Pool Partayyy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygEEdzLc74E

Just another day on the Free Bird/Pixel Bean sim :)

Ok, so Chris and I went to the beach last night and forgot to change outa our swimsuits when tp-ing to FB today. Maribel was there and felt left out, so she changed to her swimsuit and started dancing. I was like...hells yeah! Let's dance! So as people arrived they followed suit. Before long I was rezzing floaties and a kiddie pool and it was a full-blown party!





Here's some shots of the badass party peeps! Holla!

Hours later and we're still partying!

Mulder's Impromptu Appearance

Last night, Free Bird had one of it's classic impromptu musician appearances. Actually, there were 3 impromptu performances. First, Voodoo Shilton played some relaxing tunes on his classical guitar as Michael Langway sang along. Then a special performance from Ape who played some ukulele as she sang a Kate Nash song, and later that night Mulder Watts appeared for what seemed like just a friendly chat. Little did us Free Birders know, we were in the presence of an incredibly talented musician who writes and performs fantastic music-- and they're originals!!! I took a couple of shots of the night because I wanted to remember this night forever. Once Mulder hopped on the stream, the next hour was magical music to our ears. If you were there, I'm glad you could enjoy this impromptu session. If you weren't, never fear. I talked to Voodoo and Mulder and they've both agreed to become Free Bird house musicians that perform once or twice a month and they have full access to the stream in case they want to do more impromptu performances! Stop by anytime, you just might catch them!

Free Bird Merge

Free Bird has moved!!!

A few weeks ago I escaped to a little coffee shop called the Pixel Bean. I loved the look and detail of the place and I made it my refuge away from the craziness of SL. One day while I was there, I met the owner, Harlow. She and I hit it off really well and we loved each others' places. She recently revamped her place and told me about an old abandoned boat house at the end of the dock. I checked it out. It needed some TLC, but it had a great feel to it. I packed my things, and spruced up the place. I hope you will like the new change and come visit. I'm excited to work with Harlow I think together we will make a pretty hoppin' spot (not that she didn't have that already. lol). Here's some pics of the places you can hang out:

The brand new dock! Pixel Bean and Free Bird share this dock for live music, parties, and big events. Since the two hangouts coordinate and work the events together, the genius of Harlow Heslop deemed this spot "The Bird and the Bean." *snickers*
This is the entrance to the new Pixel Bean building on top of the hill at the sim. Here you can stop in for coffee, relaxing music, and a calm environment of casual conversation with great people.
The Pixel Bean has many cozy spots to relax. Harlow and I are taking a little siesta in the PB loft.
It's still too early! *yawns* Here I'm grabbing some chai at the PB coffee bar.
The sim looks so nice at night. In this picture you can see the attic of Free Bird in the front, the cove and the giant tree below, and in the background you can see the dock and PB up above. The moon was so pretty that night. :)
Downstairs at the new Free Bird location you can enjoy some ale, wine, or rum while you hang around and chat with friends in the authentic and cozy old dock house.
Upstairs in the Free Bird attic there are many comfy spots to choose from and a Greedy game board so you can entertain while gettin' your lounge on.
Harlow, I want to thank you for being so supportive and just awesome in general. You have been a great friend to both me and Free Bird and I couldn't have done this without you. You are wonderful and that's why you win the hearts of everyone you meet. *hug*. Muuaahh!

Earth Day @ Free Bird!

Earth Day Thank Yous

Thank you so much to all of you who made Earth Day special for Free Bird, the musicians, the guests, and for me personally.
Last night was amazingly special, first of all, because of the amazing people who were there. Those of you who showed up for the group hug, you set the tone for the evening. Clemmy, thank you for letting me use your hugger, and I huge thanks to all of you who made it AND gave me pictures!


Once Zak appeared I was a bit nervous. I wasn't sure how weird it was that we were all hugging, lol, and I really hoped that the crowd would respond the same way I do when I go to his shows. Soon after he started playing my worries dissolved because the crowd did just that--they loved him and had a wonderful time to his excellent choice of tunes. Zak, YOU are my own personal Starman! Muah!


After Zak's set I quickly switched the stream to Voodoo Shilton who is a personal and dear friend to me whom I love very much! I met this man at a pub (I didnt even know he was a musician), and ever since then we've been inseparable. Voo's music has always had a unique sound to me that I haven't heard duplicated in SL. I love having him play at Free Bird and I see by the crowds response that they love having him, too! Sidewinder and the Elephant Song are my new favorite and the entire set was the perfect feel for Earth Day! Thanks so much Voo! Muah!

During Voo's set, CelticMaidenWarrior appeared and that was the MOST nervous I had been all night! I've seen her perform several times in SL, and every time she is AMAZING! I knew that it was a grat honor to have her at Free Bird especially since my limited funds could NEVER match what she is TRULY worth. Celti's set started and instantly the crowd grew silent. Most musicians or venue owners would worry at this point, but the silence was in reverence to the beautiful voice flowing into all of our ears. People were speechless apart from a few "wow"s and a couple of "i need a tissue, this song is so beautiful"s. Musicians in the crowd were in awe as well. Celti was instantly a crowd favorite when I received IM upon IM saying "We need her here again!", "I needed this I had such a bad day", "This is just what I needed to relax", "She's making be cry it's so beautiful", "I never want her to stop!" and many other similar responses. Celti won over all our hearts and spoiled us with an extra long set, which, judging by the crowd's reaction, nobody minded :) Thank you Celti for your wonderful performance and the beauty you exude as both a musician and a person. You are very dear to Free Bird and me. *hug*

I also want to give special thanks to Perky Button for 1) just being awesome ALL the time! I love you so much! 2) not making Zak feel lonely before the set 3) making those WONDERFUL t-shirts for earth day! Everyone loved them! :)

Special thanks also goes out to Zak and Kat for the blogspot pictures and blogs! You guys warm my heart and I love you dearly already! muuaahh!! big hugs!

