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Welcome to Steampunk Adventures!By Kitsuko Pelazzi

Welcome one and all!I have been greatly honored to

be the editor of the first issue of the Steampunk Adventures magazine and would like to introduce the other articles in this issue.

First, we have an emphasis on our store and the person who made it what it was - Anna Darwinian, currently of Caledon Primverness!

We also get a short interview with the winner of Steampunk Adventures’ logo contest, Tehanu Marenwolf, whose logo can be seen on the magazine masthead.

After that, we have photos and a summary of the new Steamland sim, Austral, for your viewing and reading pleasure. We also have Ask the Tiger (an advice column) and a short story

from Alana Steamweaver for your enjoyment.

The staff at Steampunk Adventures have been wonderful: for those who are not aware, Steampunk Adventures is under new management. Plutonian Property Management, maintainers of Thistle Hill Market and the Empress of the Aethers airship above it, has teamed up with CathyWyo1 Haystack (of the Qork Memorial Gallery and other ventures) to maintain, manage, and improve the beloved Steampunk Adventures store in Winterfell Anodyne.

Staff biographies will be featured at the end of the magazine for those interested in meeting the staff involved with the magazine. In

this issue, we are featuring the biography of CathyWyo1 Haystack.

If you have suggestions or ideas for future issues, do not hesitate to contact myself or my assistant editor Gordon Soliel. We look forward to your contributions!

Now - onto the show!

The front of the Steampunk Adventures store in Winterfell Anodyne.

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Tehanu Marenwolflogo contest winnerBy Kitsuko Pelazzi

Some time ago, Steampunk Adventures had a logo contest; the winner would be measured by donations to Relay for Life in Second Life. The lovely Tehanu Marenwolf ’s design won out in the competition, and can be seen in the magazine masthead on the first page and at the store itself.

The resident of Caledon on Sea is a graphic designer in the peculiar dimension called ‘real life’. But, as she put it, she is not given enough creative license and so opened a shop in-world to

pursue more independent design projects. Also, she stated:

“I love steampunk and Steampunk Adventures has been one of my favorite stores for a long time, so it seemed like a great opportunity to do something creative and elegant using the particular visual language of steampunk. Also, I was delighted to be able to contribute to an RFL fundraiser.”

She loves how the Steampunk Adventures store brings together some of the best designers in the Steamlands and how there is “always something new to discover”.

Congratulations, Tehanu!

Interview with Anna Darwinianbuilding, helping, and having funBy CathyWyo1 Haystack

We are fortunate that Anna Darwinian returned to Second Life for the first venture in 2006 in regards to that first venture into Second Life she states, “...got bored with shopping for pink hair and not becoming a millionaire.” 

She left for a period of time before returning with a mission in mind to do some research.   Anna’s intent is to write a couple of books on human-computer symbiosis and transhuman utopias.   When asked if her research focused on direct neural interfaces, she responded that it was not her intent to focus on a direct mechanical interface, but instead related it to how Google and Wikipedia have let us outsource part of our memory to computers.   Another example Ms. Darwinian provided of our growing symbiosis with computers is our accommodation (use of) to cellphones. Anna has written other real life books but chooses to keep her real life identity separate from her Second Life one.

Her return to Second Life was influenced by Tom Boellstorff ’s book, Coming of Age in Second Life: An Anthropologist Explores the Virtually Human.   Boellstorff ’s book focused her interest in determining the potential of Second Life as a Utopian society and to

investigate the potential of people to experience happiness and how to make people happy. It was not long, however until Anna became distracted from her research by the many opportunities for social networking, creativity and the potential of Second Life.   She described the experience as, “I fell so in love with the possibilities of Second Life for me personally...” 

 From her blog, her entry into Caledon is described as follows:

 “Her life before arriving at Caledon Oxbridge is veiled in mystery. Could there be a connection to the strange disappearance, long ago, of a disreputable flower-selling orphan named

Anna Darwinian? Even to Miss Darwinian this is a mystery, as are her nightly dreams about brass-lined undersea laboratories, exotic dance costumes, and a very mysterious ‘Professor.’ "

 Initially Anna settled down in Caledon Eyre, after buying a house from Kaye Robbiani. In addition to this Anna became involved at Oxbridge University.  She found friends, companionship and the opportunity to support other newbies venturing into Second Life. Anna describes Oxbridge University as a wonderful expression of Caledon as it was and is. 

 

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“I fell so in love with the possibilities of Second Life for me personally...”

Anna Darwinian

Photo taken by Zebrati Merricks

Tehanu Marenwolf, winner of the Steampunk Adventures logo contest.

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Next Anna bought a house and furniture from Koshari Mahana and often visited Koshari’s store in Winterfell.  One morning Anna received an instant message from Koshari wanting to know if she, Anna, would want to take over her store, as Koshari was downsizing and did not want to leave Serra Anansi, owner of Winterfell, without a tenant. At that time though Anna was still very new to Second Life and was not making or designing items. Despite that, Anna was in love with the beautiful Steampunk Adventures Store as it was then and still is today, so she jumped at the chance.   After giving it much consideration Anna decided to make the store a "good old fashioned” consignment shop with a variety of merchandise from a variety of vendors. This may have resulted because of Anna’s style in getting the right sort of inventory in the store.  She states that, “Of course I kept working my courage up to ask more people whose stuff I liked (to put it in the store)." At that time her joke was that the store was "a collision of my inventory with my friends list."  However Anna does not joke about how fortunate she was to have such a group of talented and creative friends.

 Anna did find that, by following

Serra’s guidance, she improved on the appearance of the store inside and out and made it more appealing. For example, Serra advised that she not put airships or certain other items on the lawn, as she did not want it to look like a yard sale was always in progress. Anna, for her part, agreed.  She has also had shows on the roof of the store to promote her vendors. The vendors would present information and answer questions about their merchandise in the store. As the store gained in popularity several people who make truly wonderful things approached her, saying that they believed her customers would like their wares. They were always right about that!

