Since I help support Comcast with a pretty generous payment each month, I decided to see how my money is being spent in Second Life, and I was not disappointed. This is a well designed island with lots of entertaining features. The first thing I did was visit the jetskis. I rezzed a free one and away I went…well, until I crashed the ski on the land. I’m a terrible driver in SL!

I flew to the top of a huge tower, grabbed a parachute, and jumped, and fortunately it opened so I floated gently down to the ground. I also grabbed a free jetpack, rezzed several rings in midair, and attempted to fly through them. Actually, this is designed for more than one person to race through the rings. Thank goodness I wasn’t racing because I never got through them all before they timed out, but it was fun trying.

Speaking of racing, there is a race tube winding through the park. I was given a racing uniform, rezzed a car, and away I went again. This was really fun since the tube prevented me from wandering away from the track. I didn’t need to worry so much about control so I could drive really fast.

In another part of the island I discovered the Comcastic Lab which turned out to be my favorite feature of all. Upon entering the lab, I was walked past a soda fountain that served a very questionable liquid. I walked on through a doorway only to be told that I had to have a radiation badge to enter. So, I wore the badge and walked through a decompression chamber of sorts. The lab itself was full of “do not enter” and “do not touch” signs which were invitations to do just the opposite, if you ask me. Strange things happened, like electrical shocks and wildly growing monster plants.  I highly recommend a visit to the Comcast lab in SL!

Tyna and I are getting a little more serious about creating a space for Virginia ITRTs to meet and collaborate in world. We are planning to purchase some land so we can have our own space….more on that after the purchase is final. We have started a group in SL called ITRT and would love to have any Virginia educators who are interested to join us. We’ll get the word out after we have our physical space a little more organized. We don’t know of many VA public school folks who are involved in SL at this point, so we believe that we’re actually on the cutting edge here. The possibilities are so exciting! With ISTE having an ever increasing presence in SL and now with VSTE creating a space too, we need to brainstorm…share ideas…and just generally learn how to use this new technology that is sometimes referred to as Web 3.0. Whether we like it or not, virtual worlds will become much more prominent in the future. Hopefully, some of that will filter into education in a form that will be safe for elementary children and their teachers.

Please come join our ITRT group! (In Second Life, click on Search, then the Groups tab, and search for ITRT. When it comes up, click on the join button. That’s all there is to it!)

ISTE recently acquired its own island and had it all dressed up and ready to go by the opening days of NECC. This evening, there was an opening reception at the Georgia Aquarium, and for those who could not attend the conference in Atlanta, there was a virtual reception on ISTE island.

It was fun and exciting to talk with avatars who were actually in Atlanta as well as those of us who were participating from home. As this was a social event, there was the usual chatter as well as an animated dance floor that seemed to be enjoyed by all in attendance. Well, there were a few folks who were new to SL who looked at the rest of us like we were crazy, but just give them about 2 days and they’ll be right in there with us!

The aquarium itself was fabulous. Naturally, my favorite part was the penguin exhibit!

If you are a technology educator, but sure to visit ISTE Island and join the ISTE Second Life group.

On my first trip to Galveston, I visited 3 pyramids and tried to enter a nearby amusement park, but it wouldn’t let me in. I was so disappointed, because I could see it and just needed to be there! Being determined to make the best of a bad situation, I spent my time exploring the town and checking out those pyramids. There was a Rain Forest Pyramid, an Aquarium Pyramid, and a Science Discovery Pyramid complete with its own Imax Theater.

Not being one to give up easily, I returned to Galveston the next day and had no trouble at all entering the inviting amusement park. Woohoo! And, I had the entire park all to myself! Life just doesn’t get much better than that!

There were 3 different water rides, and of course, my favorite was the log flume. The track actually went around most of the perimeter of the park, so I definitely got my money’s worth. There was also a water tube ride that was gravity driven, but I kept getting stuck about half way through and had to swim out. The innertube ride was fun but I needed more of it!

There were also several typical amusement park rides and games. I enjoyed the duck shoot, and almost won a prize! There was a skeeball game, but I never got it to work. It kept telling me that I had an animation override, but I didn’t. At least I didn’t think I did. Oh well, guess I’ll have to go back and try that again. The fortune teller looked rather ominous. I actually sat in the dunking booth, but there was nobody around to dunk me. Hee hee! Good timing!

I love amusement park rides of any kind, but one of my favorites at this park had to be the pirates ride. It was actually underground, very much like the Pirates of the Caribbean Ride at Disney. There were surprises around every turn, so if you dare ride it, just be forewarned!

I also rode a ferris wheel, a very dangerous swaying boat, and giant swings. If you’ve put in a long day at work and just need to kick back and play like a kid, give the amusement park at Galveston a visit.

Well, with a name like Penguin, how could I resist purchasing a pet penguin of my very own? When I taught in the elementary classroom in RL, my room was decorated with all sorts of penguin paraphernalia, so I had grown accustomed to being surrounded by the cute little black tuxedoed creatures. So, with the help of my good friend Tyna, I found my very own penguin. It follows me around everywhere I go, but other people can give him commands too, which is cool. He will jump, talk, march, and just generally waddle around looking like he’s having a good time. I’ve only lost him once so far when I was flying around the apartment with a jetpack and moved too fast for him. Poor thing…I’m not sure where he actually went, but fortunately, I could pull him right out of my inventory again! There are definitely some advantages to Second Life.

