SL Video: "About You"

 

 (click here if the video does not play)

 

 From Zieb Zen in Sept 2021, "This is a gift for my RL/SL significant other. It is our absolute favorite theme song for our RP characters. This video was a real labor of love that I had been planning for a while. It features sass, romance, drama, and dancing. It's corny AF! Hope you all love it as much as I do..."

 

Commercial District Sims Open in Bellisseria's Ridgewood Area

 

 At one of the Meet the Lindens events at the SL22B, Patch Linden stated that there were plans for "a foray into the commercial" for Bellisseria. Today, the Commercial District sims in Bellisseria's Ridgewood community area were open.

The Ridgewood Enclave Commercial Districts are places to shop for clothing, home furnishings, plants, decor items for your patio and yard … you name it.

Are you a merchant? Any Premium Plus member can claim a 1024 sq m parcel and use its permanent building for a shop. Use simple controls to choose a style and color scheme, then add your own lighting, displays, and signage. There’s no purchase price and no monthly fee.

While the announcement was Tuesday, when yours truly dropped by then, the sims were not yet open. Checking the Bellisseria group today, it had been announced they finally were.

 

The commercial sims are:  Scherzo, Highlight, Yellow Brick, Brubeck, Big Toque, Greenbush Hill, Broadstreet, West Martinet, Fortune Hills, Sidewall, and Downbeat. Readers might remember when the Ridgewood sims were first on the map in September 2025, Scherzo was among them, but was closed. 

 

There are seven styles of shops:  Bridgecrest, Cityview, Edgeworks, Gridline, Overlook, Seamstone, and Vault.  They come in either long, 16 x 64, or 32 x 32. They are arranged around a central square, with roads passing through north and south, east and west, with a decorative island with trees in the middle. Around there are signs one can click with information on the sims, as well as a map of Bellisseria and benches to sit on. The tops of the stores are green with grass, and have decorative vents poking through. 

 

Oh, and you need to have a Premium-Plus account to claim one, not just Premium.  

 

No shop that had been claimed was yet complete in the sim I looked at, but were in various states of setup. Some had only a single sign. One had a few vendors. There was one place that wasn't a store to buy something, but an arcade people could play games for free with a tip jar for those feeling generous.  

 

There is a thread in the official Second Life forums about the commercial districts (I admit I haven't read very far). 

 

There may be more on the topic later if details warrant. For now, those who love to shop have several more places to go to.

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Philip Linden Gives VWBPE Keynote Speech, Takes Questions

 

Yesterday, Thursday March 19 at 12 Noon, The Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education held it's Keynote. The man giving it was someone familiar to every longtime Second Life resident: Philip Linden, aka Philip Rosedale, the founder of Linden Lab, the company behind this virtual world.

 

Today, we have the distinct honor of hearing from a man who actually made gatherings like this one possible. Our keynote speaker is a physicist turned coder turned visionary,  someone who looked at the early internet and saw not just a network, but a world waiting to be built.
 

 He founded Linden Lab and created Second Life, the virtual world that has been home to educators, artists, researchers, and dreamers for over two decades. He has since explored spatial audio, open-source VR platforms, digital currency, and even the frontiers of machine consciousness. And in October 2024, he returned to Second Life as CTO, bringing fresh energy and new ideas to a platform many of us call home.

Someone was saying close to a hundred people were in the area the event took place, an intersection of four sims, Philip on a small cliff overlooking the crowd, "I feel like a king standing on a high rooftop *laughs* I see people I recognize, it's the magical things about Second Life." He thanked the educators for their work in this virtual world. He would talk about AI and how it was impacting society, saying at one point a comparison could be made to the Industrial area when machines did the work of the muscle power of many men, "Now we have gone much father with replicating how our mind works. ... the progress was very quick lately ... we are living in strange times- there are tremendous risks, there are more bad than good impacts at the moment."

After the keynote, Philip took questions, and there was talk about not just AI, but other topics such as Second Life, "It's interesting to reflect on the fact that SL hasn't grown as rapidly as we thought or liked." One subject was about how people often rely on facial expressions, hand movements, and other cues in real life but that was absent in Second Life and other virtual worlds. It was also brought up that being hired to correct an AI could be a roundabout way to do the job of a programmer for a fraction of the cost. Someone also joked it AI had an alignment, it would be "Chaotic Neutral." It was also brought up that there hasn't been a real-life Second Life Community Convention since 2011. Philip Linden did wonder if the possibility of doing another deserved some thinking about. 

 

The conference was broadcast live, and may be available to see later on the VWBPE Youtube channel later.  

 

*Addition*: It's available now.  

