Join your friends in Stagecoach Island on New Year’s Eve! Lots of you have asked us to announce a party starting at 11 p.m. Eastern Time/8 p.m. Pacific Time in Club Ambience. Join friends, meet new people and kick off the New Year in style!

Hope this weekend will start off a great year for each and every one of you! We’re not going to be in office beginning at noon today until January 2nd of the new year, so if you guys have questions or comments, feel free to leave them. We will respond to them once we get in. Thanks again, and have fun, play safe!

December and January not only marks the holiday season, but in fact, it marks an even more special period of time—sales!

Everywhere everyone is talking about Macy’s  one-hour sale, the after-Christmas sale even before the holidays are over. To be honest, I really am not a huge sales buff, the reason being that when I was a kid, I remember my mom waking me up at 3 in the morning and telling me it was time to go shopping. Of course I thought she was nuts, but when I got to the gigantic line that had formed in front of the store, I knew my mother was sane, and the idiot who was in the front of the line was stark mad.

Shopping represents a huge part of the seasonal culture; many people come out and shop just once a year hoping to get good bargains and deals. What a lot of people don’t know is that sale items are in fact “old goods,” things that are no longer in style or no one will buy. Ironically, when an item sits on a shelf for a year, no one will buy it—but the moment it’s marked down, it’s completely sold out. Doesn’t even seem to matter that the color is wrong or that your house is already too small to put in excess junk—it’s on sale, so it automatically becomes a “must-have.”

This holiday season, don’t spend all your time fighting in line for that one item you know you don’t really want, but rather here in Stagecoach Island, where every day is a holiday.

Want to plan your own party or event in Stagecoach Island? Or looking for something to do while you are in world?

Events hosted by members and by the Stagecoach Island team are listed here. You and your friends can throw an event in Stagecoach Island and invite others to join you in world. Just click on “Suggest a Member Event” above and then send us the details (day, time, place and host). We will do our best to accommodate all events suggested by members.

Please provide at least 48 hours’ notice to make sure that we can post your event.

We hope all of you have a wonderful holiday weekend. We are out of the office beginning at noon today, and back Wednesday, December 27th. We will respond to all comments when we are back, and you may run into us over the weekend in Stagecoach Island. See you there!

I was sitting at home drinking a cup of spiced cocoa, the kind that makes your hair stand up because it’s so hot and warm, when it suddenly dawned on me that the semester and this year are coming to a quick close. I can’t believe it! Time flew by and I haven’t been able to really get a hold of everything that’s been going on. I remembered times when I was late for class, early (wishing I had slept in more), happy and excited, all the emotions —friends, homework, midterms, finals—everything coming to a temporary end. Believe me, I won’t miss the finals and midterms, that’s for sure. I will miss friends, being in class and among so many people constantly on campus. Now that I’m home, it’s me and my dog and a bunch of unwritten Christmas cards and gift wrapping tasks all around me.

What is one significant thing that has happened to you this year? For me, it’s becoming a part of Stagecoach Island and meeting all of you great people. I really mean it. It’s really made this year for me extra special and fun. I’ve been able to meet a lot of cool and interesting people, tons of millionaires in world, and channel the world as a place where everyone can connect and become friends, even if they’re thousands of miles away. Before I continue my philosophical stupor, I just want to thank everyone who’s participated and had fun in here! It means a lot that we are able to create a virtual reality world for you guys.

Friends are like credit cards,
we need them forever.
—Dorothy Taylor

Happy Holidays!

JesusFreak012 is throwing a holiday party extravaganza today in Club Ambiance. If you're in world today, swing by, say hi and get your groove on!

Last night I had the opportunity of hosting a holiday party in Club Ambience to kick off the holiday season. There we streamed live music, connected with everyone and got our groove on! I was joined by Jesusfreak012, Scorpio, Numba1stunna, Willis, Player, Sooze, Gmoney, James2u, and Slapshot. Everyone arrived fashionably late and dressed in their cutest outfits! Sooze’s stunning red outfit rocks!

Scorpio was super awesome and we chit chat while James2u kept trying to be funny, but Scorpio put him in his place! We just had a lot of fun teasing and poking fun at each other, but just for fun and games. James2u and Scorpio dropped off the island trend for a bit, but they are back now and they say everything’s different from before! For those who haven’t been back for a while, we have new games, shopping malls and features for you to check out now.

Near the end of the party we all huddled around the Christmas tree for group photos, which I will be posting up tomorrow. They turned out great, and the Christmas tree looked illuminating in the background, adding just the right spice into the holiday season festivities. I got all dolled up for you guys—Jesusfreak012 and Scorpio loved the party dress I was wearing, and I wish you guys could have seen it too.

