MITCHELL AND MICHAEL HAVE RETURNED!

All of my old SIMS 2 files have now been moved to the new computer, and Mitchell and Michael have been released "from intensive care" where they have resided for the last year and a half, and have taken up residence in Koziville, their new home!  


Here is Michael, trying to make a date with his wife from the old game, Dorothy....

Elsewhere in Kozivile....

Mojo and Mojolita are about to have another baby while Mojo, JR. gets ready to graduate high school...

Mayor-Elect Ken Kozi is in a love triangle...

Ted ("Bo") Boabdil made the move from the other side of the Utherverse...

A new stranger in town, Lola Lavalips is raising havoc... and heart rates!

And Pamela and Joseph Rumduddle just found out that those were NOT gas pains that Pamela felt after eating Joseph's cooking, but just nature's way of saying, "Congratulations, the stork is on it's way!"

Stay tuned for more zany adventures, folks!

THE IMMINENT RETURN OF MITCHELL AND MICHAEL IS UPON US!

Hey everyone!  I just bought a new CompaqCQ5700F a week ago, and am in the process of moving all my SIMS2 files from the old computer to the new computer, and will be installing SIMS2 sometime over the weekend, woot!

I have also decided to "re-boot" Mitchell and Michael's story line and possibly hook then up with a whole new set of friends, but don't dispair over Judy and Dorothy---They will be re-written into the story somehow, I'm just not sure how.  Of course, this means that when Mitchell and Michael do get married eventually, they might be married to different sims entirely.  One tradition that will carry over from the old storyline is that I will name thier children after my siblings, Terry, Tom, Tim, Marley (Pat) and Marty, and might even reach back a few generations to the Maruskas and the Dargans as well as the Spielmans on Mom's side of the family, but also the Horstmans on Dad's side of the family.

Meet the uncles!

Mitchell and Michael are not the only set of Meyer twins in Covert Cove...Meet their uncles, Anthony and Aloysius!

Now, where did I come up with names like that?  Well, Anthony is my middle name, and Aloysius is an uncle of mine that died in infancy, about 1918.  I'm guessing at the year, as Mom rarely spoke about him.  Somewhere in the family history, compiled by my second cousin, Paul Maruska, lie all the facts.  I'll update them as I dig into the archives.

Here is Uncle Anthony:

(Looks a lot like me, but alas...SEVERAL pounds lighter---No comments from the peanut gallery!

And Uncle Aloysius:

This is what I would look like if I had a goatee.  I saw a recent picture of me with a moustache, and after seeing all that grey,I have sworn off facial hair for the rest of my life!!

Mitchel and Michael send their love!

Mitchell dropped me a post card recently.  (Wow---I didn't know that Sims could do that, LOL!) It says:

"Dear Sim Dad and fans,

My bro Michael and I are having a fun time here on our extended vacation from Covert Cove.  We're not sure when we'll get back, but we just want you all to know that we're okay and getting plenty of rest and having some great quality time with our wives and kiddies. 

Whoa...did I just say "Kiddies"?  Oops!  I guess time has flown by so quickly...I forget sometimes that Theresa Mary will be leaving for college in another year, and Michael's boy, Thomas is just a year behind his cousin in age, so I guess that we can't really call them "kiddies" anymore, LOL!  But Timothy John is in kindergarten now, and growing like a weed.  Theresa Mary keeps threatening us with eloping with some boy that we've never met, and personaly...I think that's just a ruse to get our attention.  The truth is, she's got a new boyfriend every weekend!

(Michael adds his own note)

Well, hi ho everyone!  Yes, Mitchell and I are having a great time with our wives here on vacation while we wait for the upgrades to Covert Cove to be completed.  We're not really in a rush to get back, to tell you the truth!  Judy and I have been getting especially close since the birth of our second child, Timothy John, and I've been asked to join the board of directors at Covert Mercy Hospital.  I'm so excited!  This does mean however, that with this change plus with both Mitchell's and my kids getting older, that it is time that we split up households.  We'll still be close, in fact, Judy and I are only going next door, so we'll be close! After all...with both of our kids getting ready for college and possibly mariage in a few years (And with that---our first grandchildren, YIKES!), it just isn't practical to share space anymore.  The two familes inder one roof thing was great when our kids were babies and children, but with the exception of Timothy John, they're almost adults.  It will be a sad transition since Mitch and I have lived together first as kids in our parent's house, and then as swinging batchelors, and then as newlyweds and as young marrieds, so we've never been apart before.  Mitch and I have shared EVERYTHING since birth except girlfirends, and of course, wives, so it will be odd waking up with just my own family under one one roof.  Being the emotional one, I know that I'll probably have a harder time adjusting to spliting up.  Mitch is the tough, athletic jock, so I know that he'll adjust better than I will!

