Immortal Cottoneyes -- Playing on Long (Feb 28)

[MarianT]

FOUNDER'S STRUGGLES 8
   
 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
It's so sweet -- Paisley has been helping Mercy with the cooking.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Mercy says it gives them time to talk to each other about important things, like how to tell whether a boy really likes you. She says that it's easier to talk when you're doing something else. "She could always ask me," I said. "After all, I'm a boy. And she's too young to be worrying about boys anyway." Mercy just smiled at me.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Paisley has been helping out in the garden, too, but not for long. "Now that she's got almost all her scouting badges, she's less interested," said Mercy.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Speaking of gardening and cooking, a couple of new shops have opened up nearby. Mercy found that she could get flour, sugar, milk, and eggs at one and declared that we would start cooking from what we grew in her garden (plus the above flour, sugar, etc.).

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
She also found a gardening shop where she got some new seeds.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
She's become friends with one of the proprietors -- Miss Agatha. Miss Agatha claims to be immortal, which Mercy finds fascinating. She says that she and her cousin Agnes are "agents" of the Watcher, tasked to bring order and loving kindness into the world. Mercy hasn't talked to her about her own plans to become immortal, at least not yet.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
The new seeds were for aubergines, watermelons, and pumpkins. And yes, those yellow dots are baby chicks.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
We got a chicken coop rather than having to go buy eggs every few days.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
The other change that we've made to our lot is to put in a fish pond. Mercy stocked it with angelfish, which will be a key ingredient in ambrosia when she's ready to make it.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Miss Agatha taught Mercy how to cross stitch. She thought about making cross-stitch pictures her collection -- until she pricked her finger with her needle.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Flower arrangements make a lot more sense, especially now that she can make them last forever by adding bluebells.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
As for me, I'm a college graduate now, with a degree in Art History.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Mercy threw a dinner party for me when I returned from graduation, making minestrone for everyone with tomatoes and basil from our garden.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
One thing I've realized is that simple living does not cause you to lose weight -- quite the contrary. I have to work out more.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
And I've started a job as Arts Critic -- at level 7. My co-worker Diego finds that very annoying.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
It's been a good week, but the most amazing moment was when an egg hatched right in my hand. One minute you're holding something indistinguishable from a rock, and the next there's a living, breathing, moving creature there -- incredible!

[Rhoxi]

Wow, starting a career at lv7, that's impressive! Is the bonus from University just that good, or how did you manage to swing that?

[MarianT]

The bonus from University is that good. Check it out in the Guide.

[butterfly]

Oh, the new EP looks amazing, and the pond is now essential for every Immortal dynasty. I just love the colors in this update, makes me want to play TS4 again.

[MarianT]

@butterfly, although my Sims live in Willow Creek, some of the pictures come from Henford, which indeed has lovely colors.

[MarianT]

FOUNDER'S STRUGGLES 9

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
We're back! Not that we were ever gone, as far as I knew. I only found out because the Watcher apologized for keeping us "in limbo" while she dealt with "real life." I think it doesn't get much realer than tearing up your fingers trying to improve your skill on the guitar in order to get a promotion...

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
...or trying to overcome your unfortunate genetics by working out. But then, who knows what the Watcher has to deal with? She also said that she's been working with some other Watchers, including @GlazeyLady and thinks that she'll work some Big Dreams into our requirements. As if Mercy and Paisley didn't have enough to do already.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
But Mercy looked over what she would need for the Garden Guru Big Dream and said that really, all she has to do is add another skill besides gardening and flower arranging (fishing apparently doesn't count), and she'll be fine.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Mercy is also busy trying to make sure the neighbors start having children. Apparently Eliza is going to talk to Bob about making some Pancakes.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Whether Mercy will have any success with the aliens is anyone's guess. She plans to meet some nice young male aliens for her friend Journey to hook up with.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
As for Paisley, she's not at all bothered about having to achieve a Big Dream. She's chosen Legendary Gamer. "I've won my five games of chess already," she says.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
And all she has to do is beat me (and maybe her mother) at Don't Wake the Llama 5 times. She thinks Legendary Gamer will be fun, and she already likes video gaming.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
I would have liked to see her become a painter, but that's the way it goes.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
And now for our moment of humor. Yes, that's our young hen Cilantro, trying to hatch Pepita. Apparently she didn't realize that there was more to an egg than its color.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Her mother Salsa soon set her straight. I don't know why we bother with chickens, except...

