It Came From Bellisseria Chat: UFO Sighting

 

By Bixyl Shuftan

Chats in the Bellisseria group are often interesting. You might hear a joke from a Linden or Mole. You might hear some useful information, especially if you're after a Linden home. Often, there's a lot of joking around. Like on the afternoon of Thursday August 25 when one resident reported a spacecraft sighting, with photo evidence. 

 

[17:55] Teresa Firelight: I was standing on the deck of my stilt home when this thing suddenly appeared 10 M above me... not sure... think this is a bit too invasive into my space?  (image above)

[17:55] Marius Darkheart: aliens are here
[17:55] POMF (Denise Foxtrot): shoot it down
[17:55] AlexBrandon Resident: if its above your parcel ...yes
[17:56] AlexBrandon Resident: unless someone is building and had to move something

 

It had been hanging around for a few minutes

[17:56] Teresa Firelight: yea.. still there several minutes later.. here is view form another angle:? 
[17:56] Trish Philbin: YIKES !
[17:56] Marius Darkheart: Definitely aliens
[17:56] Teresa Firelight: there is a rez zone  next to my place.. pretty sure it is there cuz of rez zone, but would be nice if they moved on
[17:57] AlexBrandon Resident: definatly against the rules if it stays there
[17:57] Snowlord Resident: for sure it's pretty big. maybe they are trying to fly
[17:57] Trish Philbin: can you click on it and see if it has an owner name on it?
[17:57] Teresa Firelight: now it has lowered to my deck level and is smashing through my house.. maybe they are having trouble steering it?
[17:57] Marius Darkheart: Set phasers to stun.

Talk soon turned to just what this thing was.

[17:57] Snowlord Resident: it looks like a void ship, and if so, it's massive and meant more for a region. is someone there?
[17:57] AlexBrandon Resident: that's circa 2004 ...
[17:58] POMF (Denise Foxtrot): yes sometimes vehicles are bigger than the rezzone, but that thing is huge ... He ll most likely loose it on some full parcel on his trip
[17:58] AlexBrandon Resident: Just yell about how bad the build is
[17:58] Snowlord Resident: oh yes, could have lost part for sure
[17:58]   ͞C:ﾉﾌCtrlFaultyDelete ͞   (TonyBowlin Resident): Sadly switches phaser back from kill...
[17:58] Marius Darkheart: 2004 called and they want their UFO back
[17:58] Snowlord Resident: it's an amazing build if it's what I think it is. But yes its a bit much there
[17:58] AlexBrandon Resident: Just make sure its not Torley Linden driving it
[17:59] AlexBrandon Resident: Opppsss did I say that ?
[17:59] Marius Darkheart: lol
[17:59] Trish Philbin: lol
[17:59] Mel (MelpomeneThalia Atheria): It looks like a giant bot fly to me
[17:59] Snowlord Resident: i'd say IM the owner and see if they lost part of it

And then, just as soon as it appeared, it vanished.

 

[17:59] Teresa Firelight: wow that was a close encounter of the undesirable dimensio,. finally gone ... but pilot fying back to rez zone
[18:00] AlexBrandon Resident: lol
[18:00]   ͞C:ﾉﾌCtrlFaultyDelete ͞   (TonyBowlin Resident): Its just a d*ldo from one of those kinky vore sims.
[18:00] Snowlord Resident: is it by void Teresa? just curious
[18:00] AlexBrandon Resident: lol
[18:01] Atheas Zenovka: I think it's the Vogons mapping out the new expressway
[18:01] Teresa Firelight: Yes snow it is
[18:01]   ͞C:ﾉﾌCtrlFaultyDelete ͞   (TonyBowlin Resident): Run
[18:02] Teresa Firelight: There is a rez zone on the side of my house then a void
[18:02] POMF (Denise Foxtrot): towels...I sell towels...you need a towel
[18:02] Teresa Firelight: lol
[18:03] Snowlord Resident: ah okay. yes that ship is massive!!
[18:03] Teresa Firelight: looks like they finally decided to try and rez it somewhere else
[18:03] Snowlord Resident: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvQa7tH16YI
[18:04] Snowlord Resident: it's literally meant for a full region lol
[18:04] Teresa Firelight: yea it looked some thing like that
[18:04] POMF (Denise Foxtrot): more of a art thing also
[18:05] Teresa Firelight: I think they were intending to fly it over the ocean regions
[18:05] Snowlord Resident: it's too big to be a daily traveler for sure. but i love voids creations. they are amazing!!
[18:05] POMF (Denise Foxtrot): looks smaller than Spykers ships tough
[18:05] Snowlord Resident: just unboxing one of their items is an experience in itself
[18:07] POMF (Denise Foxtrot): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0E3fwQFo-UM
[18:07] Snowlord Resident: omg I tried to cam out on the youtube
[18:08] Snowlord Resident: that looks pretty nifty so far!!
[18:09] Marius Darkheart: Yeah.. wow.
[18:09] POMF (Denise Foxtrot): that one I linked is pre mesh and simsized ...but can flay and cross sims lol

Chat soon changed to other subjects. But no doubt this close encounter will be remembered for a while.

