Jun 29, 2007

MUMMY!


Sitting in Bookend reading poetry along with my dear cousin, Gabrielle, and our esteemed Librarian of Caledon, JJ Drinkwater. (Yes - that is me in my best Terry Lightfoot Faerie look. "I'm the Blue Faerie")


Mr. Drinkwater, The Duchess Carntaigh, The Duchess Loch Avie - sharing favorite poetry.

As we sat there reading, I happened across this poem by Ruth Whitman:


HATSHEPSUT:

Before my father came to the throne
there was chaos in our double kingdom-
from the Great Green Sea on the north
to the land of Nubia on our south.

Men without breasts love war.
They measure their height
by the mountains of severed hands
piled up, cut from their enemies.

But I saw our land laid out in peace:
Thebes, the southern city, the horizon of earth
stretching east to west
and the fecund river cleaving the land
south to north.

Sun and moon
sail from east to west
across the Nile,
from life to death
and back again.

Symmetry. Order.
The Nile
floods, recedes, floods.

And over us stretches Nut,
the goddess who is the sky.
The sun travels by night
through her body,
the moon and stars by day.
Her toes touch the east,
her fingers reach to the west,
she arches over us,
rainbow mother of night and day.


Then over the private channel came a familiar voice. The Honorable Kate Nicholas announced that a story about Hatshepsut's mummy was being told all over the world. She was most excited and notified those of us in the Royal Society that we should remind others of the exhibit in our offices. She, as well, has published a new paper on the matter.

I was elated! I bid my cousin and my dear friend a fond farewell, changed into something a bit more professional, called a balloon conveyance, and was on my way.


Mr O'Toole allowed me to borrow his newest balloon for the trip.


Huzzah! The Royal Society building!



Click here to be taken to Ms Nicholas' publication on the mummy.

Jun 27, 2007

Renee Zellweger? Really?

My good friend and one of our very best Caledonian bloggers, Baron Bardhaven, recently posted the following article: Caledon: The Motion Picture. From his production desk comes the following suggestions for casting:

John Cusack is Guvnah Desmond Shang
Catherine Zeta-Jones is Duchess Gabrielle Riel
Renee Zellwenger is Duchess Eva Bellambi
Stephen Dorff is Col Hotspur O’Toole
Claire Danes is Miss Lapin Paris
Billy Zane is Baron Zealot Benmergui
Nicole Kidman is Baroness Kirawill Collingwood
Meg Ryan (in Top Gun) is Miss kiralette Kelley
Keanu Reeves is Mr Gnarlihotep Abel
Edward Fox (in Day of the Jackal) is Mr. Edward Pearse
Meryl Streep (in The French Lieutenant’s Woman) is Miss Christine McAllister
Hugh Laurie is Dr. Oolon Sputnik
Sandra Bullock is Miss Terry Lightfoot
John Rhys Davies is Prof Alfonso Avalanche
Bette Midler is Miss Fuschia Begonia
Christian Bale is Dr. Darien Mason
Cary Elwes is Mr. ZenMondo Wormzer
Eliza Dushku is Miss Darkling Elytis
Pauley Perrette (NCIS) is Miss Katat0nik Pidgeon
Teri Hatcher is Miss Lavandar Beaumont
Chris Sarandon is Mr. Erasmus Margulies


Now I ask you...do you believe that Renee Zellweger could even remotely play the role of Duchess of Loch Avie?

My suggestion for casting is quite the physical opposite of Ms Zellweger. Please do let me know what you think!





May I suggest Eva Green? (and not just for the name)

My other comments are on the good Baron's page.

See you on the casting couch.

Jun 25, 2007

Ducal Relaxation is a GOOOOD Thing

We are back - my human and I - and are happy to be able to reconnect with good friends. Our time away from the grid was also very good; very enjoyable.

Arriving back on Saturday evening, I was happy to meet Lady Kate Nicholas and wander through the SL Birthday sims briefly. That evening I also continued work on my manse, and spent some time with friends in Carntaigh. Ahhh - a good Caledonian dance was just what was needed at the end of this vacation.


Is that Timeless with Kate at the Birthday Sim? Hmmm.


