#incorporating fitness into my life woohoo

[zushikun]

these few months… i feel like i’ve been generally satisfied with my life and then. the random wave of grief hits

[waddleonmywaywardducks]

helpol and modern times

I'm back from the dead (and right on time too, happy October witches)! I wanted to come on here and talk about Hellenism and our world today. Hellenism has been something I hold very dear to me, I like to think I'm greatly researched on it but I swear there's always something for me to learn, always something else to research, always something. it can be a lot of keep up with and a lot to take in, especially when you are new to helpol. I'm here to offer my own advice and how I incorporate helpol customs into my craft/practice.

miasma, cleanliness, why?

first off, before we get into this, sin does not exist in this culture, we are not "sinners", impurity is natural. back in the Hellenistic period, Greeks had to clean themselves by bathing before presenting themselves to the gods, obviously we are a lot cleaner then the Greeks and don't nearly have as much to worry about then them. to clean miasma I simply wash my hands. now for rituals, I take showers and focus on washing away any negative mentality and thoroughly wash my body. if you are presenting yourself to the gods after woohoo then I do suggest showering the same way you would do for rituals (this is just also good advice in general). I mean, we could talk all day about what gets you clean and what doesn't, some ppl don't shower, some people don't intake any drugs or alcohol before presenting themselves to gods, some dont, it's really up to you.

festivals, holidays, celebrations, how do we keep up?

gunna be completely honest, In my practice, I only celebrate spring equinox, summer solstice, and winter solstice, with the except of a few celebrations. the Greeks LOVED to party, so obviously they had festivals for almost every god, but they also had a wayyyy different calendar then we did and honestly I spent like two weeks trying to figure it out until I was like "ok I'll just do my own thing." AND THAT'S COMPLETELY OK!!! if you want to add some Hellenistic culture into it, do the research. whether it's a celebration for dinoysus, or spring equinox in the name of persophone, try to find festivals where these gods were the forefront of the celebration and take some aspects from that. i try to do this as much as I can, and it's worked out for the best. I still feel like I'm honoring the gods the same way they were honored wayyyy back when. and Im even starting to figure out ways to incorporate gods that aren't in my practice into my celebrations like a winter party with friends for Hestia and Demeter, a spring time picnic for and persophone, a summer rager for dinoysus. and so many more I can add as many gods as I want with this calendar I have set up for my practice. again, either you can research the Greek calendar or celebrate this way, both honor the gods in a very special way.

Delphic maxims

another BIG part of this is following the maxims while doing all of this. if you want to honor the gods and feel more connected to this religion, then write down the maxims. following these (easy) rules made me feel so good as a worshipper. I feel like people starting out with helpol don't normally get told to look at the maxims (atleast from what I've seen).

chaos closing...

this way of changing Hellenism to fit into our modern world has helped me so much and as much as I want to get wasted for the next seven days, life just doesn't allow that and that's completely ok. we don't need to do all the big fancy things the Greeks did, we can do all the smaller things and that'd be just fine. and again, I'm not telling anyone how to live their faith, this is just how I've incorporated Hellenism into my daily life and I love it so much :) have fun with it!!

[guessimate]

I decided to play the Underwoods, because I wanted to try out the more realistic drinks mod, and a more adult poker table mod, and I like them for the townies’ drama (including autonomous proposals that are likely to be rejected!). I may incorporate townies in a new hood, if I ever make a new one... I would like one with my own townies, because there are these great mods now, like baby face templates... I really have no time for another town in TS2 though, to be honest…

~*~

I rolled the Underwood family would get a counterfeiting machine from the tavern [Crime Does Pay ROS]... I guess some shady emissary was visiting their tavern, and they enjoyed it so much that they presented the machine to their host. Without going into details (because it’s rolling for every single day, whether they get caught), I rolled it would be Wilhelmina who would use the machine, she would get caught, and spend 5 days total in “jail”… She ended up getting 500$ (rounded down and put in her wallet) just for using the machine once… Because the next time she tried using the machine, she set it on fire and the machine burned down. Thankfully nothing else besides the machine was engulfed in flames, because it was further away from everything else. She was attempting to get a dowry of 800$ and get married off, because she can’t trust her ever growing family. Sadly, she failed to get the amount of money she needs, and she got scared of the fire and the perspective of spending her life in “jail”, so she came back home. She also might have run away, as she realized the toddlers her mother had given birth to were only half-siblings to her. She’s a Family sim, so she probably doesn’t like it that her mother’s reputation might not be as pristine as she thought.

I don’t really have a jail yet, so I just put her in the nunnery. While Wilhelmina was there, she painted a portrait of the head nun and she helped with the garden a little bit, as I wanted to make her do something productive for the community.

~*~

Meanwhile on the home lot I had the worst time aging up the twins from babies to toddlers… and on the birthday night the ghost of Constantine decided to finally show himself... That was a crazy night.

Cynesige really wanted to see the ghost of his father, as he’s a Knowledge sim, but it almost killed him… I decided to move the grave to the cemetery after all, because ghosts of sims who died by drowning are just the worst, since they leave puddles everywhere and destroy everyone’s environment need.

Algernon was so fed up with having to clean he just went to the tavern not so much to earn money as to get a break from it all. Wilhelmina was not there with them to help with toddles and all the cleaning, so there was only Vivian and Cynesige on the lot most of the time.

~*~

There was a fire… There was a flood [caused by a ghost]… It was a pretty disastrous house to play, and I wanted to say that it was quite hard to play this family this round, but at the same time... Algernon somehow reached perma plat when he was still a teenager. It happens pretty rarely in my “historical” hood, so I was wondering what made him so happy… It must have been reaching max art enthusiasm as a child, and WooHooing before he even became an adult. This is one of the reasons I don’t really like playing TS2 hoods for too long – the kids born in game have it just way easier. But we���ll see, maybe it was just Algernon. He got his last trait on age up and it turned out to be Ambitious.

Yule is a Capricorn – 8 Neat, 6 Outgoing, 3 Lazy, 9 Playful & Nice. He’s an Inappropriate Perfectionist, and Bot Fan [which makes no sense in medieval times, but maybe he’d like to do some robot station stuff, woodworking or something of that sort?]. His One True Hobby is the same as his mom’s, and it’s Cuisine.

Gwenllian is a Cancer – 5 Neat, 6 Outgoing, 7 Active, 4 Serious, and 6 Nice. She’s Dramatic, Excitable, and Hot Headed. Her One True Hobby is Fitness.

It took them a while to learn everything, but the todds managed to learn all the needed skills and the nursery rhyme.

~*~

They ended up with 5,048$, but I bought them a poker table and an outhouse, so they would be at 5723$. Since they started with 3363$, they earned 2360$. They dug up just a rock. I am not calculating Wilhelmina’s illegal income – she’s keeping it secret.

1000$ – rent.

708$ – tax.

= 1700$ to the Royal Family.

236$ – tithe.

= 300$ to the Church.

They are left with 3,048$. I will have to get them some beds or move someone out next round, as this family is getting too big for me…

[plumbobpost]

Fanfic Friday: Spotlight on Skell’s Fortune & Romance

Sul sul!

Today Week of Woohoo continues with a very special twist. I have had the opportunity to ask Skell a few questions as part of a new series of posts about storytelling in The Sims community.

Skell’s Fortune & Romance serves as a prequel to the Pleasantview and Strangetown storylines in The Sims 2 from the perspectives of the Caliente sisters, hence the title which references their aspirations. Her story takes place in the time period between the first and second games and fills in the gaps between the contradicting timelines of The Sims, The Sims 2, and The Sims 3. Although the story is largely from Dina’s perspective, it features most of the iconic The Sims 2 characters ranging from Olive Specter to the Tricous to Bella and Mortimer Goth, establishing its own vivid mythology in the process.

In addition to writing, Skell has also created beautiful Maxis-Match content for The Sims 2 and is a frequent contributor to the Totally Maxis Tumblr and the fansite Garden of Shadows.

Without further ado, I’ll let Skell speak for herself.

You’ve said in the past that Fortune & Romance started out as your attempt to make sense of Maxis canon for the premade characters of Neighborhood 1, Pleasantview, and Sunset Valley. How did this evolve from your personal headcanons into a full-fledged story?

“I had played TS2 off and on for years before I was part of the fandom, mostly just goofing around but I had a lot of fun taking pictures and experimenting with posing. One day I discovered Strangetomato’s “Strangetown Here We Come” on TVtropes and was amazed at the way she fleshed out the premade stories from the game. Through her comment section, I discovered the whole fandom and started paying better attention to the premades. Eventually I came up with a backstory for Dina that I really wanted to write and share.”

Why did you choose Nina and Dina Caliente to be your protagonists? Did you ever consider different lead characters?

“It was always gonna be Dina because I was intrigued her backstory with the mysteriously inconsistent Michael Bachelor and the fact that she’s part alien. I wasn’t as interested in Nina until I noticed that she was shy (like me in RL) and also autonomously beating people up all the time. That’s when I realized she was gonna be a co-star and balance to Dina’s antics.”

Instead of ignoring Maxis’ characterization of Dina as a gold digger, you embraced it and made it a focal point of her character. Similarly, you fully acknowledge Nina’s romance aspiration while not making her a heartbreaker. How did you find a balance between their implied “villainy” in The Sims 2 and making them more sympathetic characters?

“I enjoy classic movies where Marilyn Monroe or Thoroughly Modern Millie is like “teehee I’m gonna marry a millionaire,” and it’s quirky rather than villainous. In those stories, she usually falls for a poor guy and chooses love over money (and often he turns out to be secretly rich.) Since Michael didn’t give her a “married a rich sim” memory, I wanted to write Dina the gold-digger as a modern version of that kind of story.”

“Maxis kind of setup Romance sims for “villainy” by not allowing for casual or open relationships, but of course that can be fixed with mods. With Nina, it’s interesting that she doesn’t really fit the “outgoing party girl” type. I think of her as a quiet person with a very intense energy. She needs lots of exercise and woohoo so that she doesn’t explode.”

There are a lot of unconventional relationships in your story. Nina and Servo. Olive and Ichabod. The Tricous. Even Dina and Michael. That being said, there is very definitely a theme of “love conquers all.” What motivated your approach to these relationships? How does that relate back to your attempts at reconciling Maxis canon throughout different games?

“I have a thing for mixed supernatural relationships. Dina and Mike bonding over their hidden supernatural heritages was always key once I figured Michael had a magic side. I knew I wanted to have Nina be intimate with a servo because that’s HAWT, but I didn’t foresee how intimate things would get until I figured out Servo’s character. The Tricous’ happy polyamory was my explanation for all the weirdness going on with their relationships and family tree. And I wanted Olive, Ichabod, and DJ make up this very loving and weirdly “normal” Unholy Family.”

Speaking of reconciling Maxis canon, you created your own version of Michael Bachelor in order to match his appearance in The Sims better and to create a resemblance between him and his famous sister, Bella Goth. Why do you think Michael was depicted so differently throughout the first three games? What did you draw inspiration from in creating “The Ultimate Michael Bachelor?”

“I think it mostly comes down to them wanting to use a familiar name for Bella’s brother/Dina’s husband in TS2, and carrying that forward. In TS3, I saw a boy who had his life all planned out for him by his father. In my headcanon, he screwed that all up and became the graduate of TS1 who had no idea what he wanted to do with his life. His relationship to Bella is the reason why he’s still single by the time he reconnects with Dina, who helps him find direction.”

There is an abundance of strong female characters in F&R, some of which were not originally portrayed that way. Why did you feel that it was important to write them as such?

“Well, because I’m a proud “SJW,” of course! But seriously, it’s less about being strong and more about seeing them as people?”

^Best answer that I could have asked for.

A large portion of Fortune & Romance is dedicated to the mythology of The Sims universe(s) and to supernatural sims. How did you go about the process of world building? Did you draw inspiration from different games in the series and/or from outside sources?

“My biggest worldbuilding is the explanation of where the supernaturals came from. The fairies are sort of fallen angel types who each have an animal form, and their magic rubbed off on human sims to create the supernatural life states.”

“I try to base the worldbuilding off things in game or aspects of game play. The fairy backstory was heavily inspired by fairy tales, in the way they morally test humans for punishment or guidance.”

Aside from premade supernatural sims such as the Smiths, Calientes, and Summerdreams, how did you go about deciding which premade sims were supernatural and which weren’t? How did you decide what life state they were?

