Shoes Up My Butt!

Written 13 June, 2007

Shoes Up My Butt!

I’m REALLY tired of my attachments coming loose when I cross sim borders. And the problem is still here with today's update.

More often than not, I arrived to find my hair and my shoes shoved up my ying-yang, and a lot of the time my jewelry too. My HUDs disappear, too—I don’t even want to THINK about up which body part they’ve been shoved.

When it first started to happen, I spent a lot of time chasing the various items I wear. Then I got the bright idea of putting everything into a single folder which I can drag onto me when I get scrambled. That works reasonably well, sometimes, although at other times things just won’t attach.

You know, local water is no longer disappearing. One would think the Lindens could find a way to fix this much more annoying problem.

Meanwhile, I need someone to help me extricate my shoes.

Tiki Man

Written 13 June, 2007

Tiki Man

Sweetie had the bright idea of putting a tiki man over the tunnel into which Pele's little train dives when it leaves the Gardens and dives into the Forsaken River. She made a mouth, complete with tongue and teeth, making the descent majorly scary as the train disappeared into the incipient Tiki man's mouth.

Then Sweetie got frustrated with making the rest of the head and I had one of my rare bright ideas; I created a cylindrical prim and skewed the top at about 30 degrees. That gave Mr. Tiki Man a rakish, tiki-like 'tude and made it easy to add eyes, ears, and a flat space to sit on top of his head.

Then Sweetie tweaked my work by giving Mr. Tiki Man mascara and a big copper earring with bling, and suddenly he was complete!

Kill the Wabbit!

Written 13 June, 2007

Kill the Wabbit!

The first two times Sweetie and I journeyed to Paris 1900 we didn't make it to the Moulin Rouge.

The third time was the charm.

I dressed appropriately for the period, I think (Photo 1; note the bored look!), even wearing a big hat.

In fact, the hat was so frigging big it was scary. Check this perspective! (Photo 2).

The M.R. was fabulous. Empty, but fabulous (Photo 3).

Sweetie being a performer, nothing would do but she get backstage.

Unfortunately, the way backstage was blocked by a "security device."

I won't embarass the maker by naming them, but they should be ashamed. All it was was a huge prim turned alpha.

Sweetie and I simply sat on the prim (Photo 4; Sweetie's true identity has been concealed), and then stood up and we were in the interdicted area.

Once backstage, it was me who was strangely affected. Overcome with the urge to perform, I whipped out the Athama I bought from Robin Wood and, making facial expressions with my emoter, began to perform Wagner (Photo 5).

Or, rather, Warner Brothers' spoof of Wagner from the old Looney Tunes cartoons.

You know, "Kill the wabbit! Kill the wabbit!"

In my best Elmer Fudd voice.

"Hehehe. Be vewy, vewy quiet! I'm bweaking into the Mouwin Wouge."

Paris Redux

The Eiffel Tower, Paris 1900

Unknown Avatar Parachuting

This is How Most People Do It

 Sweetie Jumping Without a Chute

Written 13 June, 2007

Paris 1900 Redux

Sweetie and I took our friends Boofhead Oh and Stargazer Blazer and our new friend Kat to see Paris 1900.

Not being able to fly was still a pain, but we had a good time anyway.

I made four jumps from the Eiffel Tower. I was able to get to the top quickly by reaching out with my camera to sit on the teleporter in the little kiosk in the park at the tower's base. Woo hoo! Saved a lot of walking in six-inch heels!

I died only once, when I bounced against a girder, closing my Terra Chuge 2.3. I landed in a pool of blood, although the visual wasn't quite right, as my AO kept me (and the pool of blood) upright. Wish I had been quick enough to get a shot of it!

Here are two shots of someone parachuting in the convention manner.

And here are two shots of Sweetie parachuting-- or, rather, jumping without a parachute.

Sweetie was particularly enthralled with her second jump.

"I bounced off every girder on the way down! And I landed on a couple making out in the park!"

I can just see it. Romantic Paris. A girl. A guy. A kiss. A battered body thuds to the ground, knocking the two of you willy-nilly and making psychic scars that will doom the relationship.

And then the dead body stands up, excuses itself brightly, and wanders off to make another parachutless jump onto another unsuspecting couple.

ROFL

With quick camera work, I managed to catch Sweetie as she fell. I've elected not to use the closeups, as they woiuld give away her secret identity, and also because the long-distance snaps better show the scale.

Photos 4 and 5: Sweetie jumping without a chute

We're Not There Yet! More Photos of the Path

The last shot is an observation-deck-under-construction by Sweetie.

