I can still make the whole place shimmer

Prompt: my two favorite duo of sisters are invited to a NYE charity gala. Me in reality: *singing Bejeweled because I want sparkles*

▬ 1 || earrings - necklace - dress - gloves - bag - flats ▬ 2 || headpiece - dress - rings ▬ 3 || earrings (Tiny Living SP) - necklace - dress - bracelet ▬ 4 || earrings (Basegame) - necklace - dress

I wouldn't have that much fun playing dress up without the amazing work of cc creators: @rustys-cc, @blacklily, @sentate, @yuns2ol, @dissiasims, @christopher067, @madlensims, @arethabee, @serenity-cc, @metens, @glitterberrysims.

Do you have any if recommendation?

Ooh! I have really, really bad memory(!!) but these are current faves that I have played/replayed recently that I can think of. A lot of the authors are also THE BEST HUMAN BEINGS EVER. So, double recommendation.

I probably missed a bunch out, so take this as a non-exhaustive list! In no particular order:

(Edit: Added some descriptions but yeah I got a little unhinged so I'm sorry nothing makes sense or if the quality of the write-up went down over time/did not actually give you any useful info)

WIPs with demos

Citadel, @bouncyballcitadel (I think of all the IFs on this list, this one makes me sweat the most. And I've said it once and I'll say it again: the dialogue is so snappy and well-written, and characters are SO DAMNED LOVEABLE.)

Infamous, @infamous-if (I've been manifesting Band/Musician IFs for the longest time, and then this popped up! I've even played Choice of a Rockstar, that's how desperate I was... Anyway, this is legions better than that. Angsty ex routes are my kryptonite, and Seven is just. Inevitable.)

Defiled Hearts: The Barbarian, @defiledheartsblog (I went into this wanting something juicy and fun/historical—and it's all of those things, but I didn't expect it to be so damned funny, too. The ROs are all impeccable.)

Raiders of the Caravan and Apartment 3-3, @leftski-if (A'ight listen, fantasy slice-of-life is my fave genre, and these are IT. Like, everything I never knew I needed in my life, and SO cozy/wholesome, with a cast of characters that I want to befriend in real life.)

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: An Affair of the Heart @doriana-gray-games (First off, the customization in this game is INSANE, and the branching too. I've replayed a couple of times and the little variations I discover each time just blows my mind. Secondly, it's so funny and written so well. Ngl I'm not a Sherlock fan but that's just testament to how amazing this IF is.)

When Life Gives You Lemons, @when-life-gives-you-lemonssss (Modern slice-of-life with an adorable kid, a bunch of hot ROs, CC. Hill's humor, what can I say?)

Golden @milaswriting (Really interesting world-building, one of the coolest fictional cities I've read in an IF, AND I'm obsessed with the ROs, in particular K de la Renta. Also Mila is such an awesome writer, I'm beyond excited for @beyondthegame.)

A Tale of Crowns @ataleofcrowns (This game is beautiful, polished, and SO exciting. Honestly, it looks like the kind of game created by a whole-ass game studio and would cost $50 to buy, it's that good. I really got swept up by this IF—probably played it all in one go.)

Rougi @rougi-if (Again, another game with scrumptious visuals/UI and also is just so well-crafted. I love the premise too, it's so original and fresh.)

Scout: An Apocalypse Story @anya-dev (Unfortunately this one might be on hiatus but I am/was really, really obsessed.)

Wayfarer @idrellegames (Love the game mechanics of this one, and the visuals. Probably controversial, but I like the D&D / random dice effect. And I also like the fact that it feels like an old-school RPG.)

Chop shop @losergames (The premise is all I needed to be sold, really—I'd always wanted to buy GTA as a kid but my parents were like NO WAY. Anyway, this IF did not disappoint, and let me live all my childhood dreams.)

Edit: AHH! How could I forget, one of my recent faves, Folksaga @folksaga-if (Lush atmospheric writing, super unique premise—norse mythology, plus I'm head over heels for Katla).

