I have been in SecondLife a long time…well not as long as some, but many I have met consider joining in 2007 and being a regular member of that virtual world a long time. I have logged in daily without fail for the last several years. I have made my fair share of avatars, enjoying the naming and personalization process. I currently play two avatars…one that was created as a junk account when I was just learning SL and that I have re-purposed as my “All things Meeroo Alt.” And the one I consider my new “main.” She is actually the 5th avatar I created, but the one that stuck. She became my main because of the people I met on her. I no longer felt the need to continue to reinvent myself. I had found the people I enjoy most in SL and have played my main for nearly 3 years now. I miss my original avi sometimes, but she was connected to my real life job and I wanted anonymity in SL…the ability to explore what I will without judgement or comment from others.
So here I am in SL the avi known as Melanie Ryzyder and as Silly Avro to the Meeroo community. I enjoy every moment of my time in SL because I do things enjoy with people I enjoy. It is a welcome escape from real life. Do I have things I am running from in RL? A terrible life? Not in the slightest. I learned early to balance the time spent in SL and while it was lopsided in the beginning, it is well balanced now. I know RL comes first, and for me it does. We all have our hobbies, things we enjoy. For me it is SL. I have been in SL long enough to understand the odd looks I get when SL is mentioned in public, so I don’t mention it. I don’t need to. I don’t need anyone’s consent to enjoy what I enjoy. One of my life’s mottos is “To Each Their Own.” I apply that to others as well as myself. No judgements. Live your life and avoid doing harm to others.

- This is the texture I sent to my friends in SL this holiday season.