LEA7
was my choice of a New Year’s Eve party on a spur of the moment. I received an
invite at the last few minutes of my time in Second Life, so off I went. I missed getting
over to explore the region sooner as I was off exploring winter sports and
shopping sims for the paper and working at the Relay Christmas Expo. The sim was
packed with people dancing on snowflakes while smaller flakes swirled around our
heads. We were at the base of the Eiffel Tower that stretched high into the air
above us. The builder of the sim, Regi Yifu, put up the tower rather quickly I
am told. “The tower is 244 meters high nestled inside a 300 meter tall snow
globe with beautiful fountains and winter vegetation ty18 told me. I determined
to go back to check it out after the party.
There are several levels to visit along
the way to the very top. Each gives one a chance to examine the build of the
tower itself and get a good look at the reflections of the tower in the interior
wall of the globe. It is easy to get around on the space capsule teleport that
offers a choice of places to visit. Then there is the gallery. Here I put my
graphics all the way up to ultra as suggested. It was a delight. There is
rotating art all over the interior walls of the gallery. There is a poster to
touch and you will receive a folder of items to help you enhance the experience,
a personal projector and information about the Photo Contest that is going on.
All around the lower part of the gallery there are arrows in front of the wall.
Go to the arrow and the submissions of photos of the tower will appear in front
of you. Try the recommended windlight and wear the offerings for the best
experience. It is well worth it.
The tower itself is an amazing build. It is
astounding to me how precise the girders look all together and rise so
beautifully. Turn on the music too to enjoy the especially selected stream. It
all works together. It is all very Eiffelicious as the name indicates. The sim
will be open through February so put it on your list. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/LEA7/130/133/85
When I arrived back at the LEA Welcome Center from "The Bridge," one poster
really intrigued me so I went over to Lea29 to check out the installation there. It is "Watercolors in the Rain," and I am so glad I did. This is a wonderful
demonstration of real-life work rebuilt in such a successful way in Second Life. "In the real
life novel, 'Watercolors in the Rain' (which this sim is based on), a tale of
suspense, intrigue, fantasy and mystery unfolds. As they say, "Art
imitates life" and why would it be any different in Second Life? In the book,
Watercolors in the Rain, Sorsha, is a very special, mysterious, and rare, white
raven from Russia. She and her twin brother, Sasha, are an inseparable team that
may not always get along, but come together to help their friends, Moxxie and
Crud, solve the mysteries put before them,” is the back story of the sim.
When you arrive you will be in an outer courtyard where you can just
walk across a bridge into a part of the story, or you are offered a tp to
various venues all of which you will want to visit. A story tree in each area
will help you understand the theme going on there. One big plus to your visit
will be a hunt going on. You look for a white raven and by clicking on it will
get not only a gift but also a clue to where the the next white raven is found.
I came home with a cartload of stuff even though I am not good at hunts. I
will let you follow the story boards as you go along. I went first up and down
Main Street checking out the quaint shops, bookstores, kiosks along the street
and looking for the raven. I took a carriage ride that offers you tours in that
area, to the farm, the top of the hill where a raven also await you.
There is a balloon ride that will take you to another venue. Each has a story
tree and its own charm.
At the last venue I was lucky enough to run into the real-life
author who goes by the Second Life name of Surreal Skytower. His name is David J. Lavigne
in real-life and he wrote the novel "Watercolors in the Rain." He told me a team put
up the installation : 5aba1 Resident ,55aaa Danick, Mollie Tison,
Gearboxclock and himself. Of his real life book he says, “My novel was
published earlier this year. If you are into vampires, werewolves,
shapeshifters, Victorian London and Jack the Ripper, this may be the read for
you. If not, thanks for checking me out anyway! “ You can find it on Amazon and
it looks like it is not his last! I hope you enjoy your visit as much as I did
mine.
A small event is going on
in this wonderful sim called Havenhollow III that just really involves
trick-or-treating from door to door around the creepy neighborhood. It
doesn't list a specific date it starts or ends but I assume it goes from
the beginning of October till the end of it. The mansion in the above
picture is just one of the locations you can visit after a travel
through the graveyard, and hopefully you take the trusty flashlight
given to you before you enter. The land is group owned by a private
group called, Holiday Appreciation Association and is located in the
region LEA22.
My
time exploring the place was a fun one because of the trick-or-treating
and just the vast exploration of Havenhollow III and the spookiness of
the place. Even though it seemed to end really fast for me with the
exploration part I still had a good time and honestly would go back
again to hang around. Unfortunately it was quite laggy either due to the
people around the sim and or that it's just my computer. As far as I am
aware there doesn't appear to be any triggering content like screamers,
pop-up images / pixels, or anything else. Before you go just be warned
if your easily spooked or frightened by small noises.
