The Broke Legacy: Gen 5.2

[simgaroop]

Wishing to all the Moms (and Moms-to-be) who are reading this an amazing Mother’s Day! Congrats!




Previous update: Gen 5.1.



Things remained tense in the Broke household for the following weeks.
Tim and Puck constantly avoided each other. This, of course, made Wanda upset.
Tim decided he could no longer live under the same roof as his father, no matter how much his mother wanted all her children together.
He looked for a new, cheap place to move with Marsha (and Tommy, who was expected to be born at any moment).




"I can’t believe how much the land value has increased in just twenty years!"- exclaimed Tim. He was having dinner with his family at a small bistro that opened a couple years before. Helena was the mastermind behind the family outing. She hoped that if Tim and her father interacted on a "neutral", public space, they'd be more open to talk to each other and solve their issues.




To her annoyance, though, there were no tables large enough to sit a family of eight, and Puck had insisted on inviting the kids too, despite Marsha's offer to look after them. She was resting back at the Broke place; the final days of her pregnancy were draining her energy faster than ever.




"Well, it was expected with the commercial boom, Tim. Between Sedona's new shopping area, and the recent inauguration of Landgraab's new beach resort, Strangetown is no longer a bunch of old houses in the middle of nowhere. You have no idea how much I paid for my place, and if it weren't for my flower business, I'd be having severe money problems."

Tim sighed: Since the Landgraab Industried had acquired and exploited a huge lot of desert land close to the beach, and transformed it into an amazing oasis in the middle of the desert, hundreds of people had established on Strangetown. He could almost hear what his Grandpa might say if he were alive: "Strangetown's quiet and simple life is what attracted my father to move over in the first place. I hope it'll never end like Pleasantview or even worse... like Studio City!".




"I know..."- Tim sighed- "It doesn't matter that I earned a nice sum of money with the ARRRR! Movie. It doesn't matter that I already signed a contract to film its sequel in a couple years. It doesn't matter that I'm having a bit of luck investing my saving at SimCity's bank. My son will require a lot of stuff once he's born, and I'm worried I won't be able to add a rent to my normal expenses. And I really wanted to buy a car..."
- "Then listen to Mom and stay with us for a couple years... at least until you save enough to move out. You know how excited she is about Tommy's birth and I'm really hoping a new baby might help her cope with her depression. She's been worse since Aunt Eighty's phone call..."





Buck and Helena watched Rosie and Tim's gloomy faces. Andrew Broke was getting older every day, and he had recently survived a heart attack. The doctors weren't sure if he'd be able to live much longer, and those news were enough to sink Wanda further in her depression.




It was Buck who tried to raise the mood.
-"We've been in worse conditions in the past, guys. If there's something I've learned in the 15 years I've known the Brokes, is that you've always been a close family. I'm sure your Uncle Andrew will realize that Calvin and Hobbes' departure is not your fault, Tim. Neither is yours, Helena. In the meantime, we must work together to make Wanda happy."
- "All... all right, Buck. I'll stay for a little bit longer... It's not easy, but I'll do it if that makes my mother a bit happier..."




- "Well then, I propose a toast for the Broke Family. For their will to move on and renew itself. And for the newest member, who I'm sure will grow up surrounded by the same love my little Lyla has been lucky enough to enjoy!"
- "You really are a sap, Buck..."
- "Quiet, Tim!"

_____________________

Meanwhile, at the other side of the Bistro, Puck Summerdream watched his youngest son playing with his meal.




"What's wrong, Cody? I thought you loved ribs..."
"I'm not really hungry, Dad..."




"And I've been thinking... you know how sad we've been since Mom and you had that fight with Uncle Andrew? I miss him and Aunt Eighty. I miss Sixty too... And I really missed Tim all the time he was away... I really don't want him to go..."
"What makes you think he'll leave?"
"I've heard him talk about it with Marsha. And he even said he might move to Veronaville if he can't find a house in Strangetown. Dad? You forgave me when I blew up the trash compactor the other day... Can't you forgive Tim too?"




"Listen, Cody. What Tim did can't be compared to what you did to the trash compactor. Those can be fixed easily, but my friendship with Andrew... well..."
"Please Dad... try to talk to Tim..."
"I..."




Although it wasn't as apparent as Wanda's, Puck was also depressed. Andrew was not only his brother-in-law and business partner, he was also the best friend he ever had. He really missed the hours they spent together working at their Attorney Office, and the poker nights at Andrew's place every Friday.

Puck couldn't help it but blame Helena and Tim for the abrupt way in which their friendship had ended. Deep inside, he knew that it wasn't their fault. Rose Mary had shown him the letter Hobbes left for Tim and Marsha on the wedding day, and he already knew that Calvin's departure was inspired by Cosmo Broke's teachings.

