Disconcerting things

Well, top of the list of disconcerting things are:

• earache from orange juice (and from a bunch of other stuff, but... long and totally irrelevant story) and
• my daughter (25, brilliant, geeky marketing person) reads my SL blog and I never knew.  Scary. Meaning I can no longer whine about overwork and feeling crap on this blog because parents shouldn't whine. Apparently.
• In a lousy economic climate, and being a freelancer which is not exactly secure, I am ridiculously fortunate to have masses and MASSES of work (but am too scared to say "no" to any of my clients).

Ooops whining. Better talk about SL then, huh?

Ummm. OK. SL. Vent du Sud, even.

No time to do anything but pay rent (whine whine whine) for weeks ... or rather months now because of work and more work, plus major family visit (4 of them, including two teenage boys and oh boy can they eat but I digress already), and the need to go stare into space of an evening, outside.

Summer and all that. Wine and provence and lavender and peace... there are worse thing.

We have bats that drink out of our pool at night. Which is completely irrelevant to anything, but it's fascinating.

However, and not being one to give up (that) easily, I have paid my rent and - is this a sign? - paid some money into SL and it worked FIRST TIME. No snarky messages from either my bank or LL.

This is a first. 

And why have I put money in?

Well... I miss it. I actually miss Vent du Sud like hell. Can I say hell on a family blog?

I do NOT miss bitchy comments and one-star reviews on the marketplace (AGAIN) because something hasn't been delivered (and did they tell me? No).

I am NOT happy about the fact that somebody flagged an item of mine because of "wrong permissions" without telling me (and the permissions were NOT wrong when I did that hellish migration thing but apparently are now).  I have changed it. Gritting my teeth.

But I do miss it. So many things about it.

You may not understand this, dear daughter (if you are reading it). Or you might.  Working for a gaming company, I hope you will. 

So... better get going again, right?

 (Mind, I still need to juggle SL with the work, the vegetable garden, cooking, more work, travel for work, and now and then a little sleep and a little bat-watching).

But I'll try.

So anyway

Yes, I am still trying to find my feet in SL again.

And I will get there.

Well, I hope so.

However, our oldest cat (nearly 19) is fading fast and going for the big sleep this afternoon after a rather difficult few days.

Not easy.

Apologies for a huge digression from normal posting. Normal service will be resumed shortly.

Battered and flattered

Battered...?

No, not so much me in RL any more - I'm feeling less battered by the day. So much so I found myself taking vain, vain photos of myself in SL last night (see at the end) rather than getting on with some building. Bad me.

THIS battered.

It's one of the things I made on a whim, and liked (despite endless fiddling with offsets). 

Whims are good.

Prims? 4. Price? 1L.  To be found, of course, at Vent du Sud at the front of the mainstore.

Flattered?

Oh yeah. 

See, Terry (Wumpole) and Mike (Stonesoul) offered me a booth at their home accessories exhibition, which was, I think, the decisive kick in the thing I can't say on a family-safe blog that I needed to get me moving again.

(Terry and Mike are lovely and I'm delighted to know them. And not just because they seem to have acquired a taste for provencal builds and decor). 

So I put the table there, along with a few other things, all at 1L.

Like the 1 prim bench (which is normally part of the greenhouse set but I should sell it separately, maybe, and in other colours?).

Yes. (Adds to to-do list).

More on the greenhouse set on the Marketplace.

It has anims. Couples and singles.  Look.

Please do go and have a look around at the expo - it's something they're doing for the sheer love of decorating. It's fun, it's not huge, but there are some great things to be found.

The vain bit? Here you go.

Tuli Audrey skin, with a lipstain from MOCK that I adore. And a lovely messy hairdo from Damselfly.
 
So vain. But probably better than a shopping spree which I would love but then I'll never get any building done.

Off to work and to cross fingers and toes I get some building time in later.

The ideas, they are a-coming.

One step at a time

Don't faint, or say "about time" or "oh, her again", but... thanks to the pharmaceutical industry, slightly less horrendous RL deadlines, and a PC and a connection that work... and the Marketplace back in action (although not without blood, sweat and tears)...


...I have stuck my toes back into the murky sparkling waters of SL. A little tentatively, but definitely a start.


And for once am not ranting but talking about that thing I used to do. Whatcha call it?


BUILDING. Right.

Spring flower bench, click to change plants, 1L

I EVEN put out a couple of spring-ish things like the one above. Find them here, ALL FOR 1L or *gasp* free at Vent du Sud.


OK, not new. But new since last spring.

I EVEN took some photos of other 1L / free stuff. Colour change fabrics on the baskets.

Here's another photo, this time  the summer cabins (19 prims, 50L, go look pls thanks).

And I EVEN hopped up to my work platform to attempt a little progress on "things abandoned". You do not need to see photos of this because it is a mess.


