Have you ever wondered what it must be like to be a Linden? I don't think I'd like it, well....the heady power, the sense of creation etc. would all be very nice but being able to take a creator's perspective on some of the things we do here must be quite frustrating, I am sure there are times when they must want to bang pixellated heads together and tell people to grow up.
Imagine, Chris** Linden sits on his/her sky-platform, more thousand feet up than we can imagine and watches......... (imagining opening scene here from.... well, lots of films). The perfectly-crafted clouds part showing Chris' favourite environmentally-adjusted sky and as he/she admires the latest creations on his/her favourite locations, a satisfied sigh escapes Linden lips at the latest wonders below. But then some avatars come into focus. They are on a beach at the water's edge (hmm that wave arrangement needs tidying but Chris tries not to let it get under Linden skin), always amazed at the level of intonation that people manage to get into text, Chris eavesdrops – its in local and he/she is a Linden after all.....
Geoffrey, George, Bungle and Zippy seem to be airing some differences, Zippy seems to have activated some poses to show displeasure, if zips can pout he is pouting! George is seated slightly to the edge of the (standing) group sitting on a purple pineapple and is looking glum, Geoffrey's AO gives an aloof air as he paces and Bungle.....well, he's a Furry and is looking....furry.
Now Second Life does draw odd groupings together – that is part of the joy of it so no one except maybe a newbie would give a second glance to such a grouping and Chris really has seen it all before and worse!
Chris listens and while doing so, wonders about the offline lives these avatars inhabit, he/she has done this often enough to realise that whatever characteristics people decide their avatars will have, it is only a matter of time until their real life personalities become clear, it shows in their sense of fairness...honour if you will, and especially in the way they deal with conflict and that is becoming clear at the moment.
George just can't understand why drama happens, why can't everyone just be nice? He will never understand how people make their lives complicated – never mind not being able to resolve conflict, he can't see how it gets to that point! This argument doesn't affect him directly, but it still upsets him – he is glad he brought his purple pineapple to sit on it makes him feel better.
Zippy just continues to shout his case to any who will listen, and to plenty who are not listening too (not that he notices that). It's by now an old story and to be honest one that will never change, a true “A said/B said” case where people feel aggrieved but will not relinquish what they believe, same old same old.
Chris mischievously wonders if anyone would notice if that zip suddenly got stuck.
Geoffrey paces, caught up in his thoughts, he's glad he bought this AO, it looks good, it supports the air given by the choices he has carefully made in building up his avatar, his hair, shoes all very carefully chosen. He can hear his friends chatting away in the background but is formulating an idea.
Bungle has had enough. He knows his furry face lends him an inscrutable air but he is tired with this circle of events, again and again and again. He thinks that if this can't get sorted out by the people here someone else will need to step in. They are on this beach now because one of them is banned from Rod's sim, another from Jane's and Freddy has made it clear he wants none of them there. He is thinking that an abuse report to a Linden might resolve it but has heard different stories about doing this.
Chris decides this is the point to withdraw, not another AR filed to Linden! The place is awash with them. Chris is thankful that these reports are not his/her problem (Chris is a specialist in certain fancy textures) – phew!!
Perhaps the guys are right, eavesdropping is not good, it's depressing! People never change, it just goes on and on.
…........
I must say clearly here that no individuals or individual avatars are portrayed here, this is a portrait of “Everyman”, a generic reflection.
As I wrote I considered where my own character lay, I firmly believe that we rarely shed our real character when we put on our avatar, it usually comes through. I think for myself (and for many of us) there are many different bits and pieces of the Rainbow present in me, which bit rises to the surface depends on the circumstances.
** At time of writing no Chris Linden exists.
(Rainbow was a children's programme aired in the UK in the 1980's )
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