2013.03.24 13:00 – PaB stories

The Guardian for this meeting was Aphrodite Macbain. The comments are by Aphrodite Macbain.

Aphrodite Macbain: Hi Cat
Catrinamonblue Resident: hi
Aphrodite Macbain: How are you today?
Catrinamonblue Resident: tired :) but ok
Aphrodite Macbain: oh? not sleeping?
Aphrodite Macbain: too many tax returns?
Aphrodite Macbain: Hi druth
Catrinamonblue Resident: not really I guess, had a nap yesterday
druth Vlodovic: hi guys
Catrinamonblue Resident: not enough tax returns yet :)
Aphrodite Macbain: and if you have a nap u don’t sleep at night?
Catrinamonblue Resident: no I go through bouts of insomnia and am dealing with that
Aphrodite Macbain: bummer
Catrinamonblue Resident: and the anxiety has been high and takes energy from me
Aphrodite Macbain: taking a Gravol helps
druth Vlodovic: ok everyone in Canada, we need more tax returns, IM cat and send money!
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
Aphrodite Macbain: lol
Aphrodite Macbain: do you advertise yourself?
Catrinamonblue Resident: no, word of mouth mainly, I know I should but....
Aphrodite Macbain: have a web page?
Catrinamonblue Resident: nope :)
Aphrodite Macbain: It would help a lot right now
Aphrodite Macbain: make a poster
Catrinamonblue Resident: I know, last year I worked for a girl doing tax returns but she didn't need me this year so...
Aphrodite Macbain: put it in Safeway bulletin board. "I can do your tax returns"
Aphrodite Macbain: you will have to be self sustaining
druth Vlodovic: "bring me your money and I'll tell you where it went"
Aphrodite Macbain: :-)
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
druth Vlodovic: hi saza
Aphrodite Macbain: Hiya sun
szavanna Resident: hi again °͜°
Wol Euler smiles.
Aphrodite Macbain: do they pay taxes in SA?
Aphrodite Macbain: Hi Wol
Aphrodite Macbain: Storm
Wol Euler: hello again :)

szavanna Resident: taxes
druth Vlodovic: people!
szavanna Resident: yes we have taxes
szavanna Resident: :)
druth Vlodovic: death and taxes
Aphrodite Macbain: grins
Wol Euler: that was actually two questions, as Greece proves
Wol Euler: 1) do taxes exist? and 2) do people actually pay?

Aphrodite Macbain: lol
druth Vlodovic: although without birth I guess you could have avoided both
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
Catrinamonblue Resident: yes Wol two very separate issues :)
Aphrodite Macbain: Easy when u live in Germany and Canada
druth Vlodovic: maybe we should eliminate taxes and just put donation boxes next to government offices
Catrinamonblue Resident: lol
druth Vlodovic: it works for the church :)
Aphrodite Macbain: so
Catrinamonblue Resident: mmmmm
szavanna Resident: I don’t think that will work
szavanna Resident: ;p

Aphrodite Macbain: I was hoping we could tell stories about PaB today
Aphrodite Macbain: maybe our first time we were here
Aphrodite Macbain: or who we met first
Aphrodite Macbain: or our first impressions
Catrinamonblue Resident: the warm loving supportive meditative group that helps people understand dropping
Wol Euler listens.
szavanna Resident: :)
Aphrodite Macbain: what were your first impressions of PaB Cat?
Catrinamonblue Resident: just as I said, warm loving accepting, gentle kind
Catrinamonblue Resident: open
Aphrodite Macbain: :-)
Aphrodite Macbain: maybe it was because you were also very open
Catrinamonblue Resident: still am living by the mantra of patience and compassion
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
Catrinamonblue Resident: maybe
Wol Euler smiles.

Aphrodite Macbain: Sun- you have come to PaB twice
szavanna Resident: :)
Aphrodite Macbain: what brought you back the second time?
szavanna Resident: just found my first time on the wiki
szavanna Resident: ah good question
szavanna Resident: for me SL is a way to learn about communities
szavanna Resident: how they function
szavanna Resident: how I can learn to make them work well
szavanna Resident: and once I become member of one I emerge in it
szavanna Resident: and start to focus less on the other places
szavanna Resident: but after a while I started to miss PaB
szavanna Resident: actually I had some difficult times and was "hiding" for a while
Aphrodite Macbain: hiding?

szavanna Resident: °͜°
szavanna Resident: yes what happens is I really get involved in projects
szavanna Resident: and then it gets too much and need a break
szavanna Resident: °͜°
Aphrodite Macbain: nods

szavanna Resident: listen to this :

Storm Nordwind: Burnout always needs a rest for a while. It's normal :)
Wol Euler: hello sunshine, Bruce

Sunshine Vayandar: hi Wol

Bruce Mowbray: Hey, Wol. Good to see you again.

