Former editor Ella is pregnant in real life, and I asked her if she might contribute an update on how things are going. I think that there are many out there who will know Ella well, better than I do, and might be interested to learn how things are right now.

Trine

Just heading into month seven, and my goodness but how I’ve felt older, heavier, less shapely than I did with my previous two pregnancies! Add to that tiredness and a bladder the size of a pea, and you’ll have some indication that I’m not feeling or looking my best 🙂

I duck in and out of Second Life from time to time, but I don’t have much time right now (a key reason why I quit the editorship of SLN). I’ve not previously considered much in the way of pregnancy as an SL concept, and I’ve not given it much thought now. I did look at pregnancy shapes, but they’re too expensive, in my opinion, for what they are, and so I’ve simply tweaked my usual shape to reflect a huuuuuggggggeeeee!!!!!! tummy.

One of the plus sides of pregnancy (at least in Second Life) is the addition of a Mommy Motion AO I picked up for free on the grid (it appears to be L$99 or more on the Marketplace), which is letting me pat my tummy, a lot, not unlike RL, and has also given me a waddling walk, not unlike RL! 🙂

It’s something I’d recommend for all SL mums-to-be.

I don’t anticipate me getting much SL time before the birth, and probably less afterwards, but I’ll do what I can to keep you informed that the birth has occurred, and pray for a peaceful baby that might permit the occasional foray back online from time to time.

However, all in all I can report that baby (no, I don’t know if it’s a boy or girl), is well, and it’s mother is frumpy, grumpy and tired 🙂

Ella

We’re preparing a mini series on ‘black naturism’ for SL Naturist. It seems to us that those who might wish to maintain a black avatar are discriminated against in Second Life, given the disparity in costs between good white skins and good black skins. Typically, you can get excellent white skins free, or have regular group gifts delivered for a one-off group join fee. For those wishing to maintain a black avatar, the cost of a good skin, no chance of a free or group gifted one, the costs appear to be somewhere between L$700 and L$2000!!!!!

In a virtual space where we preach equality, something is deeply wrong here!

Not only are black avatars discriminated against, so too are Asians, either oriental or from the Indian sub-continent. As there are several new global economies emerging in the real world, including Brazil, India and China, we feel it’s time that SL did something to close the disparity of costs in skins, hairstyles and even clothing, to allow an enriching diversity to emerge on the grid.

Multi culturalism enriches all of us, wherever we live in the world. So why does SL often appear so unremittingly white? Often because of the apparent disparity in skin costs to begin with.

We’d like to change this, and we’d like to see SL reflect the diversity of colour in the real world, and allow people of whatever ethnicity to reflect their ethnicity affordably.

If you are a black or Asian avatar, please write to me (you can IM me at Trine9045) and outline your experiences, your difficulties (or ease) in obtaining a skin, hair or ethnic clothing you like and would like to see promoted by us. I have a list of stores where ethnic clothing is available, which I’ll be highlighting in subsequent postings, as well as…I hate to describe it thus…ethnic hairstyles (on the basis that today, regardless of skin pigmentation, many people experiment with hairstyles historically held as ‘white’ or ‘black’). In the first instance, though, the issue is skins, the basis for identifying our avatar as we would wish, from whatever ethnicity. Good skins, bad skins, cheap skins, quality skins, rip-off skins…please, let me know!

I’ll also be trying to identify the reasons why naturism appears to be such an overwhelming ‘white’ experience out in the real world too.

Our ‘Ethnic Season’, of sorts, will commence in February and continue throughout the month as we attempt to unravel reasons why those of black or Asian origins appear to have such a hard time in establishing an avatar that reflects the real them!

Trine

There are an increasing number of beautifully photogenic sims (not naturist) emerging. I’m not sure, but it seems to me that ‘the recession’, the global downturn in the economy which hit all of us, and Second Life, a few years ago is beginning to recede, with people now feeling they have the disposable income to invest in SL.

I can only go by hearsay, as this recession pre-dates my SL time, I think, but it would appear that in talking to others there used to be greater diversity of sims, with many existing for the pure pleasure of their creator building them. There was no real emphasis on making money from them.

That continued right through ‘the recession’, but it was just there were less around apparently.

I’ve noticed lately that more and more sims with ‘no real purpose’ have begin to emerge and you’ll find many listed on the map page of SL.

I’ve blurred the ones listed, so no accusations of favouring a particular sim can be made!

We do try to provide a flavour of naturism in Second Life through photography, of course, without myself or Abi being particularly great photographers. While some of SL’s naturist sims look wonderful, endless photos of palm trees and sandy beaches can look the same after a while, so it’s often good for us to get out to other photogenic sims to do photos beside buildings or a different aspect of nature.

Of course, a rather odd mindset sometimes exists in respect of nudity. You would have imagined that a Second Life would have led to a radical rethink of social attitudes, but no. Many people bring their first life mindset into Second Life with them, and define their SL according too their RL attitudes and thinking without pausing for a bit of a rethink. So a fear of nudity, their gymnosophia, accompanies them into SL.

While I work on the basis that it’s their sim, and their rules apply, I also work on the basis that I’m not complying with their stupid rules, particularly if no one is around. It’s like the old Zen question, ‘if a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it, does it make a sound?’ If I’m naked on your sim and there’s no one around but me, have I broken your rules?

A rocky shoreline! A rarity in SL, it puts a whole different spin on SL beach topography

Hills backing the shoreline, again, something rare in SL. I’m not climbing up, though. Those mountain goats look as if they’d defend their territory

Before I continue I’d like to say that the photos above were taken at The Keys sim. However, this is not to suggest that what I’ve said above -the rejection of nudity in some sims- is part of The Keys policy whatsoever. It’s an ‘adult’ designated sim, which means I always presume nudity is acceptable. I certainly didn’t witness any signs that outlawed it.

Thus I felt it was ‘fair game’ to do some nude photos, as well as more general photogenic shots of the sim, which looks wonderful. Moving forward, I expect this to be something of an SL Naturist theme for me at least, as I try to bring you images of photogenic sims with naturist potential.

Abigail