Come and travel with me (and you don't need a mask)

"Let me take you on a trip around the world and back and you won't have to move..." 

In today's situation travel has become a bit more difficult to do. I know I was supposed to spend the holidays in Germany this year and that, of course, will not happen. My nephew just said well you can teach from here your online classes. Sounds too good to be true and realistically thinking it is.

This does not mean I have to be stuck here, there are hundreds of things to explore in Second Life. There really is and you can almost smell the ocean air and the pine in the forest.

One thing that kept me here in Second Life was the opportunity to teleport instantly from one place to another and here is the great thing you actually meet the people from the different countries as well. I met fellow Germans and we would talk and laugh in our native language. I met people from other countries who shared how to say hello and also some of the first words you learn in any language how to say the profanities. I know, maybe that is not what I come here for, I do come here for the culture.

You can also build your own destination. The sky is the limit, although I am not sure how high you can build in the skies of a sim. Anyone knows that answer, let me know.

"Let me show you the world in my eyes
I'll take you to the highest mountain
to the depths of the deepest sea."

You can start your journey here at the Retreat in Second Life. 

Books Are not Dead

Reading books has many benefits even in these tech times, we still can get joy out of reading a book.

Don't know what to read? Stop by every Wednesday (noon SLT) at the Second Life Book Club. Here you will meet the author and his/her insight on books and listen to some fun reading all hosted by Draxtor Depres.

Health is just one of the benefits of reading; it has benefits for other aspects of your life as well. These advantages help to make readers well-rounded individuals. Those who write, know the importance of reading books. Whether you write things for work or just for fun, heavy reading can improve your writing skills and abilities. There are several ways in which it can help strengthen your writing styles and skills, and each of these ways happens without you even realizing it.

When I started college I suddenly realized that I had a difficult time reading the textbooks. Words would swim together and looked upside down and quickly out of wood I would read doom.
I was not aware of dyslexia in those days but during my university studies, it became ever so clear to me. 

I appreciate reading books now because the more I read the better I get. For someone with dyslexia, there is no better way to fight this unless you read and read lots. Did you know that reading books can also help with your sleep? No, this doesn’t mean that it helps you fall asleep, but it does contribute to improving your overall sleep quality, pattern, and restfulness. Reading, since it enables you to relax and de-stress, can help pull you into a deep and peaceful sleep. That sounds like it might be too good to be true, but reading can, in fact, help you fall asleep.

There you go...so give it a try and stop by at noon on Wednesday and find out which author will join.

Expand your knowledge and vocabulary and read. I am an ESL person, which means English as a second language and by reading I truly understood words and their meanings much better. I was able to graduate and become a teacher and books had much to do with this.

I Invite you to join me :)

I would like to invite friends and others to come and share their views about Covid 19 and how Second Life has impacted them and perhaps helped them to cope with it.

This will be part of a research project based in the Department of Anthropology at the University of California, Irvine 

Researchers: Tom Boellstorff, Evan Conaway, Chandra Middleton, and Sandy Wenger Filmmaker: Bernhard Drax aka Draxtor filmed here in Second Life.

Here are a few rules:
Be respectful and let people talk as they let you talk :)

Be on-time November 5th at 10 AM SLT

Come and find us at the Retreat

Get on your horse or other transportation and teleport down...

Lollygagging

When it comes to the craft of magick you never want to lollygag around.

Did you know:
You certainly didn't want to be known as a lollygagger at the beginning of the 20th century. Back then, lollygag was slang for "fooling around" (sexually, that is). That sense of lollygag was in use as long ago as 1868, and it probably originated as an alteration of the older (and more dawdlingly innocent) lallygag. Nowadays, lollygag doesn't usually carry such naughty connotations, but back in 1946, one Navy captain considered lollygagging enough of a problem to issue this stern warning: "Lovemaking and lollygagging are hereby strictly forbidden... The holding of hands, osculation, and constant embracing of WAVES [Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service], corpsmen or civilians and sailors, or any combination of male and female personnel is a violation of naval discipline...."

I guess it means the same when I dillydally the time away because I rather not think about work.
Bathroom breaks and other excuses for dillydallying give your heart rate a chance to return to normal. So take advantage of them. In these teetering times, we need to take these moments and break away from the actuality of madness and come to some chimera of what is real in every sense but what is also as wide as your imagination can take you. I am talking about Second Life. Not a game, nothing like that, although you could play games here if you like. Your vision of whatever it is can be realized here. 

