Sometimes people that are less familiar with Bay City ask about Ever Dreamscape. This article tries to answer some of that. This speech has been posted before in the Bay City Post in September 2014 and this is an integral copy of that post.
To celebrate Ever Dreamscape her life many Bay City Residents light a "modest" fire on her real life birthday, April the First, Ever's day and Ever's night. Join us on that day so that she can live on.
THE DEDICATION OF THE
EVER DREAMSCAPE MEMORIAL
Welcome Everyone.
Today, we dedicate this virtual space in the memory of our departed Ever Dreamscape.
Let it be known that Ever Dreamscape lit a fire in Bay City.
I
don't mean one of her scores of literal virtual fire this time,
however. No, Ever Dreamscape quite literally helped transform this
place.
This place is a place to remember all she did and all she was.
To
list her accomplishments in Bay City is to list nearly everything that
happened over the last several years. She turned events like Mole Day
and the tree lighting and turned into much larger affairs, while being
at the birth of other Bay City events such as our Oktoberfest this
afternoon. She started the Bay City Post, our monthly newspaper. She
helped get the fairgrounds expanded. She created the Bay City Brewery,
She helped create The Pen, and she was in -- as I said -- everything.
As
you sit at this memorial, look beyond it. You can see the Park Plaza
Hotel, Rez N Ride, the Hyperbole Building which serves as home to Etv
and the Bay City Post, and -- on a good day -- her DMV/insurance/driving
school. You can also see the buildings of others who were at least in
part inspired to be her thanks to Ever Dreamscape. Our city itself
serves as part of this memorial.
Central
to the memorial itself is an eternal flame. It's one of Ever's, sourced
from the driving school. It is one of those that helped the city burn
in her honour when she perished. As long as there is a Bay City, there
will be this fire to help consume our memory.
To
the left is a book of poetry, composed by Ever Dreamscape under an
alternate account. This book led to the initial creation of The Pen as a
place to host poetry and other events. She would regularly attend
Espresso Yourself night and share. At the last she attended, she even
dominated the stage, telling her own life story. That piece, "Hero's
Journey," can be found on her old website at http://21stnervousbreakdown.blogspot.com/2014/03/heros-journey.html - if you have not read it, please do when you can. And spend some time reading the book here too, if you wish.
To
the right of the fire is a frame. In it, you can see a looped slide
show of photos of Ever Dreamscape. Both ones that all of us took of her,
as well as ones she took in her many SL feed "feed-spam" marathons are
presented. To each of you here today, I wish to offer you a copy of
these photos as well, in the form of a memory book. Keep Ever with you
always, even if she's not here in her living avatar form now.
In
her last weeks with us, more than once, she told me how important
butterflies were to her. As a result, thanks to the talents of Alisha
Matova, a dream image that came to my mind in her passing is realized.
When you stand near the memorial, an endless stream of flame coloured
butterflies is released, spiralling upwards to the heavens. This is
Ever's spirit, free and wild, unconfined.
The
butterflies may even be more than they seem. If you can catch one, you
can ride it. One last bit of silly fun to be had in Ever Dreamscape's
name.
Before
I finish, I want to acknowledge those who made this memorial possible. I
mentioned already Alisha Matova, who built the butterflies and the
triple-column plinth. Pygar Bu put together the flowers. Robin Sojourner
and I created the frame slide show from her and your photos, and I did
the rest of the overall structure. The Linden Department of Public
Works, most notably Michael Linden and Sylvan Mole, helped with the
permanent placement of the memorial here in Bay City - Dennis.
I
also wish to thank each of you for being here, for being a part of this
day. This memorial is in her memory, but it is also for each of us to
use, to reflect on, and enjoy.
It's been quite a while since I have
been on the road, wandering Bay City and seeing the sights.
In preparation for getting back behind
the wheel I felt that a driving refresher course was in order, and
getting some up-to-date vehicle insurance for my red Primouth drop
top.
Perhaps I should have checked out the
reviews of this place beforehand ...
1 - Bay City DMV and Driving School and
Insurance Agency
WELCOME to the sixty-seventh issue of the Bay City Post -
Keeping you updated on the best city on the Grid!
EverFest
April in Bay City always starts with a celebration of our favorite April Fool - Ever Dreamscape! This year, the celebrations lasted an entire week, starting with the Rumble on Thursday, March 30th featuring crazy vehicles and shark costumes...mostly on fire. On Friday, March 31st there was a charity bowlathon at the Fairgrounds, with all proceeds going to Child's Play. And on the anniversary of Ever's birth, April Fool's Day, a party was held at the Bay City Brewery, followed by general mayhem and a mass torching of the City. The fire department, as per usual, was nowhere to be found. (More on that later.)
