I spend a lot of time writing about the weird, the wacky, and the wonderful things in Second Life. I’ve found a lot of incredible places, but the blog is a harsh mistress and I rarely end up back at them. I’m too busy looking for new places.
But when I’m not exploring, I hang out at the Shelter. Oh, Jessa and I have a home in SL, but that’s our private place and I ain’t tellin’. But the Shelter is my Cheers, that place where everybody knows my name.
I discovered it accidentally about a year ago when I dropped in on the building game Building Shelter. Literally, I just dropped in on a bunch of green dots in the hopes that something interesting was happening. And it was. What I found was a place where people didn’t just dance in costume contests (though we have that, too). It’s an actual community with regularly scheduled things to do together.
The pictures I’ve posted here aren’t really representative of what goes on at the Shelter. These are shots I’ve taken with a semi-regular group I see when I’m having my morning coffee. The Shelter grounds actually span parts of two three regions and include a ballroom, a pool, a game show area, a game room, and something else I’ve probably forgotten.
Actual events take only a small percentage of the time during the week, but there always seems to be a nice group there. The real attraction of the Shelter is the people and the emphasis on a PG atmosphere and no drama. You might think it’s stifling, but really, it’s just a place where normal people can be normal. Well, normal for SL.
The Shelter was built as a safe haven for new residents who are looking for a place that isn’t so sexually charged as others. I was hardly a newbie when I found it, but I still thought it was the perfect place to hang my hat. And while people have a lot more choices in non-sexually charged things to do these days, the Shelter keeps on rolling along on the strength of a dedicated group of Coordinators and Volunteers. After a while I felt like I needed to make myself useful and became a volunteer myself. These days I run the weekly Formal dance (Sundays, 7PM SLT).
I’ve wrote a lot in my pre-SL days about digital communities. On the Internet can make beautiful web sites, but blogs are where people meet. In Second Life, people can make beautiful builds, but it’s people and communities that keep people coming back. I’ve made great friends at the Shelter: Interesting people who like me for who I am and whom I’ve grown to care about. I’ve found my community. Where’s yours?
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Isabel/50/244/82
Awwww *sniff* you like us! But Mr. Volunteer? If I might be so bold…..The Shelter spans 3 sims……. The New Resident Vendor area is in it’s own sim
And congrats on a 100 posts! WoW! Who knew would could do more then just wear chaps? 
That’s why you’re a lead volunteer and I’m just a normal volunteer, because you know these things.
It was all part of the test I had to take…. you should have studied harder
there was a test?
lol, while it was a lovely post about a lovely place…my first reaction was, “Garth, the Shelter is in 3 sims!” I guess Garth isn’t perfect after all.