The Path to Pele

Written 6 June, 2007

The Path to Pele

There’s now a walking trail which winds from the Pele Gardens along the flanks of Pele to the summit.

The Path to Pele was Sweetie’s idea—most good ideas at Pele, in fact, come from Sweetie. She vouchsafed the notion when she tried to lead a visitor up the mountainside to the caldera and found no easy access.

And I did my best to comply.

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Here’s the notecard given by the sign at the trailhead:

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The Path to Pele

This is the trailhead of the Path to Pele, a sinuous walking journey up the side of the active volcano Pele.

Beginning at the Pele Gardens, the Path crosses the tracks of the Pele Light Rail line (watch out for the train, which can come upon you suddenly!) and follows the rail grade to Pele Station, which offers a place to rest and cool off.

The next section of the Trail takes you higher up the flanks of Pele, then turns abruptly to the right. The grade steepens, but don’t despair! An observation platform, designed by the renowned Exuberance Lafleur, graces the overlook.

Section three leads to the welcome area for Pele, where hikers will find a map, a notecard dispenser which describes the features of Pele’s 19000 square meters, and yet another place to cool off. Don’t forget to tip Cheyenne Palisades, the avatar responsible for Pele’s beauty.

The last section of the Path is the steepest, leading through a lava tube directly to an ancient temple at the caldera. The temple’s platform offers an astounding view of the caldera, which is filled with molten lava (1200 degrees, C, about 2100 F). Touch the picture of Pele for information about the Goddess of the Volcano. Then sacrifice yourself by jumping into the molten rock. Don’t worry—Pele is more interested in hearing your praises than in drinking your blood. Disregard that bloody altar.

While you’re in the lava, see if you can find the secret entrance and fall under the volcano!

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The Path to Pele was constructed in the summer of 2007 by volunteers from the Pele Conservation Corps, using native materials and granite brought to the island by now-extinct indigenous peoples in outrigger canoes. No avatars were harmed in the construction of this path.

High Altitudes

Written 11 June, 2007

High Altitudes

Here's a snapshot of a snow sim taken from a cable car. The peaks were nearly 250 meters.

Sweetie thinks there's now a limit on height of terrain in Second Life. I don't know. I only know these were way high mountains!

On the Apple Tree

Written 11 June, 2007

On the Apple Tree

Lilith Heart, eat your heart out!

I bought a great apple tree at Pillow Talk for only 500 lindens.

It's way cool! The tree is ripe with red fruit, the branches move in the wind, and there are two sit poses and a great climbing and swing from the branch pose. There's also a conveniently-located branch for a swing-- and the swing itself is controllable; you can change the amplitude of the swing!

The tree is now standing on Pele, at a little flat spot overlooking the Forsaken River (Sweetie's suggestion to put it there).

I don't seem to have a photo of me reclining along a branch, but here are some of me on the climbing pose and a shot of me on the swing.

The Blue Bird of Happiness

Written 6 June, 2007

The Blue Bird of Happiness

Last week my friend Peter Stindberg invited me to a place which, he said, had marvelous poses.

And they did.

It was called Pillow Talk.

I bought some cushions which I’ve not yet managed to get working right and two low-prim but quite detailed trees—one with white blossoms, which features a great sit pose, and an apple tree with climbing and sitting anims. I also got a swing which attaches to one of the branches.

The swing is marvelously interactive. You can make yourself swing higher or lower by fiddling with the arrow keys.

I’ve not yet tried to see if I can make it flip me right over the branch. I’m sure Sweetie will be attempting that feat soon, if she hasn’t already.

I also bought a bluebird, which, weighting in at seven prims, is realistic and exceedingly cleverly scripted.

The bluebird has a rest position, which just be on a phantom prim (that’s because it’s smart enough to recognize and avoid non-phantom objects). It leaves the rest position, flies to a remote spot which has also been set, flies around at random for 15 seconds or so, and then goes back to its resting position.

And this happy little bluebird is copyable!

All one has to do is rez it, drag it to its rest position, touch it so it starts listening to chat commands, and then say “restpos.” Then you drag it to its patrol area and say setpos, then start. Finally, when it alights, you touch it again and it stops listening to voice commands. You can always touch it again to reset its parameters.

I love watching the little bird dodging obstacles and cruising to its rest position.

I hope makers will consider making other types of birds or (even better) include a color change command. Pele needs some bright yellow and green birds. I can’t quite bring myself to set out my 43 prim parrot.

Before, I had two little 14-prim birds making little circles in the air. I took them into inventory and replaced them with bluebirds. Now there are at least five bluebirds in Pele, making forays in search of food, with about the same prim consumption as before.