Where is the line between cute and creepy?

I spent a lot of my rezday yesterday in a bit of nostalgia by spending the day in my first avatar hopping around the map and landing in a few of my old hangouts. It was kinda fun to be back down to my practically primless, AOless, and freebie laden avatar. I've worn worse outfits, but that old one was pretty bad. I had my cute "Nailbunny" shirt slider-cropped to some odd sleeveless middriff thing, non-prim platform boots, white high socks, and a skirt-layer leather ultra-mini exposing strawberry panties below. Fun times, those were! Xd



From the beginning, I admitted to being a lolicon, here in the forums and inworld. I'm sure it's pretty darned obvious that I like cute and I like to be cute. I'm sure there are a lot of people that would like me to shut up about teh cutenezz and all. =^-^=

But... As a loli avatar, sometimes a kid avatar, sometimes a teen avatar, sometimes an adult, sometimes a robot, sometimes a vampire doll... I've NEVER received the "Ack! Pedophile! Burn the witch!" reaction that other people talk so much about. Reflecting on my past year in SL, I have been around someone from just about every crowd. Even people that opinionate that they find kid avatars creepy in general have told me I'm "okay", "different", or something of the sort. Or, it turns into something quite laughable and fun. (^_^)

There ARE times when I've gone out of my way to shock. I've worn some pretty extreme outfits in my loli avatar. And, people were shocked. But, again, it seems my behavior, dress, whatever... has always been tolerable. I say this, because nobody ever dropped the "P" bomb on me. In general I get comments about how cute I am (or scary if I'm in vampdoll form ^,,^) and it's usually a positive experience for all. (^_^)

OKAY!!! Now on to the question....

Where do you draw the line between cute and creepy? =^-^=

And...

Why does it seem to be that ~yours truly here~ happens to be on the safe side of that line? (O.o)

I hadn't thought about Immy. I don't know you can define a line. Like just about everything it's in the eye of the beholder.

So ask 10 people, you're liable to get 11 answers.

I put a pic of a real life jerboa in my first life tab. Is that creepy or cute? Hmmm?

Okay this is one thread that should get some ears burning.
When adults (who are child avatars) expect all people to play along. I dont mind child avatars but they are obviously NOT children so if one doesnt buy into the role, I cant help feeling a little creeped when I am told I must treat the "child" as a child in public.
When people go way way over the top in relationships here and become total emos about their "hug trophy" etc.
When you read about some groups people are in and you wonder just what they talk about in IM.
Does that help kick off the thread?

I don't see the cute. I find most kid avatars look like tiny adults with some terribly disfiguring health issues.

I wish LL would get over itself already and design a child avatar that doesn't look like it just escaped a set of leg braces.

Heh... I "ick" at forced RP myself. Really, if an RPer is doing a good enough job, everyone can follow along quite naturally. To demand people around someone to comply with their RP is a really annoying sign of someone that just doesn't get it. (=_=)y TOTALLY! Xd

You're not alone... Getting good slider adjustments when half of the sliders are stuck on 0 is an epic challenge to say the least. A lot of kid / loli avatars I've seen can be serious freak-show material. (>_<

=^-^=

I have too much goin on right now, so I'm jes gonna sit over here f'r a bit an watch this one. Hope you find what you're lookin' for on this one, Immy.

You don't even need the word "child" in there. The SL avatar lives smack dab in the middle of the Uncanny Valley. If you want cute, get a Tiny.

/me pants with excitement.

What made you change?



For heavens sake - its a virtual world. We can all live out our fantasies there. Why should anyone be shocked?

OK. There are people who just cant wait to find something shocking. I guess you are just lucky not to have met any.

Hiding behind you?

/me runs away!

edit: sorry, I didn't really even read OP.. Just saw the thread subject and couldn't resist.

... People like you... (O.o)

/me is kidding! XD

Noes... It was a pretty ugly outfit... Still is, really... I have MUCH better clothing now. (^_^)y

That depends a lot on the role being played - if your role is defined by a personality, then yes, but otherwise it's tricker.

That said, I think the child-RP complaint was more about the fact that the rules on child avatars were "forcing" avatars to treat the child AV as a real child in several ways, to avoid an AR.

Ah... Crud... True. Since I've always been a regular at some welcome areas I've made it my own to be self-aware of situations and not make silly requests or ARs on the people around me for being themselves. Especially considering the rowdy crowds in those places. (^_^)

People would still be all about leghump gestures on and around me just like anyone else and I just considered it my place to step away. It's always been the same treatment anyone else got, and because of my own choices, I've always held my own responsibility to keep myself and other people out of trouble. To be demanding or sensitive about it would be idiotic. (^_^)y

Dammint Brann, you owe me a new monitor now.