Sniff..I miss him already!

(Mitchell adds a few more words)

Well, Mikey spilled the beans, (and from the smell around here, probably ate some too, LOL!) and yes, the dynamic duo of Mitchell and Michael are spliting up...SOMEWHAT...It won't be the dramatic split that Mikey describes, but hey, it will be wierd not having to listen to his constant humming like I've had to listen to for the last 35 years!

(Wow..are we that old already?  Wow, time does fly, as they say!)

Anyway, since we will be sharing a fence, it won't be like we're miles away, and as for storyline, it will only get better, I promise!  Well, we'll be back soon, fans.  Thanks for droping by the blog and checking in on us.  We love you and we would not be anything without you, our fans!


Love and kisses,

Mitchell
Michael
Dorothy
Judy
Thomas Edwin
Theresa Mary
Timothy John

P.s.  ---Mitch, I do NOT hum!
P.ss.---Mikey, yes, you do, and it drives me nuts...always has!
Psss.  Mitch---Oh really?  35 years with you and you are just now bringing this up?
Pssss.  Mikey...we need to talk!
Psssss.  Mitch...damned straight we do, but later, okay? "

"...When you were talking about the fork in the road...there are other forks further along the road...so many!" (Betty Davis as Charlotte Vale, in "Now, Voyager")

Well, apparently, fate has decided that I do indeed take that other fork in the road, where the former SIMply Edward turned Michael's Musings forum was hacked on October 21th.  I was of course, in a panic as I received an email approximately at 10 PM telling me that my account on my own forum had
been deleted.  Edward warned me just a few days ago what the warning signs are that a person has hacked your forum, and that was when I realized that my forum had indeed
been hacked.  I contacted Edward immediately.  Well, after about an hour of trying to get the old forum back, I went ahead and played around with the forumotion site, and while Edward was giving it one last try, I started the new Michael's Musings and after I told Edward, we mutually agreed that it was indeed for the best, and Edward even said later that the imbecile that hacked the form was doing him a favor, and I came to the same conclusion, because one problem that I anticipated was with any new people reading posts from the old forum and getting quite confused. 

Let me tell you a story.  It will act as an analogy to how I feel about the present:

A number of years ago, a Latino cutie pie broke my heart after a year's exchange of emails, chats and gifts back and forth.  She finally had enough courage to write me and tell me that she had met someone else and didn't know how to tell me.
When I finally got her "Dear John" letter, I cried like a baby for two whole days, and found solstice with something that my sister, Terry told me.  She said, "The best revenge is success!"

Well, I think that the new Michael's Musings is a success...we already have six new members, three of which are designers---
top notch STAR designers---so we're off to a good start!

And Michael' s Musings is back like a phoenix from the grave, and I think that we're better than ever, and as Charlotte Vale says at the end of Now, Voyager, "...don't let's ask for the moon. We have the stars!"

You can find me and my stars at:
http://michaelsmusings.forumotion.net/index.htm

The decision was made for me!

Readers,

You will remember that last time, I was asking you if I should go ahead and start my own Sim forum, or if you could, to please talk me out of it.  Well, about ten days ago, the decision was made for me.  I didn't even have to put it to a vote.  I had fallen asleep early a week ago last Tuesday evening, and I woke up early Wednesday (The 6th) morning about 4 AM.  Still groggy from sleep, but rested and bored, I turn on Facebook.  There was Edward with a message for me in live chat.  He basically said, "If you would like, please go to this link!"

...I went to the link, not knowing what to expect.   I had pretty much said my goodbyes to the forum once known as SIMply Edward.  I mourned the passing of a great forum, and I had moved on, having just re-connected with Colour Sims a few days prior.  I thought, "Well, that is that...it's over...done...finit.  Time to move on, Michael!". I really thought that SIMply Edward was gone the way of the dinosaur...

Well, was I in for the shock of the year, if not my whole life!

...Loading...loading...loading...

And then...in front of me..like Zeus's daughters being released from a many century's long sleep...

It was surreal..SIMply Edward was back!  Edward had spoken with Andrew, and they agreed:  Give the form to me, and re-name it "Michael's Musings"  And so, just like the muses of Kubla Khan, the forum once known as SIMply Edward and The Playhouse has risen up from the grave like a phoenix to inspire once more! 

I was in such shock...I almost felt like crying, I was so happy, but I couldn't.  It was like the story of a French king who, upon being presented with a golden statue, just stares at it for hours on end, unable to speak.  Or, my late brother Tom when he got a Lionel Train for Christmas back in the 1950's...he just sat there...didn't speak a word...just played with his train and completely blocked out the whole world.

