The Stolen Child – Trailer

Merry Christmas from the Manic Elf

Last night’s get-together at Toot Toots

So I mentioned having to cancel the party I planned last night. Instead I popped into Toot Toot’s Carolina Pub in the sim of Sifton, to pay a visit to my friend Symmetry and the rest of the good crowd that can often be found there. I had my cake dress on and announced that this would now be my birthday party.

I whipped out the camera and nabbed some video. Here it is.

P.S.: Just an added bit of trivia, this just happens to be my 666th blog post.

It’s My Birthday!

…and I’ll pout if I want to.

I have to cancel my party tonight.

It’s been an adventurous birthday to say the least. I was stranded for two days away from home, thanks to an ice storm making the roads between my workplace and my home impassable (except by the sturdiest of plow trucks). Today I knew the freezing rain would continue and I just wanted to get home to my husband and cat before it got worse. So this morning, when there was a break in it and the roads were a bit more cleared, I got behind the wheel and drove the ten or so miles.

One of the scariest drives I’ve ever made. I had to stop the car twice, put on the four-ways, and get out to clear the windshield of ice.

When I got through the door my husband was there and we just hugged and hugged. I feel an overwhelming urge to curl up in my bed and not get out until spring.

I logged on at last to find out that RL plans have caused several of my friends to not be on tonight. Some have last minute shopping to do, some are departing to see their RL families, some are dealing with ice storm problems of their own. So, I just decided, I’ll cancel the party and instead get a few pictures of my outlandish party dress I had gotten from Boudoir. Hope you like it.

Finding it fun again

Archimedes and I had a talk about the things we use that make us able to do the things we do that make us who we are. For example, he’s a statistician, and he can’t do the things that make him what he is without a lot of help from the application “R”. When I went from my old Mac to this new Windows 8 laptop, I lost Photoshop, iMovie, CaptureMe, NiceCast, Garage Band… a lot of the tools that helped me “be what I am” so to speak in Second Life and indeed in real life.

So it’s with some frustration that I’m relearning the equivalent tools here. We couldn’t afford the $700 for a new full version of Photoshop (that’s more than the computer cost!) so we got a package with Photoshop Elements (which I don’t even use) and Premiere Elements 11 (which I do, more on that shortly). I have Gimp, and WinAmp, and iTunes but no NiceCast. I tried the free version of Fraps and discovered that I prefer the free version of Bandicam. Not crazy about the watermark on either but what do you want for nothing. I plan to upgrade and get the full version of Bandicam with my birthday and Christmas money. Yes by the way my birthday is coming up, more on that in a bit too.

I’m teaching myself machinima again. I can’t quite do the slick editing that I did for things like The Naughty Chair yet. In fact Premiere Elements is frustrating the hell out of me, because the nice cropped video I see in the preview version of a project is not what comes out in the final exported video. The final exported video has all the controls and watermarks and HUDs that are cropped out of the nice-looking preview version. It’s annoying me to no end.

Machinima is fun, though, and contrary to what the cynic I spoke to yesterday says, there’s still lots to enjoy in SL while using this medium. In fact I got a really fun project in the works and some great people willing to help me out with it too. I’ve done a few burlesque-style shorts (see Naughty Chair, link above); now I’m planning a longer burlesque video with multiple performers. It’s got a seasonal theme but it won’t be ready for this Christmas (sorry!). However I’m hopeful it will be ready to debut with plenty of time before next Christmas. Interested in performing? Shoot me an IM.

And so, yes, I’m turning 39 on Sunday in RL. The weather forecast here in RL land says that I’m not going anywhere so I’m having a party in SL at my good friend Thaddeus’s place, Antique Square. It’s an outdoor skating party with an eclectic mix of music from DJ Noir. There’ll be cake (from Clover’s Kitchen, naturally). I hope you can make it because what I’d like more than anything is to see my friends there. The party is Sunday, December 22nd, at 5PM SLT.

Last Night’s Skating Party

…was a SMASH success!

We had about a dozen people throughout the event, as many as twenty at one point. Everyone seemed to be having a good time and being social. Plus I even made a couple sales in Clover’s booth, and I have a feeling the merchants taking part in the Snowflake Hunt are seeing plenty of participation too.

We had so much fun, and people were saying “Let’s do something like this again soon!”, that I decided that on Sunday the 22nd, I’ll be throwing a birthday party there for yours truly. More skating, more dancing, more of the fantastic DJ Noir, and this time, cake! Keep an eye for more news about that.

Photos from “The Nut” – Ballet in Second Life

I got an unexpected invitation to see a ballet in Second Life today, something I’d never done before. The Rose Opera House put on a performance called “The Nut”, which was an abridged version of the Nutcracker Ballet. Under the cut you’ll find my photos from today’s performance. Click each picture to see a larger version.

Sorta finding my groove again

My friend Thaddeus has revamped and reopened Antique Square, and it’s lovelier and more vibrant than ever before. I logged on the other day to have a look at it.

Clover received a lovely automated “fill out our survey” message after three years of renting from a single spot. Really warmed the cockles of my heart. It’s not that I think I’m owed a thank you after the St. Patrick’s Day parade, the newspaper, the Pride festivities, the medieval faire… yeah well OK I guess I kind of think I am.

Instead, I got a thank you message from someone I wasn’t expecting and it made me genuinely giddy.

I’m freeloading in a cottage amid some grassy dunes, where I can fish or explode fireworks (but no exploding fish. Ew.). I just got a Christmas tree in there and I like it a lot. I put a one-horse open sleigh ride in at Antique Square, at Thaddeus’s request. And I’m kind of building again; I even broke down and got Mesh Studio.

So I’m not saying I’m full time In Second Life again or anything, but at very least, I’m finding a little more interest in it than I did.

Black Friday is comin’ in

(tune: “Sumer is a-cumen in”, 13th C. English)

Black Friday is comin’ in
Loud I say “Hell no”
Papers swell and shoppers yell
And shopping traffic grow
Say “Hell no!”
Bold employees brave the crowds
Damned if their paychecks grow
Stabbing, Trampling
Shoppers camping
Outside in the snow
Hell no! Hell no!
Wisely say “Hell no”
And online shopping go

(c)2013 Laura Foster/Mistletoe Ethaniel