Literature Night

Literature Night

The 28th of May 1779 is the Birthday of Thomas Moore. He was an Irish poet, singer, songwriter, and entertainer, now best remembered for the lyrics of "The Minstrel Boy" and "The Last Rose of Summer". As Lord Byron's named literary executor, along with John Murray, Moore was responsible for burning Lord Byron's memoirs after his death.

We have a very comfy place  with our Sunshiner's Pub and we thought it would be a good idea to redecorate the Pub to a Cafe and to make an event to the Sunshine Cafe tonight. We wanted using the Birthday of Thomas Moore for a Literature Night in a Cafe with our Friends and Guests. Maybe we could convince some to pick up a book again and read it. Misty and me share the love for literature and we think that the power of words can move mountains. And so invited we all to join us in the outfit of them favorite novel. 

I had decided on a Biedermeier outfit. Novels about women who go their own way, follow their love and may have committed adultery. I like romance novels, but maybe this is also the beginning of women becoming more self-confident and independent. That they no longer had to remain the property of the men. Novels like "Effi Briest" or "Jane Eyre" belong to that time. But also "The Scarlet Letter" was written during this time, even though the book is about a time more than 100 years earlier.

So I had a picture in my head and looked for the right clothes. Now it's so hard to find something very concrete, but if you have to search for a suitable translation, it becomes even more difficult. So I searched Inworld Stores for 2 hours, looking for medieval and Victorian clothes. But I couldn't find anything. When I was guided by the German word of that epoch, I found what I was looking for in the Market place. And once again I was surprised what is possible in SL.

It's always exciting when we try a new event. How do our friends and guests take up the theme, will it inspire them and what ideas do they have? How many will come, and will they appear with appropriate costumes. And of course we'll talk about it beforehand. So I smiled when Bic came, smoking in a cosy turtleneck sweater and a pipe. Only the slippers were missing. And somehow he reminds me of my old literature teacher. Of course I also told him that. 

I was glad Phil was there, too. I know it's not easy for him this week. Of course he also came with suitable clothes, a gentleman, and you can already say that he usually does this. And so soon more guests came and already after 30 minutes more than 30 guests arrived in our improvised cafe and celebrated with us.

We were delighted that so many came. And a lot of people had really thought about what clothes they could wear and which character from a novel they could be. So we noticed very early that it would be a good evening with many guests. Some could not stay until the end, and had to leave us before. All the more grateful we were that they had picked out an outfit anyway and came to us. Be it Bic or Phil, but also Sekhmet Emor and GianAngelo were only there for a short time and surprised us like at our Memorial Day Party with a great outfit. 

So we had almost 50 guests this evening, even if after one hour only 37 were together in our Sunshiner Cafe. In the end there were only 34 guests left, but it is also very late for everyone from Europe, and most of them have to get up and go to work the next day. It was a nice evening and we were very satisfied. Of course we had another contest with 1,000 L$ and voted at the end. Everything worked very well and without warnings and we had 26 votes. Also the payment worked very well and we could do a little after-party and stayed together.

Now I had decided for an outfit from the Biedermeier period. And after-party at the Sunshine Realm means lingerie and naked skin. What did women wear "under" their clothes during this time? Sure it was all a bit more uptight, but surely the men wanted to please and arouse them. And here, too, I found what I was looking for and decided on lingerie that was inspired by that time. SL is simply wonderful, and we can make dreams and fantasies visible in this virtual world. 

Also for Misty and me it was a special event. We both like to read and read a lot. And during the preparation for this evening many memories came up and we talked about books and authors. Now we come from two different countries, I'm sure I grew up with German and European literature and Misty with English and American literature. When Misty finished the signs at the entrance, my first comment was: "Oh God, I don't know them all".  Then I recognized Hemmingway, I translated the "The Scarlet Letter" for me and also recognized the "Lord of the Flies". In the last months I have read some books which belong to Misty's favourite books, but which are not so common here.  And she drew my attention to Robert Frost, and we talked about the poem "The Road Not Taken". Sometimes communication and mutual trust just fail because of language. And also here the last years have helped me to see the world wider, with the help of my friends. 

So SL can really change something. If you don't run through the virtual world with a crowd of ALTs. If you get involved in being in this world. Then friendships arise, we become more vulnerable, but we also grow together. And that's what the Sunshine Realm means to me. And why some events can also be very intimate. So with some events we also share a bit more of our thoughts and feelings.  

If you're curious now and want to visit us. On my blog page "Upcoming Events" you can find all information about the next events. And of course you can also visit us and explore the Sunshine Realm. Here is the landmark that will bring you directly to us. It's a place to relax and meet friends.  But you can also use many places as a background for photos. You can find some in the blog here. Or just visit my Flickr Page. I'd like you to follow me on Flickr and leave a message. Also there are many pictures taken at the Sunshine Realm. And we also have a group on Flickr about the "Sunshine Realm" where some of us share pictures. So if you also took pictures in our Sim, we would be happy if you would share them with us this way.

 And also on this event I took some pictures again, and as always in a Google Images Album for you provided. Maybe you'll have a look.