And if anyone asks, no, there was no sighting of Elvis (or Ray Stevens) in the area.

Image from Teresa Firelight

Bixyl Shuftan

A Glance at the Second Life Coast Guard

While looking around at the SL7B, I came across an exhibit near the auditorium with a Coast Guard helicopter and a few vessels. Upon closer inspection, they read Second Life Coast Guard. One of the sailors was nearby, a neko with a parrot on her shoulder, Chakku451 Rieko. I had a talk with Chakku about what the SL Coast Guard does in the Metaverse.


Bixyl Shuftan: So how big is the Coast Guard in Second Life?

Chakku451 Rieko: Well, there are several Coast Guard groups in SL, like there are several police groups. The SLCG is not an official arm of Linden Labs, nor do we act as law enforcement.

Bixyl Shuftan: Where was your particular Coast Guard group?

Chakku451 Rieko: We're quite active throughout the SL waterways. My particular station is in Kirkstone.

Bixyl Shuftan: Was there just one ship there, or a few?

Chakku451 Rieko: We have one cutter belonging to the station commander. The boat commanders get a Defender class patrol boat and an Atlantic class RiB boat for patrols. Our air wing uses Dolphin class helicopters.

Bixyl Shuftan: What kinds of missions do the ships go on?

Chakku451 Rieko: We provide courtesy patrols and escorts for sailing events and do patrols to check for prim litter and navigation hazards throughout SL.

Bixyl Shuftan: Prim litter? Is it mostly just a nusciance?

Chakku451 Rieko: I usually find boats washed up on the shore after the owner has crashed during a sim crossing. Seems like most of my boating excursions end with me standing on the seabed with an upset parrot on my shoulder.

Bixyl Shuftan: Heh, the idea of a pet bird is nice.

Chakku451 Rieko: Thank you. Sansara can be a handful at times. ... I acquired him from a pirate.

Bixyl Shuftan: Oh? How did that come about?

Chakku451 Rieko: My RL brother was an independent pirate, meaning he didn't belong to a group. He gave me Sansara when he left SL. ... Let's just say he has a sailor's vocabulary.

Sansara : Hey! I'm the bravest parrot on the Grid.

Bixyl Shuftan: (chuckles) I take it there are also some RP (roleplaying) missions?

Chakku451 Rieko: We don't RP so much as offer assistance. We do the occasional demonstration, but for the most part we try to help out any boaters having issues.

Bixyl Shuftan: Have there been any incidents that stand out from others?

Chakku451 Rieko: Well...my very first patrol was for a series of boat races called the J-Classic, named after the boat that was used. During my patrol, I was approached by a pair of nude women in a sailboat who were looking for pirates. I didn't ask them, but I got the impression they wanted to be taken prisoner

Bixyl Shuftan: Women who wanted to be taken by pirates?

Chakku451 Rieko: They were really nice about avoiding the race route. Yes, I believe that's what they were looking for.

Bixyl Shuftan: Did you do anything about them?

Chakku451 Rieko: There wasn't really anything I could do. It was a mature sim and they weren't really causing any trouble. I gave them a copy of the race route and asked them to try to avoid getting in the middle of a race, which they readily agreed to do. ... Oh, my rank is Command Master Chief.

Bixyl Shuftan: The highest enlisted rank?

Chakku451 Rieko: Yes, I'm the Executive Officer of Muirhead Station. So I'm CMC (there).

Bixyl Shuftan: How long does it usually take someone in the SL Coast Guard to rise in the ranks?

Chakku451 Rieko: It depends. I was offered an officer rating when I requested to be assigned to Muirhead Station, but expressed a preference to remain in the enlisted ranks.

Chakku gave me an LM of Muirhead, as well as a notecard with a little information, and we bid each other farewell, and went our separate ways. I later went to the station, and found it to be well detailed, both the equipment and vessels.

The SL Coast Guard also has a website at: http://www.slcoastguard.org/ Both the website and the notecards Chakuu provided stated the organization made a strong emphasis of boat safety.

Bixyl Shuftan