Now he really needs a name. Any ideas? Percy? Pete? Petunia? Not! Can’t have a male penguin going around named after a flower. I’m kind of liking Percy at this point, but still need to think about it a bit.

Tyna and I visited Raglan Squire at the advice of a tiny furry avatar. (Actually he was a koala who was flirting with Tyna! Go figure…) Anyhow, among other things, Raglan Squire has shops in which you can purchase tiny avatar costumes if you find that appealing. They also had shops with such things as dragons that you can wear on your shoulder. Hmmm, do you know of anyone who might be interested in one of those, Tyna?

As we were exploring, we found a set of percussion instruments just waiting to be played. What fun! There really were very well constructed and the animations were awesome. These types of music sims would be great for music appreciation classes. I’ll be back to play some more here!

Sometimes, in this Escape from Reality known as Second Life, you just need to take a virtual walk through the parks to commune with nature. Obviously, this would be a much more attractive option in Real Live, but sometimes that just is not a viable option, so SL will have to do! I did a search for parks and visited two that were absolutely lovely as well as very peaceful. They were designed for rest and solitude. I suppose that even in SL, one can tire of the crowds and conversations and find oneself needing some downtime.

First I visited Eagle River Park, which is a very pretty sim designed to resemble a typical park setting one might find on the outskirts of a large city. You can take a walk along the river, relax in a very inviting hammock, enjoy the spray of the fountain, and simply stroll through the park.

In Second Wildlife Nature Reserve, the sim is divided into 3 sections. There’s a Seaside area, a Garden area, and a Gothic area. All of the animals in the reserve can be purchased to be used in your own SL home is you’d like. Most of the animals are animated too. It’s fun to just sit and watch the ocean critters swim around under your feet. Anyone in need of a blue whale? In the garden area, you can relax in a hammock or on a bench and watch the squirrels run around. You can also buy a cricket in this area, just in case you like to listen to them sing. Now the gothic area was just a bit creepy for my taste. The lovely green trees of the garden became dead black trees, and the fountains actually looked like blood. Ugg!! And then there was the tarantula hanging from the tree and the rats running around under my feet. Hmmm, maybe I’d better stick to the first 2 areas of this reserve in the future .

Today was the last day of school for the students, so to celebrate, I decided to search for a water park. I found just what I was looking for at the Florida Bay Water Park. It wasn’t large enough to be overwhelming, and as luck would have it, I had the place to myself. Nothing like putting on a swimsuit in front of a bunch of strangers, even if they are virtual!

There were tons of things to do there. I rezzed a jetski and zoomed around the island, until I crashed onto land and got stuck. Then I tried my hand with a motorboat, and things seemed to go a little better. There were 2 different hot air balloon rides that would take you high above the water park. There was also a tube ride, but my very favorite ride was the log flume.

The nice folks provided a pool with floats for just relaxing as well as rings with swimming animations so I could swim underneath the waterfall with little effort. After all that exercise, it was time to find a lounge chair over by the fountain and just chill for a while.

So, the next time you need a place to play and relax, try the Florida Bay Water Park. Just don’t tell too many people about it…. It’s really nice when it’s quiet and serene.

Renaissance Island is a popular gathering place for those interested in the Renaissance Period of history. I’m not much of a history buff, but I did enjoy walking around the island and ducking into all of the authentic looking buildings. There are shops that sell appropriate clothing and other items from that time period, taverns, homes for rent…. you name it.

Once again, I can see a genuine educational benefit for simulations such as this. If I had been exposed to virtual worlds in high school and could have actually “lived” in whatever setting we were studying, maybe I would have a greater appreciation for history than I have now.

Ah, Australia! That has been my dream destination for several years, and I’m hoping to go there someday when I retire. After all, who goes to Australia in the summer when it’s winter down there?

Fortunately, my avatar was able to visit Australia recently in world. This is a large sim and I only saw parts of it, but those parts were absolute delights! There is a replica of the Sydney Opera House which contains an art museum on the lower level. The views from the walkways were lovely as the sun began to set.

There is a long motorcycle track that takes you all around the island…well, that is, if you can drive your cycle better than I did! Maybe I need a joystick to really enjoy all of these vehicles in SL! There is also a great jetski ride near a campfire area. Each time I’ve been there, this has been a very busy place. It appears to be a popular hangout for a group of avatars. Actually, I teleported into the middle of their little group and was too embarrassed to hang around and chat. Then I made every effort to control the jetski until I got out of site to avoid further embarrassment. Fortunately, they didn’t see me crash and have to desert my sinking jetski. I think I need lessons!

Oh, and there’s a cool cannon. Not sure of the significance, but it’s fun. I sat on the cannonball and rode it across the bay when the cannon fired. What a relief to be able to stand up and find myself still all in one piece after that little adventure!