Day One was filled with confusion, lag, cock-ups, TPs down, and complaining.
It was also filled with beauty, music, laughter, and a great group of people who displayed patience, tenacity, and more patience.
Let’s get you some SLURLs right away; it was brought to my attention that these were a bit hard for non-staff people to find. It’s easy to forget that those of us working there could find our way around easily, but for the rest, it wasn’t as clear. So.
The Cake Stage.
The Front Gate/Welcome Area/Community Hub.
Here you can get a handy TP HUD, which can help you get around the area more quickly (provided TPs aren’t borked).
The Pod Tour.
The Lake Stage, aka Mesh Stage.
The Main Stage, aka Lotus Stage.
The Sunken Stage, aka Underwater Stage.
Negen Auditorium.
Egypt Stage.
That out of the way, here’s some other useful information, like how to not lag so damn much.
Exhibitor: How come I can’t get to my build?
Exhibitor2: Yeah I can’t get to mine either.
Exhibitor3: OMG YOU GUYS CAN’T EVEN GET THIS SHIT RIGHT WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU.
Greeter: Hi guys, thanks for your patience while we work problems out.
Exhibitor: How come when I TP to my build I can’t get there?
Exhibitor2: OMG I just TPed to a naturalist resort.
Exhibitor: Darwin’s a naturalist. These guys are naturists. Noob.
Moderator: Hey guys, just wanted to remind you that this is moderated chat for exhibitor and performer related issues, not lag reports or chatter. Thanks for understanding.
Exhibitor3: SERIOUSLY YOU CAN’T EVEN FIND YOUR ASS WITH BOTH HANDS.
Greeter: I can try to TP people in, IM me.
Exhibitor: Penises! Scary!
Exhibitor2: So how come I can’t get to my build yet? It’s been like 60 seconds now!!
Performer: Can anyone help me get to the Cake stage, as I am on in 15 minutes?
Exhibitor4: I can’t get to my build!
Moderator: Once again, guys, this is moderated chat. Please limit your conversation here accordingly.
Exhibitor: Can I get an EA
Exhibitor Assitant: I’ll IM you
Exhibitor:…to TP me into my build?
Greeter: Guys, try to be patient. It’s SL.
Exhibitor3: YOU GUYS ALL SUCK. YOU CAN’T GET ME TO MY BUILD AND YOU CAN’T ORGANIZE… THINGS NEEDING ORGANIZING… WITH A THING THAT ORGANIZES THEM!
Exhibitor2: How come when I try to TP to my build I can’t get there?
Exhibitor: I can’t get to my build and it’s been like 5 minutes since opening now!
Exhibitor3: I’M BLOGGING THIS RIGHT NOW!
Exhibitor2: Why am I not able to TP anyplace now?
Everybody: BECAUSE TPS ARE CLEARLY NOT WORKING NOW.
Moderator: *bangs head on desk*
Exhibitor3: THAT’S BECAUSE THE PEOPLE WHO ORGANIZED THIS ARE REALLY SECRETLY SPIES FROM INWORLDZ WHO ARE TRYING TO SABOTAGE LL I KNOW I HAVE PROOF.
Exhibitor: How about now? I’ve waited a good seven minutes now.
Exhibitor2: Oh hey guys, I can’t TP to my build, case you haven’t heard.
Moderator: *shoots monitor*
And then, with about 15 minutes left in what must have been the easiest Greeter shift ever worked, people finally started TPing in! I said hi, I handed out swag, I helped them get TP HUDs, and then suddenly I was starting to get overwhelmed with people! I ran 15 minutes over my shift, when finally someone was able to TP in to relieve me.
I didn’t catch Saffia’s opening speech, and that’s too bad, but I found a transcript of it here. I’m told it will be available to view online sometime tomorrow.
The lady from the Church of Rosedale said to me, in IM, “Oh! Yours is the one with the barbershop quartet and the carousel! I love that build!” Insert me using this pose here. (Side note: said pose was made by the same guy who made our SL9B build video). We talked a while about her EPIC waterslide at her build (here’s Death checking it out)! One of the more fun attractions I’ve seen yet; a total must-see.
Downside to today, besides the lag and the impatience, was that I felt like I had to be “on” any time I was logged in. Much like running a pub. Of course I found ways to combat that, not the least of which being: logging off when the work day was done.
Signed on for another 2 hour shift tomorrow. Looking forward to it!
Mistletoe Ethaniel's Blog 
I do love your build. 🙂
Giving credit where it’s due, the waterslide was created using this construction kit from the Marketplace. (There’s also a free demo version with all the features of the real thing, except that it poofs out of existence after 30 minutes.)
Oh now that is cool. Blows my mind, the stuff people come up with in SL, and the ways people put them to use.
Also surprises me to learn, as I heard in Community chat yesterday morning, that there are alindenists out there; that is to say, people who have expressed a belief that there’s no such thing as Lindens. I guess I’m one who believes that Lindens exist; but that their influence is limited in the Grid, or perhaps that they choose not to get involved (the virtual equivalent of a Deist, I suppose). Your church strikes me as one that’s tolerant of all such types of belief. Am I correct in that assumption?
Alindenists mystify me. I can understand just about any possible attitude toward the Lindens, but denying their existence altogether? [shakes head in wonder]
…granted, I’ve met a bunch of them, if only briefly. A couple have even turned up during services at my church, back in the day, when we had regular services.
Anyway, you are correct. My church has only one item of dogma: in SL, Philip Linden is God. Everything beyond that is up to the individual parishioner. You may choose to view Him as one god in a pantheon of Lindens, or you may take a monotheistic approach and view all other Lindens as bishops, angels, disciples, or whatever. Deism strikes me as a reasonable approach. 🙂
Ah, I see!
So, an Avatarian/Metaversalist church, as it were.
Indeed. 🙂
(While the trappings of the church draw from Christianity, its philosophical forebears—such as they are—are Unitarian Univeralism, the First Latitudinarian Church of Celebrity Saints [in John Varley’s Steel Beach], and Discordianism.)