By Socks Clawtooth,
Senior Furry Correspondent.
I was over at Neart practicing for the upcoming SLSA event (who am I kidding, I was just messing around in an Epic I'd never been on). If you've never been there, I really recommend going. If for nothing else go for the free Guinness.
As a furry surfer, one of the few, I tend to not be subtle. This morning I'm in my brown lop bunny. Oh, something else about furries: a lot of us change species at the drop of a hat. I've got foxes, wolves, cats, dogs, horses (normal and supernatural, Grendels is a trippy store), otters and sea lions, probably more, I've lost track. I think I have an elephant in there too. So this morning, it's the lop.
As I'm riding a wave back in, my eye is drawn to shore to see where I'm going to meet it, and I'm surprised to see someone there. Well, I didn't see her at first, but I saw the dress. It blew in the wind effortlessly as she stood at the water's edge, gazing into the cold sea. A splash of red on the Irish coast line watching the water. I thought nothing of it, the view here is very nice. I made it to shore and watched her a moment, I mean how could I not?
Then she walked into the water to her knees, and off onto the sea. A little odd, sure, but... oh wait, she's 20M down and walking. Oh dear. She turned around and came back to shore, still in her heels and flowing red dress. Something is amiss. I check a profile, and nothing on it. She's a new SL resident, 4 days old if that. Stunning dress, however.
I watch her a while longer, and go catch another wave. On the way back in I see her standing on the shore, taking off her dress. Phew! Swimsuit under it, oh good. Not that I'm against nudity or anything, just not at a public beach. She's standing on shore, over a board, and pacing around it. I paddle over, introduce myself, and ask her if she needs help. "I don't know if I can use this surfboard!" Oh! I can help! I check it, it's open to all, then I remember she's fresh off the Welcome Island.
So, I give her a crash course in surfing 101. After a few rides, and we did party waves all the way, she said "Yes, this is much better!" And she's much happier. "I have to go," she said "thank you for your help." And with that, she vanished into the Ether. I picked my old board up, and went on surfing. Will I ever see her again? Well, Second Life is a big place, one never knows. But it got me to thinking.
The reason we're all into surfing here is we all 'get it'. There's a vibe, an energy that you just don't get in other places. We could spend hours in a club, or in a seedy dive, or a live show somewhere, but we choose surfing. It's the waves, its virtual nature that many of us can't get to, or others of us can and bring that energy to the virtual world.
We may laugh at the n00b who rezzes boxes on their heads, but we're all that guy once in our lives. I bring an attitude over from other sports of "teach someone". Some guy is having a hard time, ten minutes of your life is a small investment to get someone to enjoy something for a lifetime. So, why not take some time with a new rider? Understand that they don't know how to do flips or cutback turns nor even how to do that cool 'eagle stance'. They're honestly happy running end to end on a pipe, and they're stoked when they can do it standing up! More people exposed to it means more ideas, more beaches down the road, more board designers and more people to ride with. There are friends you have, and friends you have not met yet. Help one of the second group out.
As a side note, I feel bad for you people at Neart. You're gonna freeze your buns off! I know I won't, I've got a fur coat to keep me warm!
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