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

This Saturday at The Science Circle

 

Saturday March 21

 

    ~*~

 

At 9 AM PST  (2 hours)

 

Moon Base Selene

 

Lead Presenter: Vic Michalak / Phil Youngblood, PhD
Co-presenter: Sumo Itano / Natalie Foster, PhD

 

More info here: https://www.vwbpe.org/event/ie-moon-base-selene-lunar-space-elevator-hub 

 

https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Science%20Circle/71/128/30

 

    ~*~

 

    NOTE: Non-members required to register once

    IM Jes Cobalt or Nymf Hathaway

╚══════════════════════════════ The Science Circle (72,129,30) ═╝  

 

VWBPE Conference Starts Today

 

 Today is the first official day of the Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education conference for 2026. A few events actually started earlier, but the keynote is today at 12 Noon SL time, given by Philpi Rosedale / Philip Linden. 

 

 From today to Saturday March 21 will be a number of discussions. There are also some exhibits and a few activities. 

 

 For more information on the conference, go to https://www.vwbpe.org/  .

 

SURL to entrance:  https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/VWBPE%20Grasslands%20Gateway/128/123/23

Schedule: https://www.vwbpe.org/conference/vwbpe26-program 

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

RFL Announcement: Bullish To Beat Cancer Race

 

Event Name: BULLISH TO BEAT CANCER RACE
When:
Friday MARCH 20, Noon
thru
Sunday MARCH 29, Noon
+ followed by 1 hour of dancing and award-giving

Brief Description of Event:
Avatars both large and small can race a "wild bull" along a trail that winds through an environment of four seasons to compete for the fastest times. Go as many times as you want during the 9-day contest to improve your times. Top three fastest racers during the event will win trophies and cash donations to their team kiosks. End of race period will be followed by 1 hour of music, dance and award-giving to the winners.
1st place = $L3000; 2nd place = $L2000; 3rd place = $L1000.
Location:
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Kangean/128/207/2805
TEAMS: ELMF+SHB GEMS 

Linden Lab Announces New VP of Engineering: Jerome Despret

 

A few days ago on Friday March 13, Linden Lab announced it had a new Vice President of Engineering: Jerome Despret. The Lab stated he had more than 25 years of experience in the gaming industry, " and a deep background in building and scaling large online platforms." He has worked at Electronic Arts and Maxis, where he worked on The Sims Online (a competing virtual world in Second Life's early days), and would continue to work on other "The Sims" games. He would also work af Riot Games, Zynga, and Pantheon Platform,

 

Jerome will focus on strengthening our engineering organization and continuing to evolve the technology behind Second Life, helping ensure the platform can keep growing and improving for residents, creators, and communities around the world. We’re thrilled to have him join the team and look forward to the impact his leadership will bring to the future of Second Life.

 

The announcement in full can be read (here).  

 

The Willows

 

A few weeks ago, reporter Netera Landar wrote about a Valentine's Day party at a club called the Willows. Today, her article is about the club itself, which has been around since 2012 and has events every day. She had a few words with it's owner, Faleen Renard, about what led her to create the club, and what happens here. 

 

Read Netera's article in Design. 

 

RFL in SL Video: "2026 Relay For Life - WILD SPECULATION"

 

 (Click here if the video does not play)

 

 From King of Queens Productions in February 7, " This video was created for Relay For Life 2026 in Second Life, celebrating hope, love, and the strength of community. The story follows two teams — Ertina Loopen Memorial Foundation and Hope Floaters — alongside two dinky cats, whose faith is tested as they face a heartfelt question: should they marry, or follow separate paths? 🐾💍 Created with love in Second Life to support cancer awareness, remembrance, and fundraising through Relay For Life.

 

"To vote, please TP inworld to the following Second Life location: https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Kangean/138/124/3211 

 

Events This Week at the Sunweaver and Montecito Bay Clubs, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Club Scorn

 

Here's what's going on at the Sunweaver, Montecito Bay, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Scorn clubs.

Club Cutlass: Pajama Party, Spies, Electronic Dance Music 

Happy Vixen: TBA, DJ Scratch, TBA, TBA, DJ Khyra

Club Zero Gravity: DJ Snowy - Saint's and Sinner's

 

Bouncing Bunny Beach Club:  DJ Snowy - Scalies

Xanadu: DJ Jesse 

 

Montecito Bay:  CAYA, After Dark

Club Scorn: Th 8-12, Sat 2-12

 

Furry Fashion: Celtic/Green, Cats and Rabbits, Scalies

 

Urban Furry :  DJ Juana, DJ Charlee, DJ Whiskey, DJ Vantox

 

Read the schedules in SL Clubbin'

 

Happy Saint Patrick's Day

 

Taken at Cafe Lilardo. The theme was "Best in Green," which led to some St. Patty's looks a little early.

 

By Bixyl Shuftan 

 

"The Last Dance" - Relay for Life Team "Relay Rockers" To Disband At End of Season

 

The list of teams for the Relay for Life has seen much turnover as time has gone on. Some of the top teams from when the Newser started covering have long gone. One that's been around since the start has been the Relay Rockers. This is the team that introduced "Bid Me Bald" to the Relay in Second Life and brought them the Relaystock and "Bid the Lindens Bald." But sadly, the year of the team's twentieth anniversary will also be their last. In an announcement, it was revealed the Relay Rockers plan to end after this year's fundraising season. 