Bruce Mowbray: This is Sun - and her first time here.

Wol Euler: hello sun, welcome.

Sunshine Vayandar: ty °͜° nice to meet both of you ;)

Bruce Mowbray: We're a playful, friendly, respectful bunch, Sun - so please relax and feel free to contribute in whatever ways suit you.

Sunshine Vayandar: thanks Bruce ;) looking forward : just not sure what to look forward to ;p

Bruce Mowbray: I do need to tell you that every fifteen minutes a bell will ring - indicating that we will be in silence for 90 seconds.

Bruce Mowbray: (That was the bell - just then).

Sunshine Vayandar: hmm really

Sunshine Vayandar: what is the reason?

Bruce Mowbray: We call that a "drop" or a "pause" -- and what we do is "Drop what we have to discover what we are."
szavanna Resident: my first PaB moments °͜°

szavanna Resident: https://wiki.playasbeing.org/Chat_Logs/2011/01/2011.01.18_13%3a00_-__South_African_Sunshine
szavanna Resident: mm great feeling to go back to that day
szavanna Resident: and read it :)

Aphrodite Macbain: nice Sun

Aphrodite Macbain: whispers"hello FireStar
szavanna Resident: hi Firestar °͜°
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
FireStar4 Resident: Hi Aph
Aphrodite Macbain: Wol, Storm, druth? can you tell us what it was like when you first arrived?
FireStar4 Resident: Hi Szavanna
druth Vlodovic: hi fire
FireStar4 Resident: Hi Druth!

szavanna Resident: hmm I found it very interesting ... so I decided it's a must to test this place
Wol Euler wonders whether anyone is giving Fire an introduction
szavanna Resident: I saw how well organized it was - with the wiki and all the regular sessions

Aphrodite Macbain: I am doing that in IM Wol
Wol Euler: thank you for telling us, aph :)

Aphrodite Macbain: I have been explaining all this to Firestar and hope she can share her first impressions

szavanna Resident: yes its her first day °͜°

szavanna Resident: I looked at it as a community ... and found it very exciting even on the first day
szavanna Resident: and wanted to see how it all works
Aphrodite Macbain: we are very glad that you did!
Wol Euler nods.
szavanna Resident: Firestar its soon our 5th birthday - so we are talking about PaB memories :)
szavanna Resident:
szavanna Resident: me too Aph ♥

druth Vlodovic: I  came here looking for philosophy discussion groups
Aphrodite Macbain: listens to druth
druth Vlodovic: it took a bit to get accustomed to it
szavanna Resident: PaB is really different from other sl groups
druth Vlodovic: the pacing etc was new, and balanced some bad habits I had developed elsewhere
druth Vlodovic: I found the place had interesting virtues and a few oddities
Aphrodite Macbain: bad habits? You?
FireStar4 Resident: giggles
Storm Nordwind: I see none
druth Vlodovic: like the connection to RL which seems to pervade the attitudes here more than other sims i go to
Wol Euler: boom boom
druth Vlodovic: hmm, "differentially positive modes of acting"

FireStar4 Resident: first I should say am Sunshine/Spring alt
Wol Euler: ha!
Aphrodite Macbain: :-)
szavanna Resident: hey;)
Wol Euler: (do you want that in the log?)
szavanna Resident: ok :)
FireStar4 Resident: I never hide who I am
szavanna Resident: nice to see you :)
Aphrodite Macbain: she has been warned...
druth Vlodovic: sun/spring/fire/india lol
FireStar4 Resident: yes it can be in the log
FireStar4 Resident: lol
Aphrodite Macbain: thanks
FireStar4 Resident: there are 9 of me -don't try to keep up
FireStar4 Resident: giggling
szavanna Resident: hehe :)
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
druth Vlodovic: you can hide best by calling yourself "winter" even if people hear they'd never believe :)

Aphrodite Macbain: druth- has PaB changed you?

druth Vlodovic: has changed me? Not sure to what extent PaB specifically has
druth Vlodovic: "SL"
FireStar4 Resident: lol
Aphrodite Macbain: SL has?
druth Vlodovic: I suppose a place dedicated to the concept of removing expectations has had it's effect

Aphrodite Macbain: you feel less pressured?
Aphrodite Macbain: Grins
druth Vlodovic: I want to hear storm's story :)?

