Birmingham airport, Terminal 1. The gate for Heraklion has yet to be announced, I have bought the spare batteries and stocked up on Sudoku. I reach for “Cooking with Fernet Branca,” which starts at an airport and whisks the reader quickly away from the masses and up into the mountains.
All is well. See you in a week.
So, I’ve had a go at Second Life. Two gos, in fact - so far I have been picked up and thrown into the sea, told I have a big bulge and offered sex. Now, while I of course felt flattered (I believe I looked rather dashing in my tie-dyed shirt and shorts, set off by the blue hair), I happen to believe it was a bit forward for someone who has literally spent no more than half an hour in the “game”. I’m still not quite sure what Second Life is, but family entertainment it is not!
Update: Here’s a section from the beginer’s guide: “Please take some time reading the Terms of Service (”ToS” for short). Unlike some sites or programs where you can safely press Enter and forget about it, here the residents live by the ToS and it is actively enforced by them - you can report abuse by someone or something whlch violates ToS, and this can lead to suspension or even expulsion from the game - or even a suit against you. We live in anarchy, where everybody can do what he/she wants, EXCEPT violating ToS. The first thing to notice is if you are in PG or Mature land. PG is much more restrictive - no violence, no sex, no offensive language, no running around naked or with “revealing” clothes (or even changing clothes!). If you think this is too restrictive, stick to mature regions and events.”
… which explains things some more. Hey, I’m a stranger in a strange land here - Second Life is being constructed from first principles, to the extent that teh entire world is streamed as it is built, nothing is fixed. All the same, if I do get around to constructing a residence I think I’ll do it in the PG world for now.
