views on sex: a study on fictional nookie

* warnings: pics are marginally NSFW, and plentiful discussion of a wide variety of sex ;) *

Okay, first of all, I have no idea why I was so compelled to do this study, lol! But since I couldn't think of a fictional Christmas gift to you all, I decided to give you a character study on fictional sex!!! :D

Of course, just the very reason I'm exploring my characters' views on sex at all has to be inspired by Lunar's profiles for Ruin. I've always felt (and I think she would agree) that you can tell a lot about a character based on how they approach their sexual relationships. This became even more apparent as I write my characters' current relationship ordeals, seeing how each of them view love and sex so differently.

extras, friendship picspam

Friends is the picture theme over at N99 this week, and I spent a bit of time putting this together, so I thought I'd share it here too so that you all could see it. Some of these friendships go back so far, and when you look at it all in sequence, it kind of even tells a story.

If I get around to doing some other groups of friends, I'll share those here too. I'd definitely like to get around to doing my Tyler/Beau/April/Summer/Lucy/Dallas group too, but I know I have many others as well.

extras, birthday spam

Just a few extras and outtakes from setting up Stephanie's birthday party. I found this bunch surprisingly photogenic while I was working on them, and I ended up with a lot more pictures than I could actually use.

happy birthday, dear Stephanie...

December 16, 2083 - Stephanie Day is 24, Willow is 16 months. (Justin Kim is 23, Lily is 10 months, Corbin Gray is 32.)

Stephanie turns twenty-four today. Her parents have spent the majority of the week packing and unpacking, making the 20-minute drive from here to the LCU campus several times. Her mother got the School Board President job, and she starts immediately following the holiday break. But she did make some time to take Stephanie out for a new haircut and a pedicure, to brighten her spirits, and then they met her dad for lunch.

Her mother also arranged for some help around the house. "You'll have a housekeeper once a week," she said to Stephanie. "And call your uncle over if you need snow shoveled. The mortgage is paid, and you have Jeremiah's stipend for groceries. Your father will bring over more, if you need it. So all you have to do is take care of Willow. You can handle that, can't you?"

Stephanie handles Willow just fine, and Justin's daughter Lily sometimes too. So she isn't sure what sticks more, the emphasis on "all," or that it's even a question?

time in a bottle, revisited

* Sorry, this is going to be unbelievably long and rambly! *

not really a prosperity blog, or anything like it, anymore...

It's been a long time since I wrote that post on time and aging, and a lot of things have changed in the almost-three years I've been writing this story. So if this opens a new era in the keeping of LH time, then it's something that actually happened quite a while ago. If you compare my rounds 2076/78 to rounds 2080 and especially 2082, I'm sure you'll see the huge difference ;)

I don't play/write my families in anything resembling equal turns. In fact, I rarely get the chance to really and truly "play" my families at all anymore. I'm fine with that, by the way. I have just as much fun using the game to tell my story as I do playing it for fun. And in the midst of posing, I do try to steal a couple minutes to just "play" them like the little pixel dollies they are. If I do manage to take any cues from gameplay anymore, it'll be found in these little 5-minute play sessions.

This story (and all of its story parts) has plenty of momentum, for the next two rounds, and into the spin-off even after the Lakeside Heights portion of the story is finished. So I thought we could talk about the way things started here, and what things have become. And I'll go ahead and finally say out loud that we're leaving that "prosperity blog" structure, which in honesty, we left quite a while ago.

picspam, like a peace offering...

Sorry, no story update ready for you this weekend. But before you get very disappointed, I'm going to make up for it with pictures of Dallas and Lucy... and a very cute toddler ;)

quickie little bit of picspam, a linen store

For my next update, I needed like two pictures at a linen store. So I added a little linen store to my mall. And I seriously only needed two pictures for the update, but I think I'll end up using three just to amuse myself. Since it took me a good couple hours to put together and I'll probably never need to use it again, I thought I'd show off a couple more here. It's supposed to be a Pottery Barn kind of thing ;)

LH stuff: kind of, a twitter feed

Lakeside Heights now has its own twitter feed! :)

elections 2083, results!

And the votes are in! We had an amazing turnout this election with 134 votes! Nice job everyone, and thank you for voting! :)

one day, on the basketball court...

December 6, 2083 - Corbin Gray is 32. Jack Phoenix is 34.

One day, on the basketball court, Jack is trying to teach Corbin how to play basketball. There are a lot of things Corbin can do, but he isn't so well versed in these American sports, and all these sporty college kids run circles around him sometimes. Nobody wants to look like a fool on the job. So lucky for Corbin, his newest buddy was once a basketball star in college.

elections 2083!

December 6, 2083 - Election Day. Presented by Clarice Miller of the Lake County Courier.

Clarice Miller: We bring you this broadcast live from County Hall, in Lake City. Welcome, and I'm happy to bring you coverage of the 2083 Elections Press Conference.

LH stuff: Hayden and Piper wallpapers

Further amusing myself with some wallpaper! This one was requested by LunarFox (Hayden and Piper, at the arcade), like two weeks ago, lol! So here you go!