By this time Anna had met many talented people in Second Life who were building and scirpting some very high-quality things like Darlingmonster Ember, airship designer.  Anna described   Ms. Ember’s creations as "flying jewelry, or mechanical negligees or something."  Anna had a lot of airships in the

inventory right from the start; not surprising, given the Caledonian and Steamlander passion for flying machines. In contrast to Ms. Ember's work, she also sold Ilse Munro's more historical-looking aircraft.

 When asked about popular items in

Steampunk Adventures she said that some of the most popular items were the lovely easels that Victorian Magic makes, as well as Yolanda Hirvi's furniture. Speaking from experience she stated that she felt that many people come in here to enjoy all the wild and unusual items on display, but what they most often what they came home with was furniture.

 Anna’s decision to sell Steampunk

Adventures Store is all due to bunnies, or rather, her love for bunnies.  Celebrating her first rezday on March 8, 2010 she was given two bunny nests by a friend...and the rest is history!  She fell in love with the little critters.   Not only has she found them fun but profitable as well..as we were conducting the interview she sold a bunny or two. Anna also continues her entrepreneurial activities with a small store  in Steam Sky City called Steam Duck.

 In addition to this she has taken on

some other projects. For example, the beautiful homestead sim of Caledon Primverness.   Anna stated that on the ground level it is a lovely park that she kept almost as CoyoteAngel Dimsum, the previous owner of Caledon Primverness, left it.

Busy setting up her Caledon she first installed a Taj Mahal by Jenne Dibou, which floats over the sky platform supported by pink balloons on ribbons, with green-flaming Cavorite lifters under it,  a bunny meadow is a sky platform with a fine view of the Taj, and its own large moon with moonbeams. Happily, Anna states that  the bunnies find it quite romantic.

Anna envisions a successful future for the new proprietors of Steampunk Adventures...stating that, “I wrote and taught a course at Oxbridge University ‘Sell What You Make,’” is that successful SL businesses are most often run by partners.”

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Austral and Alix StoanesNew Ally of CaledonBy CathyWyo1 HaystackI had the opportunity for an impromptu interview with Alix Stoanes when I was exploring their sim to find out what was happening there on their grand opening weekend (July 17th and 18th). Mr Alix Stoanes is the founder and General Governor of Austral. Austral is, as Mr Stoanes describes it, a Victorian Steampunk sim with a colonial theme and a twist of Australiana.

When asked what inspired him to take on this venture, he stated it was a “long-standing idea” that evolved through lengthy discussions with Caledon Governor Desmond Shang. After that, as Mr Stoanes stated, “the planets aligned and it moved along on his ‘to-do’ list”. What surprised Mr Stoanes was finding out that Desmond Shang had a similar idea.

What has evolved from this concept and conversations with Desmond Shang is a close collaborator, supporter of Caledon, and member of the Steamlands - a new micronation called Austral.

When asked if Austral was completely occupied, Mr Stoanes confirmed it was currently full with merchants, residents, and entertainment venues. Prospective residents have been turned away because they did not meet the thematic requirements of this Victorian era sim.

There is definitely some overlap between the Steamlands. Rodolfo Woodget, proprietor of Caledon’s Bashful Peacock, held a grand opening at Austral’s Bashful Platypus on July 18th with Soliel Snook DJing the event.

Mr Stoanes is a familiar landholder around New Toulouse, Winterfell, and Caledon, in addition to having his Austral lands.

Photo SafariSpotlight on the Commonwealth of AustralBy Gordon Soliel and Zebrati Merricks

Good day to you, Dear Reader, and welcome to the first Steampunk Adventures Photo Safari. We here at SA

are hoping to make this a monthly feature in the magazine, as there are many steampunk areas that, like the products in the Steampunk Adventures store, could bear to be exposed to the community at large. Each issue, my metallic guardian Zebrati Merricks and myself will choose a steampunk-themed sim or group of sims to cover, taking photographs and making amusing (and in my guardian's case, shockingly lewd) comments along the way. Austral is one of the newest steampunk-themed areas of the Grid, and even though it is a young sim, it is already quite the build. The area is a wild, untamed frontier, brimming with Australian wildlife, and the people are of very good cheer. Governor Alix Stones in particular was quite friendly, and willing to share some of the secret areas of the area with us.

This, of course, is myself, at the teleport-in point. I'm wearing one of my more practical gowns for this expedition; wearing anything more elaborate be asking for trouble in this wild, dusty land.

This is my dear friend and guardian, Zebrati Merricks, looking quite dashing

in his tophat and cloak. Don't be fooled by his diminuitive size, Dear Reader; he can be quite the handful when he wants to be.

Here, Mr. Merricks is in the capital city's park, practicing his hobby: sitting on unwilling animals. This, I believe, is an “emu”, well-regarded for its meat and oils.

Sadly, industry cannot be denied, even in this wonderfully wild place. The docks here are managed by the East Zindra Trading Company, a Steamlands trading concern owned by Danyell Wytchwood.

This trolley, and others like it, was our primary method of getting around

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the island. I don't know how he did it, but Zebrati managed to make it explode during a border crossing. He got quite the lecture for that incident, believe me. My frock nearly got smudged.

This is one of the river docks, apparently in the aftermath of some battle or other. Quite a boisterous people, these Australites.

This is the dashing Alix Stoanes, Governor-General of the island. He was quite courteous and helpful, pointing out several things on the island we might otherwise have missed...

...such as this delightful airship, the Barinya Australis, used to ferry the original colonists to this land. It's almost a

city in and of itself, featuring a still-in-progress line of shops...