“Bella has that awesome bio about being descended from “occultists, decadents, and mystics,” but then in TS3 the Bachelor family is uber-normal, so it eventually became that Jocasta is a squirellier version of Samantha from Betwitched.”

How has Fortune & Romance evolved since you started? Are there things you would do differently if you were to restart it?

“I was such a younger, different person when I started it, and yes there are many things I would do differently. (Michael’s skintone, for example. I tried to split difference between games with a custom skintone in between S2 and S3, but everyone assumes he was whitewashed to S2.)”

“When recreating families for TS4 I came up with a backstory for Dulcinea and Nestor’s relationship as well as a backstory for Don that explains how he got to be the way he is. I still can incorporate these things, but it would have been nice to bring them in earlier.”

With your story having reached a climax, many readers are wondering whether or not F&R will come to an end sooner rather than later. Not to spoil anything, but will the story continue after the party and if so, do you intend for it to last until the events of The Sims 2?

“I never intended for it to last until the events of TS2 because then it would be really depressing. There is more stuff planned for after the party though!”

Aside from writing Fortune & Romance, you have also created a variety of Maxis-match custom content. Why do you prefer working in this aesthetic? How do you feel it complements your writing?

“The game is cartoony, and I like to use that style to tell the story. I prefer to keep things heightened and silly rather than realistic, which very much fits into The Sims aesthetic.”

Speaking of Maxis-match, you have been working on a project for The Sims 2 that involves adapting Maxis-based custom content to blend in better with the game files. Would you mind elaborating a bit on The Maxis Match Repository Project?

“The TS2 repository project is made up of conversions/separates/or otherwise adapted Maxis which pull their textures from the ones that are already in your game, rather than creating new ones. This makes the files much much tinier. I also wanted to create a catalog where you can easily find it all in one place rather than hunt all over the internet. Check it out and don’t miss out on the gems in the back of your catalog!”

You’ve played every main game in The Sims franchise, and you’ve even made some very popular 2t4 recreations of the Calientes and Michael Bachelor. Do you have a favorite game for playing? Creating sims? Making Content? Building?

“I enjoy a lot of things about TS4. The game looks great and CAS and Build Mode are the best of any game. My favorite aspect is making sims, especially that you can share sims with traits/careers/skills so they have their own little story packaged with them. However, it is much more difficult for storytelling since there’s not even a way to pick up sims and move them around.”

“TS2 is still the best as far as premade sims go, and it’s the only one I make content for. I’m a bit of a control freak with my sims, and TS2 has been mastered by fans at this point where you can have ultimate control.”

Why do you continue to play The Sims? Do you feel that the games provide a creative outlet?

“I always loved playing with Barbies as a kid and The Sims really is the ultimate dollhouse. The first time I ever heard about TS1 I knew I HAD to have it. My aunt bought it for me while I was on vacation, but I couldn’t play it until we got home! During the car ride back home and I read that manual from cover to cover multiple times, so many ideas buzzing in my head.”

Any parting comments, teasers, spoilers, public service announcements, etc.?

“I’ve been on hiatus a long while and am just now getting back into the swing of things. I’m currently working on finishing up the chapter I started posting on Tumblr but never finished. It was FreddyAirmail who got me back in the TS2 spirit by asking me to help out with the Crystal Springs neighborhood project. It’s a community hood with houses based on each of the Stuff Packs, and I made the families for Teen Style and Family Fun!”

Thanks again to Skell for answering my questions. To those of you out there who aren’t familiar with her work, go check out her Tumblr and make sure to catch up on Fortune & Romance.

If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, feel free to visit my ask box. If you are interested, give Plumbob Post a follow, and reblog for anyone else who you think would enjoy this blog. Stay tuned for upcoming posts!

Dag dag!

 *Photo Credits go to Skell*

[verdantsims]

Reposting because I accidentally deleted the original post during a blog purge.

General Rules

1. The entire challenge will take place in the same house. -At the end of each generation everyone will move out except for the Heir. -That means that if the heir has siblings not of age to live alone then they will need to move out with their parents to a new home. -The moving-out rule also applies to pets when the following generation does not allow pets.

2. The house can have additions (rooms) built into it but none subtracted from it -This does not include removal of walls to make bigger rooms or to re-arrange the layout, such as to add stairs for a second level. -It's not recommended to sell objects as you upgrade and grow. You never know what ancestral items may be useful in the future

3. Vampires, Aliens, Sims, Plant Sims... Anything goes

4. If you do not have the Cats & Dogs game pack then you can ignore any points related to pets. -”Pets” refers” refers to cats, dogs, and any other kind of animal that can be made from their bases. -“Pets” does not include “small pets” which were introduced with the “My First Pet” stuff pack, in-game collectible frogs or bugs, or CC fake pets. -If you wish to have small pets, frogs, bugs, or fake pets throughout the challenge, however, that is permitted.

You've always had the mind to help others. You've been good with taking care of people in the past and decided that being a doctor was the only career for you. You moved to a new town to follow your passion, but among the bars and nightclubs you've discovered another passion, a lust that cannot be tamed... Though that passion will likely come with at least one unexpected surprise. It will be up to you to figure up what kind of balance your life needs.

---RULES--

1. The color PURPLE must be incorporated as the primary color for either the sim's clothing or furniture

2. REQUIRED TRAITS: Romantic, Ambitious

3. SPOUSE: Optional - If you choose to have a spouse, you may either: Create your spouse in CAS with your Sim OR Your spouse is your love-interest from when you were a teen (If your sim is from another family/previous legacy) -NOTE: If you end up losing your spouse for any reason, OR you choose not to have a spouse at the very start, you CANNOT marry any of your affairs

4. KIDS:  Must have at least one child; if sim is engaging in woohoo with affairs of the opposite gender, or if mod is present for anyone to be pregnant, all woohoo must be "Try for Baby" (Or "Risky Woohoo" is a mod is installed). All children that result must live in the household, if possible, and all children (whether able to be in the household or not) are eligible for heir status.

5. PETS: None

6. CAREER: Must be Doctor and reach level 10 (GTW) -(BG) Writer, path Author; Gotta publish all of that important research, right?

7. SKILLS: Charisma and Logic must be maxed out.

8. ASPIRATION: Serial Romance, must be completed

You spent your life watching your parent save lives and help people while helping themselves to nearly anyone who walked past. You admired your parent's genius but that's all you could ever admire. They were always busy with this or that, usually work or their other affairs, and you found entertainment and excitement for yourself. This usually meant helping yourself to other peoples' possessions. It wasn't as though you needed them, and you still don't. You have a mind like your parent and can achieve great things for great reward. You just... want them. And perhaps the money you can get for them isn't so bad, either... Money does provide many things, though the one thing it doesn't provide is a real parent. You're determine to do right by one child what your parent failed to do by you.

---RULES--

1. The color YELLOW must be incorporated as the primary color for either the sim's clothing or furniture

2. REQUIRED TRAITS: Materialistic, Kleptomaniac; Every item swiped must be sold for profit! After all, it'll add up to shiner things.

3. SPOUSE: Marry a spouse from a wealthy family, either in actual funds or for story purposes.

4. KIDS: Only one child allowed. You'll give this child everything you were never given like, say actual parental interaction! -(PH) Endeavor to have the Best relationship with your child of either an authoritative or relaxed nature (Provided Happy Childhood or Respected Heir)

5. PETS: One pet is required as companion for the child at all times. The pet is to continue with the child into the next generation. Other pets are allowed but must leave with the parents at the end of the generation.

6. CAREER: Astronaut, taking the Space Ranger path, and reach level 10

7. SKILLS: Logic, Fitness, and Parenting (PH) skills must be maxed out

8. ASPIRATION: Fabulously Wealthy, must be completed

You were the doted-upon only child of a famous and wealthy Space Ranger. When your parent was on Earth you were the center of their universe. When they were away your other parent only had eyes for you. Even your pet, specially chosen for you, saw you as their whole world. It's only natural that you would want that in your soulmate! Of course, your soulmate can't be your whole world. Your parent opened the universe to you every time they returned from space. It's only natural that you want to learn everything there is to know! Sure, you could go up there and study it, yourself, but then who knows what would happen to your soulmate while you're away...

---RULES--

1. The color WHITE must be incorporated as the primary color for either the sim's clothing or furniture

2. REQUIRED TRAITS: Jealous, Hot-Headed

3. SPOUSE: Must be an alien (GTW), CAS is allowed. Should have the Romantic trait -(BG) Normal Sim spouse allowed

4. KIDS: At least two children; The eldest or an elder child should be heir.

5. PETS: Maintain one primary companion pet for this generation's sim. More pets are allowed if desired. No pets may carry over into the next generation.

6. CAREER: Scientist profession, reach level 10 (BTW) -(BG) Tech Guru, path Start-up Entrepreneur; What began as home-made gizmos to reach out to aliens became a lifelong career working with technology

7. SKILLS: Handiness must be maxed out. Complete two of the following collections: Microscope prints, Space prints, Metals, Crystals, Fossils, Elements, Geodes

8. ASPIRATION: Soul Mate, must be completed

You had a good childhood. Your parents were good to you, especially your parent who spent so much time working on their science things. They tried to encourage you to follow in their shoes, but that just wasn't you. You're no goody-two-shoes. When the parents weren't looking you were making your own way. You're good with people and how to read them. Whether your goal is to play nice to get what you want or rile them up for a fight, you can get it done. That's why you're the Boss. You're no-nonsense, even off working hours. Romance isn't your thing, though, and neither are pets; You never really understood either and from watching your parents they both just seemed like a bother. You loved your younger sibling(s), though, and enjoyed taking care of them. You just hope that you can balance your working empire with kids.

---RULES--

1. The color RED must be incorporated as the primary color for either the sim's clothing or furniture

2. REQUIRED TRAITS: Outgoing, Unflirty, Self-Assured (Choose two out of three)

3. SPOUSE: None; You may give dating a try, but it just doesn't work out

4. KIDS: At least three children by any means (birth, adoption, abduction); The youngest should be heir

5. PETS: None; “fake” pets , collectible frog/bugs, or small pets (My First Pet pack) are permitted

6. CAREER: Criminal, taking the Boss path, and reach level 10

7. SKILLS: Handiness and Mischief must be maxed out.

8. ASPIRATION: Public Enemy, must be completed

Everyone always said that you were fortunate to be the youngest. You were always told that being the youngest had it's perks. You begged to differ. You hated it because you wanted to be the one in charge. You've always had a mind of your own and a voice to go with it. Now that you've found your place in the world of politics you plan to go nowhere but up. Of course, you are prepared to do whatever necessary to get there. You learned a thing or two as a kid about doing underhanded things to achieve your goals. Schmooze with the right people parties, and keep your ears open, and the world is your oyster. Oh, and keep up the family appearance. The people love a good-looking family, not to mention a loyal family. Your family has been around for several generations now. Keep the good history in the press, and keep the shadier things in your back pocket: They may come in handy.

---RULES--

1. The color TEAL must be incorporated as the primary color for either the sim's clothing or furniture

2. REQUIRED TRAITS: Hates Children, Snob, Foodie (Choose two out of three)

3. SPOUSE: Someone very good-looking who will look good next to you for the press

4. KIDS: One child; Any more would be too much trouble. In fact, better get a nanny on the payroll for the one you have since you and your spouse will be far too busy with parties and campaigning.

5. PETS: None; They're too much trouble

6. CAREER: Politics, take the Politician path, and reach level 10 (CL) -(BG) Business, Investor path, reach level 10; Big business and big investments have nothing on you.

7. SKILLS: Charisma and Comedy must be maxed out

8. ASPIRATION: Party Animal, must be completed

You were a neglected child. You knew more of the nanny than your own parents. One parent was always busy with work, their face before the public, or at parties, padding their social life for work. Your other parent was always loyally at their side. You're not sure if they were actually in love or not. You learned a lot from listening and watching them, though. You knew your parent's political gains had some shady hands and from their research into your family history you knew that your family didn't have such a sterling life. Heinous affairs, thieving, rabid jealousy, a whole lot of bad from your grandparent, and then your parent... It seemed destined that you would fall prey to something, too. Yet, you refused to let your family's negative history or your neglected childhood define you. After peaking in your career as a team mascot you decide to do everything you could to make up for your family's past by upholding the law and loving your family as they were meant to be.