The Bay City Brewery is afire during EverFest - Photo by Marianne McCann
Guest Column - Roc Plutonian
This month the Post welcomes Roc Plutonian, landlord of the Post building and a dear friend of Ever's, as he offers a touching tribute to our Patron Firebug:
Ev·er
synonyms: always, forever, eternally, until hell freezes over, until
the cows come home, until mimes speak at the Pen, until Bay City is free of fire
at any time: "nothing Ever seemed to ruin her appetite for fun"
used in comparisons for emphasis: "After starring in a late-night Etv episode, they felt better than Ever before"
at all times; always: "Ever the woman of action, she encouraged all residents to get involved"
increasingly; constantly: "committing Ever larger crimes of mayhem in the City"
used for emphasis in questions and other remarks, expressing astonishment or outrage: "who Ever heard of a shark brewing beer?"
Ever Dreamscape was always conspiring to get the residents of Bay
City to gather via the Bay City Rumbles, the car washes, her wacky ETv
stories and so on. The now-annual EverFest expands her vision of a community that lets out their wacky inner selves.
For the last several days, the City was ablaze with Ever-inspired activities: Mime Protests,
Rumbles, Bowling and Brewery Dances...and of course a fire
or two! Gatherings like this are what bring a community
together. When asked about EverFest, Bay City Resident Maureen Boccaccio
said, "It makes me remember the fun of SL..just like Ever did." And that’s what SL is all about. May we all continue with Ever's vision: to gather, be wacky, and above all, have fun!
Bay City Brewery party during EverFest - Photo by Evola Courtois
Firehouse in Dennis for Rent
With all of the mayhem in the City this past weekend, it has come to the attention of the Editor (who also happens to own the Bay City Fire Station #2 in Dennis) that due to her lack of time and attention, fire service in the City is sorely lacking. A concerned resident captured the shocking image below of a poor noob being pushed to his death unable to be saved by one of our brave firefighters.
Shocking photos captured by Evola Courtois
Our brave volunteers need a guiding hand to help them fight fire in our fair City, since fires seem to happen here a LOT. If anyone is interested in taking on this role (purely opt-in RP; applicant must have a strong working knowledge of Bay City culture) please contact Kinn by email at kinnaird.fiachra@ gmail.com.
New Postal Service in Bay City
Send your package in style with the Bay City Postal Service! Our cargo handlers will ship your package to anyone, anywhere in SL. We will ship not only by air, but by sea and land as well. Neither rain nor snow nor lag of grid can stay these messengers about their duty. (We are, however, not responsible for wet, frozen, or otherwise lost parcels…) All services are roleplay only and are opt-in. If the recipient does not wish to roleplay the delivery, we will simply pass them the package.
The boxes work just like the many postal boxes you see in First Life. You address a package and drop it in, the postal worker picks it up and delivers it. Local Bay City mail will be handled by the Bay City Post Office, and large parcels or mail going outside of Bay City will be handled by GridWide Cargo Service.
Mail can be delivered to any mailbox that has Allow Inventory Drop set to TRUE. First, you need to find one of our boxes, which are located at the following parcels:
To use the service, select Send a Package from the menu. Enter the legacy name of the avatar you want the package sent to into the textbox IE: ThomasHooker Resident.
Hold down the CTRL button and drag your item into the mailbox. Please include a notecard with the recipient’s name and the location of the delivery. The package must be transfer enabled or we cannot deliver it.
We will pick up the package at our earliest availability. We try to always deliver in character, and using realistic vehicles to do so but in some cases that is not possible. We will walk the package to the destination if we cannot use vehicles in that area, for example a roleplay region that does not allow non-residents to use vehicles.
