Who is Nidge Bracken?

Sometimes people forget that there is a person behind every avatar and that they have feelings. I am sure I have done it too. Recently I received criticism that I kind of took to heart. Aside from the outfits I wore for Fantasy Pride and some of the ludicrous things I have worn to Second Pride, Nidge Bracken is essential me, Nigel Hirst - also known as Nidge (oddly enough).

My avatar was created as an ordinary sort of person that you could pass in the street - apart from being over seven feet tall obviously. My skin, hair and eyes are all natural colours, my body shape is fairly standard (i.e. I am not so wide across the shoulders that my legs would collapse under the weight), I don't have any outlandish accessories or such like.

Nidge Bracken is a regular sort of guy; albeit with my eccentricities and odd sense of humour.

The clothing I wear in Second Life is pretty much the style of clothing I would wear in real life - jeans or smart trousers, t-shirt or shirt, jacket and a vast array of shoes. It is unusual to see either of me in sportswear, sweaters, trendy stuff, branded fashion, etc. My avatar often sports long coats because I wear them in RL and I still have the goth tendencies that came to the fore in my 20s so this is sometimes reflected in what Nidge Bracken wears.

Even when I went to Fantasy Pride, some of the outfits I wore were similar to things I have worn or would wear in RL, though obviously I have never had a fish tail or a fox's head in real life... At Second Pride, I did venture quite unsuccessfully (I think) in to standard leather gear. While I have always had a fondness for leather jeans and coats in RL (my £600+ Italian leather trenchcoat being a particular favourite), in RL I have never worn a leather thong and chaps. It just wouldn't be me and I didn't feel overly comfortable in them as Nidge Bracken, but it was Pride so yeah.

So the criticism that kind of wounded me in SL was criticism of my avatar's clothing style. In the past week and a half I have been told that I dress like a child (jeans and a leather jacket), as if I am a noob (I was not wearing freebies) and that I looked old and boring. It has really made me conscious of what I am wearing in RL - perhaps people just don't get my personal style or maybe I actually have none.