Debra's Special Days

Carl and Malia were delighted that Dolly was taking an interest in the flora and fauna of Hidden Springs. They were, however, a little concerned when, after receiving high praise for her bug hunt project, Dolly declared that she wanted to look after some 'little animals' at home. All the more so when they realised that the particular 'little animal' she had in mind was a snake!

They didn't want to discourage her interest, but made sure that she was aware of her responsibilities for it's upkeep and that she would have to pay for it's food out of her own pocket. With her enthusiasm undiminished Carl set out to find an old terrarium to house her new 'pet'.

It wasn't long before Dolly had picked out the snake that she wanted; naming him 'Frannie' for no reason that she could explain, the Slade household became home to a San Francisco Garter Snake.

Of course it wasn't just Dolly that was fascinated by the new addition, young Desirée was also entranced by this strange creature that had been brought into her home.

-- * --

Debra was in her final year at secondary school and been subjected to more "careers information" than she knew what to do with! She already had a plan for her future, as an artist, a radical artist shining a light on society's ills.

Carl and Malia were quite happy that she could make it as an artist, and it would be foolish to try to dissuade her; but they knew it was a tough way to earn a living.

As subtly as they could, her parents would gently encourage her to complete and do well in her final exams; to have other skills to fall back on should she need to. So, it was that at one family meal-time Carl hit on a brilliant scheme ...

If Debra did well enough at school to earn a place at university he would pay for all her driving lessons and fund her first car.

To be fair she didn't need much encouragement Debra had already realised that to really take on the establishment, to be an effective "activist", she would have to know how things worked in order to argue against what she found unpalatable.  This was a deal she was happy to make with her Dad.

-- * --

Both parents and daughter were waiting nervously those few weeks after the final exams, before the results were announced ...

When the letter finally arrived, the news was even better than they had hoped.  Not just good grades but the best performance overall in her year group!

True to his word, the week-end after the results came out Carl took Debra to Valley Motors, a dealership run by an old family friend, Simon Saint.

Valley Motors specialised in rather expensive high-end cars and that was not what either Carl or Debra wanted, but they had a good "previously owned" stock and were also the exclusive dealer for the new eco-friendly models that were becoming popular.

Debra explained to her father and the sales associate what sort of car she wanted; nothing expensive, cheap to run, easy to drive, 'cool' but not 'flashy' and it had to have as good an eco rating as possible.

Although they had no suitable cars at their dealership the salesman, Emmit Preston, said that they had several that matched Debra's requirements at their other sites and he was sure they could find the perfect car for her.

And so it was agreed, they would check out the stock catalogue, make a decision and Carl would pick up the car they agreed on as soon as it was ready for collection.

-- * --

But, before then, it was time for Debra's graduation ceremony. Held in the historic city hall, with all the graduates dressed in cap and gown and parents in their best 'bib and tucker', it was a most impressive occasion.

Though, for Debra and her family, it wasn't so much about being or looking impressive; it was more a celebration of her hard work and achievement.

The city hall ceremony, and all the preparations lasted for several hours, which meant that a special delivery could be made at their Cottenwood Crescent home.

And so at the end of the main event, Carl was able to hand Debra a small but significant little gift ... the keys to the new car waiting for her at home!


As excited as she was to know that the car was finally here, and she was very excited, Debra had one more appointment to celebrate her graduation before returning home; a dinner date with Johnny.

Just across the central park was an exciting new restaurant, Margherita's, where Johnny had managed to book a table.

This was to be his graduation gift to Debra, and she could have anything she fancied on the menu.

Margherita's was not an expensive
restaurant but it was not 'cheap eats' and Debra knew that Johny would have had to save up for this occasion.

The menu was full of traditional Italian recipes and a few local specialities with an Italian twist.

The fact that it included a good selection of vegetarian options made choosing difficult.

In the end they both plumped for traditional Italian, but vegetarian; Debra went for the Spaghetti with Veggie Sauce and Johnny the Herbivore Delight Lasagna. Both delicious and fully satisfying their appetites.

It was a beautiful evening, it seemed that they talked forever, mostly about their plans for the future. Debra was fired up about having her own car and how that would make life at university much easier ... in particular being able to make more frequent trips back to Hidden Springs to see Johnny, who was still a year away from graduating.

As the evening came to an end and they made their way out of the restaurant they posed for a special 'selfie', a photo Debra would take with her to uni., a reminder of the handsome boy waiting for her at home.

The following morning Debra went out to examine her new car, a beautiful Sloppy Sunbeam in "Pearlescent Pumpkin".  It was perfect, exactly what she wanted; this car was going to be part of so many good memories!

-- * --

A couple of weeks later, a letter from Simstate University arrived, the long-awaited response to Debra's application ...

It was great news! She had aced the arts assessment and would receive a scholarship grant for her course.  It was certainly a weight off Carl and Malia's minds; that their daughter would not only attend such a prestigious institution but also be able to afford all the resources she would need.

But Debra was not the only one receiving recognition for her skills...

Malia was having afternoon tea with her good friend Jodi Bishop when she was spotted by Jennifer Bostwick, head of the local Gardeners Circle who came to join them.

Jennifer had some good news to impart; Malia had received another accolade for her expertise.  The official certificate would arrive within a day or two and the local newspaper was preparing a feature article on the local gardening scene which would include a special mention for Malia and her produce.

-- * --

The summer weeks rolled past so quickly and before they realised it, it was term time again.  This time, however, it meant that one of the family was leaving home, albeit for just a term.

Packed and prepared, it was time for Debra to head off to university.

Debra put her cases of clothes and 'essentials' in the back of the van sent by the university and waved goodbye, for now, to her parents and two sisters and thought nervously of the new challenges and adventures that lay ahead.

-- * --

Author's Note: I am very pleased to include in this chapter two creations by good friends from The Sims 3 forums:

• Margherita's Italian Grill by Meg1626 - I added a Business as Usual Bistro oven but otherwise the venue is exactly as Meg created it, see more pictures at http://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/comment/11173636/#Comment_11173636
• Jennifer Sims (she's married to Jeremy Bostwick in my game) by bouquetcatcher

The Valley Motors lot is my own creation see my Tumblr page for more info.