We will place a mailbox at your location. I will need an invite to the land owning group, however, I will leave the group once the mailbox is placed. ThomasHooker Resident - Postmaster
WELCOME to the fifty-fifthissue of the Bay City Post! - Keeping you updated on the best city on the grid! Now with new, larger type for the aging eyes of Bay City citizens...or maybe that's just the eyes of the editor. ;)
Bay City Squares
In Bay City, we start April with a celebration of Ever's Night. April 1st was the birthday of Ever Dreamscape, our erstwhile Post editor, mischief maker, fire starter, and host of many a late night game show. Many people in the City set their parcels on fire in her memory, and a game show was filmed in the lot next to the Post building. Pygar Bu hosted a lively edition of Bay City Squares, featuring nine "Bay City SLebrities" and contestants Miss Bay City Belle Mistwallow, and Truro resident Georgia Florence Sipe. From Pygar: "Our winner of the Bay City Squares game was Georgia Florence Sipe of Truro! You will be able to spot her 'round town in her beautiful new car from 2ZM. Thanks also to our squares: Kinn, Ben, Mo, Uccie and Ange, Ant, Evola, Rachel, Roc and Mari. Hope you had fun! (thanks to Ashley for the pic!) <3 Py" The banner featuring this year's Squares game is a gift from Bay City resident Littlebit31okla (Ashley Breil), taken by Rhy Briel. After the game show, Bay City danced the night away in the Post building's ballroom with DJ GoSpeed Racer providing the tunes, interspersed with sound clips from the original "Hollywood Squares" tv show. If you missed the fun, make sure to join us next year, or perhaps we can make this a semi-regular event! ______________________________________________
Ceremonial Check On View At The Bay City Brewery!
A message from Ivan Suen: "All - Just to provide some closure to my announcement that I'm liquidating my land business and donating all proceeds to the charity of Bay City's choice. I have indeed done such, and tonight all proceeds from my business have been donated to BayCitySL. My only stipulation to my donation is that it be used towards something that would make Ever Dreamscape smile. Please consider drinks on me at the Bay City Brewery. BayCitySL, your ceremonial check is waiting for you at the brewery. -I"
The majority of the proceeds of Ivan's generosity - $555,000L! - will go towards Child's Play, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of children with toys and games
in over 100 hospitals worldwide. The remainder will go to the Bay City event fund to help ensure community shenanigans throughout the year (and raise more bucks for Child's Play!) Thank you, Ivan! ______________________________________________ Spring Cleaning!
We're doing some Spring Cleaning on the Post website! I've removed outdated links to places or blogs that no longer exist, but need your help adding links to new or existing places in Bay City! Please take a look at the lists along the right side of the webpage, and send suggestions (along with SLURL or web address) to me inworld or by email at kinnaird.fiachra@yahoo.com.
Speaking of Spring Cleaning (or something)... a new beauty salon just opened in Bay City. Stop on down to Georgia's Beauty Parlor to get your hair done while hearing all of the juicy town gossip!Staff still needed - inquire at the 'help wanted' sign in the window! (Photo by Bay City resident Prissy Cox.)
And so...on with the April issue of the Bay City Post!
WELCOME to the fifty-fourth issue of the Bay City Post! - Keeping you updated on the best city on the grid!
It's March, and those blustery winds are bringing some changes to our fair city. Ivan Suen, long time landlord over at Northstar Properties, has decided to sell his properties at drastically-discounted rates to his tenants, and to donate all of the proceeds to Child's Play, Bay City's charity of choice. In addition, he has transferred the Bay City Heliport to a group of people who love both Bay City and SL aviation (see story below). While Bay City (and myself in particular!) will miss Ivan's creativity, sharp sense of humor, and dedication to Ever-like mayhem, he has promised to stop by and visit the builds he is leaving behind, namely the Bay City Brewery and Club Sandwich.
March is also bringing a change to the Bay City Post, as I will be taking over editing responsibilitiesfrom our esteemed (not the) Mayori and Interim Editor, Marianne McCann. Sitting at the editor's desk in the Post offices tonight, I can see the fires burning at the driving school across the Plaza, and can see Ever Dreamscape's smiling face on the billboard above it. I hope to show thatEver's spirit of playful creativity and organized mayhem is alive and well in our fair city, and shining through these pages every month.
And so...on with the March issue of the Bay City Post!
The Toxic Taco's attempt to make their own "extra thick shamrock shake" leads to disaster!
More Breaking News - New Owner for the Bay City Heliport!
Congratulations to Bay City's own TJ Hooker, proud new owner of the Bay City Heliport. He and I are in the process of transitioning the land group, but I am happy to report that Bay City will continue to have multiple places to fly. -Ivan Suen
In photo above, TJ Hooker, Silvia Hooker, and Brian Hackett discuss plans for the Heliport
Prior to the passing of Ever Dreamscape, as her health was
deteriorating, she met with me over at the Bay City Post. The upshot of
that meeting? I would be the new editor of the paper in her absence. At
the time, it was assumed it would be a temporary assignment, but the
fates had another idea.
I expressed concerns with her, knowing
that my own schedule is always perpetually overloaded. This was just one
more plate for me to spin, and I was already more than over loaded.
Plus, knowing I already head the Bay City Alliance, it seemed to me that
it would be better with a another voice in the mix.