This picture happened completely randomly, by the way. I just had them there playing pinball together, and he looked over at her like he was all Champion of the Pinball Machine 'n stuff, and she was all *blush* and I just thought it was the cutest thing I ever saw! lol!

idle chatter: amusing myself

I'm a little bit sick, and just amusing myself with some new avatars...

Or ten of them, lol!

picspam, bella's new house

So one day, I went and destroyed Bella's house, lol! Oh how she loathes me! Because the only other place I could fit her ever-expanding family is in the suburbs. She is SO not a suburban kind of lady. But I put them in Stoneview Court, which is a "gated community" - so that status should make her happy. And Cameron is happy because he's right across the street from Max. And the girls will have a nice sized yard to play in.

Of course, I had to start with her kitchen! :)

picspam, favorite family

I mean, not that I have favorites... lol! But "favorite families" was the picture theme over at N99 this week, so I decided to see if I could fit them ALL on the same lot at the same time. And it took me over an hour to do, but I did it!!!

(click through for the full size images)

I'll spare you the boring narrative, since you guys already know their stories. (Really, it was just too many bad jokes about poor Robbie not being as smart as the rest of them, lol!) But I figured you'd all enjoy seeing the pictures, so here's the whole Deppiesse clan (with spouses and fiancés).

Of course, you'll also have to suspend your disbelief for those who are not supposed to be "here," or are in the middle of a fight and probably would not be willing to pose so *adorably* together, lol!

LH stuff: Stephanie wallpapers

Okay, one more, and then this madness has to stop! But I do have two more in mind to make this weekend. After I write some stuff. I figure if I don't get this Jodie update out pretty soon, some of you might show up on my doorstep with pitchforks? ;)

But first, a wallpaper for those of us in darker moods?

LH stuff: Dallas and Lucy wallpapers

There were a lot of things I was supposed to be doing tonight... Was supposed to be working on Jodie's story tonight, or my novel - either/or, whichever felt like being written first. I was supposed to be folding my laundry, or loading up those dishes that I started but never actually finished... but I was NOT supposed to be Photoshopping desktop wallpapers!

Guess what I was doing?

poll: who are you most eager to hear from this season?

Who are you most eager to hear from this season?

idle chatter: cool finds 'n stuff

I'm having to push back the second half of Jodie's story (part 2), mostly because my kid got sick this weekend and the past two days have dissolved into a pile of snotty tissues and vomit (oh hey, I know you're all super jealous of my life, lol!). And then I have some other things to finish the next couple days. I'll try not to make you wait all the way until next weekend, but it'll be Wednesday or Thursday before I can give it any proper attention.

But I do have a surprise mini-thing for you later tonight, from Amelia.

party prep picspam...

It's basically party season around here in Lakeside Heights, December through the New Year. Or at least this year it is. The elections are coming up fast, there's a war going on, and people are stressed out and need to blow off some steam. So the next few updates will feature parties, family gatherings, holiday events, or get-togethers for no specific reason at all.

SBP: a conversation with Maxwell Shaw

December 2, 2083 - Maxwell Shaw is 37. (Samantha Bradshaw is 33, and has been missing for ten years).

Interview notes: Maxwell Shaw, dated Samantha Bradshaw briefly in the spring of 2073, a few months before her disappearance.

winter 2083/84: still hear you

I'm rather excited/anxious/nervous to share this season with you. If you've been following the babble thread, some of these are the stories I had clogging up my head for months. Many months! Almost a year for some of them! I've been waiting so patiently to share them, trying desperately not to drop spoilers all over the place. (And probably failing in some cases.) And of course, after all this hype, now I just have to hope they're as entertaining in reality as they are in my head, lol! ;)

now, the building spam ends

And to wrap things up, I have some build month outtakes ;)

In real life, people don't teleport, so I always forget that Amelia learned how to do it. Here she is teleporting up to the third floor of Collins Hall for a graduate level drafting class.

base hood uni, something like a tutorial

The simplest part of building a base-hood uni is... building it ;) Your base-hood uni can be anywhere, downtown, shopping district, vacation hood, whatever... just not the regular uni hoods. The trickier parts are getting your university to act like a university, and getting your students there.

on the building of a university

The thing about LCU is that it's never finished. I had this grand idea that I would get it all finished up and post this huge all-inclusive tour of the thing, inside and out, every single building. (I know, what was I thinking?) But it wasn't done. And I couldn't get it done - not before this weekend, not definitely not before I burn the hell out on all these building projects! And in just the process of simply working on it, I thought of ten more things I want to do with it. I thought about how Lucy will be starting college in just a year and a half, and she'll want to study dance, and I don't have a dance hall for her. Yet... ;)

Lake City University

*note, because I suspect this will likely turn up in all kinds of Google searches: Lake City University is a *fictional* university campus for my story Lakeside Heights. If you got here searching for a real university, you might want to try again... * ;)

Welcome to Lake City University. We are a full-service university located in the heart of Lake City, just twenty minutes from Lake Michigan. LCU offers a four-year bachelors degree in a wide area of studies, study abroad opportunities with Takemizu Academy in Japan, as well as both masters and doctorate programs.

