Vanity Fair

I know that Birth does sell skins for Aesthetic bodies. But the biggest problem I have with them is that the heads all land up looking the same anyways.

Marianne, the Kalhene Ariadna free mesh body has just been removed from the SL Marketplace due to a DMCA complaint filed with Linden Lab. More details here: https://ryanschultz.com/2020/06/25/breaking-news-second-life-steals-deals-and-freebies-edition-the-free-kalhene-ariadna-mesh-body-has-been-removed-from-the-sl-marketplace/

The Kalhene Ariadna free mesh body has been removed from the SL Marketplace due to a DMCA complaint filed with Linden Lab. Details here: https://ryanschultz.com/2020/06/25/breaking-news-second-life-steals-deals-and-freebies-edition-the-free-kalhene-ariadna-mesh-body-has-been-removed-from-the-sl-marketplace/

Argh this is driving me crazy, I can't pick up the Blueberry gift card HUD from their group at all! Are you saying that there are some sims I could teleport to where this would listing would sort properly with the attachments?

This. THIS. The person who asked me this question is coming back to SL after an absence of 15 years and simply wants to know where to meet like-minded people (in his case, gay bears/chubbies, or failing that, gay men). Doing a keyword search under places for "gay" just pulls up page after page of sex/hookup spots, which is not what he's looking for. The fact that so few people have responded to this thread so far, tells me that there really AREN'T a lot of informal gathering spots specifically for LGBTQ people to meet and chat. OF If there ARE some spots, I would love to hear about them, and I will compile a list as an update to my blogpost as a service to others who are looking for those places. Thanks!

Second Life has seen a resurgence of returning users in recent months, as a result of the imposition of social distancing policies, lockdowns, and quarantines in the face of the ongoing public health crisis that is the coronavirus pandemic. I recently received an inquiry from someone returning to Second Life after an absence, who asked me: Now, this is a puzzler for me. When I first set foot into SL fourteen years ago, I used to frequent any number of gay bars, fun places that were packed full of avatars. Over time, many of those places had closed down. When I replied that there used to be a couple of spots for bears (i.e. chubby or overweight gay men, usually but not always bearded and/or hairy, hence the name “bears”), but that they had long since shut down, he replied: So, I thought I would broaden the question to include spaces welcoming to all LGBTQ folks in Second Life, and throw the question out to you here on this forum: Where are the places in Second Life where lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people can gather and meet each other? Please note that I am not talking about the places where you go to have hookups or sex (God knows, those are easy enough to find!). I will compile all the responses received as updates to a blogpost I am writing on the topic, and I will keep this blogpost updated as new information comes in about community spots, since they tend to change over time. Please feel free to submit your ideas to this thread. Thanks in advance for your help!

My blog traffic has gone up significantly over the past two weeks (my Second Life blogposts are by far the most popular part of my blog).

I love Don Quixote! I read it as a teenager and it is sill one of my favourite novels. And I can relate about the blogging. Please don't be too hard on yourself with respect to feeling guilty. There's no "shoulds", or right or wrong ways to blog. Since April 1st, I have started to use my blog as a sort of pandemic diary, which is so NOT what I usually blog about, which is social VR, virtual worlds, and the metaverse. But some of my readers have told me they appreciate me sharing details of how I am feeling in between all the "regular" blog posts.

You need to move to Canada. It's legal here now. The pot stores are doing booming business during the pandemic.

I will be honest: I have been in self-isolation in my apartment since March 16th, 2020, when I received permission from my employer to work from home. I have several underlying health conditions that mean I could have a severe, possibly even fatal, reaction if I were to become infected with the coronavirus. So even if they do slightly ease the social distancing policies in my real-world location, I will still likely be stuck here until there is a vaccine, which at the soonest would be 12 to 18 months from now. I worry about it a lot. I also worry about my parents, who are in their eighties and live in a seniors life-lease condo. I have suffered from lifelong, chronic clinical depression (for which I receive antidepressant prescription medication and talk therapy from a psychiatrist), and frankly, there have been times over the past month when I have struggled with anxiety, insomnia, depression, and anger (the anger is mostly directed at U.S. President Donald Trump). I find I have to stay OFF the news feeds and social media, because it tends to bring me down. This is going to be a mental health marathon for me, as it is for many people. I believe that we are going to see a wave of mental health issues because of the pandemic and the resulting economic shock. I find my Second Life hobby is one of the things that is helping keep me sane right now, and my overall blog traffic is up significantly these past couple of weeks, most of that related to my coverage of Second Life steals, deals, and freebies. I just wanted to share what's going on with me. I am OK, and I want to stress that I am not in any danger of self-harm, but it has been so hard lately. I even went and set up a second, semi-regular informal counselling session in Second Life with the friend of a trusted friend, who has trained as a peer counselor in a healthcare setting and has worked as a volunteer for a crisis hotline. I just ping her and we meet up at my home in SL and we chat about how I'm doing. I have restricted access to my home, and set it so that nobody outside my parcel can hear our voice chat, so it secure and private. We've only had one session so far, but it seems to be helpful, so we will continue.

Date him? I *MARRIED* my main male avatar! (Keeps me from getting hit on at Frank's Jazz Club.)

And, if you are looking to get yourself outfitted with a mesh head and body for a dancer/escort/customer service representative job, and you do NOT have a lot of money to spend, you might find these guides helpful... Here is a complete and up-to-date list of all the free and inexpensive options for mesh heads and bodies for FEMALE avatars: https://ryanschultz.com/2018/09/24/second-life-steals-deals-and-freebies-free-mesh-heads-and-bodies-for-female-second-life-avatars/ And here is a list of all the free and inexpensive options for mesh heads and bodies for MALE avatars: https://ryanschultz.com/2018/10/04/second-life-steals-deals-and-freebies-free-and-inexpensive-mesh-heads-and-bodies-for-male-second-life-avatars/ I try to keep these two posts as up-to-date as possible. For example, the Meshbody Classic is currently available for only one Linden dollar, and it is a wonderful mesh body!

Oh, yes, COCO has lovely clothes and shoes! And they have not one but TWO group gift walls (with a free group join).

Wow, these are GREAT!

Virtue is also a good place to shop if you are looking for more modest, yet still fashionable, clothing. I also agree with all of Blush's suggestions. If you join the Virtue group for free, you can pick many free group gifts from a room upstairs in their store.