So I have
always looked at myself as an "interim" editor, hoping to find a new
voice to take on the role. I am proud to say that we have indeed found
such a person, as Kinn takes on the duties of editor of the Bay City
Post. I am sure she will do a fabulous job, given her own writing on
the Mainland Matters blog and elsewhere.
I'll still be around, of course, providing Molewatch and other needs around the paper.
I'm
proud of what I did manage to get out under my watch, including a
fairly involved cleanup of the Post website, but I think everyone will
benefit by an editor who can truly build the paper in a more timely
fashion.
So welcome, Kinn!
(...and be sure to fix the editor's chair. Those casters are terrible!)
WELCOME to the forty-first issue of the Bay City Post! - Keeping you updated on the best city on the grid.
Warmth
We're deep in Autumn now, and heading towards the winter months (and winter events, eek!). Traditionally, this is when those of us in the States look towards Thanksgiving dinner and family get-togethers for Hanukkah, Christmas, or other winter holidays.
With that in mind, I want to encourage you to reach out to your own Bay City family, too. Let's let the holidays be a time when we will have a place to call home, and people to call neighbors. I'll also be the first to say thank you to all who make Bay City one of the friendliest bergs on the virtual roads of Second Life!
All that... and all the bird cage lining you've come to expect from Bay City's finest paper
*****
BREAKING BREAKING BREAKING
Hallowe'en Hay Maze ends in disaster.
Who knew it was so flammable?
*****
A touching Memorial to Ever Dreamscape by Dee Darwin
Beautiful Work, Dee!
*****
GUEST EDITORIAL by Cheree Shippe
Bay City: City of the the 21st Century and Beyond
(Editorial note: while I may not necessarily agree with the below -- this is a reaction to my own editorial last issue -- I offer it, unedited beyond grammar and formatting.)
As in most things in Second Life, there tend to be two different camps that each think something different about the same thing...and Bay City is no different.
Vintage... the Bay City Time Period, or the echos of Bay City’s past.
Bay City is not a static entity, something that once created never changes: it is a living, breathing, changing, and evolving ecosystem filled with hundreds of people each seeking to put their own little mark on the landscape we all so love.
There are many in the Bay City Alliance who cling to the original scope of a “1950s American City” and claim it to be the gospel to which all things Bay City should comply, that the lords of the mountain (the Lindens) have decried that the first Commandment of Bay City is “Thou Shalt Not Leave the 1950s Theme” and that anyone deviating from that commandment should be stoned… Ok, not stoned but there are often sighs of disappointment and little comments made when any visible member of the community chooses to disregard that commandment.
On the other side of the fence there are people who have realized, long ago, that the concept of a themed 1950’s environmental died out as an unsustainable goal not long after the city itself went public for land purchases almost a decade ago. There are those in this camp that will even argue that the Lindens themselves have abandoned the 1950s to bring some updates and improvements to Bay City themselves, sacrilege according to the others.
The question is, of course, which of these viewpoints is right? Is there a right and wrong answer to this? Well, no, there isn’t. You will never convince the Retroites that it is the 21st century and that Bay City, as an entity, has also evolved and entered the modern era with the rest of Second Life. It is even harder yet to convince them that this is not a bad thing and that it doesn’t spell the doom of class and sophistication in Bay City.
When you drive through Bay City, either in your slow retro rat-rod or in your luxurious 2015 SZYM Intruder, I invite you to take a look around and draw the conclusions for yourself, see what your eyes tell you and what your heart tells you based on that information. What I am going to do here is, for web content viewers (and links in the notecard I’m sure) go through Bay City and point out evidence of both points of view and explain why, it is my opinion, that Bay City has left the Flying Forties and the Nifty Fifties and entered the Digital Decades of the 21st Century.
“And so... it begins.” - Ambassador Kosh, Babylon 5
Channel Island Mental Hospital / Hotel Falmouth
This building could be classified, easily, as the ‘Gateway to Bay City’ as it’s the first stop on Route 66 once you cross into the City Limits. Retroites will immediately state that the building’s classic appearance speaks volumes to the Linden’s desire for the first view of Bay City to be a “vintage’ one, and they are right that the building is very vintage. The building is so vintage infact that it’s haunted by ghosts, infested by rats, filled with dirty blood spattered walls that would indicate to your average individual that this building is closed and abandoned.
Now the Hotel Falmouth: again, much of the same, another abandoned old building that symbolizes decay and age in Bay City.
