Leaving SL

I've no stake in it either way; I merely took a picture from the point under question - i.e., yoru Zen garden.

Please IM me in-world, I may have something that will elevate you and give you some kind of view back. Custom build. For free, because I sympathize.

?? I can elevate myself fine, thank you. Can you elevate my land? otherwise what would a pagoda in the sky look like? the whole point was to use the cliff and landscape to make a beautiful zen garden, with plants, trees, streams, etc... how could I make this in the sky? the land was to be an integral part of it, not something far below.
And please don't suggest putting up a wall to cover the building, I would have to use all my prims (~2000) to cover the horizon.

I want to express my sense that SL is losing an honorable person with your departure.

The building in question is now gone and the land is for sale. I have no idea what may have happened, neither do I care. This does not alter my decision to leave SL because it was only one among many. I'm still looking for the best way to dispose of my land.

Please see my view on this entire thing here:

/120/36/51352/1.html

G'day all, and good luck!

Umm, but you say the building is gone? Isn't this what you wanted? Why are you leaving? If it wasn't the build, why did you bring this to the forum?

I'm just trying to understand. I was in your situation, well the building was worse, but we won't get into it. And I wasn't going to leave. But if the building had been taken down, I would have been deliriously happy.

Ok. bear with me, I will try to put the final nail in this coffin as best as I can, but this will be my last word in this topic.

I reread my initial post in this thread, and I apologise for not being clearer. The lack of details has brought much confusions about my message and I'm entirely to blame for this.

So here for all to read if they care, are the point by point reasons why I came into SL, followed by the reasons why I want to leave:

1- I came into SL to see for myself what SL was. I had never logged into any virtual world based games of any kind before, because I found them too limited in scope. SL appealed to me because no definite theme was imposed on the residents. It is up to each resident to decide what to do with what they get in SL. So I wanted to see what I could do in SL.

2- I know something about Zen meditation, I have been practicing it for a while. I wanted to carry this knowledge into SL and see what would result from it. The experience was enjoyable and I learned from it. I believe it was beneficial to a few.

3- I love to build stuff. It's part of my RL job. And I built some nice stuff in SL, Sorry you can't see much of it now, because of a "return all objects" incident. Anyway, I have a good idea of the possibilities of the world of SL in the building category. I have explored a good part of it, although not all. I have seen lovely stuff and the not so lovely. I have seen malls that are nothing but piled boxes with no flavors and beautiful themed malls build with care and artistry. But as in the RL the majority of build is selfish in nature and greed is the main motivation. Nothing wrong with that, it human nature.

That's about it for the reasons why I joined SL. No, I did not expect to make friends in SL, but I did make a few. And that's a very good thing indeed.

Now let's get to why I want to leave. If you are still reading It must mean that you are either also considering leaving or you like pain

1- First and foremost, I spend way too much time in SL. It's affecting my RL relations with my wife and family, stuff is not getting done around the house and there are many things that need to get done. I need to cut back radically on my use of SL.

2- Its hard to leave SL!!! The reason I spend TOO MUCH time in SL is because I get such a kick out of what I can "do" in SL. Notice that "do" is in quotation marks, that's because anything you "do" in SL is virtual, meaning it has no real existence. the buildings, land, objects, are all just pixels on your monitor. The conversations are not in this category because you are communicating with other people, not simulations. I have enjoyed the challenges of building replicas of RL structures that look real and also structures that would be impossible in RL. My imagination was stimulated in a way I have rarely felt before. And I increasingly had a hard time logging off to go to bed. Which led to reason #1 above. My wife was becoming a computer widow.

3- I did not just spend my whole time in SL building stuff. I also explored a good bit. Flying around in vehicles, as everyone knows, is an ordeal more than a pleasurable experience. If passing from sim to sim isn't trouble enough, you increasingly get un-seated from your craft by senseless "security systems" all over the place. That took the fun out of exploring SL very fast for me. And reading these here forums, I'm not the only one feeling this way. So I basically stopped exploring, I just wasn't worth the hassle anymore.

4- All through the past couple of months, my wife has very patiently put-up with my new "obsession". She calmly listened to my stories and descriptions of all the wonderfull things and people I discovered during the hours I spent totally "immersed" in SL. She watched in amazement as I lost over 10 pounds in three week because while I was in SL, I would forget to have snacks every 30 minutes. She loves me and she knows me. She knew this would not last, and that I would let it go after Iv'e had my fun with it.

5- So I was already starting to be done "having fun with it" when the building in question came into being, blocking a good chunk of the horizon. To most people experienced with SL, it would not have been a big deal, shit happens, things change, impermanence is the only permanent thing in RL as well as in SL... and all that stuff. But to me, it was just the last stone in my windshield. It was already full of cracks, this last stone shattered it.

So there it is, for all who care to read. Be also clear about this: I do not hold a grudge to anyone, not to the builder, who I respect for his integrity and character he showed me during the short conversation we had. Nor to the owner of the land whom I really should thank for kicking me back into reality. Nor to anyone else I may have bothered or offended in any way or shape through my actions or inactions during my time in SL. Just take it like I do; a great learning experience.

And this, my numerous friends, is my last post in this topic. I will probably still check the forums from time to time. Hell I might keep the basic subscription so I can visit the good friends I have made during my short stay in SL. They have clearly expressed their desire for me to stay and I find it hard to disappoint them. I know they will respect my decision to leave, as any good friends would.

Yes, rebuking someone for making a free offer is always the best way.

Enjoy real life.

Pratyeka will be missed. He is a good friend and neighbour, and since I can't replace him or his buildings I hope to keep at least the latter in place The Zen Garden will remain and may yet (gently) grow.

Your offer to assist the OP in elevating his build was the 2nd one made. He had already clarified that this option was not a viable one.