Happily I also made it home to the Loch in time to receive the Rez Day Party invitation for Mr. JJ Drinkwater. What fun was found in Carntaigh and Primverness in his honor. A fine gentleman indeed, and a very good friend.

JJ - may all of your friends have as many good times with you over the next year as we have during your first, and may you prosper and find great happiness.


Finally got my chance on the magic carpet dance floor. (l-r, Catt Gable, Woodstock Burleigh, your author, Hotspur O'Toole, and Frequency Picnic)


In the Malaprop steam copter on the way to JJ's party. O'Toole, Bellambi, and Picnic


The crowd early in the evening.


Kate Nicholas, Eva, and Gabrielle Riel


Is this the start of the Rez Day boy's harem?


Eva, Ferin, Gabi, and JJ chase the dragon.


Ahh the black smoke.....wait! was that a heffalump I just saw crawling down the wall??
And who is missing?? (for you, Frequency) *grins*


My manse is now on the ground in Loch Avie. Thanks to Lady Kate for her brilliant prim torture and creation of the structure, which is based on Fraser Castle. Also my thanks to her for creating some beautiful textures based on my specifications. She really is patient with me as I make these requests of her talents. And the results are remarkable! My job was to place the textures and NOW to furnish it. The latter should be very fun! I look forward to hosting my first event there in my new ballroom.

Pictures of the manse will follow soon.

Slainte!

Jun 18, 2007

And she's off...Time for a little rest and recreation



My human and I will be away from Second Life and this blog for most, if not all, of the coming week. Enjoy the sights and sounds for me. I'll hope for a full report from you upon my return to the grid.


But for now............I am outta here.

Red Hot Jazz

This weekend I was fortunate enough to be able to spend time listening and dancing to one of my favorite music genres. Jazz.

The first event took me to a Rex and Sassy broadcast that Lance Jansen was hosting. It was a great evening made even better by finding some friends there that I had not seen in some time. Woodstock Burleigh and his lovely wife, Catt Gable. AND - it was Woody's 2nd Rez Day.


Red was the theme for the night. (And the hotter the better)


Catt and Woodstock

Saturday night found me dancing in the Danica sim, near where my surprise party had been held, under the direction of DJ Gabrielle Riel and host, Rane.


The venue.


Singing for the crowd


And a few riffs on the piano.


Dancing Duchesses


Hermoine Pennyfeather and Amplebeak Tinlegs


Aldo Stern and Betty Doyle

Jun 17, 2007

The Handfasting of Sir Edward and Lady Pearse

On June 15th Loch Avie was witness to one of the most special and sacred events in human existance. The joining of two beings in love and fealty with one another. Those few in attendance wiped many tears of joy and happiness away as the couple plighted their troths to one another.


The bride was escorted to the ceremony by her brother, TotalLunar Eclipse


Beauty and grace


Sir Edward repeats his vows to Christine under the witness of Miss Emily Orr and TotalLunar Eclipse, as well as the assembled few.


The exchange of rings.


Love overflows...


Lady Pearse


"You cannon possess me for I belong to myself
But while we both wish it, I give you that which is mine to give
You cannon command me, for I am a free person
But I shall serve you in those ways you require
and the honeycomb will taste sweeter coming from my hand"

"I pledge to you that yours will be the name I cry aloud in the night and
the eyes into which I smile in the morning
I pledge to you the first bite of my meat and the first drink from my cup
I pledge to you my living and my dying, each equally in your care
I shall be a shield for your back and you for mine
I shall not slander you, nor you me
I shall honor you above all others, and when we quarrel we shall do so in
private and tell no strangers our grievances"

"This is my wedding vow to you
This is the marriage of equals."



Please enjoy the rest of the photo album....




Jun 12, 2007

The Rose of Loch Avie and other poems

This first was a Rez Day gift from an anonymous friend.