 

The team, which was founded in 2005 and has participated in every Relay For Life in Second Life has decided that 2026 will be the final RelayStock©.  The team itself will retire from active relaying after this season.

The Rockers are dedicating their final season to long-time member Madelyn Majestic, who is currently undergoing treatment for Breast Cancer.  Mady was diagnosed late last year after being reminded to get her exam by the Making Strides campaign.  “Never doubt what you do here is important.”  Mady stated, “Making Strides prompted me to schedule my exam that found the  cancer. With all the knowledge I gained from all of you and the ACS website, I knew what questions to ask and what to expect. As I go through this journey, I’m so immensely grateful to all of you and everything you’ve done to help fight back against cancer.”
 

 The Relaystock will take place from April 10 to April 12. Bid the Lindens Bald will take place Wednesday March 15.

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Newser Nominated For Avi Choice Awards

 

 Remember the Avi Choice Awards? They were held for a number of years until finally having the last one in 2016. But after a decade, they're back. 

 

 We’re so excited to announce that we’re back!  After a long break, the Avi Choice Awards are returning to Second Life.  It’s time to recognize, applaud, appreciate, embrace and celebrate our virtual community with the Avi Choice Awards again.

And among those nominated, The Newser.  

 

Congratulations!  You have been nominated for an Avi Choice Award!  For the past couple months Second Life residents have been submitting nominations, for the Second Life Experience categories, via the Avi Choice website.  After a process of consolidation, you are a finalist and eligible to receive votes. https://avichoiceawards.com/vote-is-open/

 

The Newser was nominated for "Favorite Magazine, Newspaper or Periodical."

 

Votes for this and other categories such as Shopping Event, Club DJ, Region to Explore Through, and others, will be accepted until April 19, "Winners will be announced during the Avi Choice Awards show on Apr 25th at 1pm SLT."

 

Space will be limited at the awards show, so when tickets are available, they'll be sold on a first come, first sold basis. 

The Avi Choice Awards are not about the determination on who is best but rather an opportunity for all of us to applaud our favorites.  It is a platform for us to show how much we appreciate you for adding to what makes our Second Lives full, beautiful and fun.  THANK YOU! 

 

Read more at https://avichoiceawards.com/ .  

 

The Sunbeamer Air Show, And Other Weekend News

 

 Pictures from Nydia Tungsten and Kamida Delec. This weekend saw the Sunweaver Air Show, which took place on both Saturday March 14 and Sunday March 15. While the details on how much was raised on Day Two are not yet available, for Day One a combination of 51,100 for the Sunbeamers and Roos With A Dream combined. 

 

 

There were other Relay events, such as a live music performance by the Second Life Cheerleading Squad. Sadly not all the Relay news was happy as it was announced the upcoming Relaystock and Bid the Lindens Bald will be the last one as the Relay Rockers, the team behind them, will be folding at the end of the Relay season. 

 

In other news, on Friday Linden Lab would announce a new Vice President of Engineering: Jerome Despret. 

 

More on these, and other stories, later.

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Press Release: VWBPE 2026 Conference INSIGHTS 19-21 March 2026 in Second Life®

 

 

The 19th annual Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education Conference, beginning on Thursday, March 19th, 2026, will be an online distributed conference happening in multiple virtual spaces. This conference focuses on the use of immersive virtual environments for educational purposes, including virtual and augmented reality. 

This year we are returning to our Earth build. Each region represents a different terrestrial biome, including wetlands, desert, badlands, grasslands, and forests. Conference attendees will be able to explore 3D immersive virtual representations of these biomes.

The conference regions will be open to the public on Sunday, March 15th at 9:00 am SLT (Second Life Time / Pacific Daylight Time).

**VWBPE 2026 GATEWAY** 
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/VWBPE%20Grasslands%20Gateway/128/123/23 

To the best ability possible, VWBPE provides educational and networking opportunities that are relevant to educational curriculum development utilizing virtual environments and “best practices”. These include

helping to build community through extension of learning best practices to practical application of those ideas and techniques;
providing networking opportunities for educators and the communities that help support education; and
providing access to current innovations, trends, ideas, case studies, and other best practices for educators and the communities that help support education

One of the key challenges faced by the educational community is how to make the best use of new immersive technologies in a way that is sustainable and accessible based on limited budgets available to both instructors and students. Platforms that are free or open source, or that can be shared across a broad audience, are showcased, including methods and research around best practices in their use and applicability.

Our theme for this year is Insights.

The 2026 theme, “Insights”, invites us to look deeper—beyond the tools and platforms—toward the lessons, challenges, and opportunities that are redefining education in an age of rapid technological transformation. For more about the theme, see the blog post here: https://www.vwbpe.org/vwbpe-news/welcome-to-vwbpe-2026-insights.

Join us as we all share experiences and successes in how virtual technologies used in the classroom have helped shape education for the better.

