OMG!!! When 1st & 2nd Life collide! A serious post with some humorous overtones.

A friend of mine, Mel ( http://chandrasutra.typepad.com/ ), sagely remarked that looking at someone's Second Life screenshots is kind of like seeing into someone's dreams.

You may have visited my blog lately, and if you have, perhaps you have seen the following picture:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v259/Torley_Wong/blog/Second_Life/Snapshot_030.jpg

The eagle in question, I am told by Keith Extraordinaire, was skillfully crafted by none other than the Birdman of Avatraz himself, Psyra Extraordinaire.

Well, guess what happened? It had to happen sooner or later, since I am a magnet for the weird... or what seems normal to me but odd to others.

I was just hanging out at Tony Tigereye's Casino in SL and decided to take a walk for some fresh air in RL. Moments later, I was struck -- almost literally -- with surprise, as I heard and felt something shake the air around me. Panicking, I flailed my arms and did all sorts of nervous gestures like my Second Life does when I say "fun".

When I came around to assess the situation better, what did I see on the path of my afternoon walk, but an EAGLE! That's right, an eagle, had just fallen and almost slammed into me, missing me by very few and landing behind my back. However, unlike Psyra's, this eagle did not continue to go around in a circle, nor was it constructed with warm-n-fuzzy luv out of prims. It had plummeted to her tragic death behind me. It didn't seem to be a very bloody sight, but it was definitely a shocking experience.

I do not have photos but I am trying to find a camera. This bizzare blend of First & Second Life now shakes me up! Will other creations from inworld be appearing at my doorstep? Will I try to script my bed to "change spreads" automatically with a single command? Will I try to levitate and saunter through the air in an effort to sit on a chair on the other side of a room? Will laws of physics go wacky as the two worlds blend into each other?

Only time will tell. It's inevitable!

Check out secondlifeherald.com, Peter Ludlow aka Uri the Terminator has a paper he just wrote on the flow of real life into fiction and fiction into real life.

Great story! I have found myself remembering events and stories from in game when something triggers it in real life. I even had a dream about second life a few times.

Yeah, I've had things like this happen to me. Sometimes I end up caught between the two wondering "where am I?" and end up looking above my head for a floating name.

I remember a little while ago(it's in the New World Notes Journal) how someone had a dream in RL about a completely white room and that dream inspired them to recreate it in SL.

Right now I can't think of the SL meets RL experiences I've had because, well... I'm too tired.

Ha ha ha. Well I say thankee.

Speaking of, blaze, first thing I noticed on Second Life Herald is that there is someone named FAHER CALLAHAN. Any connection to Father?

Goshua: Yeah I'm just thankful to still be here! You told me about one of your dreams, I hope that one doesn't come to pass.

Nick Fairlight: Haha... way cool... back in the day I used to want to use Virtus VR to model nightmares and dreamscapes.

Lol, well that's cool. I end up reinacting some of my significant dreams in SL or even those unusual things you see during the day yourself and you're kinda skeptical about(IE: UFO sightings).

Torley,

Just remember, in rl when in a tall building, you have to use the stairs or the elevator to get down!

Well... personally, i am have rather a hard time stopping myself from spelling out LOL or LMAO out to ppl when i go to laugh in RL... quite bizarre, especially for my 'non internet' minded friends who say wtf is LOL or LMAO... what are you talking about you crazy woman... *sigh* if only they knew...

The fact that an eagle died sucks, much less having to see it happen. I love birds of prey.

Nick: I once heard of a spaceship that came to abduct denizens of SL. Does it still journey around these parts?

Selador: HA, good one! Yeah. That one's a given.

Willow: With some friends, I do this laugh and I'll go "lolololol". Onomatopoeia is so strange. A Korean friend tells me he laughs as "kekekeke", and I have a friend from Africa who goes "jukjukjakejake".

Karl: Unanswered questions remain. Why did the eagle come crashing down near me? Was she coming after me, as a bird of prey? Was she tired? Did she perceive me, in my neon clothing, to be something I was not? Could she smell the candy in the pockets of my cargo pants? Or was she simply old and... wait, that's a good point. How do eagles usually die? Do they drop out of the sky or do they go to a place to retire and sleep?

But as Stephen King says, "There are Buicks everywhere."

I guess now would be a bad time for me to send you any giant phallic things. I have a lovely phallic avatar, it does some lovely things, heheh.

And is that "Kekekekekekeke ZERG RUSH ^_^!!!!11"?

Edit: oh actualy on topic... I've no idea about Eagles or anything of that sort. My guess is, you were at the right/wrong time at the right/wrong place.

Until I can get my broadband connection back again, I am forced to come to an internet cafe so I can at least read the forums.

I am suffering severe SL withdrawal symptoms - at night in my dreams I build wonderful, marvellous, exciting structures - never seen before on SL - which is a bit sad because I am still on level 3 of the Ivory Tower.

