SLentrepreneur of the Year Award Show Ends

...and the winner is... Mimi Juneau!

Yes, after year of interviewing Second Life entrepreneurs and writing articles, the grand climax came today as Mimi Juneau was voted the 2008 SLentrepreneur of the Year. The second runner up was Saffia Widdershins and third was Rusch Raymaker.

Truth is, all the entrepreneurs deserve awards because they represent something good about the Second Life environment. I know that I can be annoyingly cynical about life, real or second, but I still cling to the fragile hope that good things can happen. As pundits and poseurs pontificate about the impending decease of Second Life, some folks actually get their fingers out from their asses and try to create something of value.

Here are some excerpts from my script that summarize my thoughts.

"When we first talked about the idea of an award for entrepreneurs, I had only one contribution that helped us focus on what we wanted to do. It's a quote that comes from Mark Twain and I’d like to simply read it to you:

'Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.'

And that is really how we see the entrepreneurial spirit. It’s not about being the richest, the biggest, the most powerful, or the most successful. It’s about people who are prepared to dream, explore their potential, and discover new things about themselves.

Every one of you who has been nominated has caught the trade winds and set sail. And even if you’ve been battered in storms, scrape a few rocks, or lost pieces of cargo, you have done more than many many other people, who chose to stay at the quayside and watch others set sail."

This is no bull. I really believe that doing something is always better than doing nothing. Armchair quarterbacks, back-seat drivers, keyboard pundits, are all ten-a-penny and it takes no effort to complain and criticize. But it takes effort to create, build, do, and persevere. That's surely worth celebrating.

If any one of these entrepreneurs were to go belly up, that would be tragic, but it wouldn't be a failure. Every one of them has tried to make a mark and to me, that's all you can do in an existential world that has no meaning. Make the meaning.

Do something!

Even More Sig...

And the beat goes on...

The latest edition of SLentrepreneur magazine has a profile of AVENUE Models' owner, Rusch Raymaker, that includes a fabulous (can I use that word without sounding too "fashionista"?) picture of her. Rusch works extremely hard and seems to spend more time in SL than RL - I could be wrong ;)

Meanwhile, over at Castle Keep magazine, their third edition - the September 2008 one - is out and includes a profile of the Koinup social network, with a mention of the Ning network also.

Next up, I think, will be a rather long article in SLentrepreneur probably entitled The 4C's of 3D's: How To Succeed With Virtual Worlds. It's an Op-Ed piece that sets out the four key features needed to create and sustain a virtual environment. There's lots more to say on the subject - in fact, I think there's a book in there somewhere - and I hope to be writing more in the future about each of the four elements in more detail. Keep checking back here.

As a taster of what's to come along these lines, check out an article by Prokofy Neva called The Six Economies of Second Life, and do check the comments to see my take on this.

And for those who are vaguely interested in personalities, Mony and I spent some time together last night, checking out some clothing and sitting at the old Balloon Tour platform in Ambleside. Whatever we "are," she's always going to be special to me and I'm just happy for any time we snatch together. Still.

EXXESS and Avenue Models Fashion Show

The Wilder girls have just sent me a pack of sexy pics from the EXXESS fashion show that took place just over a week ago. I thought I'd post them because they are so cool and you can even see me... sort of. In the picture below, the red line points at my little blond head!


Ooooh!


Ahhhh!!


Wow!!


Grrrr!


Awesome!!


Wardrobe malfunction?


And finally, the head of Avenue Models herself, Rusch Raymaker!


Check out the Avenue Models blog for more information on this talented team of Second Life sophisticates, and the Wilder PR site for some more pics.

Slurl for EXXESS: http://slurl.com/secondlife/FOOKERS/177/229/23

EXXESS Designs and Avenue Models: Some Show!

So what's not to like about hot models, hot clothes, and hot music? Layja Vidor had an exciting array of designs on show for the New World Order event that took place yesterday. Rusch Raymaker, owner of Avenue Models, provided the talent for the spectacle, and Zasa Rossini of La Belle Vie furniture designed the runway.

In keeping with the theme of "hot," the runway entrance was a large, fiery Egyptian-styled portal through which the models would appear -a trick that only Second Life can allow for without inflicting third-degree burns to the models and terrible damage to the clothes. And what caught my eye? Legs. Or should I say the leg-wear. There were a variety of straps, thongs, chains, and other modes of wrapping all drawing attention to the legs and thighs. Maybe it's just me but it seemed that Layja has spent as much time working on the outfits below the thighs as above!


The show was fast-paced and flowed seamlessly - or if there were glitches I didn't notice. Kudos to Rusch for making that happen: There is nothing worse than being at a fashion show waiting for something to happen and having to endure long gaps while the organizers get organized. The downside of this is that when you have such a vivid and crowded environment, taking pictures requires a lot of preparation and skill; two things I lack in abundance. My suggestion to my good friends at Wilder PR is to get a hold of some pre-show model shots and have them sent to the press immediately after the show.

Having said that, Shenandoah Saintlouis managed to get some pre-show pics and has them posted on her blog: ShenS Blog. Take a look at the outfits there, and note the leg work!