The making of a Super Model... from Newbie to Resident to Model

Hi everybody... I'm baaaaaack.. LOL!

So, I had my UCWS final with Anrol today... and man was it nerve racking... I was already nervous, I mean, this was Anrol.. the ultimate Super Model, she was what I aspire to be, and she was going to judge me...  *Whew!* add to that, Murphy's Law was playing tricks on me.. and everything that could go wrong... DID!!... I tried to maintain my composure.. cause that's the mark of a true model, but wow.. it was soo hard...

So, things started about 2 hours before I took my final... I was at work and our building was rocked by a 5.9 earthquake that's epic center was about 10 miles from my house! So, I was already shaken up... Then I rushed home, cleaned up the fallen and broken items, and logged into SL to let Anrol know I was home...

I was told that my final would be... you got it... Now! OMG! I couldn't even think straight... had no time to settle and prepare, but had to TP to the Final Exam...Now!... Okay, I could do this... I would present myself as a professional model, I would overcome the obsticals.. I was determined... BTW... we are still getting really big aftershocks... But, if I had learned nothing else at CWS, it was that a Model perservered.

During the exam, I had some serious Lag issue... walking furthur that I'd planned, walking off the stage, hud issues, comm issues.. LOL! Wow! It was crazy... actually, after all that had happened today, I was surprised to even have an Internet connection, so there is a bright side to everything.

In my humble opinion, my classmates and I did a fabulous job... of course... I'm just an apprentice..LOL!.. so, my opinion and a quarter will get you a cup of coffee... *giggles* Actually, now that it's over... I had a great time.. I just wish I had calmed myself enough to actually enjoy it.

Anyway, I know this is a long post, but I wanted to take this time to give you a little insight on my fabulous CWS experience... explain how I got to where I am now... and to help you understand why this UCWS Final with Anrol is so important to me...

Check this out...

As I've mentioned before, I rezzed into SL about 3 and a half months ago... and I knew nothing about SL other than what I had read in a magazine. I was sooo green... LOL.. I didnt know how to walk, I knew nothing about AO's or skins, or even shopping... NOTHING ABOUT SHOPPING.. Can you believe it.. me the fashionista?!?  Okay, okay I know you don't believe me... you need some proof...so check it out, this was me... no, really.. it was...

So, after being in SL awhile I learned the little things, how to change my shape, adding AO's, skins.. and of course.. SHOPPING!! LOL! I was having a great time... I couldn't walk very well, but hey... I was meeting people, partying with friends and family, dancing, just having a lot of fun...

Only for me, something was still missing...yeah, I was having fun, I was living the high life, and yet... every time I walked past a modeling agency, every time saw the models in the stores, every time I looked at the different fashion displays...my heart ached...  I wanted to be a model... but, how does someone go from a fairly popular SL Resident, to a dedicated, elegant, Model?... I didn't know... but, I was determined to find out...

After much research, I finally sent a note card to the owner and designer of one of my favorite stores, NILSY... She was awesome, she told me about modeling in SL... unfortunately; she did her own modeling... but, she was soo nice, she told me about CWS. How great it was, how serious everybody took modeling, and she gave me Anrol's name as a person to contact to get more information.

I was soo excited... I've always wanted to model... I wanted to be Michelangelo's David... but, a muse for the fashion industry... and I finally had a some direction... a way to accomplish my goal of becoming a Model... But, I still had that little issue with walking... okay, a big issue.. I could get from point A to point B, but I unintentionally detoured to points C, D, and E before I got there... boy, did I need help...

Was CWS University that good? Could they help me..the worst walker in SL?... Could they take me from the "girl who walked a crooked mile" to a sleek, accomplished straight walking model?.. Hmmm.. I had the determination and the drive, but I needed the knowledge.

Well, after 3 Weeks of UCWS, I can honestly tell you that... Yes, They Can!! LOL! I have learned soo much. I'm graceful, sleek, and can walk straighter than I ever imagined possible. Their instructors/trainers are 100% professional and dedicated to making you the best model you can be...