So come on over here and put on your best gown and sit for some Sunday afternoon coffee and pastries. Envision yourself in a safe zone of peace and tranquility. Do all your lollygagging and dillydallying here. Create your own enticing place that persuades you to drown your mental health with joy and contentment just like that bathroom break that turns your heart rate back to normal. You will be transformed and feel so much better. Come see me at the Retreat here in Second Life. I will leave a light on for you. :)

Just take life day by day

Famous queens as Hatshepsut, Tiye, Nefertiti, and Nefertari were powerful women who were not simply wives but who ran the pharaoh’s palace and exercised significant political power. Although pharaohs could marry many wives, only one was allowed to bear the title ‘Great Queen’.

I am sure none of these women had to do many chores that I have neglected in these last few months of the C19. Weird that with being at home I have more time for a little housework than mousework, but it is not happening. 

We’re tired of being cooped up, tired of being careful, tired of being scared. Our collective fatigue is making some people careless – one reason COVID-19 is rising sharply again throughout the planet.

How can we cope? It goes back to the simple things like going outside and getting some air, feeling the sun and the wind. 

Talking to people who go through similar feelings can also help. Second Life is a great place to start because here you will find people from all over the world and you can get an understanding of what they go through. We are all in this together on so many levels.

One of the complications of the pandemic is that fatigue has made some people careless about masks and social distancing, which is one of the reasons COVID-19 cases have risen. With others, it’s not just carelessness, it’s angry resistance. 

“Social media plays a role in this. Don’t get caught up trading posts with people you disagree with. It will just make you more angry or scared.”

Stay calm and be grateful for what you do have. The more you do this, the easier it gets. Try being in the moment. You’re right here, in this chair, breathing and looking around. We put ourselves through a lot of unnecessary misery projecting into the future or ruminating about the past. For now, just take life day by day.

~ pictures taken at Blue Orange 4th Birthday Bash Egyptian Style.

Every Moment we have...

 ...is a chance for something new.

So I had the opportunity to go to the Blue Orange 4th Birthday Bash Egyptian Style. Blue Orange 4th B-Day Bash - Party Like the Pharaohs in the 4th Century...A Special Built by Patrick Page and Tralala Loordes. * Blue Orange is a skyborne “underground” club surrounded by art spaces lined with art by Ini and Gitu Aura.

Elliott and right behind him to the left Queen Tralala and to the right Patrick Page.

The sim will be open for a limited time to enjoy and may you want some pictures here. It is well worth a visit. 

The music was a mix of Egyptian style and other instrumental sounds that were very fitting to the theme around the place. All presented to us by Gitu Aura. 

Ini herself was there as the black cat. Imagine living in a time and place where every home 

was teeming with tiny, dangerous beasts. Some new threat lurked at every corner: asps hiding in clay jars, rats spoiling massive amounts of stored grain, venomous scorpions creeping under cradles. In this time and place– Ancient Egypt– one creature existed that could make the world safe from these little monsters: the cat.

The same graceful creatures that now sleep on our pillows were life-saving companions to the people of ancient Egypt. It’s no wonder that generations of Egyptians were drawn to worship them.

Bastet (Ini) was a goddess who could become a cat.

We tend to joke about how cats feel entitled to worship. Anyone who’s ever known a spoiled tomcat knows that cats have never forgotten the days when they were worshiped. The worship of cats in ancient Egypt was well-founded. Cats once saved lives by defending families from vermin. Without them, civilization as we know it might have never survived!

You learn new things every day and that is good, because without learning what do we have? Nothing! The sim is really nicely decorated and you feel like you are there at the times when ancient Egyptians held a celebration.  Art from ancient Egypt shows statues and paintings of every type of feline. Cats were so special that those who killed them, even by accident, were sentenced to death.

I will share some more pictures in my next blog entry.

Be kind to the cruel, well maybe.

 

They say to be kind even to those who are cruel.

 This is one of the best things you could do. No matter how badly people treat you, always treat them in the way you would like to be treated. Help them when they are in need and be as nice as you can. Just because they are mean doesn’t mean that you have to be. That may be true but sometimes the mean people trigger your PTSD really bad and you want to strike back. I try extra hard to always remember that everyone here on this planet is going through the same journey of life. You really have no idea what they have gone through in the past and judging them to be mean just because of a few things they did could be a little immature. Always give them another chance to shine.

Right now with the current situation people seems to be more stressed than usual. When you are stressed you may not be able to control your emotions, especially anger. On the other hand, I do not want to be a mat that people can just wipe their feet on and insult me or be rude on purpose. Even if they are not realizing what they are doing, sometimes you have to point it out. 

