Midian City Tober's Diary #11

Tober's diary is composed in a small, hardbound book that she keeps with her.

Tober hanging with the ravens on the church's roof

That fucking bastard Kohji shot me yesterday! I was wandering the rooftops as usual, when I ran into him on an adjacent roof. I waved to him and called out hello, and he simply pulled out his gun and shot at me. The bullet grazed my arm and nearly knocked me off the building because I was so startled. Then he growled, turned and walked away.

There was nobody in the medical center so I had to treat my wound myself. It hurt like hell, especially when I was trying to clean it. But, I did an ok job and it should heal up. I'll have a scar, though.

After I bandaged myself up, I went out to drown my pain in alcohol. It helped. While I was walking around after drinking, I found a knife with a sheath someone discarded in an alley. I cleaned it off and stuck it in one of my boots. I figured it's about time I carried a weapon. It's not much, but it'll work.

Tonight I was out roaming around again, and I spotted him sitting by the broken bridge. I watched him from a rooftop nearby, working my anger up. I was going to sneak up on him and stick that goddamn knife right in him. But...I couldn't do it. I'm just not the fighting kind. As much as I hate him, I couldn't bring myself to do it. Eventually he left the bridge, and I just stood there on the roof and looked out at the ocean. After a while, I put my knife away and came back here to my hiding spot.

God, I feel like such a coward.


Tober shining a blade

slprofiles.com

Well, I made a SLProfiles.com profile, which you can find here. Feel free to add me if you already have a profile. There's not much on there right now, but I will add pics and stuff soon.

Midian City Tober's Diary #10

Tober's diary is composed in a small, hardbound book that she keeps with her.

I forgot to write in my last entry that I met up two people who were on the lifeboat with me! One's name is Chandra, and she's the beautiful woman who told the guard to let me on the boat. The other is Amaterasu (Ama for short), who is a small and pretty neko. They both took on jobs as dancers at the club The Twilight Zone. Ama told me the gruesome story of how she had her ears and tail forcibly removed from her, but a doctor here was able to help her replace them. I can't imagine ever losing my parts...her story made me nauseous just listening to it. I get the chills writing about it now.

Chandra and I had a nice talk the other day, just sitting on the grass in a quiet area facing the moon. There's something intriguing about her, I don't know what it is. Talking with her really helps soothe and center me. Unsurprisingly, she was a model and a ballet dancer (I think) before ending up on our fateful cruise. I think I may have found a good friend to have here. I really enjoy her company.

Chandra and Tober
While I was roof-hopping yesterday (something I'm gradually becoming better at), I came across the neko who had stalked me the first night I arrived in Midian. He was perched on a ledge on the highest building, just staring off into space. I silently snuck up behind him and just stood there watching him in the dark from a few meters away. I have no idea why I did this...I guess it's like what your parents tell you when someone is bullying you, the best thing to do is to face them and show them you're not afraid...even if you are. Well, after a few minutes he snapped out of his daydream or whatever and realized he wasn't alone. I made a joke about him sitting there staring at who-knows-what, and I think it broke the ice. He was a bit embarrassed, but not angry (thank god). He told me his name is Kohji, and he is a member of the Catwalkers. We ended up talking for probably a couple of hours. He gave me some good tips about surviving on the streets until I can find myself a home or join up with a group. I asked him why he chased me when I first arrived on the island, and he told me it was because I ran. Well, duh! Of course I'm going to run if a scary stranger is chasing me with guns. Anyway, I don't know if I can call him a friend at this point, or even if I want to, but I think he will at least leave me alone now.


Kohji and Tober

Midian City Tober's Diary #9

Tober's diary is composed in a small, hardbound book that she keeps with her.

I've been here in Midian for a week or so now, I think. It's hard to keep track because of the perpetual darkness here. Things aren't going so well for me...I'm living on the streets now, maybe for good. I spent my remaining few credits last night on booze. Sometimes I can find drugs and bags of catnip in the alleys or on the rooftops that people have dropped. I still won't touch dope though.