(base hood uni, kind of a tutorial)

one day, Piper bought Hayden a new t-shirt...

December 1, 2083 - Hayden Phoenix is 34, Piper Wilson is 29.

A tiny little mini-story, about a new shirt:

She bought this shirt for him, a present for his 34th birthday. Space Invaders was his favorite game when he was a kid - he told her this. He told her how he'd play it so late some nights that he'd be too tired to wake up for school in the morning, and he'd fake sick. Then he'd stay home and play it some more, curled up on the couch under a flannel blanket, with a bowl of his mother's famous chicken soup and some warm tea and honey. Who'd want to go to school?

picspam: randomness with Hayden and Piper

This all started because Hayden and Piper wanted to buy a house. They won't be married for another six months still, but I didn't want to do the moving hassle at the same time I'm having to deal with wedding plans, so we did this now.

This is in Hazel Park (and hey, look, train station in the background!). He's still just about a mile away from his mommy, because I figured he'd want to move too far away, lol!

I didn't build this, but remodeled it quite a bit, both inside and out. I changed out all the windows and doors and stairs, and the color scheme. Complete overhaul inside. The second floor was left unfinished, so I finished it.

LH stuff: lots for download

Lots for download, from the poll. All lots are scanned with the Clean Installer and all accompanying CC is already compressed. Minimally necessary CC is included - use the clean installer if you don't want it.

poll: what lot do you want for LH stuff?

So I promised you a lot for download, and your top pick was, the North Park Street Townhomes, with 21 votes and 31%...

The thing is...

trains coming out of my ears!

Welcome to the great train station and bus stop extravaganza! (Now with parking lots too!)

Okay, is that dramatic enough? Because I kind of went a little overboard here. Seriously, if I see another train in the next six months, I might go insane!

I'll go ahead and share these links at the start - Criquette's neighborhood deco building sets, and Sunni's deco cars - both of which were used extensively in this project.

And it all started with this, the LCMTA Rail Map.

testing things, breaking stuff...

Pardon me while I try not to make too much of a mess out of this place.

Testing some new image sizes...

my biggest fan needs a dictionary...

Lyf? I'm afraid that isn't a word, my dear.

LH stuff: not a llama clock, batch 1

It's so hard to find good clocks, isn't it? What I wanted was simple yet stylish - not fancy, not antique. Like the kind of clock you might buy at Target?

So I made some!

And now I'm *totally* about to make five thousand clocks! Or maybe a few dozen, eventually. And for tonight, we'll start with eight ;)

how to materialize a family background in five seconds or less...

Believe it or not, this all started with a building project.

build week #3.5: what not to do with the lot adjuster

Experiments and failures on placing lots "off-grid"

So I had this grand idea that I'd take some houses, and place them along a fake street, to use up some of that pesky middle space in one of my city blocks. So that street in the middle of the picture is completely decorative, and the homes there are placed "off-grid", meaning they're not attached to any actual road.

These houses I used are by Maisie by the way.

And for the most part, it worked. But I did run into a few deal-breaking (in my book, anyway) problems.

build week #3: fun with the lot adjuster

Did anyone ever try this before?

This is my campus pub, a 3x1 lot, overlapping my new campus parking lot, which is a 5x4 lot. Both lots are fully functional where they stand, and don't conflict with the other.

build week #2: it's almost a medical center!

Just a little, tiny, sneak peak ;)

I'm super-excited about my medical center! In fact, even though I downloaded a big hornking hospital for my city, I might not even use it much in the end. Most of the scenes I tend to use for this story are more outpatient kind of situations - like a therapy session, or pregnancy checkup. Those wouldn't likely happen at a hospital at all, but would probably happen in a smaller suburban medical plaza like this! :)

on character traits...

I don't know *what* inspired me to start a mega-post on characterization, lol! But I had what I thought was a simple project of adding character traits to my profiles (like Apple Valley or Heredon Cove), and then I got started writing this and I couldn't stop.

This is something I've always done for my characters, behind the scenes. And for more serious stories, I'll even write out a whole page of defining characteristics for my characters. These are the sort of inherent personality features that we guide our lives and decisions by. We all have them - and not just aspirations, though those are true too, at a much simpler level. But not all [insert your favorite aspiration] "Sims" want the same thing, or go about it the same way. Their character is deeper and more unique than that. We don't always hold true to our inherent nature, but when we don't, there usually has to be a reason for it.

Not that I feel at all qualified to give a lesson on character writing or anything, lol! But I do know a couple things that help me write my characters, so maybe it might help you too ;)

build week #1: moving mountains

First, welcome to build week! Or weeks, I guess, since it ends up taking about a month, lol!

You can expect fluffy building posts, some storytelling discussion, and lots of picspam! If you're not interested in the building and remodeling stuff, and would like to skip ahead to the start of the next story season, go here: winter 2083/84: still hear you.

