Antiquity Art Museum At Texas Capitol Building

 
By Bixyl Shuftan

Last week, I heard about the opening of an art exhibition, the Antiquity Art Museum. This was for the 15th anniversary of the community.

To celebrate Antiquities 15th Anniversary we have established the Antiquity Art Museum.  Grand Opening is today at 12:00 pm slt.

Please join us  at the opening TCS Reception as HRH Princess Regent Pamus Bing officially declares the Museum open. Be sure to come and pick up your commemorative 15th Anniversary gift too!

Dropping by, I saw this was a place I'd been at before, the Texas Capitol Building, which was featured in the Newser in the article on Election Night 2016. 

This time it was for a strictly inworld occasion, people in 19th and 18th century fashion, the majority of them Antiquity community nobles, celebrating the exhibit opening with some snacks and drinks. 

Liz Wilner, a Duchess at Antiquity, introduced me to Jacon Cortes de Bexar (Jacon Cortes), the Crown Prince of Antiquity, and the man who organized the opening of the exhibit. So why here at the Texas Capitol? He answered, "The Texas capitol building is the oldest buildings in Antiquity, and one of only two...that were here during the founders. We chose the capitol, because I wanted a place that reflected us. And for many that visit, the capitol is very recognizable."

And what kind of art could visitors expect to see here? Jacon answered, "Well, this museum is on the history of Antiquity. They are a collection of photographs and maps from the fifteen years." To the right was the Maritime Room, with pictures of maps and ships. To the left was the Grand Estates Room, with more pictures of people and places on land.

 One of the others, Kesare (KesareSauvage Resident), told me, "There are a great many artists here though primarily painters and watercolorists. Scenes of Venice and Egypt, portraits and battle scenes primarily from Tudor times to the present King George, but those paintings are hosted in the Welcome Center or in homes."

Kesare would go on, "Antiquity still hosts naval ship battles three or four times a week, which is how I first came across them years ago. Recently there was a horse racing tournament for Relay For Life and in winter there are sleigh rides. Jacon recently added firearms to the TCS system to allow hunting."

The exhibit is at http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Antiquity%20Tejas/136/182/24 . 

Bisyl Shuftan 

 

Two "Shop and Hop" Gifts

 
by Bixyl Shuftan

The SL19B "Shop and Hop" has a LOT of stores this year (full list here). And many offer free gifts to entice people to buy up more of their goods as long as they're at the shop. But if you're like many, you'd rather just grab a few gifts that are enjoyable instead of searching the whole place. Obviously what people like varies. But there were a couple gifts that got my attention.

A friend invited me to the "Quills and Curiosities" store to get the gifts there. One was a set of animated daggers. The other was something cuter: the "Birthday Evaki," a pet pink bat. Just go to the sign in the back of the store, and click on the picture on the right. Just go in your inventory and "add" the item. It will appear on your screen. Just click on it and you'll get a folder with the pet, ready to use.

The Birthday Evaki is a pet pink bat made to look a bit like a birthday cake, "complete with a candle, frosting swirl, and sprinkle markings," along with what looks like frosting covering the tips of it's ears. It normally flies next to it's owner. But it comes with a HUD with six animations. You can have the bat fly in a circle, chirp, do a loop, fly in a spiral pattern, stick out it's tongue ("Blep"), or fly in a dance pattern.

A cute pet that will likely come in handy for someone's birthday party, not just the Second Life Anniversary.

https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Gleaming/92/89/53

So what else was around? Checking some car places, at [sau]motorcycles in the Gilded sim, they had a free hoverboard. This time it was on a sign in the front of the store, over a couple guards. Clicking on the sign will get you a box. You can't just add and click on it, but fortunately next to the hoverboard sign, another sign will take you to the store "demo zone/test ride" area. Or rather, it will take you to a spot on the sim several hundred meters under the area that you'll need to look around for the doorway to the place. Once there, you can rezz the box, open it, and get the board.

