@permanentrose Well hello there Time Zone neighbor! Never been to Pennsylvania, but some of my Hubby's ancestors originated from there. Beautiful state!
I'm sure there is much more to come for Jules, and I'm looking forward to reading all about them.
Trying to catch up! @permarose I love the idea for Day of Remembrance.. I might have to steal that. Great Zap picture too! @SoulGal7 Grats on completing the aspiration! I love those dings! @Karababy52 Your Josh is sooo cute. I love to use that hair on guys in the game. Yum! @Skeilah Just awww... I wouldn't be able to help myself either lol.
Mine will be short and sweet for a bit I think
Day 17
So the weekend rolled around again. Time to make headway on the aspiration! First though Roxanne was invited to the Spice Festival.. by you guessed it... Clement. I like how the game keeps doing that! They became snow bro's so I'll have to invite him along later on the big mountain climb.
On Saturday morning she was off to Snowboard (sorry @Karababy52 hehe). I forgot to buy her good ski's so just went with it. Later I found out her snowboard wasn't very good either! Sore feet!
Anyway, she got a few more dings that day. She did the high intensity snowboarding and got hurt later while rock climbing. I love the animations for the snow sports here, especially the flying snow, sounds, and jumps. It makes me grin the whole time I play.
Extras:
@Hermitgirl Thank you, I so, so agree! That hairstyle and the long, straight Moschino hairstyle are two of my favorites for guys in my game. There's others I like and use, but those are the best for long hair on guys in my opinion.
What do you mean by 'Sorry' to me in Roxanne's Day 17? I think I'm missing something that's probably blatantly obvious. o.O
Ohh, that's right, Roxanne has plans to romance Father Winter someday. Cool that they are Snow Bros now. That'll help once the day comes. Yeah, those loaner boards are what give them sore feet. Roxanne needs to buy one in a vending machine or in buy mode to help with that. Bummer she got hurt climbing. I LOVE the snow sports animations too! I think I'm addicted to them. It's so fun watching them and it looks so realistic! The Devs did a fantastic job with those animations, including the sounds and snow flying, just fabulous!
@SoulGal7 Oh no, more power loss thanks to the Landgraabs! I've seen it in one of the other stories not so long ago. Mean Landgraabs.
Oof, bill increase, what? I never had such a message. Maybe because I turned off anything that has to do with Eco Living months ago? xD I absolutely hate the eco living features with a passion. I only have that pack for the world and the stuff.
Congratulations for Sakura on completing the aspiration! Now the other one! :P
@Karababy52 I was about to watch some Youtube videos where other Simmers try completing the challenge, see how they've done it, because I'm also pretty stuck hahahahaha.
Oh, you indeed have a different sleeping pattern. Nothing wrong with that of course. I mostly go to sleep around midnight and wake up around 9am (which is now in my case, hehe).
I still know when I started my relationship with my boyfriend (which is around 4 years ago now), we fought A LOT xD We had so many harships lol, but now 4 years later, we know each other so well that we never fight anymore. We know exactly what to do when one is sad or has to be comforted. I hope Bryon and Naoki will end up like that eventually! But well, with all these base game aspirations to complete (for example 'serial romantic', oh boy xD), I see a lot of other hardships for them already.
oohhhh, you write a book? Or at least, are trying to heheheeh. I also tried that, but books just take too long for me. I'm also more a fan of short stories or things like this challenge. That's why I love this forum so much.
Hahaahhaah you're so right! It's just woohoo, don't call it 'mess around'. We all know what it means and the teenagers sure do too.
I had a lazy day yesterday, and today I'll probably have another one, but I woke up today to 30+ notifications so I'll be busy on this forum for a while xD I do have to fix some things for my last exam tomorrow, but it's a chill exam. Have a nice day!
@permanentrose I actually have Pennsylvania in my Weather app so that I can see what time it is there compared to here in Belgium, hehe.
@Hermitgirl That girl is really going for Father Winter, isn't she? xD Oh my, Clement in normal clothes! I never saw him in normal clothes! Did you give him a make over, perhaps? Or are these really his clothes? xD
And now i'm going to write my daily entry. Wooooo!
Life (sort of) went back to normal. School was once again ahead of us, bills had to be paid.. But aside from that, I’m having some difficulties coming out. I mean, I’m in a relationship with a guy after dating so many girls. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. The worst thing was that I thought everybody saw right through me. I felt like all eyes were on me at school, as if they already knew. I didn’t know how to deal with it. It made me angry, sad, everything. Am I going through a phase or something? Naoki apparently noticed, because once we got home, he gave me a massive hug. “Everything is okay. We’re doing this in your pace, got it? Come on, our projects are waiting for us.”. My face went bright red. When did he become so sweet? Naoki set up the project tables in the backyard. The weather was beautiful, so why not? Working on that project indeed calmed me down. “All better?”, Naoki asked. “Yeah, thank you.”. “Wanna go on a hike after this? I know it’s getting dark, but the weather is still so nice.”. Of course, I agreed. After buying some survival stuff, we were ready for our evening hike. Sometimes we took a break to admire the sight, but I also got attacked by something. It’s a good thing I bought these different sprays, potions and powders! Preparation is everything!
Extra photo's
My link to the bills that have to be paid and Bryon who's having a hard time thanks to school.
Working on the school project, where Bryon calms down. Such good weather today.
Buying a lot of survival stuff for the evening hike.
@Karababy52 opps I meant that comment about snowboarding to @permanentrose .. she mentioned most of us were doing it. I had old brain happen! @Skeilah .. yes Roxanne will probably go for him eventually, but only as a baby daddy because the child will have a special trait. Moving him in brings a lot of money too (500,000) and I don't think that works well with the challenge... it's kind of like winning the lottery. Oh and Clement just changed into those clothes himself. He matched pretty well too. I was surprised!
I'm kind of glad the rollercoaster smoothed out for a bit for your characters! Wonder how long that will last? They are a cute couple .
Thanks to everyone for helping with my questions. I am going to go in-game later today and tick off that box and see if that will help. Posting and comments later today. Have a great one everyone!
@Hermitgirl Go ahead and use Day of Remembrance in your game, I'm honored that you like it enough to do so! And I'm very entertained that Clement/Father Winter is bonding so much with Roxi. Having Father Winter's baby in a few months isn't gonna be so hard at this rate
@Skeilah I really like that you're having Bryon struggle with his sexuality. I know that here on these forums, I'm very confident about talking about my own sexuality and posting my gay sims lol, but in real life, it really has been a struggle to come out, and there's a still a lot of people that I'm not officially "out" to, so I really do appreciate the pace and realism you're taking as you have Bryon come to terms with his sexuality.
--
Update 18 - Fond Memories
Notes:
Jules finished The Curator aspiration in the morning, thanks to the collectables the thunderstorm left behind in its wake (at least something good came out of that storm haha). So I started focusing on the knitting aspiration more, and the last part of the first stage was to knit in a rocking chair. Luckily, Emmett's mother just bought a rocking chair to put in the nursery to prepare for the upcoming birth of her twins, so Jules headed over to the Keyes' home. She will definitely be knitting them all gifts!
Emmett was curious about her knitting, so Jules insisted on teaching him. It was a stormy morning, so what else was there to do anyway? So Emmett agreed...Jules had just leveled up high enough to teach someone to knit, so I've never used this interaction before, and IT'S SO CUTE.
Jules: "Don't panic, I can show you how to fix it!" (see picture of the day)
(On a side note, knitting is being kind of buggy in my game - not sure if that's normal, or if it's due to one of my mods. I'm getting frustrated since it's not recognizing that she's completing actions that fulfill an aspiration goal, or just not letting her knit, period. So I may take a break from the knitting aspiration for a bit)
The storm cleared up, so Emmett and Jules decided to spend some time outside by the pool and the hot tub. They ended up sharing fond memories of their childhood together (my backstory is going to be that they've know each other forever - since they started out friends before I even started this challenge - and that Emmett's parents were friends with Jules' late parents)
Jules: "Remember all the fun we used to have during the summers as kids?"
Emmett: "Yeah, those were the best times. I can't believe we've be friends for so long. I'm lucky to have you."
Um, maybe I created an alternate save where I took screenshots of their memories from over the years *smiles innocently*
When she came home in the evening, she planted the dragon fruit that @Ellupelluellu's Melody gifted to her (My game is already so full of me making my own rules to make my ideas work, so I figured accepting the dragon fruit fit right in with how I'm playing anyway )
I'm gonna for real be torn between Mario and Emmett. I'm definitely getting more attached to Mario as I include him more in Jules' life...but Emmett and Jules' have this super cute history now. Gonna be a fun journey for sure lol
Some extra photos of cuteness:
I got a little carried away with taking photos in my alternate save and couldn't help but to share a couple more
School Day and when Kiyoshi comes home he is an 'A' student! It seems that Sakura is a good influence on him, as she is still maintaining her 'A'. There is a pop-up that Sakura has lost her Celebrity status, but that also means she has lost her Phone Fanatic quirk. Megumi, Kiyoshi's mother, must have heard the news that Kiyoshi got an 'A' and there is a pop-up that she wants to come over. I decide to not have them go rock climbing, but instead, have Sakura research handhold techniques on the computer. She is fine with this, it's just the reading that she gets bored with. She also works on her garden and gets Gardening-Level 4. She orders some seasonal spring and summer plants (strawberry and cherry), and plants the seeds in the garden. I have to extend the house roof to shelter the cherry tree, as otherwise, it would be out-of-season. The stereo has also broken and Sakura repairs that and levels up in Handiness-Level 2. This might be a good thing to have as I don't know if you need handiness to repair the rock climbing equipment, but it won't hurt to have some, just in case. While they wait for Kiyoshi's mother to come over, Kiyoshi autonomously grills some potatoes, and Sakura continues researching handhold techniques.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Megumi arrives and heads straight to the backyard to talk to Kyoshi.