I have a list of the projects I intend to work on in the "coming soon..." box, though I don't expect I'll have enough time to finish all of them. I hope to at least make some progress on each of them. And I'll share pics as I go along.

My first project was learning to use the neighborhood terrain editing cheat. It's kind of an essential cheat to laying down rail track, so I dug into it. And I practiced by moving a mountain, lol!

Before...

And after! :)

take it down, extras

*warning: this is ridiculously long! No joke! *

Extras, outtakes, and misfits from the "take it down" season...

(I think I'll call them seasons now, rather than chapters. Does that make more sense? I mean, each entry is big enough to be its own chapter, right? Why didn't anyone ever tell me that made no freaking sense? lol! So since the collection usually spans about a season, it seems only logical. Season?)

Anyway, whatever we call it, this collection of stories was the longest EVER, and gave us a crapload of extras!!! These stories took me 8 months to write, covered five major story progressions and many independent pieces and mini-updates, and added up to a whopping 50,881 words!

(If I ever want to know why my novel isn't finished yet, I think I have my answer!)

Let us begin? ;)

from myself, extras and author's note

first, a note on the ending of stories:

Since this is kind of the first storyline that's been well and truly wrapped up in this blog, I thought I'd do a little author's note. I'll also probably want to give them each their own author's note when they're finished. For a time, I was doing the author's notes by round, but I think this works better, maybe.

But on the ending of stories in general, this is how it will work:

The storyline tags cover the arc of the story itself, from beginning to middle to end, and only the story. Both Micah and Mariah existed as Sims/characters before this story took shape, and those entries are not included. Likewise, the whole Buchanan family will still exist in Lakeside Heights in the future. You'll still hear from them in other stories, and they'll still get their once-a-round family update. But as far as I'm concerned, this story is finished, and I'm happy to let them have their peace, lol!

Basically, the storyline tags contain only what I would include if I were writing this as its own stand-alone book. It's still a work-in-progress, but main characters are also getting their own name tags as well, and those name tags will span the entire collection of stories, any entry they make a meaningful appearance in. So for further reading, you can continue to follow their tags: Mariah, Micah, and for entries relating to the whole family, Buchanan.

And James too. James is one of those who doesn't really have his own storyline, yet plays an important role in about three or four different stories. Or maybe he does have his own story, and I just haven't discovered what that is yet.

Anyway...

This obviously contains major spoilers, so if you haven't read through all the from myself stories, you'll want to finish those first.

Author's note on the "from myself" storyline:
The hows, and whys, and hitches in the writing of...

Price-Hudson wedding outtakes

For as simple as this wedding was, this was also the most FUN I've had doing a wedding in a really long time. They just wouldn't stop, lol! I thought I'd put all the funny in its own post, so not to disrupt the narrative flow ;)

This was actually the normal shot I thought I would use for the story (and that I'd put Chandler's "Score!" shot in the outtakes), but seeing as how they've always been a big bunch of goofballs, I just couldn't resist using it. But here, proof that they did have some serious moments.

from myself, part 3

November 2083 - Micah and Mariah Buchanan are 25. Chandler Price and Jane (Hudson) Price are 25.

* Soundtrack: "Songbird," by Fleetwood Mac *

In the beginning, Chandler and Jane had nothing but love.

No really, nothing but love.

And a used garage sale couch, folding card table, and two lawn chairs. They had some clothes, but they weren't very nice ones, so they didn't bother to wear them most of time, when they were just home alone.

For the first week of their life together, they spent their evenings in the dark. Chandler had forgotten to buy a lamp and they had to wait for his next paycheck to be able to have even light. But that was no big deal - they considered it an adventure. They loved each other in the dark, and when all else failed, Micah and Mariah lived just up the street a bit, with their hot meals and actual dinnerware to eat off of.

poll: who needs the biggest hug right now?

Whoa, holy 96 votes, Batman! I think some of y'all figured out how to vote twice ;)

So, who needs the biggest hug right now?

this is the sorry excuse for why I've got nothing...

Well, this is how I spent my Simming time this weekend, but unfortunately, it did not amount to much shooting of the next story update.

But... Lakeside Heights now has skies!!!

from myself, part 2

November 2083 - Micah and Mariah Buchanan are 25, Quinn is 15 months. (Madison Riley is 61.)

* warnings: NSFW/kids. Soundtrack: "Songbird," by Fleetwood Mac *

Micah looks out the window because he can't bring himself to look this man in the eyes. What he has to say isn't good news, and Micah already knows this. Out the window there's a dumpster, the street below, and his car parked with forty-five minutes left on the meter. "Your ideas are good," the team leader says. "But I don't know what you think we can do for you. We can't reasonably offer a place on the team without the proper certification."

"Oh, of course," Micah says. The room feels devoid of air. There's a plant in the corner, but it must be fake, because he imagines the lack of air would cause the veins and capillaries of the thing to collapse upon themselves, cause the leaves to shrivel and fold and wilt.

But they don't.

LH stuff: Anjali Shaw

This was prompted by the Sim-Project for July at N99, and since I'm going to share her there, I wanted to give her to all of you guys too.

