Auckland & Greater Region - New Zealand

[sedimenjerry 1]

good job too bad SC4 doesnt have a large volcano that really did blanket the city with ash and smoke

[Teeparex 6]

Is latte the new broccoli?

[Cleaner475 151]

explosive update, fire fire, everywhere

great pics, keep it up,

Richard

[Craig-Abcvs 1,595]

Well now...  thanks all for the replies, I will get the last installment of this particular episode done and then I will tackle the replies all proper like...

Anyway where were we...  hmmm.... now I remember...

The red border disappeared from the civil defence authorties screens who had been watching the event from the safety of the emergency control bunker.  The volcano quietened...

Was this the end the Aucklander's wondered? - would the volcano now quieten and cease its environmental torment - so we can crack on an carve it up for prime residential lots?

Will the Auckland Volcanic Cones Protection Society - get all over-excited about their new "precious"?

Will Aucklanders ever be able to get a decent latte again?

The volcano had indeed quietened and for several weeks the crater simply smoked and made the occasional belch like a ill-sosphisticated guest at the dinner table...  The Auckland Authorities began to think about getting the city back to some sort of normalacy however the volcano had other ideas...  

Quite suddenly and with little warning it burst into life once more... however this time the crater was deeper and the lava was mostly contained within the crater...  a crucible of molten rock that swirled meanacingly with in the confines of its indigenous bulwark...

OK dinner on the table I will be back soon...

Edit...  OK back ...  

*wipes spaghetti bolanaise sauce from mouth...*

Well now where was I... um...   (please refer to post further down... )  

Anyway, please excuse me if I have to rush off again...  "she who must be obeyed" has informed me that I am on clearing up the kitchen and walking the dog duty....  so I will have to do the most I can before I suffer "the wrath"  (worse than any volcano BTW )....

But really I must get on with the story...

...confines of its indigenous bulwark... 

The glow of the lava lake was like an all seeing eye..  lidless ... seeking its precious...

*Shamless LOTR plug...  it was our wonderful country that was chosen for the movie trilogy.. but again I digress and the dog still needs to be walked...*

OK the eye of "She who must be obeyed"  is upon me... boring without mercy into the back of my skull...  

The Nursinator says ...  "I'll be back..."  right after the kitchen is cleaned up and the dog is walked....  

Next edit:  OK here I am again,  haven't walked the dog yet and he is sticking his nose up under my left arm while I valiantly try to continue this (well turning out to be) epic story...

Can we pleeeeeeeease get on with the story?

*Valiantly continues on for another couple of pictures at least...!*

After the second eruption the volcano finally sunk to its eventual slumber,  Auckland now had yet another volcanic landmark to grace its skyline... well once the ash and smoke had cleared.. that is.  

Attention now turned to the task at hand - repairing and reconnecting the roads, and railway that had been torn asunder (gotta love the King James language...) by the frenzied tumult of the eruptive phase of the volcano.

Of course...  just when you think you can make ends meet...  some dork comes along and moves the ends!

The main issues facing the repair efforts were the severed ends of the avenues running north / south and east / west.  There was also the problem of the severed railway.

The lava had flowed right across the path of the east / west avenue and railway, and a significant mountain slope now took the place of the north / south avenue.

After much flaffing around and discussions with key "stake holders" .... 

*The dog now has serious ants in his pants..  he is now resorting to stealing socks from the floor...  he has a serious sock fetish... but again I digress*

... the favoured option was two tunnels... to protect the... 

"visual integrity of the volcanic slopes, thus maintaining suitable asthetic views...." (Excerpt from the Auckland Volcanic Protection Society Gazette)

So at great and considerable expense to the longsuffering ratepayers of Auckland, whose Regional rates were increased yet again...  it was decided to bore two tunnels north / south and east / west to reconnect the avenues.

However hasty reconstructive decisions sometimes throw up new problems...   

The rail line still needed to be connected.  

A temporary bus service was set up to transport passengers around the breach in the line however this was not seen to be a long term solution.

However as anyone experienced in matters of rail construction directly ajacent to tunnel portals would know,   

(do you see the problem... you all know don't you....!?)

 that "terrain smoothing", is impossible next to the portal of a tunnel.