This year's keynote speakers are Philip Rosedale, Ryan Schultz, and Mark Childs. Invited speakers include representatives from Linden Lab, and many of the Thinkerer Award winners. 

The VWBPE conference keynote speakers and their respective presentations are featured on the conference website (http://vwbpe.org), along with a program of exciting presentations, social activities, and networking events that will set extraordinary discussions in motion.  

The VWBPE Immersive Experiences showcase unique and interesting work being conducted across the metaverse. We invite you to join us as we explore eleven interactive and engaging locations across five virtual environments. The Immersive Experiences are scheduled from March 14th through April 1st (exclusive of the conference dates). Details and access instructions for the experiences are found at https://www.vwbpe.org/conference/vwbpe26-program.   

Additionally, this open and free conference would not be possible without the generous contributions of our VWBPE sponsors. https://www.vwbpe.org/vwbpe-2026-sponsors.   

The Rockcliffe Registration Portal is open for people to register new Second Life® avatars and find out more about the VWBPE conference in-world. Go to https://www.enroll.onl/secondlife.php . The instructions are there to get you and your friends started at this educator-friendly newcomers’ region in Second Life®.

The full conference program is online here: https://www.vwbpe.org/conference/vwbpe26-program. 

You can also view presentations live on YouTube at http://vwbpe.org/watch. 

All of the conference events will be in Second Life® this year, and the locations are included in the listings. When you click on a conference event and click Add to Calendar, you can add the event to your own calendar (Google and more).

NOTE: Daylight Savings Time
In most of the United States and Canada (and in Second Life), Daylight Savings Time is in effect as of 8 March 2026. In Europe, Great Britain, and many other locations, DST is in effect as of 29 March, 2026, after the conference begins. Check this page to find out when (and if) a time change is in effect for you: https://www.timeanddate.com/time/dst/2026.html.


**VWBPE 2026 GATEWAY**
SLurl: 
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/VWBPE%20Grasslands%20Gateway/128/123/23 

**VWBPE 2026 SOCIAL VISITOR CENTER** http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/VWBPE%20Wetlands%20Marsh/175/158/21 


**KEYNOTES**
https://www.vwbpe.org/conference/vwbpe-2026-keynotes  

KEYNOTE:
Philip Rosedale / SL: Philip Linden
CTO, Linden Lab
Thursday 19 March 2026
12:00 pm noon SLT @ VWBPE Auditorium

KEYNOTE: 
Ryan Schultz
Science & Agriculture Librarian, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg
Friday 20 March 2026
9:00 am SLT @ VWBPE Auditorium

KEYNOTE:
Mark Childs / SL: Gann McGann
Senior Learning Designer, University of Durham (Durham UK)
Saturday 21 March 2026
9:00 am SLT @ VWBPE Auditorium


**INVITED SPEAKERS**

ABOVE THE BOOK: Catching Up with the Lindens
Host: Kevin Feenan / Phelan Corrimal
Linden Lab Guests: TBA
Friday 20 March 2026
1:00pm SLT @ VWBPE Auditorium

ABOVE THE BOOK: Catching up with the Thinkerers
Lynne Berrett / Lissena (Wisdomseeker)
VWBPE 2021 Thinkerer
Saturday 21 March 2026
3:00 pm SLT @ VWBPE Auditorium


**WEB PAGES**

Conference Information: http://vwbpe.org 
Program: https://www.vwbpe.org/conference/vwbpe26-program   
Registration: http://vwb.pe/register  
Sponsors: https://www.vwbpe.org/vwbpe-2026-sponsors 
Rockcliffe Gateway to Second Life®: https://www.enroll.onl/secondlife.php 
Watch VWBPE Livestream: https://www.vwbpe.org/watch 

**MAJOR SPONSORS**

Linden Lab
https://www.lindenlab.com/

Rockcliffe University Consortium
https://urockcliffe.com/ 

Knomaze Corporation
https://knomaze.com/ 

Virtual Ability
https://virtualability.org/ 

Agile Dimensions
https://www.agiledimensions.com/blog/ 

Whole Brain Health
https://www.agelessmindproject.org/  


**CONTACT**
Bevan Whitfield
VWBPE Communications Chair
marketing@vwbpe.com 

Cartoon of The Day: Dragons At The Air Show

 

 Taken at the RFL Sunbeamer & Roos Air Show (which raked in 50,000 L on Day One). Among those in the audience were two dragons. Why weren't they flying too? One very good reason came to mind

 

By Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Advertisement: The FREELY Couples' Shared Motion System

 

By Bixyl Shuftan
 

For couples in Second Life, there are a number of things they can do together. They can dance at clubs under a couples danceball . They can sail in a boat seated together.  But they can't usually do much else. A very few parks offer a couples walk poseball, but this isn't an option in almost all of the virtual world. And nowhere can you swim together (an option merfolk pairs should enjoy), or fly together (an option a couple with winged avatars should like). 
 