...and this delightful ballroom. One may become quite giddy at the thought of holding a grand ball with fireworks exploding right outside the window! Or perhaps that was just me. I don't handle heights too terribly well.

Back on the ground, we encountered one of the strangest beasts I had ever encountered. The Guidebook to Australite Wildlife indicated that it was a “kangaroo.” Mr Merricks, of course, attempted to sit on its head. He now sports a large dent in his own head from where the creature punched him.

It's quite nice to see, even in the frontier areas, that the debt we moderns owe to classicism is still appreciated. This lovely edifice was built by one Flynn Bracken, who could not be reached before press time, but whose artistry is still quite appreciated.

This mechanical monster was found just north of Austral's Tasman region. Unfortunately, soon after discovering it, we discovered we were no longer in Austral, but in the Caer Firnas region of Caledon. We didn't realize we were so close to the mother country!

This clocktower is, as of press time, the base of the elevator that takes visitors up to the Barinya Australis. We unfortunately visited while the elevator

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was still under construction, but the clocktower itself was still quite charming.

While here, Mr. Merricks decided to indulge in the the fruit of the vine. Why, I have no idea, as he has no digestive system or, as far as I can tell, taste buds. Nevertheless, we decided to drop in at the local watering hole, the Laughing Vulcan. What the Roman god of metallurgy has to do with drunkenness, I shall never know.

Inside, the décor was as jolly and relaxed as the best pubs are. In fact, the people in this photograph were so relaxed they didn't answer any of Mr Merricks' or my questions about photographing them.

The back room of the Vulcan. One wonders if the proprietor or the beer companies paid to be able to display their signs on the walls.

Finally, we have the Austral office of the East Zindra Trading Company, who were kind enough to provide us with transport back to Winterfell, the home of the SA offices. Please ignore the half-naked man; I believe he was an escaped mental patient.

And so, we come to the end of our journey through the wild and wonderful lands of Austral. Please, Dear Reader, let we here at the magazine know how you liked this article, and if you'd like to see more. For now, though, au revoir!

Ask A TigerSelections from a blog

Good evening, gentle reader. Our esteemed executive publisher, Onyx Plutonian, has agreed to share some of the questions and answers he has received at his blog: http://askatiger.blogspot.com. We hope you enjoy this column, and implore you to ask more questions at his site. Adieu!

Dear Sir, I am seeking to purchase some Victorian Era jewelry for my Second Life wife..what sort of gemstones were popular during the era ..should I be looking for a particular design in a ring? Thank ye kindly.

Sir, you are a gentleman and I commend you on being so thoughtful of your beloved spouse. In order to properly answer your question I had to do a little research of my own. I shall summarize some of that information here and will provide links to the articles themselves should you or my other dear readers wish to peruse them. <adjusts his professorial mortar board>

The Victorian era spanned 64 years and is divided into 3 major periods, The Early Victorian Period, or Romantic Period, spanning 1837-1860; the Mid or High Victorian Period, also known as the Grand Period spanning 1860-1885; and the Late Victorian Period, or Aesthetic Period spanning 1885-1901. The world of nature, inspired from styles of the Renaissance and Middle Ages, were very popular motifs in Victorian Jewelry. Bouquets of flowers, branches, leaves, grapes and berries remained fashionable. There was a symbolism associated with flowers that carried through the first half of the century. Snake and serpent motifs, as symbols of wisdom, reached their peak in the 1840's. The most popular metals incorporated into the jewels of the era were 18k to 22k gold, tri-color gold, silver, rolled gold and electroplate.

In the late 1830's to early 40's, a lady's clothing fashionably covered all of the body. High necklines and bonnets covered the ears, therefore, necklaces and earrings were not often worn. Extremely large brooches were in vogue, and worn at the neck during the day, or at the low décolletage, often combined with fresh flowers, for evening wear. Adornment of the hands and wrists became increasingly important, with Victorian rings and large bracelets designed to make the hand look dainty and feminine. The most widespread gemstones used in jewelry during the Early Victorian Period were diamonds (rose-cuts and brilliants), amethyst, pink and golden topaz, turquoise, chalcedony, coral, garnet, ruby, seed pearls and cameos. Cameos were fashioned out of many elements,

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including shell, lava, coral and micro-crystalline, layered quartz varieties.

The latter half of the century saw a revival of Egyptian, Etruscan and Phoenician style jewelry. The passing of the Duchess of Kent, and later Prince Albert, the American Civil War and the assassination of President Lincoln brought death and mourning to the forefront of peoples’ minds and influenced fashions as well. Lockets became an important fashion accessory. They were often suspended on "book chains" that could double as bookmarks at night.

Although originally considered bad luck, opals became very popular, reaching a peak in 1886. Other popular gemstones in the mid-Victorian period were amethysts, cabochon garnets, crystal, emeralds, diamonds, onyx, pearl, ruby, black glass, bog oak, jet ivory and tortoise shell. Also popular was so-called "Cock Cover Jewelry" fashioned from the ornately hand pierced cock covers from watches made in the previous century. The earliest examples of Victorian solitaire diamond rings, set in both gold and silver were seen in 1895. The most popular gemstones in the late Victorian period were amethyst, aquamarine, chrysoprase, chrysoberyl, opals, moonstones, sapphires, turquoise, peridot and rubies.

For your additional reading: http://www.langantiques.com/university/index.php/Victorian

Dear Mr. P.,I find myself in the awkward predicament of being indebted to a demon. Unfortunately, I am unable to repay the debt at the agreed upon time. What would a tiger do, were he to find himself in my precarious situation? Sincerely, Miss P.