Well of course no one wanted to accept responsibility for such an expensive blunder, and  to relocate the rail line was, simply impractical.  

(...and I didn't want a kink in it anyway...)

So despite the stenuous protests and much angst from the Auckland Volcanic Cones Protection Socitey and many rowdy public meetings and protests later...

... the east / west tunnel was gone burgers... 

BOOM!

And with a few kilograms of TNT the tunnel was leveled along with the new path of the road that needed to cut across the lava flow.  

Protesters tried on several occasions to chain themselves to the earthmoving machinery, but they were prompty arrested and sent to an isolated island half way between NZ and Antartica...  

(no not really - but nothing a pair of bolt cutters can't  fix..  )

Construction continued apace to rejoin both the avenue and the railway.  

That lovely sound of reversing alarms echoed across the terrain...  doopt doopt doopt....

Finally the reconstruction was complete.  The destroyed buildlings cleared away.

Slowly but surely life returned to normal in the city of sails, the new volcano was called Three Kings, after its three craggy peaks.. and once again Aucklander's were able to enjoy their lattes...   under the watchful shadow of their newest mountain.

[mtbrocket 2]

Have volcano? Need a road? No problem we just tunnel through it. Lava tubes make great express ways.

Exciting and funny CJ. I like the rivers and the mixture of in-game shots and real photos.

Keep up the great work.

I want a decent latte.

-Dan

[WackoJak 0]

Yay! I'll buy a house right in the cone! Oh and if the AVCPS try the 'National Treasure' card, I'll take them to court.

[Craig-Abcvs 1,595]

Yeah well stay tuned on that one cos I aint finished editing the story yet ...  had to take a short SBB... (Spaghetti Bolanaise Break...)  and some cookies and cream icecream to follow.. but I digress...

Did you notice that the tunnel got demolished? Well lets just say the "AVCPS" had something to do with that...   and that is all I have to say abou' thaarrrrt... well until I go back and edit that is... which is what I am about to do if I can actually focus and not get side tracked on making replies as soon as my adoring public post in my CJ....

ABCVS: For the love of ...... get on with it....

KK ... I am going...

[jacqulina 162]

hiya craig,i love the volcano my friend very nice work you are doing,i love the overview pic excellent work and pics

u is tagged btw smirk

[Craig-Abcvs 1,595]

Jac.. Did I say that you can't tag me in my own CJ...? No....? Darn ... didn't think of that rule... poopy doo...

OK the kitchen is cleaned up, dishwasher unloaded, loaded and is now making that wonderful "washing dishes" noise, but alas the dog still needs to be walked..

But! It is only 7.30 pm and the evening is still young! Should be time to finish the story above and walk the dog .... well in theory anyway!

And you teenagers thought that you were the only ones that got told to "get off that computer and clean up the kitchen...."

Edit 8.55 pm.  Well I finally managed to finish the story...  and I must walk the dog, so until next time...

I hope you enjoyed.  

Ciao!

[Fallon144 1]

talk about having a vivid imagination

excellent update mate!

[Zelgadis 638]

I absolutely cannot believe that grain elevator survived the eruption!

ISF

[Voulpiotis 4]

Nice volcano update!!! Great work! Looking forward for more!

[granto93 4]

lol.....funny thing, the volcano isint actually the interesting story in that update women and dogs......i would make some kind of joke here but than all the women or dogs in this site would be on my back for life hehe.

keep up the amazing work craig, getting better each update

[Schulmanator 5,815]

So, the missus interrupts while you are trying to save lives by restoring the latte flow to the Auckland metro area? We need to properly educate her! My mother has been spying on ... I mean checking up with my cities since I started on SC1.0 way back in the 1830's or whenever it came out. She knows when the Sims demand- you MUST satisfy! Then, SC2K came out - my brother and I pooled our profits from shareware distribution to get it (a hypercard program, to be honest!). Then, like you with your dog, we were perpetually distressed by interruptions. The Supreme Wirdle commands to be let in the house... to be let out.... to be fed... petted... and so forth. But, when she sits on the desk, supervising at first, then curling up OVER the mouse... game play is DEFINITELY impacted!

And, for the foodies out there - no spaghetti here in Schulmania today. We had pierogies (stuffed with cheese and onion) sauteed with green pepper and onion with a blend of spices. Followed by a chaser of diet coke on the rocks.