I've always been kind of heartbroken that she'd never get to grow up here in Lakeside Heights, but you know, that's the sucky thing about death, especially when it happens so young. She died in my hood, from a tragic ROS roll, when she was only seventeen. But here she is at 22 and I'm hoping you guys might be able to give her a future that she never got in my dimension of the universe. Maybe you can give me updates on how she's doing and what she's done in her life, lol!

If you want character details, she was a popularity Sim, gemini, outgoing and a little bit snobby, but was always well-liked and had lots of friends. But of course, your game, so do whatever you like with her.

from myself, part 1

November 2083 - (part 1 of 3) - Micah and Mariah Buchanan are 25, Quinn is 15 months. (Jane Hudson is 25.)

* soundtrack: "Songbird," by Fleetwood Mac *

Micah is still working on city council, but he's starting to get the feeling that it won't really go anywhere. Blake Miller has been on city council for almost ten years now and hasn't gone anywhere. Politics is what it is sometimes. The people want who they want, and there's really no room to move otherwise. So Micah is supposed to be working up some sketch ideas with the city planning committee, as part of the Lake City downtown revitalization project. It's kind of a test run for a new career direction. He's always had a knack for doodling things, and they humor him with the task of plotting out stops on the new public bus lines. It's more exciting than you might imagine.

He feels like he's walked straight into his entire life. He only landed his current job because of who his mother-in-law is, and maybe because of his dimples. His wife only finally agreed to marry him because he knocked her up. From the outside, it might appear as if he's had some good luck, but that isn't the way it feels to him. He always tries to work hard, but it's never his hard work that pays off.

So if he can plot out the perfect frequency of bus stops for the new Lake City Transit plan, then he'll feel like he's accomplished something. Maybe next time they'll let him design a courtyard or something.

one day, Carly gets a little spend-happy...

One day, Carly Cook gets a little spend happy. This is her shitting-a-brick face, because she just got the invoice for the reconstruction of the roof on her new boutique. "I didn't know a roof could cost $15,000," she says.

"Sure," I tell her. "That roof can. You want me to send it back?"

"Well, no," she says. "It's cute. Can we charge it?"

And so it begins...

You guys still have a story update coming this weekend, but Carly's boutique will be featured in one of the scenes, and I thought you might like a better look at it than just story shots. Carly's gone a little bit spend-happy in here, but you know, it was cute.

the brick, four vignettes

November 2083 - James Porter is 26, April Hutchins is 20 // Mariah Buchanan is 25 // Berjes Monif is 38, Jodie Larson is 28 // Beau Jackson is 20.

*soundtrack: "Brick" by Ben Folds Five *

11:13 a.m.
This is only the second time James has been back on campus since he left it, and it's bringing back memories both good and bad. These apartments weren't here when he was, and neither was the sculpture park and coffee bar on the corner. They've still got the student pub though. And that building at the end of the street, that old stuffy Academy Hall, was where he spent his senior year with Mariah.

This is only the second time he's been back on campus, and the first time was for her, the girl with the warm dark skin and bright blue eyes, the first girl he ever loved. He loved her and she spun him for one hell of a loop. He doesn't do drama. He doesn't do games, and Mariah is the reason why.

Maybe if he'd have met April a few years earlier, he might be up for it, but not now. Not after Mariah. She broke him good and clean. It's a shame she never seemed to do the same for herself.

poll: low key couples you'd like to hear more from?

The low key couples you'd like to hear more from?

poll: LCU student least likely to make it to graduation?

LCU student least likely to make it to graduation?

LCU, landslide, part 4

November 2083 - LCU, fall semester (part 4 of 4) - Vicky Garth and Summer Phoenix are 19, April Hutchins and Beau Jackson are 20.

* warnings: difficult conversations, and maybe a tissue or two? Soundtrack for all parts, "Landslide," by Fleetwood Mac *

Close your eyes, she tells herself, don't look yet. It's what she tends to do, pretend things aren't really happening. Close your eyes and remember a time when things were simple.

The first thing she remembers is a fall day, seven years ago, playing basketball at the Lake City Community Center with Beau and Tyler, running through the crunchy fallen leaves, a crisp chill in the air. It was soon after she started working at their family's arcade, and their parents brought them all out from the suburbs to hear a concert across the street at the Sound Stage. Instead, Beau and Tyler chased her around the back of the concession stands. They were too old for tag, but those boys, silly as they are, took their sweet time growing up. She liked Beau better, even from the start, with that army-print fisher's hat, and an unspoken gentleness that he never wanted to admit. She always wondered, why should he be so ashamed of it? It was her favorite thing about him. Tyler gave her a bunch of noogies that day, but Beau gave her a kiss.

Of course that isn't the first memory she has of her life, but it's the earliest she can recall when anything ever made sense. It's the most beautiful, the one she wants to stay in, to let linger in permanence. She didn't feel like a child the way they were that day, but they made her feel childlike again. So that day, she began her life, as if she could press a reset button and start over from there, as if all the rest could be lost like an unsaved video game. She really thought that could work. She was barely thirteen years old.