Storm Nordwind: Me?!
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
szavanna Resident: yay tell us Stormy

Aphrodite Macbain: OK I gather you have finished for now druth?
druth Vlodovic: the least stormy avatar in PaB
druth Vlodovic listens
Aphrodite Macbain: Listens to see if Stormy might want to say something...
Storm Nordwind: Well... you need to wait two weeks till the Poetry Session :)
szavanna Resident: ;D
druth Vlodovic weeps
Catrinamonblue Resident: bummer
Aphrodite Macbain: aww come on
szavanna Resident: sighs
Aphrodite Macbain: you can tell us of your first week
szavanna Resident: chocolate?
Storm Nordwind: Come to the Molecule Theatre on April 6 at noon SLT
FireStar4 Resident: I don't think I'll be here in 2 wks
Aphrodite Macbain: come with a poem
Storm Nordwind: And I will sing you a song
druth Vlodovic: fire has jellybeans...
FireStar4 Resident: giggles
szavanna Resident: jellybeans :)
FireStar4 Resident: hush Druth
Aphrodite Macbain: I imagine you have more stories to tell Storm
FireStar4 Resident: anyone want the black ones
Storm Nordwind: But bear in mind that I was at PaB on the first day
Aphrodite Macbain: April 1, 2008?
Storm Nordwind: Yes
FireStar4 Resident: oh then u have to have great history storm
Storm Nordwind: It has all happened around me and in spite of me ;-)
Aphrodite Macbain: So, no more stories from you Storm?
Storm Nordwind: They will have to wait. Maybe ;)
Aphrodite Macbain: kk
Storm Nordwind: My typing is slow!

Aphrodite Macbain: Wol....you have been here since the early days haven't you?
Wol Euler: not that early :) I came ... well actually I am not sure when, sometime in late 2008
Wol Euler: I think it was about six months old
Wol Euler: it had already moved to the teahouse in Rieul when I first arrived
Aphrodite Macbain: pretty early
Wol Euler: Fael brought me, we had met in a skin store and started talking. She quickly brought this place into the conversation, and I was intrigued
Aphrodite Macbain: So you were already in SL
Wol Euler: of course :)
Wol Euler: my first avatar joined in July 2007
Aphrodite Macbain: wow
Wol Euler is old.
Aphrodite Macbain: lol ancient!
Wol Euler: but not as old as some
FireStar4 Resident: giggles
Aphrodite Macbain: frowns
Wol Euler: from the beginning, I appreciated (ha) the gentle and thoughtful tone of conversation here
Wol Euler: the lack of ego and shouting that are found in most "philosophical" discussion
Aphrodite Macbain: yes
Wol Euler: and the exercises, I was intrigued. I'd started doing some simple meditation in RL a year before that, so it was timely and very handy
Wol Euler: and also, I'll admit it, I was fascinated by Pema
Aphrodite Macbain: :-)
Wol Euler: he is a marvellous man, I loved (and love) to listen to him
szavanna Resident: :)
Wol Euler: so inspiring, so clear
Wol Euler smiles.
Wol Euler: that'
Aphrodite Macbain: a sharp and generous mind
Wol Euler: that's my story
Aphrodite Macbain: thanks Wol
Wol Euler: yw

szavanna Resident: °͜° ty Wol

Aphrodite Macbain: I remember first arriving and feeling comfortable immediately
FireStar4 Resident: I agree
Aphrodite Macbain: there were references to people and to concepts I didn’t understand
szavanna Resident: I was sooo welcomed ....I didn't know how to react to it :)
Aphrodite Macbain: when they talked about Pema, I thought they were talking about Pema Chodron
Aphrodite Macbain: and then one day he turned up.
Aphrodite Macbain: and I liked his red hair and gentle ways of talking
Aphrodite Macbain: I often felt a little shy - wondering whether I would be accepted as part of this interesting curious group
Wol Euler smiles.
szavanna Resident: me too :)
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
Aphrodite Macbain: and then I joined in and talked about secret gardens
Aphrodite Macbain: because it is bit of a passion of mine- gardens anyway
Aphrodite Macbain: and I lost my shyness and nattered on
Aphrodite Macbain: yatterd
Aphrodite Macbain: wittered
Aphrodite Macbain: :-)
szavanna Resident: :)
Aphrodite Macbain: and everyone got engaged and seemed interested.
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
Aphrodite Macbain: the next week they asked me to be guardian.
szavanna Resident: really :)
Aphrodite Macbain: I was so flattered and felt I had "arrived" - been accepted.
Aphrodite Macbain: and I came every day after that.:-)

szavanna Resident: I was wondering for long ...how I could become one ... and for a while it was very mysterious ....how does one become a guardian :)
Wol Euler makes strange hand gestures.
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
Aphrodite Macbain: yes- not knowing there existed a Working Group who made these decisions
szavanna Resident: I kept asking during sessions "so how could I join"
Aphrodite Macbain: you are "chosen"- you cant join
Storm Nordwind rubs his left nostril with his right little finger
Aphrodite Macbain: :-)
szavanna Resident: :)
druth Vlodovic hands storm a tissue
szavanna Resident: and then I was told I was a guardian :)
Catrinamonblue Resident: some of us just accidentally fall into it :)
szavanna Resident: and then I started bugging stormy about my plot °͜°
Aphrodite Macbain: then slowly, bit by bit I started to get to know individuals

