for her despite the fact that this past week has been quite trying for our family. An unexpected illness landed me in the hospital and turned many of my plans upside down. And I am definitely a planner. I organize, make lists, try to anticipate all upcoming appointments, jobs, events, etc. I put a lot of stress on myself, and that's probably a big part of my problem and why I may have come down with a severe case of asthma that has never been a part of my history or background.

I've never smoked or suffered from allergies before and, other than what I thought was a regular cold I caught a few weeks ago and other annoying but minor ailments I've suffered from lately, most of them more chronic than serious, I've been pretty healthy most of my life. Besides one small surgery and the birth of my daughter, this was only the third time I'd been overnight in a hospital and actually the longest hospital stay of my life. I've seen more doctors and had more tests done than I've had in years. I'm not one who likes to go to doctors regularly, but there was no choice in this matter. I was having severe breathing attacks, coughing spasms, and felt generally miserable. I couldn't eat or sleep and could hardly talk. It was a very frightening experience. Compounding it, of course, was my concern for my young daughter. I knew she was worried about me and was also nervous about starting school. It was a hard time for her, and I wanted to be there for her.

I had also been told to remove the new cat we had recently taken in from our house, even though several doctors agreed he wasn't the cause of the problem because, before the loss of my beloved Floppy two years earlier, I'd had cats all my life but that, because of my sensitivity, it would not be a good idea to have the new cat around for awhile. It broke my heart to have to do this and I knew it hurt my daughter although she understood it was to help mommy feel better, but we were lucky that a relative was able to temporarily board the cat while I was recovering.

Other concerns, although less paramount emotionally but still of significant importance, were my having to be away from both my jobs, my real life one as a librarian and the one I have been doing in Second Life for almost a year now publishing an online magazine about a virtual world. While worries about my real life job mounted because my sick leave was used up, my boss was very understanding that my health had to come first before I could consider coming back to work. Likewise, my staff on RezLibris took over handling the monthly production work so that I could take my time recovering. They knew that even though the magazine was not a regular paying job to me, it is still very important to me.

So it's been rough. I'm home now and starting to recover gradually. I'll be off from work a little longer and also taking a break from my virtual world endeavors, too. I'm concentrating on my health and learning to relax more which can only aid my recovery. I'll spend some quality time with my daughter and see her get started at school. It's been a hard start for both of us, but we'll get through it. That's about it as far as my plans because I've learned that planning really doesn't work when anything can happen to interrupt those plans. It's one step at a time now; day to day. That's the way you start. That's the way you go on.

Traveling on Your Computer Saves Money and is Still Fun

We're all concerned with saving money these days, so many people are travelling more locally for summer vacations. But have you considered that there are places you can go without even leaving your house and still have a great time when you visit some of the attractions of a virtual world?

If you've been reading my blog, you know that, in addition to being an author of the virtual romance, Cloudy Rainbow, I am also a publisher of a magazine aimed at librarians in the virtual world of Second Life. For this magazine, RezLibris, I have recently started a travel column that will feature monthly themes of places to go in Second Life. For instance, in our June issue that just came out, we feature an article on a museum devoted to King Tut, the Virtual King Tut exhibit at Kings Rezzable. In July, we will take a tropical vacation to the Costa Rica sims to scuba dive, horseback ride, and enjoy the many amenities of these islands. For August, we are planning more vacation fun with a trip to a Second Life amusement park or game sim. And in September it will be back to school to visit one of the many schools that offer virtual instruction or perhap one of the many real colleges that have a presence in the virtual world.

For those of you who have never experienced sightseeing in a virtual world, there are many benefits besides the financial. Have you often worried about what to wear to a party or other social event? In a virtual world, you can attend in your pajamas literally and your avatar, the 3D respresentation of yourself that you create in such a world, can wear gowns or tuxedos that cost $2 or less to buy. But you will also find that you are invited to as many pajama parties as formal events in these worlds, too!

Another benefit to virtual travel is that no passports are required; instead a password enables you to travel around the world and meet people from many countries, too. In addition to visiting many international sights that are recreated as places or sims in virtual worlds like Second Life, you may also visit locations not possible in real life -- science fiction worlds, immersive environments, role-playing lands to name a few.

But how to you find the best places to visit in a virtual world? In Second Life, many players or residents as they are known, have created blogs devoted to their travels (some of my favorites are Second Seeker, Mermaid Diaries, and SL Things to Do) as well as inworld groups catering to others who enjoy the same type of interests be it Art, Music, Science, Sports, or other entertainments. Even virtual travel agencies have sprung up along with virtual hotels, resorts, and clubs.

So for fun at your fingertips literally, pack light, save money on gas, and take a virtual vacation!

When it Rains, it Pours, literally and virtually

Have you ever had a really bad week full of really bad news? I know we all get those once in awhile, and this past week was my turn. It started when my mom informed me her cat 16-year old cat passed away. I felt bad for her because I knew what she was going through and although the cat hadn't been mine, I'd known him since he was a kitten. It also brought back the loss of my Floppy who will be gone two years this fall and whom was the both the inspiration for my book, "Cloudy Rainbow," and the pet memorial center I operate in Second Life.

The week continued with bad news. I learned a long-term patron at the library where I worked who was also a good friend had succumbed to the Cancer she was trying to fight. I had seen the woman less than a month ago. We had shared a smile and a hug. You just never know.

A few other less noteworthy things occurred both at work and at home that added to my rotten week, and then the week was topped off with a message from an online friend that both surprised and saddened me. I was surprised both by the message and my feelings about it. For the purposes of this blog piece, the circumstances don't matter. It just meant that my online correspondence with this person would change and possibly cease. Have others experienced this, I wondered? Have you ever really come to depend on the support and friendship of someone you've never met but someone you email or chat with on a regular basis over the Internet? I imagine this occurs occasionally if not commonly as our society has become so reliant on computers and more people are still lonely even if they have real life friends and family.

In my book, "Cloudy Rainbow," my main character also becomes involved with someone she meets online in a virtual world who she later learns is someone who is actually part of her real life. In a turnabout, the feelings she develops with this person online transfer to her real life relaltionship with him. When I wrote this, I wasn't basing this on any of my own experiences, even though many other events in the book are fictionalized fact. But now that this has happened to me, in a different yet similar way, I can relate. Another acquaintance I have in Second Life recently wrote a column for RezLibris, the library magazine I co-publish, saying that people often reveal more of themselves online and can become as close if not closer than in real life because they are more transparent, having only their words to share with one another. I had never thought about this, but I now see it is very true.

So while I mourn for my mom's cat and a library patron friend, I also mourn the friendship of someone I'd never met in person but whose friendship meant a great deal to me.

When it rains, it pours, literally and virtually. I hope next week is better.