Crubo Carver's blog

Who Came As Bottom?

Wednesday night I was maddened by a lightning-induced connectus interruptus because Kala had invited me to the "Midsummer Night's Dream" event at Seven Ultra Lounge. The connection resumed 10 minutes before the start and I hadn't even bought wings yet!!!!!!

To my amazement Kala was actually ready to go (Mat's jaw drops in astonishment), but so laggy the poor beauty couldn't even see my outfit.

After I finished whining and worrying, off we went - the setting was beautiful but full of scripty avs and wings and leaves and music and particle effects and god knows what all. Many more revelers arrived after I took this shot - mostly clever good-humored women, a pleasing crowd!

Midsummer Dream

I didn't look very forest-y, not even very fae (the ancient word for fairy apparently), more burnt-in-hell demonic:

Dark Fae

As for his outfit, Kala just "threw this together" from existing outfits you see. A tendril here, a silk there, and it gels by sheer luck into a Titania so ravishing Michelle Pfeiffer would burn with envy. I could say the same of Judi Dench, but she didn't really wear an outfit, just three skimpy leaves. On television.

[Yes the same Judi Dench who now plays wrinkly old M in the Bond movies.
But when she did Titania she was young, more or less nude, dyed green and nary a wrinkle in sight. A bit of Brit Shakespearean trivia for you.]

So as this herm Titania danced before me, I just gazed in mute admiration. Wait of course my admiration is never mute but you get what I mean. My dance partner rarely saw himself rezzed, but I took zillions o snaps and here's the one I added to Seven's Flickr:

Titanikala

Had I been wearing a donkey's head my behavior as a jackass would have been more understandable. As it was everyone was quite shocked when I gave in to my mad lust and pursued the Faery Queen hither and thither.

Titania Eludes Caliban

And now I have a question for you - WHO do you suppose won the prize for Best Costume? If I thought there was any doubt in your minds I would keep you in suspense - yes our very own KALA!
Back for a moment on our low-lag rooftop (well a bit laggier since Arta and I bought a planet), I recorded the languid magnificence of our dear lag-tormented darlin, because we are all hopelessly besotted:

Our Rooftop Fae

Jul 17, 2009 1:21:43 PM

Now We Just Need A Gas Grill

On the recommendation of the trend-aware Mercury and Spikey, Arta and I visited Aina Yoshikawa's Shop of Good Playful Objects. Actually it's just called Aina's Shop, I was unsuccessfully imitating funny Japanese-English translations.
Aina makes whimsically scripted stuff - you should totally go there. For example, she built these translucent ramps where you can walk upside down:

That Stupid Fuse Never Lights

The next toy was upsetting because I have been trying for a long time to help Arta get past what seemed like an irrational fear of trees:

Stop Paper Invoices

Fresh graves are always a reliable source of fun, but Aina offers some new twists:

Please God Put Me In His Will

What's This Thing With Fingerless Gloves

Another Night of Sex Games

Most wonderful of all, Arta and I finally realized a dream we've had for a long time - our very own planet on a budget! Here we are rehearsing a long-overdue revival of Samuel Beckett's unjustly neglected one-act masterpiece, Diametrics:

Buck: I love a sunrise

Jul 6, 2009 6:34:23 AM

Pensive video with poem-text thingie

Our landlady has to sell so Arta and I must find a new SL home soon - "join the club" our friends are thinking :)

This video is about how it feels to leave a place behind. I hope you enjoy it!

The streaming address is:

http://www.megavideo.com/?v=LVCERB3Z

If necessary you can download it in 20-30 min at http://www.megaupload.com/?d=B9317VCA.

Please listen with sound up and earphones if possible. And please let me know if you have trouble - Arta had difficulty, which was rather maddening cuz it's dedicated to him.

Tech-observant types will notice:
At high graphics settings I get good detail but some jerky camera.
Yes I am using my new SpaceNavigator, hence the ability to pan continuously through the environment. As Arta notes $60 is expensive for essentially a glorified mouse, but the navigation and camera motion is really liberating.
Lag increased as I panned in our script-heavy home. Which was beneficial in a way, because it required me to record separate scenes, and I think that made the structure much more affecting than a single tracking shot.

May 23, 2009 7:40:26 AM

Our Lost World

On the last day of Spikey's Immanion beach house, I took some HD/stereo video of the premises (in addition to all the photos).

For the hi-def streaming version go to http://www.megavideo.com/?v=29UDTH9B
When you first click play, a separate advertising window will open - close it and click the play button again.

Try to listen on earphones or with good speakers. I spent hours adjusting track volume and panning (stereo positioning of sound), which change as I wander around the property (that's me in my inception outfit).

You're right, SL doesn't actually sound this rich - I ADDED extra birdcalling, burbling brook, wind and thundering surf.

Techie notes: This movie also shows how jumpy mouse-and-alt camera controls are, which is why I can't wait to receive my smooth-panning Spacenavigator! This vid is also a bit jerkier than usual because I inadvertently recorded to my internal hard drive (doh!). I just nabbed a brand new Seagate Firewire800 external hard drive, yes I spend $$ on my geek toys but at least I don't buy sports cars, that's my excuse. Audio: I added three environmental-ambience tracks in Garage Band and used the track volume and panning controls.

