Last round, the Edons lived near the main family. They've relocated to Jackalope Bend - specifically to @katatty's makeover of the Seaspray Apartments but the apartment was a little heavy for my game, so I did what any sane person would do and rebuilt the apartment on 4 separate lots, that I then used lot adjuster to make butt up to each other. It's not a one-to-one rebuild, but fairly close. (12 pictures below the cut)

There's these shells in the bathroom that apparently have Thomas' interest. He dragged his mum in to tell her about them. I have a soft spot for Thomas.

Saint is a good kid. He and his brother get along pretty well, but he's a Fortune/Romance sim with having 20 simultaneous lovers as his LTW.

Thomas, despite doing his homework every night, can't seem to raise his grade from a D. Catherine is quick to lecture him, which I find unfair. He's trying his best!

At least she's willing to put her money where her mouth is and help the poor boy out. Even with her guidance, though, his grades don't improve. :/

The whole family gathers to watch a cooking program. Except Jess isn't really paying attention as her interest in food is lower than the others'.

Remember Ernie? Ernie is still around, looking dapper.

Afternoon activities: Saint invites the Linwood kid around while Thomas indulges his Music & Dance OTH. That was his default gymwear. How fitting!

Decades Challenge 1316 New Families

Hops

After losing his wife, Remmonet decided against remarrying. He loves his girls, and doesn't care in the slightest that they aren't boys. Ivette is a total sweetheart and helps her dad with most of the household chores. Edelin, on the other hand, has been seriously struggling with the loss of her mother. At least, she doesn't have to deal with her dad remarrying and "replacing" her mother. Maybe one day he will meet another women he doesn't mind marrying.

[Left to right: Edelin, Annote held by Remonnet, and Ivette Hops.]

Remonnet Otho Hops - Born Summer 1283

Ivette Maheut Hops - Born Autumn 1304

Edelin Swetyne Hops - Born Summer 1306

Annote Lylie Hops - Born Winter 1313

Gibbon

Warin's wife died in 1311 giving birth to their forth child, Sevana. Although it has been a few years since he lost his wife, he hadn't remarried. At the beginning of 1315, he moved his family to Henford-On-Bagley. He's has his eye on a local women who recently lost her husband to the famine. He suspects she may need financial support and will agree to a marriage to protect her children. While he doesn't have bad intentions, he doesn't have perfect ones either. His hope is to have a beautiful bride to show off and raise his kids so he doesn't have to.

[Left to right: Herve, Percevale held by Warin, Josselyn and Sevana Gibbon.]

Warin Danyel Gibbon - Born Summer 1283

Herve Warin Gibbon - Born Spring 1304

Josselyn Elia Gibbon - Born Autumn 1307

Percevale Edon Gibbon - Born Winter 1310

Sevana Jeene Gibbon - Born Spring 1311

Tillot

Just when Adalyn thought life was hard enough raising twins along side her older son, she unfortunately lost her husband to the famine. Without support, she fears both she and her children will also starve and end up in and early grave. Although she's devastated at the loss of her husband, she has reluctantly started considering the blatant and irritating advances of a new man to town.

[Left to right: Nena, Nygel held by Adalyn, and Betan Tillot.]

Adalyn Nayeli Tillot - Born Summer 1287

Betan Salmon Tillot - Born Summer 1306

(Twins) Nygel Deryk Tillot & Nena Adalyn Tillot - Born Summer 1312

Ancret

Louve never really wanted marriage or children in his life, so when his wife died in child birth he was irritated to say the least. Even though he didn't want children, he doesn't have the backbone to abandon his young daughter, but he's also not interested in the slightest in remarrying. Instead, he fills his time with intellectual endeavors and learning everything he can. Jasmine doesn't seem to mind his semi distant approach to her care, perhaps her inquisitive nature will help her continue to build a relationship with her father in the future.

[Left to right: Jasmine held by Louve Ancret.]

Louve Ancret - Born Summer 1291

Jasmine Lunete Ancret - Born Autumn 1313

🍑 peach for hanoka wiggling on Shiro, Yuki wiggling on Edon, and Shinji wiggling on Kats?

~Shiro and Hanoka~

Hana was checking something on her phone while resting on Shiro's lap but she was so focused on the game, she was grinding her lap into his crotch. She was hanging out with him and she wanted to be in her favorite seat. She was wearing shorts today but wearing one of his shirts.

