Andy Stratton

Assignment 1

Help the mayor bring back the big city spenders. It’s your job to capture a moment in your assigned task to make it look appealing to those the mayor wants to lure back. You should also submit 1 – 2 sentences telling us what’s so great about that activity.

Andy Stratton – Fishing

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There’s nothing quite like going out for dinner in Sunset Valley; definitely something not worth missing. The atmosphere is cheerful and warm, the people are funny and friendly, and the food is just absolultley delicious!

iFreakdom

Camping in Sunset Valley is a one-of-a-kind experience! It is a wonderful thing, and it can become even more special if you do it with the ones you love. Even if you don’t get a chair at the firepit, you can still enjoy a marshmallow… or in other cases, a tantrum.

Elliewa

Gardening brings all the neighbours over, even if they’re more interested in the sprinklers than the plants!

SmustleQueen

Where else can you get this close to nature without leaving the comforts of suburbia? The park is a perfect place to relax with your family and friends!

hushfirefly

Jean Kent
When money seems to be lacking, why not take in a moonlit performance? Better yet, participate!
You don’t have to be a great actor, just have an interesting idea.

This month features scenes from the cult TV series True Blood.
” SOOKIE IS MINE!”

HelBelle

‘At night time, why not come down and stargaze with a few of the locals? There is chatting, toasting marshmellows and… who know’s what you might find?!! Looks like Tori has spotted something exciting, come down and find out what!’

Yusono

Take a painting class! Painting is fun, relaxing, and increases creativity among all of Sunset Valley’s residents!

Assignment 2

Unfortunately, or not, it’s officially Fall. Tis the season…for football (American football that is…) games! You’ve been talked into participating in this year’s festivities to kickoff the start of the season, but it’s up to you how you celebrate. There are several locations and activities that can be done all over town that would be perfect for a football celebration – but it’s up to you to find them.

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Andy is not allowed to watch “such mindless brutality” at home. So she sneaks off to her good friends, The Bachelors to get in her FOOTBAWLL!!!. Things were going great till Simmis badmouthed Andy’s Quarterback.

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Pansy was WILD about the football. And so when autumn came around and the football season was about to start, she thought she might help get all of her friends and colleagues into the football spirit. Of course, she couldn’t pass down the chance to have a barbeque so she sent out the invitations and the festivities began! Everyone had such a wonderful time having a snag or two off the barbe and enjoying a bit of a toss of the old footy. Everybody loved Pansy’s “football kick-off” so much that the next week when the first game came along, everyone begged her to host a party to watch it at her house; and how could she refuse?

HelBelle

‘The game was getting tense, with 9 minutes to go and the scores completely equal. Every household in Sunset Valley was holding their breath and every pair of eyes were glued to the television. That is other than Tori and the mystery man one of her friends brought round, their eyes were glued on eachother.’

Elliewa

Suzi was glad that the living room had at least been painted and the new floor put in before everyone invaded to watch the football game, even if the sofa didn’t quite go! Her guests were really getting into the game, screaming at the screen and jumping up and down. Suzi hardly noticed though, as Joe whispered in her ear that he wanted to have a chat after their friends had gone…

Yusono

Although somewhat nerdy, Adrian had been working all day Sunday to get ready for the football party, however she and her husband weren’t quite done when they arrived. But using her quick wit and charm she suggested they play some catch before the game started. She manged to finish before the game actually started, although every time a foot ball commercial came on her heart jumped! She had to convince herself that the TV would give her more warning than that.

hushfirefly

When football season starts, that means double shifts for me at the restaurant. Sometimes I have to work the bar area. Which is basically dealing with the rowdy customers, plus the mixed stench of alcohol and smoke. Though I’m not an avid fan, I always find myself dropping dishes and edging my way to the screen. Especially when Derick’s there.

Assignment 3

The past few weeks have been an extremely busy time for you and your family. It’s a good thing you’ve got this weekend to get away from it all for just a little bit as your family has decided to go on a mini-vacation. Everyone is very excited and ready for a weekend of relaxation and fun.

berrypie27

“Lets go to Disney Land!” Andy though she would never hear these words come out of Gregory’s mouth. When she did she was pleasantly surprised. “Ok!” Andy was excited to take little Alan. He had never been before. She had plans to buy matching Mickey shirts and hats it was going to be great!
The morning they were to leave, Gregory decided to show Andy the matching outfits his Mummy had bought for them to wear. Pale yellow. Andy hated pale yellow, but she refused to let anything stand in the way of her fun. By the end of their vacation even Gregory started to loosen up a bit. “We had a blast!”

