For many of us, Second Life is where our imaginations go to play and explore. The title of this post, a quote by my favorite Beatle, John Lennon, says a lot about life. It explains a lot about our second lives as well. We explore, we learn, we develop as avatars and (despite what some people believe) we do so as people at the same time. Our imaginations can develop when our real life limitations disappear. Indulging in these opportunities for play can help us become better and more rounded people. This is what I wish for all of us in 2015: A year of imaginations on the rampage and peace and joy spreading across the grid, trickling into all of our other lives. I was thrilled to see a FREE group gift from ASHBURY recently, one that is perfect for my first post of 2015. It’s the Dean Leather Jacket & Shirt, a MESH one piece combo that includes a FITMESH version as well! The jacket has a great leather texture, detailed stitching, and features striking metallic accents in the zippers and buttons. The shirt portion is a white Beatles tee, which will make a lot of people smile when they see it. Musical tastes vary, but The Beatles’ importance in music is impossible to deny. Together, it's a timeless leather jacket with realistic detailing and an iconic shirt that many people will love. That is one heck of a great FREE group gift, and exactly how I want my blogging year to begin. I want to thank all of you for helping me grow this blog and allowing it to become a source of pride for me and the others who contribute to its success. In March, it will celebrate it's first birthday, something I look forward to greatly. There is a Lennon anecdote, familiar to many, which I will repeat due to its great personal significance for me. "When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life."
- John Lennon -----Posted by WHC Riler

Our next guest stays eternally young by prowling the desert wasteland, picking up scrap metal and killing mutants for their fuel credits. He likes long drives in the desert and skinning and cooking rabbits for food. Please give a warm post-apocalyptic welcome to Riot Bayn!!!! Yes ladies, after the nuclear holocaust, after the global war against the undead, even after the mutant uprising that follows, you might still have to date someone. Riot and the remaining horde of mildly-mutated survivors are counting on that. It should come as no surprise to anyone that he already has picked out his clothes for that future event. The rugged-looking MESH vest Riot is wearing is the Menstuff Hunt gift from BROCADE TIGER. It has a fantastic masculine look, and the back is emblazoned with a pair of angel wings, which evoke a vest worn by my favorite character on a great television show. I won't say which one, but a friend once called it a "Soap opera with zombies". I MUTED HER! As worn in the pics, the jacket has been tinted a darker brown, something easily done if needed. I love the look of this vest.
Riot is wearing the Winter Kat Jeans from the Menstuff Hunt gift from NEKOLICIOUS and straight out of the box they are gray but can be tinted as shown here to match other garments. The Winter Kat outfit consists of a bright red MESH holiday sweater, the MESH Winter Kat Jeans (which would be great for most male wardrobes), and a set of animated ears and a tail to complete the neko theme. VESTIGIUM'S Menstuff Hunt prize "Bruises III" contributes the scratches and roughens up Riot's face some, which gives him a very authentic tough-guy look to match his nearly-authentic tough guy attitude. His shirt is a very nicely textured brown long sleeve Henley shirt which is a FREE Christmas Gift from ASHBURY. It looks great whether you choose to wear it alone, or under another item of clothing like a mesh jacket. I own a number of mesh jackets, so an excellent system shirt (layer style clothing) is especially valuable to me. It is available until the end of the month and is a MUST pick up since it can be worn with such versatility.
Riot's ride comes courtesy of SURPLUS MOTORS, and was not free. However, now is the perfect time to mention that both Surplus Motors and KNIGHT PERFORMANCE make fantastic cars, some of which are free group gifts. The level of care and detail in the creation of these cars is evident in the pics. So, even if you can't get tickets to appear on a future episode of Post-Apocalyptic Dream Date, you can look like you belong on the show: rugged, handsome, and able to take care of yourself in a world of unimaginable violence and brutality. You can have that look and still have enough money left over to buy that issue of the National Enquirer you saw at the fuel depot. Oh look! President Kardashian is posing nude again to get the budget through Congress. I always knew she would make a great President.-----WHC Riler