He knew he shouldn't hold his grudge against Tim for much longer, but it he didn't want to deal with the deep sadness that would remain in his heart once his anger died. It was easier to be angry. It distracted him from the pain he felt every time he saw Wanda's sad eyes.

But as he watched Wanda and Rosie bond with Marsha, he wondered if he wasn't really missing out a new chance to be happy, despite everything that had happened in the last month.




Tim sat down next to him. Puck's body tensed by instinct. He couldn't even glance at his son.
His "safe" anger was firing up again.




"Oh come on, you two! Quit with this non-sense!"
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me. This foolish situation has been going on for too long! You know who are you two reminding me of?"




"Who?"
"My father and my brother Ripp! Or perhaps my father and my teenage self. Remember, Mr. Summerdream? You told me that my father was being foolish when he forbade me to continue my relationship with Rose Mary. We didn't talk to each other for MONTHS! And look what happened to him! My father was devastated and I couldn't really enjoy my new life. But we were too stubborn and stupid to accept we were wrong!"
"Buck... I..."
"You did wrong in running and marrying Marsha the way you did, Tim. You hurt your family so much! And you've been wrong for so long, Mr. Summerdream. Can't you see how lucky you are to have Tim by your side? My brother Ripp is risking his life out there to protect the space colonies and although my father is extremely worried, he had never been more proud about him. Believe me; if those two were able to mend their issues... you should too. Don't let pride and stubbornness affect your family... especially now..."




"He's right, Dad. Please... I've tried to explain to you what happened. I'm sorry for running away. I'm so sorry for hurting Uncle Andrew and his family. And I'm sorry for causing so much pain to you and Mom at the same time. But can't you see that I'm happy? Can't you see that Hobbes is happy too? You have no idea how much I'd like you to be part of my life right now. I've missed you... and now that I'm gonna be a Dad too..."
"You really disappointed me, Tim. I thought you were smarter than that. Acting the way you did... stealing your cousin's bride..."
"I know Dad. I'm not proud of my actions. And I swear I'll do anything to make things right again. I'm gonna search for Hobbes in the sky. I'm gonna look for a way to tell him I'm sorry too. But I know he's glad I married her. He even asked me on his letter to do so, and I'm working hard to fulfill that promise. Please Dad..."




Puck's defenses fell down. He hugged his son tightly.
"It's all right, Tim. I forgive you. And please forgive me too. I've been too stubborn... too selfish to see how much my pride and anger were hurting your mother and my children."
"It's OK, Dad. I'm glad to have you back..."
"Me too, Tim..."

______________________________

With things back to normal between Tim and Puck, a deep relief was felt among the Broke Family's members.




And just in time, because the very next morning, just as the kids were leaving for school,




Marsha Broke was awakened by the sharp pain of giving birth.




Despite the pain, Marsha already knew what to expect from labor, so she had no trouble giving birth to a healthy baby boy.
She'd read a lot of parenting books at College, after all.








They named him Thomas Broke, after Marsha's Grandfather.




The happy mood from Tommy's birth was eclipsed that afternoon by very bad news.
After working as a music judge and manager of aspiring bands for several years, Rose Mary was unfairly fired that day.
She had been supporting a jazz band for a while, and she knew they'd go pretty far in the music scene.
They only needed an opportunity to shine on stage and attract the attention of a record company.
She knew that if they won the regional music contest, they'd perform live on TV during the Sim-Wide finals.
And she was sure they'd deserved first place anyway, they were that good.

Unfortunately, another judge was supporting a young pop singer. She was his daughter, after all.
He had bought the other judge's support, so she could win the regional contest easily.
Rose Mary refused the money. The girl couldn't sing at all!
That led her to a horrible dispute with all the judges... and therefore was forced to leave her job.




Rose Mary was devastated.
"It's not fair, Buck! All these years of hard work... I was even offered the chance to compose a song for the winning band... to come back to the stage after so long... and now I've lost everything because I supported the ones who were really talented."




"Please calm down, Rosie. You are gonna prove them that you were right. I know it... please don't give up..."

But it was too late. Rose Mary had had enough of the music industry.
She decided she'd never be part of it.
.
________________________________




The months went by.
Without Andrew, Puck no longer had the desire to stay at the Attorney Office, so he retired.
He now spent his days working on his memories and playing the piano.
General Buzz was a frequent visitor too.




Buck still worked as a waiter.
In many ways he was frustrated. He'd worked so hard to prove his employers that he should join the kitchen crew, yet he was still denied a promotion.
He tried to stay positive and happy, but deep inside he was as tired as Rose Mary.




Wanda was busy helping Marsha with Tommy, so her mood had improved a little.
She still worked as a videogame designer, although she was having a hard time understanding the younger designers and their crazy ideas about virtual worlds and online gaming.




