Scenes From the Linden Snowball Fight

By Gemma Cleanslate and Bixyl Shuftan

 Monday December 21 was the day the Linden-Resident Snowball Fight took place. At 10 AM SL time at the Snowball Arena in the Winter Wonderland area, a number of Lindens, including the CEO of Linden Lab himself, Ebbe Linden, faced down numerous residents in a "Snowball Showdown."

 Come one - come all to the Snowball Arena for a friendly ice battle of epic proportions! We’re bringing back the Official Snowball Showdown - where you’re free to pelt your fellow Second Life Residents and Lindens with a bevy of sparkling snowballs!

 Gemma Cleanslate was there, and took a number of pictures of the event, saying it "was huge and fun. The snowballs had the capacity to toss everyone high in the air so bodies were flying. Lots of Lindens and Moles with avatars chasing them and vise versa."

Here, Ebbe Linden runs from a huge snowball. Gemma would write,  "Ebbe ran a lot!!"

 Pygar Bu of Bay City was among those there, harder to see with his white suit and white bunny hat.

One resident came dressed as the DC Comics superhero "The Flash." For those who don't know, this hero's arch-villain uses cold as a weapon. Looks like he decided to beat Captain Cold at his own game.

Ciaran Laval and Daniel Voyager would also write about the event, which was real freezy fun for all.

Pictures from Gemma Cleanslate

Dialogue from Bixyl Shuftan

Memorial Dance for Rypanthian Abilene

By Bixyl Shuftan

On December 12, the Sunweaver community found out that one of their own, Rypanthian Abilene, known simply as "Panth" to friends, had passed away. He had died a couple days before without warning from a heart attack, and his brother had logged on to give his friends the bad news. For many, it was simply sad news. But for his partner Felina Fermi, it was devastating. The two had been partnered for ten years in Second Life, and she had known him online for a total of fifteen.

Yours truly knew Panth since 2008 when we were neighbors at a short-lived estate that lasted for just several weeks. Not many words were exchanged between he and I though as he let his partner and my friend Felina talk. She did some music around the time of her early years in Second Life, but was especially proud of her detailed houses, getting an article in JamesT Juno's Second Life Newspaper as "The Primmiest House in Second Life?" The place had a lot of little items, down to paper wads next to the trash can, and pet cats running/sleeping/playing about. They would once again make news, this time for the Newser, when Felina converted one room to a theater. But Panth never would say very much. He would just sit on the couch and cuddle with his partner. He and Felina were briefly part of a MLP roleplay, he taking on the role of "Big Mac," whose vocabulary tended to be limited to one word responses, "Yep" and "Nope."

While Panth may have been silent, he was the one who was paying for his and Felina's house. And his demise left her without means to pay for the place. In response, Nydia, who had called of her rezzday party in response to Panth's death, began organizing an event in her honor after Dusk Griswold suggested one. This one would cover the day and much of the night, going on Tuesday December 15 from Noon Second Life time to 8PM. The event would take place at Nydia's Happy Vixen beach club in Purrfection.

Today from Noon to 8 PM, we are going to be raising Lindens for Felina as we remember Panth and share our memories of him. We will always miss him, but he will live on in our hearts forever.

The normal tip jars were not used that day. Instead, residents were invited to contribute to a cube with pictures of Panth and Felina. The money would go to help pay for Felina's land tier.

Nydia and Dusk were among those DJing that day. Others did so as well, Tantari Kim did for a while with her set, narrating the tunes with texted lyrics and a few facts about the songs. Shockwave Yarreach entertained the crowd with a set that included a few parodies he himself came up with. Dusk Griswold did a number of classic rock tunes. Rose Redfoxx (Rose Evans) finished the set with more modern fare.

Quite a number showed up to at the event. Felina came, honored with all the attention, along with Tigerclaw, a mutual friend of both she and Panth. Nydia thought she counted thirty-one at the club at one point, though there were more as people dropped in as others left when real life called.

As the event went on, the donations kept coming in. These included 2,000 Linden dollars from Marusame Arai, and 5,000 Linden dollars from Kryxia Silverfall. Rita Mariner, the Sunweaver chieftess, announced Felina's next tier was considered paid in full, so the donations would go to the next month. But the donations kept coming. Near the end of the event, it was announced thirty thousand Lindens had been raised to help take care of Felina's tier.

But the money was only part of the story. The Sunweavers realize Rypanthian's departure leaves a hole in his partner Felina's life that can never truly ever be filled. But they could and did show they valued her as a friend, and there would always be a place for her her among them.

Rest in peace Rypanthian. Until we meet again, you'll be remembered.

Bixyl Shuftan

The Snowman Contest and the Holidays For Hope Ball

By Bixyl Shuftan

The Relay for Life Christmas Expo wasn't over until Monday. But Sunday December 13 was the high point of the festival. This was a day of events such as the conclusion of the snowman contest, and the Holidays for Hope Ball.