---RULES--

1. The color GREEN must be incorporated as the primary color for either the sim's clothing or furniture

2. REQUIRED TRAITS: Family-Oriented, Squeamish (CANNOT have the following traits: Evil, Noncommittal, Kleptomaniac, Materialistic, Hates Children, Jealous, Snob, or Mean)

3. SPOUSE: Has the same trait restrictions as listed above

4. KIDS: Your first child must be adopted and can only be after you’ve reached level 2 of the detective career (GTW). You can then have as many children as you want, any way you want, once you’ve begun your new career as a Secret Agent. -(BG) First child can be adopted after reaching level 5 of Athletic career.

5. PETS: Only one pet is allowed

6. CAREER: Join the Athletic career until level three. Then join the Detective profession (GTW) until at least level 3. Finally, join the Secret Agent career, Diamond Agent path, and reach level 10. -(BG) Remain in Athletic career until level 6, then proceed to Secret Agent as normal

7. SKILLS: Logic, Fitness, and Charisma must be maxed out

8. ASPIRATION: Renaissance Sim, must complete

[landenleoj353-blog]

Have You Heard? Weight Loss & Control Is Your Best Bet To Grow

After many years of spending time with the people drinking beer, the weekly family functions that supply a massive buffet of foods, and of course the daily routine of picking up junk food. ... the calories had began to show. Let's face it, it's hard trying to juggle all of our daily activities and forgetting what were doing to our bodies. After many years of packing on the pounds, I finally said I was going to lose fat and STICK WITH IT!

So here was my real motivation to begin. My younger brother recently joined the army together noticed that he transformed from the pudgy punk to the super-soldier that took him lower than three months to change. It was like night and day!! With results like this, I asked myself, I think I need to participate the army to get rid of this gut! Well, the army is just not for me personally - I fully support our troops but I'm sorry, it is not for me personally. With my health taking, my sex life basically non-existent, and noticing that I've been getting fed up with everything I do, I finally located the realization that I needed help. So I swallowed my pride and asked my brother what I can do. So my cousin gave me some advice and recommended me to learn and follow a course called "Combat The Fat" from. Apparently from what I gathered out of this course, it revealed training that all military personnel endured every single day, however, it turned out tailored for the common joe. The one tip that I can remember him giving me before deploying overseas, was to workout in the morning. Soldiers don't wait to exercise later in the day - they workout each morning. This was likely the best tip that's provided to me to jump-start my quest to get rid of weight and STICKING TO IT!

Without question, I knew this is not planning to be easy as I usually woke up at 7 am to be ready by 8 am and to get at benefit 9 am. This would mean I would ought to 'sacrifice' a half-hour of my precious, precious sleep. Well, it was until I looked at my "jelly belly" and, nothing did and I have to do this. And as I gathered additional information from your course, it taught me to be realize that there are several benefits to doing exercises each morning than in the evening.

See below for the benefits I experienced.

* I feel so energized to get started on the afternoon and satisfied it is DONE and out of the way! No more excuses!!

* I burn calories through the night while I'm sleeping. Now I can burn MORE CALORIES and MORE FAT in the morning since there was nothing inside my stomach.

* I now really enjoy breakfast (rather than missing breakfast - which has been a major no-no personally previously). Yes - believe me, you'll be very hungry after your workout! Just remember - no bacon as well as other greasy foods...Since I have a tight schedule inside am, fruits and cereals worked for me along with a protein shake (I use Vanilla Whey Maxx from - tastes great, quick to make[no blender needed] and possesses over 24 grams of protein per scoop).

* It had opened a choice of participating in an activity/sport later in the day. In my case, I like to ride my bike, rollerblade, or play golf(walking using the pull cart) whenever I have time or if the next thunderstorm conditions permit it.

* I was asked to choosing healthier foods since I would feel guilty about eating a donut or even the fried chicken or possibly a Big-Mac during your day (why waste such a great workout?)

* If there is a morning that I could not make it to a health club, I made sure I was there later in the day. (providing me 2 chances to get to a fitness center).

* If you go to a gym, there are far fewer people at a health club. No awaiting machines, exercise ball, workout bench or free-weights.

So, you must be convinced since morning work outs are more effective. If so, expect an adjustment period. The same way you're jet-lagged after a different trip or drowsy once you suddenly need to switch in the graveyard shift to some regular 9 to 5 shift, doing exercises each day requires some lag time. Here are a couple of of my tips that can help you get going in enabling up each morning.

* Go to bed an hour or so earlier. I used to hit the sack at about 2 am every night. Since I know now which you burn calories when you sleep, I changed my sleeping patterns to go to bed at 11:00 pm.

* Get a good alarm clock - I have 2 alarms (Sony noisy alarms and cell phone alarm) to wake me up for 6 am.

* Get a timer that turns for the lights for you personally. I purchased an easy switch from which turns on my light at 6 am. You can also go to Homedepot and buy one as well.

* Brush your teeth and wash the face. - this will help you feel a good deal fresher each day.

* Have your regular workout schedule ready the night time before. Since I was while using the info from Combat The Fat, it provided me an easy schedule to adhere to with various exercises every day, eliminating boredom.

* Have your workout clothes prepared the night before. - I have woken up many times every day and found myself wasting many precious minutes scrambling seeking clothes, shoes, water bottle, etc. This step eliminates that possibility.

* Bring someone. - Since I got my wife involved with it, both of us help each other to wake up and do our workout. This has not simply improved my relationship with my wife, but I'm getting good sex nowadays! Woohoo! :-)

* Try to you could make your morning doing exercises as convenient as is possible by either creating your property gym or picking a gym which is near your work/home. - I liked the house gym option since it enables me to look at the morning news while I'm about the treadmill. (I attached a small LCD screen to it) :-)

* Get an iPod or Mp3 player to help you with your motivation. - My wife uses her iPod to maintain her motivated throughout her workout. As a helpful tip, choose fast-paced music because your body will automatically need to "move using the beat" without even thinking about it.

* Find a picture through the internet of the items you would want to seem like and display it in a very place it in an area you may see every morning (e.g for the mirror with your bathroom)...Believe it or not, this is extremely important. Do not skip this step. This will help you keep the focus on the "prize" of having that slender body. I chose Mark Wahlberg (as part of his Calvin Klien ad) as a consequence of his cool physique, not his bad acting...

* Stretch!? Since you just wakened, muscle tissue need a great stretch. Learn from my mistake for not stretching and made to take 4 days off because of pains within my legs and back. Don’t be a victim.

* And finally, have a burning desire to reduce weight! Everyone has their factors behind slimming down. Either it really is for health reasons, self-esteem or if you have a very favorite suit or dress which you always wanted to squeeze into. Start TODAY - your work WILL PAY OFF.

So accusation in court a fraction products I learned from not merely my cousin, but additionally from that which was learned from "Combat The Fat". I have to credit them both for losing 40lbs so far and searching toward reaching my goal of an total of 70 lbs. Other than the tip to doing exercises in the morning, this system had assisted with changing my "lifestyle" products I eat, how much I eat, the best way to exercise, what areas with the body that require work and when. Dieting alone with my creation of the workout plan has never worked personally previously, as the weight loss was just temporary(I previously gained back of the was lost) and also felt like I did not know what I was doing. Diet pills (I think I've tried every one of them) never worked personally either. And finally, my last tip for you all is, have your cheat day(not days) to consume whatever you want (including a Big Mac), but DO NOT OVER EAT. Changing your "lifestyle" to eat the best foods and to incorporate daily exercises for your daily routine WILL lower your waistline.

[dantedlfr753-blog]

Top 3 Ways To Buy A Used Weight Loss & Control

After many years of hanging out with the inventors drinking beer, the weekly family functions that provide a tremendous buffet of foods, not to mention the daily routine of buying fast food. ... the calories had started to show. Let's face it, it's tough looking to juggle all of our way of life and forgetting what were doing to our bodies. After many years of packing about the pounds, I finally said I was going to shed weight and STICK WITH IT!

So here was my real motivation to begin. My younger brother recently joined the army along noticed that he transformed from your pudgy punk to this super-soldier that took him under a couple of months to switch. It was like day and night!! With results like that, I asked myself, I think I need to become listed on the army to get rid on this gut! Well, the army just isn't to me - I fully support our troops but I'm sorry, it isn't really to me. With my health continuing to fall, my romantic endeavors just about non-existent, and noticing that I've been getting tired of everything I do, I finally located the realization that I needed help. So I swallowed my pride and asked my brother what I are capable of doing. So my friend gave me some advice and recommended me to read and follow a course called "Combat The Fat" from. Apparently from what I gathered from this course, it revealed training that all military personnel endured every single day, however, it was tailored for the average joe. The one tip that I can remember him giving me before deploying overseas, ended up being figure out each day. Soldiers don't wait to work out at nighttime - they workout each day. This was likely the best tip that was provided to me to jump-start my quest to lose weight and STICKING TO IT!

Without question, I knew this is not planning to be easy as I usually awoke at 7 am being ready by 8 am and to be at benefit 9 am. This would mean I would ought to 'sacrifice' a half-hour of my precious, precious sleep. Well, this was until I looked at my "jelly belly" and, nothing worked as a chef and I have to do this. And as I gathered additional information through the course, it made me understand that there are many benefits to working out each morning than at nighttime.

See below for your benefits I experienced.

* I feel so energized to get started on the day and satisfied it's DONE and out of the way! No more excuses!!

* I burn calories for hours while I'm sleeping. Now I can burn MORE CALORIES and MORE FAT in the morning since there were nothing in my stomach.

* I now really enjoy breakfast (instead of missing breakfast - that has been a major no-no to me in the past). Yes - keep in mind that, you will be very hungry after your workout! Just remember - no bacon along with other greasy foods...Since I have a tight schedule within the am, fruits and cereals worked for me along having a protein shake (I use Vanilla Whey Maxx from - tastes great, quick to make[no blender needed] and possesses over 24 grams of protein per scoop).

* It had opened the option of doing an activity/sport at nighttime. In my case, I like to ride my bike, rollerblade, or play golf(walking while using pull cart) whenever I have time or if the weather conditions permit it.

* I was asked to choosing healthier foods since I would feel guilty about eating a donut or even the fried chicken or possibly a Big-Mac during the morning (why waste such an excellent workout?)

* If there is a morning that I can't get to the gym, I made sure I was there in the evening. (providing me 2 chances to arrive at the fitness center).

* If you check out a gym, you'll find far fewer people at the gym. No awaiting machines, exercise ball, workout bench or free-weights.

So, you must be convinced now that morning training is more effective. If so, expect an adjustment period. The same way you're jet-lagged after an overseas trip or drowsy when you suddenly ought to switch in the graveyard shift to some regular 9 to 5 shift, exercising each day will require some lag time. Here are several of my tips which will help you get going in getting up every day.

* Go to bed one hour earlier. I used to retire for the night at about 2 am each night. Since I know now which you burn calories while you sleep, I changed my sleeping patterns to go to sleep at 11:00 pm.

* Get a good alarm clock - I have 2 alarms (Sony alarm clock and cellphone alarm) to wake me up for 6 am.

* Get a timer that turns around the lights for you. I purchased the light switch that activates my light at 6 am. You can also check out Homedepot and buy one also.

* Brush your teeth and wash that person. - this will help you feel a good deal fresher each morning.

* Have your exercise routine schedule ready the evening before. Since I was with all the info from Combat The Fat, it provided me an easy schedule to follow with different exercises daily, eliminating boredom.

* Have training session clothes prepared the evening before. - I have woken up often every day and found myself wasting many precious minutes scrambling searching for clothes, shoes, water bottle, etc. This step eliminates that possibility.

* Bring a partner. - Since I got my lady involved with it, the two of us help the other to get up and do our workout. This has not simply improved my relationship with my wife, but I'm getting more sex today! Woohoo! :-)

* Try to make your morning training as convenient as is possible by either creating your house gym or choosing a gym which is near your work/home. - I liked the property gym option mainly because it enables me to observe the morning news while I'm on the treadmill. (I attached a little LCD screen into it) :-)

* Get an iPod or Mp3 player to assist using your motivation. - My wife uses her iPod to keep her motivated throughout her workout. As a helpful tip, choose fast-paced music because your body will automatically desire to "move using the beat" without even thinking about it.

* Find a picture through the internet of the items you would desire to look like and display it in a place it in the area you may see each morning (e.g about the mirror in your bathroom)...Believe it or not, this is important. Do not skip this step. This will help you keep your focus around the "prize" of getting that slender body. I chose Mark Wahlberg (in his Calvin Klien ad) because of his cool physique, not his bad acting...

