2014.06.14 19:00 - Welcome to a visitor

The Guardian for this meeting was stevenaia Michinaga. The comments are by stevenaia Michinaga.

I was joined by Aphrodite Macbain and BreccanX Resident, someone I met yesterday on the Sim.  I invited him to my Saturday session and offered an introduction.

stevenaia Michinaga: hello
stevenaia Michinaga: ltns
Aphrodite Macbain: hiya
Aphrodite Macbain: long time no see
Aphrodite Macbain: How are you?
BreccanX Resident: 's current display-name is "BreccanX".
BreccanX Resident: hi my friends
stevenaia Michinaga: I am good, Hi BreccanX
stevenaia Michinaga: gtsy and welcome
BreccanX Resident: this is not an easy place to find!
Aphrodite Macbain: Hi BreccanX
BreccanX Resident: is this where you hang out?
stevenaia Michinaga: have a seat, we record these sessions and post them on the groups Wiki, is it ok to include your comments?
stevenaia Michinaga: yes
BreccanX Resident: yeah sure
stevenaia Michinaga: thanks, did you get a chance to visit the Wiki link I gave you yesterday?
BreccanX Resident: I did
BreccanX Resident: interesting
Aphrodite Macbain: where you normally hang out?
BreccanX Resident: grid wide :)
stevenaia Michinaga: great, every 15 minutes at the bell we take a 90 second break where talking stops and we take a quiet breat
BreccanX Resident: you?
Aphrodite Macbain: thanks Stevenaia
Aphrodite Macbain: hwew NS IN sORRENTINA
Aphrodite Macbain: Here and in Sorrentina
BreccanX Resident: Sorrentina?
stevenaia Michinaga: love Cap lock in reverse
Aphrodite Macbain: a small Italian town
BreccanX Resident: cool
BreccanX Resident: drink virtual wine?
Aphrodite Macbain: looks like another language (grins)
Aphrodite Macbain: of course
Aphrodite Macbain: I run a cafe actually
BreccanX Resident: :)
Aphrodite Macbain: in the 18th century
Aphrodite Macbain: hence my clothes
BreccanX Resident: now there's a touch of reality!
stevenaia Michinaga: Aphrodite have been with the group for quite a while too, do you have any thoughts or questions after reading the Wiki
BreccanX Resident: Listener was telling me about your reality search here
BreccanX Resident: yeah so how does this work?
Aphrodite Macbain: what it is to "be"
stevenaia Michinaga: not really searching for realtiy, but trying to understand its nature
BreccanX Resident: and what have you found?
stevenaia Michinaga: leads us to discus many things
Aphrodite Macbain: there are some cards at the dispenser there that might help explain
stevenaia Michinaga: I gave him them earlier
Aphrodite Macbain: the one opposite you
BreccanX Resident: yeah thanks
Aphrodite Macbain: kk
BreccanX Resident: so do lots of folks come here?
Aphrodite Macbain: Play as Being - like being in a laboratory
stevenaia Michinaga: there is no destination or answer, just a journey
BreccanX Resident: i've heard that before :)
Aphrodite Macbain: they come at different times
Aphrodite Macbain: there are 4 opportunities a day
BreccanX Resident: quite structured here
Aphrodite Macbain: only the times
stevenaia Michinaga: we try to offer times that work for both the Eastern and western time zones around the world
BreccanX Resident: I hope i'm not interrupting
BreccanX Resident: i'll just listen and see if I can catch on
stevenaia Michinaga: not at all, we encourage ne visiters
Aphrodite Macbain: not at all
stevenaia Michinaga: *new
Aphrodite Macbain: we also encourage questions!
Aphrodite Macbain: you are new to SL?
BreccanX Resident: nope
Aphrodite Macbain: k
--BELL--
BreccanX Resident: reinventing myself a bit
Aphrodite Macbain: [19:30] Play as Being 15 minute bell: Please observe 90 seconds of silence
BreccanX Resident: thanks thought I was crashing
Aphrodite Macbain: lol
Aphrodite Macbain: who were you before?
BreccanX Resident: well that's the part i'm trying to get rid of
BreccanX Resident: what starting over is all about
stevenaia Michinaga: smiles, there are some very good scripters in the group who added the bell, text and red circle to clue us in to the 90 second pauses
BreccanX Resident: but thanks for asking
Aphrodite Macbain: from where?
BreccanX Resident: all over
BreccanX Resident: you?
BreccanX Resident: you guys scripters?
Aphrodite Macbain: I havent changed much - just the occasional century
stevenaia Michinaga: sometimes it only takes a second to have a second look at what's going on around you and watch that without judgement, that;s what the pauses are about
Aphrodite Macbain: nods
BreccanX Resident: sounds tricky
Aphrodite Macbain: an opportunity to stop
Aphrodite Macbain: we rarely get it
BreccanX Resident: did it take you long to figure this out?
stevenaia Michinaga: sometimes we choose topics to spend the 90 seconds with, yes, to stop and drop... and watch
Aphrodite Macbain: I'm still working it out. You Stevenaia?
stevenaia Michinaga: I enjoy it when I do it :)
Aphrodite Macbain: sometimes I get impatient
stevenaia Michinaga: the originator of the group developed this as a tool for us to experiment
stevenaia Michinaga: yes, waiting can sometimes be difiicult, I find over time it gets easier
BreccanX Resident: i see so you all experiment with your thoughts?
stevenaia Michinaga: BreccanX, perhaps you can use it to help you move on
Aphrodite Macbain: the trick is not to "wait" but just to sit and enjoy
