Willkommen! - Part II: Back in 1920’s Berlin

And of course I like Berlin a lot. It's such an interesting city.

Daniel Libeskind

                                                                

Since my first blog about the 1920’s Berlin sim in Second Life (SL) I’ve been back several times.  Once for the New Year’s Party during my twenty-four hours in SL and, most recently, for my visit with the nudists.  I’ve befriended many of the sim’s residents and have come away with many ideas for more stories.  But, one story has been missing until now. 

That story is an interview with Frau Jo Yardley the woman who is the creator and driving force behind the1920’s Berlin sim. While I’d met her briefly during my wanderings and exchanged IM’s with her inworld, I’d never had the chance to sit down and interview this fascinating woman.  (If you’re curious why I call Frau Jo fascinating, visit the sim and meet the residents, words do not do them justice.)  This is long overdue as I’ve seen her work and been with her friends but haven’t spent any quality time with her. 

Recently, I was able to schedule an interview with Frau Jo to fill this gap.  We sat down to have a talk about herself and the 1920’s Berlin sim.  We met outside of the sim because TP-ing is not permitted within and I keep getting lost whenever I go looking for an address.  (Significant Other says I have the same problem in Real Life (RL).) 

Frau Jo role plays a forty year old war widow inworld who is somewhat old fashioned.  (More on this last point later.)  In RL, she is a historical consultant who has loved history for her whole life.  She enjoys looking up old pictures, doing research, and she loves realism.

For this interview, Frau Jo is OOC so I have an opportunity to talk with her about what was in her mind as she established 1920’s Berlin.  While we talk she is smoking.  (Among the benefits that SL has, lack second hand smoke is one of them.) 

I begin by asking about her interest in Weimar Germany.  She replies that she has always had a passion for the first half of the twentieth century.  However, when she first came to SL she didn’t see much on the subject. She had been to other historical sims and found them romantic but for her interests there was nothing. 

Frau Jo met several likeminded residents inworld and they decided to found a Weimar Berlin club as a test and for fun.  So, with only three months of SL experience behind her, she rented some land and began building.  At this time she says, she didn’t even know how to rotate a prim.  She spent most of her time learning to build and use textures.  Her good friend and colleague, Mila Edelman, helped her during this period. 

As soon as Frau Jo began to build, she says, her imagination began to take over. People began to visit and suggested that she add a few shops.  The rest is history.  (Please excuse the pun.)  She says that it’s been three years since the inception of the sim and she’s still learning. 

1920’s Berlin is set in the period eleven years after the Great War.  (Remember, back then WWII hadn’t taken place yet and everyone was still in shock from the last one.)  Everything that takes place occurs under the shadow of those events.  The sim has just had its annual remembrance ceremony for the deceased. 

I ask how does she keep a balance between what the sim is without slipping into the anarchy of what Weimar Berlin was really like.  Frau Jo replies that the subject of the sim is mostly "daily life" and even though a lot of wild stuff was going on back then, for most Berliners day to day life was still just going to work, having a beer and a dance in the weekend, school, and the like.  She adds that exciting times are often not exciting every second of every day but they do try and add some of the madness to the recipe as well.

My next question has to do with the local government of the sim. Frau Jo says that there really isn’t much to it.  There is someone who keeps an eye on everyone paying the rent, there is a police force and then there is Frau Jo. Friends help her out with events and other management “stuff”. But generally the community tries to let realism and authenticity rule the sim.  The rule is"how would they have done it back then?"  Which she adds is generally a good way to sort out stuff.  (If only RL were that simple.) Financially, the sim is self-supporting so Frau Jo is spared the worries that some other SL sims have these days. 

When I ask about how the reality of the Weimar Republic is handled.  Frau Jo says it’s there just as in RL 1920’s Berlin.  But, just like then, it isn’t in your face.  The demi-monde is represented in the sim.  There is a gentlemen’s club (one guess), an opium den, a gay/transvestite cabaret, and crime.  Walking through the streets, a disabled soldier from the war begs.  Women role play street walkers because they have no other alternatives.  There is a gritty reality in 1920’s Berlin which is lacking in most other SL sims.  Many of these activities are below the surface as Frau Jo puts it.  They have to be sought out.  Even the El Dorado club, a great place to visit and see the shows of Sonatta Morales who puts on a new cabaret every weekend, is located off the main tourist drags.  I plan to spend more time in the sim to explore these subjects and write about them in the future. 

