The Worst SL Time Zone:

I think the worst time zone for SL is SLT, specifically Pacific Time. It's the dead zone. By the time I get online at night, most everyone in the western hemisphere has gone to bed. Everyone in Asia is still at work and people in Europe are just getting up. It's probably best to live on the east coast if you're into SL.

What Keeps You Going?

“you’ve kept me going for two
years, it’s really amazing to meet you.”
“thank you,” i answered, “but who’s
going to keep me going?”
i’ve asked this question before and
all i ever get back is a gentle
smile.
but it’s a good question.
they have no notion that i may consider
suicide several times a
week.
-Bukowski, Betting on the Muse

Unwind:

The Bill of Life states that human life may not be touched from the moment of conception until a child reaches the age of thirteen. However, between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, a parent may choose to retroactively "abort" a child . . . on the condition that the child's life doesn't "technically" end. The process by which a child is both terminated and yet kept alive is called 'unwinding.' -Neil Shusterman, Unwind

Unwinding means that the child's organs are harvested. This satisfies the condition that the child is both terminated and kept alive, albeit in a distributed state among recipients of the child's organs. This law came to exist because there were insufficient voluntary organ donors.

Being unwound can happen for the most trivial of reasons. A religious family "tithes" it's tenth child to the harvest camps. The state orphanage has a budget crisis and decides to unwind five percent of its wards. One of the girls is chosen to be unwound by the state because she demonstrates insufficient promise as a musician.

The story is horrifying, but works because of the matter of fact way the author describes it. The story is about a child that makes a run for it, rather than being unwound.

Tired of Losing:

There comes that phase in life when, tired of losing, you decide to stop losing, then continue losing. Then you decide to really stop losing, and continue losing. The losing goes on and on so long you begin to watch with curiosity, wondering how low you can go.  -George Saunders, Christmas

Do You Need an Obsession?

Would you like to be obsessed? The good thing about an obsession is that it provides a purpose for your life. You could be obsessed about a lot of different things. For instance, getting a degree, finding a life mate, being in really great shape so you can find a life mate, or mastering a computer game.

The bad thing about an obsession is that you miss a lot. Plus, it can interfere with other parts of your life. For example, you may not be able to resist playing the computer game you're mastering while at the office, which adversely impacts your work performance.

I think I need an obsession.  

Don't Be One of Those:

Don't be one of those kinds of friends. You know the type I'm talking about? The kind that adds you and then never initiates any kind of contact. Like you exist on their friends lists as some kind of bookmark because you have interesting picks in your profile or something. How hard is it to look at your friends lists and say hello to someone that you haven't chatted with in a long time? It doesn't have to be all the time, but a hello once in awhile would be nice.

The Eradication of Awareness:

We live in a universe devoted to the creation, and eradication, of awareness. Augustus Waters did not die after a lengthy battle with cancer. He died after a lengthy battle with human consciousness, a victim--as you will be--of the universe's need to make and unmake all that is possible.

      -John Green, The Fault in Our Stars