I haven't met a cute kid in SL yet, so maybe the line is drawn a long way away from where you think it is.

Pep (Maybe we have different ideas of what "cute" is this side of the Atlantic)

Some of the child avatars I have met freak me out as most look like chucky. Some dude with what can only be descibed as the Av of a skeleton of a dog or similar mammal was just sat in my store for an hour the other day without moving. It was an amazing Av but freaked me out after a while so I ejected him. Allot of the furbies look freaky and I dont really find them cute but they dont litterally freak me out.

I cant say I have ever looked at a child AV and thought 'oh how cute'. Generally i think 'freaky' or 'sickly' i.e. too pink and frilly and fluffy with baby talk and what not. In fairness I have not met many child AV's so not really an informed opinion.

ROFL
ROFL
ROFL

Did I mention I'm on the floor???

RUN Forest......RUN!


Nothing really creeps me out, not in SL anyway. I don't really care what others are into, to each his/her own.

I can't relate to wanting to be a kid avatar on any level.....or a furrie or a dragon, for that matter. I am always an adult female because I spose...I'm pretty comfortable with the role I play as 'me' IRL. I have no desire to 'be' anything else. I do, however, change my look quite a bit cause it's just cool to do and I like coming up with different female forms and looks.

Kids don't creep me out (well, occasionally some real kids I've seen IRL have creeped me out....like the 2yo at the Turkey shoot last weekend that was walking around clinging to a shot gun like a teddy bear....but, what creeps me out about that is parents who actually raise their children like that.....but I digress....and no....I don't frequent turkey shoots...it's a long story....)

Um....yeah.....it would be cool if LL just handled the child avatar thing with a bit of class and maturity and went ahead and created more defined slider features to allow for child forms. I don't see the big deal.....I understand all the pseudo implications and yada yada.....but it's a fantasy world....where people can be as they choose....and it really just needs to be accepted as such.

Cute is the litte girl I saw at Gurl6 this morning About 5 or 6 years old, in the cutest dress, spinning in circles.

Creepy is the child av I saw at animations warehouse with "Daddy". She had the cutest little dress and hairstyle...as they walked around and looked at all the sex poseballs.

Can you say....AFK??
Seriously, wouldn't it perturb you to get the boot for this reason from a store? Just curious.

I've seen child avatars in Brazilian clubs and dances of all places. These aren't pole clubs. There are no escorts and very little slow dancing. The kid is usually with an adult. Usually it's a little girl. I've seen chldren's clothing for sale in general Braziilian malls too.

The kids don't creep me out unless they are sucking pacifiers.

What does creep me out are avatarim who are in wheel chairs and avatarim in military uniforms. Sorry, I've known too many handicapped individuals (Usually people my own age recovering from broken bones) in real life, to find imitations of them attractive. I think "what does someone who is really handicapped think?"

As for the military, we've lost over 4,000 service people in Iraq alone, not to mention all those who return wounded. The last thing I need to see is someone wearing my country's unifrom and pretending to be a soldier, sailor, or marine.

If you Google "military fraud" you'll get a lot of information. It is rampant.

I have no objection to people being AFK in my store, they can stay there all day for all I care. However I was working in there and kept walking past this Av which was seriously creepy, its eyes kept following me so i booted it out. The first time I have ever done such a thing.

Im sure one of the reasons someone would create a scary looking AV is to get a reaction. So i reacted. He didnt complain. He sat AFK on the edge of the land for another 4 hours then disapeared.

I havent met a cute kid in real either - that's why I dont have one. And I live on BOTH sides of teh Atlantic!!

First, what is an avatarim? And if it is an avatar, why are you adding 3 more letters to the word and does that change the meaning?

Second. It sounds like you are sayting anyone who wears a military uniform in SL pretending to be a soldier, sailor, airman or marine (Yes you forgot the [low flying ] Air Force).

Maybe you do not know this but there are SEVERAL military groups in SL for military veterans, like myself, and these people do wear their branch uniform.

Losing 4,000 people in Iraq is nothing compared to our war history and is hardly any sort of justifiable support for your being against people wearing your country's military uniform in SL.

And as far as handicapped wheelchair avatars go, I knew someone in SL who was wheelchair bound in RL and preferred to be that way in SL too. Nothing wrong with it except personal prejudices.

It's actually more common than you'd realize... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abasiophilia ... no doubt, it would be in SL. (=_=)y