~Yuki and Edon~

Edon didn't mind his position of seeing Yuki wanting to spend time with him. What he wasn't expecting was to have her sitting in his lap while he was brushing her hair gently. He was pampering her today and would do whatever she requests due to being his princess. His cheeks were flushed since she seems really comfortable where she was.

~Kats and Shinji~

Shinji was spending time with Kats but he went to help him with cleaning. So they were taking a break that Shinji watching Kats to pout. He always seems to do a lot for the household to go and gently sit in his lap, cuddling up against him.

NorMin teachers, parents share concerns, optimism in 'new normal'

#PHnews: NorMin teachers, parents share concerns, optimism in 'new normal'

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – As public schools across the country prepare for the opening of classes, teachers, and parents in various parts of Northern Mindanao voiced concerns on the challenges under the "new normal" mode of learning, although they agreed that it will also offer hopes and insights on the future of education. When the Department of Education (DepEd) moved the opening of classes from its original date of August 24 to October 5, public school educators were tasked to create modules for learners, and attend capacity-building webinars to update their skills. Dr. Maria Eva Sayre-Edon, DepEd Education program supervisor in the Division of Lanao del Norte, said since the pandemic began that led to the eventual postponement classes, educators have used the time developing learning modules and other instructional materials. "Teachers here are working hard in reproducing the modules, and distributing them, despite movement restrictions," Sayre-Edon said on Thursday. Other than the printed materials, all divisions in DepEd Region 10 were tasked to produce audio-visual media materials as learning supplement. The measure was part of DepEd's plans to diversify its instructional materials, which has been adopted throughout the country. Edon acknowledged some challenges along the way, including the high printing costs, motivating other teachers to meet the deadlines in module developments, and convincing teachers to serve as co-teachers for the learners. If there is anything positive about the new modular learning method, that would be teaching learners to become independent, said Chin Lesaca, a Grade 8 teacher of Luz Banzon Integrated School in Jasaan town, Misamis Oriental. "There's no time for being 'sip-sip (sycophant)' for them to pass. Now they should focus on their modules on how to answer the activities and parents can also monitor," she said. Lesaca said modular learning could actually provide insights and inform DepEd's vision about "21st-century teaching and learning." Adapting to change For Erika Kristina Mortola, Grade 6 teacher at Vicente N. Chaves Memorial Central School in Villanueva town, Misamis Oriental, an educator should adapt to the times like a "chameleon." Mortola said one must know how to adjust to the changes and that despite the many uncertainties, a teacher must turn them into opportunities that will help in continue achieving the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goal 4, which is "quality education"--even amidst the pandemic. "We have found out that learners who can't do independent learning and have illiterate parents find it difficult to grasp learning especially that the elders that they depend upon, cannot teach them because they don't know the concepts inside the module. This is one factor that hinders the effective implementation of modular learning, especially if the parents don't communicate with the teacher," she said. Mortola also noted that during the schedule of distribution for "Self-Learning Modules (SLMs)" in her class, only half of the total number of parents picked them up. Some parents were afraid to get the SLMs in school due to the alarming local cases of Covid-19 in the community.  "Another big challenge is the reading of learners, especially in the primary grades. We cannot go and visit the learners and give them remediation or assistance," she said. Humanizing Meanwhile, Senior High School teacher Leo Improgo-Tan III of the Manolo Fortich National High School sees the humanizing experiences of the new normal mode of learning. "You can see how eager some parents help us continue education. We are delighted that parents still thank us for taking the time in reaching out to their children," he said. Tan, who works and lives in Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon, said other feedbacks include some parents saying they now understand how demanding and stressful a teacher's job can be, especially that some parents find it difficult to control or assist their children in learning the modules. "It's encouraging to see parents who came from the hinterland communities to go here in school to get the modules, while others had difficulty coming, they ask their neighbors to get them. There are also parents who prefer to get soft copies of the modules," he said. Challenge accepted For a mother of five, Hanah Carpio Espinosa said she also needs to prepare for herself in helping her children learn by studying the modules, acknowledging that the new learning modality can compete with her daily household chores. "But (we) need to be patient, and we need to study more, as a mother," Espinosa said. Espinosa has children learners in kindergarten, Grades 2 to 4 at Camp Evangelista Elementary School; another in Grade 8 at Parag National High School, all studying in the city. She said she needed to manage the time first to understand what's written on the different modules. Work-family balance Mary Chol Marquez, a mother of a Grade 1 pupil studying in Macanhan Elementary School, said it might be too early to really tell the struggles of parents engaging with the learning progress of the learners. However, Marquez said she can already attest that parents may have difficulties with using the mother tongue as the primary language used in the texts of some of the modules. "Since my daughter is a transferee from the private school wherein English is the primary medium of communication and instruction, somehow there can be a difficulty in transition. What makes it harder is that (some) parents are not well-equipped and prepared in using the (mother-tongue) language for instruction," she said. Marquez also said when she chose modular learning, she thought she could balance the time between work, childcare, household chores, and still provide time for her child’s learning. She said she realized that parents also need to study the module in advance so that they can provide the right instruction. Similar sentiments from the two parents were also shared by Lurpee Gulle, whose son is now in Grade 7, studying in Lapasan National High School. "The capability of the child depends on his or her relationship with the parents. For me, I'm a strict mother, but I might have difficulty sharing the lessons to them on subjects that I am not familiar or good at, such as Filipino, and also subjects that he is not interested in," she said. There were also distractions in the house since it's a "comfort zone" for her child to sleep and not do the module deliverables on time, she added. (PNA)