Elliewa

After their football party, Joe asked Suzi a question she’d been hoping for since she first met him. He finally asked her on a date! A few months down the line, and now that they are an official item, Joe wanted to take Suzi to his parents’ cabin in the Sunset Valley nature reserve. She loved the outdoors nature of the holiday and learning new skills. However, she was jealous of Joe when he caught the first fish!

After the holiday, Suzi asked Joe if he wanted to consider moving house to be nearer the reserve, as she’d never felt so tranquil and close to nature before. Plus, that way she could have him all to herself!

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When Pansy told her husband, Kyle, that she needed a break, she didn’t think he even thought twice about where they were going to go. Kyle knew that Pansy always loved a romantic stay in SimCity, and with the new SimGate Towers just opened, rumoured to be the most romantic view in all of the country, how could Kyle not take his beloved wife to see the city again?
With their young daughter, Rose, at home with Kyle’s sister, the two set off for SimCity in their car. Kyle had already booked a hotel room in one of the most expensive hotels in the city, and when they arrived, they spent the evening dinning in one of the Hotel’s 22 restaurants before going out to the theatre to see “Jersey Boys”.
The hotel room was perfect; luxurious, big and comfortable. Pansy felt like she was having a second honeymoon!
In the morning, Kyle said he was taking her somewhere as a surprise, but when she saw that they were going to SimGate Towers she couldn’t help but be excited.
The view was spectacular, beautiful, and definitely the most romantic thing Pansy had ever seen. As she stared out the window down onto the city and outer towns, Kyle took her hand and she knew she was the luckiest woman alive to have such a caring husband who took such care to make her vacation the best it could be.

Yusono

After the football party Adrian’s husband surprised her with a trip weekend trip to New York. She was so excited but couldn’t bear the thought being apart from her daughter Clare, even for a couple of days. However her husband being ever clever already had planned to bring Clare along as well.

On the last night of the trip the family went to a nice restaurant in Little Italy, where to their surprise a very small Carnival was taking place. Both Adrian and Clare were so amazed by the beautiful costumes. Adrian spent her brief conversation with some of the elaborately dressed women attempting to keep Clare from yanking on anything she shouldn’t.

Although Clare’s fascination could have caused some trouble the ladies found it amusing and found her adorable. And at the end of their talk the ladies told Adrian that she should come back next year. She wasn’t sure if she could, but she certainly wanted to.

hushfirefly

Derick had surprised me. Truly surprised me. He showed up when my shift was over, with a reluctant Riley in tow. There was a big smile on his face, mine too. I couldn’t help it, Derick has that effect on me. We arrived at this beautiful resort. Exotic flowers, bamboo umbrellas, crystal clear water and… just silence. Peace.
I went to admire one of the many waterfalls, Derick and Riley followed. Riley wasn’t being very cooperative, maybe because I offered to spend my month’s wages on the accommodations and food. Well I couldn’t make Derick pay for it, he’s been on hard times for… two years. I know, I know, I’m a fool but if you have ever been in love, you’ll understand. As I watched the water trickle down the rocks, I felt Derick near me. He told me how pretty I looked. I blushed. Then he leant in slowly, his eyes closing. So I did the same. Eyes closed, sunlight filtering across my face, waiting. Waiting for that perfect kiss.

Assignment 4

Tell us in 3 – 4 paragraphs (12 – 20 sentences) what you did with the money and why you chose to do that specific thing. You should also show us a picture of what you did with your money. If you donated it to a charity, show us how your contribution helped or affected the charity. If you kept it for yourself, show us what you bought.

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Andy was quite distraught when she found out about the mix up with the check. She first thought about using her money to buy a whole new outfit. It did not take too long for pangs of guilt to wash over her.
She felt the money served best going to a needed charity. So she went down to the local Babies R us and purchased 2 new Potty Chairs(Black&White and Hot Pink) and donated them to Toilets for Tots. She almost had enough for 3 but she bought herself a nice blouse instead.

hushfirefly

With the remaining $100 in my bank account, I held the decision on what to spend it on. Riley said the bills, Derick wanted a new suit. I took a drive to clear my aching head and passed the orpanage which the social worker had taken Riley to. Those were dark times for me, worse for Riley. I remember how bare it all was, the grey walls and those baggy clothes from decades ago. Depressing really. Finally, I had my decision but $100 on new toys doesn’t exactly go far. So I bought them from a second hand store. Even though they had seen better days, I ended up with quite a lot. It was quite unnerving at first, all these sad, little eyes watching me. Until the toys came out. Watching their expressions light up will stay with me forever. Unlike bills or a new suit.