* Stretch!? Since you just awakened, your muscles need a good stretch. Learn from my mistake for not stretching and instructed to take 4 days off on account of pains in my legs and back. Don’t be a victim.

* And finally, have a very burning desire to shed weight! Everyone has their reasons behind shedding pounds. Either it really is to improve your health, self-esteem or if you possess a favorite suit or dress that you just always wanted to go with. Start TODAY - your work WILL PAY OFF.

So this is simply a fraction of what I learned from not simply my brother, but also from the thing that was learned from "Combat The Fat". I have to credit them both for losing 40lbs so far looking to reaching achieve of a total of 70 lbs. Other than the top to training each day, this course had assisted with changing my "lifestyle" products I eat, how much I eat, how to exercise, what areas of the body that need work when. Dieting alone with my creation of the workout plan has never worked for me personally before, because the weight-loss was only temporary(I previously gained back products was lost) and in addition felt like I did not know very well what I was doing. Diet pills (I think I've tried all of them) never worked to me either. And finally, my last tip to you personally all is, have your cheat day(not days) to consume anything you want (including a Big Mac), but DO NOT OVER EAT. Changing your "lifestyle" to nibble on the proper foods and also to incorporate daily exercises to your daily routine WILL lower your waistline.

[waylonkfjg263-blog]

What Zombies Can Teach You About Weight Loss & Control

After many years of spending time with the guys drinking beer, the weekly family functions that offer a tremendous buffet of foods, and of course the daily routine of picking up fastfood. ... the calories had started to show. Let's face it, it's difficult attempting to juggle all our daily activities and forgetting what we are doing to the bodies. After many years of packing around the pounds, I finally said I was going to slim down and STICK WITH IT!

So here was my real motivation to begin. My younger brother recently joined the army and had remarked that he transformed from a pudgy punk for this super-soldier that took him under three months to change. It was like almost all the time!! With results like this, I asked myself, I think I need to sign up the army to get rid of this gut! Well, the army isn't for me - I fully support our troops but I'm sorry, it is not for me personally. With my health continuing to fall, my love life virtually non-existent, and noticing that I've been getting sick and tired of everything I do, I finally came to the realization that I needed help. So I swallowed my pride and asked my brother what I can do. So my brother gave me a little gem and recommended me to learn and adhere to a course called "Combat The Fat" from. Apparently from what I gathered out of this course, it revealed training that military personnel endured every single day, however, it absolutely was tailored for the common joe. The one tip that I can remember him giving me before deploying overseas, ended up being workout each morning. Soldiers don't wait to exercise at night - they workout each morning. This was possibly the best tip that has been provided to me to jump-start my quest to reduce weight and STICKING TO IT!

Without a doubt, I knew this is not going to be easy as I usually woke up at 7 am to get ready by 8 am and to become at work with 9 am. This would mean I would ought to 'sacrifice' a half-hour of my precious, precious sleep. Well, it was until I viewed my "jelly belly" and, nothing worked as a chef and I need to do this. And as I gathered more details from your course, it forced me to be know that there are lots of benefits to training each day than at night.

See below for your benefits I experienced.

* I feel so energized to begin the morning and satisfied that it's DONE and out of the way! No more excuses!!

* I burn calories for hours while I'm sleeping. Now I can burn MORE CALORIES and MORE FAT each day since there is nothing in my stomach.

* I now love breakfast (instead of missing breakfast - which has been a big no-no for me personally in the past). Yes - believe me, you will be very hungry after training session! Just remember - no bacon as well as other greasy foods...Since I possess a tight schedule in the am, fruits and cereals worked personally along with a protein shake (I use Vanilla Whey Maxx from - tastes great, quick to make[no blender needed] and contains over 24 grams of protein per scoop).

* It had opened selecting taking part in an activity/sport at night. In my case, I like to ride my bike, rollerblade, or play golf(walking with all the pull cart) whenever I have time or if the elements conditions permit it.

* I was asked to choosing healthier foods since I would feel guilty about eating a donut or fried chicken or even a Big-Mac during the morning (why waste such a good workout?)

* If there was a morning that I can't arrive at the fitness center, I made certain I was there in the evening. (providing me 2 chances to get to the fitness center).

* If you search for a gym, you can find far fewer people at a health club. No waiting for machines, exercise ball, workout bench or free-weights.

So, you have to be convinced now that morning work outs are far better. If so, expect an adjustment period. The same way you're jet-lagged after a distant trip or drowsy once you suddenly ought to switch in the graveyard shift to a regular 9 to 5 shift, doing exercises each morning will require some lag time. Here are a couple of of my tips that may help you begin in getting up every day.

* Go to bed one hour earlier. I used to retire for the night at about 2 am every night. Since I know now that you burn calories while you sleep, I changed my sleeping patterns to go to bed at 11:00 pm.

* Get a great noisy alarms - I have 2 alarms (Sony alarm clock and cellphone alarm) to wake me up for 6 am.

* Get a timer that turns around the lights to suit your needs. I purchased a light switch where activates my light at 6 am. You can also check out Homedepot and purchase one as well.

* Brush your teeth and wash your face. - this will aid feel a good deal fresher each day.

* Have your workout schedule ready the night time before. Since I was with all the info from Combat The Fat, it provided me a fairly easy schedule to follow along with with various exercises on a daily basis, eliminating boredom.

* Have your exercise routine clothes prepared the night time before. - I have woken up more often than not each day and found myself wasting many precious minutes scrambling seeking clothes, shoes, water bottle, etc. This step eliminates that possibility.

* Bring a person. - Since I got my wife into it, we both help each other to awaken and do our workout. This has not only improved my relationship with my partner, but I'm receiving targeted sex today! Woohoo! :-)

* Try to help make your morning working out as convenient as is possible by either creating your own home gym or choosing a gym that is certainly near to your work/home. - I liked the home gym option as it enables me to observe the morning news while I'm on the treadmill. (I attached a little LCD screen for it) :-)

* Get an iPod or Mp3 player to help together with your motivation. - My wife uses her iPod to maintain her motivated throughout her workout. As a helpful tip, choose fast-paced music because your body will automatically desire to "move while using beat" without even considering it.

* Find a picture from your internet of what you would want to resemble and display it inside a stick it in a area you will see every morning (e.g about the mirror with your bathroom)...Believe it or not, as well as important. Do not skip this task. This will help you keep the focus on the "prize" of needing that slender body. I chose Mark Wahlberg (in the Calvin Klien ad) as a result of his cool physique, not his bad acting...

* Stretch!? Since you just awakened, parts of your muscles need a good stretch. Learn from my mistake for not stretching and made to take 4 days off because of pains in my legs and back. Don’t certainly be a victim.

* And finally, possess a burning desire to lose weight! Everyone has their reasons behind shedding pounds. Either it's for your health, self-esteem or if you use a favorite suit or dress that you just always wanted to squeeze into. Start TODAY - your efforts WILL PAY OFF.

So case a fraction of what I learned from not simply my buddy, but additionally from that which was learned from "Combat The Fat". I need to credit them both for losing 40lbs so far and searching forward to reaching my goal of a total of 70 lbs. Other than the top to exercising each morning, this course had assisted with changing my "lifestyle" of the items I eat, the amount I eat, how you can exercise, what areas from the body that want work when. Dieting alone with my creation of an workout plan has never worked to me before, because weight loss only agreed to be temporary(I previously gained back products was lost) as well as felt like I did not know what I was doing. Diet pills (I think I've tried every one of them) never worked for me either. And finally, my last tip to you personally all is, have your cheat day(not days) to nibble on whatever you desire (including a Big Mac), but DO NOT OVER EAT. Changing your "lifestyle" to eat the best foods and incorporate daily exercises in your daily routine WILL reduce your waistline.

[trevorrsol246-blog]

How To Quit Weight Loss & Control In 5 Days

After many years of hanging out with the fellows drinking beer, the weekly family functions offering an enormous buffet of foods, and of course the daily routine of obtaining take out. ... the calories had did start to show. Let's face it, it's tough attempting to juggle all our day to day activities and forgetting what we have been doing to your bodies. After many years of packing on the pounds, I finally said I was planning to shed weight and STICK WITH IT!

So here was my real motivation to get started. My younger brother recently joined the army together remarked that he transformed from your pudgy punk to this super-soldier that took him below 3 months to improve. It was like night and day!! With results like that, I asked myself, I think I need to become listed on the army to get rid on this gut! Well, the army just isn't to me - I fully support our troops but I'm sorry, it is not to me. With my health heading down, my love life basically non-existent, and noticing that I've been getting tired of everything I do, I finally found the realization that I needed help. So I swallowed my pride and asked my brother what I are able to do. So my brother gave me a little gem and recommended me you just read and consume a course called "Combat The Fat" from. Apparently from what I gathered using this course, it revealed training that most military personnel endured every single day, however, it was tailored for the normal joe. The one tip that I can remember him giving me before deploying overseas, ended up being to work out each morning. Soldiers don't wait to figure out later in the day - they workout each day. This was possibly the best tip that was provided to me to jump-start my quest to reduce weight and STICKING TO IT!

Without question, I knew this was not going to be easy as I usually wakened at 7 am being ready by 8 am and to become at benefit 9 am. This would mean I would must 'sacrifice' a half-hour of my precious, precious sleep. Well, this was until I checked out my "jelly belly" and, nothing did and I should do this. And as I gathered more information through the course, it forced me to be know that there are numerous benefits to exercising each day than later in the day.

See below for the benefits I experienced.

* I feel so energized to start out the morning and satisfied that it is DONE and out with the way! No more excuses!!

* I burn calories for hours while I'm sleeping. Now I can burn MORE CALORIES and MORE FAT each morning since there were nothing in my stomach.

* I now revel in breakfast (instead of missing breakfast - which has been a major no-no personally previously). Yes - count on me, you are going to be very hungry after training session! Just remember - no bacon and other greasy foods...Since I have a very tight schedule inside am, fruits and cereals worked to me along having a protein shake (I use Vanilla Whey Maxx from - tastes great, quick to make[no blender needed] and possesses over 24 grams of protein per scoop).

* It had opened selecting doing an activity/sport at nighttime. In my case, I like to ride my bike, rollerblade, or play golf(walking with all the pull cart) whenever I have time or if the next thunderstorm conditions permit it.

* I was inspired to choosing healthier foods since I would feel guilty about eating a donut or fried chicken or a Big-Mac during your day (why waste such an excellent workout?)

* If there were a morning that I could not reach a health club, I ensured I was there in the evening. (providing me 2 chances to make it to the fitness center).

* If you visit a gym, you will find far fewer people at a fitness center. No looking forward to machines, exercise ball, workout bench or free-weights.

So, you have to be convinced given that morning work outs are more efficient. If so, expect an adjustment period. The same way you're jet-lagged after a distant trip or drowsy if you suddenly have to switch from your graveyard shift to your regular 9 to 5 shift, working out each morning will require some lag time. Here are a few of my tips that may help you get going in enabling up every day.

* Go to bed an hour earlier. I used to hit the sack at about 2 am each night. Since I know now that you simply burn calories when you sleep, I changed my sleeping patterns to hit the sack at 11:00 pm.

* Get a good alarm clock - I have 2 alarms (Sony noisy alarms and cellular phone alarm) to wake me up for 6 am.

* Get a timer that turns on the lights in your case. I purchased a light switch that turns on my light at 6 am. You can also head to Homedepot and buy one also.

* Brush your teeth and wash the face. - this will aid feel a whole lot fresher in the morning.

* Have your workout schedule ready the evening before. Since I was with all the info from Combat The Fat, it provided me a fairly easy schedule to check out with assorted exercises every day, eliminating boredom.

* Have your exercise routine clothes prepared the evening before. - I have woken up often in the morning and discovered myself wasting many precious minutes scrambling looking for clothes, shoes, water bottle, etc. This step eliminates that possibility.

* Bring someone. - Since I got my wife into it, we both help the other to awaken and do our workout. This has not only improved my relationship with my spouse, but I'm getting more sex these days! Woohoo! :-)

* Try to you could make your morning training as convenient as you can by either creating your house gym or selecting a gym that is close to your work/home. - I liked the house gym option mainly because it enables me to look at the morning news while I'm on the treadmill. (I attached a smaller LCD screen to it) :-)

* Get an iPod or Mp3 player to aid together with your motivation. - My wife uses her iPod to hold her motivated throughout her workout. As a helpful tip, choose fast-paced music as the body will automatically want to "move while using beat" without even great deal of thought.