I EVEN changed clothes (and came up with the worst possible lighting for what is in fact a stunning skirt and jacket). My apologies to Zaara (Larin skirt, moves beautifully) and Mon Tissu jacket.

(Also, spot the bunch of tulips in the bucket, plus the wishing well, also a spring whim... 1L each)

Looks like I have a way to go before attempting a proper fashion post again, although I do vaguely recollect I did those too. Sorry about this rather weak effort.


But.


One step at a time. 

PS: Also, I shall be posting again very soon on a cute, delightful home accessories expo run by two extraordinarily nice guys- some really nice, well-made things to be found there.

Including *cough* mine.



 

Pettiness and cowardice

Let me tell you a story.

A couple of months back I got a crappy review on the Marketplace for my Best Selling Item (yes, and ranted about it) because... it wasn't delivered. A one-star report because of that (did she contact me? No).

I flagged it, and it disappeared - either LL or the reviewer did it, no idea.

So far, so good.

Lots of nice people said nice things about the rant, too, which gave me the warm and fuzzies. And the Best Selling Item started selling again. For 6L, I might add.

Today, I tried the direct delivery migration thing which failed miserably (these two things are linked, bear with me).

Now, I did find on Google that it didn't work if your interface wasn't in English, and the viewer I had loaded for the purpose picked up that I was in France so OK. I changed the language to English, and it said it worked.

It didn't.

So the Magic Box is back.

(I am digressing more than usual, but I have an utterly crappy ear infection, am swamped with work, but I did want to see if I could get that done so I actually took an hour off to try it).

(No, not expecting sympathy).

But back to the Marketplace and - wait for it - while checking to see that the Magic Box was working, what do I find? Two more crappy reviews for that same, 6L best-seller, two days apart soon after that review that disappeared.

Funny, that.

(OK, I say best-seller but I maybe sold a couple of hundred over a year or so, but even. I was proud of it).

(Yes I know this is full of stuff in brackets. Earache is a bitch).

So I took it down. As the best-seller, it was the first thing that comes up on my store.

(Pride, I know).

The complaints this time? This sort of thing:
-  "Crappy scripting and doesn't work, nor do the anims" (it does, I just tested it with a friend, in two locations. It is a standard nPose script).
- "Horrible notecard giver, won't use it" (the box it is packed in gives the instruction notecard for nPose plus the colour changes, plus - I admit it - an LM. Dammit, how often do you need to place the box to open it, anyway...?)
- "You get what you pay for... it may be cheap but it's crap" (ouch ouch ouch and ... just ouch)
- "Not mod/copy" (yes it WAS, checked that too)

Did these "people" contact me? No.

I just don't need the hassle. Hence it is gone. Too miserable to go inworld to delete the inworld version but I should.

I may do another version of it in another colour range, double check it again, and expect people do be intelligent enough to find the instruction notecard in the contents... or just write it off.

COWARD, I know.

I am half expecting  the phantom reviewer to start on something else next.

How petty. 

Can you tell I'm not super happy with SL right now? 

Saying sorry: the art of apologising

Apologising isn't easy. Or is it?

No, this is still not a breathless bit of plugging for Vent du Sud.

I need to tackle this marketplace thing, see, and I'm putting it off. And still trying to find my feet in SL again.

Is that saying sorry? Er no, it's a fact. We'll get onto that in a minute.

Have a photo before we get to the rant. 

There we go. Just to remind myself that I used to make things, and that I intend to do again. At the Vent du Sud mainstore, 1L a piece, right up front). Colour change on the chairs and tablecloth (more cutting-edge technology *cough* and pretty pastels)


OK, on to the day's ponderings.

Somebody high up in an organisation I work for actually practices the 'apologise sincerely, don't justify your blunder or pass the blame, reassure people that it won't happen again,  and then suggest everybody move on' approach extremely well, and it comes out as totally sincere.

I really admire him for it. It's taught me a lot about apologising myself, although the temptation to say 'but I was tired, or 'but it's not my fault' can be rather strong (understatement) at times.

So how do you get sincerity across? Particularly when you've messed up your apology (by justifying it, whining, and finding it just wasn't good enough)?

Well first, tell yourself that for some people, no apology ever will be good enough. Some people enjoy grudges.

Lie low or be out of town run away? A possibility, but not easy if you want to continue doing something you believe in.

I think the only thing is to take action. Show you're trying to move on. Apologise for messing up the apology (ouch, but sometimes there's no alternative). Mind, you can't do this for ever. Twice may work, three times probably won't.

And if you can't or don't or won't take action (such as commit to changing your procedures / approach / methods 'next time'), then maybe it's time to quietly withdraw from that sphere and deal with the fact that - sad as it is - sometimes a major blunder really does haunt you.

Maybe this is the moment to be glad you aren't an air traffic controller or a brain surgeon. They have it much worse.

(Don't be flippant, woman). 

Sure, I'm referring to recent events in SL blogs but, to be honest, it applies to a lot of things.