Cody spent a lot of time in the basement, where Cosmo's old laboratory equipment was stored.
No one suspected that he was studying his grandfather's old blueprints and notebooks, or so he thought.
Perhaps Aunt Eighty-Eight was now in charge of his biochemical projects, but Cody knew there were far more unfinished ones to develop.




He still loved to build vehicles and robots with his toy blocks.
He considered it as practice for the real stuff he'd build once he grew up.




Marsha was still unemployed.
She had decided she'd return to her old job as a nurse when her children were older.




She enjoyed spending time with her newborn son, and she looked forward to raising many more kids in the future.




Lyla was as serious as her father. A complete 180° from Rosie's playful personality.
She enjoyed indoor activities like chess...




And reading.
Cody often joined Lyla during her study sessions.
Despite remaining a few years before he started his high school, Cody considered that a little early studying wouldn’t hurt.
Especially now that he was reading quite an interesting book...




"Hey, Buck! May I ask you something?"
"Sure, Cody. What's up?"




"Is Woo Hoo fun?"
"WHAT?!"
"What's Woo Hoo, Daddy?"
"It's nothing Lyla... go to your room!"
"But Daaaaad!"
"So... is it?"




"Eh... well... yeah, it is..."
"Well, it is obvious, right?"
"What's obvious, Cody?"
"That woo hooing is fun! It's a game, after all!"
"Cool! I wanna play Woo Hoo too!"
"Not until you are both 30! And what are you reading, Cody?! Give me that book!"




Whether it was a game or not, Buck and Rosie still had a very active sexual life.
Although her hormonal teen years were in the past, she often wanted to try new positions with her bashful husband.
She thought it was adorable how red his cheeks turned as she explained her newest idea.
It really was a wonder that Lyla had been an only child for so long.
So, when Rosie discovered she was pregnant for the second time, it was almost as surprising as the first time.




Buck couldn't hide his excitement when she announced her pregnancy.




He'd wished for another child for so long, but had respected Rosie's decision to focus on her musical career after the mental breakdown she had suffered when Lyla was born.
He was afraid something similar would happen this time.




But time had changed Rose Mary. Although she had given up her wish to become a famous singer, she still wanted to dedicate her life to composition.
Still, she had decided to take a break from music for a little while. And as she watched how happy Marsha looked as she took care of baby Tommy, Rose Mary felt slightly guilty. She'd always been with Lyla during the most important moments of her young life, of course, but sometimes she wished she had been to spend more time with her daughter. She'd enjoyed her brief career as music judge, but sometimes she felt she knew so little about Lyla.




Rose Mary decided that things would be different this time.
She no longer was a young mom with no experience. She was no longer terrified by the responsibility that taking care of a baby implies.
She'd raise her baby with as much love as she had raised Lyla, but this time she'd enjoy the experience.
So, she spent a long time talking to Marsha, whose vast parenting knowledge came from the several books she had read during her pregnancy.




That knowledge proved to be useful to Marsha for a long while.
She became pregnant for the second time when Tommy was only a few months old.




Tim was excited when she informed him of the good news.
Just like Rosie, he was sorry he hadn't been able to spend as much time as he wanted with Tommy.
He had been working on "ARRR-2!", so he had gone for a couple months to Twikki Islands.




Now that he was back at Strangetown, he had a couple free months to spend with his family.




And to practice for his future role in the “Gerbitz! The Musical” Movie.

____________________________







All those study sessions worked out for both Cody and Lyla.




They both had gotten excellent grades in their final exams, so were now free to enjoy the summer.




"Hey, Cody..."- Lyla whispered one afternoon.
"Yup?"
"Brittany told me the other day that our neighbor is a witch! Is it true?"




"You mean Olive Specter? Nah! That's a silly story!"
"Really? Well... that's a relief..."
"She's actually a VAMPIRE!"
"Stop it Cody! It's not funny!"




"But it IS true! John told me that she's a thousand years old and that she drinks the blood of young children and babies!"
"Cody... you are scaring me! What if she..."
"Don't worry, Lyla! She's deadly afraid of sunlight! That's why we've never seen her... Well, Tim saw her once when he was a kid, though. She was at Sim!Mart and she yelled at him because he was running down the aisles with Helena. Perhaps she ran out of blood and had to buy some red veggies to feed herself!"
"I hope I never see her, then..."

____________________________________




Before they knew it, Tommy's first birthday arrived.








He resembled Tim more with each passing day.




Tommy's birthday was an extra special day, though.
Just as Marsha was helping her son blow his birthday candle, Rose Mary's water broke.




She gave birth to a pale boy with Rosie's dark hair and Buck's blue eyes.




Nicholas Broke was born a couple weeks earlier than expected, so he was a very tiny baby.
And that's how his life-long nickname, "Chip", was originated.

____________________________________________




Time went by,
Wanda finally retired. She now spent her time helping Puck with his memories, taking care of her youngest grandsons or beating Cody at videogames.
It's true that time tends to heal most wounds, and although she was still sad from Andrew's absence, she was enjoying her life again.