LCU, landslide, part 3.5

November 2083 - LCU, fall semester (part 3.5 of 4) - Vicky Garth and Summer Phoenix are 19, April Hutchins and Beau Jackson are 20. (Corbin Gray is 33.) * soundtrack for all parts, "Landslide," by Fleetwood Mac *

Vicky actually waited until three months after the legal drinking age to have her very first drink. April made it for her, a sex on the beach. She didn't taste the vodka so much going down, but it she sure did feel it in her head about ten minutes later. It wasn't that she was afraid, or opposed, or even prudish. It was mostly that she just hadn't even realized she was old enough finally. 

LCU, landslide, part 3

November 2083 - LCU, fall semester (part 3 of 4) - Vicky Garth is 19, April Hutchins and Beau Jackson are 20. (Heather Huffington is 37.)

* soundtrack for all parts, "Landslide," by Fleetwood Mac *

April doesn't think she's ever had a friend, male or female, who she didn't want to sleep with. And Vicky? No, April doesn't want to get in bed with Vicky. Not in the least. The girl has a stick up her butt the size of an oak tree! But there's something in this poor, friendless girl, that April feels drawn to. She can't help but reach out to her. And honestly, she doesn't see why nobody wants to help the girl. She's in college, not a freaking nunnery! She needs to be saved!

So she digs her new friend out of her biology books and brings her to work with her one night. "So, you're not drinking because you're allergic, or because you're studying to become a nun?"

"Drink?" Vicky says. "I don't know, I've never had one before."

"Oh, geeze, you've probably never had sex before either."

"Sex? Well, if you mean, all the way-"

"Oh my God, I was right!" April says. "We gotta get that taken care of!"

LCU, landslide, part 2

October 2083 - LCU, fall semester (part 2 of 4) - Dallas Deppiesse is 19, Fenton Dyer and Iris Barton are 20. (Lucy Harris is 17.)
* soundtrack for all parts, "Landslide," by Fleetwood Mac *

The residence hall at Takemizu Academy has an ancient wishing well hidden among some trees, but Dallas won't touch it. He refuses to touch it! Because the first and only time he touched it was the first day he got here - the first hour he got here, before he'd even unpacked his bags - and this is what it told him: "The time will come for you to make a decision."

What the hell is that supposed to mean???

He also didn't know that a swarm of bees had taken up inside it. The coin he tossed disrupted their sleep, and in the space of seconds, they woke up and rushed toward him. He was stung thirty-two times.

LCU, landslide, part 1

October 2083 - LCU, fall semester (part 1 of 4) - Beau Jackson and April Hutchins are 20, Summer Phoenix and Vicky Garth are 19. (Lucy Harris is 17.)

* soundtrack for all parts, "Landslide," by Fleetwood Mac *

Summer doesn't know much about college yet, but she does know that Lucy is going to love it! They've somehow convinced her mom to let her stay for the weekend. Lucy's mom teaches computer science at LCU, so she knows the campus is largely safe, but she's still worried about the co-ed dorms.

"Don't worry Mrs. Harris," Summer says. "I'll bring her back safe and sound." Then she adds, with a wink, "And not pregnant."

"What?" Lucy's mom says.

"Kidding," Summer says. "I mean, my floor is all girls. We've got an RA - she's a girl. Keypad access and everything."

Lucy's mother is paralyzed.

"Rape alarms?"

"Bye mom," Lucy says, tugging Summer by the arm, pulling them out of the house before Summer can convince her mother to change her mind.

and one for the happy...

Because these people are breaking my heart around here lately. (Just wait until we get to the next chapter - it's like everybody decided to fall apart at the seams simultaneously.) So I decided to do a collection of happy and uncomplicated moments from happy and uncomplicated couples. Okay, so maybe not all of these couples are (or will be) completely uncomplicated, but they're all very happy together, for sure!

A lot of these were going to go in my extras at the end of the chapter, but it feels called for now :)

pressure points

October 2083 - Stephanie Day is 23, Willow is 1. (Jeremy Nova is 68, Riley Hathe is 34, Justin Kim is 23, Corbin Gray is 33.)

She feels looked after like a child. Her father drives back and forth from the city. He says he's just prepping for the move, but he never seems to be moving anything. Justin calls her almost every day after work, and he and Lily come over when they can. Her Aunt Sophie comes by from across the street. "Oh, honey," she says, frowning at Stephanie's scorched attempt at pork chops. "You should have let me bring you something."

And then there's the real, actual child. Willow. Aunt Sophie scoops her up in her arms. "Oh, isn't she just precious?" she says. "What a doll."

one day, an earthly goddess is born...

October 2083 - Fiona McCullough is 16.

One day, Fiona McCullough, our (not-so) friendly neighborhood Wiccan, finally feels ready to try her hand at some of these things she's been studying. She's been waiting for the moment to feel right. She's a very careful and calculating girl, and she wanted all the pieces in their right places. After all, when one is plotting world domination, laying a perfect groundwork is essential!

bad karma

October 2083 - Chad and Riley Hathe are 34, Liza is 14, Shaun is 6. (Fiona McCullough is 16, Robbie is 13.)

