brrr..
Originally uploaded by _rebekka.

You should know Rebekka. Tens of thousands of Flickr fans do. Her photos have received millions of page views. Whether it’s her looks, talent or both, she’s has a major web following.

Straight from her profile:

“open, honest, a bit eccentric, fit, smart, witty. Self-taught photographer, and student at Icelands academy of the arts, visual arts department.

I have a constant need to illustrate how i see the world. My camera is my paintbrush and canvas. To hear that my work brings joy to others makes me feel quite blessed. What more can an artist hope for?
All photos here taken by me and processed by me, unless otherwise noted.”

faces
Originally uploaded by Dreamer7112.

I love visual irony.

Common sense is uncommon.

That’s one of my favorite expressions, but I think it’s more valid than ever in online communities. You know the show Catch a Predator? What I dislike about the show is they make Myspace come across as a breading ground for perverts. When, in actuality, what if Myspace was just a mirror held to society.

The truth is the same cautions that apply in a “real world” setting are equally true online, but the dangers aren’t necessarily more severe.

If a stranger approached me, even when I was a young kid, I was taught not to provide him with my very personal information. Trust takes time to build, and I hope that responsibile parents instill those values.

However, let’s consider the converse.

Myspace’s media kit uses a great analogy. It compares a Myspace page to an apartment. Most people leave their front doors wide open giving people who are up to no good more opportunities.

I go back and forth on these issues. What’s your opinion?

I am Franky Stardust, and I arrived to the world in blue jeans and a white T-shirt. The same thing I wore as Zach the first day of school each time I started a new school. This time my uniform clothed me for my new life.

For twenty minutes or so, I learned how to walk and talk. It came slowly at first, and soon I found myself flying. I left the bright green island and then teleported to a land of newbies.

I asked everyone I saw for help. There were attractive women dress in period attire, a yellow dress straight out of gone with the wind. There where men who looked like me. There were people with my same last name.

As if it were the voice of God, music covered the land. I wondered if everyone I saw heard the same thing. By now, I was learning how to bow, kiss, hug and read the map.

A woman with classic good looks, I’m talking Belle in Beauty and the Beast, answered my call for help. She taught me how to find my home.

I followed her advice and found myself on my home island. I walked inside vacant shops. There were advertisements, and I could buy clothing for Franky Stardust, buy clothing for me.

As I walked from one store to another, the music changed from alternative to J-Lo.

Sarah L, the women who helped me, invited me to her home island. Seconds later, I teleported and appeared inside a beautifully furnished home with pictures of sunsets on the wall.

I asked her twenty questions quickly. And as I was a stranger in a strange land, I did not know the etiquette. So, I asked as a guest, and she as a perfect host.

She invited me to look at her pictures. I walked to the wall, hit alt + click on my keyboard to view her pictures. Beautiful music accompanied her images. I praised her work, and she gave me a positive review as “courteous.”

It was like meeting an alien, I didn’t know what to say or even how to behave. So, I acted as naturally as I could. I asked her about buying a home. I asked her about manners and reputation. I asked her if people in Second Life speak about their “first lives.”

My exuberance and naivety amused her. She directed me to classes. At this point, I searched from a menu of dazzling options. Thousands of people coming together to learn in Second Life…musicians from all over the world gathering to create music….new businesses blossom producing new economies.

I felt frozen, arrested by all the choices, wanting to immediately explore everything I did not understand.

Franky Stardust had to sign offline, because Zach had to go to a movie. I asked how one might sign off without offending the person they were speaking to. Sarah L instructed me to teleport back to my home island. I teleported home and went to a movie.

To read more about Second Life.