That's something that pleased more than the family's current members, though.




Things at the Broke household were chaotic for a couple months.
With a toddler,




An infant,




And a new one arriving in just a few months,

















The Broke family had their hands full taking care of them.
Everyone in the house helped in their own way.




Thanks to that, both Marsha and Rosie still had time to study or work on their favorite hobbies, despite the constant attention their sons required.
Rose Mary remembered the painting courses she took as a teen, and re-discovered her love for art.




Lyla, on the other hand, had inherited Buck's love for cooking.




And she was a pretty good cook despite her young age.
Her muffins were quite popular at school.




Even little Tommy soon discovered his first hobby.
Just like Cody, he enjoyed building awkward houses and towers with his toy blocks.




But he loved more destroying them once he was done!




A few months later, Marsha gave birth to her second son.




He inherited Marsha's brown hair and Puck's light blue eyes.
They named him Edward Broke.




With two infants in the house, the need for help from other family members increased.




This time, even Lyla played with Tommy when Mom and Aunt Marsha were busy feeding the babies.
She taught him the nursery rhyme that Cody used to sing to her when she was a baby.




It wasn't as easy as she expected.




But in the end, Tommy was able to repeat the rhyme on his own.

___________________________




Six months went by, and Chip celebrated his first birthday.








Although Tommy, Lyla and Cody were smart children, they paled in comparison with Chip.
Since his toddler years, he amazed his parents with his outstanding learning abilities.




Buck was finally offered the opportunity to work in the kitchen, so he spent a few months working an extra night shift as training.
He usually arrived home very late (and very tired).




He felt guilty when he realized he had missed Chip's birthday.
It was funny how the roles in his family had changed and now he was the one who had no time to spend with his children.
It was the price he had to pay to reach his dream of becoming a chef, after all.

_______________________________

Two years went by...
















It was amazing how fast the kids were growing up...













Before they knew it, Edward was already a toddler.
Every time she watched him play, Wanda was reminded of her brother Andrew, for Edward had inherited his bad temper.







Tim and Marsha were already looking for a private pre-school for Tommy, who'd just turned five.







And Cody finally hit puberty, and therefore a considerable growth spurt.







And with it, a new episode of the Broke's Family History began.

______________________________




Buck's efforts finally paid up.
He was finally hired as an Executive chef in PishPosh's (Landgraab's Industries Desert-Beach Resort) finest restaurant.
His job required him to spend most night away.




But on the Brightside, he now had time during the day to spend with his children.




Tim had finished the ARRR! Trilogy and was taking a small rest from acting.
He was currently re-discovering his College love for gardening.




Now that her kids were older, Marsha found a job as a nurse.




Just like Buck, she worked the night shift, so she was still able to potty train and help Edward during his first steps.




Chip still marveled everyone around the house.
At 18 months-old, he had re-created a complicated castle he had seen on TV with his toy blocks!




Rose Mary was composing again.




But she now shared her love for music with her newfound love for painting,




One day, Buck bought a pottery wheel a few months before, because it reminded him of his mother.
The smell of clay transported him back to his toddler years, as he watched his mother work on the wheel from his playpen.
She always looked serene as she worked...
"I know this is a stupid reason to buy a pottery wheel, Rosie, but..."
"Don't talk like that, Buck, Your memories of your mother are never stupid..."
"I... I didn't mean it like that..."
"I know. Umm... well, it doesn't make sense to have this wheel and not use it, right?"
And so Rose Mary discovered yet another love: Pottery.




Cody was now a handsome young man who was popular among the girls of his age.
He couldn't care less, though.
He was still as shy as always and saw no point in wasting his time with those annoying girls!




Tommy was now sleeping on Cody's childhood bedroom.
So he moved to the basement. Not that he minded, of course!




He quickly turned it into his private lab.




He could now work on his Grandfather's unfinished projects without interruptions!




Lyla was on the verge of her teenage years, so she was busy studying for the entrance exams to the private High School she wished to enroll at.




On her free time, she often asked her Grandpa Puck to read stories for her.
Well... if you can consider a recipe book as one!




And as for Tommy...
Well, he was currently busy watching the house across the street...




"What are you watching, Tommy?"
"We have new neighbors!"
"Don’t be silly! We've never had those!"
"It's true! There's a moving truck over there! Someone's moving into that scary house!




"Really? That's great! That means the scary witch-vampire is gone for good!"
"Scary witch-vampire?"
"I'll tell you when you are older, Tommy. I don't want you to have nightmares! It's not a story for little kids!"
"I'm not a little kid!"




"Never mind... I really wonder who our new neighbors are and why would someone want to move into such a creepy and dark house..."




The kids didn't have to wait long for the answer, for that same afternoon Tommy found his mother talking with a bunch of strangers.