My dear Miss P. you have certainly managed to get yourself into quite a predicament. Deals with the devil seldom end well. Most of the literature on the subject suggests that the best one can hope for is a re-negotiation of the terms. Devils and demons tend to be sticklers for the letter of any agreement. If you are lucky, you may be able to find a loophole to wriggle through.

You asked what a tiger might do. Well, a tiger would hardly put himself in such a disadvantageous position to begin with. Should he unwittingly find himself in such a predicament, however, he would endeavor to fulfill the terms of the contract with all due haste. Failing that, teeth and claws have their uses.

Which nation gave women the right to vote first? Which Ocean goes to the deepest depths? What is northernmost land on earth? Where is the World’s Largest Aquarium? What country has not fought in a war since 1815?

Who am I, Jeeves all of a sudden? Does anyone remember that Ask.com was originally Ask Jeeves? Alright, well, here we go.

Which nation gave women the right to vote first?

New Zealand is often credited with being the first country to grant women the right to vote, in 1893; however, at the time New Zealand was not an independent nation. It was a semi-independent, self governing British colony. Also, while they could vote, women were not permitted to run for a seat in the New Zealand parliament until 1919. Finland was the first independent nation in the world to give full suffrage, the right to vote and to run for office, to all citizens including women in 1906.

Which Ocean goes to the deepest depths?

That would be the Pacific Ocean. The deepest point on the globe is the Marianas Trench with a depth of 10,924 meters (35,840 feet) below sea level. The trench is located South of Japan and North of New Guinea.

What is the northernmost land on earth?

This geographical touchpoint is known as Ultima Thule, so named in 330 B.C. by the Greek explorer Pytheas of Massalia. Unfortunately Pytheas didn't take very good notes and no one could figure out just where this place actually was. The explorer Robert Perry was believed to have discovered Thule as the Northernmost tip of Greenland in 1900. More recent explorations, however, have

now set Kaffeklubben Island, a spot slightly north of Cape Morris Jesup (83°40'N, 29°50'W), as the spot.

Where is the World’s Largest Aquarium?

As for natural aquariums, the smart-aleck answer is that you will find it off the coast of every major continent. It goes by different names depending on what part of the globe you stand on when viewing it. However, that does not fit the definition of an aquarium as being an artificial enclosure. For the biggest such attraction one must travel to Atlanta. The Georgia Aquarium, located in Atlanta, Georgia at Pemberton Place, is billed as the "world's largest aquarium" with more than 8.1 million US gallons (31,000 m³) of marine and fresh water housing more than 100,000 animals of 500 different species.

What country has not fought in a war since

1815?

Switzerland has not fought a war

since 1815, when the Congress of Vienna granted independence and neutrality to Switzerland. (Editor's note: this is only in regard to the country of Switzerland. Swiss mercenaries have a long and colorful history, even though any Swiss citizen outside the Vatican's Swiss Guards is technically committing a war crime by engaging in mercenary work, and Swiss regulars were deployed when treaties with other countries demanded it, as in the Siege of Gaeta in 1860, during the Italian War of Unification.)

Again, if you would like to ask our executive publisher / resident gentletiger questions to be considered for our Ask a Tiger column, please visit Mr Onyx Plutonian’s blog on the matter at:

http://askatiger.blogspot.com

And now we have a story brought by the delightful Duchess of Perenelle, Alana Steamweaver. Read on!

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Her Majesty’s Misfortunate Maidor, a dubious diversionBy Alana Steamweaver

From A.Jeeves, Chief Butler: It has come to my attention that this

piece of entertainment uses grammar unbecoming to the Empire. However, as it is merely a diversion, I am willing to grant a small leniency in this matter, especially as no one (except, perhaps, the dignities of various persons) was harmed in its course.

If you will quite excuse me, I have to see what Ms Jessup has invented this time...

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"But I'm 23! I'm past my prime already!" The maid sitting at the end of the counter buried her head in her arms atop the bar. "I'm an old maid! I'm never going to marry."

The automechanical barkeep aboard Her Majesty’s Air Ship Mungo Park quietly continued to polish glasses, the brass color of his metallic skin glinting under the lights of the lounge. He was a decent enough sort, as barkeepers go. Quiet, conscientious, very good at mixing over 1000 different drinks, and self polishing. He was also an excellent listener. He wasn't nearly so good at actually talking, having a vocabulary limited to describing the list of drinks he could serve, but you can't have everything.

A glass clinked next to the maid. Sarsaparilla was the answers to the poor barmaid's woes, the barkeep thought. Well, in as much as he could think. He at least seemed to have enough mental capacity to realize that if she was this maudlin on fizzy soft drinks, real alcohol was probably out of the question.

"He was so charming, though! And I didn't really mind that he was just a longshoreman! We could have settled down, had a nice little cottage overlooking the cliffs, and a dozen children. He could have worked at the

airship docks, and I could have kept house for him, and then he'd come home to dinner, and we'd watch the airships go by sitting in the garden. It would have been wonderful! Like a dream!" The girl swept up her glass of sarsaparilla and downed it in a shot, then hiccupped as the bubbles went straight to her diaphragm. "Maybe I shouldn't have accepted this position."

"Ms. Jessup," a stern voice spoke from behind her. Alfred Jeeves, the Chief Butler, had materialized behind her with all the silence and unobtrusiveness that a long line of British Butlers had spent nearly a millennium developing. "I couldn't agree more. You shouldn't have accepted this assignment. However, Captain Morgan insisted on securing you a position on this ship, and I shall abide by his decision."

Even without turning around, Violet Jessup, 1st class maid aboard the “Mongo” could tell that the little vein in Alfred’s forehead was throbbing. She'd worked with him before, when Captain Morgan had captained another ship she'd been aboard, and the encounters between her and his personal Butler (with a capital B ) had been memorable. She jerked upright, face making an "Oh!" that went unvoiced, eyes wide with fear.

