For those who remember, I used to have a sidebar element which showed that my writing style is similar to the late writer, David Foster Wallace. At the time I didn't know who that was, and since I am a curious person by nature I had to look up some of his work. He tends to be a bit blunt with his views on the world... specifically making fun of the fact most people in today's society have accepted a blasé existence of 9-5 (or more), 5 days (or more) a week, 50+ weeks a year.

I'll admit that my view on life is very similar. I actually quit my last RL job after 6 years of that same mundane life and decided to enjoy things a bit more with the extra spare time I suddenly had. 3 years later, I realize that in order to survive I'll need to actually step back into the workforce in order to survive... BUT I want to do it on my own terms. Sure I could work at a fast food place for minimum wage and develop an even worse view on humanity at large than I already have. Sure I could just do data entry all day until my eyes unfocus and my brain shuts down.

I simply have made a choice not to do that.

I'm a writer and a graphic artist. It's what I'm best at and what makes me happy. Some people enjoy mowing lawns. Others can't wait to go to work and sell cars. As long as that person enjoys what he or she does, who are we to judge? It's quite ironic that those who judge are often bitter that they did not have the same freedom to enjoy life. No matter who you are or what your situation is... there's always a choice.

Here's a video based around a commencement speech Wallace gave in 2005 to some college grads telling them a few things that you often don't hear in these type of speeches... but still good advice even for those of us who are years past that glint-eyed time when we were ready to face the world.

As I've mentioned I would do for a while now, I'm attempting to find some of the more interesting photos I've collected over time and finally get them out for others to see. Some were just moments I wanted to capture at the right second, and others are just amusing pieces of someone's life that I couldn't help but snap.

I don't even remember the circumstances leading up to this particular moment above. I simply remember the outcome of Sequoia Mint wearing a Gecko avatar with a Gun and an IV bag of tequila with the perfect pose/response from the danceline.

Seemed a amusing yet disturbing reminder that even the cutest of characters can have a dark side when motivated.

Happy Cinco De Mayo!

Yes I know it's been far too long since I last placed some words from my brain upon this internet medium...

A lot of "stuff" has been twisting and twirling in and out of my crazy little life (both SL and RL), and sadly it meant letting the blog sit and collect a bit of virtual dust for a few months. I made myself (and a few others) a promise that the blog would not go away like some sweater you got as a gift that you only wear when guests come over. I only ask that for the 4 people who still check this blog on a semi regular basis... just be patient with me.

Anyways I'll be doing a few things on here including getting back into some portraits (yes, Acacia I will get those done), some new and inspiring video links and a project I'd planned on for a while involving various photos I've either grabbed in SL or RL and never gotten around to Photoshopping or posting.

For now... I'd like to leave you all a vid from a recent con where a fan asked Wil Wheaton (yes THAT Wil Wheaton) to make a few comments to her young daughter about how awesome it is... to be a nerd!

Enjoy and embrace your geekiness!

A cute animated vid to go along with a recent talk from Dan Ariely, one of the world’s leading voices on human motivation & behaviour. Certainly makes you think about our perception of cheating.

The topic of this month for Concerned Bloggers nearly made me groan. By now the ASPCA has all but drowned us in TV ads with sad music pumping in the background while images of puppies, kittens and any sort of abused furry baby animal they can find will tug at our heartstrings and our wallets.

I'll admit that I'm a bit of tired of these commercials... and I'm not the only one. There's also even a Facebook Group now called, ASPCA ads make me cry and want to punch Sarah McLachlan. It just goes to show that oversaturation can give the wrong impression.

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Regardless, the message behind the ads is valid. There are places out there that cater to breeding animals in unsanitary environments just so they can make a "quick buck". Many of the other bloggers have mentioned Puppy Mills already, but I wanted to point out that there's Kitten Mills out there too.

First, let me introduce you to my two kids...

This is Sunny. He's an 18 year old Orange Tabby who was a stray rescue from a farm. He's had diabetes since he was 11 which we've had to control with medication and diet. Taking care of an elderly diabetic cat is like dealing with a special needs child sometimes.

