[quote=River]
Well, I wouldn't care if we hadn't gone to the trouble of making real characters outside the game. What was the point of doing that if we never use them? And it negates my first post where I say that I'll just log on for an hour or so before making dinner. It's not so much a problem with realism as an issue with ignoring the conventions that the RP set up from the beginning.
[/quote]

I agree about the point that we had created real characters and so we should use them.

But...

Our real characters do not know each other. (At least not to my knowledge.)
So if they were to log out, they would likely be alone, living out 'life.' (Separate from other Roleplayers.) So, it seems to me, we would be roleplaying by ourselves for half the time. (To me, that is sort of boring, as I am just posting my stuff up, with no one else to reply to or anything.)

Why not, worry about logging out a little later. After our characters get to know each other a little more? (This way it would be at least more likely that they could/would meet up outside the game, as they already discussed their life outside the game, while they were playing in the game.)

To make it as if we aren't hopelessy addicted to this game/giving up life's activities in order to keep playing the game... (Like playing all day long upon the first day that we logged into the game...) Why don't we make it so that time passes much quicker in the game then it does outside the game? For example:1 hour in the game is only 10 minutes outside the game. 

Also, if we are going to log out, then our characters should let their "companions" know when they'll be back and come to an agreement so they can meet up again soon. (For example like a 'meet up' point decided between them somewhere that if all else fails, they will likely see each other there sometime.) 

Anyway I think there ought to be potential for 'surprise logouts'. For example that on a stretch of playing the game a little too long my mother comes into my room and yells at me for 'over doing a privilege', that way the real character directly and sometimes suddenly affects the game character's existence as I have to quickly log out.

Sorry if this is a lot to read... I just like to brainstorm. :P