***

References:

* Philippine News Agency. "NorMin teachers, parents share concerns, optimism in 'new normal'." Philippine News Agency. https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1117180 (accessed October 02, 2020 at 04:51AM UTC+14).

* Philippine News Agency. "NorMin teachers, parents share concerns, optimism in 'new normal'." Archive Today. https://archive.ph/?run=1&url=https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1117180 (archived).

Trampling the Heads of the Poor into the Dust & Denying Justice to the Oppressed (Amos 2:7a) [A Card Talk on the Book of Amos]

Note: In addition to the title Card, we currently have four other Canon Cards taken from the Book of Amos (more on those later). In some respects, we would like to present this Card Talk as an outline for the Book of Amos. However, that would be a fool’s errand. Minds far greater than ours have buckled under the weight of this short book.

Instead, we present some historical and textual context to provide greater insight into the Canon Cards taken from this book, as well as how Amos' message of social justice still (sadly) applies in the present.  

I. Background on Amos

Amos the man

Little is known about the prophet Amos. He was a man of wealth and influence, making his money in both livestock and horticulture.

He could have remained in a place of privilege, not concerned with the plight of the less fortunate. He could have only worried about his own people, making sure his employees earned a living wage and were treated with dignity and respect, honoring the laws of God and man. But when he heard the call of the LORD, he took up the mantle of a prophet and expanded his voice and actions. Amos traveled from his home in Tekoa, in the southern kingdom of Judah, to the northern kingdom of Israel, possibly conducting the majority of his ministry in and near the cities of Bethel and Samaria.

Amos was an early prophet of this time period. Though he operated around the same time as Hosea and Isaiah, there is no record of them crossing paths, but like them and the prophets who would follow, Amos’ primary message focused on those who oppressed the most vulnerable people among them.  

Historical Note

Quick biblical history lesson:

After the David turned his kingdom over to Solomon, and Solomon drove it into the ground, the United Monarchy ended. The kingdom split in two: Israel in the north, and Judah in the south. 

Though cut from the same ancestral cloth, like many families, the two sisters/brothers/cousins (choose the relationship that works for you) didn’t always get along.

They fought over where people should worship God, which Torah stories they should tell their children, and who Daddy loves best. As much of the Hebrew Bible is written from a Judah perspective, Israel is made out to look like the family screw up.

 With this backdrop The Book of Amos begins with a limited description of Amos “in the days of King Uzziah of Judah and in the days of King Jeroboam son of Joash of Israel.” (1:1)

Structural Notes

The Book of Amos records plagues that befell the kingdom of Israel. Each one of these plagues was connected to a vision Amos received from on high. Amos turned each vision into an oracle for the people. The Book of Amos is largely a complicated arrangement of these plagues, visions, and oracles.

The first pairing of visions and oracles called the people to repentance. The second pairing warned the people of their impending doom for not heeding the call to turn their hearts and hands back to their God. Thus, Amos’ ministry can be broken into two phases: calling the people to repentance and telling the people that they are screwed.

