Judging a Book by It’s Cover
I have always believed that an avatar is a blank canvas in which we make uniquely and authentically ours. An avatar is how we want to be perceived by those around us. However, there are always situations in which people jump to conclusions and start their own drama based around avatar appearance. I find avatar creation a type of visual expression of the player that embodies their virtual selves. A lot of individuals feel threatened by people who are comfortable being their true selves. Because they are happy, they feel the need to interfere. "Why should so and so be happy if I can't be?" makes you wonder about the actual instability of individuals who inhabit some of these virtual environments. I have always perceived Second Life as somewhat of a virtual world trash bin. It is a fantastic virtual world if you meet the right people and hang out in the right places. I'll be honest; I'm not going to sugar coat it. I still enter Second Life, recently it's been sparse since I'm a teacher in a global pandemic. Yet, the time I do spend in this virtual world has lately been drama-free. Not to say that it was not before, but I tend to randomly find myself in the middle of the newest gossip right when I come back, whether it be from a hiatus, etc.
Second Life has a type of standard for avatars. If you don't look a specific way or in most people's eyes, you're not an "updated" avatar with the newest products and meshes, you are considered a noob or problematic to those around you. This is a reason I am not on Second Life as much as I was back around January. Negativity is so draining, why is it anyone's concern as to how you want yourself to look? I love virtual worlds for the pure fact that individuals can recreate themselves. Avatars are a modern extension of our own personality traits. Insulting the appearance of an avatar is the same as insulting the person. As cliché as this may sound, Why judge a book by its cover if you haven't attempted to read at least the first page? People are too quick to judge, and that's what's wrong with today's society of millennial's and gen z's. I'm the awkward middle man between the two generations. Honestly, it's safe to say that I sometimes wish I wasn't born in the era I currently live. Does anyone get the feeling like they want to live, but they just do not want to be "here" like on earth? I feel this way a lot of the time. I recently read the most heartbreaking post to me as someone who believes and cares so much about self-expression and avatar image/positivity. Apparently, in Second Life, there is a Roleplay sim by the name of Chi Tau City. A blogger here on Tumblr that helps me get through my writer's block by adding me into posts to discuss particular situations.
@thefallenbeast-imvu-stuff ran into an issue with the owner of this sim regarding his virtual appearance. What does it matter? What does it matter if an individual isn't wearing mesh? What if a person does not want to be fully updated? I know many Second Life users who do not want to update to the newest meshes. They are extremely expensive and let us be honest, I could spend that money on so many other things. But let's be honest here he was completely updated and was 100% confident and authentic because it's how he wanted to be perceived by other users. Why should it matter how an avatar looks? If your so bothered, block the avatar, but do not bring your drama into other people's lives who are minding their own business and living their best lives.
This user hasn't been on the sim in a very long time. I feel if you're a sim owner, yes, you are allowed to decide who can and cannot be on your sims. Sims are expensive, and if they own it, they should have a say. However, there is a sense of professionalism that comes with running a sim, especially a Roleplay sim. Many people will enter a day you created this sim because you wanted to share your idea and experience with a large community of individuals. With this community of individuals comes avatars of all styles, new and old, mesh and non-mesh. If you have an issue with avatar appearance, then you most likely have a problem with both yourself and many people in your reality. Most likely, this individual suffers from low self-confidence and finds it within the sim she had created. This is because when you have a sense of power, and you use it for a negative cause, you start to notice the effects in real-time. I will be honest with all of you. It is individuals like this sim owner who I feel incredibly sorry for. If you find more solace in judging an avatar's appearance rather than their actions, that is just extremely shallow.
Note to this individual who feels they should judge another based on the appearance of their avatar: Please, next time you decide to make standards of how avatars should look, please update yours in the process and stop being petty because you feel threatened from your reality not going as you planned. Taking your emotions out inside of a virtual world is not going to serve a purpose. It is only going to come back to bite you in the end.
In conclusion, if you have the need to judge someone based on their looks rather than their personality, you are what is wrong in these virtual worlds and their communities. I do not sugar coat things, and I do not cover up the obvious if you don't like what I have to say and the opinions I project, please kindly leave or don't read my posts. Thank you! And I hope to see a lot of you in my upcoming posts. I do apologize for not posting as often as I usually do as real Life has gotten in the way. Still, I hope this post brings some positivity into your virtual lives. Always feel confident in the way you project yourself through your avatar as long as you are confident and like the way you look, why does it matter to anyone else? I would not support any sims that judge based on appearance instead of action, but that's just me.
Until next post!