Chad found this one morning, a ratty old vest he used to wear in high school. Yes, high school was fifteen years ago, but it still fits, and it helps him to relive all those long-forgotten days, before children, before marriage. He can hardly remember those days as it is. But his wife is not nearly as amused.

"Oh hell," Riley says, twisting up a scowl at him.

"What," he says. "It still fits. You remember this? I wore it all through high school. It was rad."

"It was not rad, even in high school. You look like a fool."

Behind them, Liza is laughing.

a poem about a freckle

October 2083 - Amelia Bradshaw is 28, Drew Bruty is 27.

* Warnings: NSFW/kids - and unabashed poetics! Soundtrack: "Colorblind," by the Counting Crows. *

She smells like organic lemongrass and ginseng, which leaves her skin soft and milky smooth. Did he know that natural soap is gentler on the skin than even the most moisturizing body washes? No, he didn't know that. But he does now.

She eats zucchini. He ate french fries before he met her, and now he knows that red bell peppers contain more antioxidants than green ones, green tea more flavanoids than bottled beer. She buys fresh fish for its omega-3. Now he knows what omega-3 is - he never knew he needed it, but she insists that he does. He doesn't need to know why, but she'll tell him anyway.

It's not about ideals or glamour. It's science, she tells him. "Because it'll make you live forever," she says. "Or at least a really long time. I want you to live a really long time."

prequel stories #8: reconstructing the founders, part 2

In April of 2006, a group of young college graduates decided to start their brand new lives by settling in a once-quiet little town called Lakeside Heights. Until now, there has been little record of who these people were, apart from a few aged photos and the basic public record of their family tree. This effort is to reconstruct their lives as best we can, through their family who might remember them.

family trees and photoshoots

*the family photoshoots are a work in progress*

The Brant/Harris Family:
(gen 0, 1, 2, 3, 4: includes Fortney, Bradshaw)

The Bradshaw/Riley Family:
(gen 1, 2, 3, 4: includes Gibson, Buchanan, and Kim)

The Nova/Phoenix Family:
(gen 1, 2, 3, 4: includes Collins, Hathe, and Day)

The Ramirez/Shaw Family:
(gen 1, 2, 3, 4:)

idle chatter: a hole in the head

Guess who? Couples edition!

Wouldn't that be a fun game? I'd show you couples, in different clothes and with their faces obscured and you'd have to guess who they were, just from their surroundings and mannerisms.

You all shout, "Yes!"

Well, maybe I'll put one together some day ;) LOL!

No, I'm not that mean. But I do need to finish out this chapter of stories first, so maybe we'll do that in the next chapter break.

You can try to guess who this couple is though. They've both had recent makeovers, so it might be a little tricky. I'll reveal them at the end of this post.

I'm kind of itching to finish this round by the end of September (I know, longest round ever, right?), which I'm aiming to coincide with the completion of my novel, because I'm itching to play FFXIII in my intermission. And you all should know that when I play FF games, I disappear from the conscious world for a solid two months! FFXIII is going to be my prize to myself for finishing the first solid draft of my novel - what more incentive does a girl need than that?

Of course, when I actually sell the damn thing, my prize will be a supercool new gaming computer! :)

prequel stories #8: reconstructing the founders, part 1

In April of 2006, a group of young college graduates decided to start their brand new lives by settling in a once-quiet little town called Lakeside Heights. Until now, there has been little record of who these people were, apart from a few aged photos and the basic public record of their family tree. This effort is to reconstruct their lives as best we can, through their family who might remember them.

guess who???

This game was inspired by Carla's "guess who" game over at Sullivan. I personally found hers much more surprising than mine, though maybe I would be biased. The only changes to these Sims are the removal of custom eyes, skintone, makeup, and clothing, and I've left them in whatever outfit and hairstyle the game defaulted them to. For those who were already wearing Maxis clothing, I photoshopped their clothing so it wouldn't be a give-away ;)

I'm very eager to see how many of these you guys are able to guess! Feel free to use the resident database if you think it might help.

As Carla mentioned in her game, any Sim wearing an in-between skintone would default to a lighter or darker tone. Same with custom eye color. There are 18 to try, and you can guess as many or as few as you like.

who are you people anyway???

*** note: I originally did this survey as part of this blog's two-year anniversary festivities, but newcomers to this blog are welcome to join "the peanut gallery" at any time ;) ***

Now I get to ask you some questions! We've known each other a couple of years now, and I'm curious about all these people behind these screen names.

You can answer as many or as few of these as you like.

welcome to LH blogiversary week!

Lakeside Heights turns two years old this week! (Or precisely, it did last Wednesday, on the 24th, but whatever, lol!) It's been a fun ride, and I have some special things planned for you all!

silly red sheet, part 3

September 2083 - Aurora Miguel and Adrian Jackson are 51. (Beau and Tyler Jackson and Evie Bachman are 20, Summer Phoenix is 19.)

