Month: November 2020

Pandemic Diary, November 21st, 2020: Foreigner, Pebbles Flintstone, and Worn-Out Can Openers

I have learned, over the years, that my subconscious sends me messages through song lyrics. At that precise moment when I become aware that I have a particular song running through my head, the lyrics usually have some sort of meaning—something that I’m not consciously thinking about, but which my subconscious is trying to tell me.

For example, this morning (feeling distinctly unrested after a fitful, disturbed sleep filled with nightmarish dreams), I was thinking about the fact that I have not had a dental checkup or cleaning since the pandemic started. And at that very moment, I became aware of that the Foreigner song, Cold As Ice, was running through my head. And, at the exact moment that I became aware that that song was playing in my memory, the lyrics were:

Some day you’ll pay…

—Foreigner, Cold As Ice

Sometimes, I have to spend a little time puzzling out what my subconscious is trying to tell me, but not today! It’s rare that I get such a clear internal message, but it does happen.

Of course, I have recently been listening non-stop to the Spa music stream on CalmRadio.com. Ironically, I first learned the existence of Calm Radio when it was playing as the background music stream in a Second Life store, while I was busy doing a little virtual retail therapy! It was so soothing (even the commercials were soothing!), that I purchased a subscription when the pandemic started, an additional tool in my anti-anxiety arsenal.

And, of course, I now become aware at times that I have an instrumental song from Calm Radio’s spa channel running through my head—but alas, there are no lyrics to puzzle over to figure out what it means, though! When it does happen, I usually take it as a signal from my subconscious that I am feeling stressed out, and that I need to listen to more Calm Radio, or do something else to seek some inner peace.

Along with dentist appointments, I have also cancelled regular sessions with my hairstylist. My hair is now at an irritating middle ground: long enough that my bangs hand over my eyes at times and even touch my nose, yet still too short for a proper ponytail or man bun!

So, among my online purchases from Walmart, I ordered a set of two plastic headbands, which will at least keep my hair back and out of the way in the interim. I may yet decide to attend my next virtual work meeting in Microsoft Teams, Cisco Webex, or Zoom rocking a Pebbles Flintstone look!

I have now worn out not one, but two manual can openers since the pandemic started. It is now a frustrating struggle to get a can of soup open for supper, spending several minutes going back and forth between the two worn-out, dull can openers, trying to get a tin open! I ordered two replacement can openers in my last grocery pick-up trip to Walmart, but I still have to dig through the bags of groceries I unceremoniously dumped next to my kitchen table to find them. I did a cursory initial search, but no joy. (I might have accidentally left them in my car, or perhaps Walmart screwed up my order. If I cannot locate them today, after unpacking all my groceries properly, I will place an order for replacement can openers via Amazon, and make do with what I have until they arrive via Canada Post.)

Oh, and I am not going on strike this year. The latest proposal from the university administration was approved in a ratification vote by members of the faculty union. Whew! So I have one less thing to worry about, at least.

Meanwhile, the coronavirus pandemic is going rapidly from bad to worse here in Manitoba, and all across Canada (except the Maritime provinces). The town of Steinbach, which last weekend held a now-infamous anti-mask rally which I blogged about here and here, has been especially hard hit. CBC News reported yesterday:

Manitoba health officials say there are 438 new COVID-19 cases Friday and listed nine more deaths, including a man in his 20s, bringing the provincial death toll to 207…the man in his 20s is the youngest person to die of the illness in Manitoba.

…

A record 281 COVID-19 patients are in hospital, with 43 of them in intensive care.

The 10-day test positivity rate in the Steinbach health district is at 40 per cent, and there have been 24 Steinbach deaths since the beginning of the pandemic, Roussin said.

Winnipeg’s test positivity is at 13.7 per cent.

“When you’re looking at something like 40 per cent … this is a very concerning number,” Roussin said.

With a population of just over 21,000, the Steinbach health district has among the most COVID-19 cases per capita in Canada.

In recent days, Roussin and the premier have both chastised the 100-plus people at a Steinbach protest against the provincewide code red restrictions on the weekend.

