andthingss

[andthingss]

Caroline couldn't help but roll her eyes at the customer who was being rude to the barista. She didn't understand why people felt the need to treat others like that. When the man offered to pay for her coffee, she offered him a smile. "Oh.. Are you sure you want to do that?" She asked.

location: the french bean

cap: none

Aydan needed this pick me up, coffee always helped him throughout the day. He honestly couldn't survive without it. After he dropped the kids off with his parents, he went straight to the French Bean. Getting in line, he didn't mind waiting for it. That was when he heard a woman start in the barista. Shaking his head a little bit, when he was next. "Sorry. Some people, am I right?" He told the barista. "How about this? I get the next person in line's coffee as well." That was when he glanced at the person behind him. "Feel free to get whatever you want, it's on me."

[andthingss]

Jonathan told Caroline the other week that he wanted to be a firefighter, so when she found out that the firehouse offered tours - she booked one for him. At the end of the tour, the five year old looked like he wanted to ask a question, but was too shy due to the person who gave the tour being a stranger. "It's okay." She assured Jonathan. "How often do you get to slide down the pole?" He finally asked.

location: palmer firehouse 17 

cap: none

"That concludes our tour of the firehouse. Any questions?" They did this once a month. Offered up tours to kids and such who had an interest in either becoming firefighters. Not mention anyone that had interest in becoming a firefighter. They basically offered tours to those that wanted them.

[andthingss]

Caroline was out walking her own dog when another dog came up to her, bringing a stick along. She loved dogs, so she wasn't bothered by this at all. Instead she just grinned at him, before glancing to the man who approached her. Presumably the owner. "It's alright." She assured him. "He's gorgeous."

location: local park

cap: none

"Baxter!" Silas whistled, watching the dog come back to him with a stick. He had just gotten back in town. He would be here for a couple of days before he had to fly out again. Grabbing the stick, from his dog he threw it again. But this time Baxter took off with it, bringing it to someone else. "Oh god." Silas ran over to them. "I am so sorry. He doesn't usually do something like this."

[andthingss]

"I suppose there's that side to it, as well." Caroline said, though she was the type to politely laugh at jokes that weren't funny. "I guess I just know how hard it is to put yourself out there, and anyone who does that at least deserves some kind of respect." Caroline rarely put herself out there these days, she was too busy with Jonathan and the store. But she still did sometimes, and remembered what it was like to do so every single day.

"heckling  is  rude!"  kiana  agreed  with  a  nod.  she  hated  when  the  talent  got  heckled...even  if  they  weren't  very  good.  they  didn't  deserve  that  no  matter  how  terribly  they  sucked.  "but  sometimes  when  they're  not  very  good,  and  no  one  is  laughing,  i  almost  prefer  heckling  to  the  dead  silence  that  can  follow  a  bad  joke  or  punchline.  it's  so  quiet  sometimes  that  you  could  hear  a  pin  drop,  and  that's  just  dreadful."

[andthingss]

"Yeah, I get that. You want to feel like your paying for something worthwhile." She said, before smiling at the mention of her youngest joining Jonathan. "How are your little ones doing?" She asked, even though she imagined her oldest was a teenager by now. Caroline loved hearing other parents talk about their kids - to see the same pride on their face that she had when she talked about Jonathan.

"that's  definitely  a  plus.  i  always  worry  about  taking  them  to  daycare  or  day  camp  or  something,  only  for  them  to  return  home  not  having  learned  anything,"  damaris  admitted.  not  to  mention  she  had  five  kids  to  think  of  when  it  came  to  things  like  that.  here  in  the  middle  of  summer,  she  honestly  thought  it  would  be  beneficial  for  the  older  two  to  go  to  overnight  camp.  "i'll  have  to  look  into  it.  i  think  my  youngest  ones  might  enjoy  joining  him!"

[andthingss]

"Oh, I don't read that often." Caroline explained, as she leaned on the counter. "I'm here to look for bedtime stories for my son. He's five." She explained. "I take it you read a lot - what do you read?" She asked, figuring the woman was just looking to make conversation. That was something Caroline was never opposed to.

"Amara Donovan," she grinned.

Amara began to type in the relevant information while her eyes kept nervously bouncing between the screen and Caroline.

"I live in Uptown..." After a brief silence, she continues, "what kind of books do you read?"