Amos, like other prophetic books, are not presented in anything remotely resembling chronological order, and it is the opening chapters of Amos that record the final oracles of impending screwedness (some scholars refer to 1:1-4:13 as “the book of doom”). A very, very, very rough chronology of the book's events would look like this:

Phase One: Amos’ early ministry = "Repent before it's too late!"

Plagues (4:6-13)

Vision 1 (7:1-3)

Oracle 1 (Chap 5)

Vision 2 (7:4-6)

Oracle 2 (Chap 6)

Phase 2: Amos’ ending ministry = "Too late: you're screwed!"

Vision 3 (7:7-9)

Oracle 3 (3:1-4:3)

Vision 4 (8:1-3)

Oracle 4 (Chap 1-2)

Confrontation with religious leaders at Bethel (7:10-17)

Vision 5 (8:4-9:6)

Epilogue (9:7-15)

II. The Message of Amos

Amos presents the Lord’s voice roaring from Zion/Jerusalem (1:2). His divine proclamations are not happy ones, and follow a common biblical formula:

3 // 3+1 = 4:

“For three transgressions of [fill in the blank with screwed nation] and for four, I will not revoke the punishment.”

In this formula is contained a court case in miniature. Or more to the point,  the sentencing phase: God has judged each nation and found them guilty.

Following this formula there is a formal reading of the charges— the crimes these nations have committed against both their neighbors and God—, and then the sentence, the punishment, is announced. In each case “fire” is threatened to fall upon them: divine wrath, presumably in the form of conquest and destruction by another world power. At least that’s what the historical record upholds. It is important to note that the nations targeted are all Israel’s neighbors. They are the nations surrounding Israel on all sides, including her sometimes estranged sister Judah. All these places are arranged between the contemporaneous super-powers of Assyria to the north and Egypt to the south. 

Why is this important? 

The Book of Amos reasserts something sometimes lost in reading the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament: God has sovereign right to call out the evil behavior of all people, both OUTSIDE and INSIDE the household of the Jews.

OUTSIDE

Amos proceeds through the list of doomed neighboring nations—Syria, Philistia, Tyre, Edon, Ammon, and Moab— before turning his attention to Judah, and then Israel.

There is something to be seen in the progression: speaking doom to ones enemies and neighbors, before turning the focus of divine wrath on family and friends. Living in a glasshouse, throwing stones at others, before shattering one’s own panes.

The Book of Amos reminds that God is the God of all nations. Israel [Jews as a whole] may have a special relationship with God, but so does everyone else.  Or, as the Anchor commentary on the book wonderfully captures the sentiment:

Every nation is elect; every nation has a special history created for it by the same God, Yahweh. It is an extraordinary feature of Amos' theology: election is universal. (p. 93)

Amos says God founded Israel and Judah (Amos 9:7), but He also founded Syria and Philistia (Amos 9:7). The Book of Genesis speaks of the relationship God has with Edom, Moab, and Ammon (c.f. Gen 36:1, 19:30-38). Tyre is the only one missing, but scholars assumed there is a lost tradition at work which includes Tyre as also being founded by God. But even in the absence of this tradition in the text, it is clear that Amos envisions all of humanity under the sovereign hand of God. All nations owe God their obedience, which is why they stand under His wrath for their mistreatment of others.

And so Amos threw stones at evil houses.

Amos was bold in his denouncement of the practices of these city-states, and through him God declared His opposition to acts of cruelty perpetrated against His creation, no matter their ethnic background.

Inhumane tortures inflicted upon the downtrodden (1:3); the displacement and disenfranchisement of whole communities (1:6) — even when this meant the breaking of treaties (1:9); the pursuit of defeated enemies past the point of political expediency or necessity, genocidal intent (1:11); ensuring future generations would not be born to oppose such practices (1:13); nor allowing cultural, political, or social remembrances of what came before (2:1).

[Damn: why do these sound so familiar? So current...]

Sadly these actions are not confined to Amos and the Ancient Near East, no matter how names and practices may have changed.  