Kiyoshi: "Okaa-san (mother), what an unexpected surprise. Won't you join us for dinner?"
Megumi:"Kiyoshi-chan, I will only be staying for a bit. I want to talk to you about a family matter."
Kiyoshi: "Yes, I am listening."
Megumi: "It is about your imouto-san (sister). She was brought home last night by the National Police. She was caught shoplifting at a local store."
Kiyoshi: "Nanami? Shoplifting? Why would she do that?"
Megumi: "I don't know, but if it was not for your Otosan's (father's) rank in the community, she would have been charged. Naoki smoothed things over but your sister is now grounded. I had called and texted you last night, but you did not answer. Where were you?"
Kiyoshi: "I was practicing rock climbing with Sakura. We are almost there, Okaa-san (mother), and if we can do a bit more practice..."
Megumi cut him off, "Kiyoshi-chan, when are you going to go back to what you have been training for - snowboarding? When will this nonsense with rock climbing stop?"
Kiyoshi: "It is not nonsense! I am doing this because it is important to Sakura. And Sakura is important to me."
Megumi: "More important than your own family? You would turn your back on your family when they need you?"
Kiyoshi: "I care deeply about Sakura and want to be with her..."
Megumi:"Oh, I know what that means. You want to 'mess around' with her. Well, perhaps now is a good time to talk about 'woohoo' with you."
Megumi went on for quite a long time discussing 'woohoo' with Kiyoshi, and snatches of the conversation were heard......"do not let a heated moment determine your future"..."she may get pregnant"...."your life will be ruined"..."even if you take precautions"..."how can you support Sakura and a child?"..."you will give up your dream"..."you need to finish school"..."give up this foolishness and come home"...
Kiyoshi listened to his mother while he grilled potatoes and did not say a word. Luckily, Sakura was inside and didn't hear the conversation.
Kiyoshi: "Okaa-san (mother), Sakura needs me to stay with her. She needs to go to the mountain top, and she asked me to come with her to help her with the climb. I made a promise to her and I intend to keep my promise. I have grown very fond of Sakura, and I am staying here. I will talk to Nanami, if that will help."
Megumi: "Kiyoshi-san, if that is your wish. But your place is with your family, Nanami needs you, and you need to come home. You need to continue to work towards YOUR destiny...not Sakura's." And with that Megumi bid Kiyoshi farewell and left.
Sakura came out to the patio and saw the sad expression on Kiyoshi's face.
Sakura: "What's wrong, Kiyoshi?"
Kiyoshi: "Oh nothing. I was just thinking about my sister."
Sakura: "You miss her, don't you?"
Kiyoshi: "Yes. We had a very close relationship and often I was the only one she could talk to."
Sakura: "You should call her. She would probably like that."
Kiyoshi: "Yes, I will, after dinner. And I was thinking, Sakura, now that my grades are up, perhaps we should take tomorrow off and concentrate on rock climbing. I checked the weather and it looks sunny this weekend. Maybe, if we practiced enough, we would be able to go on the Mountain Excursion then."
Sakura: "Do you think we are ready, Kiyoshi? I mean, yesterday, I didn't do too well. I don't want to go and not be able to complete it."
Kiyoshi: "You will make it, Sakura. You made a promise to someone, and I made a promise to you. I will keep my word."
January - Day 18:"Temptation is a feeling we get when encountered by an opportunity to do what we innately know we shouldn't."
Notes:
Very early the next morning, Josh's brother Joel stopped over for a visit. Tessa was busy taking care of the garden and getting ready for school while the two brothers sat down to play some video games and catch up.
"How's it going Bro? Have you been leaving your hands off Tessa?" "Yes, but...it's not easy. I have to keep reminding myself she's just a kid. But she doesn't look or act like a kid. She's so brave, so mature in a lot of ways, smart, funny, sweet...and...so beautiful."
"I know you care about her--" "More than I'd like to admit, but I can't help it."
"Well, you better be careful Bro, like you said, she's just a kid. If things get too...tempting, promise me you'll come home?" "Okay, OKAY, I promise! Satisfied? Just drop it and play the game."
"Alright, alright. It's cool Bro. Just don't do anything stupid you might regret later."
Joel left soon after and Tessa, fresh from the shower asked if Josh would like to play a game of chess before she had to leave for school. She was sure she could beat him this time. Little did Josh know, she had a trick up her sleeve.
It didn't work though, Josh could tell she'd moved the pieces when his back was turned. He easily beat her again. She was good natured about it though, promising to get him next time! Tessa left for school and Josh went up to the mountain to check on the weather there. He had promised to call Tessa if conditions were right and she'd make up an excuse to leave and meet him there.
Unfortunately, the weather was beautiful. Not wanting to waste the trip, Josh decided to try out his skills on a certain slope known only as "Ludicrous." It seemed more like the Bunny slope to Josh though, he was flying, taking all the jumps with ease, adrenaline pumping through his veins with the thrill of it all. He felt like he was invincible!
Not quite...he messed up the landing after the last jump and went tumbling to land face first and slide for several yards before he stopped covered in powdery snow.
Thanks to his incredible physical condition though, Josh strutted away unscathed, not a bump, bruise or broken bone anywhere. He WAS invincible. Well, he did fall, but WOW, such a thrill!
Josh hit the Karaoke bar again afterward still high on the rush of the run. He sang his heart out to a handful of appreciative bar patrons and reached Level 10 in the process. Feeling very confident, and hungry, Josh headed outside to a courtyard in the neighborhood to grab a bite from one of several food stalls.
Looking around for somewhere to sit after paying for his order, a pretty female Sim caught his eye. She smiled at him and he walked over to join her. She said her name was Whitney and she was on a lunch break from work. Feeling full of himself, Josh flirted with her a little and she flirted right back.
Without even thinking about what he was doing, their banter became something more than simple flirting, it began to get very steamy between them.
...and quickly out of control.
He couldn't, didn't want to stop and neither did she.
Whitney's break over, the lovely Sim sprinted quickly away with a casual, "Bye Lover!" shouted over her shoulder. Josh quickly left too and went home...
...to Tessa. She would be back from school in 15 minutes.
He sat down at the chess table and tried to sort out in his mind what had just happened. He'd done nothing wrong, right? His mind agreed, but his heart, his heart was filled with overwhelming guilt. The only question he had for himself now was, what was he going to do about it?
Sorry for the double post, I've stayed up wayyyy past my bedtime again. I need some ZzzzZZZs! o.O I'll be back later this evening to reply and comment on your posts. Thanks for understanding! Have a wonderful day!
@Hermitgirl Oh, I didn't know about the special trait! I just searched it on the internet. That's so nice! He indeed brings in a lot of money, hehe, but can't you let move someone in without transferring the money? Or cheat the 500k away after he moved in :P But you can also go for not moving him in at all and just make a child, indeed. The clothes surprised me too, hahaha! Maybe he was in for a jog?
Rollercoaster of emotions is incoming now, hahaha! Teens and their emotions. Ugh.
@permanentrose I have a lot of friends in the LGBTQ+ community. I'm 200% straight myself, but I know quite a lot about how people 'think' about for example coming out. A lot of struggling, indeed. It's so sad, because I think everyone should be able to be the best version of itself. So many boring people on the earth, so many black/white thinkers. Beh.
Update 18: Heheh, the daily picture is cute. I can't help but to see Emmett as a certain Sim in my Legacy story (The Ridley Residence): Maverick Munch (he's a descendant from the Much family, yes).
The thing is, Maverick isn't a good guy. He's really full of himself. For some reason, I keep see Emmett as he is Maverick hahahahah! So I always think he's also a bad guy.
Congratulations on finishing the Curator Aspiration! The teach knitting-interaction is indeed really cute. So sad that knitting is being buggy in your game. I never tried the aspiration so I have no idea where the fault could be. Ohhhhh, those memories!!! So cute! Still, Emmett looks way too much like Maverick. Hahahahahah!
@SoulGal7 Oh no, Kiyoshi's mother is being bleh. Bryon doesn't like Megumi. They really have a red relationship, haha! I like the conversation a lot, but it also makes me want to kill Megumi. xD Kiyoshi chooses to not tell Sakura about the visit from his mom But I'm glad that he still wants to help Sakura with the Mountain Excursion.