Aphrodite Macbain: I was so happy when you moved opposite me Sun
szavanna Resident: yes Bruce and Aph was sooo welcoming °͜°
Aphrodite Macbain: we were a community!
szavanna Resident: I wonder often how I fit in - in SL communities - because I am African and Eastern European which is very rare ...
Aphrodite Macbain: nods
Storm Nordwind: Everyone by nature fits it. Nothing special needed :)
szavanna Resident: it seems so °͜°
FireStar4 Resident: I agree
Aphrodite Macbain: you fit in remarkably as do we all :-)
FireStar4 Resident: it wonderful to met ppl from other parts of the world
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
szavanna Resident: I wonder how I end up always in places where there is only just one of me hehe - you know what I mean °͜°
Aphrodite Macbain: Thee is always going to be just one of you Sun

Storm Nordwind realizes that his original Second Life birth date was June 20, 2006, and that he's been here in one avatar or another for nearly 7 years. oO
szavanna Resident: wow you are an oldie :)
Aphrodite Macbain: you are unique
szavanna Resident: we all are :)
Wol Euler grins.
szavanna Resident: I think PaB allows us to be just human beings ....not feeling too many walls between each other
Aphrodite Macbain: we are all stardust and lotus petals
szavanna Resident: :) Aph
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
Storm Nordwind: Or perhaps they are us ;)
Aphrodite Macbain: :-) perhaps

Wol Euler: (10 minutes to Bertram, assuming he remembers)

Aphrodite Macbain: Stevenaia - please tell us about your first days in PAB
stevenaia Michinaga: smiles, I think it was in May 2008, month 2 when I friend introduce Pema to me and Pema invited me to a session with Stim and him
stevenaia Michinaga: It was quite confusing :) yet somehow interesting
Wol Euler smiles.
stevenaia Michinaga: I looked back at the log a few years ago
stevenaia Michinaga: I was interested in it's direct simplicity (no pre-requisite required)
Aphrodite Macbain: nods
stevenaia Michinaga: which is always a good place to begin
Aphrodite Macbain: along with an open mind
stevenaia Michinaga: and so.. I did and continue to gain much from the group
stevenaia Michinaga: yes, looking for whatever rolls down the road

stevenaia Michinaga: I have a hitch hiker approach to life, whatever picks me up is fine :)
Aphrodite Macbain: smiles
Aphrodite Macbain: in our galaxy of PaB

Catrinamonblue Resident: have a tiny poem just put together if people would like
Aphrodite Macbain: please, cat, share the poem
Catrinamonblue Resident: lotus flowers bloom softly in light of stars moving high being dropping seeing appreciating the appearance of being me in the universe of stars
druth Vlodovic: :)
Aphrodite Macbain: so lovely cat
Aphrodite Macbain: thank you!
szavanna Resident: ❤ ty Cat
FireStar4 Resident: yes very nice ty for sharing
Catrinamonblue Resident: :)
Aphrodite Macbain: Is that the poem you will be submitting to the poetry performance?
druth Vlodovic: aph of the one-track mind :)
Catrinamonblue Resident: I don't know yet, I only just put it together will have to see :)
szavanna Resident: ;o)
Catrinamonblue Resident: might polish it a bit then submit
Aphrodite Macbain: I have an empty box in my head druth
druth Vlodovic: too much meditation :)
druth Vlodovic: or emptiness perhaps :)

Aphrodite Macbain: Has anyone heard from Bertram?
Aphrodite Macbain: speaking of meditation
stevenaia Michinaga: can you throw me a tp when you get there

Wol Euler: sure

druth Vlodovic: g2g, hunt for food
Wol Euler: bye druth, happy hunting
druth Vlodovic: have fun all
FireStar4 Resident: send me some Druth
FireStar4 Resident: hugz
Aphrodite Macbain: bye everyone who's foraging
Wol Euler: goodnight all, take care
Catrinamonblue Resident: I'm going too see you all later :)
Aphrodite Macbain: byee
szavanna Resident: take care all °͜°
Catrinamonblue Resident: bye
Aphrodite Macbain: thanks for the stories
FireStar4 Resident: have a great day Cat
szavanna Resident: have a great week ahead
FireStar4 Resident: u too Sun
stevenaia Michinaga: nice to meet you Fire
stevenaia Michinaga: bye Sun and Storm

FireStar4 Resident: ty Stevena

Aphrodite Macbain: ok I'll go and check Bertram
Storm Nordwind: he was on earlier

FireStar4 Resident: same here
stevenaia Michinaga: Sun
FireStar4 Resident: see u Aph
FireStar4 Resident: nice to met u Storm