Overall
I suggest you all go and check the land out while you can and get into
that trick-or-treating scene. Luckily they supply buckets for a range of
avatars, but I am not exactly sure what some of the labels meant save
for the 'standard' one. If I had to say my favorite part of being
in the event so far I'd have to choose trick-or-treating and visiting
the haunted house, or at least that it's just run-down really.
Editor's note: Taking a quick peek over, there were separate buckets for Tiny avatars.I also noticed throwers for eggs and toilet paper rolls. So apparently Halloween fun can take the form of mischief here.
“Without music life would be a mistake”:....."there are no facts only
interpretation,” admonitions you hear at LEA Air by FreeWee Ling on LEA 27.
This region will be ongoing and changing until May. I found it both an
experience and a real education.
There is an eclectic collection of areas. In one
place I wandered through a gateway into a tunnel passing by a bloody giant
monster raging bull and through a bone yard to find myself at a Greek temple.
Outside there stood a Greek Chorus where I heard the above quotation among
others. Inside there is a collection of ancient art pieces of Greece and some
lovely sculptures. I found the one of my favorite sites there is the
Theatrum Instrumentorium. This is a wonderful collection of information
about many superb instruments that will rezz for you in front of a picture and
give you an information card to explain the history behind it. Some may be
fictional ,some real but you will learn so much with each card. I found it
absolutely fascinating.
I moved from that museum on up a winding slope to find a
massive statue named Liberty chained which I found rather ominous. I passed
up a ramp to the roof of a building where I became part of an shimmering globe
and part of a story. I will leave it at that.
Freewee says of herself in a
statement, “I'm not really (an) artist. More like a kid in God's
Legoland. I'm an idea manipulator. A conceptual cubist. Most of my work is
clearly derivative. I see something interesting and I want to know how it works,
so I deconstruct or reconstruct the idea or combine it with some tangential idea
to make something new. I am often working on some random project with no
particular purpose in mind.”
I have seen Freewee’s work at many events and
places and always appreciate it. I plan on making return visits to see the
additions and changes and it sounds like there will be many. I have been there
three times so far and finding new things to look at and interact I found a
chameleon flyer to ride this morning. This region is right next to the Madtone
by Lorin Tone, also so full of instruments and fun. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/LEA27/38/105/27
I had seen the Linden Endowment for the Art’s Tales From the
Ghost Forest mentioned on the log in screen several times. Usually, that means
it’s a build about which I won’t write, because I figure that promoted sims get
a lot of coverage. I decided to visit anyway, with a friend, and decided to
tell you about it.
First, after a few visits, and some photography, I am not
really sure I understand Uan Ceriaptrix’s build. However, the mood he creates,
and the post-apocalyptic feel made me feel immersed in another dimension. I
believe that’s what art is supposed to do.
The build is composed of four different parts. You are
greeted by a giant spider when you teleport into the sim. Be careful or you may
end up in her web. Instead, follow the colored balls over the long bridge, up a
ladder, and enter Junk City, which is just what it sounds like. According to
Ceriaptrix, this area, which is a barren path studded with garbage and
pollution is the point at which things started to transform through a change
and restructuring of technology. Humans have been transformed into avatars and
holograms, and homo sapiens are extinct.
Leaving Junk City, you enter the Ghost Forest, which the
artist labels as Mother Earth. This region is filled with science, technology,
and devices that have been left to the trees and fishes, to provide them with
energy. In place of the machines, odd vegetation sprouts along the canyon path.
Twisted, odd vegetation, that is tended by alien creatures. Boggy greens submerge
your feet in tiny plants as you walk along and tiny bubbles float up through
the ooze, hinting at the possibility of new life.
When you leave Mother Earth you will find yourself in
Election (or die trying), which is the hope for the regeneration of the world. The
luminous beings have kept collections of biology so that the ecosystem can be
regenerated. UFOs, chairs with teeth in
their seats, aliens, and giant insects hold court, bringing the damaged land
back to life.
At the end of the path the land ends, and the water beckons.
Under the water in the unconscious that contains a carousel, a sand castle, a display
of Uan Ceriaptrix’s, and other items.
I loved the build for it’s look and the builds that were on
it. The terraforming created a land that was at once familiar and alien. Uan is
a skilled creator, and his palette of sandy-colored ground, and green toxic or
leavy touches. The windlight setting creates a smoggy sky that reminds one that
this is a dying land, trying to regenerate.
I have always believed that despite what the artist or the
art is trying to say, once the public views it, what is perceived becomes their
truth. As I said, I don’t think I understood what was intended, but I liked it,
and it made me feel strong emotions of loss.
One of the LEA sims was given a new look and a new name, Rust. A surreal-looking land of abandoned machinery, it was described in the destination guides, "Rust is a world with a strange mix of machines, chained trees, rusty mushrooms, birds, balloons, butterflies, spiders, elephants, and gear flowers. Watch as the corrode, flake, and sway in the gentle breeze." Credit for the build goes to Cica Ghost.
