Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Characters: 3.5


Tim McEntire

Aspiration: Party Animal

Traits:
  • Loner
  • Physically Gifted
  • Bro
  • Bookworm

Katie McEntire

Aspiration: Public Enemy

Traits:
  • Cheerful
  • Physically Gifted
  • Music Lover
  • Dastardly
  • Snob



Astro McEntire

Aspiration:

Traits:

  • Good
  • High Metabolism
  • Bookworm
  • Slob

Cindy McEntire

Aspiration: Rambunctious Scamp


Traits:
  • Slob
  • Physically Gifted


Tyler McEntire

Aspiration: Computer Whiz/Body Builder/Successful Lineage

Traits:
  • Bro
  • Family Oriented
  • Creatively Gifted
  • Long Lived
  • Active
  • Webmaster
  • Vicarious
  • Quick Learner

Sunday, June 7, 2015

The McEntire Legacy: 3.4


As Katie and Timothy worked towards completing their aspirations of Rambunctious Scamp, they became very close. They spent hours playing on the monkey bars, and she made him open up and have fun.

“My glasses!” Timothy cried as his glasses fell from his face onto the ground during an upside-down monkey bar maneuver. “Katie, I can’t see! I’m scared to move!” he said, holding on for dear life. “Will you get my glass for me?”

“C’mon Timothy, you can do it. Just jump down!” Katie urged as she climbed from bar to bar with ease. Timothy twisted his head around to look towards the ground. It wasn’t that far, and if he fell, it wouldn’t be too painful. “Go on,” Katie said impatiently. Timothy pulled himself up and jumped down, landing on his feet, but right on top of his glasses.

“They broke!” Timothy cried as he removed his foot from the shattered glasses. “Mom and Dad are gonna kill me!” Katie jumped down gracefully and stared at the broken glasses.

“Well, at least no one at school will call you four-eyes,” she said, stifling a laugh. Timothy glared at her. He didn’t find it funny. “Well, at least you got over your fear and jumped down,” she offered. “Didn’t you have fun?” she asked. Although she was younger than Timothy, she often fancied herself the big sister since she was more outgoing and physically gifted. In addition, because of his shy and quiet demeanor, everyone in the family called him Little Timothy, so he was very much the “baby” of the family. Timothy smiled.

“I guess I did,” he said proudly.



When Timothy became a teenager, he surprised everyone with his newly developed style. He had become a bro like his father, so he was closer to Tyler than anyone else. He got contact lenses, and although still a loner, made more friends at school. The McEntire family was taken aback by quiet little Timothy’s baggy pants, chains, baseball cap and hoodie, but loved him nonetheless. He began to go by Tim because he thought it sounded cooler, but he was still quiet, shy, Little Timothy to everyone at the McEntire residence.


Alex had become an adult, and like his grandfather, Ronaldo, spent most of his time behind an easel. He eventually got a job as a painter and excelled. Shirley continued dedicating most of her time to gardening, and as an adult had more free time to tend to her beloved garden. Colin, too, was close to becoming an adult, and spent his time practicing violin and daydreaming about finding love.


“Why are you dressed like that?” Katie asked Tim, who she still remembered as a timid child.

“I look cool,” Tim told his sister. “You’ll understand when you’re a teenager.” Sometimes he liked to remind her that he was actually older.

“You wear a lot of jewelry.” Katie commented. “You have earrings and necklaces...and your beard looks really silly.” Tim scowled at his younger sister. Sometimes she annoyed him so much.

“Well, you’re only a dumb kid,” he retorted. Later he felt bad, and Katie begrudgingly accepted his apology under the condition that she occasionally got to make fun of him.


“Why do you spend so much time with your plants?” Katie asked Shirley one afternoon.

“Plants are so beautiful!” Shirley explained enthusiastically. They grow and change, and you never know what they’re going to turn into! Kind of like you,” she said, winking at her sister. Katie giggled.

“I’m going to turn into a beautiful flower!” she said striking a pose. Shirley laughed too.

“I’m sure you will!” she said.


As a teenager, Katie did indeed grow into a beautiful flower, although like her mother, she had her thorns. She had become quite mischievous like her mother, and the two became very close.


Astro, too, became a teenager and spent more and more time in his disguise since he had a stronger desire to fit in. Tim was coming into himself as a teenager, and began spending more time with is siblings.

“So I told her, that’s not a bike, that’s my car!” Tim said laughing. He kept asking for a “pimped-out” car, but his parents refused, so he always had to go everywhere on his bike. His siblings all laughed at his joke.

“You’ll get a car someday, Little Timothy,” Alex reassured him.

