Gorfest

On Saturday the 24th, Jay Sparrowtree from the Whip dropped a comment in staff chat that to both myself and my uncle, Black Ort, took to mean that Black Ort’s Master’s Round Table was being moved to something called Gorfest for the day.

We literally looked at each other and said “what’s Gorfest? Who says we’re moving?”

Sunday, we did the Master’s Round Table as usual, except it wasn’t as usual.

I safeworded. Repeatedly. I logged right out of Second Life and shook.

“I will stop my show,” he tells me, “because you’re more important than it.”

“Show must go on.” I finally up to multiple syllable replies.

Black Ort and I negotiated it until he was convinced I was okay enough for him to go on, so he finished his intermission, went to do his reading, and then I took over.

It’s was as if I was on automatic. The songs change. My chosen voiceover bed comes on, and bam. I am DJ io on the air, even if I was shaking like a little leaf.

Monday happened. We discussed Gorfest after some clarifications.

The rest of the week was a blur. This post kinda shows it too.

Najah and Savina were conscripted to put on a dance for us there. We had dancers volunteer. We got a male dancer to volunteer at almost the last moment. Songs prepped. Questions prepped. The dancers appropriately covered for a PG rating or better.

Then the staff meeting happened.

Mexli, the co-gm with Irish, welcomed everyone and then said what was going to happen. The Whip, along with several other Gorean radio stations each had at one day with Gorfest. We had Sunday and Wednesday. Mexli and Jay were worried that the Gorean University was not going to be there because of a huge miscommunication.

Black Ort was given the mic but could not speak so I did.

“The Gorean University will be there at Gorfest. The Ort Cloud and Black Ort’s Master’s Round Table is going to be there.”

I heard a huge sigh of relief from Mexli.

Then, when the staff meeting was done, Black Ort and I discussed final bits of planning.

In between all this, anxiety attacks abounded. Black Ort threatened to pull the plug. In the end it wasn’t. Finally, he lay down the law for me. “You will dress as a free woman.”

Firetruck!

I was going to perform with strangers watching. Can’t I at least be comfortable doing it?

Nope. Veils and robes of concealment it was. (insert very loudly vocalized grumbles)

I hate veils, but the Covid thing in real life is showing me a perfect reason why they are worn. Doesn’t mean I want to wear them in my roleplay.

Finally, 2000L later, I had an outfit from Arwen Creations put together. I was mumbling and grumbling about it.

On and off the computer all day Sunday until 5 pm when I ran to the local corner store for a slushee, and then ran home for more stuff. Last minute check to make sure everything worked once Black Ort had called me, and our phones were also on Zoom together (muted, of course).

6 pm SLT…

Najah had some problems with the dancer application. I had put the signs for the whip and the GU and all in front of where the dancers started for a reason and she had given me grief until I had explained that it was to keep the dancers out of view till we started. It was two songs in before she was able to move us fully into the stage area.

Those 6 kajira, and one kajiru, were dancing with me and we got joined by Jay, the owner of the Whip. I practically had a heart attack when he said yes he would. We had one spot left over and it was perfect for him.

Next time, I am going to make sure I am one of the middle dots. Being over at one side or another was annoying. They were Torri, Najah, Najwa, Ebony, Savina, Suilean, Jasper, and Jay. Torri, Najah, and Ebony were Gorean University slaves. Suilean was on loan to us from my grandfather in Gor, Rygon the Old. Savina is pledging to the Gorean University. Najwa is owned by Mezlo who runs the Gorean University’s G&S farm for roleplay purposes and she took most of the photos I have of the event – over 100. Jay, of course, the owner of the Whip, and Jasper, on loan to us from Ylva Mistveil of Port Kar.

7 pm rolled around, and the listeners of the Whip had their speakers checked. Follow the link to Black Ort’s Soundcloud where the interview took place.

I need to expand how I found Gor from what I said during the interview. After Irish Breen hired me, I started to really toe around Gor sims. I’d come to sit and listen to the roleplay and not really take part. The entire time, I would sit at Black Ort’s shows and learn about Gor through what I was doing. Soon, I was invited into the private convos between him and Zari to help expand my knowledge. Then I played an animal of Gor, Cheepcheep. Finally, I got invited to play a lady’s slave, so I did. I was having fun, made a physician laugh, was learning lots, until I got dragged off to get branded.

SAFEWORD. FULL STOP. Exit OUT of the program.