With this in mind, Wisdom d'Avi Σ (Wisdom Davi) has come up with a solution that can be used most anywhere: FREELY.
 
I interviewed Wisdom, and her partner Oxi (KingOfNorway Oxidor), about the system. She would describe it as, "FREELY is a PG & adult shared motion system for couples that transforms movement into connection. It lets couples move in perfect sync — walking, flying, swimming, running, dancing, and being intimate…. with smoothness and effortless control." Oxi commented, "Basically it allows a couple to get on, spend a couple hours doing whatever couple do and never have to get off it. It's also condifugable, That is, you can add about as many animations as you want." Wisdom added, "peeps will be able to add their own anims and actually change their menu, etc."
 

Oxi described how it could be used, " You want to sit and watch the sunset, fly to the nearby island, stroll through the woods and find a nice glen to sit down and talk, sit on a bench by the path, without having to jump off, swim across the lake and walk out the other side, sit on the couch and watch TV and then walk upstairs to the bedroom, (it's) a relationship builder... you just never have to let go." "FREELY is easy on sim crossings," Wisdom added. Oxi went on, "Oh, and by the way - its has shared control. So either partner can control the motion, and the animation selection." 
 
Oxi did go on to say there was one catch, "It does have the limitation that it has to be rezzed and sat on. So in venues that are no-rez, it cannot be rezzed and used. But if already on it, you can use object entry."
 

A couple could use FREELY to dance. I asked how many dances did it have. Wisdom told me it had 28, though Oxi stated more could be added. He went on to say, "It has an autopilot so that you can chat while walking."

At one point, they decided to demonstrate. There was a demo FREELY on the wall nearby, and they clicked, rezzed it, and got on. They did a few dances at first, showing different styles, Oxi commenting, "ow, I dint even know I could do those moves...." Then they switched over to walking mode, going down the street in sync. They then looked for a bench to sit on, Wisdom commenting, "Actually we can use the bench sit to also sit on the wall, but that takes a little practice. To sit on a bench or furniture you need to walk up to it lock FREELY and choose the correct sit pose, then use the arrows for fine alignment" Oxi remarked, "The thing that is nice is that you are not at the mercy of the bench animator. The sitting animations are all in FREELY. So they work on any bench, or bed, or steps, or wall."

At one point, Oxi had to step away from the keyboard, This left Wisdom in charge. She walked down the street, then to the beach. She then went to demonstrate the swimming animations, but there was one detail, "I can't undress Oxi," so the clothes were left on. Eventually they came back to shore, and soon after Oxi returned, and Wisdom explained what happened, grinning, "We went for swim babe. You're all wet."
 

They did say that it there's a significant difference in height between the two people using FREELY, there'd have to be some one-time manual adjustments made. Also, "The idea that it needs rez able location may sound like a limitation, but I have discovered that there are lots of places that are rez able, and also the mainland has REZ zones, which makes mainland exploration really appealing. Also, many really nice sim allow you to join their group free, so you can rez."

 

Wisdom would explain that FREELY also had intimate pose menus with Adult animations, "It's Intimacy in Motion. ... It works in skyboxes, and dungeons." But since the Newser is a Safe For Work publication, there couldn't be neither pictures or very detailed explanations. 

Wisdom explained that FREELY was still being worked on for some small improvements, "We are working on a couple little improvements to make it totally shared experience and some smoothing of the animations."

Of the price, the non-demo version is 3968L.  
 
As for how Wisdom came up with the idea, that is it's own story. 
 
So for an all-purpose, modifiable, and very versatile couples motion system, consider FREELY by Wisdom d'Avi.
 
Bixyl Shuftan 

_________________________

For more information on FREELY visit the website https://gridwise.company/freely

Step into FREELY’s world at the following demo locations:

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Locus%20Amoenus/54/21/24/
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/London%20City/192/245/24
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Solace%20Dreams/64/22/22
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Guanacaste/235/21/25
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Noir%20Wen/58/90/23
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/FairChang%20Ensenada/219/253/22
 

Reminder: Sunbeamer Air Show Today

 

 Just a reminder. Today is the day of the Relay Team Sunbeamer's annual air show. The fun starts at 10 AM. There will be DJ events, air squadron acrobatics, game such as the bicycle blimp race, and more.  

 

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Sunlight%20Bay/121/169/22 

 

Over 170,000 Raised at Veterans Benefit Concert

 

 

On Sunday March 8, Veterans Isle hosted a concert to benefit the Homes For Our Troops charity. The fundraiser went from 4 to 7 PM SL time. Things started off with Texas Starchild, dressed in red, white, and blue, DJing some tunes. Among them were, "Unsung Heroes," "You Can't Spell Hero Without Her," and "If You Have a Right to Burn My Flag (Then I Have a Right to Kick Your *ss)."After him at 5PM was guitarist Chapmap Zane. As the event went on, people donated to two house-shaped kiosks on either side of the stafe.

 

By the time the event was over, a total of 171,000 had been raised. 

