Step Up! Day - November 5, 2009

In the wake of the wholesale theft of sims and content over the weekend, like many people we wanted to do something about it – and also about all the other content theft that we have been fighting for so long – in the Content Creators Association and in magazines and on TV shows.

Since then we’ve talked – and have come up with the idea of the Step Up! campaign, a campaign centred on a special day of action that everyone can become involved with, and that can empower and inform people.

Thursday, November 5, 2009 is Step Up! Day...a day to help focus attention on the issue of content theft. A wide range of parties and events are scheduled. Check the party news page for more details on who is performing where.

You can also obtain a free Step Up! Party Material on xStreet.

Designing Worlds Visits New Babbage

Saffia & Elrik visit the steam lands of New Babbage and meet some of the residents. Starring Saffia Widdershins, Elrik Merlin, Aeolus Cleanslate, Ceejay Writer and PJ Trenton.

Designing Worlds is the hit weekly virtual worlds design show from Treet TV, the leading TV network in today's virtual environments, and is brought to you by Prim Perfect productions, the people behind Prim Perfect magazine and the Prim Perfect blog. From its roots as a makeover show, the programme has developed into a magazine format adding interviews and visits to some of the most impressive locations in Second Life - and now we are moving into other grids as wel as SL. The show goes out every Tuesday at 2pm SLT/PDT.

Designing Worlds is presented by Saffia Widdershins, the Editor of Prim Perfect Magazine, and Elrik Merlin of Radio Riel.

Treet TV, and Treet Archives are brought to you by the people that created SLCN, the world's first virtual television network.

Started by Wiz Nordberg in 1997, SLCN became a virtual entertainment conduit of Second Life programming. It was a professional video network designed to expand the in-world audience as well as deliver virtual entertainment to the real-world.

All the video clips found on this website are archives of live events as they happened in a virtual world, mostly Second Life. Typically, the live video is seen on screens at various locations in a virtual environment as well as streamed to the web.

I was fortunate enough to be asked to play the role of Mr. Biggins in this special production of Designing Worlds.

Mainly Men Fashion Show at Shengri La

PJ jumps to the other side of the camera today and joins 11 other gentlemen at Shengri Law for the Mainly Men Corporate Fashion show.

Mainly Men showcases the corporate clothing of Debutante, the Fashion Research Institute’s lab line, which anchors the Shengri La Marketplace. Mainly Men will be held Saturday, October 24th, at 4 pm/SLT/7 pm Eastern in the Shengri La Hope (slurl) region. The region is locked for an hour beforehand, starting at 3, and opens promptly at 4 pm.

Naturally, what is a fashion installation without swag? Tiny pinecones full of great dude swag are tucked here and there in the set – find them to collect the full set of men’s accessories ranging from aviator-style sunglasses and hats to briefcases and shoulder bags. And of course, all of our fashion installations are interactive – chat with the models, and in some cases, you can even join in with them fishing or telling tall tales around a crackling campfire. There’s even a 7Seas server with extra special prizes, so join the fun with us.

Darke Carnival in Arkham! (October 22-24)

The Miskatonic Valley presents a darke carnival from October 22 to 24, 2009 in Arkham. Join them for their big Halloween event! Events on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday including the infamous Doktor Benelli's House of the Supernatural. This is an event not to be missed, so please come by!

The carnival is at http://slurl.com/secondlife/Arkham/129/245/23.

Learn more about Arkham and the Miskatonic Valley by visiting their blog at http://miskatonicvalley.blogspot.com/. They are the featured sim of the month in the current issue of Prim Perfect magazine.

Prim Perfect 21 Now Published

The latest, spooky issue of Prim Perfect magazine is now out; just in time for Halloween. Visit dark and scary places including Arkham, the sim of the month as well as the wonderful and creepy creations of Miss Cutea Benelli.

The cover features Mr. Mako Kungfu and Miss Rach Borkotron who posed for me in the sim of the month. My thanks to them for agreeing to join me for this fun and spooky cover!

Visit the Prim Perfect blog for more details and for access to the online version of the October issue of Prim Perfect. Access the issue here http://primperfectblog.wordpress.com/2009/10/20/get-ready-for-a-spooky-halloween-with-the-new-prim-perfect/.

Quest for the Golden Prim Podcast

The second Quest for the Golden Prim Podcast featuring Gabrielle Riel chatting with PJ Trenton, Aisling Sinclair and BlackHawk Sikorsky is now availble online.

