HI! challenge, day 08

FYI: Ariel challenged me to say hi and attempt conversation with one stranger a day in SL for 30 days and blog about it. Today is day 08. This fyi will appear at the top of each post. All photos and names of strangers are used with permission. Names of established friends are used indiscriminately!!! :-D

Awwww, I met a newb today! And no, ChatBrat, I wasn't preying on newbs in a welcome area. ;-P I was at Designers United 4, of all places. How does a 1-day newb find DU4? This wasn't a fake newb on an alt, this person really seemed new.

Let me just say up front there are no names or pictures this time because the person got freaked out and logged before I could ask. LOL!

So there I am at DU4. I am waiting for the lovely dresses and whatnot of loveliness to rez, because I cannot buy you, lovely pixel thing, if I cannot see you. I am totally not looking at people, I am waiting for the rez. Then I see this in local:

[02:17 PM]  ..::STOP CLICKIN ME SYSTEM::..V3.0: Why u tryna b me!!, Owly Indigo.

omggggggggggg I did ctrl alt t and sure enough there is somebody with a big red ball around them. Erm ... yeah, I'm tryna b u. God, I wish I had thought to take a picture of that person, because she had an av as ugly as her g-dropping stop clickin me system. I was sooooooooooo tempted to click this person repeatedly. So tempted. It was a huge struggle not to. Sigh.

Anyway ... I also see in local that there is a person (I never did discover if it was male, female, other) trying to say hi and chat with people in local. And someone says to this person ...

 im lagging, not a good place to chit chat, sorry.

Seriously? That's how you brush someone off, "I'm laggy"? Though I have to admit, finding a one-day newb at DU4 was weird, and people at sales events like DU4 are focused. The poor newb said:

[02:23 PM]  newb: sorry but i'm new here
[02:23 PM]  newb: and i didn't know
[02:24 PM]  newb: ok bye

/me cries. I'll talk to you lil newbie friend!

[02:24 PM]  Owly Indigo: hi [name removed] welcome to second life ;-)
[02:25 PM]  newb: hi
[02:25 PM]  newb: thnx
[02:26 PM]  newb: this is my first day here
[02:26 PM]  newb: how are you?
[02:26 PM]  Owly Indigo: I saw that in yoru profile!
[02:26 PM]  Owly Indigo: your*
[02:27 PM]  Owly Indigo: what made you sign up?
[02:27 PM]  newb: i didn't know anything here
[02:27 PM]  newb: imvu is so easy
[02:28 PM]  newb: oh yes, there is a HUGE learning curve with SL
[02:28 PM]  Owly Indigo: and I have to say ... people at this event are pretty focused and probably not so into chatting right now lol
[02:28 PM]  Owly Indigo: but ... if you have any questions, I'd be glad to help if I can ;-)
[02:28 PM]  Owly Indigo: and I have a LM to a newb-friendly sim you could explore
[02:28 PM]  newb: thnx you are so nice
[02:29 PM]  Inventory item offered
[02:29 PM]  Owly Indigo: that is a landmark to my sim ... there is a coffee shop there, and some stores, and parks
[02:29 PM]  newb: ok but i must leave now
[02:30 PM]  Owly Indigo: ok! hope you enjoy playing in SL! ;-D
[02:30 PM]  Owly Indigo: see you later ...
[02:30 PM]  newb: i will  talk later

Yay! Ok, sure, I came on a little strong and made the person go ohokIgottagonowbye (which of course I totally did myself when people talked to me when I was a newb), but at least now this person knows not everyone in SL is a stuck up heartless too-busy-to-talk-to-you jerk. I may never see him/her/it again, but I do hope he/she/it has fun exploring SL.

And then I shopped some more! (dance)

HI! challenge, day 07

FYI: Ariel challenged me to say hi and attempt conversation with one stranger a day in SL for 30 days and blog about it. Today is day 07. This fyi will appear at the top of each post. All photos and chat are used with permission.