Frau Jo says she doesn’t go to the El Dorado because she is old fashioned and her SL friends say she is out of touch with modern ways. She says that in RL she wouldn’t go to such a club or go to a nudist function either.  Which is my opportunity to ask how she gets her friends to come together and undress without her being there herself.  She assures me that this isn’t for her sake.  Frau Jo is just into her role of a forty year old widow who is set in her ways and just wouldn’t do certain things.  Something tells me that back in Weimar Germany there were many people like her. 

We next talk about the future.  Fra Jo says that the building program in 1920’s Berlin is almost done.  When the synagogue is finished and a few other improvements are made, the sim will be complete.

As for Frau Jo, she would like to move onto other historical sims involving Europe from 1900 to 1950.  I try to get more details but I fail.  I look forward to her future projects. 

One topic that we continue to return to in our talk is the 1920’s Berlin community. The residents are deeply committed and involved. This is not the type of sim where folks wonder around in fantastic anthropomorphic costumes.  People are in character here all the time.  The level of realism goes beyond simply the detail in buildings and streets. The residents have background stories and are developing a collective history for the sim.  This is another avenue for future writing from me.

In her closing remarks, Frau Jo adds that it is all about the people and that she’s been very lucky with the people she has attracted, very lucky with the unique community there and how much they love the sim.  And, oh, and she wouldn’t mind less lag along with lower tier fees and more prim allocations! 

I thank Frau Jo for her time and we part company for the evening.  Me, back to my home in Nowaki to write up my notes, and she to a world recreated in the bits ‘n bytes of a technology never dreamed of back in the day of Weimar Germany. 

As my readers may have gathered by now, I’m taken with this SL community.  Once again, a group of people from all over the world have come together to build something that would otherwise be nearly impossible in RL.  They enjoy this and they have passion.  There is a lot going on here and I plan to return periodically to look for another story.  I don’t expect to be disappointed. 

I encourage other SL explorers to visit 1920’s Berlin and to meet the residents.  Please remember there is a dress code and be mindful that the residents are in character.  Otherwise, have a great time! 

I’d like to thank Frau Jo Yardley for meeting with me at taking time form her busy schedule to answer my questions.    

As always, I’m grateful to all for their kindness and time in stopping to talk with a stranger who was passing through their lives. 

I welcome feedback from readers, please either comment on my blog or e-mail me at webspelunker@gmail.com . 

     If you would like to read about my other adventures in Second Life please click here.

Photo No. 1: Frau Jo Yardley

Photo No. 2: Alexanderplatz

Photo No. 3: Berlin Train Station

Photo No. 4: Der Keller

Photo No. 5: Brandenburg Gate

What Love Creates...

Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence.

Eric Fromm

I thought that title might catch your attention. Although, I can’t take credit it for it.  It’s the name of a hunt taking place in Second Life (SL) in February and is being put on by FAR Hunt Group.  I found out about the hunt and the company from Kaii Kiranov  whom I wrote my last blog about.  She told me about Ava Runner and the hunt that she is organizing and asked if I’d like to meet her.  Never needing a second invitation for an interview, I quickly said yes and went off to schedule an appointment. 

I meet Ava at FAR Concepts inworld  which is the home of FAR Hunt Group.  FAR Hunt Group is a subsidiary of FAR Concepts which focuses on hunts, networking, and marketing for vendors across the grid. 

I begin by asking Ava about herself and what brought her to SL in the first place.  She replies that she first arrived inworld in 2006 after reading a news article about SL.  When I ask why she stayed, I receive the answer that I’ve heard from many residents, because she learned basic building and was hooked!  (I wonder if Linden Lab (LL) ever wondered in the beginning that the Linden Script Language would be responsible for so many staying in SL?)

Ava has found SL to be, as she puts it, an amazing creative outlet.  During the course of six years, presenting as different avatars, she has built homes, furniture, jewelry, clothing, and even sims.  SL has been both a business and a hobby for her.  When she was not building for her business, she was building for friends or herself. 

My questions turn to where the idea for FAR Hunt Group came from?  Ava tells me that while discussing the SL economy with her partner and husband, Falk Runner, they felt there should be more ways to help businesses promote themselves and others in a way that was not overkill to the consumer.  Knowing how popular hunts are in SL, they decided to move forward with a new division and dedicate it entirely to that. 