Reflection and Opening Day!

Wow, it's weird that I created this blogpost account in January and then read about when Free Bird first came to my mind. Funny that at that point I was nowhere near the beginning stages of creating a social hangout, and now I have Free Bird up and running. I wish I would have been blogging more throughout the process because it would be interesting to remember all the little steps it took to get here. It's totally cool to look back on a little idea in a blog and see that it actually materialized. :)

Free Bird, in my opinion, has been a complete success. I'm not in it for making any money (thank God because I would seriously be in trouble! Just ask my husband! lol), and my soul purpose, as stated before, was to bring people together to enjoy music. Opening day provided a wonderful opportunity for just that.

DJ Harlow kicked the opening off with an amazing set of tunes!! I met Dj Harlow just days before opening and instantly fell in love with her! She owns a terrific coffee shop called the Pixel Bean and it has been my own little secret getaway for weeks before I met her. As we talked we realized we had a lot of common ideas for our venues that we wanted to share and link the venues as sister-venues. I was totally game and I'm completely ecstatic to have such a wonderful friend as well as pocket-DJ and business partner.

Moon Spark- GAWD! Can this girl kick any more ass?! Her version of The Cranberries's "Zombie" was AMAZING!!! Her voice is so unique and powerful for such a small cute woman! She wins the crowd over with her cute laugh and charm, and then she blows them away with her powerful vocal chords and soulful execution. Moon, you are amazing, I love you dearly, muah muah muah!

Jukebox Diesel- Wow. Really? I have to describe him with words? Can't I just drool over the keyboard and you understand how completely amazing and awesome and sexy his yummy Scottish accent is? Not to mention what he does with his fingers! Oh yeah, he plays guitar and sings too! LOL! Juke is very special to me, and one of the only people I've ever truly trusted in SL. He's a great guitarist, a great singer, and a wonderful, caring, and kind friend. Love you Juke. Thank you so much for playing at Free Bird! muuah!

Voodoo Shilton- This guy... amazing. Voodoo BUILT Free Bird. How can I possibly thank him enough? Voo has been an inseparable part of my SL since I met him, and I've been lucky to discover his many talents. "Oh, I can build. Want me to build Free Bird?". "Oh, I can script, you want me to make that for you?". "Oh, I can sing and play guitar, would you like me to play at Free Bird?" Umm.... his talents are endless and on top of ALL of that he is the sweetest, most compassionate guy you'll find in SL. Everyone loves him and it's easy to see why! I'm so happy that when you perform everyone gets to see how wonderful and talented you are and I hope you will play at Free Bird often!

Tribbs Nirvana- Omg. I love her. I truly truly love her. She was my first musical discovery. Up until I met Tribbs I has been told about musicians or tped to a show. Well, one day I just started tping around to events on my own, and I stopped at the... was it the Ruins or the Abyss... I forget, but I heard this strong, powerful, sexy voice and I knew I found a musical gem! Upon my further harassment and public crush over this amazing artist, she finally warmed up to her crazy fanatic that came to EVERY show. Luckily, all that crazy fandom paid off because she agreed to play at Free Bird's opening day and she rocked it!!!! Everyone loves her conversations with the audience and are equally entertained by her fun, light-hearted set. Tribbs, my lover, i love you. Thank you for everything. Thank you for being such a good friend. Muuaah!

The Lohners- Ahhhh!!!! When Lacy did "Mother, Mother" I nearly peed my pants! Ok, not really, but I don't know of another hyperbolic idiom that suits the excited mood I had for their performance! I first saw Lacey and Lugg about a week before the opening at their own venue and I FELL IN LOVE with this hilarious and oober talented couple. Their hilarious banter between sets and their amazing live band sound makes them an instant favorite. I am so lucky they agreed to play for our Opening Day and they were the perfect band to end with! Lugg, Lacey, you are sooooooo cool and I can't thank you enough for your support! muahhhh!!!


Oh yeah, and I just wanna take a moment to brag at my own personal venue stat. The day of the opening, my traffic was over 15,700. Trafficgasm!!!!!!!!!!!!

(Oh, and I took pictures but I didn't save them to my hard drive. If anyone has pictures of the event I'd love to put them in this blog)

SL Record Shop?

In September 2009, I joined an online community named Second Life. I was introduced by a friend's husband who was using the game as an medium for his online class. In my short time in Second Life, I discovered that time is tremendously compressed and this time alteration offers gateways of virtual opportunity. In this fast-paced virtual world, it is easy for a noob to become an SL entrepreneur within just a few months. Many seek SL business for money, but in my recent endeavor, I've decided I'd like to create a place that provides for a nostalgic social environment in combination with the love of music.
"Free Bird" record store: I'd like to set-up an eclectic social music community in which SL music lovers can connect and discuss their favorite tunes/bands with others. The main focus of the shop will be group members. Members of the record store will receive notices that introduce them to the newest updates in music whether it be band webpages, articles, books, etc. The community would be welcomed to share the same types of information with each other and with the shop. Also, the notices keep the group interactive by promoting events and live music. The record shop would host events that pertain to musical themes (i.e. David Bowie theme night? lol) and the live SL music promotes traffic to the sim and gathers avatars to form musical communities. Overall, a record shop not only embodies my own RL personality and desire for music through my avatar's business adventure, but it will bring a community of members who have a deep interest in music and people.