If for some reason the megavideo doesn't stream, you can watch the You Tube version (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbXsIq82bzk), which is lower-def but still good audio. The hi-def file itself should you want it is available at http://www.megaupload.com/?d=KIFUM21F - it took Spikey about 20 minutes to download.

May 13, 2009 10:13:18 PM

OK two more then

I just can't leave well enough alone - notice the greater reflection, depth and color of the water. I went into the "custom" settings on my graphics preferences and did both sky and water adjustments.
Plus, I confess, I cropped and worked some color adjustments in photoshop. It's fun to learn this stuff :)

Spikeys On the Bay jpeg

More Bay of Spikey jpeg

Apr 30, 2009 9:51:01 PM

Another Day, Another Two Thousand Lindens or so

I was saddened to hear the News but not surprised, who could be, islands have become so costly. It was lovely while it lasted, our Immanion, wasn't it? I remember so many of my friends from random encounters on Immanion and Lionstar. Anyway, to share a few pix from this week:

Aruhani Shrine

One last look

Yes, it DOES hurt but I couldn't resist . . .

Bay of Spikey at Midnight

Stinger

No, "Stinger" has nothing to do with Immanion, I was dancing at a place Ima invited me to and Riot had the biggest darn stinger I have ever been scared by.

Bay of Spikey Sunset

Nice yes? And below poses the (rather narcissistic) seaside boy after a day on the docks, the surf and the beach. His sun-bleached hair powdered with sand and salt, his skin browned by wind and sun, I'm sure you get the idea here . . .

Golden Surfer Boi

Apr 28, 2009 11:35:22 PM

Pic and flick

first the pic, which needs no explanation other than "oooooh"

Purple Pet

By flick I don't mean the Wraeththu visionary, I mean movie. I have been messing with some new "machinima" software that records inworld video and audio. My puter won't handle vid at the best SL Viewer quality (that's reserved for serious gamer machines and Lindens) but I can record at high enough res for very clear footage on a 24-inch monitor.

So in the course of salsa-ing with another favorite photographic subject (or object if you will), I took a bit of video. Then I composed 25 seconds of faux salsa and I recorded it in Garage Band. My slow crawl toward cinematizing our SL continues! Here's the link to my little tryout:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjbHStGPgmQ

Apr 26, 2009 7:01:01 AM

Here a Zheera

When I say I love the aesthetic variety of Second Life I mean there are so many pleasing environments - grungy diners, treehouses, beachouses, pagodas, artfilled skyhouses, Immanions, cute bluekat diners, you name it. Yes, I know I left out sex clubs, those too.
Dalia's Zheera Lotus has a distinctive beauty of its own, so brilliantly and boldly colored with corners that all manage to feel cozy.

Sakito lumino

My problem with easter egg hunts, or hunts in general, is distraction. Something draws me away and then I can't remember where I was looking. For example, you're about to cross a bridge and find yourself before a magnificent pink-lit amphibitile, which someone will probably tell me is a character from an online game, I know nothing, people are forever enlightening me on yet another game I've never played. Sakito pretended to be surprised when I took pictures - "me, stunning?" Oh PLEASE.

Zheera Waters

I did find ONE set of eggs, and was quite thrilled and braced for further searching when I was distracted by a lovely stream bangled with drifting lotus-shaped boats for two . . . now what was I searching for again?

Zheera Joy Dance

And then when you're surrounded by exotic luminous mushrooms and you feel like Alice and you see a ball saying "air dance" well you simply MUST - because dancing when you have the chance is what life is all about, yes? I know MANY in SL who would say the very same thing!

Rainbow Zheera

And then a cast of tiny charming people who looked recognizable from other Hollywood roles surrounded me, laughing and cheering in weird sped-up voices, and told me how to find the . . . wait, that was another story, but it all felt so REAL, and you were there, and you and you and you too . . . but you couldn't have been, could you? And all the while I just kept saying, I want to go home, I want to go home, and then I realized I WAS home, sitting in front of a 24-inch monitor with my mouth hanging open, tasting stale popcorn and tranported to a lovely dream . . .

Archway To Eternal Bliss And Cool Stores

No I didn't find any more eggs, you only ask to hurt my feelings, you know perfectly well I didn't, but I arrived at the Archway to Eternal Bliss and was about to pass through it when I was distracted by a couple of shops, and when I tried to retrace my steps I found that I had lost my way forever . . .

Apr 14, 2009 9:20:07 PM

Easter!

Have a colorful Easter dears

Apr 12, 2009 6:38:46 AM

Because I want to that's why

Wednesday nights can be a bane or a joy, I never know which when I go in. First I visited Dalia and Kyne and other friends but then came the Lonely Aimless phase of the evening, where I did the bored dance ALONE!!

Dancin alone

But then in course of shopping for something or other I found a SALOON, so I had to get back out the western duds and go crazy, although I was still by myself.