Today, I received the November 2006 issue of SL Business magazine, which I'm in! Courtesy of Dalian Hansen, who takes some really nice snapshots. He photographed me for the cover, and Ute Hicks interviewed me for the article. A great experience all-'round, both of them were really nice, and I don't normally say this, but they certainly were professional to work with and very understanding about my time schedule, as I hope I was of theirs.

Being as color-coordinated as I am, what really drew me to SL Business magazine in the first place — in addition to Dalian's own stylish Han Translation gifts he creates, is the fact the identity of the mag is strengthened by its orange, white, and black theming. It looks almost Halloweenish, but for other seasons too!

SL Business is available in several formats: I went with the PDF one because it's the highest quality. You can also get it inworld, or even in actual paper (made from trees). That surprised me because aside from the occasional printout, I really haven't seen SL-borne media cross over to hardcopy printing presses. An HTML version would be nice, but I wonder if it'd be a layout nightmare. All the same, I understand the care it takes to prepare multiple arrangements for audiences with varied reading preferences.

The glitchy noise logo — that square with three more double-bordered squares — is choice design too.

About my article itself, I was interviewed about my interactions in Second Life and how that relates to my Asperger's Syndrome — which is funny because I haven't thought a whole lot about AS in recent months. Maybe that's because I did plenty of thinking 2-3 years ago, then decided to do something about it. That's why I'm here.

I'm featured alongside several spirited Resis who have Asperger's and other disabilities, altho it's not fair for me to say "disability" because you know how a really gutsy person replies to that: they don't want sympathy. My inspiration's largely the the cumulation of reading more inspiring stories about human beings — it feeds back! And after a lifelong search, I've arrived at a point where I'm keenly aware of my blind spots (you'll know 'em when you get to know me), have some common sense, and am spreading the inspiration onwards and upwards.

(Aside: a profound transformation takes place for me when I'm being interviewed: casually, I'm quite a sloppy typer, but can adapt when doing something with a formal end result. Altho it's not gussying up my style by any means, it's just adding Capital Letters where they're supposed to be… AND SOME WHERE THEY'RE NOT!)

I like taking quiet time during a day and reading through a mag like SL Business: perusing the pages to learn what's going on, making note of kewl inworld locations to visit next (haven't been to enuff of them in recent times — Daryth's dragon avatars are on my to-go list), and… maybe being too critical in suggesting that SL Biz use Georgia instead of what looks like Times New Roman in the pages. The website uses Georgia, so… just my observation. The word wrap is really nice, too — maybe that's in part 'cuz my earliest memories of, "Oooh! The text can flow around the picture!" come from ClarisWorks 2.0 back in my natal Mac years.

But back to the more important, human overtures of it all, it pains me when I see someone online who's nasty and mean to others. Why's that? First of all, because they could be spending that time lavishing on a loved one and making both their lives more enjoyable, and the world a happier place. Second, I get really sad thinking of all the poor people in many (more than there should be, period) parts of the world who don't have a broadband connection, let alone a computer, a roof over their heads, or even clean water.

Sometimes, when I get really infuriated, I think of movies like Saw, and think if some really cruel humans were put through such terrifying ordeals, they'd feel a lot more grateful for life and less wasteful of their existence. It doesn't take Hollywood horror: many people manifest anger because they have issues in their lives and they're afraid to talk openly about or deal with them. They reject love, when deep down inside, they know they'd rather feel better than worse. Eat your candy, embrace the hugs, and drop the hurt. Please, don't be a jaded jackass. I was, and it sucked, so it led to me being here today.

I observe, hurting your fellow Residents or even abusing Lindens is like a drug addiction or being drunk. 'Cept instead of being an alcoholic, these people are being assholics, hooked on asshol. They need to drop their wino bottles of Haterade and drink the love juice! Okay, that did not turn out the way I wanted to, but there, me, in all of my crazy multiplicity, hath said it.

Be in control of yourself. Don't be a feeble slave to negativity and become its cynical, beaten-down poster boy/girl/thing. And shape your environment using Second Life. It's a sometimes-fragile yet powerful tool: like LEGO bricks, whatever you create may easily break apart if you drop it, but you can quickly reassemble shapes & forms, anew, into a wonder the world has never known before.

And ask yourself:

Use Second Life to deal with it, dismember its carcass, and throw it away as a dead husk. You can look back, but only to remind yourself that you've triumphed.
 

P.S. The hat on my head on the cover, BTW, is Nyla Cheeky's Wonder Punch. I have a lot of hats, and that's definitely one of my favorites. Prolly some symbolic meaning to it, but I'll leave that up to your best judgment.