Announcement: Discussion at Virtual Ability This Saturday

Saturday April 21
Sojourner Auditorium, Virtual Ability island
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Virtual%20Ability/54/170/23

6am SLT Divya Padmanabhan "Dancing Crazy? Unpacking the category of possession-form dissociative identity disorder"

7am SLT TBA

8:15am SLT Mohammed Al-Mosaiwi "People with depression use language differently"

9:30am SLT Philip Yanos "How do people diagnosed with mental illness become written off? How can they overcome it?"

10:45am SLT Meg Peters "Challenging the Conception that Social Media Causes Bad Mental Health"

Noon SLT performance by DRUM

1:15pm SLT Alita Nandi "Ethnic and racial harassment and mental health: Identifying sources of resilience"

2:30pm SLT Joe DeLuca "Forensic Psychiatric Experiences, Stigma, and Self-Concept"

3:45pm SLT Isabelle Martin "Visions of Infinity: Singularity, Proliferation, and Transcendence in Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirror Rooms"

5pm SLT Carolyn Weisz "Stigmatized Identities, Psychological Distress, and Physical Health among Individuals Experiencing Homelessness"

Reader Submitted: D.R.U.M. – Celebration and Remembrance

Any1 Gynoid, who describes herself as a "reader contributor" to the Second Life Newser has sent us another submission. She writes about a recent event at Creations for Parkinson's. They hosted an event by the Divine Rhythms of Universal Music, better known as D.R.U.M., of the Burn2 group. DRUM has been around. Part art and part musical performance, they certainly stand out.

Read Any1's article in Events.

SL Video: "Celebration of the Life of Ladyslipper Constantine"

(Click here if the video fails to play)

By Saffia Widdershins on October 14, "A Celebration of the Life of Ladyslipper Constantine, held on Virtual Ability Island, Saturday 1st October, 2016."

A transcript of the event is also available (here).

Goodbye Ladyslipper Constantine

 Dance among the flowers, Ladyslipper. Dance in the rains.
 Dance among the butterflies and dance in the flames.
 Dance to the drum. Dance to the song.
 Dance with your friends as we dance along.

  
That was the closing by Gentle Heron to a memorial on Saturday that was exquisite in its tribute to a wonderful Lady... Ladyslipper Constantine. The array of speakers introduced first by Eme Capalini showed the extent of the goodness that was Lady that she has spread across the grid for her whole life in Second Life. Everyone who spoke had the same memory of LS as she was known .. a giving helpful person intent on helping anyone who needed it. 

The Drum performed in her honor behind an beam lighted single drum. A whole hour of memories and praise seemed like a few minutes. Everything about the memorial was beautiful from the setting of waterfalls and flowers to the circle of photos of Lady at the entrance and the blending of real life and Second Life in a viewer that played all during the time there . We all held a candle at the end and the light shone from all directions as we stood in silence.  Lady is in the hearts of many and will be there forever. I will miss our chats so much.  

Saffia Widdershins filmed the event and I am sure it will be available soon.

Gemma Cleanslate

Update, the video and transcript are now available:



 (Click here if the video fails to play)

The transcript can be found (here) 

LadySlipper Constantine Passes Away

For a number of years in Second Life, LadySlipper Constantine has been active in One Billion Rising, Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education, and Second Life Birthday events, but has been best known for her role as a member of Burn2 and it's DRUM group. On Saturday September 17, she passed away from cancer. The news was announced on "The Lamplighters" blog the following day.

With a heavy heart we share news about a much-loved Elder, Lamplighter, Fire Dancer and longtime Burner, Ladyslipper Constantine. Yesterday the 17th of September, after a valiant fight against cancer, she passed away peacefully, surrounded by loved ones. She will be dreadfully missed, but we shall treasure our memories of this deeply passionate Burner. She takes a bit of our Lamplighter fire with her into the next life.
 

On Sunday morning as word got around, there was an impromptu gathering of residents at the Cape Serenity Library in Virtual Ability. Gentle Heron and Any1 Gynoid were among those there. "It is times like these that the most articulate among us struggle for words to explain our feelings," Gentle spoke, "But sitting together, we share those feelings even without words."
 
"She had lots of animals," Îsabel (alysabelle) spoke of LadySlipper, "she loved the critters, and she would make the sim seasonal when it was time. ... I felt she was like a virtual mom to me. She gave me courage. ... I have taken all I learn here and applied to my own real life."

"I also worked DRUM with her," Dream Wrexan told, "We were part of a Wednesday/Sunday circle together. She was my building and performance mentor. She loved to build as others were saying.
The breadth of her influence is amazing."

The Library can be reached at Cape Serenity (77/108/23). iSkye Silverweb, LadySlipper's friend, is collecting screenshots of her for a memorial service later this week.

In February this year, the Newser interviewed LadySlipper. The interview can be read at: 
http://slnewserpeople.blogspot.com/2016/02/interview-with-ladyslipper-constantine.html 


Bixyl Shuftan


* * * * *

LadySlipper Constantine and I first became friends when we were both Burning Life Members. We were Rangers together for several years for the event. She was a wonderful person, kind but firm, and loads of fun. LS, as she came to be called in recent years worked with me also in the Second Life Birthday events where again we shared many good times and laughs. Her main passion in Second Life was The Drum, a  percussion group made up of deaf people that performs at many events. It is with great sorrow to many and to me to hear that she passed away after a short illness . She will be sorely missed . My heart goes out to her real-life family. Bixyl did an interview with her last year at my request. To me she is and will always be Lady. Our last conversation in June when she was already ill.  

[2016/06/11 08:19] LS (Ladyslipper Constantine): Ok, I need to go, and bring in my VAI alt to pay the sim's tiers to VAI

[2016/06/11 08:19] Gemma (Gemma Cleanslate): o bye for now good to see and talk

[2016/06/11 08:19] LS (Ladyslipper Constantine): as always good to vent and chat with you

[2016/06/11 08:19] LS (Ladyslipper Constantine): hugsss

[2016/06/11 08:19] Gemma (Gemma Cleanslate): thanks

Gemma Cleanslate

Virtual Hippies

Some Second Life residents lived through the days of "Sex and Drugs and Rock n' Roll" from the mid 60s to the mid 70s. But for most of us, we were either too young to hear about what was going on, or born afterwards. Among the groups of people associated with the time are the hippies. Sometimes looked down upon, occasionally celebrated, just who were they? Hearing about a place inworld called Free Spirit Farms, Becky Shamen, whom did live through those times, took the opportunity to explain as she visited the place and talked to the people there whom had taken a little of the Age of Aquarius to the virtual world. Also, the Newser was informed about some "nip" that supposedly provided a virtual psychedelic trip. Becky gave it a try and compared the results to the experiences of the real thing.

Read Becky's story in People.

Interview with Ladyslipper Constantine

Among the volunteers working at this weekend's "One Billion Rising" was Ladyslipper Constantine. She has been involved with several groups and activities in Second Life, though is best known for her work with Burning Life/Burn2 and DRUM. Recently, the Newser had a chance to interview her.

Read the interview in People.