The board is somewhat small, hovering just inches off the ground. It's dark-colored, but has "SL19B" brightly painted on. To ride the board, just click and get on it. The board's speed is adjustable, there's a "turbo" option, and there's a "flight" one. So you can have fun zipping around on your own, or perhaps race with some friends.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Gilded/163/156/52

On a final note, the people who made "The Mouse" last year are back, this time they have a racecar as a gift. A nearby store had a train as a gift. Both places are also at the Gilded sim not too far from where I got the hoverboard.

The "Shop and Hop" ends Sunday Night, so get "hopping" if you want these gifts.

Happy gift-grabbing.

Bixyl Shuftan
 

Some More SL19B Exhibits

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By Bixyl Shuftan

The Second Life Birthday has many exhibits. We wrote about some of them earlier (link). But before the gate closes for good, we have a few more to show. 

There was the American Cancer Society exhibit at SLB Astound (220/34/23). Resembling a Martian landscape, it reminded people of the struggle with cancer, and to look for more information at American Cancer society (171/172/23).

One place that was interactive was the Epic Surf Center at AL19B Amaze (80/247/23).

From the ground, it looked much like an aquarium. 

Climbing the stairs and going up, one clicked on the surfboard.

Then a board would rezz and one would sit on it, and offered three levels of ease of movement, 1 being easiest, three being more realistic.

Me and a couple friends had a bit of fun.

 At SLB Amaze (176/222/23) was "Bonsai Punk."

 A pneumatic tube nearby would take you to buttons that when pressed would take you to different levels.

"Out of Time" was at SLB Amaze (169/195/22).

At SLB Amaze (128/165/23) was the "Nun" pyramid. 

At SLB Imagination (81/231/23), was the whimsical looking "Avatar Trap Game," based on the tabletop "Mouse Trap" game for kids and kids at heart. 

There were hints it was playable, but I couldn't get it to move. 

Apparently only this guy knew, and he wasn't talking. 

At SLB Electrify (157/158/23) was this interesting exhibit by The Dive Shop's Underwater Aquarium.

The Dive Shop reminded me of a place I wrote about for Dana Vanmoer's SL Newspaper ages ago.

An elevator down took me to an aquarium where a shipwreck and kelp forests could be seen.

It's best to get training, and experienced company, before trying real diving, for a number of reasons.

At SLB Astonish (41/85/23) was an amusing exhibit by the Society for the Preservation and Archeology of the Metaverse, or SPAM.

The place had a number of amusing exhibits, such as that of modern avatars, "The current and most prominent form of Agni natives, these specimen come in a large variety of styles and sport a dazzling display of texture and color - at least, according to reports from the natives themselves. No explorer has yet to see the colors in question, as they would instead appear to be a featureless gray character with an oddly high number displayed over their heads." 

And at SLB Fantasy (211/102/22), "Just Glue Some Gears On It."

Appearing as not much more than a pool of water up top, underneath there's more. 

By all means there's much much more, but there's only so much time to write about the exhibits. You can find more in the Destination Guide.

Hope you enjoyed the SL19B.

Bixyl Shuftan
 

At the SL19B

 
By Gemma Cleanslate

 
I enjoy the Second Life birthdays so much. I have been active as a volunteer since 2009. First I was a greeter, then an exhibitor assistant. The Moles took over that job along with their building of the infrastructure and so much more so I became a greeter again. 

The greeters all got together with Alotta Mole, Itsa Mole and Squeaky Mole at an orientation in the gallery before the opening to orient ourselves and take a tour.

The stages are outstanding as are the surroundings. There will be live performers and djs for your enjoyment throughout the event which lasts until July 5. Check this list and scroll down for more information. More will be added as the week goes on. https://community.secondlife.com/blogs/entry/11022-sl19b-music-fest-lineup-calendar-of-events/

I love visiting the installations of the exhibitors. There are so many to see. Try the pod tour that takes you along the road and tells you what is nearby and you can hop off to visit what you want. Some of the exhibitors also place gifts at their sites so look around when you get there. I will be taking photos during the week and will post them. Here are some of the stops I made so far.

