Jul 26 2022

WE’RE HAVING A HEAT WAVE

The temperatures rising and the world is hotter than ever! Earth’s temperature has risen by 0.14° Fahrenheit (0.08° Celsius) per decade since 1880, but the rate of warming since 1981 is more than twice that: 0.32° F (0.18° C) per decade. The nine years from 2013 through 2021 rank among the 10 warmest years on record.

What climate is the hottest? Death Valley holds the record for the highest air temperature on the planet: On 10 July 1913, temperatures at the aptly named Furnace Creek area in the California desert reached a blistering 56.7°C (134.1°F). Average summer temperatures, meanwhile, often rise above 45°C (113°F).

Though the summer season of 2022 is young, parts of the nation already have experienced punishingly high temperatures, extreme drought, wildfires, severe storms, flooding or some combination. Projections from federal agencies suggest more abnormally hot weather, an expansion of drought and well above average wildfire and hurricane activity in the months ahead.

How best to cool off? Why not visit ‘Winter’ sims/regions in your favorite virtual world! Immerse yourself in a cooler environment, take a sleigh ride or ski the virtual slopes of snow packed resorts? Relax by the fireplace and sip on a cup of Hot Chocolate. Winter in July!! Let’s do this!!!

Apr 19 2022

What to do ….

in SL… Second Life. Second Life has become my ‘go to place’ when I feel I can no longer endure the reality of my daily life situation, my true life! After a few moments in world, time seems to stop… when time starts again, I come up from being in sort of a trance and I find that time has not stopped at all. Time has lost it’s meaning speeding up to a warp speed, faster-than-light travel and I am truly shocked. Now one could argue that’s not a good thing to advance time. On the other hand, filling a few hours that seem to pass in the blink of eye could be brain soothing.

One of my favorite things about virtual worlds is that there is always something to do. Always! Alone or if you’re lucky enough to meet some great on-line friends that you can spend time with in world, you can always be entertained. I really like spending time alone in virtual worlds. You can try on all sorts of new hair-dos, and clothes and costumes and for the ladies make up and the gents facial hair or just lay on a beach lounge chair sipping mint juleps and do nothing at all. Just enjoy the views, hear wave sounds, set the sun to sunrise or sunset… beautiful to see, a powerful force, one capable of imparting its warmth on the most hardened of souls.

Seems the most popularity activity in virtual worlds in going dancing at a club (venue). Every kind of music you love is offered by Dj’s spinning the tunes or a live singer crooning your favorite songs. Going to a club is like being in a Cheers episode on TV… where you arrive everyone says “Hello or Welcome” and immediately know your name. We have name tags that reveal our Second Life names when they hover their cursor on an avatar.

♫ Sometimes you want to go
Where everybody knows your name
And they’re always glad you came ♪

You can explore the sims and admire the creativity and builds of lush gardens or a busy city. You can learn to build yourself and make your own garden of Eden. You can ride in hot air balloons with out fear of falling or you can paddle a surfboard over virtual waves without getting sand in your pants. You can fly an airplane or drive a motorcycle or ride a horse (or elephant) around. You can have races with your online friends, and even enjoy some combat fighting with a variety of weapons. You can roller skate, go bowling, play board game with friends, the possibilities are endless.

… and with that sentence I will end this blog and wish you much joy in all of your lives!

Thanks for reading my beloved friends, step in sunshine!

Jan 21 2022

Well, shame on me!

It’s been just a tad over five months since my last blog! Shame on me!! I think about it often but never follow through. Shame on me!! I could complain, my rl life has been so chaotic, the Covid pandemic has left me depressed, my Dude’s Cancer fight takes more of my time, etc. etc. etc. So many excuses have I that I could throw out here! Shame on me!! As you know, complaining has never done anyone any good and is totally 180 degrees past my positive, loving, happy go lucky attitude so instead I do nothing at all. Shame on me!!

Shame: used when you wish a situation was different, and you feel sad or disappointed. I am very disappointed in myself. I wish I blogged at least once a month. I wish I had the self confidence and oomph needed to attract more readers. I wish my life was less ‘drama’ driven as it seems to have been this last year, 2021. As my Grandmother would say “Stop wishing your life away.” Here’s where I inject a HAPPY NEW YEAR 2022 … I’m hoping and wishing 2022 will a grand year for all (and me)!