One great addition to the party was the music; the songs were awesome and had great beats to dance to. Songs like “Feel Good Inc.,” “Ain’t No Other Man,” songs by Depeche Mode and so much more were playing all night. The Christmas tree is still in Club Ambience and adds a sprinkle of Christmas cheer to Stagecoach Island. Come check it out!

Big thanks to all the people who submitted their thoughts and suggestions in these past few weeks! We are now collecting ideas for 2007; we know you want more ways to spend money and new ways to earn money, so tell us how! The team is meeting in mid-January, and I’ll keep you posted of upcoming events, changes and improvements. Until then, send me your thoughts, and I’ll be sure to let them know.

Thank you for all your suggestions that we turn off the talking BOTS. We're happy to report that they are now gone! And, if you run into one, please let us know ASAP. NO MORE TALKING BOTS!!!

Now that the holiday season is in full swing, you are invited to join Cassie, Gmoney and Sooze for a Stagecoach Island holiday bash at Club Ambience on Tuesday, December 19, starting at 5:00 PM Pacific Time. Join us for a fun time and some crazy dancing.

Hope to see all of you there!

I made a date with you guys to play BINGO on Friday,
and nobody was there to play! I ended up playing with
KC and Cwolf for a few games in the red game room,
which was still fun, but I couldn’t get the numbers
that I wanted! We played four corners, and every game I
was missing one corner. Finally, at the very end, I was
able to win and took Cwolf’s spot as game winner.

The great thing about playing BINGO is that there’s a
bingobot to instruct you with everything you need to
know about the game. It tells you what numbers have
been called, judges your BINGO board, and helps you
when you have questions. Overall the experience was
good—I just wish there were more people inside! I
hope to see you guys all again soon. I will be hosting
a holiday party on the coming Tuesday, so come join me
to learn about great gift ideas on S.I. … and let’s
party hard!

Challenge Cassie to BINGO this Friday night at 8 PM Pacific Time. Think you have the game down? Even Cassie doesn’t have the edge here. Come find out who wins. Each match is open to 36 players per game. And this time we have the time right!

For those of you who want to give Stagecoach Island dollars to your friends in world, you can now give them S.I. dollars for the holidays. Just send us an email at stagecoachisland@wellsfargo.com by December 20th telling us your avatar's name, the name of the avatar that you want to give money to, and the amount. We will make it happen before December 25th.

Yesterday I spent the whole afternoon chatting with Darthvader, Harp Angel and Precision until Kakes joined us and Precision left. Harp Angel beat the high score for parachuting at 31 seconds, everyone! It took her awhile to find the bull’s-eye to land on, but how awesome is that? Today I saw Harp again and she tried to beat her own score but couldn’t.

This afternoon in S.I. was super fun! I met up with Darthvader, Msniper, Harp Angel, Player and Kissy in world and we raced and Jet Skied all day. Darthvader decided to race Msniper and lost a few times but was finally able to redeem himself, technically winning one game when he used the cop cars to race. I did the countdown and judging, but Kissy was the fastest, winning each race. We had so much fun and we ended up all getting onto Jet Skis and riding all around S.I. You guys should all come join us and hang out! I’m having a party on December 19th from 5:00 to 7:00 PM Pacific Time, so join me, Sooze, KC and Gmoney for a fun night out!

On another note, many of you have asked about my necklace and belt and told me that you wanted to accessorize too. Just to give you guys a heads up, I am working with the Stagecoach Island team right now to try to create fun new accessories and clothes for 2007. If any of you have any suggestions or ideas for new stuff you want – and be as specific as possible – feel free to let me know!

 

The newest trick sport and game to S.I. is competitive parachuting! It’s a riot watching myself struggle to balance and shimmy down the four red and white rings during the dive. It looks a lot easier than it really is. Seriously, this is a lot harder than I thought it was.

The first try I plummeted down so fast I could barely see the rings, and by the time I did, I only hit the last two rings. Feeling completely defeated and determined I tried again. I still can’t hit all four.

It’s well worth a jump, so let’s DIVE for it!

I have been to the bike racing track and back to tell the story. Sad to say, I am not very good—I could barely stay coordinated at the sharp turns and jumps. Right when the doors opened, I sped out and prepared myself for an intense timed race along the track. I was doing so well till the very last leap, and I ended up dropping splat on the ground—which means passing all my previous checkpoints didn’t count because I didn’t complete the race. I am determined, though, and I will get better, so you guys better watch out!