“It’s Tim,” Tim reminded him, slightly annoyed. “Call me Little Tim if you must. At least that makes me sound like a rapper.” Katie laughed derisively.

“You? A rapper?!” she scoffed. “Under all those clothes, you’re just a nerdy little boy!”

“Calm down everyone,” Astro said to his siblings. You’re making my disguise malfunction with all of these emotions!”


Meanwhile, Allyson was still seeing the bartender, but had also found many other boyfriends. Even her fear of getting caught didn’t stop her from public displays of affection.


Benny had become her favorite flame, and although he was a frequent visitor at the McEntire house, Tyler still had no idea of his wife’s indiscretions.

Exterior

Basement

First Floor

Second Floor

The McEntire family had become quite wealthy, and decided to renovate. The house now had a basement and an array of fine furniture.


Soon, Colin became an adult, and he began to look for romance. He had not come out yet, but had known for a long time that he was interested in men. His first date went horribly, and his date ended up running away with a man in a stained undershirt.


It didn’t take long, however, for Colin to meet Quinton. He saw him sitting and playing chess at the park and went over to compliment his outfit.

“Your outfit is very stylish,” Colin said shyly.

“Thank you,” said Quinton “Take a seat,” he offered. “I’m Quinton.” Colin sat down nervously and muttered that his name was Colin. “That’s a nice name,”

“I like your hat too,” Colin said trying his best to be smooth. “And your facial hair.” Quinton laughed.

“That’s a lot of compliments!” Quinton exclaimed, flattered. “Are you flirting with me?” Colin nodded shyly. Quinton smiled. “I love your hair,” he said, flirtatiously “It’s so wavy and blonde.” Colin laughed, feeling his nerves starting to disappear.

Colin and Quinton hit it off, and soon started dating. One day, Colin scheduled a date at the park where they had first met. He offered Quinton a single rose, and asked if he would move in with him. Quinton was overjoyed and said yes.


Colin was nervous to tell his family about his boyfriend.

“I’m kind of moving in with someone,” Colin said nervously.

“That’s great, Colin! Who’s the lucky girl?” Alex asked, happy for his brother.

“Actually, it’s not really a girl...I’m gay,” Colin said point-blank. Alex looked slightly surprised, but then laughed and hugged his brother.

“You could have told us, you know.” he said. “I’m really happy for you.” Colin laughed and cried onto his brother’s shoulder. He felt lucky to be accepted for who he truly was.


“Mom, I like men,” Colin said, slowly becoming braver as he told his family members.

“I like men too!” Allyson said laughing.

“I’m moving in with my boyfriend,” he said. Allyson smiled.

“I always had a feeling,” she said hugging him. “Congratulations,” she whispered.


When Colin told Tyler, Tyler gave him a big hug and squeezed him.

“You didn’t need to hide who you were from me, son” he said lovingly. “I love you. I will always be your father.” Colin had thought he was done crying on the shoulders of family members for the day, but the tears just came pouring out.

“I love you too, Dad,” he said.

Characters: 3.4


Tim McEntire

Aspiration: Party Animal

Traits:

  • Loner
  • Physically Gifted
  • Bro

Alex McEntire

Aspiration: Painter Extraordinaire

Traits:
  • Loves the Outdoors
  • Bro
  • Muser
  • Art Lover
  • Mentally Gifted

Shirley McEntire

Aspiration: Freelance Botanist

Traits:

  • Romantic
  • Loves the Outdoors
  • Collector
  • Neat
  • Mentally Gifted

Katie McEntire

Aspiration: Public Enemy

Traits:

  • Cheerful
  • Physically Gifted
  • Music Lover
  • Dastardly


Astro McEntire

Aspiration: Body Builder

Traits:

  • Good
  • High Metabolism
  • Bookworm

Colin McEntire

Aspiration: Successful Lineage

Traits:

  • Cheerful
  • Creatively Gifted
  • Romantic
  • Bookworm



Saturday, June 6, 2015

The McEntire Legacy: 3.3


Alex became a teenager and became very interested in painting. He loved the outdoors, and would often spend hours staring at scenery in order to paint the perfect landscape. When Katie was born, he was old enough to help with her care. He was a very good older brother, and adored his new little sister.


Katie was very much a child of sugar and spice. She was very affectionate with her family, but was also spunky if she needed to be. She loved music, and she also loved physical pursuits such as dancing.


As a teenager, Shirley became very interested in gardening. She wanted to have perfect garden and spent all of her free time caring for her plants. She had also become very romantic and longed for love, but since she had not met any suitable men, she dedicated her time to cultivating the garden.


