Results of GA WinterFest 2014 Photo Contest

I have been remiss in my duties towards you, my few but dear readers, and have not reported the outcome of the GA WinterFest Photo Contest, SecondLife section. 

There has been a lot going on in my SecondLife, but the delay could possibly also reflect my disagreement with the jury's choices. Below are the top three in the competition according to the jury's decision.

"Catching Snowflakes"
Lycx Resident
Winner - 1st Place

"Snowshoeing"
Tomais Ashdene
First Runner Up - 2nd Place

"Over the Top"
Benjamin Glendale
Second Runner Up - 3rd Place

GA WinterFest Awards Today at 10 AM SLT

Oh lordie, lordie, this will be exciting, this could be a great day for the the laird and his consort!

There will be an award ceremony today at the GA WinterFest for Best Booth Contest and the Best Photography Contest. 

I know that my Tomais entered into the photo contest by sending in his contribution. I also know that didn't apply anywhere for the booth contest, but who knows, perhaps no application was needed for that!.  

Your transport to the Winterfest sim!

The GA WinterFest is Here!

I am late to the party as I have been over in Copenhagen being soothed and commiserated upon by my BFF Margrethe II, Queen of Denmark. We share a mutual dislike for that other Scandinavian queen. So Margrethe invited me over to her digs at Amalienborg Castle for a few days.

We spent two wonderful days and a night together sharing horror stories and eating fast food and snacks in our pajamas only waited upon by a former who has gone completely deaf.

But I a dallying, on with the real subject of this post, the GA WinterFest that started yesterday and will continue until December 21st.
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The theme of this years WinterFest is "Gay Archipelago 2034" and it will consist of 10 whole days of events around the clock.

For a schedule to all the events please visit the GA WeBlog. You will find the events of the day listed in the column to the left.

Take this ride to get to the GA WinterFest (SLurl).

Once you are there, please visit Tomais' and my booth which you will find here (This will only work once you are there.)

Don't forget to pick up your free gift from "Bock in SecondLife"!

WinterFest Photo Contest: Submissions Requested

As part of the festivities for WinterFest 2014 the Gay Archipelago is requesting submissions for their winter themed photography contest.

Prizes will be awarded in each of the two categories First Life (or as the announcement says "Real Life") and Second Life Photography:

First Prize: 2500 L$

Second Prize: 1000 L$

Third Prize: 500 L$

Entries must be winter themed and must not include nudity.

Sponsored by the GA Winterfest and will be displayed on the Winterfest sim.

Entries will be judged by a panel of three judges.

Rules:

• Must be original work
• Must be winter themed
• Submit a maximum of two photographs, one per category, per avatar name
• Photo-editing tools and techniques outside the viewer are allowed
• No location, sim, or business can appear in the photograph
• No text or logos can be added to photographs

All submissions must be sent to patrickdevonanderson by December 8th, 2014, included in a notecard with the full SL name of the submitter.

It may be a good idea to keep in mind that the Winterfest's main theme this year is "Gay Archipelago 2034", but that's just a thought, I really don't know more than the announcement says, which by the way was forwarded to me by my buddy Nikolai Warden.

SecondLife's Got Talent - 2014

I was talking with my dear friend Garth Raleigh, the former Lead of Gay Archipelago and now an esteemed statesman, when he sent me this press release for "GA's Got Talent". It takes place on December 20th 2014 and is one of the events of this years GA WinterFest.

Garth has assured me that the contest is open to all residents of SecondLife (whether or not you live in the Gay Archipelago), hence my choice of title for this post.

GA's Got Talent - The official rules for all contestants

1. This event is for contestants to get experience with performing and of course to have FUN. And for the audience to see a great show and watch the talented contestants.
2. Drama and 'cat fights' are not allowed. All contestants are equal and we expect them to play fair (this includes ALL 'People's Choice' audience voting' issues. no exceptions)
3. Contest management reserves the right to eliminate any contestant(s) not following contest regulations properly at all times

The Application

• Make a choice what act you want to do at stage. It can be a SOLO or a DUO. Because we expect a big crowd, the second performer can be a duo singer, a dancer or assist with a magical act. 