Alfred continued on, his voice slow, metered, and cutting. "Ms. Jessup, I am going to leave aside for now the fact that you are here, in the lounge, enjoying a little relaxation instead of attending to your duties. The reason for that would be that I have larger concerns. To wit, the contraption I discovered in Ms. Airheart’s quarters. It has all the signs of being one of your addle minded schemes, and I desire an explanation."

Violet nibbled her lip for a few seconds. The Chief Butler had presented himself to the new passengers roughly three minutes ago. In order for him to have made it into Ms. Airheart’s, locate her latest invention, and then return, he would have only been able to analyze it for about forty-five seconds. Naturally, this means he would not have been able to sufficiently watch it to realize that this time it was actually working as she'd

intended, and that, in fact, she was still accomplishing her duties while having a little refresher.

"It's an automated dusting machine, sir," she answered, still not turning about. She placed her hand demurely in her lap, and began to recite her work for him. "I combined a feather duster with a spring motivator and a rocker arm, then attached wheels to the side that are driven by the same spring and cog assembly as the feather duster. After that I put a buffer and a tank of varnish on the back. All you have to do is wind it up and set it in an area needing dusting, and it will do the work twice as fast as a person could. I think that next I can give it a pair of arms so that it can move vases out of the way an"

"MS. JESsup..." Violet winced as the Cheif Butler's voice momentarily spoke at a level slightly above circumspect (though still not enough to turn the heads of any of the guests.) "I find the dubious value of your interest in these contraptions to only be exceeded by the inadvisability of letting you actually indulge this interest. I will not have you continue to endanger this vessel and Captain Morgan’s reputation any further. There will be no more 'inventions' from you, do you understand me?"

Violet rose from the stool and turned primly towards Alfred, her face lowered as befit her station. "Yes, si..." Her voice trailed off as she took in the appearance of what she could see of him from her submissive position. He was covered in a fine, gray powder, with a particularly large dust bunny clinging to the back of one knee of his neatly pressed trousers. Several stains were visible, making the black of the cloth even blacker. "Oh my..." she gasped.

"It seems, Ms. Jessup, that your little contraption cannot distinguish between the top of a writing table, and a member of this ship's complement. You can imagine my surprise when it attempted to varnish me."

"I'm terribly sorry! I was so sure I had it right this time!" Violet's fair skin was turning a particularly vibrant shade

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of red as she wrung her hands together before her.

"Just... go throw that thing overboard and return to your duties, Ms. Jessup. We will talk more about this little incident later. After I have changed into something presentable."

"Yes, sir."

Violet was walking back from the hold, where she had discreetly stashed her little device for later improvements when the alarm klaxon sounded.  Hiking her skirts up just enough to enable herself to run without quite revealing her ankles, she hurried to the 1st class accommodations deck (idly wondering why they bothered calling it “1st class” when there was no other class aboard).  After all, as one of the ship’s crew, she had been trained in how to respond to emergencies.

If the ship was on fire, it was her duty to help ready the passengers to board the emergency bubbles that would be tossed overboard and then float down to the surface below. If the ship was crashing, she was to help wrap them in mattresses to pad them against the sudden stop at the end of the fall. If the ship was out of tea, well, it was her duty to try to keep the passengers from panicking while an immediate SOS was sent out. And if it was pirates...

Well, she certainly had been hoping it wasn't pirates. She'd been through two pirate attacks before. The first time, the pirates had been in a hurry, and had known exactly what they were looking for. They'd boarded, found a chest full of Dr. Goodes Cure It All Elixirs and Household Appliance Lubricant in the hold, and hauled it away before anyone really knew what was happening. The second time the pirates had been in much less of a rush, but His Majesty's Airship Indeflowerable had come along and forced the pirates to flee before anything untoward had happened.  She was not at all interested in seeing if pirates adheared to the “Third time’s a charm” rule.

“Attention all hands!”  Captain Morgan’s voice called out from the brass horn mounted above a hatch in the passageway.  “We are about to be boarded by pirates.  Prepare to repel boarders! All noncombatants please report to your cabin at once.”

As was only proper, Violet waited until she had descended two decks and closed herself within her cabin before resorting to panic.  It wouldn’t have done to have gone screaming down the hallways after the announcement.  She was a British maid, after all, and as such there were appearances to maintain.  Once she was in the privacy her cabin, however, protocol allowed for more leeway in her behavior, which she duly began to exercise the moment the hatch swung shut.

Her companion, named Elizabeth, doubtless worried that the volume of sound would be audible in the guest cabins three decks up, attempted to shush Violet. "Now, don't fret. I'm sure that pirates wouldn't attack the Mungo Park!  We’re one of Her Majesty’s Imperial Exploratory Airships, with a redoubtable crew of seasoned airmen and with guests who include the greatest explorers and adventurers in all of England!  They’d never be so foolish."

"But they would, Lizzie!" Violet gasped. "Haven't you ever read any of the stories?" She leaned forward and clutched her bunk-mate's hands between hers. "After such a denouement as you just provided, the pirates board in order to loot and... to commit rapine upon us! Then they'll carry us away to their ship to be their harem-clothed pleasure slaves! I can't be a pleasure slave! I've never known a man!"

Lizzie pulled her hands away and gave Violet a cross look. "Violet, don't be ridiculous. If such a thing should occur, just remember what the Queen has said!"

"Close your eyes and think of England?"

"Violet..."

But before her fellow maid could explain which quote she had actually intended, (and divert Violet from wondering if being ravished really was as pleasant as the books made it seem, and whether or not that would make it harder to think of England) the small porthole to their room swung open and smashed against the bulkhead with a clang of metal on metal and a gust of air pressure being released.