[andthingss]

Caroline let out a small chortle at her answer. "I like that attitude." She said, before nodding understandingly at the remark about second hand embarrassment. She had definitely seen her fair share of live music performances that didn't go as well as expected. "Well, heckling is just rude." She said, though she figured that the comedy scene had an different etiquette to the music scene the moment she said that.

she  shrugged  a  bit,  not  really  thinking  too  hard  about  it.  "i  guess  it's  nerve  wracking  for  them.  for  me,  it  doesn't  faze  me  much,"  she  admitted,  knowing  that  she  wasn't  the  one  putting  her  reputation  on  the  line  by  standing  up  on  a  stage  and  telling  potentially  subpar  jokes.  "what  really  gets  to  me  is  the  secondhand  embarrassment  when  they're  not  very  good.  that  shit  can  be  so  rough  to  handle  from  the  sidelines,"  she  said,  shuddering  a  bit.  "or  when  someone  is  heckling  from  the  audience.  i  can't  stand  that!"

[andthingss]

Caroline nodded her head in agreement when she pointed out that kids just grab things that weren't needed. "Jonathan mostly behaves, but it's still hard to keep an eye on him when there are other things to focus on." She explained, not wanting anyone to ever think her son misbehaved. "It is if you work full time like I do. You're able to leave them with people you trust and they get to have a fun day." She said. "I think he is learning a lot, too."

damaris  laughed  quietly,  a  knowing  sound  that  bubbled  up  before  she  had  a  chance  to  stop  it.  she  knew  full  well  what  it  was  like  to  shop  with  kids  around.  "i  know  the  feeling,"  she  said,  understanding  lacing  her  tone  as  she  gestured  to  the  shelves.  "little  hands  seem  to  pick  up  about  ten  times  more  than  we  actually  need,"  she  said,  glad  that  she  had  one  day  to  shop  distraction-free.  "is  day  camp  worth  it?  none  of  mine  do  that,  but  if  it's  fun  and  educational  i  might  sign  them  up."

[andthingss]

"Name and address, got it." She said, glad that she opted to bring her US passport. She could have brought her license instead, but she didn't like pulling that out of the car. Once she got her passport out of her tote bag, she opened it up and placed it in front of Amara. "Well, I'm Caroline Weaver and I live up in Lakeview." She explained.

In response to the woman's question, Amara nods. She's seen her around town before. She wonders if it's creepy that she remembers her.

"Yes, we need identification to confirm eligibility of name and address."

She pulls up the screen on the computer. The heels of her feet rise and fall in her flats while she awkwardly waits.

[andthingss]

CLOSED STARTER: @geekiest-in-town (Amara). LOCATION: Public Library.

Caroline decided to make a stop at the library after work to pick up another book to read to Jonathan. He had grown bored of the ones he already had in their house, so she figured the library would be a good option until she found some other books he really enjoyed. The problem was she hadn't really been to the library since she was in university, and she spent most of time at university in the UK.

She made her way to the front desk and offered the librarian a smile. "Hello, Amara." She said, glancing at the woman's name tag. "Any chance on me getting a library card? Do you need a form of ID in the US? Because I was sure to bring my passport."

[andthingss]

"That's even better, your club is a place where people seek out the chance to perform." Caroline said, offering her a grin. As a music teacher, she did have producers and bands reach out to her from time to time to see if she was teaching anyone who could work with them. She just wondered if it was like that at all, but the more the thought about it, the more she realized that you can't really learn comedy. You're either funny or you're not. That was a true talent. "I'm glad no one bombed tonight, I can imagine it's nerve wracking when you don't know how it's going to go."

as  she  cleaned  off  the  stage,  lights  dimming  to  return  to  normal,  she  heard  caroline's  voice  through  the  din  and  looked  up  at  her.  "why,  thank  you  kindly,"  she  said,  putting  on  her  best  southern  voice.  she  was  no  better  at  it  now  than  she  had  been  when  first  moving  to  palmer,  and  she  wondered  how  long  it  would  be  before  someone  decked  her  after  finding  it  offensive.  it  was  all  in  good  fun,  though,  and  she  honestly  admired  the  accent.  "i  actually  don't  find  them  -  they  find  me.  they  either  sign  up  for  a  slot  on  my  website  or  they  come  and  ask  for  one  directly.  i  never  know  how  good  or  bad  they're  going  to  be,  so  i'm  just  thrilled  when  no  one  bombs."

[andthingss]

"Oh no, you can't let those go to waste." Caroline said, giving Damaris a smile. As a single mother and business owner, she knew how precious those days were. So few and far between. When Damaris showed her french tips, Caroline offered a smile. It wasn't the kind of manicure she'd get - mainly because it makes playing stringed instruments impossible - but they looked nice. "They're good, just running some errands before I pick up Jonathan from day camp." She explained, as she put the carton of milk into her cart. "I love the kid, but it's better to shop without him."

she  was  shocked,  honestly,  to  hear  her  name  being  called  from  seemingly  out  of  the  blue.  people  in  town  didn't  know  her  all  that  well,  other  than  seeing  her  at  the  gym.  she  kept  to  herself  mostly  and  didn't  make  a  lot  of  waves,  but  having  children  meant  getting  to  know  other  moms  without  really  meaning  to.  she  had  grown  quite  fond  of  caroline,  however,  and  brightened  up  upon  noticing  that  she  was  who  had  said  her  name.

