SL EVENTS FOR MAY 15-21 (From James Au's New World Notes Blog)

This very full weekend kicks off with two remarkable events that shouldn't be missed!

Premiere of Molotov Alva and Q & A
Thursday, May 15th at 5 PM marks the in-world premiere of the first two dispatches of Molotov Alva on Cinemax; they will also be broadcast in-world at the newly opened Cinemax Island.  These stunning machinima chronicle Molotov’s travels and experiences in Second Life as he searches for the creator.  These screenings will be followed by a live interview with Douglas Gayeton, creator of Molotov Alva. This should be a popular event and it is suggested that you arrive early to secure your seat.  In Cinemax Island (click here to teleport).

NPIRL group founder Bettina Tizzy, Lanna, and Rezzable CEO RightAsRain Rimbaud

Opening of the Garden of NPIRL Delights
Friday, May 16th marks the opening of the beautiful and remarkable Garden of NPIRL Delights. The Garden is a collaboration between Rezzable Productions and the Not Possible in Real Life (NPIRL) working group and draws on the vision and talents of over 100 of Second Life's artists, architects, builders and coders to construct the largest-scale art show of its kind in the metaverse.  The Garden takes its inspiration from Hieronymus Bosch to illustrate: the Underworld, Earth, and Paradise.  This really should not be missed!  I suggest you plan on taking plenty of time to explore, the NPIRL group build spans four sims with fascinating artwork across all them!  A SLURL to the event will be posted on May 16th on both http://npirl.blogspot and http://rezzable.com/blog/.

Thursday, May 15

10 AM – Sophrosyne’s Special Salon: Coming of Age in Second Life
Sophrosyne’s Salon Spotlight Guest will be Tom Bukowski (Tom Boellstorff).  Tom is the author of Coming of Age in Second Life. Tom is Associate Professor of Anthropology at University of California, Irvine and Editor in Chief of American Anthropologist. He hosted the recent atomic-world conference "Cultures of Virtual Worlds," and has been an embedded anthropologist in Second Life since 2004.  His new book is an anthropological study of Second Life's cultures and subcultures.  In Extropia Core (click here to teleport)

12 PM – Rich Idiot Author Speaks
Robert Shemin, author of How Come This Idiot's Rich and I'm Not?, will be discussing his book as part of a series of programs in Second Life. The program will be taking place in the Deco Den on Rich Idiot Island; using the backdrop of the build of this sim which highlights the contrasts of wealth and poverty in the 1930s, Shemin will discuss “the secrets of the wealthy.” In Rich Idiot (click here to teleport)   

4 PM – Greenies Trivia Contest
Rezzable Productions is hosting an inaugural Greenies trivia contest. Think you have good knowledge about the Greenies, their environs and who made it? Then meet next to the giant beer can at Greenies Home for forty questions; prizes will be awarded to the top three players. In Greenies Home Rezzable. (click here to teleport)

Image by Crap Mariner.  Used under Creative Commons license

7 PM – MichelleD Ecksol and Scott at Sunset Jazz Club
Michelle and Scott are a tremendous duo that plays what mostly could be described as acoustic rock, roots, or folk. Married to each other in RL, they bring together fresh and soulful vocals, meaningful songwriting, and instrumental finesse to make for a memorable performance.  In Laurel Arts Isle (click here to teleport)

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Friday, May 16

The Ode Monarch migration hunt is a hunt to see and learn, not to capture.  Pieces of Ode jewelry are put in selected butterflies and then released in a pack of decoy butterflies that are scripted to fly randomly around a sim. These pieces will only be available through the hunt.

The hunt starts on Friday, May 16^th from the Science Friday sim and the Ode butterflies will wind their way throughout SL this weekend. For more information about when the Ode Butterfly hunts are beginning, please click on a kiosk at either Random's WorthWhile Gallery in Ode (click here to teleport) or at the Science Friday sim (click here to teleport). Updates are also available joining the Ode Butterfly Collectors subscription group.