Protesters at the anti-mask rally in Steinbach last weekend (source: Austin Grabish/CBC)

Meanwhile, there was an arrest at an Alberta Costco, where a covidiot refused to wear a face mask. Another shopper captured it on their cellphone, and a second covidiot posted the video to YouTube, with the statement “Costco has gone full Nazi” in the video description.

One commenter tweeted this response to the arrest, expressing a sentiment to which I subscribe wholeheartedly:

It’s weird that the same people who want to be able to shoot trespassers on their farm property think that Costco stores shouldn’t have the right to tell people that they have to wear masks on Costco property. Pick a lane.

Stay healthy and stay sane!

Vanity Fair Models the Latest Fashions from the Sinespace Shop

Did You Know? Sinespace female avatar fashions are designed to fit EVERY female avatar body. You don’t have to check to see if apparel or footwear are designed for a specific brand of female body, like you have to do in Second Life (e.g. Maitreya Lara, Belleza Freya, Slink Physique, etc.). Also, you don’t have to fuss with a HUD to make parts of your body invisible under apparel; the clothing fits perfectly, and it adjusts if you make any changes to the body sliders!

Oh, and did I mention that Sinespace has working in-world cloth physics on skirts and dresses? Check out the videos to see it in action here and here!

As you might already know, I have brought former Second Life supermodel, Vanity Fair, over to Sinespace, where she models clothing for this blog! Here, Vanity Fair is wearing her standard, go-to casual outfit at the Sinespace Welcome Centre, which consists of:

I decided to check out the new line of female T-shirts by Z-Art, and I picked out this Music Notes tee (only 40 Gold). There are many designs available!

Next we have a real bargain! This Moon top by ELL costs only 1 Gold (or 1 Silver, Sinespace’s promotional currrency) per colour. It comes in six different shades:

To go with the Moon top in blue, I added the frilly denim Jay skirt, also by ELL (99 Gold), which also comes in a variety of colours:

Looking good!

Our next outfit is the sexy, short, bodycon Eris dress (99 Gold) by PrettyDeceased, which comes in six different patterns (here, I chose the flamingo design). You might also want to spring for the matching Eris thigh-high boots (also 99 Gold per pattern), not shown here.

The sandals I used on that outfit form part of a bundle, the Boho Evensong outfit from Daz Originals (1,105 Gold). You get everything you see below: the sandals, faded jean shorts, a tank top, a lovely see-through lace top you can wear over the tank top, and even a set of bangles for your wrist!

Remember that when you purchase a bundled item like the Boho Evensong outfit, you first have to go into your Sinespace inventory, click on the icon, and select Use (see the green arrow in the image below):

Once you have clicked on the Use button, you will be presented with a list of all the items in that bundle. Simply click on the Get button below the list (see green arrow below):

…And it’s all unpacked, and each separate item is automatically added to the appropriate section under the Outfit tab: Top, Bottom, Accessory, etc.:

Here’s a look at the entire Boho outfit. You’re all set for the next virtual folk festival!

This Boho outfit also comes in four other colour combination bundles, and if you prefer, you can purchase each item separately in the Sinespace Shop.

Happy shopping!

In all these pictures, Vanity Fair is also wearing:

For more information about the Anatomy body system, please see this blogpost.

This blogpost is sponsored by Sinespace, and was written in my role as an embedded reporter for this virtual world (more details here). 

Pandemic Diary: November 19th, 2020

Today is officially Day 249 since I began working from home for the University of Manitoba Libraries due to the coronavirus pandemic. I am still on holidays this week; I “go back to work” on Monday (while remaining in self-isolation in my apartment).

Today, the Manitoba government added further restrictions to those already put in place on November 10th, when a province-wide, code-red pandemic lockdown was announced. The new rules ban any gatherings at private residences and restrict retail sales to essential items only.