 

Holy moly, I'm really slipping now. Yesterday I didn't come inworld at all, and today ... well. I was inworld. I wanted to meet two new people today, to make up for yesterday's failure. Ummmmm. I was at the Albatross, people were there, two of whom I wasn't that familiar with. I might have met one before, but neither of us were sure. I was distracted by several different issues, there was lots going on, and I failed to get clearance to post chat and photos. So. Yeah. One of them, the one I'm pretty sure I had not met before, I friended on plurk, so that will certainly be an opportunity for us to learn more about each other later. ;-) Hopefully I will suck less tomorow. But ... uh ... don't hold your breath.

Here's what I learned: Sometimes you might meet someone you met before, so just go with it. Also, well, this I didn't learn so much as know - plurk is a great way to get to know, I mean REALLY get to know, people that you know (or don't know) inworld.

wow, I suck today

HI! challenge, day 06

I has RATHER A SAD. I have not been inworld at all today, and won't make it in before midnight. Therefore, I will be unable to talk with a stranger in SL and blog it. Hopefully I can meet TWO new people tomorrow! We'll see how it goes.

What can one do? RL comes first.

HI! challenge, day 05

FYI: Ariel challenged me to say hi and attempt conversation with one stranger a day in SL for 30 days and blog about it. Today is day 05. This fyi will appear at the top of each post. And starting from this point, all photos and chat are used with permission.

So how did I meet a stranger today? I was hanging around my yard this afternoon, looking at the bunnies and thinking I needed to buy more food, when I noticed a couple of avs rez into FireGOOD!!! and start fishing off the back dock. I thought about saying hello to them, but then I thought, well, bunnies have been neglected and need to eat now. LOL. I got my bunny food off xstreet (omg, so much easier than fighting the lag on the Ozimals sim), and when I returned to SL, the fishers were gone (already!?). But there was someone walking toward the aviary ...

This is Atticus Fang. I said hello and apologized for the unfinished state of the aviary. (When am I going to finish it, anyway!?) He said he thought the owl was watching him, and he asked if this was my build. From there we talked about birds and birding and aviaries and peoplewatching. He found our sim by searching for coffee shops. We also talked about living in a deconsecrated church building, the earthquake in Assisi, the well-deserved popularity of Florence, and Italy in general. I gave him the bookclub notecard, we talked about books and reading, and then ...

[18:16]  Atticus Fang: i am finding that many of the books i dreaded reading as a kid
[18:16]  Atticus Fang: are turning out to be my favorites as an adult
[18:17]  Owly Indigo: oh! like which ones ... ?
[18:18]  Atticus Fang: this conversation just got personal. revealing your favourite books is sort of like baring your soul
[18:18]  Atticus Fang: lol
[18:18]  Owly Indigo: eep, I'm sorry ;-)
[18:18]  Owly Indigo: I got a little enthusiastic
[18:18]  Atticus Fang: no no no its great
[18:19]  Atticus Fang: its not often that i get to have these conversations here

Well, that's gonna change, because he joined book club! Hooray! We had such a nice, though brief, conversation, I felt emboldened to tell him about my challenge and ask ...


[18:20]  Owly Indigo: would you be ok with being my stranger for the day? ;-D
[18:20]  Atticus Fang: heck yeah!

I also felt emboldened to add him to my friends list. !!!! This is the first time during this challenge that I've felt comfortable enough with someone to ask.

[18:24]  Atticus Fang: See ya soon bird lady!

Awwwwwww. :-D


Here's what I've learned: It is amazing how you find common ground when you just start talking! I mean, he had been to my most favorite city in the world (Assisi), how cool is that? That is not something you learn from a profile, it's something you learn through conversing. Atticus, I look forward to talking with you more!

HI! challenge, day 04

FYI: Ariel challenged me to say hi and attempt conversation with one stranger a day in SL for 30 days and blog about it. Today is day 04. This fyi will appear at the top of each post. 