Ana Farber with talking stick

12 PM - International Day for Sharing Life Stories in SL
The Center for Digital Storytelling and New Media Consortium are collaborating to promote the International Day for Sharing Life Stories in Second Life.  They’ve organized a story circle to celebrate this annual day for sharing, listening to, and gathering the stories of people’s lives; they are also encouraging others to organize their own groups. The topic is a ‘miracle story’ (no religious meaning implied); a story centered by what felt like a 'miracle' to the teller by its impact on their life and/or surprise.  In each story circle, each teller will prompt the next teller the American Indian way, by handing her the talking stick.  Free talking sticks are available at the same location as the CDS/NMC story circle. In Teaching 2 (click here to teleport)

1 PM – Mahler’s Symphony #8: The Symphony of a Thousand
Judith A. Eckelmeyer , Professor Emerita from the Department of Music at Cleveland State University (SL: Juniper Eames) will be discussing Mahler's Symphony #8, also known as the Symphony of a Thousand. In Utwig (click here to teleport)

6 PM – Ghost Story Book Launch with Author Gilbert Sapwood
Dale Jarvis, also known as Gilbert Sapwood in SL, is the author of The Golden Leg: And Other Ghostly Campfire Tales. Gabrielle Riel from Radio Riel will interview Dale and he will also read selections from his work. In Brythony Caer Llyr (click here to teleport)

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Saturday, May 17

10 AM – Panel on Storytelling in Virtual Environments
The Center for Digital Storytelling is hosting a panel in Second Life for reflections on storytelling in virtual environments.  The diverse and large panel (panelist biographies here) will bring their distinct perspectives and academic backgrounds to bear as they discuss their experiences to this theme as a teaching, learning, and community-building tool.  In Teaching 2 (click here to teleport)

3 PM  - Auditions for Midsummer’s Night Dream
Act Up Theatre Company is holding auditions for a production of William Shakespeare's  A Midsummer Night's Dream.  Please bring a prepared monologue of about 2-3 minutes length from Shakespeare -- preferably not from Midsummer.  You may also be asked to do a cold reading.  Rehearsals will begin in early June for this mid-August production.   In Itsari (click here to teleport)

3 PM – Whispers Fashion Show 
The Whispers Fashion Show – being conducted by the Atlantis Modeling Agency – celebrates the transition from Spring to Summer with fashions by some great designers:  Elle74 Zaftig of Bellissima; Arikinui Adria of Nuclear Boutique with select shoes from Brian Demme of Polish Up; and Nyte Caligari of Nyte 'N' Day.  Featuring many of their newest releases mixed with some old favorites.  In Artificial Isle (click here to teleport)

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Sunday, May 18

12 AM – International Museum Day (runs for 24 hours)
The Tech is partnering with the International Council of Museums  to host this year's International Museum Day within The Tech Virtual Museum in Second Life. The theme is Museums as Agents of Social Change and Development.  This event will be hosted by curator/avatars from participating museums representing all time zones; there will be information, discussions, building demonstrations and tours of our virtual exhibits throughout the day.  In The Tech (click here to teleport)

11 AM - SL Writers Retreat
A chance for writers of all genres to meet, share and discuss their work. Time can also be used to write or share freelance markets, ideas and tips for publication. This collaborative effort is geared toward helping writers get results. Please think about bringing writing to share; guest readers on hand to read for you.  In Scotland Plarmigan (click here to teleport)

3 PM – Dialogue Writing Workshop
Want to improve your written dialogue? Diana Allandale (Diana Hunter in RL) a well-known writer of erotic romance fiction will share her knowledge and experience.
Where: INKsters Rose Garden,  In Cookie (click here to teleport)

Image by Rik Riel

4 PM – JueL Resistance at Glass Earth
Suzen JueL -  JueL Resistance in SL – is a very talented self taught musician who has been performing since she was 13 years old.  Her bluesy emotional style is reminiscent of Janis Joplin meets Mazzy Star.  In Glass Earth (click here to teleport)

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Monday, May 19

12 PM – Zaphod Theas at Andie & Rg’s New Blueberry Hill
Zaphod Theas began performing music in public at age 14. He plays a varied range of original acoustic and electric live rock performances in SL, ranging from soulful to heavy, with roots in blues, folk, punk, indie & classic rock. In LKY (click here to teleport)

1 PM – Healing Laughter
Alarah Weatherwax  offers a session on the power of Healing Laughter. This class will help provide insights into killing the ego as we learn to laugh at our self and with others. The goal is to spread the laughter around and make the world a lighter place for all. In Pandara (click here to teleport)

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Tuesday, May 20

3:30 PM – Thinkers: Is Transhumanism a dangerous idea?
Transhumanism is the belief that a human being should be seen as a work-in-progress that can be indefinitely improved as our knowledge of the brain and body grows and our technologies become more sophisticated. Critics have denounced the idea on the basis that it is hubristic, a threat to morality and a form of coercive eugenicism. Accepting no limits versus accepting that some steps take us too far, where is the line to be drawn? In Support for Healing (click here to teleport)

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