"Super-sister"

I was in the dining room putting finishing touches on "Interview with a Mummy" when I heard footsteps. I knew they were Bassy's as he tends to slide his feet on the floor, and I knew why he was up. If there's one thing I know about him, it's that when he gets upset, he doesn't sleep. He paces around and usually gets on the computer. So I knew something was up. Something told me I couldn't be super-woman. I had to be super-sister.

It was two in the morning, and I was dead dog tired. But I didn't care. Bassy was in trouble.

So I fixed him a pipin' hot plate of macaroni and cheese and sat him down for a little heart-to-heart. "Tell me what's going on," I began, looking right into his deep blue eyes. They're the exact same ones as my father's, the same shade, shape and size.

He looked at me plaintively. "It's Daisy."

I knew it was girl trouble. It couldn't be anything else. Teenage girls are trouble. I should know, I was one.

"Ernie, man --"

"Who's Ernie?"

"Ernie Tripp. I thought he was my friend. We all hung out together, it was me, Ernie, Daisy, and Neil -- I mean, we all grew up together, ya know? One minute we're laughing and joking, next thing I know, she's coming out of one of his closets --"

"What?"

"It's crazy, man. Crazy. What happened next was even crazier."

"When I turned around to leave, she ran after me, called my name and said, 'Bas, it's not what it looks like. I had to laugh cause it was exactly what it looked like."

"Do you think she thought you were stupid?" I asked him, my anger growing by the second. I swear, I wanted to kill her, Ernie and Bassy for getting themselves into this mess. And I've never even met Ernie and have only met Daisy once.

"I dunno what she thought," Bassy said.

"But you laughing at it, in her mind, makes her think it's okay what she did," I told him.

"I didn't laugh at her -- I was laughing silently, to myself. I wasn't even sure how to react, to tell the truth."

Dang, he's got to be like dad, I thought, because I would have physically hurt someone in that room.

"You need to talk to Ernie and Daisy," I told him. "You need to let both of them know exactly how you feel about what happened. You need to tell them what you told me, that you feel embarrassed, you feel betrayed, that you're hurt by all of this."

Satis-fy me

I woke up the next morning with Satis on my mind.

I'm still not exactly sure why this is. Is it what they call the "biological clock" churning inside me? Hell, I sure don't think I'm ready to deal with a kid, at least not right now. My lifestyle simply wouldn't allow it. As it is, I'm away from home now more often than I'm here. My kid wouldn't see much of me.

What is it about this Satis character that intrigues me so? And why did I want to see her -- now??

Whatever it was, I knew she (and her brother Imsety) were in grave danger, especially if what I'd discovered about MorcuCorp's operations in the basement of their home was true. And where on earth were their parents? What happened to them, if they are deceased? I'd surely left Egypt with more questions than answers, even as I'd secured two of the three ancient relics Morcucorp wants.

Why am I feeling this way? Please, help me figure this out.

I'm back!

I recently (well a couple days ago) got home from my whirlwind 8-day trip to Egypt. 8 simdays is a long time to be gone. While I was there, I located two of the three relics MorcuCorp is in search of.
Bassy was right about mom's makeover, though, she looks fabulous.

Speaking of fabulous, my family didn't celebrate Christmas until I got back. Mom arranged a 'small' dinner party back at the house. And mom, of course, was the star of the show.

Mom looks every bit the former opera diva she is in this gown she wore to the party. I mean, I know I'm in no position to play fashion critic, but some of the outfits were just hideous.

Like this lady's. Love the color, but I don't know about the trim. Think her name is Glenda Keaton. But I don't even think she was on the guest list! I'd have to check with mom, who knows.

And... Cheesebutt???? Goodness, who invited him? And I notice his sense of fashion hasn't changed very much, that tweed jacket is gawd-awful. I hate to sound like a snot, but some of

these invites must have gotten mixed up in the mail.

Meanwhile, I pretended as though I didn't see him. Besides, I was caught up on entertaining guests with stories about my adventures in the pyramids. I have to say, they were a big hit.

The food was a hit too, as mom baked her famous angel-food cake. Dad just can't help himself, he's got a monstrous sweet tooth.

I happened to look over by the stereo and there was Cheesebutt fraternizing with my brother.

I just knew they were talking about me, because when I walked over pretending to pick up a nearby bowl to wash, they suddenly stopped.