(BTW, Ava and Falk are another one of those couples who met in SL and became a married couple in Real Life (RL).  They now have a six month old daughter (in RL).  Later this year, I’ll do a story on folks like them.) 

Within two weeks of its inception, they had filled their first hunt, “What Love Creates”.  They put in place a successful VIP vendor program as well.  Ava feels that through all the networking that they are doing with customers and other vendors they are building an impressive content base.  If approached by someone outside of her field, Ava is confident that there are other businesses that she can work with, and will, to help her customers. To date, they have been profitable enough to work on a new project for the benefit of her customers. 

I ask about the first hunt, “What Love Creates”, which is being held from February 1^st to 14^th.  Ava replies that it’s theme is what does love create for each of us individually.  As an example, she cites Athena Naminosaki, a VIP Vendor, who chose comfort and crafted a special outfit for men and women.    

Future hunts will be monthly and each will have a different theme.  Since, Ava’s first hunt begins in February, normally associated with Valentine’s Day, the “What Love Creates” was chosen as the theme.  She and Falk wanted something that would be familiar enough, and yet open enough, to be a creative challenge for the vendors.  Ava expects the emotions created by the theme in the vendors will inspire them to create original, one-of-a-kind items. 

FAR Hunt Group’s business model is to create monthly themed hunts for its clients and then to promote them.  They also promote specific businesses through their VIP Vendor program.  Participants receive blog mentions, photographs, and an interview.  They also benefit from special notices sent to FAR Hunt Group’s members as well as special sales.  Ava works with these vendors outside of hunts and she enjoys the special r elationships that she has with them.  In short, FAR Hunt Group acts as a marketing/advertising-cum-publicist (I’ll bet you didn’t realize that I just made this term up.) for its clients. 

The February Hunt will have fifty-two extremely talented vendors specializing in everything from full perm content (Mattie Rae’s Fabrics and Notions), to clothing (Shey Fashion by Cuba Avedon), to furnishings (BagLady Designs by Tattoodive Jules).   A complete list of vendors and information on how to apply to participate is available on the FAR Hunt Group blog. 

FAR Hunt Group charges a onetime fee to its clients which secures them automatic acceptance into all future hunts.  Ava says this fee is a fraction of what other hunt organizers charge for similar packages. 

I ask about potential competitors in other hunts and the SL Marketplace.  Ava doesn’t view these as competitors but simply as additional opportunities to promote their vendors.  She mentions Mariposarosa Resident, owner of Tiende de Textura, who owns a company called TDT Hunts.  Ava views her hunt programs as an additional means of promoting her won clients and encourages them to avail themselves of this potential channel. 

FAR Hunt Group is also developing a retail center where all their vendors can be found in one place. 

As for the SL Marketplace, Ava views it as just another tool to increase revenues.  But, since some customers prefer inworld shopping to avoid Marketplace fees, they can take advantage of a convenient, event filled location provided by FAR Hunt Group. 

I leave Ava at this point because a customer has arrived and I’m through with my questions.  (People must get tired of me.)  Ava had also called out the FAR Hunt Group staff who help her and Falk, Auburn Firelight, her executive assistant, and Athena Naminosaki of Tragic Beautiful Photography, their staff photographer. 

I feel good after this interview because I saw a small SL business getting started and being successful.  I met a business owner who is positive and upbeat about SL’s future. And, finally, Ava and Falk are building another one of those communities that I keep finding in SL and keep proving to me that there is stll plenty of life left inworld. 

And, please remember to visit “What Love Creates” between February 1^st and 14^th so that everyone who’s working on this program can have the satisfaction of having other residents participate.  (I can sympathize, I like to think someone is reading my blogs!)

I would like to thank Ava Runner for taking the time to meet with me and talk about herself and her work in SL.  I would also like to thank Kaii Kiranov for introducing me to Ave.  As always, I’m grateful to all for their kindness and time in stopping to talk with a stranger who was passing through their lives.

I welcome feedback from readers, please either comment on my blog or e-mail me at webspelunker@gmail.com . 

     If you would like to read about my other adventures in Second Life please click here.

Photo No. 1: Ava Runner

Photo No. 2: FAR Concepts Main Location

Photo No. 3: Falk Runner

Photo No. 4: “What Love Creates” Poster

Photo No. 5: Mattie Rae’s Fabrics and Notions

Photo No. 6: Bag Lady Designs