"Ooch! I daena unnerstan wah yer thinkin, Angus!" A head poked in through the porthole, and looked around. "There's naught here but a wee cabin! We should be makin our way through the big'uns like the other clansmen!"

"We're goin in through this'aen cause all the aethers are goin' in through the baeguns.“  A voice flowed in past the head stuck in the porthole.  “They'll all be lootin up there, and we'd have to settle with thae dregs o'whatever they didna take! But here we get first dibs! Now hurry oop and get yer bollux in there, Angus!" The head suddenly shot forward, followed by an entire body, and the man flopped to the deck in a pile.  Immediately after, a second head began wedging its way through.

"Well, tha was a low thing tae do to yer kin, Angus!" the fellow on the deck objected. "Wha did ye push me fer?"

"Because ye were blockin the way, ye great oaf ! What was I tae do, Angus? Stare at yer arse all raid?"

"Wait..." Lizzie stared at the two pirates. "You're both named Angus?"

"Aye," Angus said, this Angus being the one on the floor.

"But... why?" Violet asked.

"We're Scottish!" Angus replied, this one being the Angus in the porthole. Violet found this explanation to be at least as reasonable as any other she might have gotten, given the circumstances.  She’d certainly encountered stranger in her previous voyages.  As such she simply nodded and waited while the Angus in the port hole glowered at the Angus on

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the floor.  "Angus, ye lummox! Get oop and halp me through this porthole, I'm stuck!"

"Sorry Angus!" The thinner Angus popped up, took an ear in each hand, and began tugging away at the head sticking through the porthole. As he tugged, he pondered a moment, then spoke up. "Angus, there's a pair of lassies in here."

"Aye!" Angus replied with a surprising amount of gusto for someone being pulled painfully by his ears through a hole several inches smaller than the width of his shoulders. "Of course there are!  That's where the rapine comes in, Angus!"

Angus paused in his tugging on Angus’ ears.  "But Angus, if we take th' time to commit rapine, we won't have time tae loot!"

"Angus, ye damned fool! Tha's why we throw them over a shoulder with one hand and loot wi' th' othar! We can take these bairns back over tae our lair and make them pleasure slaves after the lootin'!"

"Oh, thaes good, Angus!" Angus said. "I have those harem clothes from that wee little Barbary Airship from thae last raid."

"See!" Violet pointed out with glee. "I told you, 'Lizzie! Rapine!"

"Is this really the time, Violet?" Lizzie gave Viole a quelling look as she reached over and picked up a very thick-glassed leaded mirror. She hefted it, then brought it down on the head of Angus (the puller) hard enough to break the glass. Angus (the puller) gave a sickly smile, then slumped to the deck.

"Ooch! Ye ought naught have done that, lassy!" Angus (the pully) stated.

"Why not?" Lizzie replied. "Am I not allowed to defend my English person from northern barbarism?"

"Ooch, Aye, ye are!" Angus commented. "But ye should ha done that

before I was able to finish squeezing into this wee cabin.  Then ye could ha’ brained me in turn." He smiled at her from where he now stood, kilt slightly askew from his just completed narrow entry.

"Oh. I see." Lizzie nodded sagely. "Jolly good idea, that." With a pleasant smile she turned, opened the hatch, and bolted out into the passageway beyond.

"Lizzie?" Violet gabbled, then leaned out the hatch of the cabin to stare after the fleeing woman. She then turned back to face Angus. "Um... How do you do?" She gave a curtsey.

"Oh, Most faer, lass. Thankee,” Angus replied. “Now, I've thangs tae do, so if ye don mind, we'll attend tae the rapine later. For now, just bea a goo lass there an keep quiet." He scooped Violet over his shoulder and hauled her down the passageway.

After thinking about it a moment, Violet decided the best thing to do in the circumstance was to scream and kick her heels in a way that probably exposed her pettycoats in a most unseemly fashion. It was what happened in all the best of novels, after all.  She’d hate to violate precedent.

The pair proceeded in this manner past a variety of sights.  There was the Gallant Captain of Her Majesty’s Coldstream Guards personally dueling four pirates at once.  A little further on they moved past the rather mad eccentric doctor unleashing strange energies from his latest contraption while cackling madly.  (Unfortunately, he was targeting random bulkheads which would later need repair rather than pirates.)  Next they encountered the poorly disguised woman-pretending-to-be-a-cabin-boy that all ships were required to have aboard in accordance with a Parliamentary Decree.  And, of course, the ship drunk was proceeding to brain every pirate he could reach with his flagon as they passed through the lounge.

Throughout this panoply of scenes, Violet continued the unseemly kicking of her feet, revealing her petticoats and

bloomers in a most inappropriate fashion. Her squeals and objections went completely unanswered by the Scotsman, not that she'd have necessarily understood his answers had he given them. Underlying her objections could be heard the sounds of looting, pillaging, (no rapine, yet. These Scots seemed to have priorities) and the 1812 Overture.

“CUT OUT THAT MUSIC!” Alfred bellowed, causing the ship’s band to slide to a discordant halt.  That resolved, Alfred leaned out of the linen closet, dusting a few flecks of plaster off his shoulder. "MS. JESSUP! Cease that horrid screeching and flailing at once! You will represent this ship with some sense of decorum!"

"Yes, sir!" Violet called back, and proceeded to lay more quiescently over the shoulders of the pirate, her hands demurely keeping her skirt well in place in spite of Angus' bouncy gait.

Angus glanced over at her at this sudden change in demeanor.  "Ooch!  Why dinna I think o' that? It’s much easier on th’ ears."

"You're not a British Butler. It wouldn’t have worked,” Viola responded.

