Family Halloween Costumes

Let me start right away by saying that I’m not going to make a fashion post out of this so much as a “lookit our costumes!” post. I don’t know/recall where I got the outfits and lots of them are mix-and-match anyways.

Mistletoe’s isn’t so much a costume as a Halloween-ish themed dress. I love the printed skeleton pattern on it. My friend Julius says “It says ‘Look at me, just not like that.'”. I remember that I got it on Marketplace, and that it was called Miss Boneyard or something of the sort. The necklace came from a hunt I did like two years ago.

Clover likes to dress in a costume that she can wear trick-or-treating with her kid, so the myriad “slutty witch/slutty pirate/slutty vampire/etc” options are off the table. Sure, the more revealing outfits are fine for Aunt Mistletoe, but it’s just not Clover’s speed. So she was very happy to find this elegant Red Riding Hood costume at Marketplace. It comes with a shorter skirt option if she chooses to go to an adults-only party after Petal goes to bed.

Last year, Petal went as Velma. This year she was going to go as Hermione, one of her favorite characters. But then she got the idea to go as another one of her favorite Hogwarts students: Luna. This is a mix-and-match outfit.

Uncle Archimides didn’t dress up. Yet. Mistletoe might talk him into it yet.

Right. It’s “later” now.

Me before opening the Happy Ass: I miss having a pub to go to! I like Irish Music and sipping a virtual pint at the end of the day. I can build and decorate real good. I’ve come into some disposable Ls. WHY THE HELL NOT?

Me now: Oh yeah, THAT’S why. I’m working RL full time so I don’t have time to devote to managing this place or even to have a DJ set of my own, except Tuesdays at 4PM (and who the hell is even on then, besides me?). I got one DJ yelling constructively and continually suggesting at me to “advertise more” (sure, as soon as you tell me where that money’s going to come from and if it’s actually even worth it to spend) and here I am coming away with the impression that she’s blaming me because nobody’s on to listen to her set on a mid-week mid-day.

Let me break it down. Take the (very small) number of people who are even on SL at this particular time. Now, of them, take the percentage of people who are interested in the same type of music (of which, I’ve admitted, I’m not even one!). Now, of them, narrow it down to the number of people who aren’t already busy either building, sexing, or attending to some other commitment. Then, just to make extra sure, remove the griefers who are already on the ban list (of which there are maybe a half dozen).

This is not my fault here, and pumping cash into some “ad board” somewhere won’t fix it.

Further, Mondays and Tuesdays are my two days off from RL work. I feel as though if I log Mistletoe in, she’s obligated to be at the pub. Clover has once more become my “shut up and let me build stuff” alt.

But, long story short. I’m not having fun, I’m feeling overwhelmed by commitments I’m losing interest in (and am thus avoiding), and I’m paying for the privilege.

How about no.

I could just as easily sit on my butt at home and listen to Irish music or watch TV or have friends over, and I could do it for less money and without being told how to do it.

So, I’m closing the pub. I may refurbish the building as a house, but chances are more likely I’ll use the red house I built some time back and rather like. Very rural/suburban New England looking, with plenty of room for the whole family.

And as a note to myself: Laura, don’t do this again. Patronize a pub what already exists.

Further edit: not surprisingly, the shit hit the fan over something I had said.  I’m not blaming the DJ or my frustration or the closing of the pub on her.  If I was unclear about that, I apologize.  However I do have the right to be upset, and I do have the right to say why.

How about I rant.

How about later.

Grid-wide Hunts, Revisited

Back in 2009 I wrote an article on business in SL, and near the end of it I said that Grid-wide hunts are a waste of time and not useful to your business at all. Well, times change, experiences change, and my position on that has changed somewhat.

I no longer think that hunts are completely useless or counterproductive. I do, however, still believe they’re not often done wisely (in some cases by the hunt planners and in other cases by the participating merchant). So in the interest in updating and sharing what I learn as I go, here’s some useful information on participating in Grid-wide hunts as a merchant.