I won't lie, it was hard work... one of the hardest things I've done since coming to SL, but the end result is fabulous!... Heck.. I'm a little bit fabulous too... LOL! ... a little bit.. I still have a lot of growing to do, but I've come soo far.. This is me after Finals with Anrol.. Wow, huh?!? I know...

Anyway, I've bent your ear enough... Imma let you go.. and go hang out with a few of my fellow classmates.. BTW... CWS draws in a special breed of Model.. All my classmates are.. wait.. were.. LOL!.. soo nice and helpful... I'm honored to have met and learned with them... And, I am soo proud of myself for having accomplished my Goal!!!

Myself and two of my classmates after Finals... Snow, Maggie and I

 

Reflecting on Communication in SL

Hello my peeps… So, before I start in with my mindless rambling, I thought I'd show you a couple of pieces of my artwork. I woke up this morning and realized that while I often talk about being an artist, and how my love of modeling was inspired by Michelangelo’s Dave, the model behind the masterpiece. I have never shared that part of myself… So, I’ve attached a few pieces... something for you to look at, to reflect upon during my thoroughly intelligent *giggles* pondering... lol… Anyway, hope you enjoy them…

In A Mother's Arms

 

Rhythm of the Motherland

Timeless Dignity

 

Now... ****Picture a big megaphone and horns and trumpets playing in the distance**** “LET THE RUMINATING BEGIN”… this shouted by a guy in green tights and a jesters cap…*giggles.* Let me start with the reason behind my rumination of SL and how people act and react to each other. I had a “slight altercation”, if you will, with another individual in SL yesterday… and it made me think about how differently we handle ourselves SL vs. RL. I always try to be nice, no matter the environment… I do… (Alright family and friends… I do...so stop shaking your heads…lol)… I think that generally, most people try to be kind to others.

A-n-y-w-a-y… (smiles) In RL you are allowed distance…even in a classroom environment, there is always some sort of distance… So, we have the luxury of meeting and making friends or not, at our own pace. We learn each other, and we can do this by verbally speaking to the person, by observing each others non verbal communications, like physical movement and facial expressions, or through a combination of the two. But, it’s different in SL; we deal with each other so closely …spending way more time with strangers than we ever would in RL, and outside of the words actually exchanged between two people, we have no insight into that other person… I think sometimes kindness or silence may come across as passiveness or shyness. Basically, what I’m saying is, we tend to interact with each other two dimensionally; instead of three…

Hmmm… 

What?!?! I don’t have the answers… LOL!! I’m just presenting an observation… But, I think as an SL model, one that’s required to interact with so many different people in so many situations, it would behoove us to try to figure it out… I don’t know if there even is an answer, but until someone much smarter than I figures it out, I guess I’ll continue to live by the old adage… treat others as you would want to be treated…

Lag: The Great Equalizer

Hi again! So, I attended my first CWS Fashion Show today...actually, my first ever fashion show in SL, and man was it amazing! They presented Anrol Designs and the gowns, the style, the sophistication, the smell of money...LOL! I don't know, it just smelt rich... like the people watching had tons of money...*giggles*... but, I digress... I absolutely loved everything about the show EXCEPT... the LAG... OMG, even the beautiful, rich and powerful have to deal with LAG... In SL it is the Great Equalizer!

Seriously, the thing that hit me, while I watched the absolutely gorgeous models and the resulting show, was that everybody has to deal with LAG. No matter how good a model you are, and there were some truly amazing models showing the cloths, you have to deal with LAG...

I honestly think the mark of a true SL Top Model, is that he and/or she faces LAG head on... Yeah, it's going to beat at you, it's going to cause chaos; it's going to slap you around and tell you to call it "Daddy"... LOL!! but, it's those who learn to laugh at themselves, to go with it, who don't let it break them, and instead learn to manipulate the LAG, that become the truly awesome SL Top Models.