I haven't had too much trouble getting food, but I do usually have to work for it. If I can't steal something from the sushi stand, I will go hunting. I've found a few places around the shore where it's relatively clean and I catch fish or crabs with a stick I sharpened on a rock or with a broken bottle. Then I take my meal-on-a-stick and roast it over a barrel fire. I try to do this in a secluded spot, because it's embarrassing. But it does taste pretty good, I have to say.

Getting extra clothes to wear hasn't really been an issue either because I've simply been stealing clothes off the clotheslines here. I even got a nice pair of boots that someone left on a fire escape to dry out.

I don't know what I'm going to do for money, though. I'm going to need it for some things, I know that for sure. I really don't want to be a pickpocket, but I might have to be one if I'm stuck here. Whatever gets me by, right? My friend Rein wants to "take care" of me, but I think he wants me as a pet. I swear, I think every human male that's really friendly to me or flirts with me just wants me for a pet. Anyway, I'm not quite that desperate yet, and I have my pride. My dad always told me to hold onto my pride, and not be a servant, slave, or pet to anyone.

I've found out some interesting things about Midian: such as, there seems to be well-organized "gangs" here (for lack of a better word). One of the largest groups of nekos is called the Catwalkers. I've already encountered several of them. But not every neko is a Catwalker...some refer to themselves as simply strays, and I guess that's what I am right now. There's also a dangerous gang of humans known as the Hounds. They're kind of like a 20th-century motorcycle gang...but worse. I try to avoid them. There also seems to be a mafia here; maybe two actually. It's difficult to tell.

There's a derelict subway system here and of course a series of tunnels. I don't go in them, but I have heard voices and noises down there. I use the restroom in the subway station to clean myself up, and I try to be down there as little as possible. It's quite scary.

So, this is what it's come to for me right now: hunt, eat, sleep, get drunk, get high, try to stay alive. That's it. I'll write more again soon...it really helps for me to get it out of me and on paper...it's therapeutic.

Happy Month-i-versary!

To Chloe and I!

Yes, today is the official one month-i-versary of Chloe and I. <3

That is all. You may continue reading now. =)

Midian City Tober's Diary #8

Tober's diary is composed in a small, hardbound book that she keeps with her.

I don't quite know where to begin with this entry...I guess I can write about how I got off the ship.

Well, everyone was crowded up on the deck, and the captain had a man guarding every lifeboat with a gun. He was only letting one lifeboat go at a time. He said that each lifeboat would signal when they arrived safely to shore, and then the others would follow. Everyone was crowded around that boat, and I was on the outside of the crowd. There was no way for me to get on, so I decided to have a look around at the other boats. The lifeboat being let go was on the port side of the bow; as I made my way around the boat, I noticed a small group of a few people around the boat on the starboard side of the stern, so I went to investigate. Apparently, a few people were paying off one of the guards with large sums of money to take a boat. I walked up to them and said to the guard, "I'm getting on that boat, or else I'm going to the captain and telling him what's going on here". The guard pointed his gun at my head and said "Or I can kill you right now, you mangy fleabag." I was so scared...then someone that was getting on the boat said "No, she can come with us. She's just a little thing." It was a beautiful woman whom I had only seen a few times on the ship. I climbed in the lifeboat and we were lowered down to the water.

There was a fire lit on the shore of the island, and a big guy did most of the rowing. It was only about a mile, maybe less...I don't know. When we got there, we were "greeted" by a female neko wearing paramilitary-style gear. Immediately, I knew something was wrong. She welcomed us to Midian City, and then asked if anyone was injured. When everyone responded negatively, she then pointed her automatic rifle at us and demanded all our belongings. As she did this, I saw others start to arrive as reinforcements for her. She spoke to me and said "You...you're free to go." I think she said something about me being her kind or whatever. I left, but in my haste, I also left my belongings there at the landing site.

The landing party
I ran to the first people I saw on the street and asked if there was a police station, they said there was and directed me to it. When I got there, nobody was in the station...however, I ran into one of the other passengers there...the large man who was rowing the lifeboat. His name is Reinhardt, as I found out that evening. He had escaped from our attackers and was also looking for the police station. I yelled at him for not trying to help the others, but he said something about not wanting to get shot. Anyway, we found one officer who was in the medical center being treated for injuries. We brought her back to the landing site, but she refused to do anything about it, saying something about "catwalkers." Reinhardt and I went over to investigate, and everyone was gone. I found most of my stuff in a small pile on the beach there...things that were not worth anything to anyone else; just some clothing and this diary, mainly. I was smart and kept my money on me, even though I don't have very much.