It applies to anything from breaking up a relationship that was a mistake (because usually, apologies / admissions are due on both sides, no?) to being totally undiplomatic (guilty) or always late for things (not guilty: too many years in Switzerland, I think, where late is Not. Done.)

There's another side too - one that's also rather irritating. I'm talking about the 'compulsive apologiser' type who spends his / her life saying sorry sorry sorry. 

I tend to be one of those over certain things. Recent examples:

Sorry for not blogging (I did go back and edit it that out more than once because... well... who cares except me)
Sorry for not being in touch (I am, genuinely, sorry and I'm dreadful about remembering to call people at times, so I just need to DO something about it instead of apologising)
Sorry for burning the sauce (hey, it's a sauce and I'm a damned good cook, and I was distracted so we shall move on, take out a packet of the instant stuff and it shall not be a drama)
Sorry for not agreeing with you (actually no I'm not. I'd like to slap you and swear at you, but this is probably not a good idea. So I shall just shut up.)
Sorry for being pedantic (I also get frivolous and apologise for that too, but I should stop it. I am as I am, and I can't always make compromises).

OK, back to work.

I  may (if the big Marketplace move is not yet another SL catastrophe in the making) build something soon. But I'm not going to apologise if I don't.

So there ;)

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Was it the Linden who took over my avatar (and found nothing wrong)?

Was it the remote update to my ADSL box?

Was it the third complete uninstall / reinstall of SL?

Was it kind people crossing fingers and thumbs for me? 

I dunno, but it works and has done for 48 hours. After 3 weeks of **** frustration.

So...

Permit me a brief period of just sitting and grinning at Vent du Sud, and being able to tp and explore and chat and -

- I shall be back with newness.

(and I am sitting on my 1L bench beside the greenhouse, should you be tempted - couples / singles). Which in turn is beside the Mas (which is a 'massive' 50L).

Forgive me. I am just so pleased I want to plug my stuff and change clothes again and... most of all BUILD.

 

(and I am wearing Exile Monika hair and Zaara jewellery and HOC wedges a top by PBD from 2008 and I need to go shopping also).


Except I have to get on a train tomorrow and go away for a couple of days - lousy timing -but apparently earning a living is useful.

In fact, if somebody would pop over and do my ironing and finish up a chunk of legalese, I would start shopping building NOW.

No?

OK.

Dear Linden Labs - a letter from a nobody

 Dear Linden Labs,

First, I'm no geek but for the last 30 years (you know, since we had floppies and parked our hard disks and I was incredibly avant garde for installing and using a 2400 baud modem) I've been handling my own PC issues and rarely needed outside help.

I have been earning a living on my PC plus my Internet connection for 25 years. I buy fairly good machines, too.

Second, I love SL and have done since 2007. I don't come anywhere near to meeting my tier, but I enjoy designing and building and chatting to friends, and try to pay it forward a bit by selling my stuff for 1L.

Putting money in monthly is OK because a) I can (within reason) and b) it's my hobby.

So when everything changed overnight and I couldn't stay inworld without crashing, it was something of an unpleasant surprise (understatement) and I did everything I could to find out why.

For three weeks now.

But that's all beside the point. Call it background. Let's get back to facts.

So, SL stopped working properly for me (as in it crashes sporadically but regularly, and kicks me off the Net), and after I changed nothing on my machine or settings.

Since then I have checked stuff, double checked stuff, and read up about stuff until I have frankly run out of ideas.

Your Live Help? Pleasant enough but despite asking politely to be spared the blurb about dealing with lag and clearing cache and uninstalling (done all that twice, thanks), I got... the blurb about doing just that. And was told to file a ticket.

I did. With basic information on my system (model and graphics card). It may not be a gaming monster but it's 2 months old and a pretty fast machine that had absolutely no problems with SL (on the recommended 'high' settings) until January 15.

None. 

I've now tried setting it on 'medium' and nothing changes.

Oh, and I've been checking my connection speeds and fluctuations, temperatures, and event logs. They all tell me everything is dandy. Your lag meter shows green everywhere. My fps is magnificent (up to 48, when I'm connected).

My network card says it's very happy thank you. I flushed my DNS cache also, just in case it was that. It wasn't.

This happens on whatever viewer I try (the official one being by far the crashiest of all, just so you know). It all started when I was on one particular sim (which I named), and if I try to go there I crash immediately which could indicate lag but other busy, primmy, scripty sims are fine. Sometimes. But I also crash on empty sims.

Mystery.

But... that comment today on my ticket about whether my machine met minimum requirements is pretty damned stupid.  I did send the FULL configuration this morning, in return, to save you Googling for the specs (which quite honestly would have taken you less time than writing that comment on my ticket in the first place).

I did say I had no problems (yet?) on my own connection and using another (fancy schmancy gaming) computer, thus indicating the connection is fine... but that does not make my normal machine some sort of wheezing, elderly, below-spec one.

