GD040408

=04/04/2008=

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Pavonia/16/63/101 Today my SL misadventures took me to the Transgendered Resource Center, where I spent much of my time interviewing members and volunteers. These people were very sympathetic to each other and the common challenges that TS/TG individuals face in dealing with their identity and the potential transition between genders/sexes. Apparently the TRC has been around for about a year, with a RL version coming up earlier this year. They provided counseling and support to transgendered and curious individuals. I was given a notecard upon teleporting there:

//"Our mission is to foster the development of a positive and helpful community to support those facing the unique challenges that confront transgendered individuals and to engender the acceptance and support of transgendered individuals within Second Life and society at large. To visit the TRC just use the landmark link at the top of this page or search "Places" for "Transgender Resource Center" but leave out the quotes."//

I also discussed quantity of member, aparently over 700 members belong to the TRC with 200 taking advantage of their services IRL, with members from as far away as Australia. The creator of the TRC has relocated to England, but most of the people I spoke with were from the US. I specifically asked them about whether the TRC has been successful in filling in the gap of TS/TG communities in rural and remote areas, and they told me yes, that they had a lot of people from rural areas and in states who lived in areas where they were afraid to come out. The TRC, then, fills in where RL community and family support has failed to meet the needs of these individuals.

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Volcano%20Cay/134/86/33

The Titanic (not sinking this time) is NOT another SL commerical area - it is a 'work of art', according to the 'Titanic Promotions' person who was kind enough to greet me and speak to me. This was the work of a single person who painstakingly put the area together to a very nice replica of the RMS Titanic in all of its glory. Tucked away in tasteful areas were a small smattering of shops, probably to support the existence of this unique place. Apparently the creator of this spot worked for six months to create this model. Now it serves as a meeting place for Titanic fanatics with descendents of survivors and crew members making appearances to share stories and carry on the oral tradition of one of the greatest vessels, and greatest sea disasters, of all time. Interesting to note that this is an ad-hoc community which organized after the creation of the boat, not before.