Maryam Abdallah - Second life: when the first one is not good enough.

Hof's article, My Virtual Life, looks at how Second life, offered some people, literally, a second life. If I sound crazy here, bear with me. What I mean by that is that, some people lost their jobs and they had no money to pay their bills and so they began creating little lives on Second life which helped them to generate some income to get them back on their feet. The article starts off by illustrating how Linden dollars, which are really, a figment of our imagination can be traded in for real bucks, which rings to about 300 Linden dollars for one real dollar. 'My Virtual Life' goes on to discuss the different activities that take place on Second life such as buying land and building your own home (with clicks and not bricks - ah what is this world coming to?), night life, education, and even corporate duties. 

So, did we conclude that a Second life is what we get when our first one is not good enough?

Mmm.. this looks like so much more fun than walking in a real park.

So, last week our class discussion kicked off with the weird videos of random people doing very random things that were anything BUT natural. The video really portrayed what life has become, weird!
Par example, the one that stood out for me was typing on air which I personally interpreted as 'pretending to do something that you're not really doing'. Basically, you may look like you're typing on a keyboard, but really, that is not the case. Similarly, on Second Life, you may look like you're flying around or snorkling under great oceans, but really, you're probably just sunken-eyed, brain-dead, staring at a screen, clicking the mouse uncontrollably, munching on a Snickers bar, packing up the pounds. Not very pretty.

My personal take on Second life is that it is an absolute waste of time and resources! I really don't like the idea of wasting hours, pretending to be something you're not and have things, you don't really have; it's kind of like.. lying to yourself? I'm all for experience. So if you want to discover the underwater world, book a diving trip. Chances are, the money you spend for to be underwater online, you could use less than that amount to get a real experience. However, if it is a confidence issue and you think sitting behind a screen singing online, not with your own voice is going to get you to audition on American Idol then I say hey, go for it, i'm all for positive progress.

Now, this may sound a tad silly but I won't lie to you, if I were to have a go at Second Life, I would like to be a princess. Why you may ask? Well two reasons really:

Reason 1:
When I was younger, I used to watch this show called Australian princess. It was basically about a few women who would come together to compete and learn the ways of a princess; i.e. the way a princess talks, eats, behaves in public, dances, dresses and all the rest of it. A princess gets to enjoy her day doing 'lady' things and dedicates much of her time to important social and cultural issues. Anyway, one night, after the finale, one of the ladies was crowned Australian princess and we got to see a peak into her life. Now I don't remember the details of the finale, but that night, when I went to sleep, I dreamt I was a princess and it was so much fun and it was such a good feeling to be one and I just loved it, ok? Don't judge me. -__-

Reason 2:
Let's be honest, after all our jabber about how Second life can give you the chance to practice what you want to be and give you confidence and all the rest of it.. ok, here is how it works for me: I wasn't born into royalty and that is a once in a life chance/kind of thing. I mean, if it didn't happen, it won't happen; just some basic biological determinism. So no, no matter how hard I practice being a princess on Second life, it's not going to happen! Unless, of course, I marry a prince, but the chances of that happening, I might as well say, I will someday fly!
So there it is, Princess Maryam, with a castle, a courtyard, lady in waiting, tea parties, socials, painting and piano lessons, dinner with the King and Queen... but right now, my little nest is what I love and I am happy with... so no, I am not keen on getting a Second life account.


"Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen." - Michael Jordan

And I agree with Jordy, but I don't think he was talking about a second life!