"Good timing, Tommy! I was wondering where you were!"
"Is something wrong, Mom?"
"Of course not, sweetheart. I just wanted you to meet our new neighbors from across the street."




"This is Creon Nigmos. He's a scientist from Sim City, just like your Great-Grandpa Cosmo."
"Nice to meet you, Tommy!"




"And this is his wife, Willow. She's Mrs. Specter's niece."
"You mean the witch-vampire?!"
"Don't be rude, Thomas!"
"I'm s-sorry, Mom."
"Please apologize to Mrs. Nigmos."
"Don't worry, Marsha. It's a pleasure to meet you, Tommy. May I ask you a favor?"
"S-sure..."
"Would you play with my daughter while we chat with your mother?"
"Your daughter?"




A shy giggle made Tommy turn around.
And there she was, the young girl who'd turn the Broke Family upside down.

"This is my daughter, Ophelia."



_______________________

Notes

- All right, I think that with this update I was able to reach a happy medium between my crazy long updates of the past and last time's short update (that didn't make me happy, to be honest). I hope these future 100-120 pics updates would be easier to handle both for you and for me.

- Once I'm done with these notes, I'm gonna post an updated and complete family tree in my LiveJournal, as I was suggested to do last week.

- A lot of stuff happened in this update, right? Well, these events happened in only five sim!days. Starting with this generation I'm using an age duration hack I modified with the help of SimPe and skittlebox's tutorial at [Unknown site tag]. The babies now last one day, the toddlers last three days, the children still last eight days, the teens last eight days too, the adults last between 28-32 days (perhaps I'll make it longer) and the elders last 20 days. And because I've always been irritated by the way Maxian pregnancies messed up the age continuity, I now accelerate them with the SimBlender, so they usually give birth in less than 24 hours. I'm roughly considering one Sim!day = one human year, but this is not an exact measure at all :).

- The cheesy naming scheme continues in this generation: Tommy is Timmy Turner's son in the Channel Chasers movie. Chip's name comes from both Chip Skylark from the FOP and the General Chip Grunt (he's Buzz's father according to the Grunt family tree). I was reading New Moon while I was playing this part, hence Edward Broke's name (I think I should had named him Jacob, though. Well, next generation :P).

- There won't be no more babies for Gen 5. I already disabled ACR's try for baby and risky woo hoo options, because both Marsha and Rosie kept getting pregnant all the time. Arghh! Family sims! I'd love more babies, but my PC can't handle so many sims at the same time. I had to downgrade my graphics a little because my graphic card kept crashing.

- Chip is a real genius, I didn't make this up. As a toddler, he maxed out his mechanic skills on his own. He's currently a child (has been one for just a few sim hours) and he already maxed out body and creativity skills too. His OTH is Fitness, though.

- Tommy's One True hobby is Sports, just like his younger bro Edward.

- Cody rolled, all right I cheated and I chose the knowledge aspiration for him. He's not heir, so it doesn't matter, right? His LTW is to become the Hand of Posseidon. Arghh! I wanted him to follow the Architecture career for the storyline I had already planed for him. Oh well, I'll have to look for a new way to fit this into the story.

- Stats are coming up on the next update. I forgot them :S.

- Rosie really got fired from a chance card that had her choose between a good and a popular music group. I didn't mind, though, because the neighborhood implosion forced me to start over with new LTW for all my Brokes. Her new LTW is to reach the top of the Art Career.

- Tim's LTW is to reach the top of the Entertainer career (he'll change into that one once he reached the top of the Show Business one). Marsha's new LTW is to reach golden anniversary and Buck's is to graduate three children from college. Hhmmm... who knows, perhaps in the future I might allow him to have a third child :P.

- Speaking of Tim's career, I'm planning a small spin-off featuring his most popular movies, the "ARRRR!" Trilogy (with Ben Long and Jan Tellerman as many of you correctly guessed from the poster) and the "Gerbitz! Musical", with Tosha Go and Ricky Cormier.

- Wanda and Puck both lost their Perma-Plat status, though. And I'm not gonna send her on 50 First Dates (her new LTW). Puck's new LTW is to have 20 simultaneous BF. I think I'll use the lot debugger to toggle their Perma-Plat status just before they die.

- The new house was made by [Unknown site tag], from the BoolProp forums. It's the Country Suburban house from this link:
http://www.forums.boolprop.com/viewtopic.php?f=112&t=25957

- I've finally reachen the point in my story I've been dying to write since Generation Two. I also have most of the pictures ready, but I'm gonna re-take a few important ones later today because there are a few details I'd like to change. I can't wait to post it! :)

- Thank you so much for reading, and see you next time!

Comments

[dothesmustle.livejournal.com]

Buzz dancing to Puck's piano playing...I love you and your randomness, General Buzz!

Cody really looks a lot like Puck as he gets older.

