Another Normal Night in Loch Avie

Invasion of the SteamBots!

Thank God Colonel O'Toole was on patrol else who knows what fate might have befallen the Loch, or my person! Or the whisky distillery!

I had just returned to the skies of Loch Avie and noticed some green dots down below me. Thinking they may be friends utilizing the practice area, or some stopping by the pub, I determined that I would flutter down and say a word of hello.

What I found was shocking!



Thank goodness the Colonel saw me coming and sent a secure message stating that he had donned his steam-mechanized persona and was in fierce combat with some unknown foreign behemoth. Dear Miss Virrginia Tombola was nearby on the steps of the distillery watching with wide eyes the clash of these titans.

Quickly I thanked Colonel O'Toole and swept Miss Tombola up to the roof of the public house. From that vantage point we could safely watch the battle in the age-old tradition of the gentry: on a lovely chaise or blanket, with drinks at hand.



It was not long before the battle grew more fierce. Trees uprooted. Steam and smoke. Much grinding of gears. Oh and Miss Tomobola announcing on the State Channel, "Steambot battles in Loch Avie near the pub. Sunday. SUNDAY. SUNDAY!"



I grinned and nodded at Miss Tomobola, then placed the cask of whisky out on the roof for I knew what was going to happen. Guests! Cheering. A little steampunk trash talk. Some threats of Duchess Stick use. And continued fierce competition to keep Loch Avie safe.



In the end, Colonel O'Toole won the night. Huzzah! Safe and secure once again. My thanks, sir!

(My thanks to my other good friend, Iason Hassanov, for playing the part of the villain. Well done sir. Such good fun.)

New Year's Eve in Caledon

New Year's Eve Ball

The Caledon Gaiety Company, Prim Perfect Magazine, Radio Riel and Riel Events cordially invite you to celebrate New Year's Eve in the Independent State of Caledon at the:

Gilded Age Masqued Charity Ball
The Gaiety Theatre - Caledon Penzance

Join us for an all-day extravaganza of formal balls, live auctions, silent auctions and "best dressed" contests! Let's celebrate the new year and give to a worthy cause - "Gardens of Hope"!

* 4:00AM - 6:00AM SLT - Sydney/Melbourne New Year's Eve Ball
* 2:00PM - 3:00PM SLT - Live Charity Auction
* 3:00PM - 5:00PM SLT - London New Year's Eve Ball
* 8:00PM - 10:00PM SLT - New York New Year's Eve Ball
* 10:00PM - 11:00PM SLT - Live Charity Auction
* 11:00PM - 1:00AM SLT - San Francisco New Year's Eve Ball

The Silent Auction will run for 24 hrs starting at 1:00AM SLT December 31st. You can view, and bid on, the items for the Silent Auction in the glass pavillion just south of the Theatre.

Attire: Formal gowns and suits from 1850 - 1910 with masques
Or whimsical, yet tasteful, Victorian period costumes with masques



$500 L awarded to both Best Dressed Lady and Gentleman at each event

The event hosts are donating all auction proceeds to "Gardens Of Hope", an organization that builds greenhouses, tree nurseries, and more in Lesotho, Africa. These gardens are then used as a source of food, firewood and income for several communities in this Southern African nation.

For more infromation visit Better World Island in SL or http://www.solidsaltspring.com/gardens.html .

In case of Sim crash or unbearable lag, we will have Coughton Court in Caledon Carntaigh open for the event as well. Guests can enjoy the simulcast of the event, view pictures of the Silent Auction items, and dance free of lag!

Bu Chòir Dhut An Dealbh Sin Fhaicinn

Only ONE Each Uisge in the real world at one time?? Now that's a shame.




At least Nellie and Nessie know they are safe and welcome in Caledon at the same time.
(but could this be how Nessie found us in the first place?)

Amish Rake Fight and One Wild Rez Day Party

We knew it was going to be fun! We knew that we would have a lot of avatars in Loch Avie. We knew that there would be many jokes, double entendres, and costume changes. We knew Hotspur would be surprised beyond words at the Amish Rake Fight Fencing Game.

What we did not know was just how hilarious the whole night would be...just how much fun...just how many people would show up...and who...and that it would last four and a half hours. What a night!!



First my most sincere thanks to Exrex Somme, my co-host for the affair and the creator of the Rakes. I must also extend special thanks to his lovely wife Callipygian Cristensen for the use of her fencing set and the creation of the Amish Rake Fight sign. And also thanks to Frequency Picnic, who helped get the word out to the Hobos and for providing some decorations for the party, and to Therese Slade, our excellent DJ, who created 3 hours of music based on Hotspur's requests and likes.
Thanks must also go to Gabrielle Riel who assisted with the notifications to the groups as the party kicked off, and for lending her music stream to Therese in order for us to support the number of listeners expected. And Diamanda Gustafson kept the music going for the last 1.5 hours of the night. Thanks so much!

We had a crowd which remained fairly steady at about 25 avatars most of the night, but which at one point swelled to 41 at the party.

High in the skies above Loch Avie on the party platform.

