The Southern Belle

As you all may know already, my husband Tomais is an avid collector of SecondLife machinery and vehicles of all and any kind. I wouldn't go so far as to call it an addiction - yet, but...

Happy Tomais

Anyway! Two and a half years ago we visited the wharves of the Bandit store and saw that Analyse Dean was building a ginormous riverboat. Tomais at once said "I want it!" and I, in a moment of codependency and weakness, told him I would get it for him as a present.

Nice ass!

When I checked in with the creator Anneliese for information on when the boat would be released, she said it might happen after that summer. Well that was two years ago, and Tomais has been taking regular trips to the wharf to check on how things were proceeding.

For a long time nothing happened, but then finally, about a week ago, Tomais told me that the boat was now released and that he was going to buy it. I reminded him of my promise and told him i would reimburse him when I got inworld, because he told me he simply couldn't wait for me to get there to buy it. (Addict much, eh?)

The beauty herself

Tomais has been happy as a ten y.o. with his new toy since he got hit. Learning how to work it and re-texturing it to suit his purposes.

I am the proud portmaster of the boats home port

I have enjoyed a couple of trips on The Southern Belle also, despite the fact that the captain makes me work my way over the Blake Sea (there is no Mississippi river in SecondLife), mostly in unsuitable gear.

My preferred manner of travelling

My actual manner of travelling

The Secret Trekkie

I have a close friend in SecondLife who has a deeply buried secret, which he confided to me not long ago. He is a Star Trek fan but is afraid to go public with this secret because he does not wish to be stamped as a "geek" by those who are so quick to judge others.

Ever since my dear friend joined SecondLife about five years ago he has combined the two passions. Over time he has learnt how to build, script and texturize. What at first must have looked as a weird desk has now turned into the most astonishing, accomplished and thrilling piece of work I have seen in SecondLife.

When you come into the room where he keeps his secret building project you see only a modest desk and a chair in front of it. If you sit in the chair and start pushing a few buttons the desk quickly changes to a Starship console. Pieces fold out everywhere, on top and  to the sides, and screens get turned on showing the most complicated moving digits, warnings on screen and with sounds, flickering images with instructions and astronomical charts and more, much more. In fact everything one has ever seen in the movies and more and better. It is a quite a unique and overwhelming experience.

I have taken a few pictures, but must tell you that I would have needed to film it to do it justice. The pictures do not show the changing screens or the sounds. (In the pictures below I have taken care to protect my friends anonymity by covering him with a hexagon, so that's why you see an ugly blob in the pictures.)

Thank you so much, my dearest friend, for sharing this secret with me!