These buildings make an undeniable case for being a piece of the vintage past that has been abandoned in favor of moving to more modern accommodations. While writing this piece, a resident exploring the Channel Island Mental Hospital was asked if they felt this building was a “1950s in use hospital” or an “Abandoned structure that hasn’t been torn down,” and their answer was, not surprisingly, the second.
Road Signs and Markings
One can’t help but also immediately notice the road signs and markings present in Bay City, at least all the ones placed by the Lindens.
Stop signs are Red with White Lettering and Borders, these designs didn’t come into play until the later parts of the 1950s in the United States, prior to that all Stop signs were Yellow with Black Text. This is an immediate notice that the Lindens intended to advance Bay City outside of its original scope AT THE MOMENT OF CREATION.
Route 66 contains a center lane marked with a Diamond Symbol. This is a modern day sign for “High Occupancy Vehicle” or “Carpooling” lanes on the freeways of most major West Coast cities. The Lindens use this lane as a “Flying” lane, however, this symbol was not historically used until the late 1970s in traffic control systems in the United States reflecting this fashion or use.
Speed Limit Signs are posted White with Black Text, the modern day style, unlike the theme era which would have been Black signs with White text.
All signs in Bay City are of the modern era format, road markings match that which you’d see in each and every urban United States city if you walked outside today. The Lindens, in their construction have not brought forward “the past” into Bay City here, but instead they have built and updated Bay City into the modern era for motorists everywhere.
Trolley / Water Trolley
Recently, the Lindens (and their Mole henchmen. No offense to moles, I love you guys just sounded better than employees.) have set about updating the aging Bay City transit systems to something a bit more “with the times” script wise, and with that have also come new designs for both forms of Mass Transit in Bay City.
When one stops to appreciate them, you can not help but notice the sleek lines, modernized colors, and overall the much more “updated” and 21st century feel of these new items. Admittedly this is much more present on the Water Trolley than the ground one, however, you can see and feel it on both.
This change has even been seen by the Retroites who have publicly mentioned how they look much newer than the rest of the city, perhaps they are starting to see the truth?
Resident Builds
Now, for the most obvious and irrefutable proof that Bay City has moved beyond the 50s and into the Modern Era, one can’t help but look at what makes Bay City what it is today: the builds that its residents put down.
If you tour each and every Bay City Sim, which I did in the interest of science, you will find that a staggering 90%+ average of the builds are designed and built around the present day and not the 1950s as the Retroites would have you buy into. Flat Panel TVs adorn the walls of houses and flats, modern day BMWs and Porches (even though those 911s could be from the 50s, they haven’t changed design in about 300 years) rest in the driveways, and other items not even dreamt about flood the senses in undeniable quantity. Buildings are built in urban modern or chic style containing design cues and materials not used in mass quantity in 1950, buildings that are occupied and operated by people wearing modern clothes talking on Cell Phones and wearing Nike shoes.
Conclusion
Bay City is indeed in 2014, not 1950. It’s time to let the 1950s rest and become the period everyone breaks out during parades and events, just as we do in the real world now, as the facts are irrefutable that Bay City has indeed entered the 21st century.
Does this mean it’s time to throw away your 1 or 2 period cars and race out to buy something new? Of course not, just like in the real world there are still people out there who like to drive the classics, even daily. Does this mean it’s time to update your wardrobe and lose the horn rimmed glasses and poodle skirts? No, not at all. In fact retro is the style right now isn’t it?
So what does this mean? This means that it’s time to put the “everything must be Retro” mantra that the Retroites continue to push on everyone and accept the fact that they are a vocal minority...but no matter what that they are gravely out numbered by the people who view and see Bay City as a thriving, Modern, city with a great community unlike any other on the grid. A thriving community that should not be divided over something as stupid as pretending that progress doesn’t happen around them. The Bay City Community needs to see that Bay City can still be the amazing place it is once they accept into their hearts that there is, and will continue to be a growing number of, people who respect their decisions to drive around in 60 year old cars in poodle skirts, but are still people who find this Retroite way cute and quaint much in the way of older people who try to fight and hide from the advancements of technology in the real world.
The comments about asking people to switch to (aside from one or two builders) let's face it people, crappy, generically scripted vehicles (not yours Anthony, I rather like your Leadburners), and pastel colors from their much more common and sophisticated clothing, vehicles, and builds.
Park Plaza residents enjoy beautiful views, fine dining, and a roof top patio with hot tub; all this near route 66, and within walking distance to Hairy Hippo Fun Land and aquarium. Rates start at 55L a week for studios, and 185L a week for full size apartments. Free furnishings available. Contact Roc Plutonium for more information!