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
...there are moments like these, when Paisley can experience something wonderful that's not part of a video game.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
That's about it for the week -- oh, I almost forgot, I did get that promotion. I'm thinking about having some letterhead printed up -- Rohan Elderberry, Grand Steward of the Arts. It would look rather impressive, don't you think?

[MarianT]

FOUNDER'S STRUGGLES 10

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Paisley's childhood seems to have gone by so quickly. She maxed all of her childhood skills (and picked up a few points in logic) and became a Rambunctious Scamp.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
The next thing we knew, she was blowing out the candles on her birthday cake -- made with honey from our bees, and eggs from our chickens. She's a geek, now, and aspiring to be a Leader of the Pack.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
What I didn't realize was that my days of comparative peace and quiet were over. Paisley formed a club with some other teenagers -- Pierce Delgato and Billie Jang, of course, and also Alexander Goth, Elsa Bjergson, and Lucas Munch.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Altogether, they made as much noise as our flock of chickens.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
They were a little quieter when concentrating on their shots for basketball, but not much.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
We didn't have a birthday party for Paisley, so the next day Mercy threw a Spooky Day party. It wasn't Spooky Day yet, but Mercy said it was impossible to get a gold party on a holiday, and she needed one more gold to complete that requirement. I came as Darth Vader, hoping my costume would keep most of the partygoers away. As a loner, I don't like parties much.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
One of the attendees was Eliza Pancakes, pregnant with twins. (We didn't know that at the time, but found out later.)

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Mercy had been at work the day before, earning her last promotion, so she didn't get to meet any of Paisley's clubmates. But she did know Jeb Harris, recently become a young adult, and she invited him. He and Paisley seemed to get along well.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
With her career requirement met, Mercy decided to apply to university.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
She was able to go for a distinguished degree in almost every subject, but she decided on Biology, with an elective in Handiness. Mercy wanted to take a course on Herbalism, but there wasn't one available.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Meanwhile, Paisley became a Llamacorn Scout, completing that requirement.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
She got an A in high school, completing another.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
And she finally reached level 3 of her part-time job as a Barista. Being able to quit that job was one of the happiest moments of her life. Our life, I should say, as we all suffered from her lack of sleep and fun while she was having to leave for work at 5 am.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
I took her teen portrait over to the Cottoneye Museum and discovered, to my chagrin, that I had never painted her portrait as a child. Luckily it was not a requirement, just a suggestion from the Watcher.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
While at the Museum, I added my graduation picture and my diploma to the Elderberry Nook. The frame around my picture is red, just like my grandparents'. They're on the wall opposite.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Back at home, I played a round of Hoops with Paisley, where she informed me that she wanted to go to San Myshuno for her travel.
"Absolutely not!" I said, and missed my shot. Paisley won the game, and I can't help wondering whether she timed her announcement to coincide with my shot.
"Why not?" she said.
"It's too dangerous," I answered.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
She snorted. "I already met the Grim Reaper when he came for one of the chickens the other day. What could be more dangerous than that?"
"We'll discuss this with your mother," I said, feeling sure that Mercy would back me up. I didn't want Paisley going off on her own at all, but I knew this was something she would have to do as a teen. It was one of the requirements that she and my descendants would have to follow.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
The next morning, I was prepared to list all the reasons why San Myshuno was such a bad idea for a teenager alone, ranging from the expense to rent the Salt House to pickpockets and food poisoning from the stalls. An alarm went off downstairs, in the basement. "My ambrosia ingredients!" Mercy exclaimed. Sure enough, the fire was next to the chest where she kept angelfish and death flowers, and right across from the shelf that held the potions of youth donated by my grandparents.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
As the hero of the hour, I expected to get my way about San Myshuno, but Mercy told me to go and feed the chickens or something. "I'll handle this," she said, and she and Paisley settled down to their homework.
"Why do you want to go to San Myshuno?" she asked.
I made a move to object, but Mercy jerked her head to the kitchen door. I did hear Paisley's response, though -- "I want to go to Geek Con."
When I went back in, Mercy told me that Paisley had agreed to wait until she was an adult before going to San Myshuno. "I reminded her that Geek Con is on a Tuesday, so she wouldn't be able to go anyway," she said.
"So where is she going?" I asked.
"She's already left," said Mercy.

[MarianT]

FIRST HEIR'S ORDEALS 1

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Not long after Paisley arrived in Granite Falls, we started receiving e-mails from her.

