Scenes From the Texas Furry Fiesta

 
By Bixyl Shuftan

From Friday March 26 to Sunday March 28, the Texas Furry Fiesta took place in Second Life, and a few other places online. Much like with the Gen Con last year, the decision to make the event virtual was because of the Coronavirus Pandemic. 

The TFF however would have a smaller designated area in the virtual world than Gen Con last year. The location was in the Crimson sim, the lower area next to the beach with the sounds of waves coming ashore.

There was a freebie "store" with a small selection of free avatars. They were quite dated, but better than nothing. I didn't see any Wingless avatars, but was later told they weren't put up as there was only so much room. 

Clicking on a crystal would teleport one up to the upper level, a beach park area. The main feature was a two story building with a flat roof. 

There wasn't much on the first floor, though there was a request to donate to charity.

The second floor had a small dance floor.

The top floor had some seating and a "Cards Against Humanity" game.

Near the building were a couple other games, and a screen people could watch one of the streamed channels.

There was also a display for pages of the website.

A few people were dropping by early to check things out.

The event also had places in VR Chat and Minecraft. I checked out the latter.

There was a hotel made of bricks, where players appeared. 

With the inside detailed. There were also water elevators one could flow up in.

Outside the hotel, there were various plots, where people with permission could build something.

Taking a look after the con was over, build they did.

Friday March 26 was the official start of the 'con. Much of it was on Discord with streamed channels. But there was activity in Second Life. I ran into Shelby Allen, one of the TFF staff.

Shelby explained things were going smoothly, and showed me around a little. There were a few others around, including some whom hadn't been around in a while.

There was one thing I hadn't seen in a while. There was a group of Yinglet avatars around, the largest since the release party in Montecito Bay.

When I mentioned this to one of them, she smiled, "Obviously, you haven't been looking in zhe right places."

Later that night, the "Cards Against Humanity" (or furanity?) proved to be a hit. 

And some fun conversations.

Saturday March 27, I saw something I hadn't seen in almost 12 years. This was one of the limited edition Lost Furest kitty avatars sold with all proceeds going to the Relay for Life. While I had gotten the Hope Kitty, I forget which one this was. 

There was more activity at the top of the building.

Someone showed up in a petite avatar, looking small.

And someone changed to a six-inch Lomtech from Lomgren Smalls, at six inches, looking smaller.

While it might not have been a real-life convention, there was plenty to do. Besides VR Chat and Minecraft, some were playing video games over Twitch. And on some Discord channels there were discussions and music playing.  I listened to a few minutes of those, but not a lot. This was partially due to the instant messages I was getting, and partially because with my experience with cons, I've found it best to relax and not worry about doing too much.

On Sunday came a message from HR Fluffenstuff over Discord, "Thank you for joining us for TFF's 2021 Virtual Con the discord Server will be taken down on 04-02-2021.  We will be looking at rebuilding it properly with the feedback we got from our attendees. Our social media team will announce when and where it will be hosted when we are able. 

"Thank you again for joining us and we hope to see you at the 2022 Live con!"

One friend of mine who attended commented the experience was so involving, he ended up getting post-con blues. Others on Discord posted they liked it as well, "(I) really enjoyed what I have seen of TFF and got to connect with people I would never be able to talk to." "I have enjoyed this Virtual convention experience very much. Thank you to all the staff and volunteers who worked so hard to make this happen.  It is normally next to impossible for me to get time off work to travel, so Virtual is the only way I have been able to experience any type of furry convention in a long, long time.  I hope that you will be able to consider having a virtual presence going forward. Not just for me, but for others who have difficulty traveling, including those who have disabilities, or who are otherwise home-bound."

What happens next year is still to be determined. But hopefully there will be some kind of presence by the Texas Furry Fiesta in Second Life next year, either their own area or cooperating with one or more furry areas.

Bixyl Shuftan
 

SciFi Convention 2019, An Interview With Merky (Richmerk)

by Marcel Mosswood

So I’m ready for the SciFi Con 2019 that is held on May 17-26, 2019! I’m wearing my Star Trek costumes which I made for my Dinkie avatar months ago specifically to present the SciFi Convention 2019. I’ve done with my booth so today my agenda is to meet Merky (richmerk), the Coordinator of the committee for my interview about the SciFi Cons 2019. Here is the interview:

Merky (richmerk), The Coordinator of The Committee

Marcel: Hi Merky, let me introduce myself, I’m Marcel Mosswood, I would like to interview you for the SL Newser. I see that the Scifi Convention is very well prepared by your team. The landscape and the concept of the buildings are very attractive and professional. How long have all these preparations been made from the start?

Merky: Actually, because of real life issues, we got much less warning this year that we needed to build a convention, so everything you see here was created in just a few weeks.

The SciFi Con Sims

Marcel: Wow, that’s a really fast preparation for such a great event! I’ve read from the website that the event is held annually. Can you tell us the beginning of the idea of making this sci-fi event an annual event? Who are the avatars involved at the initial event?

Merky: The Scifi Cons go way back to the early days of SL. I don’t know the exact year because that was before I joined. Back in those days, it was a different group of people. I think originally a Real-Life group called the ‘International Federation of Trekkers’ was the force behind the conventions. When they caught the notice of the RFL, the Cons became more regular and larger.

Marcel: So, why do you associate Scifi Con with raising funds for RFL? Are there special reasons?

Merky: The Scifi Con has been with RFL since I joined the team. It’s a wonderful and worthwhile cause. They’ve always supported us, and because of their encouragement and advice, the Con is more successful now than it has ever been!

Marcel: I can say that is a good collaboration. What is your fundraising target for this year? And besides the fundraising, is there another goal that you would like to achieve?