[Craig-Abcvs 1,595]

Replies from page 12 &13

Jayo:  Lurk away my friend, and your wish is my command ... eventually.

bartonn:  Well the terrain is quite hilly in the CBD so it does interesting things to the relative building heights.

Granto:  In real life the Sky Tower looks like a giant spark plug.

abcvs:  Well off you go then find the freaking disk...  don't tell me you lost it!

Schulmantor:  Calm your self...  I knew where it was really I was just trying to add a bit of suspense to my CJ...  

Zelgadis:  Yep thanks...  I reckon that a mix of RL and SC pictures in a CJ like this one works OK...  anyway it was a good filler when I was flat tack in RL...

ky72x:  No disaster is never far away when I come to play...

abcvs:  Do it!  Go on I dare you ... do it!  I double dare you...

jacqulina:  Yes my friend...  I will get a plop on as soon as I can...

Fallon144:  Demand is such a strong word...  now a tantrum may do the trick!

Hester:  Well my old(er) bean...  updates must be well brewed and served at precisely the right moment.

abcvs: About freaking time!

jacqulina:  Sorry Miss... prepare for the worst, I am afraid.

abcvs:  Stop making freaking excuses and post the update already...

jacqulina:  Don't these websites know that there are people like us that totally depend on their uninterupted service?

abcvs:  Stunning ...  just stunning, I am all aquiver.

jacqulina: Well I do like to mix the variety of shots around if I can...  

abcvs: Stop chatting to Jacky and get on with it!

Granto93:  Get off the floor there might be germs...

Voulpiotis: Yeah Auckland is like a teenager now...  constantly requiring cash...

abcvs:  Oooooh magma!

Schulmanator:  Well One Tree Hill has been known for a bit of well you know...  *blushes*.  Yep cans of SPAM are always welcome to nations facing war time disaster...  and would you please warn us before you let rip in here....

Hester: Magma / Fleet ... same effect.

abcvs:  Yes, yes, yes....  all very fun... but please stop goofing around at work and show us ya update...

abcvs:  Fire and brimstone...  now that is more like it!

suplado!:  Brave firefighters.... just like the ones in NY on 911...

abcvs: Wise choice.

WackoJak: Good to see you dude!  ...and thank you for returning!

(OK I am going to Reply... I get nervous when my post gets this long and I could not bear to lose it...)  Colours and fancy stuff later...

(OK posted now I can edit and know this is all safely tucked up on Dirk's server so far...)

ky72x:  Well CJs are not all about fluffy cats and pretty houses... this is serious stuff...

Schulmanator:  Opps I didn't see you under Kyle...  (smirk)  Nice to see you back for smore.

sedimenjerry:  Well yes you are right a real volcano that size would completely and totally paralyize the whole city for months.  Volcanic ash is highly corrosive, it would go everywhere and it would pollute the water supply dams in the hills that supply our drinking water...

Teeparex:  Hmm a green latte...  now there is a thought.

cleaner475:  Glad you like.  Got to keep the pyros happy...

abcvs:  Well I gotta hand it to ya bud ... ya came through.... it was not easy... but ya did it.

mtbrocket: Yep you are most well informed...  lava flows do indeed create tunnels....  there are some in Auckland that you can explore if you know where to go...

WackoJak:  AVCPS = PITA  (Pain in the ...)

abcvs:  Nice dinner?

Jacqulina:  Good to have you back...  sneaky tag...

abcvs:  ...and who said that men can not multitask...

Fallon144:  Thank you - sometimes I suprise my self at my sheer literary brilliance!

Zelgadis:  So that is what those things are..  I always thought they were for storing fertilizer or something...  and the other thing...  why is it that all those cows just kept on nonchantly chewing on the grass in the farms right next to an erupting volcano?  Man they must be pretty cool cows... or maybe the milk they give for the next few weeks will be premixed milkshakes.

Voulpiotis:  Well glad you likey.  So I wonder what is in store next for this city...?

Granto93:  Well it just all kind of got mashed into the story in the end... and well I reckon it all worked out OK in the end...  the CJ got updated, the dishes clean and the dog got his walk... not a bad evenings work.