The Rose of Loch Avie


Oh, Caledon's a country
Where love and war are bold
Of glory won in Caledon
A thousand tales are told

But I've a tale far sweeter
If you'll give ear to me
Of a bonny bloom of Caledon
The Rose of Loch Avie

A fire burns on Loch Avie
To give the darkness light
The Uisge they distill there
Will put your woes to flight

But brighter yet than need fire
more sweet than drink can be
Is Caledon's own darling
The Rose of Loch Avie




The revels held on Loch Avie
Will draw a merry throng
To dance to pipe and fiddle
And laugh the whole night long

Fair guesting there, to warm the heart
And raise a shout of glee
The welcome cheer extended by
The Rose of Loch Avie

A quiet walk along the Loch
Will ease a troubled mind
At every turn there's new delight
The wanderer will find

An ear for every tale of woe
Heart's joy shared fleet and free
A gentle word for sorrow
Has the Rose of Loch Avie

In friendship and in fealty
In courtesy and creed
True and fair and holdfast
To honour's thought and deed

If I went and wrote these praises
on the leaf on every tree
I still would scant the merit of
The Rose of Loch Avie

Nor worldly state, nor riches great
nor peerless pride of place
but nature's stamp of gentleness
that gives the Rose her grace

If ever you're in Caledon
Come raise your glass with me
Salute the Rose without a thorn
That blooms on Loch Avie

***
Poem for an Unnamed Lady - ZenMondo Wormser


Long stood I, outside the gates
Until I found the Key to win my entrance.

A key built of patience, wisdom, charm, and cunning,
to open a lock of beauty, intelligence, talent, and grace.

The lands beyond the gates, I have yet to explore,
finding treasures beyond measure at the threshold.

I am sure more quests lay ahead for this knight-errant
and I look forward to the challenges -- and the rewards.


***

anonymous


cold air off the Loch tonight,
the star-wet sky
thick as stone.

black water shimmer,

heavy as an april river
whose push has clipped
the banks of heather.

as the white moon lifts

I walk along the Loch and sing
for One
whose warm-skin scent
I will never know;

whose most daily sounds--
calling to her children,
slow breathing into sleep,
are blank to me as
grass shifting
in pre-dawn water
along the Loch's silt floor.

for One whose hands
will never fall about my hips
tired at the end of day,
nor whose woman's tongue--
narrow, vivid, strong,
will ever slide along my own.

yet still, tonight,

a tender song for her,
at this hour breathing slow
beside her husband-lover

hours closer to the Dawn.

***

A Red Red Rose - Robert Burns, 1794

O my love is like a red, red rose
That's newly sprung in June;
My love like the melody
That's sweetly played in tune.

As fair art thou, my bonny lass,
So deep in love am I;
And I will love thee still, my dear,
Till a' the seas gang dry.

Till a' the seas gang dry, my dear,
And the rocks melt wi' the sun;
I will love thee still, my dear,
While the sands o' life shall run.

And fare thee weel, my only love!
And fare thee weel, awhile!
And I will come again, my love
Though it were ten thousand mile.

***
These last two poems were found on Miss Kiralette Kelly's lovely site, What the Mouse Saw

Sonnet 18 ~ William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm’d;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance, or nature’s changing course untrimm’d;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st;
Nor shall Death brag thou wander’st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st:
So long as man can breath, or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

***

True Love - Anonymous

True love is a sacred flame
That burns eternally,
And none can dim its special glow
Or change its destiny.
True love speaks in tender tones
And hears with gentle ear,
True love gives with open heart
And true love conquers fear.
True love makes no harsh demands
It neither rules nor binds,
And true love holds with gentle hands
The hearts that it entwines.

Jun 10, 2007

So many events - so little time to blog (Part the second)

Some travels farther afield now. I have over the last week or so spent some time exploring the Metaverse with another adventurous soul, one of my knights in the Order if the Red Rose, Sir Telemachus. I never fear when I am traveling outside of Caledon in his company as his prowess on the fields of battle is well known and his quiet strength is obvious to anyone.

Very early last week Tele and I went exploring (for a very short time) in Metatheria. It is on my list of places to return to when I have the chance. We barely made a start on the first trail before other obligations called me away. The picture below, however, seems to give you a good idea of the beauty of this place.


Sitting beside the stream in a lovely swing. I really should find one of these for the Loch.

***

A few days ago, Sir Tele decided to get his new Destrier out of the stables and asked whether Bucephalus and I would care to ride along. I told him that I had recently been in Shengri La and that the trails there were quite challenging and the surroundings - beautiful. We decided to make the trip over the course of a couple of days. Below are the photographs taken as we traversed the Shengri La regions.