@Karababy52 Hehe, just saw your comment pop in as I was writing this comment :P Oh daaaammmnnnn, that escalated quickly. Didn't think Josh would do something like that! :O I'm soooooo shocked right now!
@SoulGal7 What a lovely way to tie more of the Ito family story/traits into your story. I love that Kyoshi's mom came over to talk to him about all that's going on with his family, and to update him on the latest incident with his little sister (great way to use her klepto trait!) And we have another woohoo talk, lol. I also love the little bits of Japanese language and culture you throw in, nice touch! I hope that Kyoshi can talk to Nanami and help her work through this incident, and also that Megumi warms up to Sakura more and is proud of her son for the things he has accomplished - and that he trusts him to not get Sakura pregnant lol
@Karababy52 AHHHHHH!!! I love this update! I love drama. You set up Josh's dalliance very well with that conversation he had with his brother earlier in the day, reminding us of Tessa and Josh's age gap and reminding Josh that he has to respect that. Poor Josh has probably been experiencing a LOT of "frustration" anyway , and needed to get some of that flirty energy out, so I definitely see how it escalated so quickly with Whitney. But how will he tell Tessa? WILL he tell Tessa? Is there a fight brewing in the future? Will Tessa be understanding or furious? I need you to post the next update right about now
@Skeilah Oh, no!!! Emmett really does look like Maverick I promise Emmett is a good boy (well as good as a teen boy can be, this thread here actually details a pretty entertaining escapade Emmett had a few weeks ago when his parents were out of town - and you can actually see Jules in the background of one of the party pics )
As someone who is gay, I think you are handling the LGBT+ storyline very nicely
@permanentrose Maybe Emmett and Maverick are secretly the same person in another universe, lol! xD Also, thank you! I learned so much from my gay friends about being gay. But then, I always like to learn about people and how they think about things. I'm an easy person when it comes to that stuff. Just be yourself, and I'll do the same! :P
@permanentrose. I think that hobbies like that ... knitting.. help make me feel more of a bond between my sims. I had an older couple bond over that too. So sweet. Which part of the aspiration isn't the game recognizing?
@SoulGal7 I love the way you are working the aspiration so deeply into the story. Takes a lot of work and thought.
@Karababy52 Hehe, he feels like he's cheating, nice!
@Skeilah I also don't want to move Clement in because.. I like playing a single sim in a household (it's easy) and I'm not feeling a bond there, partly because I'm playing slapstick and just for grins. I'm also toying with the idea of making her a murderer lol or at least having no qualms about offing people that offend her in some way. Mostly to keep myself entertained and to play around with the game itself. I don't want to get into a deep story either because it's mentally exhausting for me.. it's great when it's coming but if it crashes I'll jump ship... I couldn't keep it up for a year. I love reading these more in depth stories though that you guys are delving into though.
@Hermitgirl she knitted so much in that darn rocking chair but the aspiration step would not complete (so I cheated it to completion since Jules basically spent the entire day knitting there lol) that’s why the stuff with Emmett is so short - like 6 sim hours were wasted trying to knit in that chair. I also tried to get her to knit while listening to music for my update tomorrow (I’m a bit ahead again) and it won’t complete. And I don’t want to cheat each step also about 50% of the time when I direct her to go knit somewhere, she starts waving at me like the action is blocked and it cancels it, especially when she tries to work on a work in progress project. I’m getting very mad at how much time I’m wasting trying to get her to knit
Back to the school week for Roxanne... so that means more at home time. I just played a few days into the week. She was able to get a crocus although I don't remember if I got it from Patchy or buying packs. The garden was restructured around a beehive, because it's suppose to benefit plants up to 5 tiles out. I had fun making friends with them... and again maybe because of tiny living benefits it went quick. They still get angry though... darn those mites! She's pretty far into the freelance botanist aspiration also. Money is coming in fast when she paints, so I'm trying to limit her. Especially since she hit level 10 in painting some time back and I want her to skill other things in her spare time.
I gotta chuckle at her friends coming over and drop-bys. Since I'm pretty sure she's going to be a dragon lady of sorts this shot makes me think of lambs to the slaughter. Sorry for the homewrecking in advance!
@permanentrose I had that problem with the sitting in the rocking chair and knitting, when I left the lot it dinged off. Not doing that aspiration now but I'll definitely tell you if I have problems when it hits. I'm not using mods in my game.
One problem I've run into with the botanist aspiration is the vertical planters. Basically aspiration dings aren't recognized at all with them. Like now with evolving to excellent I take the plant out and put it in a planter on the ground... evolve them for the ding then place the plant back in the planter. I can deal when there's a work around. It's definitely frustrating when there isn't.
It's taken me so long to figure out where Bunny Slope was. By some fluke, I either sent River up to the top of the mountain and he put on his skiis himself or he did that all autonomously. Despite how long I've been playing River, I forget that he's a teen Sim. Oh I've finished my exams this weekend, talk about stressful and now on prepping for uni to start again so much to read!
Day 16
It was Winterfest and I let River in on the magic. He's been living in a tent and in the red for mood ever since. Oh apart from Kyoshi, he's also made friends with Sofie? Sophia? I need to remember Sim names. Father Winter gifted him something great too!
Day 17
Since cashing in Father Winter's gift, I built River an outhouse toilet and here's Kyoshi making fun of him while River finished spending a penny. This is it from me, hopefully once I'm organised I can do more than just post.
@Kanindota Yay, glad to see more of River. I enjoy seeing your updates when you have time!
@Hermitgirl thanks for the knitting tips! And I’m enjoying your updates with Roxi - I like that she’s painting a picture of her bee box haha. I enjoy watching people play sims with a more sinister side, so I’m appreciating that Roxi may have a more evil side, and I’m excited to see this manifest in the future
Hi All! Now I have a chance to comment on everyone's stories/progress. A note about the timezones. I am a Canadian living in Florida, USA. so EST or Daylight Savings Time now. It is almost 6pm. I tend to post after work.
I have downloaded the sims that were available in the gallery and they are all living happily in Senbamachi. I also checked the box under the Eco-Living and we shall see how that goes. I tried to check the box to keep Sakura out of the spotlight, but it wouldn't work. Maybe because she was already a Notable Newcomer. She has lost her celebrity status now anyway, so maybe it doesn't matter. When I did this, it messed up the seasons. I was on 14 days per season, and it should be summer now, but it is still spring. Oh well. I also put down 3 Maxis builds in Newcrest - The Vital Gym (the Rock Climbing gym), The bowling alley and a spa.
@karababy52 - for the weather problems you are having, in the settings, did you choose snow and snowtorms? If not, maybe try that.
@permanentrose - Wow 30 days in the first 13 up-dates, no wonder she is just flying in everything! I just do a sim day per up-date. Love the idea of how you have a save with inter-connecting relationships. Oh, and I like the name of Penny Pizzazz's sister, Polly! lol And if you don't have Discover University, that would be a great pack to get.
@karababy52 - Day 16 - Oh yes, Josh does look like Adam Lambert, I agree.
@Skeilah - Day 17 - Well, thank goodness that Bryon found Naoki or Naoki found Bryon. Gosh! These two. They are so mixed up. I guess Bryon had problems admitting to himself that he actually like-liked Naoki. But it is all solved now...especially with the...um...double bed move! teehee I love the comment "we got out of bed eventually because Naoki still gives me snowboard lessons!" Cracked me up! Yep, aspiration goals first. lol @Skailah - Day 18 - Oh, I guessed right. Bryon is having a problem with his identity. So glad that Naoki understands this. And your bills are $458 simoleons! Ugh! I thought mine was bad! I would have done off-the-grid, but the fridge to do that is so expensive. Egads! Bugs on the hike! Stomp, stomp, stomp on those bugs!
@Karababy52 - Day 17 - Tessa's garden looks great! And the weather, even though it's bad, it's not bad enough. Sheesh! That last goal seems tough to get. The comment about 'sleeping with Father Winter' - I laughed out loud when I read that! lol And Josh took a nap? That is kind of weird, but I guess he finally used the bed you put in the room for him.
@Karababy52 - Day 18 - Hmm...so Josh's brother knows something is up with Josh and Tessa, huh? Their relationship reminds me of The Police song "Don't Stand So Close To Me" about a teacher who is in love with his student. The photos of Josh skiing are phenomenal. He does think he is invincible, I think. And then...OMG! A random hook-up with a sim named Whitney! Josh - what were you thinking? Okay, you weren't thinking. Probably thinking of what he really wanted with Tessa, but can't have...yet. Josh, you need to get your head together..perhaps your brother is right, time to head back home.
@permanentrose - Day 17 - Wow! Poor Jules got zapped. What a photo! I also wanted to say that the Day of Remembrance holiday and the graveyard you created in your game is very nice. And the alien ghost urn is laid to rest. Great idea. And sleeping on the couch instead of the murphy bed. Good idea. I have heard too many things about those Murphy Bed deaths, and wouldn't want that to happen to Jules. @permanentrose - Day 18 - Congratulations on completing the Curator Aspiration. Those knitting pics are cute. It is good to know about the Knitting pack and the possible glitch. I was thinking of attempting that aspiration once I had completed the Mt. Komorebi ones, so that's good to know. Just love, love, love the time-lapse photos of Emmett and Jules when they were young, toddlers, children, teens...on the same bench. Very nice and creative. It's going to be hard for her to choose between Emmett and Mario.