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Though shocked by the turn of events with her prize money, Pansy was thrilled that she’d won something at all! She had so many thoughts as to how to spend the money. In the end, she decided to spend it on a new dress. She even went out to look for one, but when she put it on, there was a strange feeling in her gut in wearing it. There was something about buying a new dress with the money that just didn’t sit right with her conscience.
Working at a hospital, Pansy saw a lot of things that most people wouldn’t choose to expose themselves to. One of the most saddening ones of those was a man she’d met recently during her rounds, sitting by his wife’s bed for hours and hours. Later she discovered that his wife was dying of a rare and difficult illness, and they and their families didn’t have the money for the treatments.
Standing in front of that mirror, in that, what she now saw as, ghastly dress, she knew what she had to do with the money and immediately got dressed back into her clothes, left the store and made her way down to the hospital.
The man was in his usual place by his wife’s bed, and so Pansy made her way to him and, after talking and explaining the situation with him for a while, gave him the $100 dollars prize money. The man was shocked and overwhelmed, and with grateful tears in his eyes, he accepted the cheque. Although it wasn’t Pansy’s first choice on what to do with the money, and even though she knew one hundred dollars wasn’t going to pay for the treatments, she knew that the money was in better hands and would go to a better use. She walked away knowing she’d done the right thing.

Yusono

Adrian was so excited when she got the check, she automatically went out and cashed it. First she decided that she would buy Clare some new toys. So she bought a few small toys when she started to get tired and headed home for the night so she could rest and think of what she would buy tomorrow. When she got home she saw there was a message on the answer machine, she was deeply saddened when she found out about the money.

She originally was going to donate money to charity after she had spent what she wanted, but now it seemed like that dream wasn’t going to come true. That’s when it came to her. She would give the toys she bought today to the local shelter. Although she felt a little bad for Clare since she wouldn’t get her new toys, so Adrian took all the toys out of their boxes and gave the boxes to Clare, who seemed quite satisfied with that.

The next day she brought the toys to the shelter. Which was quite bare. It already had a practically empty doll house and a small almost empty toy chest. At first the children seemed hesitant to play with the new toys but after Adrian started they quickly came around. It was only a few toys but they seemed to brighten the children’s day.

Assignment 5

Make sure the party is a success despite the challenges. Show us which part of the party was the most challenging for you and tell us in no more than 2 paragraphs (no more than 8 – 10 sentences) why that was most challenging and how you overcame it to make the party a success.

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The hardest part of the party for Andy was definitely the set up. Andy went to 5 different Sim-Marts trying to find Sponge bob Party supplies, but it was to no avail. She ended up having to settle on Mickey instead.

Alan was non to pleased. He threw a huge fit and he waited to do so till all the party goers had arrived. “I wanted Sponge Bob!!!” Andy finally did talk him down out of his Square Pants Frenzy and Alan had a great party!

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Rose wanted a pool party; no exceptions. This was her tenth birthday, and “extremely important to her life”, apparently, and though Pansy thought it wasn’t a particularly serious issue, she knew it would be nice to give her daughter a pool party. Of course, she didn’t have a pool, but the local “indoor-outdoor” swimming pool would be perfect, as long as she remembered the cake and made sure she hired out a party room. Getting there was the easy part, as all the parents drove their daughters to the party and left them in Pansy’s capable hands for four hours; what a nightmare.

The biggest issue was in the middle of the party, once they’d played Marco polo, and Tag, and holding your breath completions for one and a half hours and there was still an hour until lunch and cake, that the little girls came up to her and she heard a phrase no mother really wants to hear at a birthday party, “Mum, we’re bored!”. So, she put on her thinking cap, and in the end she suggested they play syntonized swimming or water ballet. She remembered playing it when she was a kid and knew that it would be a hit; she even got invited to go for a swim and play too. Though the synchronized swimming, ballet and diving (which was really just jumping in the pool) wasn’t really very synchronized, the girls had a brilliant time and her daughter said she wanted one exactly the same the next year… “Yippee,” thought Pansy…

Finale!

Part 1:

We want to see which dress you chose and where you decided to show it off for the first time. We’d also like to hear how everyone else liked your dress and how happy you were to finally be able to put a piece like that into your wardrobe. There is no limit to the amount of paragraphs you should limit yourself to this time, just be reasonable.

Part 2:

Show us how you whipped your friend into shape (and got a good workout in yourself). We’d also like to know if asking you to train them worked in their favor – how well did your friend do in their athletic event? Tell us all about it – Did you have any difficulties? Would you do it again? Anything you think we should know about how things went. As in the other parts of this set of assignments, we are not limiting your narrative in any way, just be reasonable.

Part 3:

There is no back story. There are no setbacks or bonuses. There is only you. Show us Average Jane Sim.