No, my idea was to suggest it could be a problem with SL and my system DESPITE the fact it is well over the minimum needed, and hoping you had some ideas about that.

And if it affects me, it could well affect others too (and for days if not weeks, I have been hearing about people constantly crashing so I suspect there is some sort of a conflict going on with one bit of equipment and your code - and stupidly thought you might want to investigate that).

But no, you just trot out 'check minimum requirements'. Bah.


This does not make for what you would call a "Good User Experience". In fact it makes for a pretty crappy SL experience, including with your 'customer assistance'.

I've spent 5 years standing up for SL, despite its - um - quirks and shortcomings. I've found far more good than bad.


But... I'm sick of this. Really, really sick of it.

I'm not even sure whether it's worth trying to continue (and no this is not emotional bribery for you to magically fix it because you couldn't bear to lose me - it's just a fact).

How long will I  keep trying? Not sure, but not very much longer.

Please, LL, I WANT MY TOYS BACK

I was so much hoping to have a jubilant I AM BACK post, complete with photos of a brand new build and some fashion shots.

(You can imagine them if you like).

But, you lucky readers you, here is another whiny rant.

I have no idea why (and once again I have changed NOTHING), I appeared to have stopped crashing on Sunday, having sent in a detailed ticket on Saturday.

Optimism reigned. I even changed clothes. I considered cancelling the ticket but thought OK, let's wait and see.

I went up to my building platform and started just pootling around with a build and was SO SO HAPPY.

Then came yesterday.

Logon took forever. Then one of those 'moved into nearby region' messages where people were showing up one after the other.

I was halfway through typing 'is anyone else having login issues' when I crashed.

Checked grid status - nothing.

Logged in crashed logged in crashed logged in crashed (while checking to see if there was a response to my ticket... of course not).

Saw an SL friend on MSN and said 'is Graces down?' Mind, this seemed unlikely because in the brief moments I was logged in, I got a purchase message from Vent du Sud.

Nope. He logged in to his home location, and crashed. Then got to Graces, and crashed.

He is not in the same country but nothing was working for him on his very smart, very fast machine either.

Meanwhile I logged in, found myself in a sort of underwater environment, attempted to TP and... crashed.

And all this while watching connection speeds (fine), frame rates (fine) and fan / heat levels (fine). And after Yet Another Clear Cache.

So I went and cooked a meal and drank perhaps one too many glasses of wine.

Later on in the evening I managed to log in normally. Nothing on the grid status about earlier, but hey, it worked and the fact that all hell seemed to be let loose in the UK and France was not worthy of a message. 

I walked around. Went up to my building platform and... all was fine.

But, dammit... I am just so behind that every time I do log and disappear and reappear, I get friends checking up on how it's going (badly), the odd client wondering if I'm still in business (believe me, I'm trying), and a group owner grumbling because I'd forgotten to put the inviter up (justifiably: it's now up).

And then... I was so weary of the whole thing I simply... crashed out. In front of the television. Grouchy and miserable and wondering what else to try, or wondering if by some mystery it will clear up, after well over two weeks now.

I am at the point where I am just so sick and tired of all this I feel like screaming. I have studied every possible reason for the crashes / net failures on SL, meaning hours and hours and hours of reading stuff, trying stuff, and... nothing works.

The worst thing is that I am even finding myself reluctant to log on simply because of the sheer and utter frustration of crashing, Net going down, rinse and repeat.

Bah. I really want my toys back, LL.

With murder in mind, and hey, MUSIC

You know, having fixed my blue screen issue I was lulled into a false sense of 'if I really keep plugging away and reading IT forums and trying stuff, I will find the cause' this time around.

Also, it is a 90-minute round trip to take a sick PC into the store, let alone the calls to see if it has been fixed (via a call centre from hell), followed by another trip to pick it up.

And if the problem is with my Internet connection, then it won't help much.

(I really need a photo here, so let's dig out an old one of me in the days I could actually walk around in SL).

Old hunt gift from ALaFolie, Ari in a snit

This time, I have been reading up masses of stuff on connectivity (including concerning the ADSL box I use). This, at least, has the advantage of being able to grasp the fixes more rapidly as the instructions are for Windows in French (which I have). Other discussions of the issue, in English, require me to go to the control panel and find the equivalent in French, which - even if you are virtually bilingual - is not always obvious.

But then, at some point yesterday, I had another idea  (this after more fun stuff like uninstalling stuff, clearing caches, more flushing (see last post), yet more registry cleans and yet more perusing of event logs and tech forums).

Mr RL, see, subscribes to various music download sites (he assures me they are not the 'dodgy' ones and I am not delving further into this). And although this has never happened before, considering we have a fast connection and lots of bandwidth, I think he has been sucking up all the resources lately because he has been finding 'better' as in 'massive' versions of a lot of stuff I like. Such as this:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pgv6dKV03dA

(note: at least call this an eclectic blog now because you also get MUSIC, and everybody should hear Fleet Foxes and in his defence, m'lud, he was trying to please me and who bought him a big new external HD for music recently anyway? Moi.).