Those taking part in the contest paid a 500 Linden dollar fee, with cash prizes going to the winners. Voting was done by donating Lindens to the kiosk next to the entry you wanted. Some of the entries were fairly conventional, such as this one sitting down next to a Santa sack.

Would this guy be an "Ice Pirate?" Yo ho ho and a keg of rum.

This one was a tribute to the new "Star Wars" movie out.

And this one, either the builder was from the big city, or a "Calvin and Hobbes" fan.

"Welcome to Atlanta." Looks like this snowman didn't survive his trip.

That dalek isn't part of the display, but someone in an avatar. But he certainly gave a new angle to this entry.

Now this snowman looks downright creepy, something out of a Lovecraftian story. You don't want to end up "Alone in the Dark" with that.

And then there was this one. Cuddly Waffle called it, "very cute. This was a snowman who was taking a break from the cold and somehow managed not to melt!" Maybe he was on a beach in Alaska.

 I would later hear that this snowman, built by Thathy Slade, was the winner. Second place went to the green tentacled horror by Eclair Martinek. ArianaAstro Resident's snowman came in third. A total of 80,000 Linden dollars would be raised by the snowman contest.

Soon it was time for "the Grand Finale Event of the 2015 Christmas Expo," the Holidays for Hope Ball. This would be the sixth time this annual event had taken place. It would be held in a double ballroom.

The ballroom was created by Darkstone Aeon and the event was sponsored by T-1 Radio.

Dozens would show up at the event.

Formal attire was requested, though not a hard requirement.

There were two people in Santa outfits on the dance floor, one of whom was the one doing Santa duty at the Expo. Maybe one can call this scene "dueling Santas."

A fun time was had by all. Trader Whiplash would later announce the festival had raised over two million Linden dollars.

Congratulations To Nuala Maracas and the Expo Staff for a Job More than Well Done.. .. For an Expo that was not just a fund raising success but was a wonderful place to visit -AND- L$ 2,108,062 or $ 8,432.

And so, the 2015 Relay for Life Christmas Expo is now over. But the Relayers are not despairing. In a few months will be the the start of the official Relay for Life season. And once again, their fun-filled antics will resume.

Bixyl Shuftan

Memorial Show at Kindness Park

By Bixyl Shuftan

On Sunday December 6, I was invited by Whisper Fairy Gravois (Jihan Wonder) to a show at Kindness Park, about a thousand meters over the Napa Valley sim. Much of the chat I saw was in French, as well as the name on the stage, "Le Spectacle de Martina."

The stage scenes were sometimes well detailed, the first act being an interpretation of Michael Jackson's "Thriller," taking place in a graveyard with dancing skeletons. This was followed by several other acts, including a dancer in a Japanese garden, and a circus act with elephant avatars. I would hear donations to the event went to the Mark V. Lee Memorial Fund.

I would later talk to Whisper a few days after the event. I asked about the Mark V. Lee Memorial Fund, and she told me, "He  was a 9/11 responder who died last year from complications from that. He was a big volunteer in real life, especially during  the holidays. He gave all, his body, and more, to the childrens burn unit. It's a legitimate real-life fund. His family took it over. They've even been on TV and talk shows. Hasbro donated to the fund last year."

"He gave the biggest donation, his life, eyes, cornea, etc. Amazing gifts. He was my cousin, and he made me promise to help. So I did this charity event. I will do something else as well. ... He was a big giver in real life, and knew I was doing things here. He encouraged me, said that was whatlife is, paying it forward to help each other get through things."

Whisper took me to Mark Lee's memorial, which wasn't far from Salem De White's (Selene Spellhunter), "His daughter,Christina Lee, said this about him on the day of 9/11, 'My dad actually left his shift, on way home saw the plane hit the tower in his rear-view and turned right around back to his fire house, suited up and went."

Whisper also told me of two links of interest. One was of the Facebook page of the Mark Lee Memorial Fund. The other was a video of a TV news story about it.

Whisper went on to say she was working on a place in Kindness Park, something to help out newcomers, especially newcomer kid avatars, whom were looking for new places to go to in Second Life, commenting many were looking for something beyond the club scene. The land was being paid for by friends of hers and general donations. The location of the building is at Napa Valley (127, 145, 1000).

It's very likely we'll be hearing more about Whisper and Kindness Park before too long.

Bixyl Shuftan

The Windlight Winter Art Show

By Gemma Cleanslate

 I was able to make it over to the Windlight Winter Art Show region on press day before the sim was crowded.  Some of my favorite artists have lovely pieces there and I was lucky to get good looks at everything. Bryn Oh’s art always make one thoughtful and Secret Rage’s piece also makes one meditate. The committee provides cute cabins for the showing or photographs and SL art for your wall. I saw some wonderful wall hangings that I would love to have. I ran into Jamie Wolf one of the artists and owner of Wolf Photography in SL.  He is happy to be involved in the event. I stopped in the cabin of Johannes 1977 who is also showing his photographs. He is a member of the Advisory Committee of the SL team and has worked very hard to make the event a success.

