Tag Archives: Art Dummy

If Only In My Dreams

Like It's Christmas in the Room

Skin: Glam Affair America/Simone Hair: Doe: Tessa – Fatpack Appliers: Glam Affair Simone Applier for Lelutka Mesh Head Eyes: [PXL] REFLEX Eyes (B) ~ GreyGold Mesh Attachments: .LeLutka.Mesh Head-SIMONE v1.4

Christmas Eve’ll find me
Where the love light gleams
I’ll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams

Lelutka has released a new mesh head called Simone. It’s a special edition head with additional expressions including this mournful one that perfectly captures some of the emotional turmoil I am feeling this Christmas season. With the passing of my aunt this summer, everyone from my parents’ generation is now gone. My sister had a tough struggle with cancer last year and came though in the end, but now has a new cancer that has gone from Stage One to Stage Four in just one month. I will confess I cry a lot lately, but I am still hopeful she will beat the odds. She is the strongest woman I know. Homesickness has manifested itself in the kitchen with traditional Christmas baking like lefse and rosettes and cooking up Cherry Soup with Dumplings, the foods that make me think of home and family.

Like It's Christmas in the Room

| -Pixicat- Ballerina.Cat delivery box @ The Arcade | ~silentsparrow~ Felt Bird Ornaments – Partridge – Merry @ Tannenbaum | Silence. – Wooden Cutout Ornament – Gift 2 @ Tannenbaum | MudHoney Brights Giftbag Spots @ The Arcade | The Loft – Monochrome Christmas Fir Garand White M @ The Arcade | Botanical – Green Douglas Fir Christmas Tree (Tannenbaum) | Schadenfreude Jingle Ball 1 Catmas Ornament | ~silentsparrow~ Felt Bird Ornaments – Partridge – @ Tannenbaum | Silence. – Wooden Cutout Ornament – Gift 2 @ Tannenbaum | The Loft – Monochrome Christmas Fir Garand White M | {anc} glass ornament. for tree (2) @ Tannenbaum | !Ohmai: Gold Star Topper @ Tannenbaum | Trompe Loeil – Vintage Diamond Floor Lights @ The Arcade | [ zerkalo ] Magical Christmas – Pile of Gifts#1 | MudHoney Rustic Giftbox Plaid 4 @ The Arcade | MudHoney Rustic Giftbox Plaid 1 @ The Arcade | MudHoney Brights Giftbag Spots @ The Arcade | [ zerkalo ] Magical Christmas – Pile of Gifts#2 @ The Arcade | Sari-Sari – Traditional | Christmas – Reindeer RARE @ The Arcade | {vespertine} snowy dust 11 @ Tannenbaum | {vespertine} dala horse/red 14 @ Tannenbaum | Fancy Decor: Book Ornament Blue @ Tannenbaum | ARIA – Myrrh Handmade Vintage Bulb Bauble Ornament @ Tannenbaum | MishMish – Puppy in a box – Pastel @ Tannenbaum | Schadenfreude Fish 2 Catmas Ornament @ Tannenbaum | [RI] Pearl Berry Ornament (Bubblegum) @ Tannenbaum | [RI] Pearl Berry Ornament (Bubbly) @ Tannenbaum | Garbaggio // Round Xmas Ornament – Red @ Tannenbaum | Silence. – Wooden Cutout Ornament – Gift 2 @ Tannenbaum {anc} glass ornament. for tree (2) 1Li @ Tannenbaum | ~silentsparrow~ Felt Bird Ornaments – Hen – Bright @ Tannenbaum | ~silentsparrow~ Felt Bird Ornaments – Peacock – Bright @ Tannenbaum | Lark – Star Ornament – @ The Arcade | Sway’s [PineConny] Ornament . pink @ Tannenbaum | {anc} glass ornament. for tree (2) 1Li @ Tannenbaum | Silence. – Wooden Cutout Ornament – Tree 3 @ Tannenbaum | {vespertine} crane bauble /mustard 9 @ Tannenbaum | ~silentsparrow~ Felt Bird Ornaments – Raven – Merry @ Tannenbaum | ARIA – Myrrh Burlap Tree Skirt – RARE @ tannenbaum | ~silentsparrow~ Felt Bird Ornaments – Partridge – Merry @ Tannenbaum | Kalopsia – Glitter Leaf – Silver @ The Arcade | Garbaggio // Studded Xmas Ornament – Blue @ Tannenbaum | The Loft – Monochrome Christmas Bulb Ribbon White@ The Arcade