What is considered essential? Well, according to the “enhanced restrictions” document released by the Manitoba government today, essential items are:

 food, beverages and food preparation products;
 personal care products such as soap and dental care products;
 health-related products such as prescription drugs and vitamins;
 mobility or assistive devices;
 baby and child-care accessories such as diapers and formula;
 household cleaning products, safety devices, batteries and lightbulbs;
 outdoor winter apparel such as jackets and boots;
 personal protective equipment for the workplace;
 pet food and supplies;
 postage stamps;
 cellphones and cellphone accessories;
 parts and supplies for all types of motor vehicles and watercraft;
 major household appliances;
 hunting, fishing and trapping supplies;
 tools and hardware;
 materials for home maintenance, repair or construction; and
 property maintenance products such as shovels.

Non-essential items refers to any good and products not set out in the orders. This includes jewelry, flowers, perfume, consumer electronics, sporting equipment, books and toys.

Also, the document takes great care to note that “liquor and cannabis stores may continue to open and sell products” (you don’t want to have to deal with people going through withdrawal on top of everything else that’s going on, I guess!). And it looks very much like there will be no Black Friday sales in Manitoba next weekend.

CTV News reports:

New restrictions in Manitoba will limit the number of people allowed to gather in private homes to further halt the spread of COVID-19.

The enhanced orders, announced on Thursday by Premier Brian Pallister and chief public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin, will take effect on Friday, Nov. 20th.

The orders come one week after strict public health measures were put in place to get Manitobans to reduce their contacts. Roussin has made repeated pleas for Manitobans to stay at home and has warned of stretched hospital capacity in the province.

“Despite that, we saw people gathering at rallies, we saw crowded parking lots at big box stores, we saw people continue to go out for non-essential items — so we are left with no choice but to announce further measures to protect Manitobans to limit the spread of this virus,” said Roussin.

Under the new orders, gatherings at private residences, including homes, cottages, and other vacation properties, are restricted, and nobody is permitted aside from the people who live there. There are some exceptions to allow for child-care, health-care and home-care services, tutoring services, construction, repairs, and emergency response services.

…

The new orders also prohibit people from gathering in groups of more than five people at any indoor or outdoor public space. This includes the common areas of a multi-unit residence with the exception of a health-care facility or critical business that adheres to public health measures.

The new rules also allow for people who live alone (such as me) to have one person from outside their household visit their home. If I were pressed to choose, that person would probably be my best friend John, but we communicate regularly using Face Time on our iPhones, and I am satisfied with that.

Yesterday, I went and did my grocery shopping on the Walmart website, and first thing this morning, I donned an N95 facemask, got in my car, and drove to the grocery pick-up parking spaces at the rear of the my neighbourhood Walmart store, where someone wearing a mask wheeled out a cart with bins, and loaded up the back of my car, and I drove away. Thankfully, the Shopping Cart Gods smiled upon me, and there was a wayward shopping cart in the vicinity of my apartment, which made for only two trips ferrying my groceries between my car and my home. I am now stocked up on enough food to last me at least two months. I have also just had all my prescription medications renewed for another three months and delivered from my local pharmacy to my doorstep.

I have zero plans to set foot outside my apartment, unless it is to throw out the garbage or to go for masked, socially-distanced walks in my neighbourhood. As I barely leave my apartment as it was, the latest restrictions will not affect me very much. It does mean that I not be able to visit my mother and stepfather in their seniors life-lease condo, but I did pay a visit to see them the day before the Nov. 10th restrictions came into effect, and it was good to see them (again, socially distanced).

My mother wants me to commit to coming over for supper on Christmas Day, which she considers an iron-clad tradition, but I only told her that we would have to wait and see what happens between now and then. The way things have been going lately, I will not be surprised in the slightest if I spend Christmas alone in my apartment. At our face-to-face last week, we discussed Christmas presents. Mom usually gives me gift cards, but she worries that she will land up buying me gift cards for stores that will go belly-up because of the pandemic. We agreed that cash would be an appropriate gift instead, which relieves my mother of at least that one worry.

At the moment, as I write this, I am sitting in a Zoom meeting, my microphone and video muted, listening to my faculty union executive report on the results of the most recent round of bargaining with my employer, the University of Manitoba. This virtual meeting will be followed by a ratification vote over the next 24 hours by the 1,200 union members: professors, instructors, and librarians (again, this will be conducted securely, remotely, and online). So the results of the ratification vote will not be known until late Friday evening. There exists the possibility that I will be out on strike come Monday.

