My #FirstLife house remodeling project is finally complete, and as of a week ago or so, my big desktop computer is set up and working in its new location in a combination guest room/sewing room.

So for the past week I’ve been reconnecting with friends, and even managed to make it to #RelayForLifeInSecondLife for a few hours to help with my team’s American Cancer Society fundraising.

My previously quiet #SecondLife got a lot noisier and busier, and I’ve gotten back into the long process of reducing the stuff in my inventory for the inworld #DigitalFarmSystem game/activity/pastime. I say “pastime” but really, it takes up ALL of my time inworld, because it’s easier than making new things or creating new products or learning new stuff. As I hate marketing, I’m “cooking down” ingredients into higher-energy items that can be loaded up and sold or consumed in bulk.

The big limitation here is having the time to do it and the tools to do it with, so somehow this drawing down process seems to involve buying more tools, or finding community “kitchens” where I can borrow time on those tools. For the really high-energy stuff, I needed to use “fermenters” and “stills” and the stuff I’m cooking down takes a week. This was a dilemma, as I have many weeks’ worth of stuff, and only about 7 stills and 14 fermenters (I know, right? INSANE).

So last night I stumbled into a solution. I had just found a deal on a single still (watching the prices at a specialized website run by someone who sells scripted vendor tools). I went out looking for more such deals, and rediscovered a community kitchen that had been recently announced in the DFS group chats. It’s well laid out, with at least 16 copies of each kind of tool (which is mindboggling, more on that later). There was a section with stills and fermenters – and a notice that stated that they were available to use for “short term” recipes, but that a special group was available to use them for longer term recipes, like the ones I need that are 7 days.

I IMed the owner, and she quickly set me up as the sole member of this special group, for free! Mind boggled again, I thanked and tipped her profusely, and said I’d first get “boosters” from the main store (boosters are a way to get a 25% reduction in time needed, probably a nice revenue booster for the creator IMO). I set up batches of stuff to make on both tools, boosted to take only 5 1/2 days per recipe. So that just cut the time needed to get rid of unwanted ingredients by a LOT.

I’ve loaded some lunchboxes for sale and just sold one, so that’s a good sign. I have some more reducing to do – use up various “proteins” and so on but I’ve got my “ingredients” and “pantry” items pared down to just what I can use.

I have a lot of special seasonal and “rare” things that just aren’t moving, so I’m going to set up a “Must Sell” area in my skybox area this week. And I’ve got stuff that I’ve earmarked for auctions, but that’s not moving either… the lunchboxes do.

Meanwhile, it’s nearly SL20B, the 20th anniversary celebration for Second Life. Several of my friends are exhibitors this year and I plan to have fun touring the builds. And celebrating with them, rather than incessantly farming, tending, sorting, boxing and so on. I’ve enjoyed seeing old friends the last couple of weeks and making new ones and learning new stuff. I’ve used DFS as a crutch for too long to make myself feel busy, rather than pushing myself to make something new. So this week I plan to celebrate, and make new stuff, too.