No one loved Christmas more than my mom. Each year, my dad and my uncle would scour the woods for the perfect black spruce or balsam fir. It has to be 17 feet with no bare spots, so when I put the angel on the top it stopped just shy of the ceiling. Dad made a tree stand with wheels so we could turn it to decorate it evenly. I did the top from my bedroom balcony while they did the middle and bottom before we oh-so-carefully wheeled it across the living room so it was framed in the center by all the windows that faced onto the lake. It was a huge undertaking that was never done in a day, particularly since many of the ornaments were generational hand-me-downs and hand-made memory-laden pieces that prompted stories and remembrances of the past. There were no themed trees or single-colored trees because that store of ornaments was much more precious – a store of memories.

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Like It’s Christmas in the Room

Like It's Christmas in the Room

Intrigue Co. – Nordicats @ Collabor88 Trompe Loeil – Haldis Candleholder Scripted @ Collabor88 [*Art Dummy!] simple things. (shelf with decor)RARE

I’ll come to you, I’ll sing to you
Like it’s Christmas in the room
I’ll dance with you, I’ll laugh with you
‘Til it’s Christmas in the room
‘Til it’s Christmas in the room

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This is Real Life

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The princess dress from Adore & Abhor was released to celebrate their sixth anniversary. It is rich in design details including a sheer overskirt, a lovely ribbon belt and a cameo collar.

Let me start with a confession. I do not hate Shopping Cart Disco’s SL Secrets. From sociology and evolutionary psychology, I understand the role of gossip in defining community norms and values. It is possible that anonymity allows more viciousness than we might see in first life, but given the many stories about young people driven to suicide by online harassment on Facebook® and Twitter® coming from  non-anonymous classmates, I think that  anonymity is a smaller factor than we might think.

Sometimes the secrets make me think, sometimes they make me laugh, sometimes they surprise me. Secrets often spark discussions on Plurk® and I suppose they do on other social media as well. Sometimes I agree with the secret-makers, sometimes I do not. One thing most secret-makers have in common is an idea of how the world should be and they want us all to know it is out of alignment with their standards.

Today a secret maker repeated the all too common “Get a real life” mantra that always seems so ironic coming from someone whose emotional investment is Second Life® is so powerful they are compelled to create anonymous secrets to share their opinions. This time, the “Get a real life” message included an insinuation that purchasing from SL creators could be contributing to their mental illness by promoting an attachment to this second life over their first life.

I think the secret maker is wrong on all levels – because while our first and second lives are distinct and often separate, they are both real.

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Collabor88tors

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Gidge and I did a bit of shopping yesterday morning with running stops at Fifty Linden Friday stores and ending at Collabor88 where we both felt like doofuses when we saw the second building full of items. I said, “How many times have I come here and never noticed there were two buildings? What a dork!” and Gidge, like me, said, “I never noticed it either.” While we both pondered what wonderful creations we may have missed in our neglectful visits in past months, we busily ran around picking stuff up. Of course, later we learned that it’s just this month that there’s the second build and we have not been missing out on half the collection every month! That makes me feel better. I saw a couch and Christmas tree there that I absolutely adored and wanted so much and for only 88 lindens I thought i could splurge – even though I don’t have a house to decorate. So I put it in my little photobox and slapped on a couple textures from Distressed Textures to make it look like i have a house and voila, there it is! There are five sits on the couch and three on the floor with a nice mix of feminine and masculine poses.

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This tree made me laugh. It reminded me so much of this fabulous dried tree branch I used to have that I painted white and potted in a vase with some cement. It arched over my couch at a nice safe height, just high enough to not snag your hair even in an updo. I left it mostly plain except for a few epiphytes, but at Christmas would string it with white lights. I loved it, unfortunately, so did the dog my former roommate babysat for her boyfriend. In the epic battle of dead tree versus 185 pound rottweiler, the tree lost.
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