As I do every year I resolve to blog more often. Big Grin. I try to Blog mostly about my fun adventures and the marvelous regions and people I see as an avatar; many post are thoughts and feelings my mind muses. But, I also keep secret my inworld drama which I seem to step right into without even trying at all. Shame on me!! No one wants to hear about ‘drama’ talk. There are always two sides to every drama and whose to truly know what is real and what is fantasy. Not I. It was drama that lead me to start this blog, true, but I have tried very hard to leave drama behind and share the light.

So I will close this post now with a better attitude and hopefully better blogs to write. I want to write without shame or pride or over-compensation in one direction or another. To write freely. Thank you for once again reading my blog my dear friends. Remember, Step in Sunshine, let the light shine on your face and feel the warmth and love.

Aug 15 2021

nDn Myths and Legends

Every other Sunday, around Noon SLT (Second Life Time) I conduct an event at my Native American role play sims, BL Borderlands. It is the highlight of my existence inworld. Being part Choctaw Indian in real life it means the world to me to carry on the tradition of “Story Telling”. For Native Americans, the telling of stories passed down from generation to generation remained their primary form of wisdom communication even after the written word had spread across the globe. Native American oral storytelling traditions allowed tribes to transmit their mythological, spiritual and historical understandings of themselves and the worlds they inhabited to their children and their children’s children. This all but guaranteed that members of each individual nation would never forget their roots or lose sight of important knowledge that would allow them to continue to exist in harmony and cooperation with the natural world.

In order to make this critical information memorable, Native Americans translated practical prescriptions along with subtle and sophisticated ideas about the Great Mystery of life and existence into allegories filled with heroes and villains, comedic twists and dramatic encounters and lessons learned the hard way through suffering and eventual transcendence.

I research online and find different subjects to discuss and then find different stories that go with the subject to tell the tribal members and friends of the tribe that attend. I do not just tell of one tribe’s myth or legend but include all tribes (there are over 550 Indigenous Nations currently in the United States) that seem pertinent to my chosen subject. It’s amazing to me how many stories are similar coming from the different tribes but also so very different. One thing they all have in common is they leave you with a moral lesson to ponder for days on end.

Through storytelling, Native American tribes shared, preserved, and paid tribute to their early beginnings, so future generations could continue their legacy. With so many viewpoints and creative ideals from the varied tribes, the unique facets of these people are shared and explored by listening to their stories. By exploring these stories, we are able to glimpse into the past, while carrying the ideals, thoughts and beliefs of a nation into the future.

May your life be like a wildflower, growing freely in the beauty and joy of each day. Step in Sunbeams!

Jul 18 2021

LAG oh LAG

I’ve been a virtual world participant for about 15 years now. I love the feeling of operating my avatars as they roam around the fantastic world on pixels and viewing the most interesting unique environments. Fantasy, history, modern, futuristic worlds of every imagination brought to pixel life. But the best part… (to me) is meeting other avatars! From all around the globe. It makes me feel like a ‘international jet set’ person!

I have virtual friends in so many different countries, like the United Kingdom, Ireland, Denmark, Switzerland, Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, India, Canada, and from almost every state of the USA. Most speak English, or text English, and if they don’t we have this handy little gadget called a ‘translator’ that will automatically translate any language into English. OMG… sometimes the translations are so funny! and not even close to what we were trying to say to each other, but all in all we can communicate.

It takes a certain personality to learn the ends and outs of a virtual world. How to operate your avatar, how to dress your avatar, how to get from one place to another, how to dance, how to voice and if you are into a more ‘gaming’ like experience, how to operate the combat tools and vehicles available to use. We all like to joke too about how you have got to be “a little bit crazy” to immerse yourself in these virtual worlds. Recently one of my friends said “Lol… they are all fucking crazy!” when we were discussing a recent drama story boiling over and each drama Queen was trying to explain their action and words to us (Admins of the sim).

To me the one biggest drawback in virtual worlds is the LAG. Sometimes when you try to move you freeze up, then a second later you are across the sim not even close to where you wanted to go or you might find yourself in the virtual void tumbling over and over as you fall to nowheres-ville. Sometimes your screen will turn completely black and you see nothing, hear nothing, and can do nothing! It can get quite frustrating especially if you are in the middle of roleplay storyline and others are counting on you.

All in all these worlds still amaze me that they work as well as they do considering there are millions of avatars running around and enjoying their virtual lives. I believe I’ve made lifelong friends and each morning when I awake I wonder what and who I will see that day. I have a warm fuzzy feeling and can hardly wait to jump out of bed and see what’s going on in my virtual worlds and with my virtual friends. Lag or no lag… I’m logging in!

Mar 24 2021

Running Wild Again

Finally, the pain has gone back into it’s hiding place, although every once in a while if I move wrong or twist wrong it rears it’s ugly head and shouts at me! I’m shouting back now and moving on. Smiles.