* Find a picture from your internet of the you would want to look like and display it in the put it in a area you'll see every day (e.g about the mirror inside your bathroom)...Believe it or not, this is extremely important. Do not skip this. This will help you maintain your focus for the "prize" of having that slender body. I chose Mark Wahlberg (in his Calvin Klien ad) due to his cool physique, not his bad acting...

* Stretch!? Since you just wakened, your muscles need an excellent stretch. Learn from my mistake for not stretching and forced to take 4 days off due to pains within my legs and back. Don’t be a victim.

* And finally, possess a burning desire to lose weight! Everyone has their reasons behind shedding pounds. Either it can be to improve your health, self-esteem or if you have a favorite suit or dress that you simply always wanted to squeeze into. Start TODAY - your work WILL PAY OFF.

So case a fraction of the items I learned from not just my friend, but also from that which was learned from "Combat The Fat". I must credit them both for losing 40lbs so far looking to reaching achieve of an total of 70 lbs. Other than the tip to doing exercises in the morning, this system had assisted with changing my "lifestyle" products I eat, how much I eat, the best way to exercise, what areas of the body that need work so when. Dieting alone with my creation of your workout plan has never worked for me previously, as the weight-loss was just temporary(I previously gained back of the was lost) as well as felt like I did not know what I was doing. Diet pills (I think I've tried all of them) never worked for me personally either. And finally, my last tip to you personally all is, have your cheat day(not days) to nibble on that one thing (including a Big Mac), but DO NOT OVER EAT. Changing your "lifestyle" to nibble on the correct foods and incorporate daily exercises to your daily routine WILL decrease your waistline.

[sergiofeed651-blog]

The Philosophy Of Weight Loss & Control

After many years of spending time with the people drinking beer, the weekly family functions that supply a massive buffet of foods, and lastly the daily routine of collecting fastfood. ... the calories had began to show. Let's face it, it's hard wanting to juggle all of our activities and forgetting what we are doing to your bodies. After many years of packing about the pounds, I finally said I was planning to slim down and STICK WITH IT!

So here was my real motivation to begin. My younger brother recently joined the army together pointed out that he transformed from your pudgy punk to this particular super-soldier that took him below a couple of months to alter. It was like day and night!! With results like that, I asked myself, I think I need to participate the army to get rid of the gut! Well, the army isn't personally - I fully support our troops but I'm sorry, it's not personally. With my health taking, my love life pretty much non-existent, and noticing that I've been getting sick and tired with everything I do, I finally found the realization that I needed help. So I swallowed my pride and asked my cousin what I can perform. So my brother gave me a tip and recommended me to learn and consume a course called "Combat The Fat" from. Apparently from what I gathered from this course, it revealed training that every military personnel endured each day, however, it turned out tailored for the common joe. The one tip that I can remember him giving me before deploying overseas, ended up being work out each morning. Soldiers don't wait to workout at nighttime - they workout each day. This was possibly the best tip that has been given to me to jump-start my quest to get rid of weight and STICKING TO IT!

Without a doubt, I knew this is not going to be easy as I usually wakened at 7 am to become ready by 8 am and to get at benefit 9 am. This would mean I would have to 'sacrifice' a half-hour of my precious, precious sleep. Well, it was until I checked out my "jelly belly" and, nothing spent some time working and I need to do this. And as I gathered additional information through the course, it made me understand that there are numerous benefits to working out each morning than at nighttime.

See below for that benefits I experienced.

* I feel so energized to get started on the day and satisfied that it's DONE and out with the way! No more excuses!!

* I burn calories through the night while I'm sleeping. Now I can burn MORE CALORIES and MORE FAT each morning since there is nothing within my stomach.

* I now revel in breakfast (as an alternative to missing breakfast - that has been a huge no-no to me before). Yes - keep in mind that, you will be very hungry after your workout! Just remember - no bacon along with other greasy foods...Since I possess a tight schedule within the am, fruits and cereals worked to me along with a protein shake (I use Vanilla Whey Maxx from - tastes great, quick to make[no blender needed] and contains over 24 grams of protein per scoop).

* It had opened the option of participating in an activity/sport in the evening. In my case, I like to ride my bike, rollerblade, or play golf(walking with all the pull cart) whenever I have time or if the elements conditions permit it.

* I was asked to choosing healthier foods since I would feel guilty about eating a donut or the fried chicken or a Big-Mac during the day (why waste such a great workout?)

* If there was a morning that I couldn't reach the gym, I ensured I was there in the evening. (providing me 2 chances to reach the gym).

* If you visit a gym, you will find far fewer people at a fitness center. No expecting machines, exercise ball, workout bench or free-weights.

So, you should be convinced now that morning workouts are more efficient. If so, expect an adjustment period. The same way you're jet-lagged after a foreign trip or drowsy whenever you suddenly ought to switch through the graveyard shift to some regular 9 to 5 shift, training every day will need some lag time. Here are a number of of my tips which will help you get started in enabling up every day.

* Go to bed an hour or so earlier. I used to hit the sack at about 2 am nightly. Since I know now that you simply burn calories when you sleep, I changed my sleeping patterns to hit the sack at 11:00 pm.

* Get a great noisy alarms - I have 2 alarms (Sony alarm clock and cellular phone alarm) to wake me up for 6 am.

* Get a timer that turns on the lights in your case. I purchased an easy switch from where switches on my light at 6 am. You can also visit Homedepot and pick one up as well.

* Brush your teeth and wash see your face. - this should help you feel a lot fresher every day.

* Have your regular workout schedule ready the night before. Since I was using the info from Combat The Fat, it provided me an easy schedule to follow along with with various exercises on a daily basis, eliminating boredom.

* Have your workout clothes prepared the night before. - I have woken up more often than not each day and found myself wasting many precious minutes scrambling seeking clothes, shoes, water bottle, etc. This step eliminates that possibility.

* Bring someone. - Since I got my partner in it, both of us help one another to wake and do our workout. This has not merely improved my relationship with my spouse, but I'm reading good sex today! Woohoo! :-)

* Try to you could make your morning doing exercises as convenient as possible by either creating your home gym or choosing a gym that is certainly close to your work/home. - I liked the house gym option because it enables me to view the morning news while I'm around the treadmill. (I attached a little LCD screen into it) :-)

* Get an iPod or Mp3 player to help together with your motivation. - My wife uses her iPod to help keep her motivated throughout her workout. As a helpful tip, choose fast-paced music because your body will automatically desire to "move while using beat" without even great deal of thought.

* Find a picture in the internet of the items you would want to appear to be and display it in a stick it in a area you may see every day (e.g about the mirror within your bathroom)...Believe it or not, this is extremely important. Do not skip this. This will help you maintain the focus around the "prize" of having that slender body. I chose Mark Wahlberg (in his Calvin Klien ad) due to his cool physique, not his bad acting...

* Stretch!? Since you just wakened, your muscles need a fantastic stretch. Learn from my mistake for not stretching and made to take 4 days off because of pains within my legs and back. Don’t be described as a victim.

* And finally, have a burning desire to lose weight! Everyone has their reasons for losing weight. Either it can be to improve your health, self-esteem or if you have a favorite suit or dress that you simply always wanted to fit into. Start TODAY - your effort WILL PAY OFF.

So accusation in court a fraction products I learned from not merely my cousin, but additionally from what was learned from "Combat The Fat". I must credit them both for losing 40lbs up to now and searching forward to reaching achieve of your total of 70 lbs. Other than the top to doing exercises in the morning, this program had assisted with changing my "lifestyle" of the items I eat, the amount I eat, the way to exercise, what areas in the body that want work and when. Dieting alone with my creation of your workout plan has never worked for me previously, because the weight reduction only agreed to be temporary(I previously gained back of the was lost) as well as felt like I did not know what I was doing. Diet pills (I think I've tried every one of them) never worked for me personally either. And finally, my last tip to you personally all is, have your cheat day(not days) to consume whatever you desire (including a Big Mac), but DO NOT OVER EAT. Changing your "lifestyle" to consume the best foods and incorporate daily exercises to your daily routine WILL lessen your waistline.

[cruzmjlf602-blog]

15 Tips For Weight Loss & Control Success

After many years of spending time with the fellows drinking beer, the weekly family functions that provide a huge buffet of foods, and lastly the daily routine of picking up fast food. ... the calories had began to show. Let's face it, it's tough trying to juggle all of our daily activities and forgetting what we have been doing to your bodies. After many years of packing for the pounds, I finally said I was planning to lose weight and STICK WITH IT!

So here was my real motivation to begin. My younger brother recently joined the army coupled with realized that he transformed from your pudgy punk to this super-soldier that took him less than a few months to improve. It was like 24 / 7!! With results prefer that, I asked myself, I think I need to become listed on the army to get rid of this gut! Well, the army just isn't personally - I fully support our troops but I'm sorry, it isn't for me personally. With my health taking, my sex life pretty much non-existent, and noticing that I've been getting tired of everything I do, I finally came to the realization that I needed help. So I swallowed my pride and asked my buddy what I can do. So my buddy gave me a little gem and recommended me to learn and have a course called "Combat The Fat" from. Apparently from what I gathered out of this course, it revealed training that all military personnel endured each day, however, it turned out tailored for the average joe. The one tip that I can remember him giving me before deploying overseas, ended up being exercise in the morning. Soldiers don't wait to work out in the evening - they workout each day. This was possibly the best tip that's presented to me to jump-start my quest to get rid of weight and STICKING TO IT!

Without any doubt, I knew it was not planning to be easy as I usually woke up at 7 am being ready by 8 am and being at work with 9 am. This would mean I would must 'sacrifice' a half-hour of my precious, precious sleep. Well, this was until I looked over my "jelly belly" and, nothing spent some time working and I should do this. And as I gathered additional information from your course, it made me know that there are numerous benefits to exercising each morning than in the evening.

See below for your benefits I experienced.

* I feel so energized to start the day and satisfied that it's DONE and out of the way! No more excuses!!

* I burn calories all night while I'm sleeping. Now I can burn MORE CALORIES and MORE FAT each morning since there was nothing during my stomach.

* I now really enjoy breakfast (as opposed to missing breakfast - that was a large no-no to me in the past). Yes - keep in mind that, you may be very hungry after training session! Just remember - no bacon and other greasy foods...Since I have a very tight schedule in the am, fruits and cereals worked for me personally along using a protein shake (I use Vanilla Whey Maxx from - tastes great, quick to make[no blender needed] and has over 24 grams of protein per scoop).

* It had opened a choice of taking part in an activity/sport later in the day. In my case, I like to ride my bike, rollerblade, or play golf(walking with all the pull cart) whenever I have time or if the weather conditions permit it.

* I was encouraged to choosing healthier foods since I would feel guilty about eating a donut or fried chicken or possibly a Big-Mac during your day (why waste such a fantastic workout?)

* If there were a morning that I couldn't reach a fitness center, I made certain I was there at night. (providing me 2 chances to make it to the gym).

* If you visit a gym, you'll find far fewer people at the fitness center. No awaiting machines, exercise ball, workout bench or free-weights.

So, you must be convinced now that morning work outs are more efficient. If so, expect an adjustment period. The same way you're jet-lagged after a foreign trip or drowsy if you suddenly have to switch from your graveyard shift to your regular 9 to 5 shift, working out each day requires some lag time. Here are a number of of my tips that may help you get going in enabling up in the morning.

* Go to bed an hour earlier. I used to go to bed at about 2 am nightly. Since I know now that you just burn calories when you sleep, I changed my sleeping patterns to hit the sack at 11:00 pm.

* Get a fantastic noisy alarms - I have 2 alarms (Sony alarm clock and cellphone alarm) to wake me up for 6 am.

* Get a timer that turns for the lights to suit your needs. I purchased a light switch where activates my light at 6 am. You can also go to Homedepot and buy one too.

* Brush your teeth and wash the face. - this will help you feel a good deal fresher every day.

* Have training session schedule ready the evening before. Since I was with all the info from Combat The Fat, it provided me an easy schedule to check out with various exercises every day, eliminating boredom.