"Ye ha' a point, lass. Perhaps some correspondence courses on th’ matter between raids might na be amiss?" Angus nodded thoughtfully as he swept up a nice silver candelabra and a rather sharp looking tatted doily from a small table along the way. "Now, jes hold these for me for a moment." He turned sharply, dodging into a cabin. He eyed the large window, then gave a nod. "Aye, that'll do."

"Do for what?" Violet asked.

"Exiting, lass. I need ta put ye down if ’n I’m ta get more loot.”  He waved the candelabra and doily.  “Since aye don’ want ye to be escaping, tha means takin ye to th' ship an’ tying ye op proper like."

"Oh! I see." Violet nodded. "  That’s most sensible.  Permission to scream and attempt to fight you off, sir?"

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"Och! Granted lass!"

"Thank you," Violet said gracefully. Proper observances had to be kept up, after all. She then closed her eyes and began to scream and shout, now that Angus had released her from being more seemly. She began once again kicking her feet and pounding on Angus' back with her tiny pale hands.

“ANGUS!” a deep, loud voice bellowed.  “Wha d’ye think yer doin?”

“Cap’n Angus!” Angus jumped up, dropping Violet onto her delicate feet.  “I was just taken this wee bairn off t’ be properly rapined later.”

Violet found herself undecided as to what to do at this point.  On the one hand, she was fairly certain that proper procedures required her to faint dead away at this announcement.  On the other hand, doing so was very likely to result in her laying untidily on the deck, and there was no way the Chief Butler would forgive her for creating such a mess.  Uncertain as to which course of action would best fit the situation she turned about, thinking perhaps seeing the visage of the Pirate Captain might help with her decision.

It didn’t.  Captain Angus was an admittedly large man.  His flaming red beard descended down his chest in several tight braids.  Dark eyes peered out from under bushy red eyebrows.  His nose was centered on his face, or at least Violet presumed this to be the case.  The mustache above the beard was large enough to prevent certainty.  This visage should have been sufficient to cause her to faint dead away, but this was countered by his clearly being angry with Angus, and not with Violet.  Confused, the girl simply stared.

“Y’ daft fool!” Captain Angus roared at Angus.  “Don’ ye know ye’re suppose ta be taken’ th’ designated helpless damsel?”

Angus turned and gawked at Violet.  Violet gawked back.  “Helpless damsel?” she asked.

“Aye, it’s required, don’ ye know?” Angus nodded to her.  “Every ship is required b’ international treaty to be equipped w’ a helpless damsel t’ be rescued.”

Captain Angus boxed Angus’ ears.  “An she ain’ her!”

“But… how do you know I’m not she?” Violet asked.  “I am a damsel, and rather helpless.”

“Aye, that ye are, lass,” Cap’n Angus replied as Angus picked himself up off the deck.  “But ye happen t’ be a maid, an that means ye are actually useful for someat.  Can’t be useful and helpless all at once, y’ ken?”

“Tell that to the Chief Butler,” Violet muttered.  “I’m certain he’s convinced even the rats are more useful than I.”

“Cap’n Angus!” Another pirate dashed in.  “Look ere!  I found someat in th’ hold!”

“My automatic duster!” Violet gasped.

“Duster?” Captain Angus arched an eyebrow.  “An’ how does that be workin?”

“Oh!”  Violet reached out and took the device from Angus (naturally, his name was Angus).  “Well, you just twist the key in it, then set it down and…”

The chaos that ensued was quite calamitous and substantial.  It would be improper to describe what happened, given that there are ladies who read this publication.  We shall simply state for the record that automated dusters, feather varnish, and kilts are a most unfortunate combination.  In time the duster was destroyed, Angus (no, we’re not sure which one) was properly sedated and bandaged, and Violet was tied up with an excessive amount of rope and tossed into a corner most unceremoniously. 

Sighing, and discovering that being bound was actually a bit more boring than she might have expected, Violet

began looking around.  As she looked, she began feeling a real sense of dismay.

The carpet had been trampled and was stained with furniture polish and muddy boot prints.  The curtains were torn and smeared with grease.  The furnishings had been thoroughly upset.  And the sign beside the door reading “By order of Her Majesty, the playing of ‘Frère Jacques’ is forbidden upon pain of being made to play Whist with the Captain.” was 3 degrees off plumb. 

"Oh!" She gasped. Her eyes widened.  A second time, louder now, she exclaimed. "OH! Oh my! Oh no!"

Heads turned.

"Would you... Oh, Oh would you look at this place? This... this mess! Oh this is... simply awful! AWFUL!" Violet’s lower lip began trembling.

Several of the pirates began shuffling about a bit nervously.

"Oh this is terrible. This is horrible! Why, when the Chief Butler sees this mess..."  The girl began to softly cry.

"Och!  Angus!  What dae she sae?" one of the Scotsmen asked another.

"She saed, when th' Chief Butler sees th' mess..."

"Chief butler?" asked Angus.  Another Angus. "Di she sae 'Chief Butler?'"

"Aye, Angus, tha she did," said the second.

All three pirates leaned in closer. "Er, lassy, did ye sae ye ha a Chief Butler?"

"Why, yes," Violet sniffled. "Of course! This is a British ship! It would be horribly improper to be without a Chief Butler!"

The three men nodded sagely.

"Th' bonny thing is raeght, Angus."

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"Aye, tha she is, Angus. Tis only tae be expected."

"Queen's ship an all that, aye. Why hadn't we thought of that, Angus?"

“Because ye aren’ th’ Cap’n,” Captain Angus replied.

"Och!  Aye," the Anguses replied.  “That makes sense.”

"Abou this Chief Butler," Captain Angus loomed over Violet, hands on his hips.

"Oh! Yes!" Violet shuddered in her bonds. "When he sees this mess..." she sniffled. "He's going to be horribly angry!"

By this point, several more pirates had crowded into the cabin. Mutters were heard. "Chief Butler..." "Terrible mess..." "Angus..." A crowd was beginning to form around Violet.

