Letters burning by my bed for you

I know, I know. I’ve been kind of AWOL on the blog for a couple of weeks now. I’ve also been scarce inworld, only logging in when Daros is online. The main reason is that RL is totally kicking my arse right now (overloaded with work, plus a health scare for a very close family member; stuff you don’t need to know, but still…) and I’ve just not felt up to doing much in SL. I even missed Skin Fair. Completely. And that’s unheard of.

I’m still doing the memes, although yes, it’s with old pictures again. At least I had some that fitted, because this week it’s all about spring, and you know what that means: bright, pretty pastels and stuff. And – pink shirts and no make-up under duress aside – Skell doesn’t do that kind of thing ;-)

What is the spring season like where you live?

It’s like hope. That sounds like the corniest thing, but I love spring. It’s probably my favourite season. Because I walk to work at such an ungodly hour (5am, for the curious) from September to March I miss a lot of daylight. Sure, that means I get to be home sometime around 2-3pm, but it starts getting dark around 4:30pm in winter, and I only have access to windows at work when I’m on my breaks. So yeah, I do what I can to mitigate the lack of vitamin D and suchlike, and I also have one of those awesome dawn-simulation alarm clocks that slowly wake you with a half-hour ‘sunrise’ (and send you to sleep with a half-hour ‘sunset’, too). If you have to work shifts or suffer from SAD, then I highly recommend getting one of those.

Anyway, spring is hope for me. Sometime around the end of the second week of March, as I lock my front door, I turn to face East and there in the distance is the first faint glimmer of dawn. Every single year that first sighting of brightened horizon just lifts me up like you wouldn’t believe. Yes, I lose it again for a few weeks after the clocks go forward (end of March in the UK) but I know it’s coming back. By the time we get to mid-April, as I cross the road by my workplace I can look back down the hill that I’ve just walked up and the sun is rising in a blaze of colour right at the bottom of it. Oh, yes.

And then, there are the horse chestnut trees. I walk under seven of them in a row on my way home, and every year I take a small silent bet with myself as to which one will burst its leaf tips out first. This year the second and fifth ones tied. The same day that I noticed that, it was also the first warm afternoon we’d had. The sky was a pale blue, and a small flock of birds was wheeling around pretty much all the way as I walked home.

At around this time of year I also switch out my playlists, so I listen to music that just oozes positivity. This is my current favourite:

Imagine listening to that as you walk through warm spring air with birds wheeling overhead. Now you know why spring is hope, for me.

What’s the first thing that pops into your head when you think of spring?

Birdsong. More precisely, the dawn chorus. Y’see, at the same time as that brightening begins in the east, at 5am the blackbirds begin belting out their full-throated song. I’ve had morning walks to work where I’ve been serenaded all the way, and that’s another heart-lifter.

Which spring-themed sim in Second Life is your favorite at the moment?

I honestly couldn’t tell you, because I haven’t really explored at all recently. I did change the trees around my small SL getaway cottage to the spring foliage option, but that’s about as far as I got, springwise.

Meanwhile, have the closest thing to ‘bright’ that Skell does ;-)

(Another reason to look forward to spring: being able to dress like this IRL, rather than in multiple layers to keep warm.)

OHAI! I HAZ RED HAIRZ!

Credits

Shirt: NerdMonkey – Indian Black Shirt [ thanya.marabana ]

Pants: X.hibe – Pant Classic Grey (city) [ dolphin.aeghin ]

Feet: Ispachi – Natural Men’s Feet [ diarmuid.miklos ]

Footwear: Ispachi – Summer Flip-Flops [ diarmuid.miklos ]

Necklace: Maxi Gossamer – Raisa [ maxi.gossamer ]

Rings: Maxi Gossamer – Talia Cluster Rings [ maxi.gossamer ]

Piercings: Pekka – Esoteric Unisex Piercing [ kathya.sczcepanski ]

Hair: Exile – Revolver (sunset) [ kavar.cleanslate ]

Skin: Birth – Vince Golden Blonde (straw) [ silent.alchemi ]

Eyes: IKON – Ascension (glass) [ ikon.innovia ]

Windlight: Gwen’s Light (Advanced Lighting enabled)