* Have your regular workout clothes prepared the night before. - I have woken up often times each morning and discovered myself wasting many precious minutes scrambling searching for clothes, shoes, water bottle, etc. This step eliminates that possibility.

* Bring a person. - Since I got my wife in it, both of us help one another to get up and do our workout. This has not merely improved my relationship with my lady, but I'm getting more sex nowadays! Woohoo! :-)

* Try to you could make your morning doing exercises as convenient as possible by either creating your home gym or deciding on a gym that is certainly near to your work/home. - I liked the home gym option since it enables me to look at the morning news while I'm on the treadmill. (I attached a small LCD screen for it) :-)

* Get an iPod or Mp3 player to help together with your motivation. - My wife uses her iPod to keep her motivated throughout her workout. As a helpful tip, choose fast-paced music as your body will automatically wish to "move with all the beat" without even considering it.

* Find a picture from the internet of the items you would want to appear to be and display it in the place it within an area you are going to see every morning (e.g about the mirror in your bathroom)...Believe it or not, as well as important. Do not skip this. This will help you keep your focus for the "prize" of having that slender body. I chose Mark Wahlberg (as part of his Calvin Klien ad) as a result of his cool physique, not his bad acting...

* Stretch!? Since you just awakened, your muscle mass need a fantastic stretch. Learn from my mistake for not stretching and instructed to take 4 days off as a result of pains during my legs and back. Don’t be a victim.

* And finally, use a burning desire to lose weight! Everyone has their reasons for losing weight. Either it is for your health, self-esteem or if you possess a favorite suit or dress that you simply always wanted to match. Start TODAY - your effort WILL PAY OFF.

So case a fraction of the I learned from not just my buddy, but in addition from that which was learned from "Combat The Fat". I must credit them both for losing 40lbs so far and looking toward reaching my goal of the total of 70 lbs. Other than the end to exercising each morning, this program had assisted with changing my "lifestyle" of the I eat, the amount I eat, the best way to exercise, what areas with the body which need work when. Dieting alone with my creation of your workout plan hasn't worked for me during the past, because the weight-loss only agreed to be temporary(I previously gained back of the items was lost) and in addition felt like I did not know very well what I was doing. Diet pills (I think I've tried all of them) never worked for me either. And finally, my last tip for you all is, have your cheat day(not days) you can eat whatever you want (including a Big Mac), but DO NOT OVER EAT. Changing your "lifestyle" to eat the correct foods also to incorporate daily exercises for your daily routine WILL lower your waistline.

[beyondsims]

Supernatural creatures have a long history with The Sims franchise. Makin’ Magic, back in the days of The Sims 1, introduced a variety of supernatural elements such as vampires, magic, werewolves, etc. In The Sims 2, Vampires became a thing with the addition of The Sims 2 Nightlife where they took on a more traditional look with capes and outdated clothing. With The Sims 3, we had The Sims 3 Late Night and an entire Supernatural expansion pack which built upon Vampires even further. With this long history, it only made sense for The Sims 4 to eventually get them, right?

The Sims 4 Vampires Game Pack takes a different approach to the supernatural scene. Instead of bringing an expansion pack which delves into a variety of different creatures, it focuses purely on Vampires. This ranges from their look, lifestyle, abilities, gameplay, and more. Upon first hearing about a game pack based around Vampires I was skeptical as I found it weird that it wasn’t part of another pack like in the past. But after playing with this game pack, I can say that I have been impressed with the depth and variety that is available which we’ve never seen before.

As always, the question remains as to whether The Sims 4 Vampires is good and therefore whether it’s worth your money. Continue reading our review to find out what’s in the pack, our thoughts, and the final review score! Before we dive into that, here is a high level overview from the game as to what is featured in this game pack:

Create A Sim

Create A Sim is probably the first point of contact that you’ll have with Vampires, if you’re not continuing an existing game or family. In Create A Sim you can now create a Vampire! Sims have their normal form but then their “dark form” which is how they will look when they transform into a Vampire, and you can choose when they switch when you’re playing with them.

Firstly, there’s a variety of new facial features for you to make your vampires look authentic and creepy (or, if you want to go down the Twilight route, you can make them look pretty too). I have made my vampires look like something from Buffy, and let’s face it they were all ugly in their vampire form. You can choose the sort of teeth they have and customise the brows, eyesockets, cheeks, mouth, archetypes, and more. I don’t believe that we’ve had this many customisation options for a supernatural creature in The Sims game before, and perhaps this is because the team were able to focus on just one life state instead of several.

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You can see from the slideshow of images above that vampires can have a variety of different looks, and they look absolutely terrifying! Moving on from the fantastic facial additions, there are a variety of new hairstyles both feminine and one masculine style that comes with the pack. It’d have been nice to see a few more masculine styles, but the ones we have are decent. Moving onto other CAS items, there is new makeup and other assets which all come together to create that vampire look.

There’s also plenty of new clothing items in masculine and feminine flavours, which I LOVE! You can see some of them in the slideshow below but everything from the colours to the gothic vibes come together really well, vampires have a really distinct style in this game pack (if you want them to) because of this.

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And for those asking, yes, you can create vampire toddlers in Create A Sim if you wish. They will acquire more vampire gameplay features as they age.

Finally, to top it all off, there are new aspirations available for your Sims focusing around Vampires, including Family of Vampires and wanting to become a wise and knowledgeable vampire. This is great if you’re a Simmer who likes to complete a variety of new aspirations and this gives you Vampires something to work towards throughout their lifespan!

Create A Sim is amazing for vampires in The Sims and brings a whole new level of customisation to this supernatural creature that we haven’t had before, achievable through the click and drag functionality in CAS and the style that designers went down with the new assets.

Build/Buy Mode

Build and Buy mode is CRAMMED full of new objects that fit well in this pack. Some previous packs, such as Cool Kitchen Stuff, struggled to identify a clear theme when it came to CAS and objects, but Vampires executes this well.

Let’s dig into some of the areas of interest…

Lot Traits

These were introduced to the game with the arrival of City Living back in November and allow each lot to have unique characteristics and features. With the Vampires Game Pack, the development team have added a few new ones that will bring new unique features to your lots.

The first one is “On A Dark Ley Line”, similar to one already in-game. This lot trait will make it likely that your babies will be born as vampires (mind those teeth!). There’s also an option to be a Registered Vampire Lair, and this means that you will get various gifts in the mail from time-to-time. And finally, there’s the Vampire Nexus which makes it more likely for vampires to visit the area. This trait could be useful for community lots, even in other worlds, if you want it to be a great place to hangout after the sun goes away.

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Stylised Rooms

You all know that I adore the Stylised Room feature in The Sims 4. Being useless at building, I find this easy to transform existing houses to include gameplay from various packs or to quickly build up a house. The Sims 4 Vampires brings seven new stylised rooms for you to place into your game.

These incorporate the gothic, “vampire-y” theme well with dark, strong colours and utilise new objects found in build/buy mode.

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I personally love these although they have a very niche theme, so I can’t imagine them being used in other worlds or a variety of builds. I feel like they will fit old, rustic homes that players create, which is fine, although sometimes it can be nice to have areas which work well wherever you put it. But all of these stylised rooms will easily allow you to create your Vampire Lair within minutes, if you’re lazy like me!

Wall Decorations

Now I thought this was pretty neat. When you think wall decorations, you’re probably thinking some nice pictures to pop up on your Sims’ walls. Wrong (sort of). There are some really cool new ways to decorate your homes to make them appear as if they are old and falling apart!

This includes items such as brambles and vines to place on walls, which reminds me of things that you may see on the wall of a traditional pub over here in England. Or, perhaps mainly for use inside of your Sims homes, you can get holes in the wall, cobwebs, and other various items. This is such a small thing that was added but I think it’s one of the coolest things about this expansion pack as I don’t think it’s a type of decoration that has been in a Sims game before.

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Other Various Things

Of course, to make gameplay of Vampires come to life, there’s a variety of objects created for Vampires. There’s the usual things such as new beds, sofas, tables, and various decorations which you can easily utilise in any build. But also, there’s some new unique things.

The coffin is one of these and is a place for your Sim to rest throughout their immortal life (or WooHoo – more on this later), and there’s also garlic for your Sims to hang everywhere in their homes. When a Vampire is near garlic, they will get negative moodlets which will not allow them to perform interactions – this is perfect for keeping them away from your house and from biting your Sims’ necks!

Vampire Gameplay

Vampires in The Sims 4 come with the most in-depth gameplay that we’ve ever seen for a supernatural creature, in my opinion. Let’s dig into some of the cool things that are brought with Vampires…

Firstly, you need to become a Vampire. There are two ways to become a Vampire – the first being in Create A Sim or if you’re playing with an existing/non-vampire sim, you can ask a vampire to turn you. Your Sim will then go through the process of becoming a vampire over the next few days. Once they are a Vampire, you will be able to tell as they transform but also as they will have a new plumbob with a silver ring around it.

When you’re in the process of turning into a Vampire, you will receive a variety of text messages from your neighbourhood friendly vampire providing you tips and making you aware of what is happening to your Sim. You can ask him to stop texting you, but if it’s your first time becoming a Vampire in-game then it’s pretty useful.

Vampires have their own powers which allow them to do more things, similar to the way that you can level up similar to the system found in Dine Out and Get to Work. This perk-based system means you can earn points and eventually you can level up your vampire.

While you can grow as a vampire and get more power, you will also be held back by weaknesses as you gain in strength. I view this similar to the system found in The Sims Medieval where every Hero Sim had to have a bad trait, and it’s a good thing to have. While you may start creating Vampires that are the best in the business, with all possible powers, it’s good to see that there’s something to balance them out so that they’re not unstoppable machines. You can also use these powers to become a bat, which I know many people like. Unlike in TS2/TS3, you can’t follow your bat-sim as they’re flying about but instead they will fly into the air and re-appear where you want them to.

One thing that I love that Vampires can do, because it’s just so fast, is to walk anywhere super fast. Check out how cool it looks!

Vampires do not mix well with both garlic and sunlight, so keep these away! As mentioned before, hanging garlic up in your home will be a bit no-no for Vampires as I found out when my Sim became one! They HATED being inside their own home (I later realised that was because of a piece of garlic I forgot to delete). Sunlight is another thing to stay away from. You will notice that little orange embers will float off of your Vampires when they’re in the daylight… best avoid this because death is almost certain if you let them catch too much of a tan!

Vampires can also have certain interactions that they can perform. This ranges from being able to recall their mortal life, and other chit-chat related things. They can also drink plasma from other Sims, and unlike previous games they do not have to ask to do it either. They can take it from a Sim, although they may not be too happy about it…

There’s also vampire-vampire interactions including the ability to be able to duel each other and show off powers. This intense battle will see your two vampires fight each other, but don’t worry, it’s only playful (I think!).

Plus, speaking of interactions, your vampire Sims can now interact in a whole new way… if you catch my drift. The Sims 4 Vampires brings perhaps the best WooHoo that I have ever seen in a Sims game. It’s hilarious.

You know that coffin that your vampire sleeps in? Well, there’s now the ability to WooHoo in that very coffin. It’s important to note that Sims with good trait will not be able to use the coffin to WooHoo, but otherwise you’re good to go. Watch the video below and prepare to be absolutely mesmerised.

There are plenty more things that Vampires can do in The Sims 4 Vampires Game Pack, and this is only just a flavour of it. Overall, I’m very impressed with the gameplay that Vampires provide. Although I haven’t played with this supernatural creature too much in previous Sims iteration, the depth and gameplay associated with it in The Sims 4 makes it much more tempting and enjoyable. Oh, and did I mention how much I adore the new WooHoo? Hopefully they won’t get a splinter from the coffin…

Forgotten Hollow

Forgotten Hollow, which I keep accidentally calling Midnight Hollow (Sims 3 World), is a brand new world where your Sims can live out their lives (mortal and immortal) in The Sims 4 Vampires. It features five lots which you can customise to your hearts content and is a similar size to the world of Granite Falls from The Sims 4 Outdoor Retreat.

This world has a unique feel to it – very cold, foggy, and dark. You will notice that the days seem shorter, in the distance a fog is always present and it has an eerie feeling to it as your Sims explore the world. This is the perfect style of world for living our your Vampire fantasies in The Sims! Of course, you can still play as vampires in other worlds, but this was made for this. The pre-built houses feature a variety of Vampire families and unique styles

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Forgotten Hollow channels vibes from Midnight Hollow and Magic Town from The Sims 1, in my opinion. There’s a lot of detail to be found throughout the area including crows flying about and landing on objects, dead trees and shrubs, and even small dolls being left beside gravestones. Although San Myshuno is definitely the most advanced Sims world we’ve ever had, I think this world fits perfectly with the theme of the game pack but can also be enjoyed for regular gameplay too, after some renovation of course.