@Hermitgirl - Day 17 - Clement is sweet on Roxanne, I do believe. I do love watching my sims snowboard, too. Look at that powder fly! But she gets hurt, so sorry, but that completed a check box, so yeah! And thank you for the compliment on Day 18 - I try to weave bits and pieces of the sims' stories into my story. I also looked up a bit about Japanese culture. I love to do background stuff like that. @Hermitgirl - Day 18 - Love the garden, bee box, and the painting of the bee box and bees. I laughed at the last photo of Geoffrey Landgraab and Naoki Ito..." sorry for the homewrecking in advance". lol Too funny! Good to know about the vertical planters being somewhat bugged to the Freelance Botanist Aspiration.
@Kanindota - Day 16 - In another save, I had a sim autonomously go up the gondola to use the Easy Slope. These sims, sometimes you need to tell them everything! lol River looks cool heading down the slope on the sled. Day 17 - Lucky River that Father Winter gifted him a karaoke machine! Woot! I love listening to my sims sing karaoke. I love those Simlish songs they sing. Yes, and that's Sofia Bjergsen from Windenburg. She is actually a good friend to have. Day 18 - Yeah for the outhouse! And that Kyoshi! The nerve of him laughing at poor River. Well, when Kyoshi needs to use that outhouse and River won't let him, we'll see who is laughing then! Great up-dates and congrats on completing your exams.
@SoulGal7 I am now only doing one day per update - and it's kind of hard lol. I had off work today, so I played ahead a bit more, so I'm about three days ahead now, but I'm being patient and I will post them all separately lol. So basically I'll just have to play other sims in the next few days to keep me from getting too far ahead with Jules - Maybe I'll check in with Polly Pizzazz hahahaha
I'm glad you appreciated the time-lapse photos, they were really fun to create. I was totally getting so many feels for Jules and Emmett when I posted that update, but I just wrote an update for a few days from now where I'm totally into her and Mario. I've created the perfect love triangle lol. I hope I can make it very angsty in the months to come
I need to do that as well. I've looked on a few websites, but can't find anything. If it's not a bug, there's an answer out there, we'll find it!
Oh sure, relationships have their ups and downs, it's inevitable, especially at the beginning. But once you really get to know each other, it settles down from big bumps in the road, to maybe a tiny pebble now and then. Hubby and I have been together almost 42 years. We know each other so well, we say what the other is thinking before they say it out loud, or complete each other's sentences, etc. We're best friends that grew up together and I love that!
I'm trying, but I don't work on it much anymore. It's just there, something to dabble at now and then. I'm more interested in other things now. Writing a book just seems like too much work. I want to be having fun when I write and TS4 is perfect for that.
I totally understand about the need to catch up with notifications, plus other things around the web, along with real world responsibilities and finding time to have fun. It keeps a body busy, but that's a good thing!
Oh, about completing all aspirations, including serial romantic and how it'll cause some drama later on. Y'all don't have to do all the aspirations, you could skip that one. That's just a personal challenge of my own to try to complete as many as I can before the end of the year. It's just a side thing, not really part of the challenge.
The only aspirations required to do are those that are a part of the worlds our Sim lives in each month. The base game aspirations are extras to use in worlds that don't come with any specific aspirations or when you've completed the current world aspirations. I apologize if I made it seem as if that was a part of this challenge, I just added that chart in case anyone else would like to try to complete them as an easy reference to keep track.
Today's Post: Aww, Naoki is turning out to be such a good influence on Bryon after all eh? Such a sweet guy helping him get through his confusion and anxiety about their relationship with compassion and understanding. Gah! Those big green crawly things give me the heebie jeebies! At least they don't land on our Sims though. So far neither Tessa or Josh have had that big caterpillar thing land on them. I hope they never do! o.O
Oh daaaammmnnnn, that escalated quickly. Didn't think Josh would do something like that! :O I'm soooooo shocked right now!
I didn't think he would either, but the opportunity presented itself, so I went with it. Something had to give with these two. They couldn't just keep going the way they were, it wasn't realistic to me, you know? Not that anything in TS4 is realistic, far from it. But drama is more interesting/realistic to most than all sunshine and roses. Not sure where to take it from here, but I have some ideas.
No worries, I figured something was mixed up somewhere and I certainly understand your old brain comment. I'm probably older than everyone on this thread!
Yes, Josh feels guilty because he loves Tessa and he knows/hopes she loves him too, in a romantic way, not just as Best Friends. They're a couple in every sense of the word, except physically and that's something he can't have with her, at least right now. Poor guy's head is a bit messed up right now.
Day 18: Glad you were able to get a crocus plant for Roxanne. Love the bees, they're great for gardens, the honey is beneficial too, plus she can send them to do stuff for her and find her gifts. My Sims don't have them very often though just for the reason you mentioned, the mites. They make them angry and my Sims would get stung if they came anywhere near the hive. It got old after awhile. Dragon lady eh? Well that sounds interesting.
Congrats to Jules for completing the Curator aspiration! Love the knitting aspiration! I haven't had an Sims knit in awhile though, so I don't know if what you're experiencing is a bug or due to a Mod. I didn't have any problems when my Sims were knitting though. Wish I could help! So cute how you've given Jules and Emmett a backstory showing they've been friends since they were just toddlers. I love that! Very cute photos you've created for them in that alternate save. Jules is eventually going to be so confused and torn about which guy she cares for the most. Should be an interesting read as well as fun for you to write!
Thank you! Yeah, I imagined he would have a lot of pent up frustrations from wanting to have a more romantic relationship with Tessa since he's fallen in love with her, but knowing it wasn't a good idea due to the age difference. I had intended to have them just continue the way they had been, being content with each others company, sharing adventures, innocently flattering each other etc. But, after awhile I started to feel like there needed to be something more. So when Josh did an 'Enchanting Introduction' on Whitney, I just went with it and, uh, nudged a few things to happen that might not have otherwise. Opps! Hopefully my ideas on what happens now will answers some of your questions in my next post.
Wow, Kyoshi's Mom is really leaning hard on him to come back home and fulfill her dreams for him eh? However, she does have some good points about being mindful of what could happen if he's not careful being with Sakura. Also, I'm guessing that not only does Kyoshi just miss his sister, I think he may be feeling guilty that maybe she wouldn't have gotten into trouble if he were home to be a big brother to her. And I think that's just what his Mother wanted to happen. Excellent update! I'm loving that a lot of us are developing little stories to go along with this challenge. Perhaps that'll help us to keep focused and not lose interest in it over the year eh?
I have snow and snowstorms turned on in my game already, but that's a good thought! This last goal is very tough, apparently the weather has to be juuuuuuust right. *sigh* Glad you liked the Father Winter comment. Yeah, even though Josh has the Never Weary reward trait, whenever he does any of the winter sports, his energy goes down slightly, but only for that. I think it must be a bug. It had deteriorated enough that I guess he felt like taking a nap.
Gah! I love watching him Ski, he does all these amazing tricks and spins, it makes my jaw drop. o.O So fun watching him. He was not thinking straight, you're right. I think another part of his anatomy other than his brain was ruling his actions. His head is messed up right now and you could be right, Josh going back home to his brothers might just be the best thing for both of them right now. We'll see...
Love the shot of River on the sled. Glad your exams are finished, good luck prepping for Uni! Whoa! Father Winter was very, very good to River! Looks like he's having lots of fun with his gift and sharing it with Sofia Bjergsen. Aww, you sold it! Well, I would've done the same thing, especially since he needed necessities rather than a luxury item like that. Kyoshi was making fun of him? For what? Building an outhouse. Tsk, how dare he? Sheesh, I didn't think Kyoshi was that much of a snob. Great updates!
No worries about not having time for anything but posting, you're not required to comment on everyone else's posts. This is meant to be a fun, casual sort of thing for whenever you have time. As I always say, real world stuff always comes first!
Alrighty, think I'm caught up now. I apologize for the delay in commenting, I've got three sick cats in the house and have been running around cleaning up after them all afternoon and evening for one thing.
Tessa walked in the front door, threw her books on the kitchen table and flopped down on the couch with a huge sigh. She flashed Josh a bright smile that quickly disappeared before asking how his day went. Before he could say a word she launched into a litany of how her day had gone.
Josh couldn't help smiling at her, despite the whirlwind of thoughts swirling madly in his mind. She had that kind of effect on him. He loved how her face was so animated describing an incident at school that was 'so unfair.'
He loved how when she was excited about something, her hands were in constant motion, as were her feet as she stomped them like an exclamation point for dramatic affect. It wasn't an act, she was just full of life. Wide-eyed and innocent, so confident, brave and beautiful. He loved her, how could he have betrayed someone so special to him?
