In my second life, I have green spikes, pink skin, and $7 Linden dollars to my name. I don't have a house, I don't have a job, and I don't have any friends... but I can teleport anywhere in the world. Welcome to Secondlife.com, a virtual reality game that is slowly enveloping my free time.

I used to lecture my 17 year-old cousin about the dangers of addiction to WOW (World of Warcraft). Everytime I go to my aunt's house to visit, there he is, WOWing. He taught me the terminology of online gaming. Still, I told him, don't play that - its a waste of time. But then, just last week, my roommate read an article about the website Secondlife.com, a simulation game not unlike that of the SIMS' games. In no time at all, she and I became hooked.

Second Life requires users to download a web client that allows you to write your own scripts, create a new persona, open a new business, own land, do whatever you want in a space where nobody judges you. Souds utopian, right? My roommate and I spent about two hours creating our character, detailing every part of her face, her hair, her skin, her body. The possibilities of transforming our Second Life character into a composite of us was accurate and interesting. In Second Life, you exist in a virtual world with other real people. There are casinos, outlet malls, strip clubs, live concerts, tattoo parlors, etc. Every kind of business you can imagine, unregulated and free. Except that even online, the society is ruled by capitalism. Even in a Second Life, I can't do or buy anything unless I have money. And the only way to get money is to either upgrade (i.e. pay) for a premium membership or become a prostitute - neither of which I am willing to do. So the addictive Second Life consists of me walking around, chatting with other users, and teleporting between islands and civilizations. But at least I get to be a punk kid.

It's only a matter of time before Second Life catches more newbs in its web.