Oh! Ophelia is coming into the story line! *squees a little* Poor Ophelia, she's always known as the weird girl from the weird family.

I really wish Cosmo was still around, he always seemed to make everything better. He was really the backbone of the Brokes. I miss him so much!

[eyesmiling.livejournal.com]

Hurray for the full post! I'm really glad you're continuing the stories like you do, they're pretty spectacular. All the kids look adorable. I really want to play FreeTime now.
And I totally heard ominous music when Ophelia arrived: "Dun dun dunnn"

[kingmike1224.livejournal.com]

WOW quite the eventful period for the family, isnt it.

Im sooo happy that Puck and Tim are getting along again, it made me simle..and how everyone is around with the kids is wonderful :) makes a house feel warm and inviting :)

Has you internet actually fixed itself that you can read/post the large posts or did this take you like 6 hours to post??

*hugs*

[pink-rice.livejournal.com]

Cooooody!!! ♥! Wow, he's one fine looking sim! ;D Hehe!

Oh man, I totally squealed when I saw this update xD I get so excited when I see you have a new chapter up!

Oh, I'm so glad Puck and Tim are getting along now. It made me sad the last update when Puck was mad at him :( and I'm sad that Lyla can't be heir, I really like her nose..hehe xD

Ooh, Ophelia! How exciting :D And I loved how you re-created her parents...especially her mom, Willow! She's so pretty!

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

Yup, these are happy times for the Brokes... but they won't last much longer. DUN DUN DUUUUN! :S

Hee Hee... I actually left the pictures uploading last night so, when I woke up they were almost done! And I was lucky the connection didn't time out until pic number 96.

The internet is a lot better right now. I'm gonna be able to read my f-list tomorrow morningh ^^. Now I'm a bit tired from this update, so I should go to bed.

[kingmike1224.livejournal.com]

LOL just make sure you read my post and see all your wonderful sims wandering around my hood...i now need to go townify some more...like Edward, Tommy, and Helena's kids :)


LOL you left them up last nite *giggles* did you ever think to call the ISP?

[kingmike1224.livejournal.com]

Is Woo Hoo fun?"
"WHAT?!"
"What's Woo Hoo, Daddy?"
"It's nothing Lyla... go to your room!"
"But Daaaaad!"
"So... is it?"

Just have to post another comment to LAUGH at that...i can picture Buck's face :p

[music-simbol.livejournal.com]

Good lord, how many sims are in that house? I think my computer would explode! Good on ya!

Buzz dancing cracks me up. I'm so happy you found a place for that shot.

Nigmos, huh? Olive still alive, I wonder. And you say Ophelia turns the Broke household upside down? Will this household ever have a generation of peace? (Probably not, since it's more exciting to have drama! :P)

Oh, and Cody's hot! XD

[blackrosesredxo.livejournal.com]

Yay Happy Brokes. =D

[kingmike1224.livejournal.com]

LOL im surprised that my house hasnt died...it has 14 sims in it right now...it plays like a crawl but it has its moments :)

[racetrackd.livejournal.com]

Ahh, the Brokes<3
The Ophelia at the end made it seem a lot more suspensful though :P
It's really cool hoooww Ophelia is a child in your story cause in a lot of stories, her and Ripp + Johnny are BFFs so this is a nice spin on things :P

[orikes13.livejournal.com]

Yay! This made my night. :)

I'm glad to see Puck made up with Tim. Now if only they could get Andrew to start talking. Though, I think that's going to take Calvin and Hobbes coming home.

The kids are all very unique looking. I love Tommy's big eyes (and your new icon). I'm betting Lyla is going to be very pretty, even if not conventionally so. Chip also has a very interesting look. I can't wait to see how he grows into his features.

Ahhh... the Nigmos family. :) I like Ophelia, so it'll be fun watching her grow up with these guys.

I'll have to remember to come back tomorrow and check out your notes. I always love hearing how things went during play for you.

[(Anonymous)]

Hey^^
Great update:)
I like the way you tell your stories.
Would you mind telling me where you got the pink dollhouse that is shown in one of the pictures?
Thanks Barbs

[redqueenofevil.livejournal.com]

He could almost hear what his Grandpa might say if he were alive: "Strangetown's quiet and simple life is what attracted my father to move over in the first place. I hope it'll never end like Pleasantview or even worse... like Studio City!"

This made me snort. I work near Studio City, irl, and I have a friend who does work in Studio City. I can't help but ask if this was due to some inspiration you received when you came to LA to see the Spice Girls last fall. I guess Studio City is the antithesis to 'simple life' in town form.

I'm spying new hair meshes. I realize I haven't been downloading lately, but the hairstyles that Marsha and Rosie are sporting towards the end are quite cute. Where are they from?

Great update. I hope we'll find out what happens with Andrew. Do they make up? Or has he passed on?