Well, I have a a lot to learn, folks...I've been a moderator at SIMply Edward's and another forum for about a year, but never an administrator!  One of the first permanent changes that I made to the site was that I added Google Translate.  I'm thinking of adding it here as well.  I got the idea when I visited Sims Cafe.  I've changed the look at least a half dozen times, as I'm still experimenting, and I will leave the old posts intact.  Also, Edward's rules were perfect for me, so I won't be changing them, but I will institute a new ban policy.  Hopefully, I won't ever have to use it, except to ban malicious IP addresses.  In short, the first ban will be three days, second one will be a week and a warning, and the third one will be like a certain Ray Charles classic!
OTHER NEWS:

Well, I got around to buying my friend Lynn's old ATA 200GB hard drive, and Lynn will install it hopefully Tuesday of this coming week, and as soon as that's done, I will be re-installing Sims 2 on the new hard drive, with all of the EPs!  (Well, there's about two or three stuff packs that I haven't gotten yet, but I'll take care of that hopefully within the next month, after I upgrade the memory on this old beast, and upgrade my drivers---I highly recommend UNIBLUE'S POWER SUITE!  I used to have it installed, but my computer crashed, and I had to re-install XP Pro, and next thing you know...I also lost the key code!  So, after I get the hard drive installed, upgrade the memory and get UNIBLUE (again!), I'll be done with this computer's upgrades.  After that...it will be time to get a new computer!

After those upgrades are all done...I'm off to designing my first recolor.  Stay tuned for the details!

Oh, and before I forget...here's where you can find Michael's Musings:

http://simplyedward2.forumotion.net/forum.htm

Taking a swim break!

I need to turn off the grid lines next time, but wouldn't this make for an interesting murder mystery novel cover?

"Murder In Covert Cove" By Sim Dad Michael

 I love it!

Okay, Simon & Schuster, I'm ready!

Another "MoveObjects on" blooper!

This one was planned...

Sorry, I didn't make a video for this one, but honestly...do I even need one here?  This is what you get when you mess around with the "moveObjects on" cheat.

And here's an somewhat "new" character that I introduced into the game, Michael Diablo".  You see, Michael Diablo is actually an "Evil twin" that I created of Michael, and respectively, I also created one of Mitchell, but more on this later:

This one was not planned...

I'm not sure why this happened, but I do know that I indeed left the "moveObjects on" cheat on a little longer than what I had needed, and the next thing you know, Michael thinks that he's either Fred Astaire or Lionel Ritchie, LOL!

Hope Ministries | Giving hope. Changing lives.

Hope Ministries Giving hope. Changing lives.
http://www.hopeiowa.org/flash/serving_homeless.htm

Mitchell and Michael have graciously given me space to write a few words about Hope Ministries.  I was homeless in late 2006, and to make a long story short, I entered the recovery program at The Door of Faith in January of 2007.  I took a detour in my recovery program in May of 2007, and spent a month with a family from church that graciously allowed me to live with them on practically a moment's notice.  30 days later, I re-entered the recovery program on July 3rd, 2007, where I immediately resumed my duties at the front desk and as the weekend cook.  With my batteries recharged, I kept to my recovery program, and in March of 2008, I graduated.  You can see me with my family in this video:  At the part where you hear applause, you'll see a big burly dude with a shaved head...THAT'S ME!  And the little guy with an equally shaved head is my brother in law, Fred, and the sweet brunette standing next him is my sister, Terry...my muse and "favorite sister".  And in the brown sweater is my brother, Marty, with whom I share an immense love for the game, Balderdash! 

Oh, and Marty...I'm not  a haboob, you are, ya bum...ya bum...ya bum, LOL!
(Sorry, private Meyer Family joke!)

Opps!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRbK6Fo3xow
This is what happens when you use the "moveObjects On" cheat, then move a sim out of a hot tub, then remove the hot tub.  I had seen similar posts on You Tube, and wondered if I could make that trick work, and apparently, the answer is YES!

Mitchell and Michael---the story so far in pictures

This is Mitchell. Mitchell  is the youngest of the twins, being born just minutes after Michael, on Monday, June 5th, 1961, at Allen Memorial Hospital, Waterloo, Iowa.  Like his human counterpart (ahem...that's me!), Mitchell is adventurous and a risk taker, but far more athletic than I.  Mitchell is also quite the ladies man, and works out regularly to keep his muscular frame in top shape.  Mitchell isn't a narcissist person, but doggone it, he worked hard to get that physique and he isn't shy showing off his body, and goes through a wardrobe faster than you can say "Narnia".  And he always seems to know where Maxis hides that in-game camera!

