Posts tagged musings

A few nights ago, I went to see a friend of mine, Irish, DJ’ing in 2nd Life. When I got there, Irish was playing a song from a musician I did not know. The artist’s name is Leonard Cohen and the song is A Thousand Kisses Deep.

As I stood there and listened to Leonard’s aged voice sing the haunting lyrics of his song, I began thinking about recent events in both my 1st and 2nd Life. Speaking to the those things and people and events in one’s life that we cannot change, as well as, accepting paths we could not envision, this song touched me in ways that are difficult express.

Endings… Things that will never be… Journeys not to be taken… People left behind…

And quiet is the thought of you,
The file on you complete,
Except what we forgot to do,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.

—————

And sometimes when the night is slow,
The wretched and the meek,
We gather up our hearts and go,
A Thousand Kisses Deep.

Wow… These words give me such pause and send chills through me. 

This year began with so much joy for me. I had made a real effort to change my life and karma, personally and professionally. Good things were happening. And then… My life took control away… A Thousand Kisses Deep.

That is what I felt and feel when I listen to Leonard’s song. As sad as that seems, though… A Thousand Kisses Deep also reminds me that when one door closes another truly opens. Closure always brings opportunity, a fresh beginning.

It is this ebb and flow of opportunity and closure that defines us and our lives. It is the balance of all that has taken place, rather than any single episode or period, that matters.

So, remember fondly those people and the paths that were and could have been. It is okay to do so. With that in mind… Embrace your present and look to your future, knowing it is filled with opportunity and fresh beginnings.

Or in the words of Leonard Cohen…

I’m turning tricks,
I’m getting fixed,
I’m back on Boogie Street.

Happy Birthday Pete!! What a great Rocker!! Pete is a true original and real inspiration. Thanks for all the wonderful music throughout the years.

The movie a lot of us have been waiting for is finally here. After years of build up and five individual films later, Marvel Comic’s The Avengers is a reality. Was it worth the wait? Did it meet our expectations? You bet your ass it did!! What a great effort and an “AWESOME” way to kick off the summer movie blockbuster run.

The Avengers does not disappoint. It has lots of action. It has great dialog for a genre movie. It has well established characters and plot lines. It has wonderful and timely comedic relief. The Avengers is a complete package and well worth every ticket dollar you spend.

What made the movie for me? Those that know me, know I love Ironman and Robert Downey Jr.’s interpretation of Tony Stark. This is Downey’s third installment of playing the part and it is as fresh and intising as the original. Job well done!!

For many, though, I think the captivating character will be Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner and The Hulk. There are some truly memorable moment for Hulk fans. No spoilers here there, though :) lol

So… Take a few hours and escape into the wonder world of Marvel Comics and The Avengers. Log out of 2nd Life now and go see The Avengers on the big screen. Enjoy!!

Recently, I was asked what drives me? What is my passion? The answer is simple… It is the creative process and, specifically, photography and the convergence of digital photography and video. 

For those of you that know me in 1st Life, you know I bill myself as a “creative”. For those of you that do not, I am, in fact, a digital media consultant in 1st Life with my own company and production studio.

With the above in mind, I thought it would be fun to post some images from a recent photography weekend from the middle of February. The location is Cape May, New Jersey. Cape May is a favorite location of mine and one I know well, as I grew up there during the summers of my youth.

Although the weather was mild, it was overcast most of the weekend. That, however, worked to my advantage as my main goal was to capture some stark black-and-white images. There are also a few monotone and muted color images in this collection.

The images that follow are a sampling of my effort. They were all taken with a Canon 40D and a Canon EF 24-105mm f4.0L IS lens. All the images were shot in Canon’s RAW format and processed using Lightroom 4. The final treatment of each image was done in a 16:9 aspect ratio.

I have never posted any of my 1st Life creative work here on iDoleo.com. I tend not cross the streams (reference Ghostbusters…lol) when it comes to my professional life. That said… I know there are a couple of people from 2nd Life that have asked to see my work. I hope these images live up to those peoples expectations. Enjoy!!

Let’s be honest here guys… How many of us around in the mid 60’s and early 70’s didn’t have a crush on Barbara Eden as Jeannie in the iconic TV sitcom, I Dream of Jeannie?