Really, Fleet Foxes are gorgeous. But they don't replace being able to log on for more than two minutes. 

Now, if I was to plead 'my SL building is more important than you downloading music', this would not go well. Much as strangling him seemed like an option (yesterday, he didn't download anything and yesterday, I could actually walk around in SL again), who would do the cats' litter boxes?

I jest. Well, mostly.

Since the connection has been dropping on work-related Googling also, however, I have at least asked him, politely, to tell me when he is downloading some gigantic file to see if we can - ahem - co-ordinate better.

Have another photo (this suddenly seems to be popular, so go buy it for 9L with all the stuff inside / outside) and the greenhouse itself only 3 prims, bench 1.  Or it's on the markeplace also

Who knows, I might actually get back now. And make stuff.

I've been missing building and friends and Vent du Sud so damned much.  

Roll on spring, when his gardening and less bandwidth-sucking leisure activities should take the upper hand.

As long, of course, as it *is* a bandwidth issue. If it isn't, I think I shall just quietly go insane.

OK, more insane.

Did you flush? Tales of a not-geek

Yes, I did.

I am sitting here with half an eye on those little bars that show the internet connection. The ones that have been intermittently coming up with the yellow exclamation mark on and off all week, whatever I've been doing but particularly so with SL.

At the moment, it looks good.

Because I flushed my DNA cache, having read eleventy million articles on what might be wrong and finally came up with that as the last in a long line of attempts to fix it.

Ah, IT-speak. Dontcha love it?

I am praying it has worked, after perusing event logs, cleaning the registry, cleaning the fans, kicking the laundry basket (I had to kick something), forcing myself not to strangle Mr RL when he said the inevitable "well my machine is fine, so it has to be SL"... 

... and generally, y'know, getting weepy and sleepless because I had to WORK with all this going on (sociology, medicated animal feeds and a contract, if you are remotely interested). All of which required much Googling (connecting... connecting... yellow sign, swear and curse, ah it's back, no it's gone again, rinse and repeat). 

At this moment, I am too tired and too scared even to try and log into SL.

What a coward.


But I'm all flushed now.

No little yellow 'limited access' signs for half an hour. I feel almost giddy.

IMAGINE A PHOTO HERE PLEASE

because by the time I found the 'snapshot' button on the new viewer I installed as one potential solution (and crashed, and restarted, and waited for the little yellow sign to go away) my eyelids gave up on me until 7 this morning when I resumed my IT adventures.

So if flushing was the solution, I may actually get to build something in 2012.

Fingers crossed?  

(With apologies to anyone who was hoping for a post about building, decor, or SL fashion).

Blue, blue...

I don't know whether to direct my rage and frustration at French telecom, my SL viewer, my husband or the PC.

Well, I don't think it's my PC that is making my Net connection blink out every time I log on to SL. Nor do I think my husband is taking up our entire bandwidth playing Angry Birds.

Viewer? OK I need to upload another one to try but it's the one I've been using for ages without a hitch.

However, I suspect it is something to do with the little box with blinky lights that provides our ADSL, called a "Livebox". Which tends to play Deadbox in high wind, thunderstorms, hot weather, cold weather, or really any time at all. This is France, after all.

Am I boring you?

You can say, really. I don't mind (and I can, after all, monitor comments although with the exception of one in Russian, one that was rude and one that was down and out vulgar, I don't usually).

So anyway. The idea, you see, was to catch up on 52 weeks of colour (version the first) that I hadn't done. Including the first two (blue, and grey).

OK gray if you're across the pond.

So in the approximately three minutes of non-crashing time last night I dragged out a blue bikini and had great ideas of arty, whimsical photos taken on my sim with water and dusk and shades of blue... plus some blue Vent du Sud stuff because a girl needs to plug, particularly when a girl is up to her eyes in translating sociology as written by some guy who has, I think, the most tortuous way of phrasing I've ever seen.

I got as far as two. Neither of which are up to much because the composition of the one above is all off-kilter somehow (head and rock rather on top of each other), and in the other one I look frankly gormless.

You may need to be a Brit to understand the word gormless. Look it up, if not.

I'm tetchy. Does it show?

Now, I would have sung the praises of AND given the references for this bikini if I had been inworld long enough, but I'm not and you can't see much of it anyway. It is a nice one. I suspect it is my only one, in fact (I need shopping time and building time rather badly).

So with that (and yes I know this is a post about very little but whining), I am off to attack sociology again.

However, if you really want to be bored, get this...
"Sociology is both pluralised and integrative within the framework of this research.  It is a question of understanding the relations between work, social culture, economic and institutional context, as well as the evolution of sciences and techniques. In this perspective, sociologies of labour, professions, sciences, organisations and institutions can be mobilised."

