2009.10.20 07:00 - The enlightenment button

Wol Euler recovered this session from the autologging database. Riddle appears to have been the GoC.

 

Riddle Sideways: good morning, sorry I is late

Mary Korpov: Good morning. Busy at the moment. BRB.

Mary Korpov: I'm back

Riddle Sideways: ah, so am I

Mary Korpov: IS your avatar male or female?

Riddle Sideways: hmmm, mostly male

Mary Korpov: I see. It looks to me like a woman with a beard

Riddle Sideways: when I was young I could not grow a beard, so my long hair made me look like a girl

Riddle Sideways: Is that a boy or a girl was a common phrase back then

Mary Korpov: Then why not cut it short?

Yakuzza Lethecus: good morning mary, riddle

Riddle Sideways: Hi Yaku

Mary Korpov: hi

Mary Korpov: I think it is that your avatar appears to be wearing a skirt and has breasts. That combination with the long hair makes it look feminine.

Riddle Sideways: we all have our prefered uniform/costumes and would be hard put to change

Mary Korpov: In RL, I change fairly often, actually. Stagnation is boring.

Riddle Sideways: The shirt is a hakama from the Aikido I practice

Mary Korpov: So you try to make your avatar represent how you look and what you do in RL?

Riddle Sideways: the breasts are both my poor avatar abilitiess and

Riddle Sideways: or what I was 15 years ago

Mary Korpov: nostalgia?

Riddle Sideways: maybe

Mary Korpov: The psychology of avatar creation is interesting

sophia Placebo: greetings all

Mary Korpov: hi

--BELL--

Yakuzza Lethecus: hi sophia

Riddle Sideways: some people do avs daily, some of us got stuck with this last year

Riddle Sideways: hi sophia

Mary Korpov: What does "alt" mean in SL? I was called that recently, but I don't know what it means.

Riddle Sideways: ah, that bell pauses was very nice

Riddle Sideways: no idea what "alt" here means

Riddle Sideways: I had been thinking through the daily practices we do

Riddle Sideways: hi widget

Widget Whiteberry: gm

Mary Korpov: So what do you think?

Riddle Sideways: the aeorbic exercises I went through to get to this session only 3 minutes late

Mary Korpov: You did aerobic exercise in order to use a computer?

Riddle Sideways: the running up/down stairs the worry, the "what if I am late"

Riddle Sideways: the raised heart beat over self imposed auxious

Mary Korpov: Why would you worry about such a thing? OR be anxious about SL?

Riddle Sideways: good question, but I do

Widget Whiteberry: is it the same worry you would have about being late in rl?

Riddle Sideways: we get ourselves into states that others just say "why you do that"

Mary Korpov: This seems to me to be a place where one can be completely non-anxious. WE are completely annonymous here.

Riddle Sideways: was thinking about the self-imposed states we do

Riddle Sideways: the hurry-up and rush so we have more time to relax

Riddle Sideways: actually, it came about couple days ago while driving

Mary Korpov: Where were you going?

Riddle Sideways: I passed a car that had a mom and daugther

Riddle Sideways: both looking the opposite direction

Riddle Sideways: with looks on their faces of maybe disgust

Riddle Sideways: the way a teenager and a parent can get

Mary Korpov: I hope the one driving was looking at the road

Riddle Sideways: the very next car had a smiley happy singing with the radio person

Mary Korpov: all types. Can't infer anything from what you see of people in a car

Mary Korpov: Ever look around at a red light? There will always be someone picking his nose. What does that mean?

Riddle Sideways: yes, but my attitude toward the nose picking is what (might) matter

Widget Whiteberry: Riddle, how did this unfold for you from there?

Riddle Sideways: well, a little 15 minute bell went off in my head

Widget Whiteberry: oh!

Mary Korpov: What did it say?

Riddle Sideways: take a breath and think my my

--BELL--

Mary Korpov: Did you stop the car and get out, look around?

Riddle Sideways: there are the BIG practices that we do

Riddle Sideways: the stop the car, the sit for an hou, etc.

Bolonath Crystal: namaste @ all :)

Riddle Sideways: then there are the little 9-sec, 90 sec, a moment, a glimse

Riddle Sideways: hI Bolonath

Mary Korpov: There is something I'd like to raise

Riddle Sideways: ok

Mary Korpov: I was here about a week ago (I've been traveling) and had an odd, and annoying as I've thought about it, experience

Mary Korpov: I was accused of being a male on the grounds that my responses are rational

Mary Korpov: The more I thought about this, the more offensive it became

Riddle Sideways: can see that

Mary Korpov: Why can't women be rational? And what is wrong with being rational in any case?

Widget Whiteberry laughs

Mary Korpov: I wasn't laughing, actually

Mary Korpov: It wasn't a joke, it was said seriously, which is what bothered me

Widget Whiteberry: Mary, I think it says a lot about the person who made the comment

Widget Whiteberry: none of it flattering to them

Bolonath Crystal: another interesting question is: why did it make you feel offended?