Schulmanator:  Well if I ever do get to meet ya mama, then I shall  be sure to make sure that I am behaving, eating with nice table manners, and watching my pees and queues for the loo... and as for fluffy... well we all have our weaknesses... mine is chocolate...

...and the diet coke sooooooooo makes up for all that cheese stuffing.

abcvs:  Well look at that I have finally found the top of this reply post... 

[WackoJak 0]

[Palpatine001 57]

Hmmm I dont know how this slipped my attention for so long...

Anycase now it does have my attention time to comment

First of all - great re-incarnation of Auckland as best as SC4 and RH will allow

The points of history are pretty well accurate (Otahuhu B is a Gas Fired Plant as well as the Penrose Booster Plant) and ties well into the story of this CJ

As for the volcano in the latest piece - ah bugger - bound to spoil someones latte for sure

10/10 and the Palpatine 4 thumbs up for effort

And for those who don't know

I was born in West Auckland, raised in South Auckland and now live back out West at Te Atatu North

I attend the University of Auckland doing a BSc/BA in Geography and Politics so I am very fimilar with Auckland.

Will be watching this carefully seems it mimics my home

And if you think Aucklands 48 dead and 4 live volcanoes are BAD - Lake Taupo is worse as the worlds largest Super Volcano - at 1.5x large than Yellow Stone and has over 503km2 of water sitting in the caldera - so god help us if it goes up. She already sent us into an Ice Age once and probably blasted Earths axis (Taupo was 150x more powerful than Karakatoa at best estimate).

[Craig-Abcvs 1,595]

Yep that silo thingy (what was it called again Zelgadis?) was one of the great survival stories itself... the one building that the guy pushing the buttons managed to save....

Ah that's right a grain elevator...  well all I can say is ....  the popcorn is on me!  

Hot buttered and salted.

[scotty222 549]

havent been here for a while

some really cool volcano updates

so cant aucklanders cant live without lattes

Palpatine001-i heard somewhere taupo was due for an eruption soon

[suplado! 23]

the volcano makes a nice scenery to the town...

[Craig-Abcvs 1,595]

Scotty - Aucklanders LIVE for lattes.

BTW... How is the ANZ tower BAT coming on?

As for Lake Taupo well it does have a hot spot apparently.

[jacqulina 162]

craig i have read the story and yes very funny with the interuptions the dog has a sock fetish lol amongst other things the grain thingy survived lol my what a job you had getting that update in great work though in the end my friend lol

[WackoJak 0]

Yes, i echo jacqui's reply, bravo, old chap. Seems you were in a right pickle to finish the... ummm... volcanoeing? No, firefox doesn't like that. It recommends Canoing or Volcanism ?

Also, I recommend we name the name The Little Grain Elevator That Could after the man who miraculously stopped the fire, because if the elevator were to be destroyed, the rubble would almost certainly fall on to a main avenue, seriously disabling Auckland's Volunteer Latte Delivery Service (AVLDS) from doing the job that saved hundreds, and It shall therefore be called, THE ZIPPY McLATTE-DRINKER ELEVATOR!!!

*deeply inhales*  Wow. I've never spoken that long without taking a breath before.

[scotty222 549]

i sorta forgot bout that BAT better do it

people in the waikato live for beer

[Craig-Abcvs 1,595]

Well would a couple of dozen Waikato Draft help your creative talent?

or would you prefer...

...Yeah Right!

[DarkEldar 6]

Haven't been here in a while seems like i missed heaps! and the Tui thing reminds me of those adds 'Quack'

[WackoJak 0]

woof woof page bump must be time for page 14 now?

Edit: Nope? hmmmm, page 13 might just be the longest page ever?

[KUVACHIM 0]

wow, great story.  I never knew New Zealand has Volcano's!!!!!   (I would still retire there though)

Shocker on the grain elevator.  It looks like the lava flowed all around it but didnt destroy it.  *Tips had to local fire department!

"visual integrity of the volcanic slopes, thus maintaining suitable asthetic views...." Funny how random acts of god are considered to be quite nice after a short while!,  hilarious!

[Schulmanator 5,815]

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

A VOLcano!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I thought it was a VULcano!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[WackoJak 0]

lol shulmanator