As for saying lol in real life, all my friends have got used to me saying it but that doesn't mean they don't think I am completely mad.

I sit looking at the computer screen and confess to sometimes clicking on the SL shortcut just so I can see the log in page. So so sad lol.

Heeeeeelp

Latonia

Grab a copy of Bryce, Latonia... it's almost like SL. I was a Bryce freak before discovering this. Thankfully I dont need to waste 5 minutes waiting for it to raytrace... hurray for rendering!

Torley, Eagles have a lifespan of 15 to 20 years. That she just fell out of the sky like that sounds to me like she was either shot by someone or attached by another bird of prey.

Really - it would be a good idea to report the incident to animal control because if she was shot, they will take great pains (just like a homicide investigation) to find out who hurt her. Anyone who would hurt such a bird deserves to be punished to the fullest extent of the law. (Actually in my opinion they deserve to be shot - but I don't make the laws - good thing for them).

Also if she died of something like Avian flu they need to know so that they can keep an eye on other birds of prey and try and keep them from contracting it.

I know what you mean about attracting weirdness - for me it's animal weirdness in RL. I can be almost anywhere (like in a high rise building) and if there is any animal there they will inevitably find me.

Not long ago I was sitting & watching TV when what I thought was my cat walked into the house, sauntered into the living room, hoped onto the sofa and stretched out on my lap. I did not have my glasses on, so I thought it was one of my cats until my husband mentioned that maybe I should put my glasses on.

Lo and behold - it was not my cat, but one I'd never seen before. Things like that happen to me all the time. There is a raven at work who just flew right over to me on my break and hopped up on my arm. Never saw it before.

In SL I have 2 horses, 6 cats, 3 gators, an eagle, a spotted owl, a dove, a humming bird, 2 frogs, a whale, a dolphin & a raven. Oh and a really cute little dog named Max that I got last night! So in that sense, I guess the two lives converge.

Anyhow, maybe you should report the eagle incident or at least check to make sure she was not shot.

Rose

That's amazing, Torley.
Thanks for sharing.

Me, I'm waiting for the Money Ball to make an appearance in my RL! hehe

-Ghoti

Torley,
I had a similar experience in RL. I was playing SL when I heard a very loud BOOM outside. I went outside to see what exploded and was shocked to see a giant ausprey, smoking, on my front lawn. It must have had a 5 foot wingspan. And when I picked it up, was warm and stiff as a board. Just then all my neighbor came outside. One by one they opened their doors, looked at me, shook their heads and returned to their houses. The whole while I'm trying to explain it wasn't me! It was like that when I got here! Needless to say, they all know me too well and figured it was another one of Schwan's antics gone wrong. Apparently this hawk had touched both wingtips to two wires and got a 200,000 volt charge. My next mission was to try to force this stiff 5 foot bird into a trash can, the whole while looking over my shoulder, waiting for a wildlife officer to show up. Eventually ,with some pressure, I got the lid on the can and the cops never showed. It was just another bizzare day in my life. When I told my friends, one of them suggested that hawk talons make neato necklaces....
Anyway, I just thought it was weird that two of us had rare birds die at our feet while playing SL.

That had to be one of the oddest sights. Imagine all the elderly Canadians who come to Florida to enjoy the great weather and beautiful scenery...and what they find is a local stuffing a massive exotic bird into a trash can. The brochures don't say anything about that kind of thing.

LOL. I should have invited them over for fried chicken later that night.

Oz: Yes, Starcraft. I'm concerned that everything is connected, so it'll all come around.

Latonia: I should go to the Ivory Tower. I hear of it but I've never been there. It sounds kind of like The Dark Tower!

Eggy: Ahhh blessed be Kai Krause, eh? I like how in interviews, he would twitch his mustache and explain how his tools enlocked creative power.

Rose: Thanks... I checked yesterday actually... and there was no blood, no bullet holes... and oh, I should mention this isn't exactly a hunter-swarmed area either. How very strange.

I am a magnet for weirdness but it's all quite "normal" to me. WOW!!! You have a whole SL zoo! So cute... I gotta see.

I'd like cat someday in RL. I figure I'd probably name her after Avril Lavigne, one of my fave singers.

Olympia: You're graciously welcome, one of the cool curls!

Ghoti: Haha... fish? FISH? Money ball? Yes... that would be so cool, to stretch out your hand in an almost distended manner, and then little beacons go dotting out of your palm, and a satisfying "beep" plays when you "Touch" it.

Schwanson: Okay, your avatar cracks me up. That's so great. Yikes!!! "Bird of prey, bird of prey... flying high" like Jim Morrison once sang.. LOL, Ingrid, yes, maybe Schwanson could have informed the visitors that this was a local custom of some sort!