and the winner is...

Congratulations to Summer Phoenix, winner of the Lake City Metro Business Award. She will receive $50,000 to spend on her toy store, Summer's Place, in any way she chooses. She's also looking a bit stunned there, but we're sure she'll do just fine with it.

the love shack

March 2081 - Maxwell Shaw is 34, Valerie is 39, Angelo is 10, Devon is 4. Last update, March 2080.

*** disclaimer: Your author and the residents of Lakeside Heights would like to express that the views and actions of Maxwell Shaw do not represent the views of the town in its entirety, and he shall be held responsible for his own shadiness. This post may not be suitable for the young, impressionable, or easily offended. Thank you, and enjoy! ;) ***

*** disclaimer #2: This is kind of long ***

Maybe this all starts with Bella Bradshaw. Maybe it's the flush in her cheeks and the way she shakes out her hair as she steps from that photo booth smelling of sweat and pure sex. Maxwell loves his wife - he and Valerie have a very special kind of connection, one that could never be replaced. But Bella Bradshaw is different. She is pure attraction and hormones. She is lust and flesh and so perfectly ripe he could just bite right into her.

She gives Maxwell an idea, and you can bet it isn't a wholesome one.

prequel stories #1: who just kisses a little in college?

Perhaps we should start this story with Aurora and Joel, the epic of all epic love stories, and their very first on-again period, which is the same thing as saying, at the beginning.

It was May, 2063, Joel's senior prom. Aurora was in eighth grade. Yikes! All's well that ends well, right? And the thing about prequels is that we already know how this story ends.

spring 2081, extras

Just a few extras to tide you all over until I can update again. I thought I would have time to finish one more update before we went on our little apartment-hunting vacation, but no dice. Hopefully I'll be able to work on another real update for you when we're back next weekend, before all the packing chaos begins!!!

And though I haven't had time to play much this week, I did manage to scrounge together enough old pictures for a prequel story. So assuming my hotel has internet access (and I think they usually do these days), I might be able to post that for you some time this week :)

So, in the meantime, springtime extras...

Lake City Metro Business Award

The Lake City Metro Business Award will be given every four years, and will be worth $50,000. Voters will decide the winner, and they may vote based on anything they wish, whether that be financial need, favorite Sim, or the merit of the business idea. Voting will begin in March of 2081, and last through August. The winner will be announced in September. The winner may spend the award any way they choose, as long as the money is invested in a qualifying business in Lake City or its surrounding suburbs.

Madison Riley has interviewed the four finalists...

lights and cameras!

So I just wanted to note that I'm experimenting with some lighting and camera mods - so if my pictures look a little wonky in the next few updates, then that's why ;)

For starters (and this is where I started), Jen at Greetings from Mt. Geneva has a whole page dedicated to some very helpful links and information about lighting, camera mods, and picture-taking stuff.

First, GunMod's Camera Mod! I adore the camera mod! I didn't download it for a long time, because I just thought, so I can zoom in a little bit more, what's the big deal? For one, I highly underestimated the JOY of zooming in and out like it allows. It's fun, trust me! But most importantly, it handles the camera in a way that allows my sad little graphics card and computer to work so much better! I was never able to run all the highest settings until installing this mod. Now I can. Look, shadows!

something in the water

February 2081 - Blake Miller is 35, Clarice is 34, Elliot is 3. Last update, October 2078.

Blake couldn't resist telling Clarice all about how Joel ran himself to the ground trying to make sure he and Aurora weren't having an affair. It was funny, you have to admit (though Blake suddenly gets an overwhelming suspicion as to why Joel doesn't really like him...)

Oh, but it's all in good humor! If he and Joel aren't friends, it hasn't been through any lack of effort on Blake's part. He guesses Joel is just a strange character - not really shy, but still a bit of a loner; not deadly serious, but a career military man. Maybe the only thing they even have in common is Aurora. So Blake jokes.

it could be worse

February 2081 - Joel Harris is 39, Aurora is 35, Zachary is 2. Last update, March 2079.

Maybe it's strange that Joel has been married to Aurora for eight years, and still never managed to make friends with her best friend? Maybe it's not strange though - Joel has never been the type to have many "guy buddies." He has a brother, and that's enough. He always preferred girl friends, lady friends, girlfriends. The thing is, he kind of had to get rid of those when he got married. Well, he didn't have to. She didn't ask him to, but he knew Aurora wasn't that kind of woman, and their marriage wouldn't be that kind of marriage, and it was something he was happy to do.

But Aurora didn't get rid of Blake. Joel would never have asked her to. He was like family to her, or so she claimed. Joel's girlfriends were nothing like family. But Blake is like family. He borrows money like a little brother. He leaves their toilet seat up. He even welcomes himself right into their bedroom to say goodbye at night.

one day, after school...

February 2081 (mini-update) - Liza Hathe is 12, Melissa Fortney is 13, Lucy Harris and Blair (?) are 14.

One day, after school, a boy named Blair followed Melissa home like a little lost puppy. And then he tried to flirt with her, which is apparently against the rules. For two reasons: one, because Melissa is WAY too shy for that flirting business, and two, because Liza Hathe does NOT approve!

the state of the Riley family

January 2081 - Madison and Bryson Riley are 58 years old. (Mariah Riley is 22, Keri is 20.)

*** notes: I've recently started linking to the family's most recent update in the date header ;) And also note in this update, I am changing Madison's title to Governor of State... further notes about that to follow after the update ***

One of Madison's first orders of business this year, with the taxpayer's hard-earned money, is to make over the Governor's Estate. It's still being renovated inside at the moment, but she thinks it was worth the effort. Check out this crib! She hopes the taxpayers like it, because it's going to be a vital part of the Lake City skyline for years to come.

The door on the right is to Madison's new Governor's office, which is accessible from the street, and separate from the rest of the estate.

happy new year, 2081!

Happy New Year, 2081!

The Harris family hosts our new year's party this year.

2080, extras

Before we start the new year, these are just some extra shots I had left over from 2080. They never fit into any of the posts they belonged to, or there might not have been enough room, but I liked them enough that I thought I'd share them anyway ;)

Hopefully I'll be able to work on the new year's post some time today.

she loves him, she loves him not

*** Lakeside Heights is back in business ;) ***

December 2080 - Andy and Claire Bradshaw are 54. (Amelia Bradshaw is 25.)

As her sister-in-law carries on about which of her daughters' boyfriends might be cuter, Claire Brashaw is wondering, when did this become all they had to talk about, the men their daughters might or might not marry? Why not discuss what smart, independent, and beautiful young women they've grown into instead?

But Madison insists, "You know, Justin is a great kid, but you should have seen the cutie Mariah is dating!"

"Is she dating?" Claire asked. "I thought she broke up with him."

"Oh, not that one," Madison says. "A different one. You know how it is at that age."