 

To learn more about Homes For Our Troops: https://www.hfotusa.org  

 

This Saturday at The Science Circle

 

 

Saturday March 14

 

    ~*~

 

At 10 AM PST   

 

Updates in Chemistry

 

Moderated by Michael Shaw PHD

 

https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Science%20Circle/59/128/29

 

    ~*~

 

    NOTE: Non-members required to register once

    IM Jes Cobalt or Nymf Hathaway

╚══════════════════════════════ The Science Circle (72,129,30) ═╝  

Cartoon of The Day: Steamed Up

 

 Taken at Caledon's Writer's Meeting. This charming fellow was all in armor with a boiler for a helmet. So why a boiler? I could think of one reason.

 

By Bixyl Shuftan

 

Press Release: Sunbeamers RFL Air Show 2026 - Saturday March 14 and Sunday March 15

 

Team Sunbeamers along with partners Roos With A Dream happily invites everyone to the 12th annual Sunbeamers RFL Air Show March 14 & 15. This year we’re very happy to present to you five flight demonstration teams, a dance, two BYOK dances, contest and lots of fun. Aerial demonstrations Teams and dance with DJ Kayla and the Roos will be performing on Saturday 14th 10:00 am to 5:00 pm SLT. All visitors will arrive at the viewing platform as the air field will be closed to the public until the end of flight demonstrations when the field will then open for the dance.

SATURDAY MARCH 14TH *note ALL times are SLT.
Bleachers open at 10:00 am
Bleachers – http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/HV%20community/249/150/41

Anemone Wing Walking – 10:45 am

EAR – Especialistas da Aeronautica – 11:30 am

Team Phoenix – 12:15 pm

Patrouille de France SL – 1:00 pm

Blue Angels – 1:45 pm

DJ Kayla and the Roos – 3:00 to 5:00 pm

SUNDAY MARCH 15TH
Activities begin at 8:00 am and go till 5:00 pm. Be sure to bring friends it will be much better as some activities like the Combat Bumper Cars require more than one. There will be two BYOK dances the first at 10:00 am till noon featuring the Sunbeamers with DJ Cynthia. The second BYOK dance is at 3:00 pm till 5:00 PM featuring Roos With A Dream with DJ Kayla.
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Sunlight%20Bay/121/169/22

 

FogBound Blues Club

Newser reporter Netera Landar recently visited the FogBound Blues Club. Located in Blue Moon Bay, the venue is over a decade and a half old, created by Yanik Lytton and Meredith Mistwalker, and has events every day.  Netera had a few words with it's manager Saphire Jinn about how the place has changed over time, and what and who has helped make it work. 

 

Read Netera's article in Places.  

 

Events This Week at the Sunweaver and Montecito Bay Clubs, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Club Scorn

 

Here's what's going on at the Sunweaver, Montecito Bay, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Scorn clubs.

Club Cutlass: Heavy Metal Night, Uniforms, St. Patrick's Day

Happy Vixen: DJ Scratch, TBA, TBA, DJ Khyra

Club Zero Gravity: Snowy - TBA

 

Bouncing Bunny Beach Club:  DJ Snowy - Green and Gold

Xanadu: DJ Jesse 

 

Montecito Bay:  CAYA, After Dark

Club Scorn: Th 8-12, Sat 2-12

 

Furry Fashion: Fir vs Scales, CAYA, Horror

 

Urban Furry :  DJ Juana, DJ Charlee, DJ Whiskey, DJ Vantox

 

Read the schedules in SL Clubbin'

A Busy Weekend

 

Quite a bit happened this weekend. There was the Sixth Annual Women's Day Luncheon at the Premier Business Center (above). There were also a number of Relay for Life events. There was the monthly benefit concert for Homes For Our Troops. And there was an update for Second Life Mobile (there was also a Firestorm update over a week ago).

 

More on these later. 

 

Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Cartoon of The Day: Hugging Teddy

 

 Taken at Bellisseria's Copperfield Heights. One lady had a teddy bear attachment that carried her around. One in real life would likely be powered by AI, which has become a touchy issue lately. But it's far from the only burning issue these days.

 

By Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Announcement: Sixth Annual International Women's Day Luncheon At The PBC

 

 

IMPORTANT REMINDER: IT'S DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME IN THE USA:
REMEMBER TO "SPRING FORWARD" 
Don't forget to set your clocks ONE HOUR AHEAD on Saturday night before going to bed so that you don't miss a minute of the PBC 2026  IWD LUNCHEON!


Hello All!

Everyone is invited: TO THE PBC 2026 SIXTH ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY LUNCHEON! *MEN ARE INVITED*

It's time to celebrate the most amazing women in your life! If you are looking for a way to show the Ladies
(Wives, Mothers, Daughters and Sisters) the ultimate appreciation and SL experience then join us to celebrate them at The PBC Sixth Annual International Women's Day Luncheon! 