You can listen to The Quest for the Golden Prim Podcast via any of the following methods:

• Direct link to the show on Archive.org, where you can listen to it as a stream or download the audio file directly
• Subscribe on iTunes
  
• Subscribe using our RSS feed
  

Thanks to Gabrielle Riel and Radio Riel for these fabulous additions to the Quest for the Golden Prim!

Steampunk Exhibit in Oxford, UK

For those of you able to travel to Oxford, you may be interested to learn about an exhibit at the Museum of the History of Science (http://www.mhs.ox.ac.uk/steampunk/). There is also a podcast from October 13, 2009 that you can listen to about the steampunk genre through the BBC web site at http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/pods/. This broadcast features interviews with the editor of Steampunk Magazine (http://www.steampunkmagazine.com/) and Rafael Fabre from the Second Life community of New Babbage.

Imagine Peace Tower in Second Life

October 9, 2009 saw the unveiling of the Imagine Peace Tower in Second Life by Yoko Ono. Coinciding with the birthdate of John Lennon, the actual tower is an outdoor work of art conceived by Yoko Ono to the memory of John. The Second Life installation can be found in world by visiting http://slurl.com/secondlife/Imagine%20Peace%20Tower/128/128/2.

The tower is an inspiring tribute to both John Lennon and the hope that someday the world will in fact be a more peaceful place. To watch it firing up, one light at a time until all the beams are fully illuminated is quite something to behold and one of the most moving things I have seen in Second Life. It is perhaps made even more special simply by the fact that it isn't just on all the time...but actually illuminates and extinguishes itself on a sunset to sunrise pattern.

LIGHTING UP TIMES
After the opening ceremony, the Second Life IMAGINE PEACE TOWER will begin its cycle of illumination approximately 15 minutes after sunset on every Second Life day and will remain illuminated until dawn. The days are much shorter in Second Life than in the real world. Sunset happens in Second Life every day at the following times, both am and pm:

• 01.30, 05.30, 09.30: Chicago, Baghdad, Bangkok, Vladivostok
• 02.30, 06.30, 10.30: Anchorage, Montreal, Toronto, Reykjavik, Moscow, Shanghai, Suva
• 03.30, 07.30, 11.30: Los Angeles, Rio de Janiero, Liverpool, London, Karachi, Tokyo, Auckland
• 04.30, 08.30, 12.30: Guatemala, Europe, Dhaka, Sydney, Kiritimati

For more information on the Imagine Peace Tower in Second Life, visit http://imaginepeace.com/news/archives/8263.

The Rape of Europa

I have had the documentary, The Rape of Europa, on hold at the library for quite some time. It finally came in and I have now had an opportunity to watch this incredible, amazing, troubling and thought-provoking story of another aspect of one of the most tragic periods of human history;World War II.

There are the obvious images and accounts of death and destruction one frequently sees in books and documentaries; The Rape of Europa documents and details another aspect of the evil that epitomized this dark period in our history.

There are, however, amazing and uplifting stories in this story.

I highly recommend this documentary!

Learn more and watch a trailer at http://www.rapeofeuropa.com.

Boobie-Thon Limerick Joust

I was extremely honoured to be asked to participate in the Limerick Joust as part of fundraising for the 8th Annual Blogger Boobie-thon (http://www.boobiethon.com/). Joust participants included VelesJaeger Munster, Hotspur O'Toole and yours truly. Unfortunately Mister Iason Hassanov was unable to join us.

Eva Bellambi and Serra Anansi did a fabulous job organizing events in Second Life for the second consecutive year. Their efforts translated into $2,010.oo USD to the Susan G Komen Foundation (http://ww5.komen.org/default.aspx). Congratulations to them and thank you to everyone who attended the events and made contributions to the cause.

The limerick joust was a blast. We were given three themes to create limericks from and then presented them to the audience and judges. Veles carried the day, being judged the winner of the event. Combined, I would estimate that the three of us raised approximately $33,000L.

I thought I would share my three limericks...

Second Life

While some say that this world is a game
To say so is simply a shame
Far more than just sex
It’s a place quite complex
Where generosity burns like a flame

Two Ladies from Winterfell (Eva and Serra)

In Winterfell dwelled quite a pair
Who went topless to show that they care
Saying fondle a tit
Making sure it is fit
So donate to the cause don’t just stare

Breasts

There is something that I must confess
I have something to get off my chest
I don’t mean to stare
But it’s hard not to care|So I offer to feel up your breast

The final limerick got quite the response. It looks like I'll be conducting breast exams for the forseeable future. ;-)