Dear Mom and Dad,
Well, I'm here. I was handed a list of rules and regulations when I arrived. Rule No. 1 was "No Club Meetings Allowed." So my plan to use this time to get together with my buddies and win a few games from them while gaining points for club perks went out the window.
Rule No. 2 was "No Traveling While on Vacation." So I couldn't go meet anyone at the bowling alley or anywhere, really.
Can I come home?

We e-mailed back that she had to stay her full 3 days.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Dear Mom and Dad,
At least my cabin is okay, a little chilly since there's no thermostat, but okay. I don't have a shower, but there's a bathtub. Long hot soaks would be nicer if it were warmer. Anyway, there's a double bed. I could invite someone to join me on vacation and freak Dad out, but I promise not to do that.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
I didn't get to do much for Spooky Day except change into my astronaut costume. Not many people here changed into costume, except this guy who came as a bear.
Can I come home now?

Again we had to say no.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Dear Mom and Dad,
The weather has been pretty terrible, raining all day Saturday. And apparently I'm not allowed to practice horseshoes in the rain.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
And when the rain stopped, it started snowing. Spooky Day was over, and I learned that the person I had thought was in costume was actually a real bear. In my opinion, Dad, bears are a lot more dangerous than any pickpockets I might have encountered in San Myshuno. Just saying. Can I come -- oh, never mind.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
P.S. I finally found someone to play horseshoes with, but even though she's just as bad as I am, I couldn't win a game. All we could do was tie -- 0 to 0.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
I did manage to throw a gold medal weenie roast. A couple of Mom's friends -- Journey Travis from Sixam and Agatha Crumplebottom -- came. I'll be home early tomorrow morning. Yay!

P.P.S. I heard a song on the radio that pretty much summed it all up for me. Here are the lyrics:
"Hello Mudda, Hello Fadda,
here I am at Camp Granada.
Camp is very entertaining,
and they say we'll have some fun when it stops raining."


 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
The next morning, I tried to give Paisley some encouragement. "We got you a foosball table," I said. "I bet you'll be good at that."
"I don't know, Dad," she said. "Maybe I should try a different Big Dream. I feel like I'm going to be a teenager forever."
"You'll still have to win five games of something," I reminded her. "Hang in there, you can do it!"

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
So Paisley got in some practice time before she had to go to school.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Meanwhile, Mercy managed to pass all her classes and has started her second term. She also visited Eliza Pancakes and got to meet Eliza's twin baby girls, Caylie and Cataleya.

[MarianT]

FIRST HEIR'S ORDEALS 2

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
"I'm never going to win at anything," Paisley moaned one afternoon near the end of autumn. I reminded her that she had already won 5 times at basketball.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
And she was doing well at bowling, too.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
She even beat Alexander Goth.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
And then beat his sister Cassandra at darts.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
She invited her club members over for her birthday party. Unfortunately, it was New Skills Day, a holiday, so her party couldn't get a gold medal.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
"Looking for a job?" I asked her when she was on the computer.
"Da-ad," she groaned. "I just graduated from high school. I'm looking at the website for Tartosa, 'the island where all your wedding dreams come true.'"
"Don't you think it's too soon to start thinking about weddings? You haven't even started dating yet."
"Not to worry," said Paisley. "I've already decided on the next dynasty spouse."

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
"Jeb Harris? With all the young men of 20 cities to pick from, you want to marry someone who wears a bag on his head?"
"He's good and ambitious," said Paisley.
"And gloomy," I pointed out.
"So is Alexander Goth," she countered. "And at least his ears don't stick out."
"So far as you know."

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
But Paisley ignored me and went off to flirt with Jeb, and also meet his family, so that they could be invited to her wonderful wedding.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
She took him out for a hamburger at Hogan's Bar, where she broached the subject of the bag. "I've seen you without it," she reminded him. "When you came to Mom's Spooky Day party. So I know you're really good-looking. Why do you wear the bag?"
"I'm looking for my soulmate," said Jeb. "Someone who will accept me even with the bag."

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Paisley gave him a kiss at the end of their date. "You know, kissing might be more fun if you weren't wearing the bag," she said.
"I don't know," said Jeb. "It was fun for me."
If it weren't for the fact that Paisley is a young woman now -- responsible, compassionate, and well-mannered -- she might have sulked around the house for a while.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
"Okay," she told him. "You can keep the bag. Do you want to be my boyfriend?"
"Absolutely," said Jeb.
"There's just one thing," said Paisley. "Do you have to wear a bag with a frowny face? Don't you have one with a smile? Oh, and would you like to move in with us?"