A lot of things happened that night...it's all sort of a blur...I was being chased around by this one purple-haired neko male who wore a mask. He even shot at me. Rein and I sought refuge in the church there, where I think I got some sleep. We also went and hid in an abandoned gas station for a while. Eventually I think my "stalker" lost interest, and we were able to get away. On one of the main streets, we ran into another neko, a very cute female with blue hair, but unfortunately Rein said something she didn't like, and within seconds, several other nekos joined her and she gave him "a 5 second lead"...she told me I was free to go, and called me "sister." I don't quite understand it just yet, but I think there's some kind of organization of nekos here. There's a lot of them. I've never been around this many of my kind before.

After Rein ran away and was chased by the group of angry nekos, I was on my own. I went to the police again, but they wouldn't help. Exhausted and hungry, I found a place that sold sushi, and ate the best meal of my life. I went back to the church and found a pew that was somewhat secluded and fell asleep immediately. I don't know how long I slept for, but when I woke up, it was still dark out. As it turns out, it's always dark here. I've asked a few people about it, and nobody really knows why.

I've been here a few days now. In that time, Rein was in the medical center...he had one and a half of his legs cut off, his tongue cut out, and was castrated by the group of nekos. I stood by his bedside as the doctors worked on repairing him. It's been really hard...this is a very dark and evil place. I've been sleeping in secluded spots or on rooftops, my money is quickly disappearing on food, and I'm scared all the time. I haven't seen any other passengers from the lifeboat or from the ship. My hope for being rescued is fading. I don't know what I'm going to do.

Tober

And now, some humor

http://ordinalmalaprop.com/tools/dear-ll.html

The Random Linden Lab Flame Generator!

Keeping SL Free Together

Jazhara Keon is the creator of the text below, which is a notecard in a vendor/poster in the Midian City TP Portal (pictured above). The poster is for sale for $0L for people to take and post in their own sims. Read the full, unedited notecard below.




So you want to keep Second Life FREE as well? AWESOME!!

This poster is a protest to Linden Labs blogpost on May 31, that can
be found here:
http://blog.secondlife.com/2007/05/31/keeping-second-life-safe-together/
<<<
(the text of this post is also included at the bottom of this note)

Already know what this is about? Scroll down to see what you can do to
join the PEACEFUL protest.

=============================================

Don't know what this is all about? Read on:

Linden Labs seems to be forced in one or more ways to censor the
residents of Second Life. Censorship is for many people a reason to
try to escape Real Life, and live their fantasies in Second Life. And
now Second Life seems to become more than an extension of Real Life.
It's becoming the same as Real Life through censorship, and thus
remains no reason for MANY residents to log on anymore, since they
can't do what they want anymore.

Linden Labs has put the "BAD" label on ageplay, bestiality, violence,
explicit sex and other "broadly offensive content", and is asking it's
residents to Abuse Report anything that could be perceived as being
"offensive".
Since we all have different morals, values and standards, this means
eventually ANYONE is subject to investigation, censorship and possible
removal from Second Life. By asking it's residents to file Abuse
Reports on "offensive" content, Linden Labs is turning into Big
Brother. Remember the book/movie 1984? Remember Germany between 1939
and 1945? Residents with values and morals that differ from a
so-called "majority" are getting labelled by moralknights that find
that /their/ values and morals should count for the whole world.

RESPECT, TOLERANCE AND FREEDOM are key to a happy life, be it Real
Life or Second Life. Real Life, for many of Second Life's residents,
doesn't offer that and is for them a reason to be in Second Life. And
now Second life seems to turn into an even worse environment. When
will it stop? When can you and I live the life we want to without
being judged, critisized and expelled?