* soundtrack: "Superman," by Five for Fighting. *

There have been plenty of girls in and out of this house, and in any family, it's an easy enough mistake to make, the question of what to call your boyfriend's mother?

She prefers Aurora, for the record, as Summer always called her. Or even "mom," as April has boldly called her for the past seven years, is just fine. But anything else gets tricky, as Evie quickly discovers.

"Thanks for having me over for dinner, Mrs. Jackson," Evie says.

It's certainly not the first time she's been mistaken for the actual wife of her longtime live-in lover. But tonight, maybe the word hits Aurora harder than it should.

"Oh, no, it's just Ms. Miguel," Aurora says. "And you can thank Adrian for dinner, he does all the cooking around here."

silly red sheet, part 2

September 2083 - Aurora Miguel and Adrian Jackson are 51. (Beau Jackson and April Hutchins are 20, Summer Phoenix is 19.)

* soundtrack: "Superman," by Five for Fighting. *

Summer is visiting over at Beau and April's apartment, one afternoon in September. She sits in the corner armchair, slumped deep and sulking. Like the rest of them, she also just heard that Tyler is shipping out. Unlike the rest of them, she learned this information second-hand through Beau.

"You could have been there," Beau says.

"No, I don't think your mom wanted me there," Summer says.

"She's not really mad at you."

Summer shrugs her shoulders. "How long did he say he was going for?"

"About four months."

"That's a long time."

"He'll probably call you," Beau says. "He said he'd try."

"He'd better," she says.

LH stuff: Jolie, Jolie

After almost twenty years of service, Aurora Miguel, of Lakeside Heights, will put her boutique, Jolie, Jolie, up for auction. She cites personal reasons for her decision, though it is known she'll be running for office this fall.

silly red sheet, part 1

September 2083 - Aurora Miguel and Adrian Jackson are 51. (Beau and Tyler Jackson are 20, Carly Cook is 28.)

* soundtrack: "Superman," by Five for Fighting. *

After a lovely weekend with Adrian, Aurora was quickly dropped hard back into her real life. She's afraid of this man, the same man who called her employees customer service lazy and entitled just a couple years ago. So when she sees him in her boutique again, she feels herself inclined to run and hide. But this time he says, "No, don't worry! Everything looks great!"

2083, we don't need no education

September 2083 - schools update, fall.

* note: trying something a little different this time. Since I know you guys usually enjoy the school posts, I'm expanding the usual age-up back-to-school update into a mash-up of age transitions and a regular school update, like I usually do in the spring. This fall one will focus more on the kids in these transitional ages, where the spring update will still focus on everyone or whatever stories are prominent at the time ;) *
Bluewater Township: where they shall practice telepathy....

starting high school, 9th grade (15 years): Liza Hathe

"You're supposed to do the reading before class," Liza says, seeing Robbie flip through his school book in her peripheral vision.

"It was just so hard," he says. "I wish I could come with you." What he means is, he wishes she could still help him with his classwork.

school extras, picspam

This post was scheduled ahead for Sunday, so I guess if you're reading it, that means it worked. I should be back online some time Monday to respond to comments... you know, if everything goes according to plans, which is always questionable in moving...

Scheduling entries ahead always makes me nervous, since you'll be reading it before I get a chance to see it published myself, and it could be loaded up with glaring horrible typos 'n stuff, lol! So good thing it's just a fluff post ;)

The extras are coming before the actual school update this time, but these aren't really the spoilery kind of outtakes. I just wanted to separate all this picspam and administrative stuff, so I could keep the story stuff all flowy and nice.

one day, thirty-two years later...

September 2083 - Adrian Jackson and Aurora Miguel are 51.

One day, Aurora decides to buy a little beachside bungalow on Twikki Island. She and Adrian have finally come to a point in their lives where they have plenty of money to spend on such luxuries, and she could use a little relaxation. She's earned this relaxation. The elections are coming up fast, and this fall, she's running for CFO of the Lake County Treasury. And that's on top of managing her award-winning boutique. On top of teaching business classes at the university. But mostly, that's all on top of the fact that her baby is two-hundred-thousand miles outside the Earth's atmosphere, and training to go to war.

Her head is just about spinning, and she doesn't even know which direction to stop it in.

happy birthday to you...

September 2083 - Welcome to Lakeside Heights: Ian, Ingrid, Jacob, Catherine, and Rebecca.

It was a rainy day, early this September, two weeks shy of her due date and not even the slightest warning when the Thompson twins decided to make their sudden appearance. Adam was just about to help Heather down the stairs when her water broke there at the landing. Adam is a mathematician, and he didn't really take many health classes in college, and it's been four years since Laney was born, so he's not really sure if he remembers this all very well.

Regardless though, these babies are coming!

the great 2083 playdate

September 2083 - toddler playdate picspam!

This update is inspired by Emily Miller and Aaron Phoenix. You barely ever get to see them because of their parents' absolute lack of drama, so I figured they deserved a little picspam because they're just so CUTE!

If I were the kind of player that set up kids from the moment they're born, these two would SO be married already, lol!