Don’t fall for the temptation to sink to their level. They love a good fight and not because they are any good at arguing but they know how to push your buttons. By pushing your buttons you are tempted to verbally protect yourself. They need for you to fight back because then you are the one who lost control. You are the bad guy. When he throws the first verbal judo chop it is on you, right? How do you get around that? Be cool. Don’t react to the emotions in the room.

You can always show people the better side of you and walk away. I know easier said than done, but the more you do it, the better you get at it. Pretty soon they can say all sorts of dumb verbiage and all they get from you is nothing.

Give your emotional intelligence a quick look over and figure out how to use that to control yourself. 

Everybody wants to rule the world

Well, it may be true that there are many many people as well as avatars who want to rule everything and be the center of all attractions. You know those people. They are like roaches everywhere. But are they all bad or is there a deeper meaning to them?  

If we are completely honest with ourselves we all maybe had that notion of being a little bit of an attention seeker. I know most of you do not want to admit to it, but trust me it is true.

Let me tell you this, nothing lasts forever. Like in the song by Tears for Fears: 

I can't stand this indecision,
married with a lack of vision.
Everybody wants to rule the world,
Say that you'll never never never never need it.
One headline why believe it?
Everybody wants to rule the world

All for freedom and for pleasure,
nothing ever lasts forever
Everybody wants to rule the world.

I used to call that song the "Windy Point" song because it was filmed on location between Cabazon and Palm Springs, California, and Windy Point was the place to go to show off how important you were when it came to off-road pleasure. Nobody cared about what they did to the natural sand dunes, because that was not important. You being there was an important thing and you showing to the world that you are part of this so-called "in-crowd". Lucky for us Windy point is now closed to the public and can return to its natural beauty.

 

Everyone needs attention like we need to eat. This is not controversial, nor is it hard to understand. But the idea must be slippery because it will not stick. If we could keep in mind that people need attention, it would change the way we see almost everything they do, from art to crime, from romance to terrorism. There is a fine line in all of this. Some people may look at this as egoistic. I believe all of it comes from a lack of that love and attention we needed as children and today's generation does not have this anymore. It is all social media and the status you have with your friends. Whether it is real life or second life, it transfers to both. There is a balance and truly you would not want to rule the world and be responsible for failures that may affect all of us.

The opportunity for positive attention is enormous, but accuracy is the price. When you present a curated version of yourself to the world, any approval that you get is not for your full and whole self.

Being true to yourself takes courage. It requires you to be introspective, sincere, open-minded, and fair. It does not mean you are inconsiderate or disrespectful of others. It means you will not let others define you or make decisions you should make for yourself.

The Basement Club

The Basement Club has a variety of Indie Music. There is something for everybody. Our DJs have an ear for music and make sure their sets are selected just for you.

Since it’s genesis in the mid-’80s, the term indie rock has been used to describe a diverse assortment of bands and musical styles. Technically a sub-genre, or co-genre, of alternative rock, the label has spawned an array of sub-genres of its own. Everything from grunge to post-punk revival can be categorized under the indie rock umbrella.

Today indie rock has a variety of artists with some outstanding music. If you enjoy music like this, come on over and join us here at the Basement Club.

The Basement Club has been here at the Retreat for 4 1/2 years now and we strive for quality and an atmosphere that will please you. 

Our patrons enjoy the scene here and the people, who are always friendly and knowledgable about music. 

Even when there are no DJs here, you can listen to the radio and relax or dance. It is a perfect place to meet with your friends and hang out. 

While you are here you can also see the gallery upstairs.

Take Control

Juggling too many balls?

We have the power to control our thoughts, and as a result, control who we are.
When you’re feeling overwhelmed, your life isn’t falling apart—your thoughts are.
Take a minute to find and clean out all your self-deprecating, negative thoughts. As you do this, you will find yourself feeling refreshed and invigorated with renewed energy to take on the world. Don’t believe it? 

Try it!

Maybe you’re feeling overwhelmed with a project at work and don’t think you have the energy or time to finish it. You start letting yourself play out every negative scenario resulting from a failed project.
Stop right there!
Sitting on the couch, dwelling on these thoughts isn’t going to make anything better. In fact, it usually makes things worse.

Procrastination Queen

I know this very well because I will sit there and think about everything I have on my list to do and what I want to get done and at the end of the day I did nothing. Afterwards, I feel guilty and bad about myself.

The most important thing is to always remember there is a new day coming. 

In a world of people obsessed with putting their best self forward, it’s easy to feel like everyone has more than you.

STOP!
Get that thought out of your head and remember what you do have. Often the things you have right now are things you were worried about having in the past.