[angy182.livejournal.com]

awww Tommy is so cute *-* but I love Lyla too ^__^
great update :D

[simsforaranya.livejournal.com]

oooo! I can't wait to see how Ophelia comes into the story. :D

And the whole kids asking what woohoo was part? So funny. So like kids. XD

Chip is too adorable for words! *snuggles*

[muslemura.livejournal.com]

Ophelia! Phi! *weeeeeeee*

Ahem, sorry :)

Anyway, I've been lurking for some weeks and must say I really enjoy your story. Beautiful pics, interesting characters and of course very well written. Great update :)

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

He really is a random individual! I just HAD to include that picture, even if it didn't make much sense.

Yup, it's time to introduce the last Strangetown characters, right? I can't wait to play more with Ophelia.

It's funny that you are saying that about Cosmo right now because, well... your perspective about him might change in just a couple updates :S.

- Thanks for reading!

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

It's not as long as my earlier posts, but it's still long enough to leave me satisfied ^^.

Yup, "Dun Dun Duuuun", indeed! :)

Thanks for reading!

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

I did call my ISP, just like last time I had these issues, and he literally told me "Sucks to be you, the connection fails now and then. Just be patient and leave us alone. It'll fix by itself."

And I guess it finally did. I hate their customer service, and this is the second Internet service I've had.

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

I also like Lyla, but I don't want to deal with "left-over" non-heir (for a lack of a better word) like Cody clogging up the main house once she's back from College.

On the other hand, I'll be sure to develop a nice story for her like I did with Helena. Her nose is amazing, right? Pity Chip didn't inherit it.

It's funny how I re-created Willow: I turned Ophelia into a guy and had him breed with Olive with the pacifier at CAS. She came out pretty, right? ^^. The genetics came from a list of the Premade Maxis characters (including dead ones) I found on MATY. It's odd how Ophelia ended as as green-eyed blonde while her parents show NONE of those characteristic. Although Lyla is also an example of odd gentics.

Thanks for reading! :)

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

I currently have 11 sims in my house. I'm sick of them! I can't wait to send Cody and Lyla to college for that reason alone!

I had to find a place for that shot, despite its randomness. He loves to dance when he visits. Tank too.

Olive is still alive, of course. Let's say that Ophelia starts the chain of events that will turn the family upside down. This generation, sadly, will be everything but peaceful :S.

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

Well, those three have lived in different generations, so it wouldn't make sense. Johnny met Beau back in Gen 1 and Ripp is older than the Gen 4 heirs.

Although now that I think about it, Ripp and Ophelia will become close in my story. Just not in the traditional sense of the Strangetown's "canon".

Thanks for reading! ^^

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

The house is a recolor from ModtheSims2:

http://www.modthesims2.com/showthread.php?t=71526.

Thanks for reading!

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

Hee Hee, actually, Studio City is a rough translation from the Sims 1 "Ciudad Estudio" from the Superstar EP.

I recently bought the Sims's 1 complete collection for my niece and have been teaching her how to play when I visit her on the weekends. She currently has a female witch sim in love with Freddie Prince Jr. (LOL) and she's a frequent visitor of Ciudad Estudio. I wonder what's its name in English...

And I visited Hollywood when I was in LA last year. Got a huge scare from a Batman wannabe while I was distracted reading the stars in the walk of fame. It's a lot different than what I imagined, especially the Kodak theater.

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

And I forgot the hair meshes!

Marsha's one is from Rose, but it's a cute recolor from ChihoSan at the Garden of Shadows Forum:

http://gardenofshadows.digitalperversion.net/index.php?topic=3090.0

(There are a lot of nice recolors in the forum. I'm currently substituting my old recolors with these ones).

Rose Mary's hair is from the Kitchen and Bath SP. ANd Andrew is still alive, of course ^^.

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

Grazie! :)

(I know a bit of Italian, so I've been trying to read the Manzoni Legacy for a couple weeks.)

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

But I guess Buck is not precisely the ideal person to ask about the bees and the birds, right? (or whatever story they'd use to explain sex to kids in Sim World). Now, if they asked Helena or Ripp on the other hand...

Thanks for reading!

[simgaroop.livejournal.com]

Thanks a lot for reading. Nice to meet you!

[fireflowersims.livejournal.com]

Oooh, I loved this update! All the kids are adorable, and I love the names. I can't wait to see Cody when he gets older, if he's this good-looking as a teen. The rift between Andrew and Wanda makes sense, but it also makes me sad. I hope they work things out before either of them *sob* dies. I'm just glad Puck and Timmy worked out their issues. I noticed there wasn't as much of Marsha as I would have expected- will we see more of her in the next update? And I'm dying to see what happens with Ophelia!

[lovelysims.livejournal.com]

oh no! You put in a cliff hanger!

*dies* what will I do while I wait!? lol. Thanks for the great update! Can't wait to see what happens next.