That rp ended and I got my papers of manumission. I was still technically Spitfire’s at the time, but after a year and a half being at Black Ort’s round table, and in service to what he needed, and more, I was needing more than what Spitfire could give me, and Black Ort and Zari offered to take me into Gor sims to explore and maybe find a new home for them. I wanted to hang with two people I could trust and watch and be with, and know that I wouldn’t be forced to RP any specific way.

We talked. We grew deeper in our roleplays. Yes, I am a free woman that goes into taverns, usually with him, and suddenly, he was my uncle and I was his niece. His brother, a much younger brother, was eventually declared dead, and as my nearest male relative, he was my protector.

I also ended up with Tyr Sylvermoon as my SL partner by then to protect me from idiots who had the barbaric idea both inside and outside of Gor, that if they payed me enough compliments, they could firetruck the DJ and add a fantasy notch to their belts.

Slowly, but surely, Black Ort gave me more power at the Gorean University. Now, I’m region manager for the three sims and his voice when he’s not there. He’s given me a purpose to be on SL that isn’t to be some freak’s wet dream. He’s given me a reason to log in every day.

The interview done. I tried to DJ to midnight but the stress from the previous week, culminating in that day, was too much for me to do. I gave up after an hour or more and went to bed.

Tuesday, Irish asked me to take her spot on Wednesday. A close family friend of hers was or had died from Cancer. By Wednesday, the family friend was definitely dead, but I didn’t know it at the time.

I logged in, got to the Gorfest sim, and the person running the event complained that the Whip was on Auto so she had a different radio station for Gorfest.

Yes, the Whip is one of multiple Gorean radio stations. In the last year, it has gone from two to four, one for a single sim, and a competitor to the Whip and Gorean Public Radio – Gorean Compass Radio. The competition is good. It means the station you pick has to step up or you’ll switch stations.

Anyway, the complaint about our station being on auto was made and I said that I could fix that. So, an hour before I was supposed to DJ, I fired up and my scramble started.

Black Ort doesn’t know any of this, but I had woken up with a bloody nose, blood down the back of my throat – not much, just a trickle, and my throat was sore. My one eyelid was bleeding and had sealed shut and still is bleeding I had run to the local corner store for a slushee and was still not completely awake when I got on the air. The more I spoke, the more the back of my throat felt like sandpaper. I apologized on the air that I had a sore throat all while downloading from the playlist I was told to play and the PSAs that I was told I had to play by someone who isn’t even management for the Whip. Excuse me, but you don’t get to tell me to play Cancer Feel Good stuff when you are not the one paying the bills to the radio station.

What Black Ort, and the management of the Whip do know what happened next.

I got complained at. Thrice. The first was: “I turned off a live DJ for canned music?”

Black Ort tried to beat real life back with a hammer in order to log in and pull me from the Stage after that comment. Rygon was a few minutes too late to pull me by the time he was able to log in. Whip upper management were not answer.

I carried on. The second one was comments about the next DJ and how Irish should have updated the schedule change. Irish was a bit busy. This is supposed to be for Relay for Life and Cancer Awareness and Irish was out dealing with a friend of the family who had died from Cancer – but I didn’t know that just yet.

Let’s just say Spitfire, or Spiffy as they’re now know, should be very thankful that I didn’t point at them and say “that’s a manager right there” when I got complained at a third time. Or was that the fourth, with the autodj complaint from earlier? Spif did not need that stress going to the air, so I said, “I’m sorry. I manage things that pertain to the Gorean University, not the Whip. You’re going to have to take it up with an upper manager instead.”

I tossed the stream to Spif, and walked off the sim, and left a bomb in the Whip staff chat about what happened, I was that furious.

Notecards were sent up channels, and not only was I pulled from Gorfest by Black Ort, none of the Whip management has a problem with why. I can go there. I can perform for the rest of RFL, but No More Gorfest.

Why?

When You Insult Your Volunteer Who Is Going Above And Beyond Their Capabilities For You To Do As You Demanded, And Then Complain About It, Don’t Expect Them Back!

Gorfest has a few days left. Black Ort’s not happy with the stress levels or what happened. He nearly called me an ambulance because my sugar levels have decided to do a freak out. It’s going to be days for me to recover from prolonged periods of being under 3.8.

All this stress… I agree… Not worth it. Want us to do RFL stuff again as the Gorean University? Nope. Not happening unless we have at least a month.

I’m still doing panty checks on our girls. The Gorean University is class, not crass. We also matched donations with the Gorean Whip and Mexli’s Black Caste during Xander, the Larl’s class today. 5000L donations became 20,000L.