Completed IFs

Butterfly Soup 1 and 2 @brianna-lei (these are completed and I will never not promote them. Honestly the most adorable, wholesome, funny sports/coming-of-age IF I've read)

Elsinore: After Hamlet @lapinlunairegames (Insanely cool premise, insanely cool execution)

The Thick Table Tavern @manonamora-if (I love bar/tavern games, and this one actually lets you mix drinks! Instant fave.)

Other HGs/COGs I love: Slammed, Tin Star, Fallen Hero, If it pleases the court, A Player's Heart (these last two are so underrated, though I guess cause it's mainly wlw)

Feedback Fest 2024: The Nanny recs!

It's International Fanworks Day today, and @transformativeworks is asking for fic recs! (for more information check out their post!)

The Nanny is a very small fandom, I have 1872 fics (from all sites, including RUNHP via the Internet Archive) in total, and just 407 of those are on AO3 (including crossovers in which The Nanny is not the main fandom).

But despite being a small fandom we are and have been blessed with amazing writers. I have had trouble limiting my recs to just 10. My recs cover both CC/Niles and CC/Fran as ships, most are rated E/M so check the rating if you care about those things. In no particular order:

what would you do (if they never found us out) (affectionately known as wwyd) by @groovebunker - CC/Fran - In Progress - CC and Fran cannot keep their hands off each other, starting with being locked in the wine cellar. They're together and figuring this relationship out. The writing is amazing, the characterization spot on and @groovebunker introduced and convinced me of CC/Fran as a valid ship and I am forever grateful to them.

i like you (a latke) also by @groovebunker (I recommend everything by them but want to highlight these two) - CC/Fran - Fake dating and a hanukah party at Sylvia's. So sweet. So comforting. So lovely.

Christmas Special by @7billionneedles - CC/Niles - An amazing advent project, publishing a chapter a day in December 2023. They are at least 60% responsible for getting me through that month. Also fake dating, a little mystery, a little adventure and so much fluffy loveliness. And long, I love long. It was great reading this a chapter a day, and rereading it was even better.

The Hell Of It by @7billionneedles - CC/Niles (ish) - Major Character Death - MCD is not my jam. But this one. This one. It is so beautifully heartbreaking. Making me cry ugly tears in just 1259 words. If you can handle MCD, read this one. Now.

With Luck Like That by @tayryn/Tayryns_tower (restricted) - CC/Niles - Niles accompanies CC to a weekend away to woo some backers, and instead they woo each other. All kinds of shenanigans, lots of spice, but also romance and fluff. A great comfort read.

In Vino Veritas by @seariderfalcon - CC/Niles - The summary covers it: Blame it on the alcohol. Six times Niles and C.C. let liquor loosen their inhibitions and one time they didn't need it. Many lovely kisses, eventually matching up with canon (yay, Dummy Twins).

How Will I know (If She Really Loves Me)? by @enchantedslothh - CC/Fran - In Progress - CC meets Fran in Flushing the day Fran is fired from the bridal shop. Fran goes to work for the Sheffields, and the story pretty much follows canon, but it is CC and Fran starting a relationship (and CC is a lot quicker than Maxwell). It is lovely to see canon through this lens.

vignettes from the kitchen (and the couch) by @itsfantasticallyhomoerotic/iffoundreturntomissbabcock - CC/Fran - CC and Fran decide to fake date to make Maxwell jealous. Well, that never back-fired in the history of (fan-) fiction ever :D

Life As We Knew It by Aninsomniac1999 - CC/Niles - Lots angst, dating other people, not admitting that they belong together.

normal days on upper east side by uppereastsidegirl - CC/Niles - In Progress - Lots of scenes between CC and Niles, during canon. Great to see them in the spotlight. This fic is translated, so does have some grammar/spelling issues, but it is worth it.

Special mentions I couldn't fit in anymore: it's all there in black and white by @groovebunker (CC/Fran journalist AU, in progress), Enemies With Privileges by @7billionneedles (CC/Niles, during canon)

Also, if you want, you can check out my own fics on AO3 (all CC/Niles).