Merky: In past years, I think the Cons have made around 1 million lindens. Last year we were a little smaller and only got 750k. This year though, Our goal is at least 2 million! There are a lot of generous people out there, the Con team is working overtime, and we have a lot more experienced help this year, so I’m sure we’ll reach it.

Marcel: About your great team, who are your team members? And how do you manage your teamwork to achieve your goals?

Merky: Myself and Debbydo are blessed this year with some great new helpers. We have a dedicated event manager this year, VєηυŞ (shayna.paine), who has worked tirelessly for weeks now to put together a solid lineup of shows and entertainments. The immense central domed building was constructed by Beth Delaunay (isilmeriel). The sims were built by Benjamin Brougham, StarWolff, and Varahi Lusch and Minions. Wolferein Foxdale’s job is basically to fix and make better all the stuff that I build, and mesh things. Kendra Mollsen (koreeah) is the troubleshooter and customer service girl. There are a bunch of other people also that were invaluable helpers both before and during the Con. We keep everything organized through Google Docs and Discord servers. Constant good communication is the key.

Marcel: Wonderful! I can see your work through the appearance of the Con. The last question but this may be inspiring others: Would you like to say something to our readers, maybe some quotes, which always motivates you during this fundraising activity? 

Merky: One of the things we did before the Con this year is come up with a theme song that reflects our core philosophy and what we try to accomplish in Second LIfe. Paul McCartney’s Hope for the Future (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=163_C5UVU-I).

Visit here to enjoy the sci-fi world, shop and donate for the Relay For Life: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/SFC%20Atlantis/127/128/34

Marcel Mosswood

Sci-fi Convention in Second Life

By Grease Coakes

Most people in second life know that Relay For Life is a huge force in the grid as many teams compete to raise lindens to turn into real money to fight against cancer in the real world. Second in itself is a virtual experience with a sci-fi theme. Log in into a world where anything is possible from creating a fantasy or sci-fi environment. Also you can meet people from around the globe whether in your own country or somewhere else in the globe. So Second Life is an excellent medium to present a sci-fi convention which is subtitled passport to Hope.

The 2017 Sci-Fi Convention is held at Forty Two (103/124/23) and you learn about it here https://slscificonvention.wordpress.com/. From March 24th until April 2nd this year you can stop by and have a galaxy of fun with vendors, DJs, and events. I was surprised to find a Klingon city that was empty (I guess the Klingons killed everyone and went back to Kronos). And also I was surprised when I found  Jadziyah Resident’s shop which had rockets from Tintin the European comic. I couldn’t help it but to buy the rocket where Tintin flew to the moon in one  of his adventures.

The sim was spilt up into earth,fire,water,air,life, and equilibrium as themes. All throughout the convention I saw lots of exciting things such as a RP area based on Star Trek. Also a theater which had real life photos of actors and a special actress that passed away recently. It showed actors such as Alan Rickman who played Snape in the Harry Potter movies. Also Carrie Fisher who was princess Leia in the Star Wars movies. Inside was a stargate from the Stargate movie and a huge Doctor who display.

At 3pm SLT I found a theater play called “The Lucid Journey.” Where a woman’s husband named Lewis Liddell is presumed dead. His wife still alive to take a journey in a dreamscape and beyond to find him. The character’s dialogue was in green text as the avatars were on stage. It was great to watch. There’s also scheduled events and a dj here and there. I saw lots of vendors selling Star Trek goodies and a few Star Wars vendors selling lite sabers.

I grabbed Ariadne Fall, who was one of the people in charge of the convention, and asked her what her thoughts were about the sci-fi convention and she had this to say, "It's wacky and fun, exhibitors form all over the grid, and events every single day....  it's proof of what pixel people can do when they believe in something. We love sci-fi and we hate cancer.  It's that simple."

I asked her, "What's your fave sci-fi movie, book series, whatever?"

Ariadne told me, "Ooohhhhh, good question!  'Biting The Sun' by Tanith Lee for favorite sci-for book. ...and favorite movie is a choice I cannot possibly make... if 'Earth Girls Are Easy,' 'Evolution,' 'Demolition Man' are on, I watch!"

One of the things people hope for in the future is that the human race destroys cancer. We always look for a future such as star trek where racism is a thing of the past and equality for all is what people strive for. The sci-fi convention here in second life is one cosmic leap in that direction.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Forty%20Two/103/124/23

Grease Coakes

Gia Smith And The Sci-Fi Music Festival

By DeafLegacy DarkBloom

While the Sci Fi Music Fest was quiet when I arrived, it grew into a good number of people.  Unfortunately, there was a problem that came up. A bug in the Relay kiosk kept people from directly donating. Fortunately, ways were found around it, and before long the glitch was fixed. So the event was able to go on normally.

While there, I ran into the deejay for the Relay for Life event, Gia Smith (gialovely12345).  She had been working with the RFL for four years.  Gia would say that after being to all the events, the Relay is an inspiration.  She plans to continue working with the fundraiser for the American Cancer society in future years. Gia also explained that the Sci-Fi Music Festival is about music fromshows like "Dr. Who" and movies like "Star Wars."  Of the total raised, the last she checked, 200 dollars had been collected.

Gia Smith states on her profile she is a member of Team Shadows, and among the groups she is in is Sail for Life. These two gold-ranked teams have raised a total of over 700,000 Lindens.

When it comes to dealing with cancer, it is a never ending fight.  We have people like Gia willing to take this fight all the way to see that people with this dreaded illness will get the help that they need.  We do need people like her, after all.  That's why Relay for Life is an inspiration, not just to Gia, but to many people all over the world.  As it turns out, the way to do it is with another love; love for music and love for science fiction.

DeafLegacy DarkBloom