[wolfsilveroak.livejournal.com]

Nice twist to the ending and cliffhanger.}:P

[smakee-the-frog.livejournal.com]

Wow. Cody's bedroom is extremely cool. And the whole 'what's woohoo daddy' part was hilarious. It cracks me up that Edward has a bad temper, kinda like his namesake.

BTW, I read that Stephanie Meyer got the idea for Twilight from a dream. I thought that was pretty cool.

[sheerfreesia007.livejournal.com]

Let me just say that I am so so so happy that Puck and Tim were able to get over their differences. I still love it how Puck and General Buzz are friends and they can still have fun.

Tim's storyline about being an actor is so exciting. I'd love to his movies (selfproclaimed fan of Tim Broke).

Marsha and Tim are starting to grow on me. I didn't fall in love with them until this update. I just love how you fleshed out their story line. It's great.

My favorite couple though still have to be Rosemary and Buck. I absolutely adore them.

All the kids are adorable! But I have such a sim crush on Cody. And Chip and Tommy are going to be very handsome simmen. I can't wait to see what you do with Ophelia Nigmos.

I just wanted to tell you that I appreciate all the work you put into this story and I love it to pieces. I've been following it from the beginning and I just have to say I am so a fan of your writing! And you inspire me to actually write as well and I love that about your story. After reading your updates it makes me want to start writing and I have started but it's slow in the making. I just wanted to let you know that I appreciate everything you do with this story and I can't thank you enough for sharing it with us. Congratulations on the new generation!

[thedreamingsims.livejournal.com]

I was wondering when Ophelia would show up! I can't wait to see exactly what happens with her.

I am in love with Chip! I think that, out of all the kids this generation, he is my favorite... he's such a nerdy kid and not even that old. How cute.

[amaryssobellus.livejournal.com]

Finally they made up! I was getting so mad and annoyed with Puck for not forgiving Tim and Marsha, I kept yelling at the screen "Show him the letters!" LOL.

That picture of Lyla trying to teach Tommy nursery songs are so cute! I haven't had children do that with toddler's yet.

All the toddler's had me going "Aww" and Edward.. Ok, I know I'm just biased but I LOVE EDWARD!

WHOA! Ophelia! :D Do I smell little kid crush for Tommy and Ophelia?

[amaryssobellus.livejournal.com]

Sorry but I couldn't help but BUTT in... *bigh fan here* :p

Here's Stephenie Meyer's "offical" website if you're interested. She talks about how she came up with the book and all.. and yes, she did come up with it in a dream. :D

HAHA
Maybe I should add the link. XD
http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/

[muukau.livejournal.com]

Yay, Broke update!

Ooooh, Ophelia. Can't wait to see what happens with her :-)

[ladydragonair.livejournal.com]

Great update!

[angy182.livejournal.com]

awww thank you :))) i'm really happy, you are so kind :D

[smjoshsims.livejournal.com]

I am so excited for this now! I always loved Ophelia, and this is gonna be... wow. his was a great update, I love ALL the kids! I can't wait to see who will be heir... (Obviously a boy though!)

[jwoodsbuzz.livejournal.com]

Great update as aslways!

I also love Ophelia (started a legacy with her) so I'm relaly looking forward to seeing you write about her. The only problem with her face template is that when it turns older, it changes a bit.

I've always wanted to see Ophelia's parents. When I put them into my bodyshop, everytime I would click on them, it would crash. Ophelia looks an awful lot like her Mum, and I'm not sure, but I think she got her nose from her Dad? That nose on males looks really big compared to females.

Anyway, I'm really looking forward to the next updates. I always squee when I come on to find that you've updated!

[smoothiesims.livejournal.com]

This was an awesome update! I was really happy that Puck forgave Tim in the end and to see that the family is doing well. I'm a little worried about this new development with Buck's job, though.

Also, yay new plots! I can't wait to see where this goes. Ophelia's an intriguing Sim and I'm interested in where you'll take her backstory.

[imaginepageant.livejournal.com]

Gerbitz! The Musical = WIN WIN WIN OMG.

Since Cody isn't heir, why don't you just change his LTW to the architecture career?

I can't wait to see what havoc Ophelia will wreak! I love that you've aged her down to play into the story. Awesome.

I'm in love with Chip, he's too adorable!

[just-sarah-1979.livejournal.com]

Yes, you should have named him Jacob, I love him so much more than Edward. Well, I'm so glad I've started reading your legacy. It really is worth it every single minute - though I'm quite sure it will be weird if I'm not able to read whenever I like to like I do at the moment. Only a few chapters left until I have to wait for your updates :)

Awesome job!

[simsbarbie.livejournal.com]

Can't wait to see what the Nigmos family brings. The children are beautiful. Like Puck, Cody is very, very handsome. I wonder who he'll end up with.