This is our younger Black Cat, Miho. She'll be 10 in October but is still extremely healthy and playful. She's a feral rescue that we found at our local Humane Society one casual Saturday. You can't tell by the picture but she has had the top of her left ear tipped to indicate she's been "fixed" in case she ever ended up back in the wild.

Looking at these two adorable furballs every day, it just breaks my heart to think that either one of them could have ended up in a Kitten Mill. Miho would have no doubt been used to breed with (if she hadn't have been spayed already) and Sunny due to his illness would have been put down because he would be "unsellable".

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Often in Kitten Mills, the cats are left in rarely attended pens or cages. Most of the cats' coats have been destroyed and their bodies are infected with ringworm or other diseases. Also common are painful dental issues, infected/ruptured eyes and claws grown into the paw pads. The vet expenses for cats like these often runs into the thousands.

As with Puppy Mills, it's usually easy to tell what places are Kitten Mills or Pet Stores who receive their animals from Mills if you know the signs:

~ The "breeder" is more interested in the price than the welfare of the cat.
~ There won't be any concern about meeting you several times in order to know if you'll provide a good home.
~ The "breeder" shows ignorance of any genetic defects or how to specially care for the breed.
~ The "breeder" doesn't let you observe the kittens or adults, or even let you see the cattery.
~ There is no documentation for the cat.
~ The cat tends to show anti-social behaviour when around other animals or people.

While it may make your roll your eyes for the ASPCA to swoon us with Sarah McLachlan's "Angel" through our TV speakers over & over again... they actually will do everything they can to get these places shut down and for the cats to receive much better care.

Please think of the kitties...

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~♥~ This Public Service Announcement was brought to you by the Concerned Bloggers Association. ~♥~

~♥~ If you would like to become involved, please contact Marleen Vaughan for more information. ~♥~

Ever had one of those weeks where you get hit with so much crap that you just wonder if there's a bad omen on your head?

Yeah that's how it was for me last week...

Starting with the lackluster "celebration" of Sunday to which I posted about already... and leading all the way up through:

1) My celebratory SR Event that I didn't even want basically didn't happened due to poor promotion. Hardly anyone showed up which in turn made me think folks could care less about my contributions and work.

2) Almost going broke because the SR owner didn't pay me reimbursement for 2 weeks of Event Prizes.

3) A RL job opportunity that I had arranged to have a phone interview for... and then they never called. The response to my attempting to email and reschedule? A spam email from the contact.

4) A DJ falling asleep during his set and not even waking up until almost an hour into my own set. Some professionalism, huh?

5) Being called out in VOICE by someone I thought was a good friend about my webcam mic (which I thought was off... and it apparently wasn't) and making me look like such a complete asshole in front of a bunch of strangers that I had to leave.

It's like somehow I've caused some great wrong in the universe and suddenly I'm getting slammed repeatedly in retribution.

I'm almost afraid to go out or log in this week despite already having obligations. There's always a fear that this week will be worse than last. Not sure how it could get much worse... but anything is possible.

I'm a couple days early, but I found it quite a coincidence that as of today, September 16th... I've been a resident of Second Life for 2000 days and as of Tuesday, September 18th this blog will officially be 5 years old.

Not that I've had a ton of activity on here as of late. Perhaps I've finally hit the point that I'm doing "too much in too little time". Not entirely sure.

Today was also meant to both be my triumphant return to Djing at The Listening Room and my official premier DJing for Get Bit Radio. In fact the plan is to have both the TLR set and Get Bit streaming at the same time.

Well I didn't get set up on Get Bit (partially my own fault) when I needed to, and despite some promos going out for TLR... nobody showed up.

So I spent 2 hours like this:

Some celebration, huh? :-/

I wonder if I'm just losing my touch as both a DJ and a Host. It's like feast or famine lately. One day there will be a huge amount of people and then the next there will be hardly anyone.

I guess I'll be spending the rest of my monumental day outside of SL. At least that can't get much worse...