Show of hands, please? Mine is up!! How about yours? Hey… Young dude the back corner of the Internet, get your damn hand up too. You’ve seen the reruns. I see you smiling and nodding your head.

Okay, okay… Jeannie may not have been a slave in the classic sense. She sure as hell was a submissive, though, with a slave heart. She also liked to top from the bottom, only to give in to her Master, Captain/Major, Anthony Nelson, in the end. Captain/Major Nelson (Tony) was played by Larry Hagman and his character was an Astronaut working for NASA.

From the campy harem outfits to the over saturated colors (the first season was shot in black and white) to the underwritten sexual overtones and content, I Dream of Jennie and Barbara Eden were huge fantasy come true. Thank you Barbara… Thank you Jeannie…

Enjoy!!

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Personal Side Note: You know you’re part of pop culture when they design a slot machine after you. Last time I was in Vegas, I was there with my ex-pet, Mimi. We spent a whole afternoon playing the I Dream of Jeannie slot machines at the Luxor. Too funny…

Warning… This is a blatant feel good post!! About time, right?? Lol.

I love cool crisp Spring mornings. I love them even more when I am driving down the road in my open Jeep while blasting some righteous tunes (Yes, I just said righteous). Today’s destinantion… Day one of a two day soccer tournament with my son.

A quick stop for a coffee and a hot chocolate and then the urban road for an hour commute to the soccer fields. With my coffee in hand, I have my son dial in some music. For me… Jamiroquai, Chicago, and, of course, Hall & Oates (You can never have too much Hall & Oates!). For my son… AC/DC, Aerosmith, and Nelly.

What a great morning!! What a great time with my son!! My lesson to you… Enjoy these moments, and others like them, when they come.

Lately, I have discovered the live music scene in 2nd Life. I know… I know… Alec, where the hell have you been?!?! Lol. So with that in mind, I IM’ed a friend last night and asked her to slip into something head turning cause we were going out. After five minutes in Search, I stumbled upon a live music event at The Roof @ NYC.

I popped over and was pleasantly surprised to see an artist rich line up for the evening. The venue was of course packed, but I found a little slice of floor and TP’ed my friend in. Wow!! That was all I could say about my friend :) A real pink yummy gummy… (lol, inside joke). I dialed up a nice slow dance, pulled my friend close, and together we settled into a wonderful night.

The theme for the night at The Roof @ NYC was Superheros. The atmosphere was charged and electric thanks to the artists and their awesome energies. The music was fantastic!!

Who played, you ask? The first set was Voodoo Shilton and Mulder Watts. The second set was Maximillion Kleene, Stella Silvansky, and Raspbury Rearwin. The third set was Ganjo Mokeey. The forth and final set was Loreen Aldrin.

All good things come to an end though :( Sadly, after four hours of truly wonderful music, it was time to TP out. My friend and I said night to the artists and patrons and then TP’ed home for some cuddle time before bed. What a great night!! What a great venue!! Some of the best artists 2nd Life has to offer!!

Once I used to believe, I was such a great romancer.
Then, I came home to a woman that I could not recognize.
When I pressed her for a reason, she refused to even answer.
It was then I felt the stranger kick me right between the eyes.

Bill Joel - The Stranger

————

This song and these lyrics have been playing in my mind of late. I find them to be a source of great comfort and distress. They are a comfort because I know I am not alone in my feelings on recent events in my personal life. They are a distress because they are a sad reminder of an all to common reality in relationships. 

I would like to think that I do not have my own Stranger. That might be wishful thinking. I really do not know. I am sure others that know me would be better able to address and debate that point. What I do know is, I have encountered the Stranger of others in my life. It is a sobering experience, to say the least, when it happens.

The ironic part is that many of us exist and live as our Stranger in 2nd Life. Our avatars are the faces we hide away in 1st Life and 2nd Life is the place we take them out and show ourselves.

Here is hoping that you never see the Stranger. If you do, though… Take heart and know you are not alone.

Here we go again… Yet another attempt to keep this blog current and relevant. A lot has happened to me since my last post back in August of 2011. I left 2nd Life for a bit and returned. I lost Mimi, my wonderful and beloved pet of more than three years, to 1st Life and issues the two of us could not resolve. I recently found and lost my Chia (Samirah), a submissive and D/s relationship that will never leave my heart. All hard lessons learned with very high emotional costs. 