There was no way he would ever tell her what he'd done. She didn't need to know,. What would be the point, the purpose of telling her anyway? It would only hurt her and that's the last thing Josh wanted to make her feel, pain, because of him.
"...I mean, it's not like I wasn't tempted to just throw it away. I could have, nobody was there, nobody would ever know. Have you ever been tempted like that Josh? Wanted to do something so bad, just once, that could make your life SO much easier to handle? Even though you knew it was wrong?"
"Tessa, I---"
But Tessa didn't give him a chance to finish. She wasn't really looking for an answer to that question, she simply wanted him to listen, to understand. She bowed her head and began to cry before continuing her story in a voice full of anguish.
"But I couldn't do it Josh, I just couldn't. It was wrong and I knew it. I'd never be able to live with myself. I tried to do the right thing."
"But, it didn't matter. I'm being punished for something I didn't even do and nobody would listen to me, nobody would believe me."
"They said I stole her notebook, and felt so guilty about it I pretended to find it and turn it in to the Principal's office. Now I've got detention for a week. A week!! Real fair huh? I should've just thrown it way. That's what I get for trying to be honest."
Tessa stood up from the couch and wiped her eyes. "Whatever, I need a shower. Th-thanks for listening, sorry for whining all over you about my miserable life. Gawd, it's just so unfair, you know?! I hate school!"
She walked past Josh, looking straight ahead, went inside her bedroom and closed the door with a soft click. How embarrassing was that? She'd made a spectacle of herself in front of Josh. She'd worked so hard to act like an adult and be mature about everything. And now she'd probably ruined it all by acting like a crybaby little girl.
Grabbing some clean clothes, Tessa ducked her head and opened the bedroom door. She'd have to walk right by Josh and she didn't want him to see her red, puffy, probably ugly eyes. He wasn't in the room though, so that was a relief. The only good thing that had happened all day.
The shower broke as soon she'd finished getting dressed.
Great, just great. Could this day get any worse? It was SO unfair!
Rather than running to Josh to fix it, Tessa grabbed the pipe wrench he kept under the sink and did it herself. If she wanted to be thought of as an adult, she needed to suck it up and start acting like one.
"Hey Beautiful, feeling better?"
Beautiful, he called her beautiful, again, always. What had she done to deserve such a wonderful guy? He was always there for her, so sweet and protective. Tessa knew he'd never let anyone hurt her if he could help it. Maybe life was unfair, but she could face anything with Josh by her side.
It was a pretty uneventful day for Jules. I just decided to pay more attention to her whims than usual, and decided to let those guide her actions for the day (resulting in a handful of aspiration points too!)
Having the active trait meant that she wanted to do a variety of active activities like push ups, going for a jog, and roller skating.
Unfortunately, this meant that she pulled a muscle and then got moody and too uncomfortable to do some of the other actions I tried to direct her toward, so she spent some of her day moping.
But some parts were productive too when she snapped out of her uncomfortable mood. She leveled up in gardening and painting.
And she even got her first postcard from Twinbrook!
Tomorrow (sim Saturday) was supposed to be Dell and Sofia's wedding, and unfortunately there's thunderstorms in the forecast, so I'm gonna reschedule it for the next day (Sunday) since the forecast is just cloudy instead (I feel like the sims forecasts seem to be somewhat reliable haha) Regardless, I popped into Magnolia Blossom Park to make some quick edits to the wedding area to I built and made it covered just in case. I do have one indoor wedding venue - a church, but it's in Newcrest, and I'm determined to keep Jules in Willow Creek when possible. SO I'M GONNA MAKE THIS WORK. Lol.
* Notice - I found a bug report about the aspiration goal I've been trying to complete with Tessa. Just as a refresher, it's the one where your Sim needs to complete a climb on the medium walls during icy conditions or thundersnow OR do a high intensity run on the expert slope using a snowboard or skiing during icy conditions or thundersnow. Check the conditions on the mountain on the boards around the neighborhoods. The easiest one to find is near the Bunny slope at the bottom of the slopes. Make sure it says 'poor' before making any attempts.
In the comments there was a few replies that some have been able to fill it by Skiing on the Expert slope, but not Snowboarding OR Skiing, but not Snowboarding on the Intermediate slope rather than the Expert slope. It seems there is a problem using Snowboards to fill this goal. It's a shame because Tessa has zero Skiing skills, so now she'll need to do some skilling for it before making an attempt.
When I get back in my game later tonight, I'm going to see if I can get that goal completed with Tessa after she's reached the sufficient level in Skiing, by trying those tips. If it still doesn't register, and since an official bug report has been filed on it, I think it's okay to use the milestone cheat to complete this goal and thus the aspiration. I don't believe anything was said, at least I don't remember, about climbing the medium rock walls in poor conditions not working to fill the goal though, so I might give that a try first too.
However, this bug may be fixed in the next patch update that I believe is coming this Thursday. If you can't get your Sim to complete the goal and don't want to cheat, you might want to wait until after the patch to see if it's been fixed. Just thought y'all would like a heads up about this.
Here's how to use the aspiration milestone cheat if needed:
Make sure you are actively controlling the Sim needed to complete the goal
Open the cheat box by pressing the Ctrl Shift C keys
Type in the cheat box on the upper left corner, testingcheats true (or on) and press enter
Type Aspirations.Complete_Current_Milestone and press enter
The milestone should complete for your Sim.
Headed for bed now, I'll answer any replies and make comments on your daily posts when I return later tonight. Have a great day everyone!
Comments
I'm sure there is much more to come for Jules, and I'm looking forward to reading all about them.
@permarose I love the idea for Day of Remembrance.. I might have to steal that. Great Zap picture too!
@SoulGal7 Grats on completing the aspiration! I love those dings!
@Karababy52 Your Josh is sooo cute. I love to use that hair on guys in the game. Yum!
@Skeilah Just awww... I wouldn't be able to help myself either lol.
Mine will be short and sweet for a bit I think
Day 17
So the weekend rolled around again. Time to make headway on the aspiration! First though Roxanne was invited to the Spice Festival.. by you guessed it... Clement. I like how the game keeps doing that! They became snow bro's so I'll have to invite him along later on the big mountain climb.
On Saturday morning she was off to Snowboard (sorry @Karababy52 hehe). I forgot to buy her good ski's so just went with it. Later I found out her snowboard wasn't very good either! Sore feet!
Anyway, she got a few more dings that day. She did the high intensity snowboarding and got hurt later while rock climbing. I love the animations for the snow sports here, especially the flying snow, sounds, and jumps. It makes me grin the whole time I play.
Extras:
What do you mean by 'Sorry' to me in Roxanne's Day 17? I think I'm missing something that's probably blatantly obvious. o.O
Ohh, that's right, Roxanne has plans to romance Father Winter someday. Cool that they are Snow Bros now. That'll help once the day comes. Yeah, those loaner boards are what give them sore feet. Roxanne needs to buy one in a vending machine or in buy mode to help with that.
Oof, bill increase, what? I never had such a message. Maybe because I turned off anything that has to do with Eco Living months ago? xD I absolutely hate the eco living features with a passion. I only have that pack for the world and the stuff.
Congratulations for Sakura on completing the aspiration! Now the other one! :P
@Karababy52 I was about to watch some Youtube videos where other Simmers try completing the challenge, see how they've done it, because I'm also pretty stuck hahahahaha.
Oh, you indeed have a different sleeping pattern. Nothing wrong with that of course. I mostly go to sleep around midnight and wake up around 9am (which is now in my case, hehe).
I still know when I started my relationship with my boyfriend (which is around 4 years ago now), we fought A LOT xD We had so many harships lol, but now 4 years later, we know each other so well that we never fight anymore. We know exactly what to do when one is sad or has to be comforted. I hope Bryon and Naoki will end up like that eventually! But well, with all these base game aspirations to complete (for example 'serial romantic', oh boy xD), I see a lot of other hardships for them already.
oohhhh, you write a book? Or at least, are trying to heheheeh. I also tried that, but books just take too long for me. I'm also more a fan of short stories or things like this challenge. That's why I love this forum so much.
Hahaahhaah you're so right! It's just woohoo, don't call it 'mess around'. We all know what it means and the teenagers sure do too.
I had a lazy day yesterday, and today I'll probably have another one, but I woke up today to 30+ notifications so I'll be busy on this forum for a while xD I do have to fix some things for my last exam tomorrow, but it's a chill exam. Have a nice day!
@permanentrose I actually have Pennsylvania in my Weather app so that I can see what time it is there compared to here in Belgium, hehe.
@Hermitgirl That girl is really going for Father Winter, isn't she? xD Oh my, Clement in normal clothes! I never saw him in normal clothes! Did you give him a make over, perhaps? Or are these really his clothes? xD
And now i'm going to write my daily entry. Wooooo!
Bryon's Diary
Extra photo's
My link to the bills that have to be paid and Bryon who's having a hard time thanks to school.
Working on the school project, where Bryon calms down. Such good weather today.
Buying a lot of survival stuff for the evening hike.
Why can't Sims walk hand-in-hand?
DIEEEE!!!