The gift area is outstanding. All the gifts are in one spot this year and I like it. Get there to get the many gifts left by the exhibitors. They are in the center of the Tapestry of Time building. It is my opinion that this exhibit should be somewhere in a region permanently. It would take a whole week just to read all about the past back to the very beginning , the first anniversary 2004 which has become the slbirthday celebration.

Some of the exhibits are spellbinding when you look at them from a distance. I was entranced by that of Yobex Resident.

I stopped off at the colorful installation of the Yobe Gallery. Lots to examine there.

I did get some time to attend part of the live piano performance of Tia Rungray which was delightful and restful. The Vernian Rotunda is a perfect place for such an event It is large and open and many avatars can attend the events there. 

I cannot stress enough how much great work the Moles did putting in the magnificent infrastructure in many regions. There is so much to do and see before July 5. Get here! Come to the Welcome area and get the official hat in the gift giver. Grab the hunt hud to get your prizes there too.  
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/SLB%20Beguile/135/202/47

Gemma Cleanslate
 

Wee Wonders Tiny Freebie Store

 
By Bixyl Shuftan

If you have a tiny avatar, there's a place to shop that will interest you: Wee Wonders at Didean.

At the Relay Weekend, my friend Kamida came across a set of the three dinkie bot singers that were up on sale at the RFL Home and Garden a couple years ago. She wondered if whoever made them made more items. So that led to to my looking. Veloce Bertone was the maker, and he had a place in Didean called "Wee Wonders." So I took a look for myself to see how the place is.

Dropping by, there were many dozens of items inside. Veloce had arranged them in several catagories: Furniture, Edibles (including an ice cream cart and coffee machines), Outdoors (outdoor activities), Buildings, Winter (activities), Toys, Pool and Patio, Avatar (such as swimmer animation), Vehicles (including a dinkie-sized roomba), Performance, and Activism. Clicking on the signs, one could get a description, or the item.

There were a few demonstration items. One was a sack race. Another was a container of tools from hoe to rake to pickaxe. The third was a "Punch-A-Putin." Just "sit" on the item, and your tiny's punches will gradually give the Putin head in place of a punching bag a black eye. 

A few of the items such as the "Punch-A-Putin" have an option for larger avatars or can also be used by them. Also, the second floor has a few items made for avatars of normal human height, such as the Faery boat. But the number is much smaller, at least for now.

The surrounding sim is well done and designed. Outside on the canal next to the shop, one can take a Faery boat, either full size or dinkie size for a tour around the area. At normal speed, be prepared for it to take a while, about thirty minutes. The tour will take you through rivers and ocean shores, through forests, and past homes and stone towers. Along the way, you get a few free gifts.

By all means, stop by Wee Wonders and get a few items.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Didean/80/177/25

Bixyl Shuftan
 

Burnal Equinox : Time Travel

By Gemma Cleanslate

 This weekend I spent another roaming about. I usually am a Ranger at Burn2 events but skipped it this time. Over the weekend they held a fun event called “Burn2 Burnal Equinox :Time Travel.“ I went over as a visitor and viewed some of the awesome builds that occupied Deep Hole. The charming Angelicus Boys Choir was performing on their stage. Their voices are always appreciated at the events and it was well attended.

DJ Puddles was on her stage after that. She also does a wonderful job of live videoing the activities going on all over the playa during the events now.

Here are some of the creations of the future and past that were gracing the playa. Though the event is over you may like to go check out the installations and pick up some of the new gifts at the gift center near the entrance. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Burning%20Man-%20Deep%20Hole/206/34/25

My next visit was to my campsite at Yosemite to check on the rental. I will be telling you about Yosemite in a future article but this is a great place to have a camp where I can escape and think and write and relax. The many activities there are well worth the visits.

I did a little shopping and also took a dash around the Linden Realms for some lindens to use for donations to the Relay for Life… (another article followup on the Reams coming...)

Gemma Cleanslate