OK - there were 3 or 4 griefers who decided to drop in on the green dots at 600m above Loch Avie. One who seemed hell-bent on bothering the DJ specifically, but whose language quickly drew my ire upon returning from being AFK for around 20 minutes. She was warned and rather rapidly bounced into space...and also reported to the Lindens. The others soon took the hint that they were no longer welcome if they could not treat the rest of us with respect. One idiot actually asked to be ejected from the sim, I suppose thinking that I would not do it. He rapidly found himself being told, "As you wish," as he made his way into no man's land somewhere over the mainland. Even all this did not dampen the party spirit. In fact it made for good story-telling and jokes.

Poor Hotspur arrived late to the soiree as he was having some RL plumbing issues, and did need to be AFK for a few minutes during the festivities, but all in all he was able to speak to everyone who came to wish him well. Thanks again to everyone who attended! It would not have been the same without you there.

And now the story of the night in pictures and a few more words. It really was epic!
*grins*

Waiting for the Rez Day Boy to appear and warming up the dance floor. Conga line started early. :-)

Hotspur joined right in the fun upon his arrival.

Sir Tele and I chat with Frequency (on the right) and another of the Hobos. These Aged Hobos always have the best avatars!

Yet another conga line: Justinian, Hotspur, and I dance as Gabi plans her jump into the line.

Ouch! Frequency! Watch those boney talons!

Exrex and I don our plain clothes and demonstrate Amish Rake Fighting.

Hotspur in his Amish Rake Fight Pressure Suit

Amber in pirate costume and me in my leather costume change watch Exrex and Hotspur compete.

The men in grey.

Pirate Pudding Wrestling

Pirates and snowballs

Darien Mason's meteor shower. Ouch!

Never go AFK in this crowd! The Rez Day Boy reaps what he sews.

The piratical Exrex Somme leads the pirate polonaise.

Darkling, Dia, Eva, and Hotspur

Darkling and Eva

Next costume change....cowboys and Indians (western and eastern). Dobbin does a little dance, too.

Therese Slade

Desmond arrived late in the evening and was promptly "welcomed" by Bardhaven

Chatting with the Guvnah. (Amber, me in costume change - the last, Zealot, Zen) The Rez Day boy is just off camera getting settled into a comfy seat.

What a fabulous night!!!

Blessings On All of You, My Friends

And a very Merry Christmas to those who celebrate this joyful holiday.

Ice on the ornamental tree in my typist's front lawn. December 16, 2007

And from the pages of one of the original King James Edition Bibles* which was given to me by my father, James Fraser Bellambi, having been presented to and handed down from his Scottish forebears, the Story of the Nativity of Christ as told in the Gospel of Luke.

Happy Holidays to all of you!

*for my scholarly friends (which, of course, is nearly all of you) I shall present a brief history of the King James Edition of the Bible in a forthcoming post.

When All of a Sudden There Arose Such A Clatter...

I sprang from the piste to see what was the matter.

Miss Frequency as a pirate and I in me gown had just settled in for a long fencing match.




When what to my wondering eyes should appear but a large blue Tardis falling out of thin air?



Away to the ETC I flew like a flash, tore open the lock with one mighty slash.

(apologies to Clement Clarke Moore)


Frequency and I were minding our own business and getting in some fencing practice at Upstairs one evening when suddenly a strange, loud noise startled us and I turned to see a large blue phone box hovering behind us.

We both jumped off the piste and went to examine the thing - really not the strangest thing we had ever seen in SL - and were entirely expecting to find Miss Terry or Oolon climbing from the machine when we opened the door. But we were very wrong.



As I opened the door, Hotspur fell out of the machine and onto the deck. He seemed to be unconscious, and as we provided first aid to him, I noted that his oxygen tank was empty. No wonder the man had fainted.





We opened his helmet and ensured that he was getting fresh Caledonian air - Lord knows where the Tardis had taken him. As soon as he began to rouse, we sat him up and handed him some Water of Life. Thus fortified, he began to tell us his amazing story.




Unsure what to make of it all, I decided that we needed to go collect more scientific and anecdotal information. Quite frankly as head of MI5, I also felt the need to ensure that whatever had sent the Tardis to Hotspur - essentially inviting him to visit - did not also have plans to send an invasion force to the shores of our fair Independent State.

We all climbed back into the machine and it returned us to this Privateer Space. We seemed to have landed in some sort of warehousing operation for we were certainly on the docks with a ship nearby - bay doors open.

Surveying the area.

Clearly, I thought to myself, we are dealing with highly intelligent beings in this future. For they have been able to make mechanized maid and man servants. "Robomaid" Sounds very promising.

This piloting deck was a marvel in and of itself with all the lights and control panels. We made notes, but at this point did not attempt to make a flight.

Frequency came in and decided that perhaps if two of us sat together in the pilot's seat, we just might have more success with flight. As you might imagine, having Hotspur out the window in front of me, and Frequency on my lap, was just a wee bit distracting. Needless to say - we did not achieve flight this day. We did, however, make some fine notes on the equipment and the surroundings. We will need to study these further prior to any concensus as to the nature of this beings, and what their purpose may be.

We did, however, discover that they may be.....

PIGS IN SPAAAAAACE!

(Author's note: I highly recommend that you take this sim in, as the builds are quite impressive, and the sim in it's night sky is incredibly beautiful.)