Michael, on the other hand...

Well, Michael is a really nice guy, but hon-nee, let's get those fab five out of retirement already, shall we?  Well, I have actually experimented with Mitchell and Michael's looks a lot since I started going on a downloading binge, and well...it does look better for Michael, but I'll get to that later. Unlike his human counterpart, THIS Michael is a real bookworm.  (Like the 1950's fraternity sweater didn't give that one away already?!) Even so, the real me NEVER looked this good when I was matriculating at Columbus High School, so I must have been a real nerd, huh?   Meanwhile, here's a few pictures of Mitchell and Michael after they first moved in:

When Mitchell and Michael moved out of their parent's house, they didn't have a lot of money, so mommy Margaret---who never knew the meaning of the phase, "cut the apron strings"--- 

bought them a whole set of clothes.  See how mommy dressed "her two widdle men"? Ugh!  How embarrassing!  I mean, they're adults now...shouldn't they be beyond that? 

Well, it could get worse....

Way, way, worse.  Observe:

That's Mitchell on his first day at work as a team mascot for the Covert Cove Llamas!

Michael, trying his best to look as hunky as Mitchell.  He should loose the glasses, right?

Michael on his first day at work as an EMT.

Funny what a white lab coat can do to  make a guy look importiant!

Here's one of Mitchell after the first make over and before he and his brother went "on strike". 

Mitchell and Michael's den!

Here's the den, looking left...

And the den, looking right as you enter it from the living room.  I can't recall where all of the furnishings came from, but as memory serves me correctly, the majority of the furnishings are from Mango Sims, the wall coverings are from Sugah's Place, and there's a couple of tall floor lamps that are just behind the field of view here that are from Colour Sims.  I just had to have a touch of Art Deco in this house, and you'll see my Art Deco ladies just behind Mango's black chairs in the top picture.

And of course, my favorite "accessory" of the all...

My boys, Mitchell and Michael, after one of my infamous make overs!  (More on that later)  Notice the floor lamp behind Michael's elbow?

And here they are, enjoying a relaxing moment in Mango's black chairs:

Michael....

And Mitchell (l) , again, with Michael.  Yes, I had given the boys a make over, and while I am quite pleased the general look, I realized that I was aging them a bit too fast, and so THEY decided to go on strike until I changed them back.  Well, we worked out a compromise:  They kept their goatees, but lost the grey, and Mitchell went back to his wavy hair and ditched the "George Clooney on ER" look, trimmed his goatee down to a soul patch and lost the shades, and Michael also went back to dark brown but kept the glasses and the cap, and I let the boys go shopping for some new non-matching outfits to "compensate for pain and suffering"  (What a couple of brats, huh?)  But they assured "Dad" that once they hit 35, they would go back to this look.  This is a shot of the two while we were in the negotiation stage:

April 2010---Mitchell and Michael are born!

As I stated in my profile, Mitchell (r) and Michael (l) are twin brothers, based loosely on me, 30 years ago.  I never had a twin in real life, but I remember how I used to fantasize of what life would be like if I had one.  As I've played out their Sim-ish (Is that a word?) existence on my ancient Gateway E 3100 with just under 1 G ram and a mere 80 G of hard drive, I've discovered that Mitchell is the adventurous athletic (and mildly oversexed) one, while Michael is the bookworm with a secret desire to quit medicine and go into the arts someday and perform with Mitchell.  Both are quite talented with musical instruments, as you will soon learn, and my boys are hopelessly devoted to one another.  But, as the story will progress, they will be split up somewhat, as Cupid has indeed smitten Mitchell with desires of matrimony to a certain Dorothy Gale, another one of my Sims, who is aptly named because of her uncanny resemblance to the late Judy Garland. 

But more on that later.  Michael, on the other hand, has pineings for Dorothy's twin, Judy Gale, but what Michael doesn't know is that his beloved has the hots for Mitchell, and Mitchell  being somewhat of the the stereotypical "dumb jock" unfortunately, doesn't see it coming, and has naively fallen for her game and thinks that she's just being coy and playful, when in fact, she's just using Michael to get to Mitchell.  So, in the end, will Mitchell see through the facade and expose this vixen or will he succumb and be forced to choose between Dorothy and her sister, Judy?  Or, will Michael discover his lady's unfaithful heart and expose her on time, or can Mitchell spot the Shrew himself?  (I wonder if Shakespere had this much trouble developing his Kate character as I do developing Judy?)  Or better yet, can Judy be tamed and become the lady that Michael thinks that she already is?  Only time can tell.  Personally, I hope that in the end, Judy can find redemption and be the virtuous woman that her twin sister, Dorothy is, because I kinda like the idea of twins marrying twins.