Top 5 video games 👀

ohhhhhh gosh! this kind of thing is hard because there are so many games. so many genres. so many... Eras? like there are games from my childhood that i love and miss and also there are games from now?

so i'm gonna list a lot of my faves, in not particular order!

Kingdom Hearts 2- instant nostalgia even thinking about this game makes me wanna cry. TWT

Sonic Heroes- the most fun game ever. i got my ps2 working last summer and played it again with jess and it was a blast TWT (i wish they'd remaster it but also i don't wanna pay for a new version bc my old one is Fine!)

Fortnite- it's just FUN alright? i love killing bitches. :))

TS4- unfortunately i like build mode and CAS mode more than actually playing. and cc shopping... that's so fun

Spyro- i didn't get to play spyro till a few years ago but it's really fun!

GTAV- it's been years since i touched it but i really liked driving around and shooting the shit out of the npcs. the story mode?? no idea how i felt about that. but buying a rocket launcher, shooting a bunch of people and climbing onto a tall building to shoot helicopters down? FUN :)

Rise of the Tomb Raider- this is the 2nd of the most recent trilogy i think??? i also enjoyed the 1st! but the third sucked :') (to me anyway) i love lara croft. she's so... ough... oh there was One good part of the third game that gave me goosebumps but the gameplay wasn't as good to me??

Breath of the Wild- I never finished it. but goddamn it was so pretty and fun.

Sdv- i haven't touched it in forever but i really enjoyed it when i did!

Anch- i played animal crossing every day for almost 2 years. and then i finally stopped because it had just become a tedious boring thing. i really would like to start a new island but... my island TWT can't do it uhhhhhhh if i keep going this'll get so long it'll be Annoying, but i love a lot of different games! :) ty for asking TWT <3

So this is the bike here and he says that you modernize it a little I don't know how you going to do that he says if you look at the frame it's smaller just like the hard knock kicker 5150 and they made a mistake and our son says no because you can't tell you're supposed to put a Harley in it and that's true too. And he was pretty sharp that guy for being gifted and he started a revolution this is I think I got them to postpone it and you get to skip all this stupid crap they're putting me through. So he looked at him and didn't say anything and he figured it out and he went to them and he said I might need help and they helped and you helped he says he's a real dear someday I have to wrestle him and those guys got excited and said they can mutate him. And he would never win and he says he might cuz I might not be that humongous and it's true but here we go

-this is the idea to take this bike and make it into a dirt bike and Enduro two different bikes it is a 110cc the motor is the Italian motor it's not the street bike but it is a very fast it's about 45 horsepower which is 15 more than the comparable Yamaha which would have I think like 400 cc's and once again it's a lot lighter but that's a lot of horsepower and this thing would scream and it would be famous for instantly and it would make it look like this and David did engineering and that's JC who is David audett and he did design it correctly the particular shape that you on this bike balances it we have changed a little but we can keep the look and the piping can be a similar size his motor is not huge and we'd make it from the 110 up to we think 250 at this size and it was still take the frame and it can hold someone at 400 pounds the way the reason is it's less material and it's less expensive and the way the frame is made is very inexpensive. He did think about it he did a decent job as an engineer and the rear is in the middle with regards to the travel of the suspension and it takes easy on the chain and the transmission and it's engineered and we will use the square box idea for the ball bearings it saves time and a lot of money and energy and we also use it on the swing arm and at a chain tensioner and we also going to make it so it's balanced but so it's about the right size for the average person and people don't do that and we will and even the posture. This is a bit forwards they have like a lower handlebars system for dirt bikes and you see them all the time and it'll be perfect and they're cheap and we can buy the part and it's really inexpensive and the frame and the engine the motor would be really cheap to build and nobody's really doing it and you need them the tires and rims we would use spokes they take quite a while to make mags never look good even when they're Chrome there are a couple that look decent and he said we should do it because it portrays that it's inexpensive and I do understand it's true if you don't want a solid rim you do have a problem with the wind only on big bikes and even then it's a problem but here is the deal he wants to start with this bike and this is a small as it gets but we would make it this size and start with 49cc and then we would also have a 110cc and there's a 90cc state and it will be in Enduro to begin with not a dirt bike and the dirt bike would be more rugged the travel will be more like a husk of Rihanna and I'm a perfect person for this and the guys are saying we're getting in there and really I like being in the background and he wants to Captain it himself and saying they won't let him and they say you don't do the job you're off fighting this war he said this is part of the war and he wants the guys in the shop and he wants to take the shop and not from the tuttels. And why would we ever do that the max are using them against us so we're thinking of doing that and he says it's a good idea it'll be American choppers there first since I thought it was an Orange county that's New York and it is but Orange county New York is not where this company was founded he's going to find out where