Christ, how I have changed over the years since 2004. This was pointed out to me the other night while talking to a dear friend of mine named Gemini. Gem and I have a long history, good and bad. Through it all, though, Gem has always been an objective voice and, in many ways, my barometer and conscious.

Gem reminded me of who I was… Who I am… Who I need to be. Tough talk to hear from a friend that can be brutal. Sad how 1st Life and 2nd Life can take its toll on us all. Hard to accept we create our own reality, especially so after traumatic episodes in our lives.

All that said… Life does go on as long as we live and breath. Doors close and open everyday. And yes… I meant to say close and open rather than open and close for a reason. Stirred and shaken, I know who and what I am. I know what I want. As I am the sum of my losses and triumphs, so this blog will be reborn and reenergized (at least for a few posts…lol). Enjoy!! Please stop back to see the new posts and the new sections.

Thanks for the support and the read!! See you around the grid…

Welcome to a new featured category of iDoleo.com, Slave Girls. This category is dedicated to the representation and expression of submissives and slaves as depicted in art, the media, and pop culture.

I am kicking off this featured category with one of the most erotic representations of a slave girl found in modern pop culture. As the name gives it away… This post showcases the green Orion Slave Girls from Star Trek. 

I am a huge fan of science fiction and of Star Trek. Hard to believe a serious minded Dom and Sadist is into either? Well… Believe it and enjoy the photo of Vina, the first green Orion Slave Girl depicted in the original Star Trek series.

Enjoy!!

I found myself in what I thought was a friendly chat the other day at the Gor Hub. I was sitting in a comfy chair and observing the goings and comings that is the “Hub” when I began talking with a woman that teleported in next to me. At first, it was the typical 2nd Life getting to know you chat. Then… the discussion took a strange turn.

What was the topic of discussion, you ask? It was about one’s nature as a submissive or a dominant and whether or not modern humans fall into those categories or whether “evolution” has stripped us of the those basic traits for a reality that is less black and white and more grey.

Now, if you have read this blog at all, you know my views already. I am a Dom and a Sadist of many years. That is who I am and who I have been. Being dominant has defined both my personal and professional life. The woman I was talking to was a submissive, or so I thought, and was located in Germany. 

The submissive’s points of view went something like this:

• One’s nature as a submissive or dominant, is not a black and white position.
• If those broad categories were the true nature of things, it would be a boring world.
• There are no broad categories or traits in individuals, but rather people are composed of a mix of many characteristics.
• There is no natural order of things or rather the order of things seen in nature no longer applies to humans.

All of these point are certainly valid given specific contexts. That said, these points are also the usual points that a Switch would give to the justification of their position. This isn’t going to be post on Switches, but I will just say… I do not believe in Switches. Every Switch I have ever met, 1st Life or 2nd Life, prefers either the dominant role or the submissive role and they basically switch because it maximizes their kink and sexual cravings.

After the submissive was finished expressing her views, I countered with mine.

• There is a natural order to life on this planet. It can be seen in nature and in human culture(s), both past and present.
• Like predator and prey, being a dominant or a submissive is a very real broad trait in one’s personality, even if not known or directly expressed or acted on.
• The black and white aspect of being dominant or submissive is that these categories exist and are real.

This is where the conversation passed into the realm of a jaw dropper, what-the-fuck moment for me. This submissive actually started to try and defend the notion that the transfer of natural mechanisms to humans was “useless” since “we humans have hardly nothing to do with nature anymore as evolution did not go by without making it’s mark on us”.

Then the submissive’s point turned a bit more personal when she asked me, “hows about dropping your ego totally? …that would be a way to become natural again?” lmao… It always comes down to the personal attack, doesn’t it? Two people having and honest debate and when one of the people can no longer defend their position, it turns personal. Typical and sad…

The conversation turned one sided at that point with me stating I do not see how anyone that believes humans have evolved in the same closed system as everything else around us is somehow above that process. To me… That thought and point of view is what screams “ego”. 

Humans have not left this closed system. Humans are still apart of it. And… The closed system and the evolution processes that created us still influence and shape us today. This means that those broad categories of traits we see around us, like “prey and predator” and “domination and submission” exist in us and will continue to exist in us. We cannot separate ourselves from the processes that created us. 

