Drown #12: hand in my pocket, part 1

May 2086. Stephanie Nova and Justin Kim are 26. Willow and Lily are 4. Keri Riley is 25. 

Soundtrack, "Hand in my Pocket," by Alanis Morissette


Spring rushed into the countryside, bringing with it a lush green breath of fresh air. By May, in rural and forested areas, some occasional air pockets had been measured at fifteen percent oxygen. For the first time since Reclamation Day, the EPA lifted the air quality alert from Hazardous to Extreme Caution for certain zones and climates, and in Stephanie's particular corner of northern Michigan, they were rated simply Caution.

Drown #11.5: to infinity and beyond

April 2086. Keri Riley is 25. Madison Riley is 63, Cabe Deppiesse is 44. 


When Keri said goodbye this time, there were only smiles, hugs, and pictures. No tears. No fights.

Drown #11: three little birds, part 5

March 2086. Stephanie Nova and Justin Kim are 26. Willow and Lily are 4. Keri Riley is 25.


Keri slept like heaven and dreamed about distant stars. Gravity pulled the full weight of her body down, heavy and deep into that pillow top mattress. Not even her arms floated into the air with a sudden dream movement. The morning sun was soft behind storm clouds and she dozed long into the morning.

pool day picspam

March 2086.


Keri's parents were eager to spend some time with her now that she's on the ground, and Stephanie's parents came up north to visit as well. They all decided to make a day of it at the community pool in the city.

We'll imagine that this is a very well heated pool, for everyone being able to get in the water in Northern Michigan in March!

Drown #11: three little birds, part 4

March 2086. Stephanie Nova and Justin Kim are 26. Willow and Lily are 4. Keri Riley is 25.


The weight of coffee in a thick ceramic mug was, in total, maybe fourteen ounces. In space, they drank their coffee from insulated pouches, like kindergartners with juice boxes. Here, the weight of liquid was heavy and secure. Keri moved her mug in circles to watch the foam swirl on top of the coffee.

"The role we’re offering you is Mission Specialist, Communications Lead. You’ll report directly to the Commander as a main liaison and communicator for the team. There will be sixteen on the team, consisting of flight crew, mechanics, scientists and specialists. You'll have three reporting to you, and you'll be responsible for teaching a basic range of the language to the crew."

"Yes, sir! I want in," Keri blurted out

"Hang tight, soldier. There's more to think about."

on randomizing genetics

Hi Anon, sure thing!

Lots of simmers I know use internet dice rolling to randomize stats, but still, after all these years, I prefer a program someone made for TS2. Hook's RandomStuff Roller. I hope those files are still available for download, now and always. There's a very little bit of a learning curve to using it, but after an hour or two I found myself writing up ROS scenarios and randomizing EVERYTHING. It's so much fun, lol!

So when a sim is born in my town, I give them two rolls. The first is my aging file and the second is inherited genetics.

the monsters

March 2086. Justin Kim is 26. Willow and Lily are 4.