When having just the 1 life is not enough!

Second Life is a 3D online virtual world where you can create your own avatar and lead your very own virtual 2nd life. I joined Second Life in June 2012 after seeing an interview on television where this couple met, and married, on Second Life. They subsequently met in real life and married. After seeing this interview, I was intrigued, so checked out the game. I created an account, downloaded the Second Life viewer, and my 2nd life began. As a 'newbie' I was definitely confused to say the least. I had never even heard of such a virtual world and had no idea what what going on! But, I stuck with it and stated exploring places and meeting people. It wasn't until I started interacting with other people that I started to really enjoy Second Life.

When you first login to Second Life you begin with a starter avatar, which you choose when you first create your account. This can be easily rectified. You can change your look depending on your personal preferences. You can make yourself look however you want. You can even be an animal if you so wish. 4 years down the line, I've got myself looking the way I want. The good thing about Second Life is, you can make yourself look hot and good looking! The thing about this online community is, you can do just about anything you want. And just like real life, you can do exactly the same here. You can buy or rent a house, buy or rent land. Or buy land to rent out to other people, or make and sell clothes. Or you can DJ and play music. It's all up to the individual person what they want to do. Second Life is all about doing whatever you want and enjoy - and in some cases, living out your inner most fantasies.

As I say, when I first joined Second Life (SL), I downloaded the Second Life viewer, but there a number of viewers you can use apart from the official SL one. People used different ones depending on what they like. Firestorm is probably the most popular one, but I personally use the Singluarity viewer. My personal 2nd life is varied. What I like about this is the way you can express yourself through your avatar. I've made my avatar look just the way I like her. The only similarities between the real me and the avatar is the blonde hair.

The thing about SL is you can do just about anything you want. From a personal level, I watch films, go to concerts and listen ti live singers. Yes, you can be a singer in SL and stream your music and singing on here. I also DJ and play my own music sometimes. The benefits of DJ'ing on SL is you get to listen to a wide variety of music from around the world. Everyone has different tastes and cultures. And on Sundays I go to a Church Service, where the Pastor is a Pastor in real life and also has an avatar on Second Life where he streams his services. This is the beauty of a virtual world, you can go to places and experience things that you wouldn't normally be able to.

Of course, the main reason why people join SL is the interaction between other people from around the globe. You can travel to other lands - or 'sims' as they are known in SL. You can visit museums, galleries, other Countries and cities, and chat to other people either by text or voice and make new friends from around the world. There are 2 or 3 singers I like to go and listen to, and have made a lot of good friends from my years on SL. For me, this is how I socialize in the evenings. I live on my own and on a personal level, this gets me talking and chatting to people. It's opened doors for me, and I enjoy the experience of mixing with people, wearing lovely frocks and listening to good singers.

The SL currency is Linden Dollars. You can buy Linden Dollars by adding a Paypal or credit card on the Second Life website, and buy money that way. Or you can get yourself a job inworld and earn money that way. As I say, I DJ once or twice a week, so this earns me money. I rent a piece of land where I have a lovely house and garden. You can even get married and have children if you want!

Frankly, I enjoy SL. It's how I spend my evenings. I like to do different things and explore places. I'm always meeting new people and I like how it opens the mind to new possibilities. I've learned a lot. When I first joined, I could never see myself streaming music into SL. There's so much for people to do!