It would have been nice to see more lots available, or perhaps another neighbourhood within the world, as a common complaint with The Sims 4 when it launched was the lack of space to build. But, despite this, it’s a nice world and I look forward to spending a lot of time with my Sims here!

Random Tidbit

One cool thing that I wanted to mention, but haven’t really found a place to put it in the review yet, is the new pipe organ skill. This pipe organ object has been added into the game and it is a neat new object and way for your Sims to skill up!

Conclusion

The Sims 4 Vampires Game Pack brings a lot of things to the table. I will admit I was very hesitant about seeing a game pack focusing around vampires, but now that I have had time to try it I am pleasantly surprised. The team have nailed it in terms of the theme itself and brought a nice amount of CAS items, objects, and deep gameplay. This is the best iteration of Vampires in The Sims to date, but I don’t think it will attract everyone.

Check out our in-depth preview & review of #TheSims4 Vampires! Supernatural creatures have a long history with The Sims franchise. Makin' Magic, back in the days of The Sims 1, introduced a variety of supernatural elements such as vampires, magic, werewolves, etc.

[thesims4sarah]

SILVER SCREEN SIMS LEGACY CHALLENGE - 80'S MOVIES - RULES

When Get Famous came out, I wanted to play a legacy challenge that incorporated some of the new things that came with the pack. I didn't see any right away so I decided it was time to create my own. Spending some time considering a direction, it felt like Get Famous naturally followed to a cinema themed legacy. Hence, the Silver Screen Sims Legacy Challenge. Actually, I developed two different versions of this challenge. This one that is inspired by 80's Movies and another which uses Classic/Golden Ages of Hollywood movies. I put that in its own thread located HERE I worked hard to make sure there is very little overlap of career, aspirations or other tasks between the two. So, you could easily decide to play just one, play both or even have this be one big massive 20 generation legacy if you wanted and not have much repeat itself. The challenges use something from every pack from the Base Game on up to Get Famous. You could probably play around a couple things if you don't have a pack but it is going to be difficult if you have large gaps in the collection. **Edit 1/8/ 2019 ** It was requested that I add an alternative Generation 1 starting path for those that don't have vampires in their game. I think that is a fair request. Aliens felt like a fair trade off. I know that not everybody will have those too but since you have to have a good number of packs to take full advantage of this challenge, there is a good chance most people participating will have either Aliens or Vampires, if not both. So, just select which Generation One you want to use. If you go with Aliens, just note that it requires starting with TWO characters. Thank you to @SoulGal7 for helping me brainstorm! ==== Silver Screen Sims Legacy Challenge - 80's Movies Each generation of this legacy is inspired by a popular and/or cult 80's film. Basic Rules: Start with a Young Adult Sim. Either one you created especially for this or one you previously made. They should, for reasons that will play out in the challenge, human. Gender and any other appearance elements don't matter. Don't cheat unless you are told to in the rules. What's the point of that? There is no point scoring here, just the reward of the fun telling the story of your Silver Screen Sims Legacy. Using creative content is up to you as long as it isn't a cheat or it replaces an object required to complete a generation. I don't use any but that's just a personal choice. Unless otherwise stated in the rules for a generation, you can live anywhere you want. Similarly, color outside the lines all you want as long as you hit the action rules for each generation. Let's get started...... Generation One (Vampire Version): Lost Boys Where is this? It was daylight a minute ago, right? Now its dark, gloomy and that guy over there just licked his lips when you looked at him. Boy, you must have taken a REALLY wrong turn during your walk in the woods. You really should leave but something is compelling you to stay. Traits: Active, Geek, Cat Lover Aspiration: Serial Romantic Career: Culinary - Mixologist Rules: 1. Move into empty house or lot in Forgotten Hollow. 2. Master Vampire Lore and Pipe Organ skills 3. Complete Culinary (Mixologist) career and Serial Romantic aspiration 4. Make a Vampire BFF 5. Woohoo in all of the following locations: Double bed, closet, observatory, lighthouse, pile of leaves, bush and hot tub. Bonus point for coffin. 6. Fall in love with a vampire and turn them back to human before having a child with them. 7. Move to Del Sol Valley once your love is no longer a vampire & child is born. Generation One (Alien Version): My Stepmother Is An Alien Of course you miss Mom. She's been gone a while now though and you've gotten used to it being just you and Dad. Now that he's in his golden years you want to take care of him as well as he has taken care of you all these years. So, when it was time for you to move to a new town, of course you made sure he moved with you. What you didn't expect was once you got there his love life would be out of this world! Traits: Active, Geek, Cat Lover Aspiration: Serial Romantic Career: Culinary - Mixologist Rules: 1. Move yourself and your senior father into an empty house of lot in Newcrest. 2. Complete Culinary (Mixologist) career and Serial Romantic aspiration 3. Woohoo in all of the following locations: Double bed, closet, observatory, lighthouse, pile of leaves, bush and hot tub. Bonus point for Rocket Ship. 4. Have your father fall in love with and marry an alien. The happy couple can either continue to live with you or move out on their own. 7. After all that dating and good times, finally find your real love and have a child. 10. Move to Del Sol Valley shortly after your first child is born. Generation Two: Beverly Hills Cop Suspicion has been the overruling emotion of your life. Relationships? Won’t they just end up hurting you? People on the street? How do you know they didn’t just rob a bank? Your brain is always questioning reality. If you think back, it probably comes from the feeling you could never shake that your parents were hiding something about their past from you…. Traits: Creative, Noncommittal,Squeamish Aspiration: Nerd Brain Career: Detective Rules: 1. Master Comedy skill 2. Complete the Detective career and Nerd Brain aspiration 3. Invite friends over to play poker once a week 4. Only date people you meet via work - either co-workers or people you arrest or meet while investigating crimes 5. Have one child when you are a young adult and another as an adult. Generation Three: Pretty In Pink You do everything in style! Art is your love and you think of style as creating art out of your own body. It’s just a shame so many people don’t know how to dress. You’ve feel so sorry for them that you’ve decided to give your gift to the world and become a stylist. Traits: Art Lover, Neat, Kleptomaniac Aspiration: Party Animal Career: Style Influencer - Stylist Rules: 1. Master Painting and Photography skills 2. Complete Style Influencer (Stylist) career and Party Animal aspiration 3. Always take the Work From Home option 4. Only ever use the sketch pad to create art. The easel is SO yesterday. 5. Use fountain of Mirth at least once. Generation Four: Baby Boom What do you want! IT ALL! When do you want it? As soon as feasibly possible! Why do people think you need to choose between having a successful career and a great family life? You don’t and you are going to prove it! Traits: Family Oriented, Bro, Ambitious Aspiration: Super Parent Career: Business - Investor Rules: 1. Master Charisma and Cooking skills 2. Complete Business (Investor) and Super Parent aspiration 3. Adopt a child on the same day your first blood child (and therefore heir) is born. 4. Live with the partner with whom you’ve had kids but wait until your first child is a young adult to get married. 5. Make popcorn once a week 6. Build a snow pal every winter Generation Five: Raiders of the Lost Ark Phew! Finally out from the grip of your helicopter parent’s control. Of course they loved you and you love them right back. This isn’t about being ungrateful. It’s just that you want to get out and explore and they were always too protective let it happen. Now the world is your smoked oyster! Traits: Loves Outdoors, Goofball, Lazy Aspiration: Archaeology Scholar Career: Writer - Author Rules: 1. Join the scouting after school career 2. Master Selvadoradian Culture and Guitar skill 3. Complete Writer (Author) and Archaeology Scholar aspiration 4. Have one long term relationship in your normal town and one in Selvadorvia. Decide which one to marry on the birthday when you become an adult. 5. Create a holiday that has Bar-B-Que as a tradition. Generation Six: Tootsie You are the best actor the world has ever known. It’s just that the world doesn’t know it yet because you can’t pass any auditions. Could it be something about the way you look? What if you changed it. REALLY changed it? Traits: Snob, Loner,Perfectionist Aspiration: Master Actress/Actor Career: Acting Rules: 1.Join after school drama club 2. Master dancing skill 3. When you become a young adult, change your hairstyle to one originally designated for the opposite gender. At least one item of clothing should also fit that description. 4. Complete Acting career and Master Actress/Actor aspiration. 5. Make at least two wishing well wishes 6. Have a ‘squad’. Generation Seven: Heathers Revenge is best carried out when you look FAB! Everybody wants to be just like you. If they don’t they should! They can either follow your lead or pay the consequences. Either way, you'll be wearing a ...um..killer...outfit when it all goes down. Traits: Evil, Insider, Cheerful Aspiration: Leader of the Pack Career: Secret Agent - Villain Rules: 1. Create a club populated other Sims with mean or evil traits 2. Master Mischief and Fitness skills 3. Complete Secret Agent (Villain) career and Leader of the Pack aspiration 4. Try every bubble machine flavor 5. Never wear jeans 6. Marry somebody with the ‘good’ trait Generation Eight: Money Pit You are so embarrassed by your parents. You are SO much better than them. Even if it’s only you and your mirror that believes it. Everything became too much to handle and you had to flee them all and get a place of your own. It might be a dump now but it is YOUR dump. One day, it’ll be the mansion a gem like you deserves. Traits: Materialistic,Self-Absorbed,Outgoing Aspiration: Mansion Baron Career: Painter - Patron of the Arts Rules: 1. Move into a low-grade home in any neighborhood. 2. Set three trait lots. One must be “Cursed’,the other two are up to you. 3. Master Handiness and Rocket Science skills 4. Complete Painter (Patron of the Arts) and Mansion Baron aspiration 5. Always celebrate birthdays with a honey cake 6. Have a swing set Generation Nine: War Games People are okay but computers are better. You just know all that time spent in your bedroom becoming a keyboard commander will pay off one day. Who knows, maybe you’ll even use them to save the world? Traits: Genius, Good, Unflirty Aspiration: Computer Whiz Career: Tech Guru - eSport Gamer Rules: 1. Master Logic and Piano skills 2. Complete Tech Guru (eSport Gamer) career and Computer Whiz aspiration 3. Play chess at a public chess table at least once a week 4. Win Hackathon at Geekcon 5. Be good friends with Potty Mouth 2.0 6. Marry somebody that you beat in chess Generation Ten: Desperately Seeking Susan Fame is everything. You want it. You want to be around it as much as possible. Stalker? Never! No matter what the police say. Devoted fan? You’ll always be that! Traits: Music Lover, Erratic, Vegetarian Aspiration: World-Famous Celebrity Career: Critic - Arts Critic Rules: 1. Master Singing and Flower Arranging skills 2. Complete Critic (Arts Critic) career and World-Famous Celebrity aspiration 3. Collect at least five proper celebrity (or above) autographs 4. Complete festival t-shirt collection 5. Go on dates with three celebrities 6. Have a kid with a celebrity Have fun! I can't wait to see what stories plat out. Share as much as possible! Use #SilverScreenSims in the Gallery and on social media so we can follow each other's progress there too. I plan on streaming a lot of my legacy play on Twitch. I'm Sims4Sarah everywhere.

[prohealths]

Altitude Camp with Brooks Running

Hi, guys!

I had such an amazing weekend in Albuquerque! Seriously, it was an unforgettable experience and so incredibly inspiring. I had the opportunity to attend Altitude Camp with Brooks Running and train with the Brooks Beasts. It was so cool to see what training like an elite runner is all about, including learning about their workouts, nutrition, coaching, and more. And, of course, I loved spending time and catching up with my favorite blog ambassadors, so it was a fun reunion for me, too! Actually, a lot of awesome things happened over the weekend at Altitude Camp, so I decided to share them in a Top 10 24 list. (There was NO WAY that I could have fit all of the great stuff that happened into 10 items!) Ok, here we go!

1. Seamless travel. No delays or hiccups. Travel to and from Albuquerque was all smooth sailing!

2. Beautiful weather. When I left Boston on Friday morning, it was 18 degrees F and snow and ice covered the ground, so arriving in Albuquerque was basically the best thing ever. Hello, sunshine!