@Skeilah .. yes Roxanne will probably go for him eventually, but only as a baby daddy because the child will have a special trait. Moving him in brings a lot of money too (500,000) and I don't think that works well with the challenge... it's kind of like winning the lottery. Oh and Clement just changed into those clothes himself. He matched pretty well too. I was surprised!
I'm kind of glad the rollercoaster smoothed out for a bit for your characters! Wonder how long that will last? They are a cute couple
@Skeilah I really like that you're having Bryon struggle with his sexuality. I know that here on these forums, I'm very confident about talking about my own sexuality and posting my gay sims lol, but in real life, it really has been a struggle to come out, and there's a still a lot of people that I'm not officially "out" to, so I really do appreciate the pace and realism you're taking as you have Bryon come to terms with his sexuality.
--
Update 18 - Fond Memories
Notes:
Emmett was curious about her knitting, so Jules insisted on teaching him. It was a stormy morning, so what else was there to do anyway? So Emmett agreed...Jules had just leveled up high enough to teach someone to knit, so I've never used this interaction before, and IT'S SO CUTE.
Jules: "Don't panic, I can show you how to fix it!" (see picture of the day)
(On a side note, knitting is being kind of buggy in my game - not sure if that's normal, or if it's due to one of my mods. I'm getting frustrated since it's not recognizing that she's completing actions that fulfill an aspiration goal, or just not letting her knit, period. So I may take a break from the knitting aspiration for a bit)
The storm cleared up, so Emmett and Jules decided to spend some time outside by the pool and the hot tub. They ended up sharing fond memories of their childhood together (my backstory is going to be that they've know each other forever - since they started out friends before I even started this challenge - and that Emmett's parents were friends with Jules' late parents)
Jules: "Remember all the fun we used to have during the summers as kids?"
Emmett: "Yeah, those were the best times. I can't believe we've be friends for so long. I'm lucky to have you."
Um, maybe I created an alternate save where I took screenshots of their memories from over the years *smiles innocently*
When she came home in the evening, she planted the dragon fruit that @Ellupelluellu's Melody gifted to her
I'm gonna for real be torn between Mario and Emmett. I'm definitely getting more attached to Mario as I include him more in Jules' life...but Emmett and Jules' have this super cute history now. Gonna be a fun journey for sure lol
Some extra photos of cuteness:
Same bench, many years
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Megumi arrives and heads straight to the backyard to talk to Kyoshi.
Kiyoshi: "Okaa-san (mother), what an unexpected surprise. Won't you join us for dinner?"
Megumi:"Kiyoshi-chan, I will only be staying for a bit. I want to talk to you about a family matter."
Kiyoshi: "Yes, I am listening."
Megumi: "It is about your imouto-san (sister). She was brought home last night by the National Police. She was caught shoplifting at a local store."
Kiyoshi: "Nanami? Shoplifting? Why would she do that?"
Megumi: "I don't know, but if it was not for your Otosan's (father's) rank in the community, she would have been charged. Naoki smoothed things over but your sister is now grounded. I had called and texted you last night, but you did not answer. Where were you?"
Kiyoshi: "I was practicing rock climbing with Sakura. We are almost there, Okaa-san (mother), and if we can do a bit more practice..."
Megumi cut him off, "Kiyoshi-chan, when are you going to go back to what you have been training for - snowboarding? When will this nonsense with rock climbing stop?"
Kiyoshi: "It is not nonsense! I am doing this because it is important to Sakura. And Sakura is important to me."
Megumi: "More important than your own family? You would turn your back on your family when they need you?"
Kiyoshi: "I care deeply about Sakura and want to be with her..."
Megumi:"Oh, I know what that means. You want to 'mess around' with her. Well, perhaps now is a good time to talk about 'woohoo' with you."
Megumi went on for quite a long time discussing 'woohoo' with Kiyoshi, and snatches of the conversation were heard......"do not let a heated moment determine your future"..."she may get pregnant"...."your life will be ruined"..."even if you take precautions"..."how can you support Sakura and a child?"..."you will give up your dream"..."you need to finish school"..."give up this foolishness and come home"...
Kiyoshi listened to his mother while he grilled potatoes and did not say a word. Luckily, Sakura was inside and didn't hear the conversation.
Kiyoshi: "Okaa-san (mother), Sakura needs me to stay with her. She needs to go to the mountain top, and she asked me to come with her to help her with the climb. I made a promise to her and I intend to keep my promise. I have grown very fond of Sakura, and I am staying here. I will talk to Nanami, if that will help."
Megumi: "Kiyoshi-san, if that is your wish. But your place is with your family, Nanami needs you, and you need to come home. You need to continue to work towards YOUR destiny...not Sakura's." And with that Megumi bid Kiyoshi farewell and left.
Sakura came out to the patio and saw the sad expression on Kiyoshi's face.
Sakura: "What's wrong, Kiyoshi?"
Kiyoshi: "Oh nothing. I was just thinking about my sister."
Sakura: "You miss her, don't you?"
Kiyoshi: "Yes. We had a very close relationship and often I was the only one she could talk to."
Sakura: "You should call her. She would probably like that."
Kiyoshi: "Yes, I will, after dinner. And I was thinking, Sakura, now that my grades are up, perhaps we should take tomorrow off and concentrate on rock climbing. I checked the weather and it looks sunny this weekend. Maybe, if we practiced enough, we would be able to go on the Mountain Excursion then."
Sakura: "Do you think we are ready, Kiyoshi? I mean, yesterday, I didn't do too well. I don't want to go and not be able to complete it."
Kiyoshi: "You will make it, Sakura. You made a promise to someone, and I made a promise to you. I will keep my word."
Notes:
"How's it going Bro? Have you been leaving your hands off Tessa?"
"Yes, but...it's not easy. I have to keep reminding myself she's just a kid. But she doesn't look or act like a kid. She's so brave, so mature in a lot of ways, smart, funny, sweet...and...so beautiful."
"I know you care about her--"
"More than I'd like to admit, but I can't help it."
"Well, you better be careful Bro, like you said, she's just a kid. If things get too...tempting, promise me you'll come home?"
"Okay, OKAY, I promise! Satisfied? Just drop it and play the game."
"Alright, alright. It's cool Bro. Just don't do anything stupid you might regret later."
Joel left soon after and Tessa, fresh from the shower asked if Josh would like to play a game of chess before she had to leave for school. She was sure she could beat him this time. Little did Josh know, she had a trick up her sleeve.
It didn't work though, Josh could tell she'd moved the pieces when his back was turned. He easily beat her again. She was good natured about it though, promising to get him next time! Tessa left for school and Josh went up to the mountain to check on the weather there. He had promised to call Tessa if conditions were right and she'd make up an excuse to leave and meet him there.
Unfortunately, the weather was beautiful. Not wanting to waste the trip, Josh decided to try out his skills on a certain slope known only as "Ludicrous." It seemed more like the Bunny slope to Josh though, he was flying, taking all the jumps with ease, adrenaline pumping through his veins with the thrill of it all. He felt like he was invincible!
Not quite...he messed up the landing after the last jump and went tumbling to land face first and slide for several yards before he stopped covered in powdery snow.
Thanks to his incredible physical condition though, Josh strutted away unscathed, not a bump, bruise or broken bone anywhere. He WAS invincible. Well, he did fall, but WOW, such a thrill!
Josh hit the Karaoke bar again afterward still high on the rush of the run. He sang his heart out to a handful of appreciative bar patrons and reached Level 10 in the process. Feeling very confident, and hungry, Josh headed outside to a courtyard in the neighborhood to grab a bite from one of several food stalls.
Looking around for somewhere to sit after paying for his order, a pretty female Sim caught his eye. She smiled at him and he walked over to join her. She said her name was Whitney and she was on a lunch break from work. Feeling full of himself, Josh flirted with her a little and she flirted right back.
Without even thinking about what he was doing, their banter became something more than simple flirting, it began to get very steamy between them.
...and quickly out of control.
He couldn't, didn't want to stop and neither did she.
Whitney's break over, the lovely Sim sprinted quickly away with a casual, "Bye Lover!" shouted over her shoulder. Josh quickly left too and went home...
...to Tessa. She would be back from school in 15 minutes.
He sat down at the chess table and tried to sort out in his mind what had just happened. He'd done nothing wrong, right? His mind agreed, but his heart, his heart was filled with overwhelming guilt. The only question he had for himself now was, what was he going to do about it?
Rollercoaster of emotions is incoming now, hahaha! Teens and their emotions. Ugh.
@permanentrose I have a lot of friends in the LGBTQ+ community. I'm 200% straight myself, but I know quite a lot about how people 'think' about for example coming out. A lot of struggling, indeed. It's so sad, because I think everyone should be able to be the best version of itself. So many boring people on the earth, so many black/white thinkers. Beh.
Update 18: Heheh, the daily picture is cute. I can't help but to see Emmett as a certain Sim in my Legacy story (The Ridley Residence): Maverick Munch (he's a descendant from the Much family, yes).
The thing is, Maverick isn't a good guy. He's really full of himself. For some reason, I keep see Emmett as he is Maverick hahahahah! So I always think he's also a bad guy.