• For the background of the stage we need a texture or snapshot (landscape format), NOT low pixels. else it looks blurry. 

• Some objects can be rezzed on stage if you are not a pixel size queen. We ask that you avoid heavily-scripted items completely (note - Contest managers will monitor prim usage and take appropriate actions to ensure stable prim counts & scripting behavior during the contest, including immediate return of unauthorized items or heavily scripted items) 

• Please choose a 'stage name' for this performance. Your 'Stage name' can be the artist name or be related to the kind of act you do. 

• Music can be the song you like to perform OR the background music of a magical act. Your music choice should be in MP3 format and will be given to our host DJ to assemble the show stream.

• Your performance/act should be no longer in time than 5 minutes and 50 seconds

• There is no theme... so you can be opera singer, rapper, dancer Rudolf Nureyev or Houdini. 

• This contest bears a 'Mature' rating, as does the GA Coronal Estate in general. Contest management reserves the rights to reject any submitted applications for performance that are deemed in poor taste (see "Community Standards' guidelines in Second Life should you have questions. 

• You will need to schedule rehearsal times for your performance well in advance of the final performance. This will be done through the Contest managers so as to allow normal stage operations, maintain fairness of competition and quality of the overall show.

• COMPLETE AND RETURN the application provided below BEFORE NOVEMBER 20TH, 2014 to Othon Weiland 

The prizes

The winner can win L$5000, the first runner up can win L$2500 and the second runner up can win L$1000.

If two or more contestants get the same votes they have to share the money (for instance: 1 and 2 get each 3750 (5000 + 2500).  

The prize money is donated by the GA community. The hosting estate will supply the technical equipment.

The voting

A contest board will be rezzed for the people's choice. This will be 1/5 of the total votes.

Four judges with knowledge of fashion/costumes, animations/dancing, performing will watch the show and send their votes to Othon Weiland.

The show

GA's Got Talent will take place on December 20, 2014, as part of the Gay Archipelago WinterFest. 

At the start and also at end of the show, when the judges are sending Othon Weiland their ranking, performers of Theater on the Hill will perform. These performers are permitted to take part in the contest.

Othon Weiland

The event is sponsored by the Gay Archipelago and the GA Coronal Estate.

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Contestant Application
Create a notecard named "GA's Got Talent (Your name here)" containing the following information.Name Contestant:
Stage Name (artist):
Song :
File music:
Background set :Set object(s):

Send your application to Othon Weiland at the latest on November 20th, 2014.

GA Winterfest - The Opening

Saturdays in SecondLife have lately meant a lot of strange problems for me. All my remarks in Instant Message and local chat are repeated, any tip I give get repeated also until I leave the sim and my HUD´s and AO´s turn themselves off anytime I try to use them. Frankly it´s more than a little tedious!

If I weren't the most patient man in SecondLife I would complain and rant ferociously, as it is you just get this whimper instead.

Today I had one of my "have-to-go"-events lined up, the opening of the Gay Archipelago´s Winter Festival. My son Guyke was a grass widower (Ziggy was away in first life for one of his hellish weekend work shifts) so I forced the boy to accompany me.

Well, once I thought I was ready dressing and teleported to the party I landed in snow, which really shouldn't have been a surprise to me considering it was a winter festival duhhh! As a trendsetter and fashionista extraordinaire it was of course impossible for me to go to this particular party in a tee and capris, so back home I went to change a-g-a-i-n. I choose to blame it all on my bad cold and my fever, although I should think others will have alternative theories on the matter.

Mitch and Garth, the happy couple

We got there a bit late and missed out on George Michaels and Ricky Martins appearances, but were in time for DJ Avacar´s great set and in time for the two most thrilling events of the party, the northern lights show and my buddy Garth Raleighs proposal to his beau Mitch Underwood.

Luckily - and to Garth´s and the party guests great joy and relief - Mitch immediately and happily accepted whereupon heartfelt congratulations to the happy couple ensued, totally against the rules of the Winterfests ban on chat spam, but no one really cared about rules at that point.

Guyke and I

Winterfest today

 Woot what a line-up Mid has tonight!

Taxi to the event here