Diomita Maurer’s Blog

Following Inara Pey’s blog I cam across “Endless: Birdlings Flat” (read her post: An Endless: Birdlings Flat in Second Life).
“Endless: Birdlings Flat” is the newest visual story from Sombre Nyx (sombrenyx). She had other “Endless” sims/stories before. I visited Endless 58-58N (read here) and Endless 58-58N “YES” (read here) in 2020.

The landing is on a seperate sky-platform with a few sheeps. There are two sign, each works as a notecard giver and teleporter. To visit “Endless: Birdlings Flat” you have to choose the according board of course.
The other board leads to “Forest” by Jackson Cruyff”. I visited this part as well. “Forest consists of trees, grasses, a few flowers, and other plants, a meadow, some animals here and there, and few signs of human visitation or habitation.” Jackson made Forest “to escape, and to find refuge.” But this post is about “Endless: Birdlings Flat“.

Endless: Birdlings Flat – bird eye view and orientation map

I grabbed a notecard written by Sombre Nyx (sombrenyx) at the board, then entered the sim.
This world is inspired by the small coastal settlement of Birdlings Flat, located in the South Island of New Zealand. The area was named for the first European family to begin farming the land there, and is now home to approximately 200 people who have chosen to enjoy the quiet lifestyle and wild, natural beauty of their isolated and sometimes hostile, sometimes beautiful, surroundings.

Impressions of Endless: Birdlings Flat (1) – landing platform / landing point at the sim at the crossing of the the street to Christchurch and to Birdlings Flat / at the end of the roat to Christcurch.

The landing is at a crossing where a street leads to Birdlings Flat. I decided to walk into the direction of Christchurch first. Where the road ends I walked down to the shore, which is quite full of rocks yet beautiful and very realistic.

The beach is well known for the semi-precious agates constantly being washed up onto the pebble shore (along with chunks of driftwood and occasional pieces of marine debris). It is equally well known for its savage winter winds, and for being a treacherous spot with strong currents and a severe undertow responsible for a number of drowning deaths over the years.

Impressions of Endless: Birdlings Flat (2) – CUSTAR Observation container / beach / sheeps

I walked up again and came to a container with a weather data station, a power generator and a jeep.

Designed as a means of studying the behaviour of atmospheric winds, and other phenomena, occurring between 3km and 15km in altitude, the Canterbury University Stratosphere Troposphere Radar (CUSTAR) was actively maintained as a research tool for several years … The system was decommissioned circa 2009.

From there I walked over the sim .. and saw sheeps and sheeps .. and well, sheeps.
I returned the the landing point and went into the other direction and up the hill at the end of the road. There is a landmark. A robot made of scrap parts. It seemingly guards the sim and seems to be a good fellow. From the hill you see down to a wooden path and there’s a cosy spot to watch the fish and seagulls.

Impressions of Endless: Birdlings Flat (3) – Outlook and robot

Between the outlook and the village is a lake, I named it “Eel pond” as at one end are wooden frameworks to dry eel. Sombre Nyx (sombrenyx) wrote: Lake Forsyth (Wairewa) has had a troubled past, with toxic cyanobacteria blooms regularly posing a health risk to both humans and animals. The primary cause of these blooms is the area’s high-phosphorus volcanic soil; contributing factors also include agricultural run-off, years when low rainfall causes the water level to drop to a point where plant matter cannot grow and clean the waters and contamination by farm stock. These issues are all being addressed now, and the quality of the lake’s water is improving.

Impressions of Endless: Birdlings Flat (4) – Eel pond / Lake Forsyth

Ngai Tahu, the local iwi (nation, extended kinship group), has sole title over the use of Lake Forsyth for fishing. Traditionally, eels were harvested in autumn – caught with poles, killed, hung on racks, dried and smoked – to provide a source of food throughout the following year. This custom continues today.

Finally I walked to the village. It is full of details, details of a life in this environment, poor but not unhappy at all. You can sense that people like to live here.

Impressions of Endless: Birdlings Flat (5)

I ended my visit at the beach again sitting at a spot to fish.
“Endless: Birdlings Flat” provides an impression of living in such an environment. For sure a place I might never visit in real life and I had never heard about before. In Second Life we can visit such places and get at least an impression thanks to people like Sombre Nyx (sombrenyx). So thank you Sombre for creating it and making it available publicly. Sombre wrote in her notecard that Jon Thorson (jonthorsson) helped her in custom-building the pieces that have helped give this virtual representation of of Birdlings Flat its unique character. “Endless: Birdlings Flat” tells a visual story!
Many thanks also to Jackson Cruyff, who is the land owner and a dear friend of Sombre and provided the space and the ressources for “Endless: Birdlings Flat”.

Impressions of Endless: Birdlings Flat (6) The villagem the sheep and the beach

I enjoyed my visit.

Landmark to Endless: Birdlings Flat
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Haraiki%20Bay/143/125/1200
Bridlings Flat flickr group
https://www.flickr.com/groups/14793496@N24/
Inara Pey’s blogpost: An Endless: Birdlings Flat in Second Life
https://modemworld.me/2022/07/27/an-endless-birdlings-flat-in-second-life/