Photo Entries:

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Part 1:

Andy got her dress and she was so excited to wear it. She had decided on the flowery number. She liked the design of the Yellow one better, but it was yellow! So in the end she was quite pleased with her selection.
She decided she would head out to the Art Gallery to show off her new duds. Being that Andy is not the most glamorous gal, she just threw her hair up in a loose pony in hopes that it would make her look like one of those movie stars.
When she got to the Art Gallery she stood out side for a moment. There were huge search lights out in front. Andy stood in front of one of them and for a fleeting moment she felt like a celebrity.

Part 2:
Andy got the call early Saturday morning and in a muffled groan she agreed to help. She did owe her one after all. Andy rolled out of bed and headed straight down to the gym.
Hailey had been training for this competition for months now. Andy previously had offered to give Hailey some personal Aerobics lesson when ever she needed. She did not think it would ever come to this. The work out went very smoothly. This use to be Andy’s profession after all, that is until she married Gregory.
Andy and Hailey got an excellent work out, and in the end Hailey ended up coming in second place in her competition! Not to shabby out of 150 runners.

Part 3:

Andy wanted to thank everyone for giving her a chance to prove there are many different types of beauty in the world. She wanted use her final photo to show everyone her favorite place and the beauty it holds.

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Part A:

Pansy was sure there was a mean girl picking on Rose at school. She’d seen her once when she’d dropped her off and she was an awful, orange haired, girl with a very over-the-top attitude. She’d heard from Rose herself that she always called her, “the smart, chubby girl”, and she told her she’d never amount anything. Pansy had the most incredible deja vous of her own high school experience and though Pansy hadn’t been bothered by it during her time, she was very worried about her own daughter being affected by this revolting girl.
“I just wish she could see that I’m not who she thinks I am! I mean look at you mum,” Rose had told her mother one day on the way to school. “You used to be just like me at school and now you’re a surgeon and well, you’re really good looking.”
Later that day, Pansy went shopping and found a FANTASTIC sale! She was thrilled when she realised that she was able to afford a designer dress (even if it was on sale) and once she had bought it, she began thinking about where she could wear it for the first time.
“Perhaps,” she thought on her way home to have a snack before she picked her girls up from school, “that mean girl doesn’t need much to convince her that Rose isn’t who she thought she was.” Then she knew where she should wear her dress. When she got home, she did her hair nicely, and put on her new designer dress, then she went to pick up her children and purposely got out of the car to greet them.
“You look nice!” said Rose, when she saw her mother. The mean orange headed girl wasn’t far off and she looked Pansy up and down.
“Is this your sister then?” she said resentfully. “Mummy too busy to pick up her girl?” she smiled.
Pansy turned, looked at her square in the face and said, “Actually, I’m never too busy to pick up my children and I’ll hope you remember to speak nicely to others from now on or I’ll be sure to tell your mother what you’ve been up to!”
The girl looked as though she’d just been slapped in the face and Pansy felt very satisfied with herself, knowing that she was able to look after her daughter.
As they were driving home, Rose looked at her mother. “Thanks Mum,” she said. Pansy was so happy to know that in buying something for herself, she was still able to benefit others, all while having a new and FABULOUS dress!
Strangely (or rather not so strangely), the repulsive orange head never bothered Rose again…

Part B:

Pansy was happy to help her best friend get into shape. The marathon wasn’t really a marathon, and it wasn’t serious either; just a charity event. But for Pansy’s best friend, Dinah, this race was everything. Pansy knew as well as Dinah did that the only reason she’d signed up was because a colleague of her who she really liked had asked her to, and so she’d said yes.
Pansy’s first thought was to go to the gym, but her friend was quite short on money and couldn’t really afford a gym membership. So Pansy put on her creative cap and thought up a new way to inspire Dinah to get running.
Dinah was very suppositious. Even the thought of smashing a mirror or driving passed a graveyard sent shivers down her spine, so every morning for two weeks before the marathon took place, Pansy went for a brisk, long jog in the crisp morning air; and every morning, just as Dinah was starting to lag and give up, Pansy would lead her passed the graveyard which would make Dinah run practically faster than Pansy.
The running was a success!! For Pansy. She was back into shape like she used to be! Dinah didn’t succeed in placing in the marathon, but she won her prize anyway as the next day, Dinah called Pansy to thank her because Darryl had asked her out!

Part C:

Many women would despise the title of Average Jane. Most would deny it. But as Pansy looked around her, she knew that if being Average Jane meant having her Husband, her best friend (and her new boy friend) and her two beautiful girls, how could she do anything other than embrace who she was; Average Jane.

THE WINNER IS ANDY STRATTON!!!!