3. The hotel (and its adorable front desk staff). Brooks picked a wonderful hotel to host our stay. It was really nice, and the staff was super accommodating to our endless requests for more water and coffee. #thingsrunnerslove

4. New running gear. Woohoo! Brooks totally hooked us up! More details below!

5. Reuniting with friends. My gosh, I love our blogger group so much. What an amazing group of women runners. I’m so lucky to know them and absolutely love spending time with them. They inspire me on so many levels.

Gear details:

Pick Up Tank Top (formerly named the Go-To Tank – also my favorite running tank ever): I love this tank because it stays put. I’m not a fan of flow-y tops that fly up and ride up during workouts. This tank is a reliable racerback that feels as good as it fits. It’s soft, stretchy, and really moves with you. It’s a staple in my workout gear (I wear them for all kinds of workouts), and it’s perfect for layering as well as wearing on its own, especially for super sweaty workouts. FYI: A bunch of different colors are on sale for just $21! Time to stock up!

Greenlight Capris: I can’t believe these are my first pair of Greenlight Capris. I’ve heard other people rave about them in the past, and now I know why they’re so popular! They fit really well with a wide, flat “power waist” that slims and stays put. They come up pretty high on your waist (but still below your bellybutton), so there’s no need for a drawstring. And the fabric is very Lululemon-esque: smooth, soft, and hugs in all the right places. FYI: Some colors are on sale for $45 right now!

NEW Juno Sports Bra: The Juno is my favorite sports bra for running, so I was happy to hear that Brooks recently made some minor upgrades to further improve it. Now it’s lighter, more breathable, and easier to get on and off. (They reshaped the keyhole in the back to give you a little more space to get out.) The stitching is now fully-bonded, which means it won’t rub or chafe your skin. And, of course, it still has it’s signature front-adjustable straps, which ensures the perfect fit. It’s also an amazing sports bra for breastfeeding moms!

Chaser 3′ Shorts (on Meghann and pictured below): I have a couple pairs of these shorts already and love them for warm weather workouts, so I’m especially excited to own this new pattern! These shorts are lightweight and move with you while the knit “power waist” stays put without a drawcord to keep you comfortable. The waist also has two pockets (one sweat-resistant; fits an iPhone 6), which are super convenient for fuel, keys, IDs, etc.

6. Meeting new runner friends. Brooks invited quite the awesome crew of media folks to Altitude Camp, and I’m so glad that I had the chance to get to know some of them. Aren’t runners just the best!? Related: My new runner friend Anoush recently wrote this piece that I really liked, so I just wanted to share: There Really Are No Set Rules For Marathon Training.

7. A track workout at altitude. Sprinting at 6,000+ feet was realllllly challenging and “fun” at the same time. My lungs only felt like exploding out of my chest a few times!

8. Pushing myself. Guys, running at altitude is crazy. Within seconds, I felt a difference in my breathing. I remember during the warm-up thinking: How the heck am I going to get through this workout? I wanted to stop and walk after the first 400 meter jog. By the end of the workout though, I managed to shave off about 8 seconds from my first 200 meter sprint to the third (and final one – thank God)!

9. Finishing a track workout at altitude. Seriously, it’s a workout that I will never forget! It also inspired me to incorporate more of this type of training into my regular workouts.

10. Listening to Danny Mackey talk about what goes into coaching the Brooks Beasts. His philosophies are so inspiring and have resulted in amazing accomplishments for the Beasts. Brooks really has something special with the relationship between Danny and the Beasts!

11. An early-morning trail run with the Brooks crew, which was probably my favorite part of the entire trip. What an incredible experience, and I can’t thank Brooks enough for it!

12. Trying out new trail running gear. The Cascadia Running Jacket is frickin’ awesome (and its not just for trail running). It’s made from a water- and wind-resistant fabric, so it shields you from rain and wind, but has plenty of ventilation too with cutouts on the sides and underarms to keep you both covered and cool at the same time. You can even throw it on over your pack, thanks to an expandable back panel. And, this is really neat, when the sun comes out and you no longer need the jacket, you can fold it up, nice and neat, right into its own front pocket. How cool is that?

I also loved testing out the Caldera Trail-Running Shoes! They’re super cushy, but lightweight and responsive at the same time. They provide a good amount of stability, which kept me cruising along on the tricky terrain. I didn’t think I would notice all that much difference between a regular running shoe and a trail-running shoe, but the Caldera definitely made for a more comfortable ride on the trail run!

13. Catching up with my friends/blog buddies. I’m so fortunate to know these ladies, and I love that I consider so many of them “real life” friends now!

14. The sights and sounds of a trail run in Albuquerque. #blessed

16. Feeling allthefeels on this run. Without sounding too cheesy, this run was emotional, cathartic, and maybe even a bit spiritual (?) for me. I haven’t run very much since November because of a hip injury. I’m doing physical therapy twice a week now, which has helped tremendously, but it’s a slow process. I was just so grateful to get in some running without a ton of pain.

17. Taking a moment post-run to articulate how running makes me feel.

18. The energy-bar competition. Brooks challenged us to create homemade energy-bars, which were then judged by the Beasts.

Our bars were a mix of oats, almond butter, honey, and chia seeds with a drizzle of almond butter and honey on top. Recipe credit goes all to Emily on this one!

19. Our team winning the competition!!

20. Having a cookout with the Brooks Beasts. I really enjoyed getting to know some of them better and learning more about their individual training. Shout out to Katie Mackey, who answered ALL of our questions!

21. Spending time with these lovely ladies. I know I’ve mentioned this a few times now, but they’re truly the best!

22. Finally meeting Brian from Pavement Runner. I’ve followed him for YEARS on social media, so it was great to meet him in person!

23. The Albuquerque sunset.

24. Taking over the Brooks Running Instagram Stories on Saturday. It was such a great opportunity, and I had a ton of fun sharing our adventures with their followers!

Question of the Day

How does running make YOU feel?

The post Altitude Camp with Brooks Running appeared first on Carrots ‘N’ Cake.

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[waylonkfjg263-blog]

Congratulations! Your Weight Loss & Control Is (Are) About To Stop Being Relevant

After many years of hanging out with the inventors drinking beer, the weekly family functions that offer a huge buffet of foods, and lastly the daily routine of obtaining junk food. ... the calories had begun to show. Let's face it, it's hard trying to juggle the whole way of life and forgetting what we're doing to your bodies. After many years of packing for the pounds, I finally said I was planning to shed weight and STICK WITH IT!

So here was my real motivation to get started. My younger brother recently joined the army together pointed out that he transformed from the pudgy punk to the super-soldier that took him lower than 3 months to change. It was like 24 / 7!! With results prefer that, I asked myself, I think I need to sign up the army to get rid of this gut! Well, the army is not to me - I fully support our troops but I'm sorry, it isn't for me. With my health going down, my romantic endeavors virtually non-existent, and noticing that I've been getting sick and tired with everything I do, I finally located the realization that I needed help. So I swallowed my pride and asked my buddy what I are capable of doing. So my cousin gave me some advice and recommended me to see and consume a course called "Combat The Fat" from. Apparently from what I gathered out of this course, it revealed training that most military personnel endured every single day, however, it was tailored for the average joe. The one tip that I can remember him giving me before deploying overseas, ended up being workout each morning. Soldiers don't wait to work out at nighttime - they workout every day. This was most likely the best tip that was presented to me to jump-start my quest to reduce weight and STICKING TO IT!

Without a doubt, I knew it was not likely to be easy as I usually awakened at 7 am to get ready by 8 am and to become at benefit 9 am. This would mean I would must 'sacrifice' a half-hour of my precious, precious sleep. Well, this was until I viewed my "jelly belly" and, nothing spent some time working and I need to do this. And as I gathered additional information from your course, it made me recognize that there are several benefits to exercising each morning than later in the day.

See below for that benefits I experienced.

* I feel so energized to begin the afternoon and satisfied it is DONE and out of the way! No more excuses!!

* I burn calories for hours while I'm sleeping. Now I can burn MORE CALORIES and MORE FAT each morning since there is nothing during my stomach.

* I now really enjoy breakfast (rather than missing breakfast - that was a major no-no for me previously). Yes - trust me, you may be very hungry after your workout! Just remember - no bacon as well as other greasy foods...Since I have a tight schedule inside am, fruits and cereals worked for me along with a protein shake (I use Vanilla Whey Maxx from - tastes great, quick to make[no blender needed] and it has over 24 grams of protein per scoop).

* It had opened selecting participating in an activity/sport at nighttime. In my case, I like to ride my bike, rollerblade, or play golf(walking while using pull cart) whenever I have time or if the weather conditions permit it.

* I was encouraged to choosing healthier foods since I would feel guilty about eating a donut or fried chicken or a Big-Mac during the morning (why waste such a great workout?)

* If there is a morning that I cannot arrive at a fitness center, I made sure I was there at night. (providing me 2 chances to arrive at the gym).

* If you visit a gym, there are far fewer people at a fitness center. No waiting for machines, exercise ball, workout bench or free-weights.

So, you need to be convinced given that morning work outs are more potent. If so, expect an adjustment period. The same way you're jet-lagged after a distant trip or drowsy once you suddenly ought to switch from the graveyard shift with a regular 9 to 5 shift, exercising each morning will need some lag time. Here are several of my tips that can help you get going when you get up in the morning.

* Go to bed an hour earlier. I used to go to bed at about 2 am each night. Since I know now that you simply burn calories as you sleep, I changed my sleeping patterns to retire for the night at 11:00 pm.

* Get an excellent alarm clock - I have 2 alarms (Sony alarm clock and cellphone alarm) to wake me up for 6 am.

* Get a timer that turns on the lights for you. I purchased the light source switch where turns on my light at 6 am. You can also check out Homedepot and pick one up too.

* Brush your teeth and wash the face. - this should help you feel a lot fresher each morning.

* Have your exercise routine schedule ready the night time before. Since I was with all the info from Combat The Fat, it provided me a straightforward schedule to check out with various exercises every day, eliminating boredom.

* Have training session clothes prepared the night time before. - I have woken up often times in the morning and discovered myself wasting many precious minutes scrambling looking for clothes, shoes, water bottle, etc. This step eliminates that possibility.

* Bring a person. - Since I got my spouse with it, the two of us help each other to get up and do our workout. This has not merely improved my relationship with my partner, but I'm receiving targeted sex today! Woohoo! :-)

* Try to make your morning doing exercises as convenient as you can by either creating your home gym or picking a gym that is near to your work/home. - I liked the house gym option as it enables me to watch the morning news while I'm about the treadmill. (I attached a smaller LCD screen with it) :-)

* Get an iPod or Mp3 player to aid with your motivation. - My wife uses her iPod to maintain her motivated throughout her workout. As a helpful tip, choose fast-paced music as your body will automatically need to "move using the beat" without even considering it.

* Find a picture from your internet products you would need to appear to be and display it in a put it in a area you may see every morning (e.g about the mirror inside your bathroom)...Believe it or not, as well as important. Do not skip this task. This will help you maintain your focus about the "prize" of experiencing that slender body. I chose Mark Wahlberg (in the Calvin Klien ad) because of his cool physique, not his bad acting...

* Stretch!? Since you just wakened, your muscle mass need a fantastic stretch. Learn from my mistake for not stretching and instructed to take 4 days off due to pains inside my legs and back. Don’t be considered a victim.

* And finally, have a very burning desire to shed weight! Everyone has their reasons for shedding pounds. Either it's for your health, self-esteem or if you have a very favorite suit or dress that you always wanted to squeeze into. Start TODAY - your efforts WILL PAY OFF.

So this is just a fraction products I learned from not only my brother, but also from the thing that was learned from "Combat The Fat". I ought to credit them both for losing 40lbs so far looking to reaching achieve of your total of 70 lbs. Other than the top to working out each day, this program had assisted with changing my "lifestyle" of what I eat, the amount I eat, the way to exercise, what areas with the body that require work then when. Dieting alone with my creation of a workout plan has never worked for me personally during the past, since the weight-loss only agreed to be temporary(I previously gained back of the items was lost) and in addition felt like I did not know very well what I was doing. Diet pills (I think I've tried every one of them) never worked to me either. And finally, my last tip to you personally all is, have your cheat day(not days) you can eat anything you want (including a Big Mac), but DO NOT OVER EAT. Changing your "lifestyle" to eat the correct foods and also to incorporate daily exercises for a daily routine WILL lower your waistline.