Sir Tele astride his new horse, who is yet to be named.


As we rode along the shore, we spotted a water spout and went to investigate. We discovered the resident whale, who was singing to us - or perhaps for his mate - as we watched him swim easily in the bay. How remarkable!


On our next ride, we were dressed in the more modern fashion of the mainland. I admit that the blue jeans are very comfortable for riding. This picture was taken at the head of the trail leading into the mountains.


Overlook at sunset.


We ended our ride at the top of the trail watching the eagle circle around us. I commented that I hoped we had not disturbed her too much if there was a nest nearby.

Jun 7, 2007

So many events - so little time to blog (Part the first)

Once again I find myself in the position of needing to play catch-up with my narrative and pictoral evidence of a second life being lived to the fullest. I am most fortunate to have so many friends and neighbors with whom I enjoy spending time, both within Caledon and without. Confession, they say, is good for the soul; therefore, let me confess that I have not been spending nearly enough time on the final builds and textures on my manse. I MUST FINISH THIS BUILD and get the house down to ground level! And I would like to do that soon. Perhaps I will be able to complete this task within the next week. I really must call upon Kate. With her help, I should be able to get things completed and the house planted on terra firma, although the furnishings will be sparse.

The human behind this avatar will be traveling much over the next several weeks with no guarantee of a portal into this world (Gah!) so I really do need to get cracking.

At any rate, this will be a lengthy post as I try to provide a little narration for each picture displayed. Thank you for indulging me. Where there have been related posts created on other favorite blogs, I will also provide a link.

**THE LAST BALL OF THE CALEDON SOCIAL SEASON


Arriving somewhat late due to RL circumstances, I was pleased that the dance cards were not all full, and that a few gentlemen still had some dances available. Here I dance with the very romantic, Mr JJ Drinkwater, who suggested that we might dance outside the ballroom in the lovely garden. Sadly the dance was all too short, but wonderful, and the conversation was grand.


My next dance was with the handsome Major Erasmus Margulis. He was a delightful dance partner as always.


The Duchess Carntaigh and I bid farewell to our guests at the end of the evening along with Sir Red Caliber, who was a fine DJ for this last ball of the Season.

**GOD SAVE QUEEN VICTORIA - Celebration of Her Majesty's Birthday at Sir Edward Pearse and Christine McAllister's home


One last play of the organ in the chapel of the (now closed) Dickens sim, then off to the party.


The ever charming and handsome, Mr Exrex Somme, invited me to the first dance of the evening after our fine tour of the beautiful home that Edward and Christine have made together.


Dancing in the garden of Davaar.




The talented, Sir Red Caliber dances with me even as he prepares to DJ a portion of the event....giving it his best Canadian spin....and changing the pace of the music quite a lot.


(in the foreground) Sir Edward speaks with Ms Virrginia Tombola


Dancing to the up tempo songs chosen by Sir Red.


The lovely Ms Qli Project joining in on the party.


Gettin' jiggy wit' it! (My apologies to Her Majesty. I could not resist.)

More information and photos may be found at Sir Edward's site.


***DUEL - HAIKU THE WEAPON OF CHOICE!

The story posted in other blogs that I have seen indicates that there is no memory of the insult which occured at Kate's Rez Day Party causing Mr JJ Drinkwater and Mr Exrex Somme to challenge and be challenged to this unusual duel. I have a very distinct memory of it, but in the event that neither gentleman actually wishes to see it posted for all to read, I shall refrain from divulging any more information at this time.


The crowd assembled for the Relay for Life Dueling event.


Mr Drinkwater looking very cool under pressure.


Mr Drinkwater's second, Sir ZenMondo, announces the judges of the Haiku competition.


Colonel O'Toole as Colonel Somme's very fine second.


The lovely Ms Shylah Garmes as chief judge and documentarian of the event.

My dear Colonel Somme - someone has snatched your photo from my album! I am so sorry that this post does not include a proper picture of your handsome self looking cool and confident as you waged fine Haiku war (for life) with Mr Drinkwater. I shall endeavor to make it up to you sir.

More information may be found here.