You know, I said I was taking a vacation from this blog. And then, of course (like I usually do), something cool comes up—someone mentions a new virtual world, Altamura releases another free mesh avatar body—and I get all excited and I break my word.
Tonight, while driving home from supper at my mother’s, I realized:
I really don’t have a clue.
Here I am, blissfully and blithely assuming that I am actually going to be making a living in some way from “social VR, virtual worlds, and the metaverse” (the tagline of my blog) when I finally do decide (hopefully, at some age before 65) to take my retirement.
And I don’t have any sort of game plan. I talk about becoming a virtual fashion designer, and I haven’t touched my copy of Marvelous Designer since February. I’m not going to get very far (or make very much money at it) if I don’t work my way up the learning curve.
I’m also trying, with my producer Andrew and his cameraman Carlos, to launch the Metaverse Newscast show. My cancer scare pushed everything back; we’ve only got two-thirds of the first episode in the can so far (interviews with Solas and Galen).
The theologian Frederick Buechner once wrote about finding your calling in life:
There are all different kinds of voices calling you to all different kinds of work, and the problem is to find out which is the voice of God rather than of Society, say, or the Super-ego, or Self-Interest.
By and large a good rule for finding out is this. The kind of work God usually calls you to is the kind of work (a) that you need most to do and (b) that the world most needs to have done. If you really get a kick out of your work, you’ve presumably met requirement (a), but if your work is writing TV deodorant commercials, the chances are you’ve missed requirement (b). On the other hand, if your work is being a doctor in a leper colony, you have probably met requirement (b), but if most of the time you’re bored and depressed by it, the chances are you have not only bypassed (a) but probably aren’t helping your patients much either.
Neither the hair shirt nor the soft berth will do. The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.
—Frederick Buechner, Wishful Thinking
I’m a very lucky man; not once, but twice, I have found that place where my deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.
The first time was discovering the joys of libraries as a child, and eventually becoming a librarian.
The second time—this time around—I accidentally discovered my deep gladness when I first set foot in Second Life back in 2007. And then (much later, and again by accident!) I discovered that I also had a talent for writing this blog, for explaining and elucidating how the metaverse works, and talking with and interviewing the personalities that make it happen.
I hate to say this, but I really do need to put the blog on hold so I can make some proper plans.
How long? I’m thinking, for the rest of November, maybe longer. But I really do need to stop, catch my breath, and figure out where the hell I am going with all this.
I do hope you understand. Thank you for being such faithful readers! When I do decide to resume my blogging, you’ll all be the first to know.
I wish you all the best Ryan and hope you can come back refreshed again and ready to take on the virtual challenges once more! Take care.
Hey Ryan, I’m an avid reader of your blog (and I also had a similar cancer scare) and I must say I’m bummed to hear you are taking some time off but I wish you all the best in your search for what will make you happy (and employed). As a fellow VR enthusiast, I share your mix of excitement and trepidation – I’ve spent so much time and money trying to find my own place in this emerging medium, and sometimes it’s great and other times it feels like an uphill battle. I’d just remind you that your blog is, as far as I’ve seen, the number one blog on social VR out there. You have something valuable here, even if it’s not always that clear to you. You have many readers and we all look up to you and look forward to your pieces. You’ve done a great job of sharing much-needed information about all these different worlds and the people in them. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say you are one of the leading experts on social VR. I hope you recharge your batteries and come back raring to go! And when you’re ready, let me know: I’ve got a new version of my interactive storytelling project up and running over in High Fi and I’d love to put you through it. I think you’ll be impressed at how far we’ve come since the first one.
Wishing you all the best,
Jason Moore
Thank you, Jason!