Second Lifers' love of wheat translates to *four* real cows - To celebrate, AM Radio announces a writing competition

On September 22, 2007, AM Radio set out some plots of wheat for sale on the land where his own, much celebrated virtual wheat field in Second Life sits, known as The Far Away. Teleport directly from here.

Now AM Radio has announced that he is sponsoring The Far Away Writing Competition. Participants are invited to write a story or poem, and then post it in the description field of their photograph to the Wheat Field Flickr group. Only one entry per Flickr account is permissible, and all entries must be received by March 7, 2008.



There will be one Grand Prize consisting of $10,000L, one Eton American Red Cross FR250 radio (a real one), and featured placement of the winning submission on The Far Away (with the winning entrant's permission) for 8 weeks. Rules can be found directly at the Far Away.

All this is in celebration of an important milestone. From day one, AM has taken all proceeds from every sale and forwarded them to Heifer International, an organization that works to end hunger and poverty by providing livestock and environmentally sound agricultural training to improve the lives of people who struggle daily for dependable sources of food and income.



Today and 250 generous donors later, these sales of virtual wheat have raised very real money - $2,000US in fact - and enough for Heifer to purchase four cows.



What is it about the Far Away that moves us so and compels us to return again and again? It is hard for me to put it into words.



On paper, it sounds conventional: a field of wheat, grey skies, a rusty old train, a table... but in our pixelated reality it is a comforting riddle that has gripped the imagination of thousands of its visitors.

Strawberry Holiday put it this way, "The Far Away is my favorite place in Second Life. I go there almost every day - usually once when I first log in by myself... and once before I go to bed with Wendy. It calms me.... not just because it's an amazing build, but because I see the time and effort AM puts into it. There's always something new to discover. Tonight, Blueberries! And I always meet really great people there... or bump into friends. It's become my place of peace in Second life, like coming home."

For Darkle Sands, "the Far Away is not just some 'SL Build.' It's a piece of art. AM is an artist and prims are his paint. Everything in the Far Away makes you feel immersed, and the placement off unusual things in the landscape really makes it very abstract. To date it still rates in my top favorite places to be in Second Life." Spiral Walcher agrees with Darkle, and adds: "It is the perfect example of when reality meets virtual reality."

Whenever I stop by the Far Away, I hope to find a gentle person and frequent visitor there by the name of Hitomi Mokusei. I asked her via email how the Far Away makes her feel, and her reply came easily and eloquently: In the Far Away there is a feeling of peace, safety and constancy, but it is touched with an underlying emotional resonance that permeates everything in it... a tinge of nostalgic longing for what once was but is now gone. It is not a static place. Not all is revealed on the surface. Exploring it in more depth reveals secrets, that can fire the imagination... touch the heart... or make one think in a new way."

What does it mean to you and how do you feel there?


Life is bittersweet. Less than five months ago, I received an urgent IM from dedicated adventurer and NPIRLer Matthew Kidomen, alerting me to his discovery of a most extraordinary build in the sky above a sandbox. That finding turned out to be momentous, and the build was called The Far Away. Two days ago, Matthew wrote to say that he is leaving Second Life to do other things. I can never thank you enough, Matthew. "May good luck be your friend in whatever you do and may trouble be always a stranger to you."

The wheat field... has a secret

In real life, crop circles have mystified us. Now too, this wheat field in Second Life is having the same effect. Moreover, only a very few visitors have discovered all there is to know about this place.

It covers less than a 10th of a sim… but standing there, I feel it goes on for miles…

These fields were created by NPIRL’er AM Radio, and they are drawing people from all over the grid who find themselves returning again and again to contemplate them. I spoke with AM this evening, and learned that, like the wheat fields, I will never finish discovering all there is to know about this man.

Bettina Tizzy: Why did you choose to make wheat fields in the first place?
AM Radio: In real life, these fields are disappearing. I live on the edge of these fields. Every year another mile is taken for a McDonalds and Old Navy and a Super Cuts.
Bettina Tizzy: Is there a meaning behind the very surreal items you have placed here?
AM Radio: I wanted to challenge people's idea of place. We have so many preconceptions of space. What is a sidewalk, what is a house, what is a trail, what is a cave? We've evolved our sense of space and place. What better place than SL to challenge it? You call it surreal; I wonder if it simply isn't just-not-the-norm.

Humans have requirements of space. If you consider academic research, most agree that humans require a vista and a haven. A haven is a place of safety. A haven generally has a good vista of the surrounding area to escape to if danger ever arises. So the table and chairs are a haven, the hutch, safety. Why do we have skyboxes? Aren't those perfect havens with vistas? This is what makes space feel good to us; we want to be in these spaces.
Bettina Tizzy: …and the items on the table?
AM Radio: I can't play the violin. I can't play any music… but when was the last time you heard a violin being present or being played that it didn't provide comfort? They played violins when the Titanic sank. The sketchbook is definitely an echo of my RL sketchbook.
Bettina Tizzy: Do you keep it near you often? Or are you a paper napkin doodler?
AM Radio: Always… on the train, on airplanes, it’s always on me. I require a moleskin and Staedler pencils. Nothing else will do. I want a medium that is worth the time I am going to take on it.



AM's trademark is an AM radio sitting on or near his builds.

Soon after rezzing the wheat fields, which AM Radio calls "The Far Away," AM began to offer variations of them in exchange for donations to Heifer International, a charitable organization that lifts impoverished families around the globe to a state of self-reliance by providing them with the means to feed and support themselves. AM's goal is to raise enough money - $500US dollars - to buy a cow for a family.
Bettina Tizzy: How close are you to buying that cow?
AM Radio: I am happy to say we are about 95% there. About another 10 wheat fields will do it.

As for secrets... sometimes, not always, one catches a fleeting glance at a startling image...

Click for close up.

I will give you a little hint. Look for this hat.

AM Radio: It was all on a mighty whim. Of course, whim is the root word of whimsy.

Bettina Tizzy: People find themselves flying in the fields...

AM Radio: Ah, a gift animation. In real life, my art is collage, and usually I try to paint something… like a field, and use one found object or one extra thing that isn't from me, but inexplicably seems to work. The animation worked so well here that the field felt incomplete after I removed it, so there it is on the windmill.

A thousand thanks to NPIRL'er Matthew Kidomen for introducing us to AM Radio and his wheat fields.
Slurl: The Far Away