I had a good day today
This really has nothing to do with SL.. except to say that I got out of the house today, away from my computer.
That’s been hard for me in the last few years. My natural fear of “outside” and “people”.. combined with a monetary incentive to sit in front of my computer.. well it’s resulted in the addition of more than a few pounds to my already ample frame. Mostly due to delicious pizza.
Anyways, in the last few years, I’ve moved around a lot, and my living situation has been “decidedly temporary”. I moved to Washington state, for example, with the understanding that it would be “just for a little while”. 2 years and some change later, I moved again, to the Portland Oregon area.. again a temporary move, so I thought at the time.
Well last summer, I moved again. This time to a decidedly less temporary home. But in all the temporary moves, I’d never gotten around to replacing my Washington Driver’s License with an Oregon one. Thanks to the various laws passed since September 11, 2001.. the requirements for “proving your identity” to the Department of Motor Vehicles have become somewhat stricter.. in particular the need to present a Birth Certificate. Unfortunately, this is something of a major issue when it comes to transgendered people, and having a birth certificate that doesn’t match your ID.. well.. in the New Police States of America, that’s simply not going to fly. So last summer, I finally filed all the forms and court orders and paid all the fines, to get my birth certificate “dealt with”. And around January or so, the certificate finally arrived. (yay!)
So today (yeah I know, 2 months later.. ) I decided to finally “get around to it” and visit the DMV. The place was shockingly empty.. which was nice. I filled out the forms, and took a number.. then I paid my fees and took the computerized test, read the eye chart, paid more fees, and had a very unflattering photo taken. $65 later, I left the DMV with my new temporary documentation in hand, and once again feeling like a legitimate member of society.
The DMV here is right next to a Goodwill thrift store. So, feeling good, and being “out in the world on my own” for once.. I decided to pop in.
I’m really glad I did.. because I found a working Casio SA-35 keyboard and power supply for Five dollars! I’ve been looking for a cheap toy keyboard for months without success. Why is that cool? Because of the Gameboy. The “Pocket Game AO” that I sell in SL, the one that highly resembles a Nintendo Gameboy. Ever since Linden Lab’s takeover of XStreet, and their new rules regarding Intellectual Property (specifically not allowing “fan tributes”) I’ve been wanting to do some redesign work on the model, and to replace the existing game music with something where the provenance is more clear. I’m not without a basic musical skill, so I figured I would be best off if I made my own music. Sure, the end result will be “less gameboyish” but I still think it would be a product people would like, even with a less-gameboy-ish appearance.
Also while I was there.. I happened to glance into a video bin, and saw “Volume 7″ of the Gerry Anderson supermarionation series Thunderbirds on DVD. With a little poking around the bin, I was able to locate all 12 volumes. For $1.50 each. Total steal.
Then after that, I hopped on the bus, and made my way home. It was a lovely day out (still is). The sun is shining warm and bright, and yet the wind is blowing coolly. I had a great time out in the world, I got the important things I needed to do, done.. and I got some cool stuff too.
I couldn’t completely dissapear my old friend. I’ve been following your blog from time to time. Life took a radical shift over the past year in a very good way for me. I enjoy reading about what you’ve been up to
. I keep checking back to see if that darned go cart would ever make it onto the product list 
.
April 22nd, 2010 at 12:18 pm
Hey there.. long time no see. You kind of left abruptly.. well, very abruptly, in my world anyways. I was worried when you took off the way you did.. but I’m really glad to hear that you’re still alive, and that things are going good for you (I know there were kind of nosediving there for a while).
Regarding the go-carts.. When you left the way you did.. I dunno.. it left me feeling very sad, and the last thing I wanted to do was rush out and release those carts.. especially with you closing your account, since there’d be no way to give you your share. Obviously the real message I got was “the money isn’t important”.. and I do understand that, but it still didn’t feel right to rush to market after you left.
I’ve got some bigger fish to fry at the moment (a project you inspired me to think about back in 2007… that’s finally going to happen).. can’t say what it is yet. But once I get my plate cleared of “big things”.. I think I’ll move forward with the carts. Rumours I’ve heard, suggest that there may be yet another physics engine in the works, so if that starts becoming less than rumour, I’ll probably hold it off til then. maybe.
Anyways.. I hope that you, and yours, are fine.. and I hope that things continue to go in a very good way for you. I miss having you around. Take care!
April 23rd, 2010 at 4:43 pm
Jaxon – Email address noted, I’ve put your post in moderation so it shouldn’t be visible to the whole universe. I’ll try and drop you an email soon at that address.
April 29th, 2010 at 9:48 am