Dealing With Debra

Dolly had had a bad night, she was suffering with a tummy upset which wasn't serious but was sufficiently uncomfortable to cause her to wake several times though the night.

Eventually, as morning came round, Carl or Malia would take her out of the cot and spend a little extra time with her telling stories or practising her developing motor skills. It seemed that simply having that time and attention comforted the poorly child and helped distract from her unsettled stomach pains.

Putting Dolly back in her cot for a few minutes while she went to prepare breakfast Malia noticed that Debra was also already up and working on the family computer.

Engrossed in what she was doing Debra didn't notice her mother approaching until "That doesn't look like class work ..."

Quickly closing the screen, Debra attempted to explain "Umm, I, um, it's a new art project, I just remembered Miss Shadlock asked us to do ..."

Malia was unconvinced, "Oh, I didn't see it on your homework list; let me have a look."

"Umm, it's not finished yet, it won't be very good ..." 

"Well, that's OK, I understand, I just want to see what you've done so far."

Sheepishly reopening the screen, Debra's 'art project' was revealed to be a web site "Prank the Parents!"

"Well, I see," Malia started  as she closed down the computer screen, "I don't think Miss Shadlock assigned that now, did she?"

"We've told you about using the computer haven't we?  And you know that sort of thing is not what it is for!"

"If we can't trust you to use it sensibly then you won't have it to use at all."

Malia didn't like having to be so strict with her daughter but she knew that boundaries had to be set, especially on the computer where it was far too easy to find all sorts of unpleasantness.

As they sat for an uneasy breakfast Malia's mind was taken up trying to think of ways to divert Debra's energies to more appropriate activities.

It wasn't that she was a bad kid at all.

Indeed, she had a really good relationship with baby Dolly, really enjoying being a big sister and spending time playing with her.

But she did seem to spend a lot of time on pranks and the like ...

-- * --

A few days later Malia was in town to sell the produce of their garden when she realised that the new Juniper Lane Art Centre had opened.  The building, previously the Royal Order of Simologists meeting hall, had been closed for many years had been bought about a year ago by a small entertainment company with plans to convert it into a cinema.

According to the news reports the company had also converted the upper floor to an "art space" that local artists could use to create, display, and sell their work.  It also promised a lovely little café, and Malia loved little cafés!


She was not disappointed! In keeping with the "local artists" concept, all the cakes and pastries were hand-made by small local bakers and all looked delicious.

As she ate her generous portion of carrot cake Malia looked around the space that had been created.  It was certainly well equipped with easels and drawing tables for those artists working in two dimensions.

That was pretty much as expected, but she was delighted to see that they had managed to find room for a sculpting table.

As she sipped the last of her herbal tea, an idea began to take shape ...

As she was about to leave an energetic and effusive man introduced himself; "Hi, I'm Erwin Fraser, one of the directors of the Arts Centre.  Thank you so much for visiting us; is there anything I can do for you today?"

"Well," Malia smiled in return, "there might be ..."

Erwin listened thoughtfully as she explained how her daughter had plenty of creative energy but little in the way of constructive outlets.  How a place like the Arts Centre might be good for her ...

Nodding eagerly in agreement Erwin described how they were just setting up a number of classes for both adults and children.  In a couple of weeks, he said, they would have both a mid-week after-school session and a week-end class that would be ideal for enthusiastic children, to introduce them to a variety of arts and craft skills.

And so it was, just a few weeks later, that young Debra realised she had something of a talent for painting. Her parents were delighted she had found a way of expressing her boundless imagination - and, best of all, in a way that didn't involve colourful surprises dotted around their home!

-- * --

As the months and school terms passed Debra continued to hone her skills and quickly became a regular at the Arts Centre.  Being able to spend time in such a creative environment had other, 'knock-on' effects; her school reports frequently contained glowing commendations from her teachers and she was turning into a fine role model for her little sister.

When Debra had a idea for a painting she would often turn it into a story for little Dolly who would sit, rapt, as another exciting tale unfolded.

--* --

Having successfully completed an especially challenging series of experiments Carl's lab team decamped to Han's Tavern for a celebratory drink or two.  On that particular night Bert Alto was also in the bar and the two men got talking about family and legacy - a subject Carl wasn't always comfortable discussing. Bert mentioned, in passing, that he still had his grandfathers old classic car in storage and how sad it was that the car was probably going to rust away before he ever found time to restore it properly.

Perhaps it was the exuberance of the successful day in the lab, or maybe it was the drink, but Carl had a brilliant idea occur to him ...

"Better someone give it a new life than just leaving it to rot wouldn't you say?  If you don't have the time ... y'know ... maybe I could take it off your hands ...?"

Somewhat taken aback by the unexpected offer Bert paused to consider Carl's suggestion, "y'know that might not be such a bad idea. Let me think it over, I'll give you a call tomorrow, we can sort out the details."

And so it was that a few days later, and with the exchange of just a few hundred Simoleons, Carl became the proud owner of a classic roadster.  Well, it was a roadster many years ago and hopefully would be again but right now ... more just a pile of parts.

As he explained to Debra when the car was delivered, "with the family growing it's getting expensive to use public transport and I expect you'll be learning to drive soon as well ..."

Debra wasn't convinced, this was, after all, a pile of junk! Though when Carl suggested that she could help out with the repainting working on the upholstery she agreed that it might be a fun little project ...

When she starting working on the car with her father, trying out a number of different colours and patterns Debra felt a particular affinity to the spray paint she was using; that it could be used to realise some of the creative ideas she had.

On her next visit to the library, Debra was a little surprised to discover that 'Street Art' was a thing and there were many recognised and respected artists in the field.

One of the books she borrowed, "The Word On The Street: The Story of 'Simski'" really spoke to her.  Describing how the legendary street artist had created his  most iconic works and the way he drew inspiration from the political artists of previous centuries; she was certain this was something she just had to try.

-- * --

Author's Note: The "Juniper Lane Art Centre" is a version of the "Little Theatre Picture House" lot that I have previously uploaded to the Sims 3 Exchange.

In this version I have added the 'art space' to the upper floor and put in a Rabbithole Door so that the lot also works as a Theatre location.  The ground floor has been changed just a little to accommodate the stairs up but the basement cinema area is exactly the same as the original.

Download Links:

• The Juniper Lane Art Centre: Google Drive Link
• Jynx Rabbit Hole Rugs and Doors: Mod The Sims Link
• The Original Little Theatre Picture House: TS3 Exchange Link

 You can see more pictures of the ground and basement floors on my Tumblr: page 1 and page 2.