Relationships in SL can be multi-depth, multi-level. Never forget that there are real people behind the control of the 3D avatar. It does not matter if they are new (noobs), old (content creators), neko (furries and kitty cats), demons (my brother Kaboom), dragons, vampires, licen, tinies, ogres, unicorns, sluts, whores, warriors or humans, they are all very real people controlling the avatar with very real egos and very real feeling. Treating your fellow SLer as such will get you far in Second Life.
 |
| Char, an exceptional pole dancer |
|
More times than I can hope to count, I hear about someone insulted because an avatar was either too new or was on the edge, or beyond the edge, of what is considered "normal". There is nothing "normal" about SL. Think about it; you can fly there. You can create things without having to run down to the hardware store and buy building materials. You can alter your looks (and in the case of noobs, this is highly recommended). You can dance all night long without fatigue. You can "live" underwater without gills. You can even be "killed" without anymore pain than being sent "home". The list goes on and on. I used to get a kick out of the women who would be neko kitties. I would ask them, "how does your tail stay held in place?". It goes without saying that I did not make many friends with that line. But my point is, "infinite diversity in infinite combinations". Words spoken by Star Trek's Vulcan Science Officer Spock, are words to live by in SL. Tolerance is the key.
 |
| Some people can be intolerant of this sort of behavior. |
Let's take for example my relationship with my submissive woman, cat. I never capitalize her name because she is my property. She is owned by me. She is NOT lesser than I am, probably greater than I am, or at least equal, but she has given herself to me completely and trusts in me so. In my humble opinion, there is no greater act of love and trust. When cat and I go out in public, we prefer to be attached. That is, she wears my collar and I attach my leash to it, leading her around. She feels bound to me by honor, love and trust. Yet we have to be careful where we wander. If the sim is rated PG (Parental Guidance) then the leash is not an option and I may need to consider covering her nipples and posterior more than I prefer. If the sim is rated M (Mature) then we know that it is populated by adults and we should be okay to practice our way of life there. If the sim is rated A (Adult) then, anything goes and we can let down our guard and enjoy ourselves. But even on adult rated sims, people can feel insulted by our lifestyle. Many women may think that leading cat around on a leash is demeaning. Nothing could be further from the truth though. It is not the scope of this writing to go over all the nuances of D/s lifestyle, but suffice to say that without understanding our lifestyle, you cannot possibly understand why it is necessary for cat to be leashed. The point here is to keep an open mind. I cannot for the life of me understand why anyone would want to be a dragon, but that's not to say I would shun dragons. As a matter of fact I have two dragons as friends. To each their own. They cannot be a dragon in RL, therefore they might as well be one in SL and people should be tolerant of that.
So long as it is realized that someone real is operating that avatar, that they are not just a graphic in a computer game, then everyone should be able to get along very well. The only exception might be "griefers". Griefers are people who's mission is to cause trouble and upheaval. They get off on that I guess. I'm fortunate in that I have not had to deal with very many griefers in my 3 years in SL, but they are there and often times even group together to cause mischief. As hard as it is to believe, these are still real people too. They most likely feel they are misfits or anti-social but they are still real people. The first griefer I had to deal with was years ago back when I had my first parcel of land. I was sitting in a hot tub with some naked woman. Life is grand! And this guy starts complaining that he has bought my land for L$1 and that he needs for us to vacate the land so he can move in. Well, the land was not set for sale so I knew right then he was lying. After about 15 minutes of him becoming more and more agitated I had to wonder why anyone would want to get upset in SL rather than sit in a hot tub with a naked woman? To each their own. I banned him from the property and muted him so that I could focus my attentions back onto this naked woman.
Your SL is what you make it and what you want it to be, but it's important to remember that it's a social network too and that interaction with other real people in avatar form is a major part of it all. Interacting with others makes the SL experience very rich and full. You will meet people from all over the world and that's all done right in the comfort of your home.