Everything there is for the benefit  “This event will take place from December 7 to December 14 and will include seven days of live djs, performers, tribute concerts, art exhibitions, contests, shopping, a hunt, a gingerbread building contest and more!”

Besides the wonderful artists there is a lovely little square where Santa sits on his throne and is surrounded with shops full of your favorite designers of clothing and household items and more. I visited many including Park Place which I love for wonderful furniture and Moonstar where I find wonderful outfits.

It looks like the whole week is filled with activities to make your visit a pleasure. It is all for the benefit The American Diabetes Association. The hope of Team Diabetes of SL is” Our focus is to bring awareness and dispel the myths of diabetes. We will hold a variety of fundraisers in support of The American Diabetes Association and we invite you to plan your fundraising events to help fight this global epidemic.”  Be sure to get there between December 7 and 14 to support the cause and have some fun!. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Crestwood%20Acres/93/47/22

Gemma Cleanslate

Scenes From Thanksgiving 2015

By Bixyl Shuftan

Thanksgiving doesn't get much attention compared to Christmas. That stores seem to start their Xmas shopping season once Halloween is over hasn't helped. Still, there were a number of events that went on Thanksgiving week and weekend.

The Happy Vixen club held it's themed event, Pilgrims and Indians, a week before Thanksgiving on the 19th. Cutlass would have it's Thanksgiving party one day before, on the 25th.

On Thanksgiving Day, Gemma Cleanslate celebrated by having some friends over at her place at Skye Condos. Plenty of turkey for all.

Aero Pines Park had an all-day Thanksgiving event, their Harvest Festival and Pow-Wow, with people, some in American Indian and Pilgrim outfits, dancing around a fire.

There were other things to do, such as the mechanical turkeys, in which like mechanical bulls, you were timed to see how long you could keep a hold of it.

There was also fishing, or one could peek in the Indian lodges.

At one point, a dragon dropped by. For a moment, I wondered if it might want horse for a Thanksgiving dinner. But instead, it just listened to the music for a few minutes, then flew off.

While not a Thanksgiving themed event, the fundraiser for Kalli Birman (Brandy Maltas in real life) on Friday evening drew plenty of attention with it's kickoff. TerryLynn Melody and Seth Regan (Mankind Tracer) performed live for the crowd. The event would raise many hundreds of dollars

Saturday November 28 was the start of the Roman community's monthly festival. First was a roleplayed ceremony at the Temple of Jupiter. Perhaps not the most Thanksgiving like of events, but afterwards was the "Feast of Jupiter," which had lots of food next to the dance floor.

Following a chariot race, the third event of the day fit perfectly with Thanksgiving: the Turkey Hunt. Three volunteers donned tiny turkey avatars, and with the promise of a prize for those who could tag all three, several residents, locals and visitors, went after them. Among those who got all three was a certain vulpine, leading to jokes about how foxes have a natural affinity to taking down poultry.

Also on Saturday November 28 was the "Life Seems to be Normal" event by Kikas Babenco and Marmaduke Arado.  An interactive art show, those coming by to watch were invited to take part. A prankster (or griefer, depending on your opinion) tried to disrupt the show, but the event went on.

Sunday November 29 was the second day of the Roman festival. At 10 AM was the Lectica Race, which was of teams driving litters. I wasn't able to attend that one, but did make "Jupiter's Grand Feast at 12 Noon. The theme of the party was "Modern Gods and Goddesses." The plurality of those dressing were in superhero outfits (maybe they saw the movie "Hancock," in which there was a comparison made).

The winners were Ronijn Resident, who came as Merlin the Magician, and Rasberia Cornelia Daciana (Raspberrykiss) whom was in a tub of golden coins as the "Goddess of Fortune." Unfortunately for Rasberia, one of the turkeys at the event kept walking over to her tub, "Shoo turkey! Go away!" Maybe the bird mistook the gold for feed.

And what would Thanksgiving Day be without a parade? At New Las Vegas in the Isle de Casanova sim, there was a tribute to Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. From Thursday to Sunday at Midnight, floats went down the street.

I dropped by to get a few pictures. One thing I noticed was the floats were designed for residents to ride, on, and one, a "SheilaDDulySweet" in a "Betty Boop" av was hoping on them, sometimes singing a line or two, "Yay my parade! *smiles big* Tee-hee-hee-hee! Boop-Boop-De-Doop-Boop!"

"Tee-hee-hee-hee! It's the Navy handsome fellows! Boop-Boop-De-Doop-Boop!"

It was quite a fun-filled Thanksgiving weekend. Stay tuned for Christmas.

Bixyl Shuftan