(I have 12 pages of this, in font 7. Deadline? "Well, sort of yesterday").

Before I take a week off...

I have lost count of jobs coming in where the clients starts with 'I know you're away over Christmas but could you just...' these last two days.

So I have, meaning that this blog post may not be terribly coherent but two things.

No, three.

First, however, this is the winter - above is the  Christmassy set out at the Vent du Sud mainstore showing various colours (just click... there are about eleventy thousand combinations but thing burgundy and gold and green. Price? 1L each.

Here it is with some other 1L goodness, and out front?

Other things, some FREE. Baubles with snowflakes, mulled wine, etc. etc.

Next, if red isn't your thing, there are two other 2-prim carts out at the (still lacking-in-signage) NEW area beside the mainstore, also 1L.

I think that's it. Fashion? Ummmm... I took some photos in another outfit. I filed them. And I have forgotten what I called them. It will come to me shortly after takeoff, I expect.

Now, the challenge is to actually get on the plane, because (wouldn't you know it), there are strikes at our airport. French national sport, of course.

So all that really remains to be said this year is... I shall be back on 28th so have a WONDERFUL Christmas. Enjoy both RL and SL. Be nice to one another, and all that kind of thing.

In the new year, there will be gifts in the Vent du Sud subscribo, so this could be a good time to sign up, hm? When? Well, when I've got some of the washing done and caught up with clients saying 'I know you're only just back but...'.

And off I go. I hope. As for where, all will be revealed when I get back.

Oh and PS - I am only taking a netbook with me for work emergencies so no SL. The idea is, y'know, six days off everything but being a tourist.

Can we say HELP? (But hey, Christmas stuff)

Somehow, I got some Christmas stuff out.

Two places... the winter cabins and the  mainstore.

Above, the winter cabins. Read on... because a lot of the Christmas stuff is FREE. 

So...


The idea was this MASSIVE MASSIVE publicity binge about how Vent du Sud did classy Christmas stuff and everybody would rush over and love it.

The reality?

Where do I start? Work arriving in ****loads, details like car window motor dying (while it was open, of course), and... getting sick of over my birthday last week.

No, I won't go on. I won't even scream about Lyon airport being closed because the security people are on strike and we are supposed to head on out on Wednesday. For a HOLIDAY (or vacation if you are across the Pond).

OK, I'll scream.

Look away, please. This is not a pretty sight.

But the Vent du Sud winter cabins ARE pretty and they are 50L each, small and larger. The lights? Not included but free and mod copy so just click and help yourself.

Grab the armchair, the firebowl, the fire basket, all for 1L.  Right here. 

ANYWAY, please do help yourself to some Christmas stuff - I shall blog about the smainstore goodies tomorrow but for today, I am in this sort of mood.

Hammock, 1L. Of course. Colour change pillows and, um, INTERESTING animations for couples.

If you get me. You do, I know, but this is what Blogger considers a SAFE blog. At least that, eh?

Find it right beside the cabins.

And here is moi. In a rather elderly top from Gryphon Wings and amazing hair from Tram.

Incredible that Avatar Ari can look so serene when her typist is about to throw the world's largest hissy fit or simply burst into tears.

Roll on 2012?  And for Vent du Sud blog posts to be, y'know, optimistic?

Mainstore stuff tomorrow but nothing to stop you going to look RIGHT NOW (classy, really... just nowhere near as much as I wanted to do).

Make a wish? Sit on a pumpkin? Delivery fail? This post reveals all

Wishing well - 3 prims, bucket - 2 prims (I added nice moving water to it).  1L each. Three colours.

One of the 6 things above is free at the New Stuff area (which one day will have a sign saying 'NEW') at Vent du Sud.

I also hauled out these from last year and bribed coaxed two of the gang to demonstrate - there are FOUR sits in all, swappable at will.

Not, you understand, that I kept clicking on swap until the others were dizzy.

Course not.

However, Rett (who is making a witch outfit) would like to point out that she knows she is missing a foot shaper but left off to pose for me.

Anyway, anybody who feels that really big pumpkins to seat four are an essential item for their Halloween decor, pop over and grab one for 1L on the Vent du Sud main square.

In other news, and because I am vain, I wanted new hair.

OK, OK, this may not be world-shattering but I am a known cheapskate something of a frugal shopper.

So, I ordered about a dozen demos from the Marketplace and  received... none.

Frustration.

By this time I needed to buy hair  (cheapskate yes, but vain yes). I did find a note I'd made to go and look at Tram hair and actually went and bought it.   Which actually involved looking for it. Because I am also lazy. The store won't let you click teleport (grrrr) and it was upstairs.

But it was worth it.

 Nope, not making it big big big because I have not yet learned enough to smooth out kinks in my jawline.

But I love it. I may be wearing it for the next dozen fashion-ish posts.