 

This has not been a very SLful day for me ... nonetheless I remain committed to the challenge. I did talk to a stranger today: I got an offline IM that a shop on the sim had been rented, so I sent a welcoming IM and a group invite to the renter. She was offline at the time, and later when I was offline, she sent me an IM that said thank you, and that she had gotten the group invite. That was all. Hopefully we'll get a chance to have a real conversation soon - I'm excited she's joined us! Obviously I did not mention the challenge or the blog, so no chat log or photo.

Here's what I learned: Sometimes it's just all business ...

HI! challenge, day 03

FYI: Ariel challenged me to say hi and attempt conversation with one stranger a day in SL for 30 days and blog about it. Today is day 03. This fyi will appear at the top of each post.

Yesterday, something Sam said (dang, what was it?) gave me the idea to try saying hello to someone based purely on what their avatar looked like, without any profile perving to give me a conversation opener. I planned to do this after I did Fifty Linden Friday, since I figured anyone doing FLF would be FOCUSED and unwilling to converse.

But surprise!!!

[10:12]  Beth Innovia: tag you're it
[10:12]  Beth Innovia: :]
[10:13]  Owly Indigo: I'm it?
[10:13]  Beth Innovia: yup
[10:14]  Owly Indigo: oh! erm ... what's the game? lol
[10:14]  Beth Innovia: tag!

durrr ... I was being very silly. I really didn't realize she was talking to me at first. But it was true, we were kind of chasing each other from one FLF location to the next.

[10:14]  Owly Indigo: OH! I saw you at the other store! haha I remember the cute dress ;-D
[10:14]  Beth Innovia: hehe yeah i think i'm following you :]
[10:14]  Beth Innovia: and thank you
[10:14]  Owly Indigo: but now I'm it! hehe

I can't help but wonder if this is "fair" for the challenge - because I did not initiate the conversation. Nonetheless, it was a conversation with a stranger. I will wait for Ariel to rule on that, and just go with it this time!

So what happened? We talked about FLF and shopping ... she sent me the notecard for "omg that's adorable." It was really pleasant to have someone to talk to while FLFing, rather than just the rapid tp in, rez, buy (or not), tp to the next that I'm used to.

Last time, I felt a little uncomfortable not mentioning the blog, so this time, I decided nothing but full disclosure would do, if I was going to post here about it.*

[10:34]  Owly Indigo: beth, thanks again for the omg adorable notecard ... and may I ask you a question?
[10:35]  Owly Indigo: I am working on a blogging project where I talk to one stranger a day in SL - would it be ok if you were my stranger for today? lol ...
[10:35]  Owly Indigo: I'm basically asking to use your name and a photo of you ... it's totally ok if not
[10:35]  Owly Indigo: it's nice to meet someone friendly in SL ;-)







Ten minutes go by, and I think, "OH GOD WHAT HAVE I DONE!?" but then ...

[10:46]  Beth Innovia: oh yeah definitely :D
[10:46]  Beth Innovia: sorry, had to run afk hehe
[10:46]  Owly Indigo: yay thanks! haha ... it's np, I took a photo before I tp'd away, just in case you said yes!
[10:46]  Beth Innovia: woot!
[10:46]  Beth Innovia: :]
[10:47]  Owly Indigo: my challenge was to say hi to a stranger actually ... but you contacted me first! yay
[10:47]  Beth Innovia: hehe
[10:47]  Beth Innovia: its bad enough we go by our daily real lives without a word to other people, in SL there are no excuses :]

In SL there are no excuses. How amazing a viewpoint is that!? We talked a little more about where we are from, and then I crashed. Hopefully we'll play FLF tag again sometime. Here's the photo I took of her really quickly, she's wearing that cute leafy dress from Miel:

See? CUTE!

Here's what I learned: Sometimes, you don't have to be the first one to say hello. Also, if you are on a hunt or doing something that involves tp'ing from place to place, and you keep seeing the same person over and over ... well, you have at least one thing in common - the hunt or FLF or whatever - so why not acknowledge each other and work on it together? "In SL there are no excuses!"