Congratulations on finishing the Curator Aspiration! The teach knitting-interaction is indeed really cute. So sad that knitting is being buggy in your game. I never tried the aspiration so I have no idea where the fault could be. Ohhhhh, those memories!!!
@SoulGal7 Oh no, Kiyoshi's mother is being bleh. Bryon doesn't like Megumi. They really have a red relationship, haha! I like the conversation a lot, but it also makes me want to kill Megumi. xD Kiyoshi chooses to not tell Sakura about the visit from his mom
@Karababy52 Hehe, just saw your comment pop in as I was writing this comment :P Oh daaaammmnnnn, that escalated quickly. Didn't think Josh would do something like that! :O I'm soooooo shocked right now!
@Karababy52 AHHHHHH!!! I love this update! I love drama. You set up Josh's dalliance very well with that conversation he had with his brother earlier in the day, reminding us of Tessa and Josh's age gap and reminding Josh that he has to respect that. Poor Josh has probably been experiencing a LOT of "frustration" anyway
@Skeilah Oh, no!!! Emmett really does look like Maverick
As someone who is gay, I think you are handling the LGBT+ storyline very nicely
@SoulGal7 I love the way you are working the aspiration so deeply into the story. Takes a lot of work and thought.
@Karababy52 Hehe, he feels like he's cheating, nice!
@Skeilah I also don't want to move Clement in because.. I like playing a single sim in a household (it's easy) and I'm not feeling a bond there, partly because I'm playing slapstick and just for grins. I'm also toying with the idea of making her a murderer lol or at least having no qualms about offing people that offend her in some way. Mostly to keep myself entertained and to play around with the game itself. I don't want to get into a deep story either because it's mentally exhausting for me.. it's great when it's coming but if it crashes I'll jump ship... I couldn't keep it up for a year. I love reading these more in depth stories though that you guys are delving into though.
Back to the school week for Roxanne... so that means more at home time. I just played a few days into the week. She was able to get a crocus although I don't remember if I got it from Patchy or buying packs. The garden was restructured around a beehive, because it's suppose to benefit plants up to 5 tiles out. I had fun making friends with them... and again maybe because of tiny living benefits it went quick. They still get angry though... darn those mites! She's pretty far into the freelance botanist aspiration also. Money is coming in fast when she paints, so I'm trying to limit her. Especially since she hit level 10 in painting some time back and I want her to skill other things in her spare time.
I gotta chuckle at her friends coming over and drop-bys. Since I'm pretty sure she's going to be a dragon lady of sorts this shot makes me think of lambs to the slaughter. Sorry for the homewrecking in advance!
@permanentrose I had that problem with the sitting in the rocking chair and knitting, when I left the lot it dinged off. Not doing that aspiration now but I'll definitely tell you if I have problems when it hits. I'm not using mods in my game.
One problem I've run into with the botanist aspiration is the vertical planters. Basically aspiration dings aren't recognized at all with them. Like now with evolving to excellent I take the plant out and put it in a planter on the ground... evolve them for the ding then place the plant back in the planter. I can deal when there's a work around. It's definitely frustrating when there isn't.
It's taken me so long to figure out where Bunny Slope was.
Day 16
It was Winterfest and I let River in on the magic. He's been living in a tent and in the red for mood ever since. Oh apart from Kyoshi, he's also made friends with Sofie? Sophia? I need to remember Sim names. Father Winter gifted him something great too!
Day 17
Since cashing in Father Winter's gift, I built River an outhouse toilet and here's Kyoshi making fun of him while River finished spending a penny. This is it from me, hopefully once I'm organised I can do more than just post.
@Hermitgirl thanks for the knitting tips! And I’m enjoying your updates with Roxi - I like that she’s painting a picture of her bee box haha. I enjoy watching people play sims with a more sinister side, so I’m appreciating that Roxi may have a more evil side, and I’m excited to see this manifest in the future
I have downloaded the sims that were available in the gallery and they are all living happily in Senbamachi. I also checked the box under the Eco-Living and we shall see how that goes. I tried to check the box to keep Sakura out of the spotlight, but it wouldn't work. Maybe because she was already a Notable Newcomer. She has lost her celebrity status now anyway, so maybe it doesn't matter. When I did this, it messed up the seasons. I was on 14 days per season, and it should be summer now, but it is still spring. Oh well. I also put down 3 Maxis builds in Newcrest - The Vital Gym (the Rock Climbing gym), The bowling alley and a spa.
@karababy52 - for the weather problems you are having, in the settings, did you choose snow and snowtorms? If not, maybe try that.
@permanentrose - Wow 30 days in the first 13 up-dates, no wonder she is just flying in everything! I just do a sim day per up-date. Love the idea of how you have a save with inter-connecting relationships. Oh, and I like the name of Penny Pizzazz's sister, Polly! lol And if you don't have Discover University, that would be a great pack to get.
@karababy52 - Day 16 - Oh yes, Josh does look like Adam Lambert, I agree.
@Skeilah - Day 17 - Well, thank goodness that Bryon found Naoki or Naoki found Bryon. Gosh! These two. They are so mixed up. I guess Bryon had problems admitting to himself that he actually like-liked Naoki. But it is all solved now...especially with the...um...double bed move! teehee I love the comment "we got out of bed eventually because Naoki still gives me snowboard lessons!" Cracked me up! Yep, aspiration goals first. lol
@Skailah - Day 18 - Oh, I guessed right. Bryon is having a problem with his identity. So glad that Naoki understands this. And your bills are $458 simoleons! Ugh! I thought mine was bad! I would have done off-the-grid, but the fridge to do that is so expensive. Egads! Bugs on the hike! Stomp, stomp, stomp on those bugs!
@Karababy52 - Day 17 - Tessa's garden looks great! And the weather, even though it's bad, it's not bad enough. Sheesh! That last goal seems tough to get. The comment about 'sleeping with Father Winter' - I laughed out loud when I read that! lol And Josh took a nap? That is kind of weird, but I guess he finally used the bed you put in the room for him.
@Karababy52 - Day 18 - Hmm...so Josh's brother knows something is up with Josh and Tessa, huh? Their relationship reminds me of The Police song "Don't Stand So Close To Me" about a teacher who is in love with his student. The photos of Josh skiing are phenomenal. He does think he is invincible, I think. And then...OMG! A random hook-up with a sim named Whitney! Josh - what were you thinking? Okay, you weren't thinking. Probably thinking of what he really wanted with Tessa, but can't have...yet. Josh, you need to get your head together..perhaps your brother is right, time to head back home.
@permanentrose - Day 17 - Wow! Poor Jules got zapped. What a photo! I also wanted to say that the Day of Remembrance holiday and the graveyard you created in your game is very nice. And the alien ghost urn is laid to rest. Great idea. And sleeping on the couch instead of the murphy bed. Good idea. I have heard too many things about those Murphy Bed deaths, and wouldn't want that to happen to Jules.
@permanentrose - Day 18 - Congratulations on completing the Curator Aspiration. Those knitting pics are cute. It is good to know about the Knitting pack and the possible glitch. I was thinking of attempting that aspiration once I had completed the Mt. Komorebi ones, so that's good to know. Just love, love, love the time-lapse photos of Emmett and Jules when they were young, toddlers, children, teens...on the same bench. Very nice and creative. It's going to be hard for her to choose between Emmett and Mario.
@Hermitgirl - Day 17 - Clement is sweet on Roxanne, I do believe. I do love watching my sims snowboard, too. Look at that powder fly! But she gets hurt, so sorry, but that completed a check box, so yeah! And thank you for the compliment on Day 18 - I try to weave bits and pieces of the sims' stories into my story. I also looked up a bit about Japanese culture. I love to do background stuff like that.
@Hermitgirl - Day 18 - Love the garden, bee box, and the painting of the bee box and bees. I laughed at the last photo of Geoffrey Landgraab and Naoki Ito..." sorry for the homewrecking in advance". lol Too funny! Good to know about the vertical planters being somewhat bugged to the Freelance Botanist Aspiration.
@Kanindota - Day 16 - In another save, I had a sim autonomously go up the gondola to use the Easy Slope. These sims, sometimes you need to tell them everything! lol River looks cool heading down the slope on the sled. Day 17 - Lucky River that Father Winter gifted him a karaoke machine! Woot! I love listening to my sims sing karaoke. I love those Simlish songs they sing. Yes, and that's Sofia Bjergsen from Windenburg. She is actually a good friend to have. Day 18 - Yeah for the outhouse! And that Kyoshi! The nerve of him laughing at poor River. Well, when Kyoshi needs to use that outhouse and River won't let him, we'll see who is laughing then! Great up-dates and congrats on completing your exams.
I'm glad you appreciated the time-lapse photos, they were really fun to create. I was totally getting so many feels for Jules and Emmett when I posted that update, but I just wrote an update for a few days from now where I'm totally into her and Mario. I've created the perfect love triangle lol. I hope I can make it very angsty in the months to come
Oh sure, relationships have their ups and downs, it's inevitable, especially at the beginning. But once you really get to know each other, it settles down from big bumps in the road, to maybe a tiny pebble now and then. Hubby and I have been together almost 42 years. We know each other so well, we say what the other is thinking before they say it out loud, or complete each other's sentences, etc. We're best friends that grew up together and I love that!