SLURL: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/PBC/89/188/1504􀀀

WHEN: SUNDAY MARCH 8TH @ 12:00P.M. SLT 
ATTIRE: FORMAL  
IWD COLORS: PURPLE, GREEN OR WHITE (optional)

TWO PHENOMENAL KEYNOTE SPEAKERS AND AN ETERNARA CONCERT MEET AND GREET AFTER PARTY!

SPEAKERS:
KEYNOTE SPEAKER: HELENA KIAMA 
KEYNOTE SPEAKER: LISSENA WISDOMSEEKER
SPECIAL PERFORMANCE: ETERNARA CONCERT/ LILY PARISE
GREETERS: PBC CREWSADERS  

CONTACT: JardenAlexis

A Little Reminder: Daylight Savings Time Is Tonight

 

 Just a reminder. Tonight Daylight Savings Time begins in the United States (most of it) and a number of other places. At 2 AM, the clock will "spring forward" to 3 PM. So not only are you going to have to go to bed a little early or get up a little later, but you're going to also have to keep this in mind when going to events, or hosting one, both here and real-life.

 

Oh, and some countries with a number of SL residents, their DST doesn't start for a few more weeks, which can add to the confusion. 

 

Stay timely,

 

Bixyl Shuftan

 

Announcement: RFL Teams for Lucky in Austria Decorating Contest

 

Limited Space available
Decorating Contest Area for 500 L$ Donation for 100 prims to decorate
Themes: St. Patrick's or Wild for A Cure
Prize: 1,000 L$ to TEAM Kiosk + Trophy to 2 Teams with the best theme (one for each theme)

To book your spot, please go to https://forms.gle/XEMkcdsWtuqAjCCr9
 

SL Video: "Angel Baby"

 

 (click here if the video does not play)

 

 From Arica Alpha_SL on Nov 2024

 

Copperfield Heights Linden Home Area Adds More Sims

 

 The Copperfield Heights homes that first became available to the residents a week ago and had more available a few days later, have continued to grow in numbers. They have gone from 27 sims to 44. Many have amusing names such as Spit Take and Trollbridge. The Winter look the first ones had is now gone, the snow melted and replaced with greenery. 

 

Demand for the homes seems to have been outstripping supply, at least early in the week. On Tuesday evening when I dropped by, I noticed several sins on the west were empty of people and people were gathered at the edge on the other side of the boundary. Going over, I found those sims were closed to regular residents. In Bellisseria chat, a Linden stated they wouldn't be open until later. And this left the residents grumbling a little, the ones near me frustrated with unoccupied new Linden Homes so tantalizingly close, but out of reach until presumably some unknown time tomorrow, with no guarantee by the time they logged on any would be available. 

 

With this kind of demand, there will likely be more Copperfield Heights sims later on. There is plenty of room to the west for further expansion.  How soon is not known.

 

Stay tuned for details.

 

Bixyl Shufan

 

Announcement: PBC 2026 INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY LUNCHEON!! *MEN ARE INVITED*

 

 PBC 2026 INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY LUNCHEON!! *MEN ARE INVITED*

WHEN: SUNDAY MARCH 8TH @ 12:00P.M. SLT 
TWO PHENOMENAL SPEAKERS: 
KEYNOTE SPEAKER: HELENA KIAMA 
FEATURED GUEST: LISSENA WISDOMSEEKER
ATTIRE: FORMAL~COLORS: PURPLE, GREEN OR WHITE 
AFTER PARTY MEET N GREET: ETERNARA CONCERT 
GREETERS: PBC CREWSADERS

 

For more information, contact JardenAlexis 

SLURL: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/PBC/92/185/1504

 

Video: "This Is Our Fight"

 

 (click here if the video does not play)

 

From Cynthia Farshore on March 3, "Song in support of the American Cancer Society and it's growth into the virtual world of Second Life. Lyrics written by me." While only a fraction of the images are SL screenshots, it's clearly a RFL in SL video.

 

Getting Ready For The Air Show

 

 Taking a look at Farshore Field in Sunlight Bay, the Sunbeamers RFL team, mainly Cynthia Farshore, have been getting ready for their annual air show. Already there's a few planes in place, and flags on the air tower. More will come in the following days. 

 

The Sunbeamer Air Show is scheduled for Saturday, March 14.  

 

Announcement: Invitation to International Women’s Day Open Mic

 

🌿 Invitation: International Women’s Day Open Mic 🌿

🌿You are warmly invited to join us on March 8th at 11:00 AM SLT at The White House for a special International Women’s Day Open Mic, hosted by PA Hour. 🌿

🌿We’ll gather to celebrate the voices, stories, and creative power of women everywhere. You are welcome to share a poem, a story, a memory, or a piece written by or about women—honoring resilience, wisdom, struggle, joy, and the many ways women shape our world.🌿

🌿Whether you come to speak or simply to listen, your presence adds to the circle.🌿

🌿March 8th • 11:00 AM SLT • The White House🌿

🌿Hosted by PA Hour🌿

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Avonside%20Retreat/218/95/3000  

 

Cartoon of The Day: Short Stories

 

 Taken at Club Zero Gravity. That's me in my Dinkie fox reporter avie. And well, there are days between working overtime, real-life errands, and trying to make sense of real-life news that there's very little time to write anything. So sometimes it's time for a "short" story.