Widget Whiteberry: and there is a fair amt of gender anxiety in SL, among some people

Mary Korpov: I don't know. I simply thought it was a very odd thing.

Mary Korpov: That's easy, it made me feel offended because I can't see what rational and woman cannot go together

Mary Korpov: It wasn't so much an offense against me, as it was against all women

Bolonath Crystal: you may have that opinion without being offended, if someone else thinks different. it doesn't matter, who is "right". it is just interesting, how we feel offended about some things and not about others

Mary Korpov: I think it does matter who is right when an entire class of people is being labeled in one way. That is what discrimination, racism, sexism, etc. is all about.

Bolonath Crystal: whenever i am in a similar situation, it always teaches me a lot about myself

Mary Korpov: Sure, but it also teaches a lot about others

Bolonath Crystal: yes, i agree

Bolonath Crystal: but for me it is more important to learn about myself ;)

Bolonath Crystal: searching my "true self"

Mary Korpov: Well, I actually think I know myself pretty well, so I tend to be more interested in learning about others.

Bolonath Crystal: i always succeed in surprising myself ;)

Riddle Sideways: we are continually surrounded by idiots and sages that are saying all kinds of words

Riddle Sideways: what we take in and take from is ...

Mary Korpov: How are idiots and sages different?

Riddle Sideways: only our attitude toward it

Riddle Sideways: I was not offended by your questioning my gender

Riddle Sideways: yet, maybe I should have been :)

Riddle Sideways: and yet, I know what you mean about hearing somebody talking racist

Riddle Sideways: can't turn and walk away

--BELL--

Mary Korpov: There is a difference, I think, Riddle. I asked because I couldn't tell from your avatar whether it was male or female, it seemed to have elements of both. I, on the other hand, was told that I am a male in RL. If my avatar was unclear, I would have no problem being asked.

Mary Korpov: My avatar is not real, just an image over which I have complete control.

Mary Korpov: brb

Riddle Sideways: there are so many amoungst us that in SL are trying alternative selves

Riddle Sideways: in RL we took a long time coming to who we are

Riddle Sideways: in SL we do a quick change to something

Riddle Sideways: maybe only partly thought through

Bolonath Crystal: would be nice to have an enlightenment button in RL ;)

Riddle Sideways: sure would

Riddle Sideways: oops, that was close... my kitty stepped on the un-enlighten keys on my keyboard and almost re-booted me

Bolonath Crystal: lol

Riddle Sideways: maybe we do have enlightenment buttons

Riddle Sideways: think of those buttons that ppl push on you daily

Riddle Sideways: mostly we think of the BAD buttons

Mary Korpov: I think we do., but the key is to not let others push your buttons

Riddle Sideways: but, we have GOOD buttons too

Bolonath Crystal: yes :)

Mary Korpov: Buttons are neither good nor bad

Riddle Sideways: the key is to let others push those buttons too

Mary Korpov: I often think that the key is to withdraw from others--then they cannot push the buttons

Riddle Sideways: I often think that the key is to be so in harmony with others that we have the same buttons

Riddle Sideways: then again, sometimes I don't often think

Mary Korpov: I don't think I can be that in harmony with others. Withdrawing is much better

Riddle Sideways: these are teh different practices that fill our days

Bolonath Crystal: i think we need both to enhance our spritual development. times of withdrawal and those, when we are very open to everything/everyone

Mary Korpov: Maybe, but I feel most comfortable when I don't have to deal with other people. I've never been lonely.

Bolonath Crystal: i can't see much use in developing compassion somewhere alone in a himalayan cave

Mary Korpov: Why develop compassion?

Bolonath Crystal: because compassion is one of the keys to understanding our true nature

Mary Korpov: I disagree. I do not believe we have a true nature

Bolonath Crystal: well, that would implicate that we are not existing at all...

Mary Korpov: Not really, although that is a possibility. I think we are simply products of our environment. There is no true "me".

Bolonath Crystal: if this is the case i'd consider being a product of our environment as our true nature

Mary Korpov: Well, then I've got the answer, so I'm all set...

Bolonath Crystal: :)

Riddle Sideways: :)

Yakuzza Lethecus: take care everyone

Bolonath Crystal: om shanti, yak

Riddle Sideways: it is so fun to play trying on different positions for a while

Riddle Sideways: bye yaku

--BELL--

Mary Korpov: Sorry, work, called for a moment

Widget Whiteberry: I need to go

Widget Whiteberry: see you tomorrow

Mary Korpov: bye

Bolonath Crystal: bye widget

Riddle Sideways: please continue, ya'll but I need to go to RL stuff

Bolonath Crystal: i have to leave, too

Mary Korpov: me too

Riddle Sideways: this dialog was far too interesting

Bolonath Crystal: have a nice day :)

Riddle Sideways: thank you

Bolonath Crystal: ty 2 :)