We’ve got a hard core competition going on here, so make sure you participate to see how well you do. I wanted to get my name up on the scoreboard so bad! Hopefully one of you will do that for me. Good luck and get your ride on!

Competitive parachuting comes to Stagecoach Island! This thrilling experience requires more than just coordination and stamina; you need to hit the four rings and the bull’s-eye (in order) while parachuting to get points. Go to the game park to start the competition and see how good your parachuting skills are today!

We have some great new games coming up, so try your luck at them. I am terrible at the motorbike racing, but it’s doable. I think you just have to practice more to be coordinated. It's fun and definitely worth the ride. Surprise me next week Weds when I look at the scoreboard to see who the undefeated one is.

So last night I was playing BINGO and I saw Shawna and a couple of my friends there. I loved her blue top and skirt—too bad she had to leave early. I also hung out with Mattrapp as well, who was new, and played some BINGO with him before he ran off to explore the rest of the island. The BINGO hall was a bit empty. It would have been so much more fun if you guys stayed longer—next time, bring your friends and let's chat for awhile. I’m sure you guys want to challenge me to a game, right?

This week has been fun. I bumped into Randy who showed me a bunch of great hidden places—lost island, under the volcano, the cupcakes and some rocking rocks! Everyone’s been nice so far and I want you guys all to know that I want to meet each and every one of you. I am here to make this place more fun and exciting. If there’s ANYTHING you want to talk about, feel free to let me know on the feedback page or in person.

There are some really great hidden places all around the island; you just have to find them. My favorite place, which isn’t a mystery, is right behind the snow mountain where the spring runs in colors of blue and purple. It’s just so nice out there. So far I’ve found a few lost ships, submarines and an abandoned alien spaceship. What have you found?

Challenge Cassie to BINGO this Wednesday night at 5 PM Pacific Time. Think you have the game down? Even Cassie doesn’t have the edge here. Come find out who wins. Each match is open to 36 players per game.

Have you ever wondered why mom and dad or somebody would haul a gigantic—or small—evergreen tree into your living room during the holidays? According to history, it was believed that even Egyptians  celebrated this tradition! They worshipped evergreens  and when the winter solstice came, they would bring date palm leaves into their homes and celebrate their existence and life itself.

Others say that the tradition began with Martin Luther about the 1500s.  He was strolling home when a group of beautiful evergreens caught his eye. They were covered in snow, and the light danced on each of their branches. He then chopped one down and brought it home to share with his family, decorating and lighting candles around it to celebrate Christ. 

So as you can see, we aren’t alone when it comes to the whole tradition of tree farming. Although we won’t need to fight over whose evergreen is better in Stagecoach Island, we can still celebrate the warm holidays with each other. We can even all meet in the Bingo Hall for a Christmas Bingo session! Classes and finals are almost over, and I’m already beginning to anticipate the exciting Christmas tree hunt!

The evergreen has always held its symbolic meaning through history and time. I hope it does the same for you this year.

Check out the new motorbike racing track in Stagecoach Island! It's intense and requires some patience and skill. When you win, your name is published on a billboard for everyone to see that you mastered the track and beat the best time. Come join us for some racing fun today!

With the winter holidays rolling in, my side of the island just seems to get chillier! Wish I had an extra scarf or two. What do you guys think? Wish we had some mittens or something? Let me know, I’ll do my best to see what I can find to spread the warmth of the winter season.

I’m big on holidays, and I like to get festive. I mean, why wait till the actual holiday to celebrate? This year, I’m thinking of buying myself a new look and buying my dog, Cricket, a pair—two pairs to be exact—of shoes to keep his paws warm. If I can crash past finals at school, I’ll be just in time to break out the bread pudding and gift ribbons.

Fun fact: Did you know that Britain was the first country to hang up mistletoe?  Where are you planning to hang mistletoe this year? I’ve never been a huge fan of them - I think of the plant more as a decorative ornament to the holiday season. Legend has it that the myth of kissing beneath the mistletoe originated from folklore of a loving mother  whose tears brought back the life of her son. From then on, everyone who passes underneath the mistletoe is bestowed a kiss to bring good luck and prosperity for the New Year.

Another fun thing to know is that it’s a tradition in Italy to give a bag of dried lentils to your good friends to make lentil soup.  This is a peasant soup that reminds them of their humble beginnings and is eaten to bring good luck and prosperity in the New Year. I don’t know about lentils, but just a cheerful hello or comment from you will make my holidays an extra special one!

Here’s a fun facts site: http://www.northpole.net/world.htm