Having actually spent money on something other than tier and feeling slightly weak, I checked my marketplace to make sure I had had no failed transactions and could redeliver to clients.

And discovered all the demos were still in my cart.

Sorry, Marketplace; Not that deliveries ever fail or anything.

I do check mine daily and now and then I have to redeliver to people (some of whom are convinced it's my fault but hey... this is SL. I will spare you stories of outraged entitlement because I happened to be sleeping when somebody didn't get something).

That's it for today, and I'm off to make a living but the wishing wells and other new stuff? Soon to be moved to make way for more. I feel a 'shuffle stuff around' mood coming on.

New house and 3-build offer, with digression on weathervanes and pension funds

Finally got the new house out at Vent du Sud on Sunday (see it in situ below) at which point Work With Capital W intervened.

However, it is sitting beside the bigger Mas (and the greenhouse), for 50L and at the link above. Total 39 prims, windows go opaque on click and hey... WEATHER VANE. Such a cute weather vane. 

Name? La maison du sud (southern-type house). So shoot me... I wasn't feeling inspired.

I mean would you feel inspired if you had this massive chunk of pension fund regulations to translate?

Thought so.

It's a very typical Provençal house, and the box includes the windowbox, the lavender and the sunflowers. And I think it's cute. 

There. Self-congfatulation moment.

In my enthusiasm, I also decided to make a special pack of both the new house and the Mas plus the greenhouse (which also includes the 1-prim bench on the photo below).

Lots of things, then, for 75L.  Here.

Not sure how long I'll leave the offer out (that big box looks messy), but I will put it on the Marketplace. Soon. When I have got this monster of a text off to the client.

I even made a composite photo of it all and got as far as advertising it on the Subscribo until the deadline for pension funds loomed closer.

Did you know that pension fund terminology includes the magic phrase 'premature withdrawals'?

Sorry to digress (again).

But believe me, you need a chuckle when you're trudging through that.

Next up is listing it on the Marketplace, but the Mas (50L) and the Greenhouse (10L, including all the accessories) are up there if you want, including lots more photos.

Just because, however, here is a BIG PHOTO of the Maison du Sud. Taken before I finished texturing the base (hell, I always forget something, but rest assured it is now done). Check out that weather vane!!

PS: the windowbox, sunflowers and lavender also available separately at 1L. Or rather two of them. One of them is free. To find out which, go look.

I shall be continuing with 'benefits purchased' and 'termination benefits' for now but I did find MOSS GREEN for the 52 weeks challenge.



PS: I'm just hiding this here in the unlikely event anybody has scrolled this far. Remember I offered 3 free houses to anyone who commented? Well, nobody did (cue violins). Plenty of people popped over and bought one, mind which is Very Nice Indeed. But the offer still stands - you can comment on this post and I will choose 3 (if I even get three people saying why they'd like one).

Heh.


 

Rocket science, and why slow is good. Also, free new house to win

Put a little thing out at Vent du Sud last Sunday, of which one is free (and the others 1L). At the 'new' area in Vent du Sud. 

Now, much as it's easy to pop something into these, it's a fiddle to get it out unless you are very good with the camera or unlink it, so I made the glass part slide up and down when you click.

Rocket science, huh?

(To skip the rambling below and get straight to the 'free' part, scroll on). 

(And no, nothing world-shattering about a 2-prim cabinet, of course, except it goes with last week's one-prim corner cabinet, except I am still in awe of the sculpt maker).


Quick, look at the aforementioned matching corner cabinets, and we shall shortly get to the point but hey, we're not in a hurry, are we?

See, I am a slow builder. And I like it that way.

When I've made something slightly more complex than a 2-prim shelf, part of the pleasure is in the pottering. The tweaking. The walking around it and finding fault with it and changing stuff... and getting distracted without feeling guilty.



Which is why a new and very nearly-finished Provençal house still isn't out because during my SL time at the weekend - and since - I have:
- spent an hour fiddling with a texture I'd made (fun)
- stopped to gossip with a friend (nice)
- spent another hour looking on the marketplace for something (which wasn't delivered so notecard, etc. and chat to the creator)
- got distracted for a dance (also nice)
- decided to improve on  a cute extra feature on it (much trial and error and a little cursing)
- stopped to gossip with a friendly stranger who came to Vent du Sud (very nice also)
- decided it needed a different sort of floor tiles... (pending)


... at which point it was time for RL wine, cooking, and a wander around the (RL) garden. Upon which I decided that this house should probably have a few plants thrown in.

Did those yesterday, but I decided to add texture options so you can change the flowers.


And you know what?

(What, is she finally getting to the point?)

All that  'slow' is just fine.*

It's called 'enjoying SL'. 


Right. Here we go. Here is what is apprently called a teaser.

And the free? GET ON WITH IT, WOMAN!