Colin, too, became a teenager, and still had a passion for the arts. He spent most of his time practicing the violin, but also enjoyed cooking. Katie was his favorite sibling because he felt like he could be an older brother to her. While Alex had been Shirley’s older brother, Colin did not have a younger sister to dote on until now. He tried to be an older brother to Timothy, but Timothy always preferred to be alone, so with Katie, Colin was excited to take on his role as an attentive older brother.

“I promise to come to your dance recital, Katie” Colin said, giving her a reassuring hug. “I’ll be in the front row cheering you on!”

“Thanks, big brother,” Katie said throwing her arms around his neck.

“Don’t mention it,” Colin said happily.


Life got busier and busier, and Tyler had less and less time to spend with his family. He worked a lot and spent a lot of time programming or playing video games to improve his job performance. His time with his family was precious to him, but between work and family, he was stretched very thin.


Allyson, tired of playing bored, loveless housewife and mother, found other opportunities for romance.

“You can make me a drink anytime,” she purred to the bartender.

“So saucy for such a golden-haired angel,” the bartender said, taken aback, but very pleased.

“I’ll show you saucy,” she said, grabbing him and started kissing him. The bartender looked a little shocked, and was dazed for a few minutes afterwards, but was very into it. It wasn’t long before Allyson was frequenting the club just to see her new flame.


One night, while Allyson was visiting the bar, Tyler saw a strange light. He had just come home from work, so had not noticed his wife’s absence. He went to investigate the eerie light, and was shocked by what he saw. A UFO sucked him off the ground and took off with the reluctant passenger. Tyler never remembered what had happened on that horrible night, but knew it couldn’t have been good.


It wasn’t long before Tyler’s body started to change in weird ways. Although he had become quite fit and muscular, his stomach began to grow larger by the day. Allyson, who originally thought it was a rather unattractive beer gut, was startled when he admitted to having had morning sickness and pregnancy cravings. Nonetheless, it seemed as though another child was on its way, and the couple braced themselves for whatever it was.


One day after a long workout, Tyler noticed a strange glow emanating from his enlarged belly. It was the same eerie glow of the UFO, and suddenly, he knew it was time.


Allyson brought Tyler to the hospital, and he had to maintain his good humor as the interns, who had come to see the medical anomaly, whispered and laughed at him. The hospital staff had never seen anything like it, but successfully delivered the baby.


Despite the baby’s strange blue, scaly skin, Tyler loved his new son very much, and finally understood the feeling of giving life to another being. He loved to make silly faces at his son and talk to him about what it was like to be human. He and Allyson named him Astro and hoped that he would manage to enjoy his life on earth with his loving family.


Allyson was a bit taken aback by her new blue alien son, but she promised herself that she would be just as loving to him as her other children.

“You’re so...scaly,” Allyson cooed, unsure of how to compliment the baby.


“Now, children,” Tyler began, addressing the room. “Astro is not like us; he’s an alien. But that is all the more reason for us to show him love and understanding. I want you all to welcome him and treat him as if he were human, with love and respect.”


And all of the McEntire family treated Astro as if he were every bit as human as they were - although they did have to explain some things about being human to the curious alien child.

“Why do humans’ stomachs growl when they’re hungry?” Astro asked inquisitively. Alex looked down at his rumbling stomach with embarrassment.

“I guess it’s nature’s way of telling us it’s time to eat!” Alex explained, trying to decide what he would have for lunch.

“That’s weird,” Astro replied. “When we’re hungry, our stomach’s change color to remind us that we need nourishment.” Alex laughed.

“Your kind is much more sophisticated than ours, Astro,” he said smiling at his alien brother.


Everyone in the family treated their alien brother with kindness. He and Katie were especially close since they were the two youngest. Allyson tried her best to love Astro as if she had given birth to him, and always tried to show him understanding. Tyler adored his son all the more for his uniqueness, and tried to be extra supportive of him. He wondered sometimes if Astro wanted to go to his planet of origin, but hoped he had found a happy home.


At school, Astro wore his disguise and went by Carl. He felt quite smug that he was so convincing, but the other children seemed to sense that something was different about him, even though they couldn’t figure out what it was. They poked and prodded him and teased him, but Astro didn’t really understand what they were doing and was a happy “typical” little boy who sometimes asked weird questions. He wasn’t very good at acting human, but he was so oblivious to his blunders, that no one suspected him to be anything other than a weird kid.


So life was hectic in the McEntire household with the several children, but life continued. Tyler continued to work and try to be the number one dad, and Allyson continued to crave excitement and romance and stray to other men. Tyler was unaware of his wife’s indiscretions, and tried to please her, but was still wondering if he was capable of being the man she wanted him to be.