First Day at Dolphin House
October 12th, 2004
Neptune and Sea were already at Dolphin House, as the royal refuge had been dubbed, when Marina and Salty finally arrived. Neptune bowed low in greeting before his exiled queen, but she would have none of it. "This is a new life, Neptune. I'm not your queen anymore."
"You'll always be my queen," he said, but cringed inwardly when he realized how silly he sounded. To cover up the awkwardness he suddenly felt, he offered to show the new arrivals their new house.
But Marina wanted to her first impression of her dwelling to be without any commentary so she led the tour. She went to the backyard first because she wanted to view the pool and entertainment area.
Welcome to Pirate's Cove
October 12th, 2004
To commemorate the 25th anniversary of Pleasantview, the city council held a "Rename the Town" contest. In an effort to reinvigorate the flagging tourist industry, the mayor decided the town needed a name that was a bit more…exciting. "We would like a name that stirs the imagination. A name that inspires curiosity. That's the way to draw in the tourists," said the mayor at a press conference last month.
The contest was open to anyone of any age and resulted in a wide variety of entries. It was not until the city council read the entry of a student from Mortimer Goth Elementary that they knew they had found their winner. "The name is perfect," said the mayor, "We think it will help bring the tourists into town in their curiousity to discover the origin of the name."
In an elaborate ceremony complete with trumpet-weilding heralds, the mayor announced the winning name yesterday. "From now on Pleasantview will be known as 'Pirate's Cove,'" said the mayor. She also introduced John Hillock, the young boy who was responsible for the new name. Hillock came to the ceremony appropriately dressed in a pirate costume. When asked what had inspired his entry, Hillock responded, "I think pirates are cool." His mother, Joyce Hillock, commented as well, "John has always been interested in pirates. I have a hard time even cleaning his costume—he wears it all the time."
The newly dubbed Pirate's Cove is actually aptly named. About two centuries ago, Pirate's Cove was a haven for the infamous Dread Pirate Roberts. After raiding ships on the open sea, Roberts would return to this cove and hide out until he felt the urge to raid again. Perhaps some of Roberts treasure is buried somewhere around here? Who knows? Whatever the case, it seems that the new name is already doing its job of stirring the imagination and inspiring curiosity. Welcome to Pirate's Cove, matey. Arrrrrr!
Meet the Kelps
October 10th, 2004
Marina is an exiled queen from the undersea kingdom of Poseidonis. After months of searching, those who were still loyal to her, found their queen a refuge in the small town of Pleasantview. (Marina and her people are amphibious so living on land is not a problem especially since they would have access to swimming pools and hot tubs.) The house isn't nearly as big and grand as the royal palace or even the royal vacation cottage, but Marina's glad to have any place that she can call home. On her journey to Pleasantview she's had a lot of time to think and has decided that the best way to start her "normal" life is to get a job as a campaign worker. This way, she can get to know her new community at the grassroots level. And, maybe someday, she'll once again govern people.
The Strudels Arrive
October 8th, 2004
The taxi from Sim City dropped the Strudels off at their new house before the movers had even arrived. Art whipped out his cell phone and called the moving company just as the van pulled onto the lot. The movers apologized profusely and unpacked as quickly as they could. As they toiled, Art and Andi tried to keep the girls entertained.
Meet the Strudels
October 7th, 2004
Andi Strudel, a teacher in the public school system of Sim City, was offered a job as a scientist in Pleasantview. She talked it over with her husband Art and they decided that it would not only be a smart move for her career but it would give him an excuse to quit his high-stress job as business manager at the mental health center. It will take a lot of studying on her part to get her up to speed on the research at the lab, but Andi's looking forward to the challenge. She'll be starting her new job as soon as Kim is of school-age.