I’ve made some friends from abroad, Germany mostly, and they’re 9 hours ahead of us. So I thought I’d hang out In World and see if they show up. In the meantime I can do other things, like read. I thought to myself so where should I go so that I can be In World but not feel compelled to interact with others. I don’t want to seem rude being in an active public space and being only partially attentive. So I went to a quiet island, and sat on a hill watching the waves roll in. That got boring. Fast.
I keep noticing that SL for me right now is about people and places. So I went to one of my hang outs and found a comfortable place to sit and watch people go by. I found a mediate object, so I meditated too. When I’ve seen people meditating, I usually don’t want to interrupt. So while my avi is meditating, I’ll be reading a book in RL (Real Life). I can easily switch my attention back and forth. When my friends come online, I get a popup and a bell. So it’s not unlike IM-ing in that my online presence is known to my friends. It’s much different though in that my avi’s presence is directly experienced by the residents surrounding me. Unless I go off on my own, I’m in a social context and feel compelled to act appropriately in it.