"One Year Itch" for SL?

I haven't had that absence yet but I'm beginning to feel the burn of it. I think this stems from a partner who's starting to feel the burn out himself. He logs on less and less and I'm feeling pretty much alone these days. I was teaching, and very excited about that, but then there came demands and condescending tones made by one that brinked just this side of toxic, so I removed myself from that arena. This is SL and if it's not fun for me, WTF am I doing here?

I like others here totally immersed myself into SL as a place to escape some really crappy things going on in my RL. The crappy things are still happening, and I seem to have dug myself in a little deeper these days. What's really holding me here is that I've recently purchased/rented a nice 4096 beach and built a workshop. I log on and build and build and build, and I've seen my build skills improve so much that some days I amaze myself. I love doing this. I don't sell my stuff, I want to teach it and this is my goal. There's the keyword! GOAL! I has one.

I'm almost at my 1 year mark, can't even believe it sometimes. For me, not being able to be here daily might be the key to avoiding burn-out thus far. I came close back in the winter, after some personal issues got the better of me, but I never totally fell out completely. Just found myself holing up in my house, taking care of landscaping which needed to be done, got a skybox and started playing with my photography more. That seemed to give me the jolt I needed.

I came out of the state of ennui renewed. And began to be a lot more social than I had been. I even remember meeting up with Czari at one point to take a look at an "outfit" (Dip Me in Bubbles, I think it was ) Made new friends, and deepened current blossoming friendships. Kept making a point to seek out interesting places to visit and stay in touch with those people who I care about most.

Now, I feel my inworld life is quite fulfilling and getting moreso in recent weeks.

Most important? I've learned how to shut it down. I recognize when I've had enough for the day. RL, has it's rewards too

I actually read an interesting article last night which might have something to do with this. It was by Raph Koster, about his attempt to discover what makes things "fun". Which he says is to do with learning to recognise and adapt to patterns, which is in turn to do with learning to operate in the new environments.

The thing is, in most "games", the game is set up so that when you do well, new verbs are added - new things you can do. People start to get bored when instead of adding new verbs the game just starts upgrading old ones (eg, "fireball becomes super fireball". Also, it's the verb that matters, not what's achieved. In Portal (one of the few games I recognise from his list ), early on you have to cross a gap, but it's fun because you do it by using portals which is a "new" verb in games for most people. Nobody's ever said that this part of Portal was boring because you're just crossing a gap, like you've done in platform games since the year dot. So the action matters more than the result.

Now I know SL isn't a game, but still the idea of "fun" applies across the board, and a problem with SL is that it's really hard to add new verbs. New people in SL have a burst of enthusiasm learning the new verbs but after that they kind of get stuck, and it's really hard for residents to add new ones. This is why I'm sad to see that avatar puppeteering has been pushed way down on the to-do list because it would have potential to add many new verbs.

At least once a week, go somewhere you have never been before.

It's a RL goal of mine I try to keep. Works for SL as well.

My breaks from SL have never been by personal choice other than choosing RL priorities over SL, but it's never the same when I come back. Not better or worse, just different.

great point Yumi very well said

Being dedicated to a specific community is fine as is partnering, but for me that would be a major factor in perhaps becoming bored. I would never partner in Sl, although I don't see anything wrong with it, it defeats the purpose for me. I have been in several realtionships, while not partnered, they were of a somewhat committed nature, and in hind sight, they were stifling, through no fault of the other person. It was just it was almost becoming an obligation to log on each day, or to explain if I wasn't going to. Again, this was my perception , not the acts of the other people involved.

Beacuse SL is to me just a whimsical fantasy playland, I like the spontenaiety of what I do. Except in rare occasions, I don't plan on a time to log in or what I will do. I used to arrange RL to accommadte SL time. I would sometimes decline RL entertainment and social situations, just to log on. I don't do that anymore.

We all have different reasons for coming, and sometimes those reasons may change. Nothing wrong with that.

That's an excellent guide to live by. I should do the same myself.

Will take you up on that Bodhisatva That was a blast!!