"The Key to Immortality is first living a life worth remembering." ~ Bruce Lee

Sometimes things just fall into your lap that cause you to take a few moments to reflect, and 3 incidents hit me this week that I swear could not have been coincidence.

The first was a chat I had with UC about the individual celebrations Sanctuary Rock has had for some of the longer working Staff. I have one coming up actually for myself, but I really didn't want one. Lainey said I was going to have one whether I liked it or not, however. I decided I'll just get it over with, though now I have complex feelings about it.

On one hand I feel that I really don't need all the hype around me. I've simply done my job in the various capacities I've been given over the years. While it was nice to get some recognition from time to time, I didn't actively seek it out at all except from one person who (at the time) had a hard time giving praise to most people.

On the other hand, I think to myself that after all this hard work I've put in, I should at least get a few pats on the back. To me it feels bizarre for wanting appreciation and yet not at the same time.

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The second bit of info was from a few podcasts I listen to on a regular basis. many of them have mentioned the amount of celebrity deaths in 2012 (and yes I have noticed as well). Some were due to old age while others were due to accidents & illness.

Among those who've recently passed, 2 really stuck out in my mind as far as the subject matter at hand in this post:

Sally Ride & Neil Armstrong

Two of the most influential people in the realm of US Space Exploration in the 20th century. While their contributions would be separated by decades of time, each had a similar view on fame.

They both saw being an Astronaut as part of their job, and as such felt that they did not need a huge amount of appraisal for it. Regardless, both of them have been huge influences on Space Exploration for years.

I can certainly understand where they were both coming from.

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Finally, I took it upon myself to go hear one of Crap Mariner's 100 Word Stories sessions. I know I need to go more often than I do, but I am gradually working on that.

Crap has a similar view that I do about things. We both know that there's no need to glamorize ourselves and just do what we do because we love doing it. It's more about touching others with our craft rather than making a huge fuss over it.

Something struck me especially in this particular session that Crap was doing, however. He mentioned that for a set interviews in SL a while back he asked one simple question:

That if he one day decided to commit suicide, how would he be remembered after the fact?

Certainly a macabre question that would catch many people off guard.

I actually left with that thought in my head... not just about Crap but for me as well.

I'd be lying if I said I'd never thought about pulling off the act. A couple of occasions I nearly did. The one thing that stopped me in both cases was that I was too afraid and that I would leave loved ones behind wondering why. I am lucky that I haven't had those thoughts again for a long time, but I know that the possibility was there at one point.

To answer Crap's original question:

I would remember him as a brilliant storyteller who is able to see the world in a way that many others cannot. He knows how to weed through a lot of the BS that happens in most people's lives. He is also extremely loyal to his friends and loved ones (as long as they don't piss him off, of course). He's also loved every single one of his cats over the years with such compassion that I can't help but smile.

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Not sure how others would answer the same question about me, but I will be fine if I never know...

I will admit I was one of the skeptical ones who thought I'd never get drawn into the Harry Potter craze. I kept saying it was going to be just another silly children's fad that I was a bit too old to get into.

Yeah well the movies proved me wrong on that one. I originally watched them because of the amazing array of British actors playing all the Adult roles.

Actors such as Dame Maggie Smith, Gary Oldman, David Thewlis, Ian Hart, Robbie Coltrane, Emma Thompson, Rhys Ifans, Miriam Margolyes, John Hurt, Brendan Gleeson, Fiona Shaw, Miranda Richardson, Warwick Davis, Julian Glover, Sir Kenneth Branagh, David Tennant, Jason Isaacs, Timothy Spall, Helena Bonham Carter, Toby Jones, Bill Nighy, John Cleese, Alan Rickman, Ralph Feinnes, Sir Michael Gambon and of course the late great Richard Harris....

Quite an impressive cast, right? Each one of them kept me coming back for each film, even though really the stories were about Harry and his classmates. The child actors grew on me over time... but it's the above actors who initially got me sucked into the franchise.

Here's just a little retrospective on how influential the films and its actors have been to me and to us all. It'll make you smile. It'll make you cry. It'll make you realize how one little boy could captivate us all.