"Yes, yes, my sister is quite the firecracker," I heard Noah say.

"Firecracker," agreed Andy, "that she is."

The next time those two get together to try to plan MY life, I wish they'd let me in on it.

Mom's new look

Vanna,

I promised I'd keep u up 2 date on what's going on here while u're off in Egypt. I have no doubt u'll find those relics, so this is my first 'official' dispatch.

U just HAVE to see mom rite now. She went to her hairdresser in town, and she looks fab! And rite after it happened, she and dad went into the bedroom... and well, I don't need 2 tell u the rest. Haha

She got looks in town too...

And right around the time she got it, the producer producer set up an autograph session at the theater. Needless to say she came home on a high. She didn't even fuss me bout my homework.

I figure once u get these pix you'll be in a much better mood.

Got 2 go. Luv u. Your brother, Bas

Sebastian Speaks!

Hello everybody and Happy Holidays! I'm Sebastian, filling in for Savannah while she's off in Egypt searching for these three pieces of ancient sculpture -- relics they're called, I think.

I was reading her latest dispatch from Egypt. Gotta tell you -- my sister is badass. Really, she is.

You know what she's like? She's like, a comic book heroine, Wonder Woman or something, I dunno. Some kind of cartoon character. Not a real person.

But dang it, she's my sister, you know? My only full-blooded sister. I mean, I have half-siblings but she's the only full sibling I have. Same mother, same father. I mean, I live with her. We're under the same roof. I kinda secretly hope some of her genes would rub off on me but so far they haven't. I'm just a normal teenage boy -- no superpowers at all. I wonder if she's the last of some master-race of super-sims. She certainly isn't 'ordinary,' for sure.

I definitely think she's got some kind of superpowers. No way anyone survives that much electricity going thru their body. Maybe I've read too many comic books, I dunno. But there's something going on that she isn't telling me, and my mom has kept mum about her too.

I went studying at the library with Daisy and Neil. Neil is my nephew, though he's actually four simdays older than me. He'd asked for tutoring in Simlish, and then he started asking about "Aunt Savannah's latest exploits." Gotta admit, those tall tales she's writing about from Egypt about mummies (she started writing her novel before she left) surely have everybody curious.

A Phone Call

I was in my living room when the phone rang. A local in Al Simhara was telling me about some ancient library in the basement of a wealthy family's home, where a book about the three ancient relics could be found. Layla Lufti wanted me to retrieve this book and bring it to her. I had a feeling I was being summoned back to Egypt for more than this book, but in the interest of saving time, I asked her to tell me more about this library when I got there.

Never mind that I'm still in the middle of writing my book... publisher's deadlines be damned...I had to drop everything and head back to Egypt.

Mysterious photographs

I found two more mysterious pictures in my mother's nightstand drawer. She'd never mentioned these people before, so I asked her about them.
She came out with it, "They were my parents."
So that was it. These are the missing pieces to my puzzle. I decided I wanted to know everything there was to know about these people.

So I cornered mom. Absolutely cornered her. I just knew there was a lot of things she wasn't telling me, and some of them she didn't even tell my dad. I asked her for their names and everything she remembered about them. Her father was Edward Bellingham, and he'd been an artist and photojournalist who traveled the world. Her mother had been a German immigrant, Daniella, who only married him because she was pregnant.

I woke up at 3 am with my novel, "Interview with a Mummy" on the brain. It was a book I started after I left Egypt the first time, and I knew that in order to make the deadline the publisher set, I would need to buckle down and finish the book, even if it meant late nights. What's funny, about when I started writing this book, was that Aunt Margaret had notes in her laptop about a historical novel that was set in Egypt.

More odds & ends

It's been a whirlwind since I returned from France. First, I got a phone call from the school saying they wanted me to lecture on logic (!) to some of the kids. I said, okay, I'd do it on my day off. All they wanted me to do, really, was talk about the importance of logic and the different things a sim could do with logic knowledge. As most of you know, I'm good at chess and I enjoy it. I was president of the school's chess club, but I only let few people know I was.

So I got dressed the next day, put on my smartest outfit (what, did you expect me to show up in front of my brother's horny classmates in stiletto heels?), and walked inside the school building for the first time since I graduated. And, if I have to say so myself, the talk went pretty well.

Not sure this was part of the talk, though. Jeannine Ratliff caught me practicing guitar outside of the school after I'd got done talking. "Hey, you're pretty good," she said. I have to be, I almost told her. My parents are both musicians.