Thor Freya

Olympus

Zues

I like this motorcycle and I want one reserved for me and I want one built for me I'm going to tell father and mother

Hera

Megakingom Makeovers!

I had a brief setback in the form of a single piece of CC deciding to crash the Beaker lot, but aside from that I have been plugging along nicely, setting up the Megakingdom. In this post, enjoy the rest of the Strangetown makeovers and the first few Riverblossom Hills makeovers!

Ajay Loner:

I had to give somebody a serf hood, and he got the short end of the stick. It protects him from the desert sun, probably. Being a peasant in Strangetown, he'll probably be a miner.

The Grunts! General Buzz:

Tank:

Ripp:

and Buck.

They're the only Yeoman family in Strangetown, and will therefore own the local hedge tavern.

Loki Beaker: (there isn't much anybody can do about his overall... face.)

Circe Beaker:

and Nervous Subject:

Nervous is going to move in with his mom after a round or so, when she formally acknowledges him as her heir. Loki's going to try to manipulate matters so that his sister Erin marries Nervous and becomes the next Duchess of Strangetown--they rarely have chemistry in my games, and I'm probably going to make Nervous have feelings for his dear friend Pascal, but I think under medieval rules, Loki can force the matter as long as Erin and/or Nervous don't have better legal offers, and as long as Olive doesn't object. Looking forward to playing that Drama.

Moving on to Riverblossom Hills, we start with Alexandra Teatherton (nee O'Mackey)

It is technically possible for her to fulfill her dream of being a pirate (literally, not through the Adventurer career), but she will have to earn (or marry) her way up to Yeoman so she can move to Bluewater Village, then get hired on a ship owned by somebody else (nobody owns a ship yet) and work her way up to Captain. (...I may add some mutiny mechanics so she can take over an become a true pirate, but one step at a time here).

The O'Mackeys: Gabe:

and Jules:

No particular plans for them yet; Gabe needs a new wife to provide him with an heir, and Jules needs to start courting.

Leod McGreggor:

He kept his kilt for formalwear, albeit a less modern version. And you better believe he's gonna be a peasant farmer.

The Greenmans: Jason:

Daisy:

and Rose:

I didn't stick closely to Jason's original outfit, figuring this is a man who abandoned society to go live in the woods with his dryad wife. He should look the part a little more! I could have kept Rose in her plantsim outfit, or something close to it, but this green dress was impossible to resist. As the yeoman family of Riverblossom Hills, they may run a hedge tavern, although it's highly likely I'll have them run an orchard as well.

In case anyone's curious, I decided to delete Hat's Gestation-Based Aging in favor of 1 Day = 1 Year Aging, although I haven't decided how to handle college yet as I struggle to get my sims through 24-hour semesters. Most likely, I'll use the Semester Changes mod to make each college year be one 48-hour semester, and then play college rounds double. It's not perfect, but I can't think of any other method that would fit. (well, I could make an in-hood college as described in the MCC rules, but I don't wanna.) All this is going to mean that I need to carefully figure out all premade sims' ages and birthdates all over again, which is always both fun and tedious at the same time.