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
We set up a bedroom and bath for Jeb upstairs, where Paisley would join him when they got married. Her old bedroom would then go back to being the nursery.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
I have to say that Jeb's smiley face bag was not a great improvement. I thought it was kind of creepy, but Paisley thanked him for making the effort.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
I was still in the kitchen when Jeb pulled Paisley into the hallway. "Paisley, I think you really are my soulmate," he said. "You're the most amazing woman I've ever met. If you let me keep the bag, I promise that I won't wear it for the wedding and I won't wear it to bed. Will you marry me?"
"Done," Paisley shouted. "Do you wear the bag when you exercise?" she asked.
"Only if I'm in a public gym," he said.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
They went upstairs, and I followed a discreet distance behind them, only to make sure they were headed for the exercise room and not Jeb's bedroom. Maybe I wasn't discreet enough.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
"Was that kiss acceptable?" Jeb asked.
"Oh yes," said Paisley. "Oh, I can't wait until we go to Tartosa. We'll pick out a boutonniere for you and a wedding cake -- I'm sure we can get something in orange if that's your favorite color."
Sadly, Paisley will have to wait a while. A bug infestation has cleared everyone off the island until it can be dealt with.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
"You could have the wedding here," I said. "Our lot is quite lovely in winter. Just look at the reflection of that tree in the fishpond."
I expected Mercy to back me up, but she took Paisley's side. "I think Tartosa looks great," she said. "It reminds me a little of Monte Vista, where I started my first dynasty -- although I'm much happier with you than with my first husband," she added with a smile at me. "And Paisley had such a miserable time during her stay in Granite Falls. And with 2 million simoleons in the bank, I think we can afford it."
So we're all going to go to Tartosa for the wedding, along with Jeb's family and Paisley's club members. As a loner, I'm not looking forward to this, but as a proud papa -- well, what my little girl wants, she gets.

[MarianT]

FIRST HEIR'S ORDEALS 3

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Despite the fact that there were still bugs, Paisley and Jeb wanted to go ahead and get married anyway. They decided on wedding attire and picked out a cake. (No pictures of the cake, I'm afraid.)

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Mercy made a bouquet for Paisley and tried to include a couple of orange flowers for Jeb.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
They had a rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding, inviting me and Mercy and also Jeb's family -- Cletus, Faye, and his younger brother Gideon. Paisley used to be friends with Gideon when they were both children, and she asked him to be her ring-bearer. The rehearsal dinner broke up early. Faye made the mistake of going swimming, even though it was quite cold. When she started turning blue, we sent everyone home. I was relieved to see that she made it to the wedding without any ill effects.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
The morning of the wedding Paisley was feeling tense. She tried calming herself down, but was still in a bad mood when we arrived at La Coppia Serena, the wedding venue.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
She was in a happy mood by the time I escorted her down the aisle. They always say the bride looks radiant, but I'm pretty sure I looked radiant myself. Top hat and tails suit me, don't you think? Gideon reneged on his agreement to be ring-bearer, but given the way he dressed, that was okay.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Jeb and Paisley looked lovely while exchanging their vows.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
They got turned in the wrong direction for the recessional, but that's okay. It gave me a chance to get a picture of Mercy, who looked young enough to get married again herself in her mother-of-the-bride dress. I almost forget to mention that she got her grades for the term -- 2 A+'s and an A-. Mercy decided not to sign up for the next term until the wedding was over.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Paisley and Jeb had their first dance together.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
 Cassandra Goth really got into the rice-throwing. Most people only threw a handful, but she kept going and going.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Paisley took her over to the champagne bucket, where she toasted the happy couple.

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
And if Paisley had known that she could choose the lucky person to receive her bouquet, I'm sure she would have chosen Cassandra.

It was a long day, and most of us were hungry by the time the wedding was over. The cake never did show up, which was a pity. We have the topping though -- it's inscribed "Paisley and Jeb -- I promise to always show my fairest face." Could it be that he'll get rid of that bag entirely? The two of them are spending 3 days on Tartosa for their honeymoon. They've rented the house on the little island. Paisley has promised to take lots of pictures and tell us everything we want to hear about it.

[Rhoxi]

Nice to see this story continues - and that you were able to have a successful wedding despite all the reported bugs! Do you have Carl's mods for it?

[MarianT]

I'm not using any mods. Looking forward to the patch that's supposed to fix the problems.