I am learning—trying to learn— to become more comfortable with all the uncertainty swirling around me, and I am working, every day, all day, to make sure that I do not allow my circumstances to drag me back down into the bottomless black pit of clinical depression. Some days I feel as if I am drowning.

So I take naps, and go for walks, and sit cross-legged in obliging patches of warm sunshine on my bedroom carpet. I go hide out in Second Life, or Sinespace, or Sansar, and find places to visit, and people to talk to. I take my antidepressant and anti-anxiety prescriptions, and I talk with my psychiatrist on the phone, and chat with other safe, supportive people, both in real life and in my many virtual worlds. I binge watch shows on Netflix. I read books. I cook. I clean. When I cannot sleep, I brew a pot of black coffee, get up and sit in front of my computer, and I blog.

I do whatever it takes to get me through the day, one day at a time. That’s really all I can do, all that anybody can reasonably ask me to do.

Tomorrow will be Day 250 since I started working from home, and it will be a day much like today, with its uncertainties, fears, and worries. I will get through it.

Second Life Steals, Deals, and Freebies: ALANTORI

ALANTORI is a Second Life store which sells men’s mesh bodies, men’s and women’s hair and skin, and some men’s clothing.

If you join the ALANTORI group for L$50, you can click on the Midnight Madness boards to pick up two different kinds of Bento, Bakes on Mesh-compatible male bodies: the beefy, muscular Rick body, and the slimmer, more toned David body.

How the boards work is as follows: once each board is hit 50 times, a copy of that particular mesh body is automatically sent to everyone who touched the board (it does not wait until midnight; neither does the count reset at midnight, like regular Midnight Madness boards).

There’s also a Bento, Bakes on Mesh male head called Marco, one of free three group gifts for men at ALANTORI, located just to the right of the Midnight Madness boards:

I had written about the ALANTORI Rick body before, but this new version now supports Bakes on Mesh skins, cosmetics, tattoos, hair bases, etc. Here’s what the Rick body looks like with the free Viktor head I had blogged earlier this week, wearing one of the dollarbie set of Bakes on Mesh skins from Sweet’s that I picked up on the SL Marketplace:

As you can see, this is quite a muscular body, particularly in the arms, shoulders, and chest! Now, unlike the David body (which we’ll talk about in a minute), the Rick body lacks fingernail and toenail attachments, which means that the Sweet’s skin I used here gives it a bit of an unfinished look. However, the body does come with a set of five full-body skin tattoos, which do add fingernail and toenail details:

(Same body as the previous picture, but wearing the included mid tone body skin tattoo)

However, you’re going to have to find head skin that matches the included body tattoos. because there will be a noticeable neck seam (which you can’t really see here, as my avatar is looking down). So your mileage may vary on this body.

Here’s what the David body looks like with the same Sweet’s skin and Victor head. Unlike the Rick body, David comes in five separate pieces: upper body, lower body, right hand fingernails, left hand fingernails, and toenails:

Both bodies come with an basic alpha sections HUD (and, of course, you can also wear the alphas that come with the clothing your purchase):

I have written about ALANTORI’s group gift of the Marco head before. Here is a closeup of the Marco head paired with the David body (again, wearing the Sweet’s skin). The Bakes on Mesh-compatible mesh eyes are included with the head. Looking good! (I did have to fiddle with the sliders for the eyes and eyebrows to get this look.)

For women, the L$50 membership in the ALANTORI group lets you pick up 18 different fatpacks of women’s hair, each with a HUD with 146 colour options! That works out to less than L$3 per hairstyle—which is quite a bargain!

Here is just one example, the long, luxurious Bella hairstyle, showing you the brown and black tomes in the colours HUD (you just click on the buttons at the bottom to see the other colour palettes):

So, whether you are male or female, your L$50 group membership certainly goes a long way at ALANTORI! I will be adding the Rick and David mesh bodies to my ever-expanding list of free and inexpensive mesh heads and bodies for male avatars.

Here’s your taxi to ALANTORI. Happy shopping!