A friend of mine in Second Life, Leyah Renegade, wrote an observation on “wasting time” in Second Life that struck me as being particularly prescient:
“If you feel like you’re already wasting time, SL is as good a way as any to waste time. And it just might inspire you to do some good things in RL, or you might meet some cool people, or even sell some art in RL.
I got into it mainly to play music, with the nice bonus of being able to hang out with some of the homies that I don’t get to see often in RL. But now I’m doing a couple of very worthwhile educational projects, which have also allowed me to develop my building and scripting skills to the point where I’m now about to make quite a lot of real money messing around in SL. None of that would ever had happened if I’d gone into SL with the intention of being “productive,” but I think I’m coming out ahead of most people who do go in with that intent. Not that I would consider my time in SL “wasted” if the work thing had never happened, but it’s funny how things like that often work.
I think if you’re an artistic type, the ability to do things spontaneously and seemingly without purpose (“wasting time”) is actually extremely important, and it’s those activities that often dictate the course of your life moreso than the more goal-directed activities that most people find necessary. And I think we’re better off for that, frustrating as it may be to people with goals and deadlines. And SL is a perfect medium for doing completely spontaneous, imaginative things, as well as finding like minded people who “get” the need for that.”
A fitting perspective on a significant day for many Second Life “time wasters” 😉
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