I'm several play (well, makeover and build) sessions ahead of my posts; today I finished making over all Riverblossom Hills sims, and I built the Baldwins' hedge tavern, the Clevelands' home, and the Cordials' magic shop. I also did quick exterior remodels of two BDC buildings, which was fun. I still have to give makeovers to all the Veronaville sims (including the Picasos, the Travellers, and Cy Roseland, moved to Veronaville for bloodline diversity), all premade college sims, Kaylynn Langerak, and as many townies as I can grab; and I need to build/remodel 2-3 BDC homes (one for Duke Armand DeBateau, and either one or two depending on whether I decide to keep Lord Connor Weir and Lord Geoff Rutherford living together or not), plus quick facelifts for all remaining unowned homes and community lots so they don't look stupid in the background. Then it'll just be a matter of setting up sims' ages, traits, an secondary aspirations correctly... and then I can start playing? While continuing to remodel locations in the next subhood as I go? Man, I am getting there.

Cruising Do's and Don'ts: When I planned ahead and when I didn't plan with my head.

Being that this was my second cruise I thought for sure I was adequately knowledgeable about the ins and outs of what to expect and what to bring. Turns out packing/cruising for 7 is a tad different from the small party of two that was the last trip. 

-BRING A LANYARD: I don't know why I didn't think about or remember this from the last trip- but please for the love of god bring a lanyard to keep your sail and sign card on. Since cruises are non cash accepting zones, these things are needed for everything (get on and off the boat at port, buy drinks, pick up souvenirs in the gift shop, play in the arcade/casino). They are linked to whatever CC you set it up with (or pre-loaded cash) and I can't tell you how annoying it was to have to keep it in my wallet the whole trip which I was then forced to carry around on the ship the entire 7 days. Mia was smart and brought one as a "just in case" item. They *do* sell them on the boat, but my cheap ass wasn't paying $13 (per lanyard) for both my husband and myself. Lesson learned. Bring a lanyard! 

-IF GOING IN A GROUP, A WALKIE TALKIE IS A LIFESAVER: Being that we were traveling outside of the US (without an international data package) we knew we would not able to communicate with each other using cell phones while on board. Even our normal tricks of using WiFi to text via WhatsApp wasn't an option being that Carnival charges a daily Wifi fee that I was definitely not going to fork over (cheap ass remember?) Thank goodness Mia came up with the brilliant plan (she comes up with most of them if I'm being honest) of bringing a set of long range walkie talkies with us in the event that we wanted to split up so we could still communicate when/where to meet back up. Or to prank call each other from our rooms at night/in the AM, whateves. The boys scoffed at us, but they quickly realized how useful they were and everyone was happy we forked over the $15 per couple to buy them from Amazon. 

-CHEERS! PACKAGE OR NAH? So the Cheers! package is an unlimited alcohol package for when you are on board the ship. At about $50 per day per person- this one isn't for the casual drinker. We weighed this option very carefully and did ALOT of math when determining if it would be worth it for us (see kids, math DOES come in handy when you are adulting- tabulating drink costs on a cruise ship for 4 of age adults is no joke!). In the end we decided to fork over the $800 per couple total cost just to have the peace of mind of not mentally tabulating our sail and sign bill each time we ordered a cocktail. (I should clarify that *I* didn't worry about calculating that bill but hubby saw that as the total to beat and kept track of every drink we each had in order to calculate if we really got our monies worth...we did....and then some in case you were wondering). At between $6 and $10 for your most bought beer and cocktails, they can add up quick! Throw in 3 full days at sea with no ports (and let's be honest- three kids who while adorable and lovely- can drive you up a wall)- and we easily met our moneys worth. We were also able to use them to get the kids some fancy (non alcoholic) drinks and sodas that we would have normally had to pay for, so all in all it was a good deal for us. 

- TO TIP OR NOT TO TIP- THAT IS THE QUESTION: When given the option to pre-pay for tips up front when we booked the cruise, we opted out. (Now hold your horses people- we are really great tippers and always tip well when we receive a service- over 20% in fact). We were unsure of how the staff was actually tipped out from this option and wanted to tip individually to those who provided us with services (room stewards/bar tenders/waiters) to ensure that our tip money was actually going to those serving us. Turns out, everyone is charged a flat fee for tips, they just give you the option to pay it up front or your card will be charged at the end of the cruise. We found this out the night before setting sail which was kind of an annoyance (my husband had already taken out a couple hundred dollars...in ones...) but c'est la vie. Because we firmly believe in over-tipping, especially when the service is phenomenal- we went ahead with our original plan and tipped our servers individually anyway. These guys were some of the most friendly, efficient, hard working service industry professionals I have ever met and they deserved every dollar (and more), so when given the option to tip- do it. 