 

By Bixyl Shuftan 

 

Caledon Celebrates Twenty Years With Anniversary Ball

 

 A few days ago, the Second Life community of Caledon celebrated a milestone anniversary: it's twentith. On Thursday February 26, there was a Founders Ball.

 

 Tonight marks our 20th year since Desmond Shang founded Caledon.  Join us in a lovely new ballroom as we celebrate 2 decades of our wonderful nation.  Show your spirit with Caledon colors, formal wear especially welcome.  Music begins at 6:30pm SLT

 

Yours truly was able to drop in late in the event, just in time to see Desmond Shang, the founder of Caledon and it's former "Guvnah," tell everyone good night, "can hardly believe we lasted this long. ... Thanks for keeping this place going, Neo. means a lot to me." People raised a glass to the past and current leader, "It's lovely to have you both here, Des and Neo." NeoBokrug Elytis smiled, "The good and the bad are the sum of who we are, I'd have it no other way."

 

As the event went on, people reminisced about the times they had, "I was just thinking where I have been 20 years back in my life. I just had lost a job, met again with my crush and visiting her family." "I remember when Des first announced Caledon in the old SL forums." Someone would find it: (link, "The old SL forums are so badly broken now and it's difficult to find anything on them."

 

A couple times, the Caledon anthem played, which got comments from the crowd, "Dougie McLean's greatest song," "So angelic," "Gives me shivers every time I hear this." 

 

Andrea Jones would post some pictures of the ball on her Flickr , "I hope I got everyone's picture."

 

There would be further events two days later on Saturday, but the ball was the key event.  

 

"And happy anniversary again, Caledon! Here's to many more years!" 

 

Bixyl Shuftan

 

Press Release: Homes For Our Troops Benefit, March 8

 

Frets Nirvana, longtime supporter and contact for Homes For Our Troops in Second Life in conjunction with the US Military Veterans Group, announces the 2026 March benefit  Homes for Our Troops benefit in Second Life.   The benefit will be held on March 8, 2026 from 4PM - 7 PM SLT at Veteran’s Isle.    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Veterans%20Isle/176/58/3501.

Frets Nirvana states:  “HFOT is a privately funded 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization building specially adapted, mortgage-free homes nationwide for the most severely injured Veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan. Most of these Veterans are multiple amputees, paraplegic, quadriplegic or have suffered severe traumatic brain injury (TBI).  Since its inception in 2004, nearly 90 cents of every dollar spent by Homes for Our Troop has gone to directly support Veterans. DURING THAT TIME HFOT HAS BUILT 430 SPECIALLY ADAPTED HOMES NATIONWIDE FOR EXTREMELY INJURED VETERANS.” 


This HFOT benefit concert will feature the following DJ’s and artists from 4 PM- 7 PM March 8, 2026:


DJ Texas Starchild 4 PM
Chapman Zane  5 PM
Wolfie Starfire 6 PM


Sponsored by Frets Nirvana and the U.S. Military Veteran’s Group of Second Life.  To learn more about Homes for Our Troops visit https://www.hfotusa.org 

 

Sunweaver Leader Rita Mariner in Hospital

 

Some bad news for the Sunweaver community, as well as it's Relay team the Sunbeamers. It's "chieftess," Rita Mariner, is now in the hospital for treatment of skin cancer. The following was announced a few days ago: 

 

Here's the latest on Rita, she has being treated now for the skin cancer on her head but now she has been admitted to the VA hospital for radiation treatments for the next 6 weeks. She has no computer at least not right now, hopefully get one to her somehow. So she will miss the air show and this may have a impact on what rides and planes we will have.
 

Hopefully her treatments will be shorter than expected. For now, the community, and it's Relay team, are continuing on while she gets better.

 

Bixyl Shuftan.  

 

Events This Week at the Sunweaver and Montecito Bay Clubs, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Club Scorn

 

Here's what's going on at the Sunweaver, Montecito Bay, Furry Fashion, Urban Furry, and Scorn clubs.

Club Cutlass: Apples & Oranges, Fairy Tales, TBA

Happy Vixen: DJ Scratch, TBA, TBA, DJ Khyra

Club Zero Gravity: Snowy - TBA

 

Bouncing Bunny Beach Club:  DJ Snowy - Pirates

Xanadu: DJ Jesse 

 

Montecito Bay:  CAYA, After Dark

Club Scorn: Th 8-12, Sat 2-12

 

Furry Fashion: Hooves and Horns, Wings, Ballroom & Formal

 

Urban Furry :  DJ Juana, DJ Charlee, DJ Whiskey, DJ Vantox

 

Read the schedules in SL Clubbin'