BreccanX Resident: in what way?
stevenaia Michinaga: the observations we have is the experiment
Aphrodite Macbain: we observe ourselves
stevenaia Michinaga: we observe thoughts
Aphrodite Macbain: what happens
BreccanX Resident: sounds very self centered
Aphrodite Macbain: smiles
BreccanX Resident: have you learned much about yourselves?
Aphrodite Macbain: yes it is but it can affext the way we are with others and how we think about the world
stevenaia Michinaga: sometimes just watching your mind dart from thought to thought, then you watch the spaces between those thoughts
stevenaia Michinaga: like a dream
Aphrodite Macbain: It's a bit like meditating - but with an objective to observe
BreccanX Resident: don't think i've ever watched those spaces if i even have any :)
Aphrodite Macbain: grins
stevenaia Michinaga: you never really see them until you look
Aphrodite Macbain: there are more spaces than solids in our universe
BreccanX Resident: takes practice?
Aphrodite Macbain: yes
stevenaia Michinaga: yes
Aphrodite Macbain: and willingness to try
stevenaia Michinaga: and patience
Aphrodite Macbain: nods, yes- lots of patience
stevenaia Michinaga: originally we tried it with 9 seconds every 15 minutes
BreccanX Resident: 9 seconds?
Aphrodite Macbain: a way of breaking into the flow of thought
BreccanX Resident: geez can't do much with 9 seconds
stevenaia Michinaga: you can even do that in Rl very easilly, jsut stop, let go (drop) and watch
stevenaia Michinaga: you would be amazed
BreccanX Resident: so you guys must be experts by now
Aphrodite Macbain: you get out of your racing thoughts
stevenaia Michinaga: with practice, I usually do it with a breath, like a sigh, jsut to break up the flow
Aphrodite Macbain: try focussing on your hands
BreccanX Resident: my sl hands or my rl hands?
Aphrodite Macbain: the hardest thing is to stop thinking
stevenaia Michinaga: let's put it this way, what could it hurt :)
BreccanX Resident: i can't stop thinking
stevenaia Michinaga: spend a few moments with yourself
Aphrodite Macbain: to stop the monkey mind that chatters away
BreccanX Resident: if i stopped thinking how would i know i was alive?
Aphrodite Macbain: You feel
Aphrodite Macbain: not think
stevenaia Michinaga: becuse you will see your thoughts clearer
stevenaia Michinaga: let's try to watch out thoughts at the bell and talk about that after the 90 seconds
Aphrodite Macbain: you feel your body
Aphrodite Macbain: you feel your emotions
BreccanX Resident: but its virtual
stevenaia Michinaga: just breath and listen
Aphrodite Macbain: but you aren't
BreccanX Resident: so you guys come to sl to feel rl?
stevenaia Michinaga: (let you typist do the watching)
--BELL--
Aphrodite Macbain: 's current display-name is "Aph".
stevenaia Michinaga: I am amazed how quiet things get for those 90 seocnds
Aphrodite Macbain: Even the owl stops hooting
BreccanX Resident: i could really hear all my thoughts one right after the other
BreccanX Resident: no down time
Aphrodite Macbain: It's hard to stop thinking
BreccanX Resident: is it possible?
Aphrodite Macbain: people who meditate regularly still have problems
stevenaia Michinaga: some things you can't stop, but you can stop judgement of those thoughts and just watch and see what appears
Aphrodite Macbain: yes
Aphrodite Macbain: dont follow the thoughts, acknowledge them and drop them
BreccanX Resident: so do you do this every sat night?
Aphrodite Macbain: stevenaia does
stevenaia Michinaga: as often as you want
Aphrodite Macbain: but we each have differfent times to welcome people
stevenaia Michinaga: the bells rings all the time, but we do ahve a schedule posted on the Wiki
Aphrodite Macbain: I am hewre every thursday at 1pm
BreccanX Resident: you too Ms Aph?
stevenaia Michinaga: I am here wednesdays nights too
Aphrodite Macbain: yup see above...
Aphrodite Macbain: It's a busy place
BreccanX Resident: ok i might drop by and check it out again
Aphrodite Macbain: great.
stevenaia Michinaga: in answer to your question: ] BreccanX: so you guys come to sl to feel rl?
Aphrodite Macbain: (a good question)
stevenaia Michinaga: we actually just meet here as a convenient place, I am eastern US, Aph is western Canada, hard to meet any other way
BreccanX Resident: yeah
Aphrodite Macbain: some meet at 1AM
BreccanX Resident: sl is nice for that
stevenaia Michinaga: that are also Europeans who meet at some ungodly hour for us
Aphrodite Macbain: smiles
stevenaia Michinaga: yes, would be very difficult any other way
Aphrodite Macbain: Feel free to wander around this plae- there's lots to see. You can even take the train!
BreccanX Resident: well this has been interesting
Aphrodite Macbain: this place
Aphrodite Macbain: we have a geodesic dome with an exhibition and a museum of sacred art
BreccanX Resident: if you don't mind i'll excuse myself and have a look
Aphrodite Macbain: ok
Aphrodite Macbain: good to meet you Brecannx
BreccanX Resident: thanks for being good hosts
stevenaia Michinaga: Thanks for joining us, hope to see you again
Aphrodite Macbain: anytime. I have to go and eat rl dinner now
BreccanX Resident: bye my friends
Aphrodite Macbain: byee
stevenaia Michinaga: bye
stevenaia Michinaga: bye Aph
stevenaia Michinaga: enjoy dinner