- DOWNLOAD THE CARNIVAL HUB APP- A free app with cruise specific info, this thing was a life saver most days at sea. Set it up with your own unique login and password, and it keeps an electronic tab of all your purchases on the boat as well as a schedule of all the events going on onboard each day. It allows you to mark items you are interested in and it will alert you when they are coming up we found it really handy! The best part? The app will work on the boat and will not charge you for wifi (app is free and to use is free even in international water). Score! 

- WHAT TIME TO DINE? Upon booking your cruise you will asked to choose a dining time for dinners at your assigned dining room. Three options are given, Early, Late, and 'Your Time". I would choose the "Your Time" dining option as it is the most flexible of the three, allowing you to go early or late depending on what other activities you guys have going on on any particular day. With so many fun and exciting activities both onboard and onshore it's nice to have this flexible option. 

- BEACH TOWEL BONANZA: Carnival does provide beach towels for your use (one per person will be folded up for your use in your room) BUT if you loose one during the day they charge your room $20 for a replacement. Since they all look alike and the whole boat had them, it is very easy for people to pick them up thinking they are theirs and they are YOU are stuck with a bill (happened to me on our first cruise- so annoying!) So I say bring your own distinct beach towel so no one mistakes it for theirs.

WATERPROOF CAMERA IS A MUST! I originally planned to just get a water proof case for my phone but I chickened out when it came to the deep blue ocean... I mean, let's face it... even though my phone is ancient, I paid like an arm and a leg for it, so I don't want it ruined! I did test the case, and it did have good reviews, but I'm a nutcase and I couldn't make myself submerge my iphone under the sea.  In a pool, yeah.  In the ocean. No.  So I went online and bought a cheap version of a goPro.  and OMG that little camera is awesome! Paid just $20 for it, plus $10 for the 32gb memory card, and I have to say that the pictures and the video quality is off the hook! This tiny (super tiny) camera with a very good waterproof case did wonders under water... here's a video of me snorkeling:

-JOT DOWN YOUR MEMORIES.  Take a Journal.  Yeah. It might sound a little juvenile to you, but taking trips down memory lane 20 years from now when you find your journal in a drawer or in a box would be awesome.  You are welcome in advance.  Also, pick your favorite picture from your trip, print it, and throw it in there.  You'll eventually forget about it, but when you find it, it will make you smile like never before.  

  FOR GOODNESS SAKE, CHILDREN, GIVE OCEAN CLUB A CHANCE.   Do it for your parents.  They deserve a break.  Our little humans were excited to go check it out and were there for about two hours.  When we picked them up, we could see them dancing and laughing and doing crafts, but as soon as they saw us they changed their attitude.  We asked "did you like it!?" "Nah" They all said they didn't want to come back, they all wanted to spend 24/7 with us because (and I guess this is partially our fault) they enjoyed the activities that involved music, and singing, and trivia, and games, and although family friendly, they weren't catered to children.  Oh well.  Next time we will probably approach it in a different way and maybe they'll have more kid time and we can have more adult time.  

TAKE AN EXCURSION! we took ours in Grand Turk.  Reserved through their website.  They took us snorkeling to two locations, over the coral reef, and then swimming with sting rays. Yes, those things are scary looking.  After that they gave us Rum punch and fed us freshly prepared (caught in front of you) Conch salad. ​ An awesome experience and highly recommend.  

There are many Do's and Don'ts that I can write and you are going to tell me oh no I didn't do that or "I did " So bottom line, go have fun! Enjoy the sun, the water, the people, don't forget that the people that work there are people too and those people are super cool actually... as they have met sooooo many more people than you.  Be kind and you'll have a great time!!!! 

Bon Voyage!!!