Dropping by for myself, the place was quite an experience. The sim had a look of abandonment and decay, as if the people who made the place were no more or having to move due to some unknown disaster. There were various buildings and structures around. While rusted, there was no shortage of movement as gears still turned around, conveyor belts still moved parts, and other examples of mechanical motion. There were also metal animals there, or rather statues of. There were rusted metallic elephants one could stand and pose on, in addition to metallic birds. There were also rust color trees with metal bands and chains on them, and grass swaying in the wind, also the color of rust.
I was still close to the entrance area when I heard some youthful-sounding chatter nearby. Looking around, I noticed a number of child avatars rezzing. "This place is full of tots," one lady commented. I wasn't sure what was going on until I noticed a couple names: Everest Piek and Loki Eliot. The Goonies had dropped in.
For those who don't know, "The Goonies" was a movie in the 1980s about a group of kids who go on an adventure in search of a pirate treasure to save their parents' homes. While the SL Goonies home in the Escapades sim is just fine, they still have a great love for exploration and adventures on the Grid. Gemma Cleanslate wrote about them a couple years ago (article here), and they're still going at it, led by Loki.
Everest saw me and greeted me, "Hey Bixyl, what's new? … We're just
on a Goonies adventure. …. gotta run, c'ya around." He smiled and left.
The kids then began looking over the place, "Helephants!" "I think we
found Loli's old trumpet." "Really?" "It's inside." "Great to have you
on the adventure, bro, even if you are still asleep, hee-hee."
It wasn't long before they were on their way again, their leader Eliot saying, "Goonies second location, meet you all there, Tamarillo Island." And they all began heading there, "GOONIES NEVER SAY DIE!" And just as quickly as they appeared, the kids were gone. And Rust reverted to it's usual quiet.
If you have the time, even if its just five or ten minutes, Rust is a must-see location, located at LEA 13 (212, 49, 22). Draxtor Despress recently visited and made a film of the location (below).
As for the Goonies, their sim Escapades is welcome to visitors. They do take occasional new members, any child avatar interested should talk to one of the group about initiation. Loki has been recording their adventures on blogs. While his more recent site seems to have crashed, his older one at (http://lokiboy.blogspot.com/ ) is still up. He's also know as a builder in Second Life.
When I spent time talking to Aley in her sea at LEA, she told me she was sharing the sim with her
friend, Mcarp Mavendorf. I had seen Mcarp’s giant avatar image over looking the
sea from above. But on closer inspection she had just stepped on a church like
structure and ruined it. Well, it was one of her own builds so I guess that is
ok.
There are several more buildings on the sim, all seeming to be cathedral or
castle like buildings. Each is lovely . In each you find clocks, all set
to the proper SL time. Each clock is more interesting than the other. If
you open the large map while you are there, you will see the sim is actually a
clock itself! The most magnificent building is filled with interesting clocks.
Someone said to me when we visited, “this is a temple to time.”
I met
Mcarp in the cathedral and she took me for a tour of the clocks and explained
her thinking in creating them. She admitted she is obsessed with clocks.
She is evidently a math wiz and loves to script, some scripting based on
calculus. That was the end of my understanding. I know she would like to have
more but is running out of ideas on new creative ways of making clocks. “my
problem is I don't do clocks where the face is some picture, in those you can do
a million of them ... to come up with some new mechanical concept so each clock
is about a different mechanical look.”
Her favorite center piece is in the
sanctuary area of the church. That is not a clock but a counter based on AND
gates (complicated) . We took a tour of the rest of the building where
you will find a lovely organ that you can play. There is a gorgeous fountain in
the middle which is a fully functioning carillon on top. The windows are
beautiful and enhance the cathedral. We then moved over to the castle where
there are more clocks. In the kitchen Mcarp turned on the dishwasher, one of
Aley’s creations and immediately plates began falling to the floor and smashing.
We went out to the lift and met Aley and we all took a ride over the sim where
we could see all the churches and the mount with faces that they called "Mount Lag." When I sat in the lift, I was left holding on the outside desperately not
to fall. “this is our special 'hang the reporter out to dry' sit target” said
Mcarp. On the way back I was able to sit on the roof.
There is not room enough
to write about all I saw or learned. Be sure not to miss the garden gnome at the
draw bridge . Fascinating! This exhibit will be in LEA for about four more
months. I know you will love and understand everything if you are a scripter.
but if not you will love just to gaze at it all and enjoy. The first time I went
there I climbed a long set of stairs arising out of Aley’s sea. You could go
that was but I will make it easier for you to get there.
All around the lower part of the gallery there are arrows in front of the wall.
Go to the arrow and the submissions of photos of the tower will appear in front
of you. Try the recommended windlight and wear the offerings for the best
experience. It is well worth it. 