But that's not all...
Not only will this affect YOU, it will also effect SL as a whole. Many
contentcreators already stopped building content for Second Life. Not
only are creators of explicit content that is "potentially offensive"
threatened with a ban, ALL contentcreators are endangered with loss of
income because Second Life's popularity will drop drastically as soon
as "explicit content" will be censored. Eventually, this can and will
lead to poor content in Second Life, islands will be closed off or
cancelled, and it wouldn't be strange if the mainland would decrease
in size as well, since people don't feel free to act like they want,
do as they want, think like they want, make what they want and BE who
they want!

You may not approve of ageplay, rape, bestiality, explicit violence
and other 'offensive' fantasies that one can live here in Second Life.
And that's fine, we all have our likes and dislikes. You won't see me
playing with a child avatar, or roleplaying a dog pleasuring me, nor
will I shoot one through the head for fun. That doesn't mean others
can't in this VIRTUAL world. How long will it take before censorship
effects YOU? This protest is not to stand up for Real Life pedophiles,
rapists, violent abusers and serial killers. In Real Life those are
all actions that happen NON-CONSENSUALLY. In Second Life, these acts
happen between responsible, CONSENTING adults, and 90% of the time
even in complete privacy, and the other 10% in regions that are
designed to live those fantasies CONSENSUALLY. (How the hell can one
actually rape someone in SL anyway? lmfao!)

Linden Labs wants Second Life to be Safe. Well...
Dear Linden Labs, Second Life is as safe as it gets. One has to be an
adult to be a resident here, and be responsible as one. It is not your
job to take on responsibility for our actions. We all have the power
to choose and we can very much decide to consent or not. We don't need
you to babysit us like children. We need you to provide a free world
where we can all be who and whatever we want to be and do what we like
to do, just like you promised us with your slogans and commercials. We
love the world you provide, please, dear Linden Labs, keep it like
that.

To quote Benjamin Franklin: "one who sacrifices freedom for security
deserves neither"

You get the point, and this rant has been long enough...

================
Here's what YOU can do:
================

# copy this poster (buy it for 0L - r-click & buy; you may not get a
blue screenie saying you got it, but you got it, look in your
inventory), and put it out at a place that you would call home, your
club, your shop, your place, a place where people can see and become
aware, and join the protest, like you.
MAKE IT SEEN!

# Join the group "I am for a FREE Second Life" (click 'search', click
on the tab 'groups' and search for the group as mentioned). This is to
show Linden Labs a list of names of people that want a FREE Second
Life, and to keep you updated on information that matters. (Spamming
in the groupchannel will result in an immediate ban)

# Put a line on the first page of your profile saying "I am for a FREE
Second Life!" (and add Franklin's quote if you wish). If you like to,
make a pick to state your thoughts.

Keep in mind that this is a PEACEFUL protest. In NO way this poster,
note, and group are to be connected to ANY aggressive, harmful, or
offensive measures against Linden Labs, it's employees, grid and
regions, and affiliates, be it in Second Life or Real Life. You are
responsible for your OWN actions, and this protest is meant to ASSURE
and ENCOURAGE Linden Labs in the fact that you and I are responsible,
consenting adults, so they may keep up a world of freedom, and keep it
safe from censorship.

Thank you for reading, and voicing yourself for respect, tolerance and
freedom should you decide to join this protest.

==================================================

For reference, this is what Linden Labs posted recently on their blog:

Keeping Second Life Safe, Together

The diversity of things to see and do within Second Life is almost
unimaginable, but our community has made it clear to us that certain
types of content and activity are simply not acceptable in any form.
Real-life images, avatar portrayals, and other depiction of sexual or
lewd acts involving or appearing to involve children or minors;
real-life images, avatar portrayals, and other depictions of sexual
violence including rape, real-life images, avatar portrayals, and
other depictions of extreme or graphic violence, and other broadly
offensive content are never allowed or tolerated within Second Life.

Please help us to keep Second Life a safe and welcoming space by
continuing to notify Linden Lab about locations in-world that are
violating our Community Standards regarding broadly offensive and
potentially illegal content. Our team monitors such notification
24-hours a day, seven-days a week. Individuals and groups promoting
or providing such content and activities will be swiftly met with a
variety of sanctions, including termination of accounts, closure of
groups, removal of content, and loss of land. It's up to all of us to
make sure Second Life remains a safe and welcoming haven of creativity
and social vision.