It’s a strange feeling not to go on-line daily and interact with your friends and foes. Especially when it’s what you do daily and have for the last eight months, almost every morning without a pause. You lie there wondering who is planning what, who is missing you, who hasn’t even noticed you’ve been gone? You want so badly to log in and shout “Here I am!! See me!!”. You’re nervous about going back like you’re now a stranger to everyone or you don’t know what to say or do when you run into another. It’s like you’re a newbie all over again.

You ponder your character and wonder if you are playing the correct role for you. Are you helping others enjoy the second life they have carved out for themselves? Is it worth the time and energy you put into your character and the planning and execution of your plans? Are you spending too much real life cash on clothes and looks for your character? Are you spending too little? Where will you be say six months from now, one year from now? So much to think about while lying on your back pondering your second life!

I want to run wild again! I want to enjoy my second life! I want to enjoy my friends! I want to be part of the ‘in-crowd’! Things change so quickly in second life. Once I read that four hours of second life time equals a full day of real life time. So it’s like I’ve been away for four plus months, not three weeks. I got a lot of living to make up for! Let’s do this… see ya on the inside!

May 2 2013

MAY DAY

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The first day of May brings to mind vibrant colors, ribbons, dancing, flowers and butterflies while the smell of a freshly mowed lawn fills your senses with memories of childhood days gone by. The last two weeks of April was a most unusual time for Sunbeam. Why you ask? Well believe it or not, Sun did not make it to one (1) musical event (a first I believe for her) during the last two weeks of April. She had good intentions and had plans to go to a couple events she saw advertised and that looked like fun, but alas rl took precedence and she missed the events.

Even still with missing musical events Sunbeam spent lots of time in her virtual worlds busy continuing builds on SunbeamS, Metropolis; Fairytopia, Tundra 3D; Hidden Glenn, Olantica, the Lost World; and Dry Gulch, Lady K & Lion’s Horse World II Island Oasis. Sun even tried her hand at making an art piece, a Spinning Gold Crop Circle, can you hear the Twilight music playing in the background? She was lucky to visit many friends on different grids and took time out to attend the RFL Fantasy Faire event held on 10 sims in Second Life. OMG What amazing builds and imagination!!!! Plus they raised over 15K $$$ for a wonderful charity. Congratulations!

Sunbeam joined another grid last week called Cloud Party, a web based grid, which is a bit different with their building tools but hopefully we will get the hang of it. Sunbeam popped into Kitely grid, and met her friend Minethere Always. After hanging at the welcome center for a while we explored our friend’s bladyblue bommerang regions, which were chock full of Castles and flowers and glowing plants, all of Sun’s favorite things. Exploring! another of Sun’s favorites things is about the most fun one can have in a virtual world.

While exploring on 3rd Rock grid, Sun found some wonderful creations made by her friend ambiant kukulca/Nicolas Tesla. His Steampunk items are truly awesome! A wonderful creator!!! Sunbeam had the best time car racing with Hans Ingen on his region Ingen Lab on Metropolis. What a fun time and the cars went really fast! Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! She may have found a new hobby. She agreed to take a spot of land to build some fabulous city illusion on the track edges. Smiles. Sun did some exploring on Tundra 3D and fell in love with her friend Anan Eebus’ region ‘Unveiled’, its sooooooooooooo cool and icy and swirly and just fabulous!!!! There is also the newest region Stonehedge, on Tundra 3D, a must see! Sunbeam also spent some time exploring on Virtual Highway and marveled at Megan Cline’s Enchanted Mermaid Isle. Then she visited the Na’vi Museum and had fun paddling up the creek.

One evening while putting sit poses in the hotel on Dry Gulch on Island Oasis grid, Steve F called and he showed Sun some darlin’ rides he had made for Abby, Scarlet Rose. We had such fun! It was really great to catch up with the girls on IO too, Kat Ewry, Vickie Day, and a new friend Gracious. Amazing how fast the time flew by. Girl Talk, gotta love it! Another good friend from IO, Kiko Kenichi stopped by the sandbox to show Sunbeam a few of her latest outfits! This girl is just amazing and so talented. She even won some Best in “***” contest at the local pub. (***Black, shorts, hat, mask, etc).

All in all Sunbeam Gridhopped to ten virtual worldz and once again took lots (42) of pictures to share with you my fellow metaverse explorers. See links tab for information on virtual worlds to visit. Happy Gridhopping!

ENJOY! Fly HIGH, seek peace and laugh daily!