"things  are  going  well,  actually,"  she  answered,  looking  down  at  her  cart  full  of  grocery  items.  she  used  to  wonder  how  it  would  feel  to  be  an  adult;  well,  being  an  adult  meant  being  excited  to  afford  pantry  items  in  the  current  economy,  apparently.  "i've  got  the  privilege  of  a  rare  day  out  by  myself.  don't  worry,  i  haven't  spent  all  of  it  running  errands.  i  got  my  nails  done  this  morning,"  she  said,  holding  her  hands  up  to  show  off  her  freshly-done  french  tips.  "how  are  things  with  you?"

[andthingss]

CLOSED STARTER: @iiivx (Damaris). LOCATION: Elodie's Grocery Mart.

Jonathan wasn't due to be picked up from day camp for a few more hours after Caroline finished work for the day, so she decided she would take advantage of not having a bored five year old to think about and do some grocery shopping. Making her way down the aisles, she opened up her bullet journal to find her shopping list, and starting grabbing a hold of everything she put on there.

When the time came to get some milk, she made her way over to the refrigerator area and reached out to grab a semi-skimmed carton. Once it was in her cart, she turned around and immediately recognized the woman standing behind her. "Damaris, fancy seeing you here." She said. "How are things?"

[andthingss]

CLOSED STARTER: @iiivx (Kiana) LOCATION: Lana's Laughs.

"Hey, Kiana. It was a great show tonight." Caroline said, approaching the younger who she met a few times through business owner functions. She liked to support small businesses around down, especially since she now knew how hard it all was. "Where do you find these people? They're brilliant." She asked, taking a sip of her soda. It was always satisfying when a night out was worth finding a sitter for Jonathan.

[andthingss]

Caroline always had a bit of a sweet tooth, one that she mostly kept under control. In part, to set an example to Jonathan. Too much sugar is bad for you. But when she allowed herself a treat, she was sure to pick up something for her son as well. On her way to pick up her son from day camp, she made her way over to Sweets & Treats to grab some cupcakes. "Hello. I'm good thanks. You?" She said to the woman behind the counter with a smile. "What kind of cupcakes do you have in today?"

Starter for: Emerson & Open Location: Sweets & Treats

Of course one of Emerson's employees had called in and she was swamped. Normally she spent most of her time in the back crunching numbers and coming up with new flavors for them to sell for following weeks. With the nicer weather appearing though, she was spending a lot more time up front because people were ordering cakes and whatnot for big celebrations as in mother's day, father's day, graduation and then it was also wedding season. She smiled as she walked in from behind the curtain and walked up to the next person who was waiting. "Hi there, how are you doing today? What can I get for you?"

[andthingss]

NAME: Caroline Weaver.

TIME IN PALMER: 4 years.

PRONOUNS: She/her.

SEXUALITY: Bisexual.

NEIGHBORHOOD: Lakeview.

OCCUPATION: Owner of Strings and Things.

POSITIVE TRAITS: Compassionate, friendly, charismatic.

NEGATIVE TRAITS: Naive, overworked, scatterbrained.

tw: mentions of child neglect.

Caroline was born an only child in Kent, UK to two parents who loved her very much and always encouraged her passion for music. Especially since it was the only thing she seemed consistently passionate about. All her other interests came and went just as quickly. This all made sense when she was diagnosed with ADHD in her late teens.

She ended up going to university to study music, and opted to do a year abroad in New York, and even spent a summer taking a road trip through the country. She loved it so much, she decided to move back to the States after she finished her final year in England.

There, she settled upstate in New York and commuted to the city every day to work in the pit at several Broadway shows. She wasn’t a big fan of musicals beforehand, but her job gave her a newfound appreciation for them. She worked on Mean Girls, Wicked and Six.

While working in the pit at Wicked, she found herself falling for the actor playing Fiyero. He was from a rich family and they clearly bought his career for him, but she didn’t really mind that. She loved his charm.

Then he got her pregnant. And promised to stick around.

After giving birth to her son, Jonathan, the fighting started. He didn’t support her as much as he promised and he got defensive whenever she broached the topic. Eventually, he left her all together.

Naturally, Caroline milked all the child support she could get from him and decided to start anew in Palmer. She decided to open a music store, and enjoyed being able to focus on music she enjoyed. She got a dog, made some friends. Loved her son with everything inside of her. Built a new life.

[andthingss]

roleplay blog dependent on palmerhq.

caroline weaver: intro | connections | threads | socials | aesthetic | music | inspo