I'm trying, but I don't work on it much anymore. It's just there, something to dabble at now and then. I'm more interested in other things now. Writing a book just seems like too much work. I want to be having fun when I write and TS4 is perfect for that.
I totally understand about the need to catch up with notifications, plus other things around the web, along with real world responsibilities and finding time to have fun. It keeps a body busy, but that's a good thing!
Oh, about completing all aspirations, including serial romantic and how it'll cause some drama later on. Y'all don't have to do all the aspirations, you could skip that one. That's just a personal challenge of my own to try to complete as many as I can before the end of the year. It's just a side thing, not really part of the challenge.
The only aspirations required to do are those that are a part of the worlds our Sim lives in each month. The base game aspirations are extras to use in worlds that don't come with any specific aspirations or when you've completed the current world aspirations. I apologize if I made it seem as if that was a part of this challenge, I just added that chart in case anyone else would like to try to complete them as an easy reference to keep track.
Today's Post: Aww, Naoki is turning out to be such a good influence on Bryon after all eh? Such a sweet guy helping him get through his confusion and anxiety about their relationship with compassion and understanding. Gah! Those big green crawly things give me the heebie jeebies! At least they don't land on our Sims though. So far neither Tessa or Josh have had that big caterpillar thing land on them. I hope they never do! o.O
I didn't think he would either, but the opportunity presented itself, so I went with it. Something had to give with these two. They couldn't just keep going the way they were, it wasn't realistic to me, you know? Not that anything in TS4 is realistic, far from it. But drama is more interesting/realistic to most than all sunshine and roses. Not sure where to take it from here, but I have some ideas.
@Hermitgirl
Yes, Josh feels guilty because he loves Tessa and he knows/hopes she loves him too, in a romantic way, not just as Best Friends. They're a couple in every sense of the word, except physically and that's something he can't have with her, at least right now. Poor guy's head is a bit messed up right now.
Day 18: Glad you were able to get a crocus plant for Roxanne. Love the bees, they're great for gardens, the honey is beneficial too, plus she can send them to do stuff for her and find her gifts. My Sims don't have them very often though just for the reason you mentioned, the mites. They make them angry and my Sims would get stung if they came anywhere near the hive. It got old after awhile. Dragon lady eh? Well that sounds interesting.
@permanentrose
Thank you!
@SoulGal7
I have snow and snowstorms turned on in my game already, but that's a good thought! This last goal is very tough, apparently the weather has to be juuuuuuust right. *sigh* Glad you liked the Father Winter comment.
Gah! I love watching him Ski, he does all these amazing tricks and spins, it makes my jaw drop. o.O So fun watching him. He was not thinking straight, you're right. I think another part of his anatomy other than his brain was ruling his actions. His head is messed up right now and you could be right, Josh going back home to his brothers might just be the best thing for both of them right now. We'll see...
@Kanindota
No worries about not having time for anything but posting, you're not required to comment on everyone else's posts. This is meant to be a fun, casual sort of thing for whenever you have time. As I always say, real world stuff always comes first!
Alrighty, think I'm caught up now. I apologize for the delay in commenting, I've got three sick cats in the house and have been running around cleaning up after them all afternoon and evening for one thing.
Have a great rest of your day/night y'all!
Notes:
Tessa walked in the front door, threw her books on the kitchen table and flopped down on the couch with a huge sigh. She flashed Josh a bright smile that quickly disappeared before asking how his day went. Before he could say a word she launched into a litany of how her day had gone.
Josh couldn't help smiling at her, despite the whirlwind of thoughts swirling madly in his mind. She had that kind of effect on him. He loved how her face was so animated describing an incident at school that was 'so unfair.'
He loved how when she was excited about something, her hands were in constant motion, as were her feet as she stomped them like an exclamation point for dramatic affect. It wasn't an act, she was just full of life. Wide-eyed and innocent, so confident, brave and beautiful. He loved her, how could he have betrayed someone so special to him?
There was no way he would ever tell her what he'd done. She didn't need to know,. What would be the point, the purpose of telling her anyway? It would only hurt her and that's the last thing Josh wanted to make her feel, pain, because of him.
"...I mean, it's not like I wasn't tempted to just throw it away. I could have, nobody was there, nobody would ever know. Have you ever been tempted like that Josh? Wanted to do something so bad, just once, that could make your life SO much easier to handle? Even though you knew it was wrong?"
"Tessa, I---"
But Tessa didn't give him a chance to finish. She wasn't really looking for an answer to that question, she simply wanted him to listen, to understand. She bowed her head and began to cry before continuing her story in a voice full of anguish.
"But I couldn't do it Josh, I just couldn't. It was wrong and I knew it. I'd never be able to live with myself. I tried to do the right thing."
"But, it didn't matter. I'm being punished for something I didn't even do and nobody would listen to me, nobody would believe me."
"They said I stole her notebook, and felt so guilty about it I pretended to find it and turn it in to the Principal's office. Now I've got detention for a week. A week!! Real fair huh? I should've just thrown it way. That's what I get for trying to be honest."
Tessa stood up from the couch and wiped her eyes. "Whatever, I need a shower. Th-thanks for listening, sorry for whining all over you about my miserable life. Gawd, it's just so unfair, you know?! I hate school!"
She walked past Josh, looking straight ahead, went inside her bedroom and closed the door with a soft click. How embarrassing was that? She'd made a spectacle of herself in front of Josh. She'd worked so hard to act like an adult and be mature about everything. And now she'd probably ruined it all by acting like a crybaby little girl.
Grabbing some clean clothes, Tessa ducked her head and opened the bedroom door. She'd have to walk right by Josh and she didn't want him to see her red, puffy, probably ugly eyes. He wasn't in the room though, so that was a relief. The only good thing that had happened all day.
The shower broke as soon she'd finished getting dressed.
Great, just great. Could this day get any worse? It was SO unfair!
Rather than running to Josh to fix it, Tessa grabbed the pipe wrench he kept under the sink and did it herself. If she wanted to be thought of as an adult, she needed to suck it up and start acting like one.
"Hey Beautiful, feeling better?"
Beautiful, he called her beautiful, again, always. What had she done to deserve such a wonderful guy? He was always there for her, so sweet and protective. Tessa knew he'd never let anyone hurt her if he could help it. Maybe life was unfair, but she could face anything with Josh by her side.
"Yeah, I am." (thanks to you)
Notes:
Having the active trait meant that she wanted to do a variety of active activities like push ups, going for a jog, and roller skating.
Unfortunately, this meant that she pulled a muscle and then got moody and too uncomfortable to do some of the other actions I tried to direct her toward, so she spent some of her day moping.
But some parts were productive too when she snapped out of her uncomfortable mood. She leveled up in gardening and painting.
And she even got her first postcard from Twinbrook!
Tomorrow (sim Saturday) was supposed to be Dell and Sofia's wedding, and unfortunately there's thunderstorms in the forecast, so I'm gonna reschedule it for the next day (Sunday) since the forecast is just cloudy instead (I feel like the sims forecasts seem to be somewhat reliable haha) Regardless, I popped into Magnolia Blossom Park to make some quick edits to the wedding area to I built and made it covered just in case. I do have one indoor wedding venue - a church, but it's in Newcrest, and I'm determined to keep Jules in Willow Creek when possible. SO I'M GONNA MAKE THIS WORK. Lol.
Here's the link to the bug report:
SE Extreme Sports High Intensity slope not registering
In the comments there was a few replies that some have been able to fill it by Skiing on the Expert slope, but not Snowboarding OR Skiing, but not Snowboarding on the Intermediate slope rather than the Expert slope. It seems there is a problem using Snowboards to fill this goal. It's a shame because Tessa has zero Skiing skills, so now she'll need to do some skilling for it before making an attempt.
When I get back in my game later tonight, I'm going to see if I can get that goal completed with Tessa after she's reached the sufficient level in Skiing, by trying those tips. If it still doesn't register, and since an official bug report has been filed on it, I think it's okay to use the milestone cheat to complete this goal and thus the aspiration. I don't believe anything was said, at least I don't remember, about climbing the medium rock walls in poor conditions not working to fill the goal though, so I might give that a try first too.
However, this bug may be fixed in the next patch update that I believe is coming this Thursday. If you can't get your Sim to complete the goal and don't want to cheat, you might want to wait until after the patch to see if it's been fixed. Just thought y'all would like a heads up about this.
Here's how to use the aspiration milestone cheat if needed:
Make sure you are actively controlling the Sim needed to complete the goal
Open the cheat box by pressing the Ctrl Shift C keys
Type in the cheat box on the upper left corner, testingcheats true (or on) and press enter
Type Aspirations.Complete_Current_Milestone and press enter
The milestone should complete for your Sim.
Headed for bed now, I'll answer any replies and make comments on your daily posts when I return later tonight. Have a great day everyone!