Don’t let an insatiable desire for more blind you from seeing and appreciating everything you have right now. You have more than you know. Be grateful. It may sound silly but I am grateful just to be able to log on and see my avatar. She is always there. 

However you deal with it, don't stress and beat yourself up over something you may not have control over.  I know easier said than done. Never feel like a victim but instead feel like you can get it all done, step by step, and day by day. You got this!!!

Misfortune

We have all made decisions that we wish we didn’t. But the great thing about the past is that it doesn’t have to define us. The only way to truly rise above your misfortune is to look at your past, learn from it, fix what you can, and let it go.

Everyone can rise above misfortune. We see it every day. But you must first make the choice to do so. Without that choice, you will stay exactly where you are. You are the author of your own story.

Think about it in Second Life terms, you are NOT the same avatar when you first started. You changed the look. You can do the same in Real Life. Little by little, step by step.

We all have to deal with misfortune. It is a part of life. Some, we bring on ourselves. Other times, things just happen. Everyone has something. But it is how we deal with our “something” that determines our success. You and you alone will get to decide how you will handle any misfortune that life throws you. Rise up!

Tell the past to lick your....well you know. Take control of YOURSELF, because you have to believe. 

It is NOT what happens to you that determines your outcome – it is how you handle what happens to you. 

Autumn brings change

Thinking about autumn can bring about some pleasant thoughts. And while it is common to think about cozy scarves and delicious pies, the symbolic meanings of autumn are more profound than you think. Ancient cultures, science, and astrology have associated many aspects of this beautiful season to human life. These symbolic associations are powerful reminders that Mother Nature has an incredible influence on our lives.

One of the things we always seek is comfort and that includes comfort food. In Germany, one of those foods is "Bratwurst" or "Currywurst" which you can buy everywhere on stands called " Schnellimbiss". it is estimated that of 800 Million Currywursts eaten in Germany each YEAR. That is a lot of sausages.

Thanks to the changing nature of life, each and every day presents us with new mysteries. The crisp fall air and changing leaves personify these unknowns. I love the colors of autumn. The orange, red, yellow, and green and some brown are warm and comfortable to the eyes. The Greek philosopher Heraclitus once said, "The only constant is change." Autumn reminds us that our bodies, minds, and surroundings are always developing.

Change will happen whether you like it or not. It just does so embrace it. This year, in particular, has brought lots of change but we have come far. Autumn is a time for letting go and releasing things that have been a burden. 

John Keats, ‘To Autumn’.

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;
To bend with apples the moss’d cottage-trees,
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,
For summer has o’er-brimm’d their clammy cells …

Protect our sanity

 A tragedy is “an event causing great suffering, destruction, and distress, such as a serious accident, crime, or natural catastrophe.” We have all have dealt with immense stress at times. Some of us may be currently dealing with it. Suffering in silence while some in our networks stay quiet about our collective destruction. There are many things you can do to protect your sanity. 

Start small, maybe a few minutes every day go outside. Breathe, meditate, get really back to basic nothingness. Eat better. You know exactly what that means. Junk produces a junky mind and body. The weaker those two are, the more vulnerable you become to let your mind tell you that you are not worth it.

There is a lot to deal with in 2020 and it has never been normal. You may ask what is normal anyway, well it is for sure not this crazy way of living hiding at home and worrying about what will happen next. The mind can be a beast to tear you down, do not let that happen. You must fight for the serenity.

This is not new stuff that I am describing, we know deep down what we must do. The many sleepless nights I lay in bed and wonder what happened to my life? Where did it all go? I never really have an answer for it. All I know in these times I treasure family whether there are thousands of miles away or near. They matter. They are part of me. I also treasure those friends in my Real Life and Second Life. When I say Second Life, they are really Real Life because Second Life is just an extension of what happens in real life. These friends are also struggling with real-life issues just like me. We are the same in many ways, maybe different stories, but we all are trying to protect our sanity.

It has been a struggle to concentrate on the things I love, like art and writing this blog. I try to find new things that I can do to keep me busy. It is never easy and the fight seems to get harder on some days and then there are days when it all does not matter. I am scared of those days. We should always have something that matters to us.  

“Stress is not associated with the frequency of people’s technology use, or even how many friends users have on social media platforms. But there is one way that people’s use of digital technology can be linked to stress: Those users who feel more stress are those whose use of digital tech is tied to higher levels of awareness of stressful events in others’ lives. "

Turn it all off sometimes. Invest in you, your well-being. Thank you friends for letting me vent when you did not feel like listening, for letting me be mad when it was not your fault, for showing up when I did not deserve it. 💗