INSIDE

But since "good Christians" tend to only read themselves in the actions of the Jews in the Bible, let us turn to what Amos says against his own people. The self-recrimination is apparent, as seen in the other four Canon Cards we include in our game from Amos:

There crimes included things like The same girl used by father and son (Amos 2:7) for Altar sex (Amos 2:8). Crimes Amos proclaimed early in his ministry as he called for repentance. He told the people what God required:  Justice rolling like a river, righteousness like an ever-flowing stream (Amos 5:24).

But they had a chance.  And they squandered it. Because justice was not given, because the poor were destroyed, punishment rained down. Among them, Amos had visions of Famine (Amos 8:11). 

The most shocking thing about this narrative is the source of the evil.

These were not outside forces exploiting labor and systematizing unfair practices within Israel. It was not a foreign government imposing its will on the Judean people. No one from the surrounding nations imposed physical, sexual, mental, economic, and emotional slavery on the people of the Covenant. 

No. Theses were crimes committed against God's people, by God's people. 

One of our Guest Card Talk writers discussed about Wide and Narrow Gates (Matthew 7:13-14) and the fates of those who choose wisely and unwisely in this life. She did not interpret this passage eschatologically as some do, imagining "the fire next time" as some read the writers of Genesis, the gospels, and Revelation seemed to.

But suppose it isn’t eschatological, that Hell fire is not the end for those who choose exploitation as a way of life.

What fire will fall in your life, our lives, if the acts of inhumanity to man continue to be perpetrated not just out there, but in here, within the community, within the household of faith?

Perhaps it is easier to throw stones at those around us, forgetting we live in glasshouses. Or worse, not caring that we do.

Perhaps we spend too much time worrying about what God will do to “them” for their actions, forgetting about our own.

Amos warned against such action. He was ignored and the people were punished. But his book still ends with words on the possibility of redemption (9:11-15). 

Perhaps there is hope we can change.

   But what do we know: we made this game and you probably think we're going to Hell.

Catherine and Jessica Edon’s house. Catherine is Dev’s cousin. :)

Floorplan below.

The boys’ grades have started to slip so it’s time to knuckle down and grind through some homework.

The Edons are among the few families that hadn’t adopted a pet under story progression, so I created a dog for them. His name is Ernie.

Time was made to have a water balloon fight with cousin, Patrick.

J: Looks like He’s taking after Cate.

Welcome to the Plaskett household! In order of appearance, we have twins, Niobe and Hydra, then there’s dormie Ida Jay (she’s just visiting), holding baby Fane, and in the last shot is Lloyd Nesbit and Bessie Plaskett.

Bessie was part of the Secret Society at La Fiesta Tech, where she met Ripp Grunt and Pauline Aspir’s only child, Billy. They got engaged and then she languished in dormie purgatory like so many at the time. When I moved Jessica Edon in with Catherine, I went around all the families and moved dormie loved ones in so they could progress with their lives, even though most of them (the non-dormies) were already elders. So, Bessie married Billy and had the twins, but he passed away some time ago. Lloyd is Bessie’s new partner - they’re engaged - and with him, she’s had Fane.

tl;dr: After a mistake meant redecorating the Pinella and Beaker houses all over again, I felt a little burnt out in game. Went on a CC making spree, got bored of that & fell down a “Let’s Build a Zoo” rabbithole. It’s a fun little game!

So to explain an absence of posts - you see, I haven’t decorated the insides of any of the apartments I’ve built, figuring I’d do it as I move from household to household but as I moved from the Beakers to the Edons, I realized I’d misplaced a door making an entire bedroom inaccessible. 🤦 

When I forgot to place the closets in the Beakers’ kids’ bedrooms, it wasn’t a big deal but this was, and as far as I could tell, there wasn’t a way to fix this without moving everyone out of the apartment complex. Sigh.

So I bit the bullet and I did that. Rezoned the lot as residential, fixed the door, and used the pics I’d taken of the Pinella and Beaker houses to decorate them as I had done before (with some tweaks), but it kinda burnt me out on decorating and since I wanted to play the Edons next, well... I put it off by editing the shape of meshes I liked and making some other cc until I got kinda bored of milkshape / opening and closing bodyshop to make new mesh packages, etc. I got ‘Let’s Build a Zoo’ some months ago and finally got into it during the past week? two weeks? I’m not sure.

Anyway, I’ve been redecorating this zoo constantly (that picture, took yesterday, isn’t even what it looks like anymore) and I’m feeling more inclined to open Sims and decorate some houses. Strange how that works.