Just about Finished

I don't know if you ever finish your house in Second Life, but I have everything I need on my island now. I feels finished. There are three rooms, one for sitting and talking with friends, one for sitting at a table with one friend, and another for watching videos. I like the outside spaces better. There is a campfire, tai chi balls, a dock, a couple of small boats, a raft, a float, and a beach with four deck chairs. It's cozy, open, and relaxing. Yesterday afternoon my Va Beach roommates and one of our coordinators came to my real life house and we discussed our conference presentation for VSTE. I'll be putting that on paper and turning it in today. We are also going to apply to present at ISTE's NECC in June. (Scary!) We hope to have an influence on VSTE's presence in SL and pump it up a bit. Al wants to work on building the facility to be more inviting. I want to get more people there and connected. Mandie and Jazmemo are also interested in updating VSTE's presence in SL and creating more activity. We want more prims so we can make it comfortable and a place Virginia teachers want to gather to network.

New House

I said from my second month in Second Life that I would by land in July if I was still playing the game. It took me until late August to make that commitment, but here it is! I asked a friend in SL who I trust due to a personal RL connection, for a recommendation. He sent me to Skipper, who buys and develops land in SL. I "bought" 1/2 a buffer sim. I have learned that you never really own anything in SL. You lease from someone who has leased from Linden Labs. It's yours as long as you pay the monthly tier. With this 1/2 sim I have more prims than I will ever use, and lots of space. I'm also staying in the VBeach House group, because that is a great place for collaboration and fellowship. I want my new house to be my secluded island, a place to get away and not necessarily talk about instructional technology.

Impressive Educators in SL

I can't get over how I can walk up to a meeting in SL of well-known people I've admired for a year or more and sit down near them and listen to them talking about Web 2.0 and teaching and learning. It happened again today. I saw in Twitter, thanks KJHax, that there was a meeting in SL with David Warlick and Alan Levine talking about the upcoming conference in Shanghai. I sat there, one among about ten, and listened to them discuss and banter. Heaven!

A Better Shot of the Beach

Here is another photo. Later I'll add one of me surfing. So fun!

Surfing at Weather Island

Yesterday Southern G taught me to surf! It's so much fun! It's probably the most interesting inworld physical activity I've found. There is actually some skill to it, not just passive animation. Here Bermy and I are taking a break from surfing so we can chat.

The House Warming Party!

We had so much fun! It was weeks after moving in because we had to wait for a day we were all able to be online. We created an invitation, decided on a guest list using a wiki, and loaded the house and beach with fun things to do. Guests played beach volleyball, limbo, danced, and visited a friend's houseboat. We had food, drinks, and a bar inside.

Party Photos

Keyo's Art

Keyo is my friend, Amethyst's, partner (boyfriend). He is very creative and loves photography and building. Today he took some interesting photos of me using a fire box he made and some backgrounds and pose balls.