This is not a question of black and white vs grey. Like it or hate it, this is a fact of life as it evolved on this planet. These broad categories and traits at their basic level define us. Welcome to planet Earth!! :)

Okay… Okay… I know I have let this blog fall into a terrible state of disrepair. Time to make an effort to mend the damage and get things hopping again.

To be honest, I have not really been in  2nd Life all that much. As I tend to do, I lost my drive and reason for being there. It happens, especially when one has been in 2nd Life as long as I have. Early 2004 seems like several lifetimes ago!!

Over the past year, not much has changed in 2nd Life, in my opinion. I still feel like the “golden age” of 2nd Life and other virtual worlds has come and gone. That said… Other grids and virtual worlds continue to pop up and grow. 

The BDSM and Gorean communities also continue to disappoint. As much as I like to create and build, I must say… The continued lack of quality people inside 2nd Life makes it difficult to be there and participate in any meaningful way. 

With all that said… I did greatly enjoy writing this blog and it is time for me to get off my ass and write again. So, if you see out in the wilds of 2nd Life, feel free to say hello. 

Take care for now and keep checking back. New posts and content are coming!!

I have not blogged since the Summer. That does not mean I have not been in 2nd Life. I have been in-world, but not as often as I used to be. Why?? Well, IMO 2nd Life keeps sinking into the abyss of “why bother”. This is especially true when it comes to being a serious Dom or sub/slave in 2nd Life. 

I know… I know… I am always going on about how most in 2nd Life do not take the D/s or M/s lifestyle seriously and how most are just players at best. I wish I didn’t have to drone on and on about it, but I am just not one to let “players” pretend they are something they are not. I call them as I see them…PERIOD!

That brings me to the subject of this blog post, Mickey Mouse Dominants. The other night (well night for me), I logged to relax and hang at one of my favorite lifestyle hang outs. I ran into a couple of friends, one of which is a sub I have known for a fair amount of time and in fact owned. While talking with her in a private IM, I noticed that she seemed to be involved with a Dom of some note and inquired what that was all about. She informed me that she was his 2nd. 

Upon hearing this news, I gave her a couple of LOLs and LMAOs. I have known her for a couple of years and have known of this Dom for just as long. This was the first time I saw her with him, yet… She made it sound like her 2nd status was not new. I found all of this even more amusing considering the Dom in question historically blows through subs with some regularity. Recently he has owned two subs, one after another in a short amount of time, and still has time for a 2nd.

Why does any of this matter? It matters because some subs/slaves see this Dom (and others like him) as being real because he is a regular in 2nd Life and has a bit of a 2nd Life presence. The fact remains… This Dom is no Dom. He is purely driven by the social and kink aspects of the lifestyle. This is even more evident as this Dom has also claimed to be a Switch in the past.

This is a classic example of what I call a Mickey Mouse Dominant. A 2nd Life player that wants others to think he/she is a serious Dominant yet shows he/she is nothing of the sort by his/her actions. This type of Dominant mostly attracts and seeks subs/slaves with little or no real experience or exposure to the lifestyle, online or offline. It is this aspect of the Mickey Mouse Dominant that is a real crime for those subs/slaves that are real, want to be real, or are seeking real training.

If the above were not enough, the real proof that this Dom is just a player was demonstrated when he was confronted by how others see him (the others in question being me…lol). Instead of asking me why I have this opinion of him and opening a dialog, he used his 2nd Life presence to confront and attack me directly.

How would he know my opinion of him considering I do not publicly discuss such things or use names when I write blog posts?? Well… That is a long story in itself and worthy of a blog post of its own. I will just say, at this point, it involves multiple instances of private log file transfers and clear violations of the Linden Lab’s Terms-of-Service by at least three known parties. As I said at the beginning of this post… IMO 2nd Life keeps sinking into the abyss of “why bother”.

I went to see Inception last night. From the previews I saw, I was not sure if I was going to like this film. I could not have been more wrong. Inception is the first truly original film I have seen in a long, long time. It is creative, fresh, and very thought provoking, especially the ending (no spoilers here).

There are some that may have a difficult time following the plot and the twists it takes. It is a nonstop ride that changes both speed and direction on the viewer through out the entire film. Stay with it, though, and you will be rewarded with a wonderfully unique movie going experience.

Inception is a first. It is a true film Masterpiece that others will attempt to clone and copy. Get out and see it on the big screen!!