Misty Mountains: What is Reality?

Here are a couple quick, un-retouched pictures from Misty Mountains (SLurl), one of several gorgeous regions in the Calas Galadhorn Park chain. I spend a lot of time there, slightly breaking the "no role play" rule by appearing in a fantasy form that I feel suits the environment. My reaction when I first visited was "I'm Home!" The ambiance is lush and natural. I was in my beloved White Mountains of New Hampshire. But then I turned the corner and felt like I was in the Pacific Northwest. Another section reminded me of the Allegheny foothills of Western Pennsylvania. Some regions try for hyper-realisim (like the also gorgeous Rustica; SLurl) while others take a more fantasy-oriented approach (like what you would find at Happy Mood; SLurl).

Misty and her sister regions (yes, sims are female, like ships and cars) strike me as a blend of the two approaches with a heavy lean toward the former. Let's call it Enhanced Reality, as when a nature photographer grooms a scene by bending aside a stray branch or setting some hidden food to attract wildlife, creating a best possible "reality" that better communicates the intended message than the previously extant scene. Thusly the best elements of different biomes are skillfully blended on Misty to make an ideal forest environment. You really need to see this place.

Svarga ('nuff said)

Tatero Nino has a nice post at Massively about one of my favorite spots in Second Life™, Svarga! Eventually I'll do a post about this fabulous place, but for now just enjoy some of the the (pre-Windlight®) pix that I've taken over the past year.

My Home

"Silly Poultry," a friend often says to me. That certainly applies here as I should have started my posts with my own home! I live on a fairly large plot of land in my sister Threshin's sim (SLurl to her shop). It has been expanded since I first started renting and has been remodeled several times, but here is what it looked like when I first built. I love my treehouse home. The brownish "deck" you see near mid-picture makes it's appearance in my current home as an ocean dock (see below). Shortly after this I made a waterfall and sloped stream to the bay. No pictures of that, darn it. With as much and as often as I change things I really need to better document my builds.

Here is the same view (more or less) but shot today. The beach encroached upon the land so I could add an oceanscape (shown in my first post here) and extended inland as a pretty little stream but not at a loss for land. I rented the "back 40" since I first established a home so I still have quite a bit of ground space.

Since I love water, though, I flooded the place for a peaceful forest pond. Look out for hungry fishies, though, if you fall off the raft! I have piranha! At night mystical lights come out and my butterflies glow. The tire swing is from PillowTalk as are some of the cushions in the gazebo so this is a very relaxing setting. I put some snuggles in the gazebo and on the raft. Well, some of the raft ones are a bit "intimate."

Zooming in some you'll see another great place to relax ... my tiny waterfall cave and mini-pond. I love the Wynx (SLurl) frog and unicorn. Along with the kitty head boulder they help the setting take on a whimsical feel. Often I'll lay on the back of the unicorn to just watch the stars and the forest lights. I also like to fish here using my 7Seas rod or sitting in my fishing chair from Splash Aquatics (SLurl). There are cuddles and snuggles in the cave and floating in the mini-pond is a joy.

The sunset from my dock is gorgeous. Thanks to recent viewer updates the sky and the water are perfect and I'll often hang out just watching the sky. This is an example of how I continually change things. This dock started as a sky platform when I rented elsewhere. And it was the basis for a tiered platform I used as a deck to showcase a beautiful piano I have from Sue Stonebender and Serendipity Studios (SLurl). From here or the shoreline anyone with a 7Seas rod can fish and a vendor is nearby for bait or other goodies.

A recent addition is a skybox. Well, a steampunk airship that is also a skybox. I often wonder why people have homes in Second Life™ but I suppose that building a mansion when your real life home is just a flat somewhere is just as much fantasy as living in an airship. Eventually I'd like to have a home under the sea, too. I might have to rent the empty parcel next to mine and expand the oceanscape.

Who knows what changes will come next to my home. I certainly don't. Like me, it is a work in progress, but for now I'm very happy with it and I hope you enjoyed your tour.

The Isle of Lesbos: Part I

In Second Life, I work at a wonderful place called the Isle of Lesbos (SLurl). Well, work is not entirely correct. Really I play there and the results usually appear that I had actually worked.

This first picture, for example, shows me working. I'm fine-tuning the 7Seas fishing setup for the mall. It took over an hour of hard relaxing to make sure everything was just right.

In the next picture, Janeforyou Barbara, the sim owner (and Miss Jane to all us who love her) is reviewing my work right around sunrise. She, too, was tireless in her quest for perfection.

Sunrise is the key to the Isle's dance club, hence the name Sunrise Dock and Club. Events are held here almost every day, often a couple times each day, and everyone has a chance to walk away with at least L$500. On Saturdays the prize is L$3000!

Another view of The Dock with the sun position changed. That is me on the left. I'm not hosting this event, but I do host the Saturday events. This is the only "job" I have at the Isle that has regular pay. Bouncing in the air there is DJ Kuthola Homewood. She rawks!


Another 7Seas fishin' spot has been put on the beach. If you look in the water you'll see some fishies! I hope to hold tournaments here and build the traffic to the Isle. Well, that and build traffic to other parts of the Isle, too. Many girls (yes, it's an all-female resort) visit The Dock and nowhere else. Yet there is so much more to see.

Like the Jungle! When the Isle was remodeled last year I was honored to be asked to help. This waterfall and the basic landscaping for the Jungle was one of my first projects. Recently I was asked by "Chief Architect" Threshin Barnett to enhance the waterfall. If you get a chance to visit, try walking through the falls. Near the Jungle is a bath house with some nice animations for those inclined to be intimate. Mostly, though, this area is designed to be romantic and relaxing. And you can even fish here.

Above the falls is my pride and joy. Really, it isn't much if you are looking for spectacular, jaw-dropping, or an engineering marvel. But it is (IMHO) a really nice Winter skating pond. I was given free reign to terraform (so long as I added the waterfall to the Jungle) and even encouraged to expand. What I really love is the ice. Again, not a difficult build but so few people make seamless semi-transparent ice when they make frozen water. Look around for the hidden wolf's head. And the sunken boat for a tribute to an Isle friend. Eventually I'm going to upgrade the trees, if I'm permitted, but I rather like the look right now as I skate around or make snow angels.

The beach (Sappho's Point, but I'm the only one that calls it that) was not my creation but I hold a monthly "Nakie Beach Party" there. At other times it is simply a great place to relax. A steam house and a spa are nearby and it is just a short climb to the forest or castle.


On part of the beach is Tikachu's! This is a little bar I made for a previous remodeling of the Isle. It is fully stocked and has a great sunrise view. In the pic here you can see one of the many signs/posters I make for the Isle.

The forest above the beach is filled with wondrous things and leads you to the dark castle. Like the rest of the Isle of Lesbos, if you explore the forest you will find places to cuddle and "play" with someone special. Heck, if you wander the skies you'll find similar places ... we have airborne gazebos!

Miss Jane would have my buns on a grill if I forgot to mention the mall. It is one of the largest and certainly one of the best in all of Second Life. Threshin is the chief architect here, too, though I was asked to make all the domes (the one in the back is complete, but it doesn't show in this pic), the center hub, the teleportation system (for both sims), landscaping, the fashion show area, and little things. I'm really proud of the work I did on the mall.

You will probably read more about the Isle of Lesbos (provided you come back) as I spend a lot of time there and things are always changing.