The next day I got up and ran into town for a few things when I ran into Noah. "I can't get over it," he began, "all grown up, you are."

"Yeah, well, I am," I told him, with a wide grin.
"I hear you've been traveling the world. Is that what you do for a living? Gallivant all over the planet?"
I really didn't feel like hearing a lecture from him about how I should stay home and get a 'real' job. "Well, technically," I explained to him, "I am an archeologist. I study ancient cultures and learn how ancient peoples lived. But in reality, yea, I am an adventurer. I comb ancient tombs for treasure and more. I love my job, really. Wouldn't trade it for the world."
"Well, you certainly look happy, Savannah," Noah finally said. "You're glowing." The biggest surprise about the meeting...was that he didn't mention the wedding. At all.

I ran into someone else out in town. Darrel. Yes, that Darrel, my ex-crush. And I was surprised at how...OLD...he looked. He looked like he hadn't slept in weeks and hadn't shaved his hair in days. We just stood there, waiting for one person to speak. Neither of us did, for at least ten minutes. I couldn't figure out who had changed the most -- him or me. What on earth had I been thinking when I lusted hard after this guy in high school?

We walked away from each other, our silence speaking volumes.

Sebastian Becomes a Teen

Well, when we got back from France, guess what? Yet another birthday! The little tyke won't be so little anymore.

Mom threw him this ginormous birthday party at the house, pretty much inviting all of our inner circle, and they came, too. Even Billy and Nathaniel showed up. I sneaked an invite to his little galpal, Daisy Ramsey, who herself was already a teen.

Well, there he is. Isn't he a cutey?

And right on cue, he walks up to Daisy and asks her to dance.


I wasn't without a partner either, however unwilling I was. My dance partner was Mitchell Castillo, son of some old family friends. Apparently his mother's a member of the orchestra. We tried to make some small talk while we were dancing, but the fact of the matter is I'm just not that into him, you know what I mean? Some folks might accuse me of being 'picky,' but I just want to be with the right person. You understand, right? Right??

French Twist

So, the next day after sleeping in the tent, I was back at it, trying to find this 'mysterious object' that the local was hunting for.

While I was walking, I happened upon this marble statue and a stack of gold coins. Now, you don't have to be an art connoisseur to recognize good craftsmanship. Luckily, I grew up in a home where artistic expression was prized. And man, what a prize I had before me.

After spending a few moments admiring this, um, work of art, I moved on to the next room.

Walking in here, I noticed it was overgrown with weeds and seemed to not have been touched in a millenium or two. I wondered if I'd taken a wrong turn or something, because there was a bonafide maze made of grass hedging!

There were assorted trinkets placed at different intervals throughout the 'maze.' The first 'prize' was a bunch of ancient coins.


The second was a keystone in the shape of a heart.

When I spotted the keyhole, I went towards it and fit the key in its hole.

Finally I found what the local had been looking for -- a BASEBALL???? Seriously? I go through an entire tomb just to find a darned baseball?

Sure enough, it was the baseball he'd been looking for. I'd have to get it back to him. But I knew by that point it was getting late... so I found a tent... and... well, you know the rest.

Au revoir from Champs Les Sims,

Savannah

French Kiss Part 4

Thing about digging in these holes, though, is that you really never know what might come out of them. There were a few creepy crawlies, but they don't bother me that much, actually. After clicking the switch, another door opened.

After walking for a little bit, I found a marble keystone in the shape of a heart. These keystones have such unusual shapes. I've seen star shapes, crescent moon shapes, but this was my first time seeing a heart. I wondered if it was trying to tell me something.

After walking a little bit, I got hungry, so I reached into my bag and got a bite of dried food. It's really a cake-like morsel, without the moisture. I figured it would tide me over until I got back to base camp.

I walked into this locked room with rows of giant statues looking over me. If I didn't know any better I'd have sworn their eyes were bearing down right into my body.

This is the part of my job that I'm not really a big fan of -- moving around statues to activate floor switches. Someone has to do it, though, it might as well be me, I suppose. And besides, it does give my pecs and calves a bit of a workout.

And just so my time in the tomb wasn't all about finding switches and moving around statues, I even managed to find time to tickle my musical bones. I am the daughter of two musicians, after all. It was getting late and I would need to find the item in the morning.