*OH BY THE WAY I had already decided to do full disclosure with the subsequent people I would talk to before some self-righteous, self-satisfied, shit-stirring and self-appointed interwebs police decided to call me unprofessional, uncredible, rude, and uncool (did I ever set myself up as someone who is professional, credible, polite, or cool? NO) for doing this challenge, without even reading my posts. Aw, see what I did there? I went and judged some people based on very little information. That's no good is it? Think of the children!

HI! challenge, day 02

FYI: Ariel challenged me to say hi and attempt conversation with one stranger a day in SL for 30 days and blog about it. Today is day 02. This fyi will appear at the top of each post. 

When I logged in, I found myself on Tableau, in Wrigglesworth, where the old people av stuff is at. (Yeah, I just said "is at.") And what ... WHAT did I immediately find on my radar but someone with an AWSUM NAME! Moldy Tangerine! I thought, here is the person I don't know that I want to talk to today! Because how great is that name!?

I felt a little shifty though ... she was walking away, and I didn't want to chase her down. That would be creepy. She went into Paper Couture. Oh hey, I had a reason to go there, I needed a slurl. And look, there's a bird ring, I don't have that, I should buy it. Dang, it's cute. And also ... OH HI there is that person with the great name, in the same shop, imagine that, I'm gonna say HI!!!!

[09:05 AM]  Owly Indigo: LOL ... you probably get this a lot but ... I love your name! ;-D

[09:06 AM]  Moldy Tangerine: ha, thanks, was about to say the same to you !

Wheeeeee! And it was a lovely conversation ... she doesn't like dirt, I don't like dirt, etc. She looked at my profile and asked me about the Home Sim and book club ... I gave her a LM and the book club notecard.

So we're talking about this and that, and I get an IM from ChatBrat:

[09:17 AM]  ChatBrat Pippita: Hi Stranger! I wonder if you would like to chat with me and form a community? (PEBD)

[09:17 AM]  Owly Indigo: cb! heheheheheheh

[09:17 AM]  Owly Indigo: I am talking with someone noooooowwwwww

[09:17 AM]  ChatBrat Pippita: w00t

[09:17 AM]  ChatBrat Pippita: preying on n00bs is cheating

[09:17 AM]  Owly Indigo: tsk

[09:18 AM]  Owly Indigo: her rez date is 2006

[09:18 AM]  Owly Indigo: neener!

So CB tp's over and says hi too, we talk about book club, and it sounds like Moldy will come if she can and might bring her sister along. This is like, the fantasy encounter of the project, and it's only day 2. I should also mention that the following was said:

[09:19 AM]  Moldy Tangerine: ah thanks you have restored my faith in people today....it was fading a little today

[09:19 AM]  Owly Indigo: aw! I'm so glad to hear that!

Which made me feel a little guilty. I felt the need to disclose the challenge.

[09:21 AM]  Owly Indigo: well ... I need to be honest with you in that case ... I am on a mission to talk to one stranger a day in SL ...

[09:21 AM]  Owly Indigo: and your name encouraged me to say hi ... and I'm so glad I did!

But I did not go so far as to disclose the blog. And I feel a little bad about that, because I don't want anyone to feel like this challenge is the ONLY reason I am saying hi. I really do want to meet more people, that was the impetus of the challenge. Also, the blog aspect of the project brings up some ethical issues: should I be copy/pasting conversations? Should I be using real names? Should I post pictures?

This time, I decided to go with no pictures. I just don't feel comfortable using a photo without someone's permission. I've used her real name, because the name is what made me think, "she seems cool, I want to say hi." Also, it was a positive interaction. If I have a negative one during this project, maybe I won't use names. I don't know - we'll just have to see how it goes.

Here, have a not-so-great photo of the ring I found:

Here's what I learned: Having a clever name is a great conversation-starter, as there is a good chance the person might be as interesting and clever as the name. Also, it's good to put interesting details in your profile if you want to meet people, as that helps break the ice. I mean, I read hers and commented on it, but she also read and commented on mine. Two-way street, my friends! Furthermore, I learned that I need to be sensitive to how the people I say hello to might feel about appearing in these posts. I suppose I will take that on a case-by-case basis.