Adventures in Steeltopia

When SteelCobra Calamari, the mad blue Emperor of Steeltopia, asked me to design the official uniforms of the Steeltopian Navy I was more than happy to. I had one of the first shops there and have watched this little nation grow. Here I am in the ensign's uniform with the INS ironclads behind me...He is a lot of fun himself and last night he decided to give me a tour of the mines, as it had been a while since I'd been down there...
And we ended up in a boiler room. That did not bode well, trust me...Nothing like roaming underneath a city. The mines will soon be relocated...The Emperor also has a chain of small coffee shops called Steelbucks that he "franchises" (contact him if you'd like a branch!) There are two on one block alone near my home in Steelhead! I once visited them and went on a tiny rampage through town. Steeltopia is a fun place with a steampunk feel. Go visit if you haven't been there before!

Caledon Firth Anniversary Regatta!

A year ago the Caledon Firth's expanse of central water void sims were created. They have become very popular and used for the recreation of Caledon's citizens for both aviation and sailing. Today, in an event hosted by Dia, the new Duchess of Sound, many of us came to celebrate with a regatta! I donned my European-style sailor's outfit...And took my fast little sailboat for a spin around the Firth...
Upon our return, we also took to the sky as well and I accepted a ride from DrBob Margulies in his new balloon by Miss Ilsa Munroe...We all flew along the Southern coast of the Firth from one end to the other, turning around to attend the formal...
DrBob and I decided to take a more direct route upwards to the dance platform upon reaching Sound. That is Lionsgate in the background...

Once in a Blue Moon

Prof. Messmer was actually in early on a Friday for once, hard worker that he is, so we went to Steelhead's blue-themed dance. And yes, that is a blue moon that I had hovering above us...Everyone looked very pretty in their azure-colored finery...
We then went sailing on the firth on his yacht...
And we then tooled around the Northern sims in his steam-powered hydrofoil...

A Pirate's Life for Me

We gathered in Sanchon to prepare for battle, ships at the ready...And our teams chosen. As boatswain of the Zaneta, there is no other ship that I'll serve on...
The battle was on...the HGS Zaneta against the Isabell, the Black Rat, and the Independance. The brigs held their own, but the new longships are small, agile, and quite fast. The other two ships started late, allowing the veteran captain Admiral Arbre and his gunner to get to us first, although we made him really work for it!
It was down to the Admiral and one of the longships, as we all watched. In the second battle, it came down to the same longship and the Zaneta. I fired away, only for them to get the better of us in the end. Grrr...
We had a free for all melee on shore afterwards, rapiers slashing and flintlock pistols blazing. In the ensuing chaos, I was cut down...Ah, the life of a pirate is a dangerous one indeed.

Retexturing Fit and Wave Watching

Went on a retexturing and building fit as I redid the door and the stairs of the men's shop in Regency. I wanted a cast-iron stairs and railings look like the Victorian rowhomes I'm familiar with in RL. I love how the railings pick up on the colors on the sunset...I headed over to Trenton House in Caledon on Sea and sat on the crates watching the waves. I realized I hadn't really explored back there before. The Cap'n came out and gave me a tour. We had a very good time talking about Caledon, SL, travel and all sorts of things. It's always nice to have a relaxed, honest, drama-free conversation in here sometimes...

Bosun Laval of the HGS Zaneta!

I'm the new boatswain of the HGS Zaneta, which is under the command of Commodore Sin Trenton. This is part of his announcement from his journal:

"Miss Laval of Caledon Regency holds the rank as Midshipman in the Imperial Navy of Caledon, has proven herself in battle and is known not to flinch when facing danger.

Midshipman Laval will take the position of Boatswain on the HGS Zaneta, which generally means she will be in charge of morality boosts, grog and whisky rations, coordination of guns in battle, gangpressing, and ship order. The latter means keeping the crew in line and the captain sober...occasionally."

He said that he will keep Kintyre chocolates and fine Lagavulin whisky stocked on board just for me. I might be on the high seas of SL, but I am still very much a lady of class!

RegencyFest Begins! Walking Tour and Regatta!

RegencyFest's first official event was a well-attended walking tour of the sim led by Lady Shaylee. We all had lovely lanterns she created to use as we stopped at residences and businesses along the way. Many have signs that you can click for a notecard if you'd like to find out more info. Oh! Did you know that Regency has its own Stonehenge-esque Stone Circle? Come see for yourself... Afterwards, we gathered at my pier for the start of the "Whatever Floats Your Boat" Regatta...all vessels welcome! I had a spread of casks of Loch Avie/Bellambi whisky and Dominacythe absinthe from Friar Newbe, Winterfell port and tea, of course. I also had lemonade and cake for any tiny visitors...
Mr Farrin Underwood and Miss Imogen Saltair came dressed, as they said, "in preparation of sinking"...
...but we decided their vessel should win the award for "Most Creative" (this was taken before they changed the axle position).
Mr Knight was there to hand out the lovely lighthouse awards he created to Lady Dia for best time, Miss Saltair for her creativity, and Prof. Avalanche in appreciation for his help...
We had quite a lot of fun!

Early Bird Navy Regatta & Afterparty

I put on my smart new Imperial Navy of Caledon midshipman's uniform and slipped away from Regency for a moment to attend the Early Birds' Navy party after their Regatta, where I was promptly handed a large glass of ale...
Commodore Sputnik started jigging and I follwed his lead. Soon all of us were jigging...
Grogging and jigging encouraged? The Navy was definitely the right choice for me...
And Mr. Sands...grogging and jigging with an anchor!

ARRR! Firth Sailin'...

Ahoy! Took me newly named ship Zephyr t' sail on the Firth, dressed in me pirate clothes...There be a storm, clouds dark and rain strong...
An' a wreck with the Jolly Roger on 'er side, an' holes in 'er sails...
Went among ye landlubbers t' a place high in the Stormhold hills...
...T' sit thinkin' "A quiet place ye need..."

Landlubbers! Ye Know the Day?

Arrrrr mateys!!! Ye know wot day it is, ye scurvy bilge rats?! Where's me grog?

Ironclad Guns and Galloping Runs

"I have a gift from Hotspur?" Sir Tele said to me. "Ohhh...it says 'USS Fiskdale?'"

"Sounds like a ship!" I said.

And not just any ship, but an ironclad--much like that of the Merrimac in design--and quite an impressive one with its smoke and cannons and size and...pilot. I watched as Sir Tele steered it around in the waters off Loch Avie. "Fire the cannon Sir!" I yelled. BOOM! There was much smoke and we determined that more ships were needed for a battle. "Can you imagine 4 or 5 of these at once?" he said.

"YES! And what a fantastic battle it would be!" I said.

We then saddled up and raced one another up the North-South road to Mayfair on horseback. I once turned Flashy into a building (blasted lag!) and still wheeled around in time to beat him. Sir Tele said that he gave me a "head start." Hmph, yes, that was it. Can you see me rolling my eyes? Tell yourself whatever helps you to sleep at night.

Do NOT make me have to shoot you in the knees again...