Well, reply to this post (it's moderated, so nobody will see) and tell me why you'd like one of these houses (for yourself or a friend). The three that make me smile most... it's all yours. If there are more (hell, let's be optimistic), the others get the planter and the lavender.

You have 3 days, as I really will have it done for Sunday morning my time.

(Oh, and it's 35 or 37 prims as the jury's still out on a room divider / bench seat. With? Without? Not sure. Thoughts?)

And the plants will come with it. And it has a roughtly 20 x 20 footprint, so it's smallish, two airy rooms and a patio.

If I hadn't forgotten to link the divider bit and when tweaking it hadn't sent it into orbit somewhere up above Vent du Sud... and then got distracted with a weather vane (yes it has a weather vane)... it would be out already.

But by Sunday, it will be. So get commenting!

*It would be finer still if I didn't have to pay tier but hey, nothing's perfect.

Khaki. Go away world. Mistakes.

Khaki makes me think of safaris or hiking in deserts (or pottering around Vent du Sud in a vaguely Lara-Croftish sort of way).

I mean you don't have a khaki evening dress, do you? You'd have it in 'moon beige' or 'pale crème brûlée' or something.

(How profound, Ari).

Anyway, khaki came up when I was in one of those 'go away world' moods.

(It hasn't. It's still there).

Digging around for something suitable, I stumbled on this superb T-shirt that says 'Wise girl profits by her mistakes.

Interesting, if a little preachy. 

But it did get me thinking (but not so much that I forgot to take a photo without the sweater and belt hiding it).

However, as a fashion blog is most definitely not the place for wailing and beating breasts and existential rambling, let's cut all that short right here.

Yes, I make mistakes. Of course I do.

I sometimes admit to them.

And sometimes I don't, let alone profit from them. And I go off doing the 'go away, world' thing.

Meaning mooching around and thinking instead of building, socialising or exploring.

However, as mooching doesn't get me anywhere, I'm ready to rumble again.

Off to make more mistakes, no doubt.

No, this is not cryptic. It's just me thinking too much. I do that.

Have another photo and be warned that I shall be back to plugging Vent du Sud forthwith.

Credits;
Hair Melody, Elikatira
Earrings Ahi, Miel
T-shirt from BareRose Snow Smile outfit
Belt and sweater Coco designs
Shorts Gisaci 
Socks freebie from somewhere
Shoes Lazies in Desert, Kookie

Brick red, 1L cabinets, and the horror of heels. Brick red.

So, looks like summer's over in my bit of the world, so time to get a jacket out (and - ugh - suit and heels tomorrow as I have a job in the Big City).

But lovely brick red jacket here, no? Not quite ideal for work with all that cleavage, maybe.

And as I've been on a building spree, I even made a brick red one of these (and it's FREE, see below).

No, the one on the right is dark cherry. Hold on a bit for the free one (see below). But the flower pot? Texture change, also 1L. As are the books. Find them out at the NEW Vent du Sud 'NEW' area right here (have a cookie, Ari - getting on with new signs and LMs and stuff).

More of the jacket (I love it). And cart coming soon but I am all textured and pose-inserted and notecarded out for today.

But here's the FREE brick red corner cabinet (useful for, um, corners).  1L and 1 prim, and superb sculpt (bravo to the maker, whose work is stunning).

What, no snappy prose today? Nope. I have to read stuff and pack stuff and get on a train. And dig out  heels. So peace on the blog front for a couple of days ;)


Credits:
Hair: Argrace Modern Rail. Still my favourite short hair
Jacket: Fri.day Tourist jacket
Jeans: Mon Tissu
Belt: Maitreya
Shoes: Lazies by Kookie (they look so COMFY. Heels tomorrow RL... ew... sorry where was I?)
Earrings: VG republic (sadly no longer around but hey, also similar RL ones I like)
Cabinets (not available in yard sales): Vent du Sud

QUICK - the best yard sale ever

Seriously, do not miss this.

This being a Vent du Sud yard sale.But not at Vent du Sud, don't click too soon.

Except ...

... the vast majority of the items aren't from Vent du Sud, but hey, what does that matter?
(oh boy that standard lamp with the slight texturing issues...but hey, if it floats your boat)

Some of them are only marked up to about 25 or 50 times their current value (i.e. 1L for the last 10 months), not to mention being WAY more than what they were originally sold for, but what does that matter?

But run! Quick! The things are transferable so grab them before anyone else!

Here's the address: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Wakeley/47/19/120


Or, should you prefer, pop over to Vent du Sud and get the same things, or newer stuff, for just 1L or free (see below)...

For example: French stove, mod / copy, flames on and off, back solid or open. Just 1L like all Vent du Sud decor

And sadly, this is not at the yard sale.

And see the little twinkly light and the message in the bottle in that first picture? Free at Vent du Sud today, and mod/copy too. Do help yourself. 

Happy shopping, everyone! I'm off to find some brick red clothes.