Hello 
I'm Siobhan Curran/Kisa Naumova, and this is my weblog. I tend to write about stuff like crossdressing, Macs, code, cats, wine and Second Life, but in general it's just an ongoing conversation about all sorts of stuff. If you'd like to know a little bit more about what this all is, I recommend starting on this page which has a little bit of info on who I am, and what I'm trying to do — or you could dive into my five years worth of archives if you like.
Otherwise, feel free to close this box and explore...
BaSTards
For once, I'm actually on the case and fully aware that the clocks went back this morning. Other people seem less aware of this.
It's just gone 8am here, but for the past half hour there have been the tell-tale clankings of massive pieces of metal being moved. Which means that technically, the builders are finishing taking down the gasometer at half past seven on a Sunday morning.
/me is not impressed
A Minor Curiosity
Losing Gaining an extra hour is a wonderful thing. When I was young, I'm sure it used to happen on a weekday meaning there was the opportunity to spend a glorious extra hour in bed.
You know, you'd wake up, look at the clock and think "Crap. It's half seven. I need to get up and go to school". But then a wave of happiness would sweep over your as you realised that it wasn't 7.30, it was — through some Einsteinian command of space and time — 6.30, and you snuggled into your duvet again.
But maybe I dreamt that. Maybe it's always been done on a Sunday — and the only people that get that "Yay! Duvet time!" sensation are vicars 
Whatever. I just wanted to mention that through some weird glitch of my code (that I've tried to correct, but never been able to), that because the clocks went back, today appears in the right hand column as well as the main one.
Strangeness
Oh, and also, regardless of the extra hour, I suppose what with it being Sunday, I can go back to bed anyway 
It's some kind of Evil Conspiracy™ I tell ya
So let me get this straight though — are we now GMT?
Gaily Mincing Trannies? Pfft, speak for yourself.
Yes, we are now GMT. Thankfully over half of my timekeeping devices are capable of handling daylight saving on their own.
Ack, You'll Be Fine
So that was a bt weird
My general assertions on the notion of 'identity' within virtual spaces, is that (for me at least) the form I take — and the way I behave — within them is directly related to the nature of that space.
Or, in other words, self follows context (to bastardise a phrase).
For example, in this weblog and emails and such — whenever I'm dealing with a context in which it's known and assumed that I'm Siobhan — certain aspects of my personality come to the fore. Outside of this context — like if I'm in work or something, somewhere where the understanding is that I'm Graham — then I'm quite (but not much) different.
And equally, within the 'be whatever you want to be' freedoms of a virtual space like Second Life, I find myself being Kisa.
I dunno. I have fuzzy thinking around these ideas. But basically I think that each of the ways that I express myself in various spaces, is a logical extension of my 'self' within those contexts.
Anyway.
Part of my new job involves not being Kisa — I've an alternative account that I use whenever I'm building for MoU — and I spent a bit of time last night dragging him¹ around various shops sorting him me² out with clothes and hair and skin.
(I'm a very unimaginative SL resi — when presented with the possibility of being anything I want, I always go 'human')
The end result being (of course) a guy with stubble and a ponytail 
It's quite a good likeness (even if I do say so myself...)
What I find weird about it though, is the 'invasion' of one of my 'selves' into the space of another. Despite there always being a physical male body at the end of the keyboard, my levels of immersion seem to make me perceive myself as whatever I present.
Similar to my self-delusional powers of conincing myself that Siobhan does look like a girl — maybe.
I dunno — I guess I (Kisa) felt a little unnerved by me (Graham) being in my (her) space. Almost, I suppose, resentful, in a way.
We'll see how that pans out, I guess.
If you want an analogy BTW, the closest I can get to the strangeness of me being Graham in Kisa's space, is the thought of me turning up as Siobhan to work.
It wouldn't be 'wrong', but it wouldn't feel right — if you get my drift.
...
The other thing that was odd, was to find myself on Orientation Island again — floating in mid air wearing a white t-shirt, blue jeans, and the shitty hair and face of a Default.
It's hard to see in that picture, but there's a naked guy walking towards me. I said "Hello", but he didn't respond 
(I guess I'm just not as cute as a Default Male)
Before I knew it, I'd been whisked off to an island, to talk to some people about a project.
The thing was, even with twenty minutes of adjusting appearance sliders, I felt really awkward talking about something when I looked like a n00b. I didn't feel like I had any 'authority' — so to speak.
Which I guess is really bad, and probably shows me up to be a completely image-obsessed vain bitch.
Or maybe not — maybe it's just that the pride I take in my (avatar) appearance is the same as the pride I take in the things that I build
Maybe.
¹ Yup, I'm a 'he'
² Fuck, this is confusing
Having moved away from the group I was hanging around with, I've now found myself meeting noobs again. I have to resist the temptation to say, "go away and work it out for yourself", after the help I'd been given in the past.
And as noobs can usually be spotted by their skins, I find there are certain people I don't want to talk to initially. Am I also an image obsessed vain bitch too?
Serena Mayfly
So you went for an Alt then?
Ha! No, I was given an Alt. Sometimes Neil, I wonder if you actually read what I write
Halloween Legends
A roundup of urban myths (and suchlike) relating to Halloween — [snopes.com] Which reminds me, I must continue in this SL theme of the moment and post my Halloween picture soon
Oh I dont, I just like the pictures
I haven't been on SL in quite a while...and I'm a n00b, but I don't look like one! Thank you Help Island people! :giggle:
Meet Frank
Frank is M's new cat
Sorry...
...just thought there was a lesson for us all in there. Not to do with car tax though
Mummy! The cat is frightening me!
And as I type that 'I've Lost that Loving Feline' by the Third Eye Foundation comes up on the Party Shuffle...
"..me turning up as Siobhan to work.
It wouldn't be 'wrong', but it wouldn't feel right — if you get my drift."
I've seen how Siobhan likes to dress, it wouldn't be 'wrong', it might be an arrestable offense though
You know I've never actually got round to working out how your markup works.. where's the big orange help button?
mmm — interesting — an idealised female you meeting a male idealised you...
JoH
Nurses get an extra hour in bed. Or, if you are working a night shift, an extra hour to work, that you don't get paid for because it doesn't exists! Bizarely, working the night that the clocks go forwards is much harder than the night they go back because things that need doing at certain times are suddenly thrown out of kilter and, invariably, the thing that can easiest be dropped from the routine, to get back on track, is lunch. And lunch at 3am is strange enough as it is without missing it.
I did once try to convince a night club manager to stay open because it wasn't 2am, it was only 1am. I think he said "fuck off you twat" or something like that when he realised my argument held water.
kath.adams
I wish some bugger had told me, I'm up and had breakfast, thinking about going out....Ohh hang on, the clock in the kitchen is an hour different to the Laptop Clock.
The swines!