===================================================

Disclaimer
In no way will the writer and creator of this note, the object/poster
it was initially distributed by and with, and the group affiliated to
this peaceful protest, take responsibility, nor liability for damage
done in any way by the group's members to Linden Labs, Second Life,
the grid, and all it's connected companies, equipment or economical
value thereof. Should Linden Labs wish to take action against this
peaceful protest and the avatar of the creator of said items, and
with that, or any other reason, deny access to Second Life, said
creator will be glad to comply, since said creator does not wish to be
in a virtual world that doesn't have anything over the real world.

Midian City Tober's Diary #7

Tober's diary is composed in a small, hardbound book that she keeps with her.

It's been two days since I last ate. Most of the time I keep myself sedated with my stash of Valium so I just sleep. Every day I drag myself up to the deck to hear what announcements the captain has to make, and this is what we know so far: We are off the coast of the island city of Midian. Most of the passengers thought this place didn't exist, but I knew better. I've heard it called the worst city in existence. I've heard it called a penal colony, like Australia used to be. I've heard it called a hive of criminal activity and crazies. Maybe it's all of these, I don't know...but I think we're going to find out.

The captain has announced that they would start sending lifeboats to Midian, and from there we would be rescued. I suspect I would not be high on the list of people to leave first, considering I'm technically still part of the crew, a lowly maid and an even lowlier neko. But what do I know? They're going to load the first lifeboat in a couple of hours. I'm going to pack up what little I have anyway and hope for the best. Most people seem to be hanging around topside, ready to jockey for position, and I guess I should do the same.

There seems to be fewer people now than when the cruise started, which means that a significant number of people have either died, are sick or injured, or have found another way off the ship. I just don't know. But I'm going to do whatever I can to get off of this thing. I'll write more later, hopefully from on land.

Chapter 8 will be posted tomorrow!

My Last Night With Chloe Before Her Hiatus

On our "last" night together for a little while, Chloe and I decided to devote the evening to fun. First we went to Djork to ride the bumper cars (sorry, no pics of that), then we went on the pirate ship ride:

Afterwards, we decided it would be funny to put on some of our "worst" hair. I think I started by putting on a really bad red wig in order to tease Chloe (naturally) and it just went downhill from there:

Then it got even weirder as we changed shapes and I changed my skin:

That sent me into giggles for several minutes, let me tell you. Anyway, all of this was to kill time before going to see one of Chloe's friends, Colemarie, sing. We went to Sin City to hear her sing for a little while, then after that we headed over to Tableau to poke around and do some rollerskating:

That's me with the poor captured alien in Tableau. Isn't he cute?

Chloe and I bowling. It was hard! After that we went to the sushi disco roller rink to get our skate on, but they had no skate vendor there anymore! I already had my skates, but Chloe didn't, so we went to another place instead, The Hot Wheels Skating Center.

Chloe got her skates, and we had the whole rink to ourselves, skating around to 80s music. After that, we ended the night cuddling in my skybox and saying our tearful "see you soons." It was really hard to leave that night, knowing I wouldn't be able to see her again for a while. But, I know Chloe will be back soon, so I just remind myself of that. All in all, it was a very special evening, just like the one before it, but in a slightly different way, and it was wonderful.

A conversation on "Keeping Second Life Safe, Together"

A conversation in IM with one of my friends regarding the "Keeping Second Life Safe, Together" LL blog post. This conversation occurred shortly after the LL blog post was made. Some of the bolding is for emphasis:

[21:37] CM:: http://blog.secondlife.com/2007/05/31/keeping-second-life-safe-together/ -- you see this crap yet?
[21:37] October Hush:: no I haven't
[21:38] October Hush:: what? no graphic violence??
[21:39] CM:: bye bye midian
[21:39] CM:: bye bye gor
[21:39] CM:: bye bye furries and nekos
[21:39] October Hush:: uh, yeah
[21:39] CM:: and demons oh my
[21:39] CM:: you cant engage in fantasy in SL anymore
[21:39] October Hush:: why bye bye furries and nekos?
[21:39] CM:: anymore
[21:39] CM:: bestiality
[21:40] October Hush:: oh come on
[21:40] CM:: its all on the downhill path
[21:40] CM:: the slippery slope
[21:41] CM:: nobody stood up for the kiddie sex because it was repugnant
[21:41] CM:: the casinos cuz they're fucking laggy
[21:41] October Hush:: right
[21:41] CM:: now "rape" play
[21:41] CM:: and combat/violence
[21:41] CM:: keep drawing a line
[21:41] October Hush:: yeah, that I don't get =P
[21:42] CM:: you don't have to "get" anything
[21:42] CM:: it will be taken from you

This conversation was continued the following day:

[19:47] CM:: i think the uptight prudish complainers are gonna go and knock one place down after another
[19:47] CM:: an sl style witch hunt
[19:47] October Hush:: exactly!
[19:47] October Hush:: this gives them the right to be able to
[19:47] CM:: they already torched all the age play places save one and thats completely gutted
[19:47] CM:: they closed abusers and victims down last nite
[19:48] October Hush:: oh really?
[19:48] CM:: a few PRIVATE members only pay to join vore/dolcett places were forced to close
[19:48] October Hush:: I didn't know that
[19:48] CM:: private sims
[19:48] CM:: private groups
[19:48] CM:: yeah
[19:48] CM:: with each "victory," they get stroker
[19:48] CM:: hah freudian
[19:48] CM:: stronger
[19:48] October Hush:: lol
[19:48] October Hush:: they got Strokerz, you say!
[19:48] October Hush:: ;-)
[19:49] CM:: yah. they're peeling back the edges
[19:49] CM:: at places nobody knows about
[19:49] CM:: but getting bigger and bolder with every day
[19:50] October Hush:: =/
[19:51] October Hush:: So, what can we do?
[19:52] October Hush:: I really am worried about this
[19:52] CM:: make everyone aware that this IS happening
[19:52] CM:: most people don't know
[19:52] CM:: the fuckers posted 3 or 4 new blog entries just to get that one to "scroll off"
[19:52] CM:: so anyone that hasn't logged in in a day or so wont even KNOW
[19:52] October Hush:: would you mind if I posted some of our IM in my blog?
[19:52] CM:: meh
[19:53] CM:: remove the names?
[19:53] CM:: clean up spelling and punctuation?
[19:53] October Hush:: I hadn't heard about the ageplay stuff until now
[19:53] October Hush:: yes, whatever you want
[19:53] CM:: nobody "likes" ageplay
[19:53] CM:: or admits to it
[19:53] CM:: its an easy target
[19:53] CM:: but the first bounce down the slippery slope
[19:55] October Hush:: yes, I agree

You heard it, folks...in case you were wondering if places were getting shut down...yup, they are. So far it's just ageplay places and extreme sex/bondage places. However, this is an issue that will affect pretty much all of us, and it's something we should take seriously. I'm not sure what else to do aside from spreading the word. You should do that too.

My 1-monthiversary with Chloe

On Tuesday, Chloe and I went to The Lost Gardens of Apollo to celebrate one month of being together as a couple. We both dressed EGL (elegant gothic lolita) and wandered around Apollo, stopping at places such as the Bridge to Nowhere:

And the dancefloor, Salsas y Boleros:

Unfortunately, after being on the dancefloor for only a short while, we both had to relog as SL stopped responding for both of us. However, when I relogged and went back to Apollo, I stumbled upon an area you can rent out for $300L per person for 3 hours. It's out in the open, but it has lots of poseballs, dances, a romantic fire and even champagne, not to mention a stunning view. Naturally, I bought us two passes and we spent the rest of our time in Apollo there:



Of course we didn't spend our entire evening there...we reserved the end of our evening for some private time together =) It was definitely the most romantic thing I have ever done in SL, and I couldn't have imagined doing it with anyone else. I feel truly blessed to have someone as wonderful as Chloe to be with. I hope to be able to celebrate many more with her.