"Why, he'll... He'll scold me!" Violet sniffled again, her eyes beginning to water. "He'll scold me terribly, and tell me to clean up this mess, and the look in his eyes..." she wailed. "He'll look... disappointed!"

"No!" the pirates gasped. "Terrible..." came the whispers. "Scolded by a Chief Butler, tis a horrid faet, Angus!" "Och, aye! A Chief Butler's wrath..." "Poor baern..."

"And..." By this point, Violet was shuddering with sobs as tears ran down her cheeks. "And... He may not even let me enjoy afternoon tea!"

There was a sharp in drawn intake of breaths from every pirate gathered. Even Captain Angus looked aghast.  Or one had to assume so, given his beard.

"Och... Angus..." one of the pirates intoned.

"Aye?" the rest answered.

"D'ye think, maybe..." Angus asked.

“No afternoon tea…”

“Perhaps we should…”

"Aye!" Angus agreed.

"Begorah! Jesus Mary and Joseph! By faith we should help this 'ere Molly!"

The Scotsmen all immediately agreed to this, and after tossing overboard the Irishman who had just made the suggestion, and who no one could remember inviting on the raid, and which hadn’t been previously mentioned in this tale (and which caused this horribly run on sentence), began to setting everything to rights as three of them patted the weeping Violet on the back and crooned gently to her trying to comfort and calm the maid. Tables were righted, table clothes straightened, brass polished, the carpet cleaned, and even the stacks of loot were neatened up and stacked in an orderly fashion.

"WHAT I' TH' NAEM O' ANGUS ARE YE DOING?" Captain Angus yelled.

"Och," Angus commented, though at this point we couldn't possibly know which Angus it was. "Well, the wea baern was weeping... an..."

"BUGGER IT!" Cap’n Angus bellowed.  He glowered at the room at large "Tha’ is it! I hae had it! I'm through wi raidin' thae English! Even when bein’ raided thae ha t' be soooooooooooo proper!" He threw his hands up in disgust. "’Do forgive my blade damaging your bonnet.’ ‘Dreadfully sorry, but might you avert your eyes while ravishing my person?’  ‘Pardon me, but it’s tea time.  Shall we resume combat in thirty?’  I am sick tae death o’ these knobs!  Get back tae th’ ship!  Let's gae raid th' Germans again!"

"But the paperwork the Kaiser demands..." Angus cautioned.

"GET BACK TAE TH' SHIP!"

Within seconds the room was clear of Scotsmen, and surprisingly ship shape.

Violet sighed in relief.  The pirates were gone, her virtue was intact, and most importantly, the compartment was pristine.  She was still tied up, but surely the worst was over.

“Miss Jessup.”  Alfred’s voice sounded withering.

“Yes?” Violet responded meekly.

“I see you still fail to grasp even the basics of proper behavior.”

“Sir?”

“About the knots of your bindings…”

Violet sighed.

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What is Steampunk?An EditorialBy Kitsuko Pelazzi Throughout this issue we have concentrated on those who contribute to the steampunk aesthetic, but without defining it.

So what is steampunk anyway? Victorian re-imagination is certainly

one way to define steampunk - after all, we live with our own technology. But we can strive to re-create and re-imagine a world of manners, substance over flash, and where afternoon tea may be ruined by laughter from the mad (social?) scientist the next house over. In Second

Life, we can go a bit farther and create frontier steampunk or high Victorian steampunk or colonial steampunk (such in the case of Steelhead, Caledon sims, and Austral respectively). We can create airships here, high teas, and formal dances should we so wish. We can have rocket boots co-existing with marvelous airships co-existing with oil-smudged labcoats.

I think that is the essence of steampunk and this Victorian re-imagination; the will and effort to create, to make our world - even a virtual one - a better place, and knowing that such is within our grasp.

Staff BioFocus: Cathywyo1 HaystackBy Cathywyo1 Haystack

Cathywyo1 Haystack first came in to Second Life at the urging of her employer who wanted her to investigate SL for educational purposes.  Cath’s rez date is August 1, 2008.  She spent a few weeks trying to navigate the virtual world but eventually got frustrated and gave up.  

Several months later her boss asked her about Second Life and what she thought..well she had to admit she had not done much with in Second Life

believing that it would be too difficult for students to use.  At his insistence, though, she jumped back in to learning about and trying out  Second Life.  Realizing she couldn’t do much without more information she bought the book Second Life for Dummies, with this guide in hand she found ideas and tips that made navigating and understanding the technology behind Second Life much better.

She visited over 150 Second Life sites related to higher education, made connections, attended the Second Life Educator Roundtables, Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education Conference and participated in the Imagilearning SLemester classes with John Jamison.  Cathy has even presented at conferences on Second Life for educators in world and “real life.”  Now thoroughly immersed in and better understanding how Second Life could be used for education

Cathy started writing about it, researching the use of virtual worlds for education, and the learning theory behind it.

But real life being real life Cathy’s life changed and so did her focus with a shift from a professional to a personal experience in Second Life.  Cathy realized how enriched her life became due to her connections with others she met and continues to meet in Second Life and hopes that she makes a similar, positive impact on others.  She now enjoys pursuing personal interests such as art, writing, and entrepreneurial opportunities on her own and with

others. Second Life for Cathywyo1 Haystack has become a personal journey defined by “be the change you wish to see in the world!”  Second Life truly provides a means for this very personal journey.  

Cathy realized how enriched her life became due to her connections with others she met and continues to meet in Second Life and hopes she makes a similar, positive impact on others.

From the Chief EditorSpeaking of airships, here am I (Kitsuko Pelazzi) standing on the upper deck of the Festive yacht airship by Darlingmonster Ember.