The Greenwich Pedestrian River Thames Tunnel
The tunnel was designed by civil engineer Sir Alexander Binnie for London County Council and constructed by contractor John Cochrane & Co. The project started in June 1899 and the tunnel opened on 4 August 1902. The tunnel replaced an expensive and sometimes unreliable ferry service allowing workers living south of the Thames to reach their workplaces in the London docks and shipyards in or near the Isle of Dogs. Its creation owed much to the efforts of working-class politician Will Crooks, who had worked in the docks and, after chairing the LCC's Bridges Committee responsible for the tunnel, later served as Labour MP for Woolwich.
The entrance shafts at both ends are beneath glazed domes. Lifts, installed in 1904, were upgraded in 1992 and again in 2012, and helical staircases allow pedestrians to access the tile-lined tunnel, which slopes gently from both sides down to a midway lowpoint beneath the river. The cast-iron tunnel is 1,215 feet (370.2 m) long, 50 feet (15.2 m) deep and has an internal diameter of about 9 feet (2.74 m). The cast-iron rings are coated with concrete and surfaced with some 200,000 white glazed tiles. The northern end was damaged by bombs during the Second World War and repairs included a thick steel and concrete inner lining that substantially reduces the diameter for a short distance. The northern shaft staircase has 87 steps; the southern one has 100.
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Bitter Sweet Symphony 1
My warnings are not exhaustive but be aware this is a dark fic and may include potentially triggering topics. Please use your common sense when consuming content. I am not responsible for your decisions.
Character: Thor
Summary: you meet a god in real life but he's not the saviour you think.
As usual, I would appreciate any and all feedback. I’m happy to once more go on this adventure with all of you! Thank you in advance for your comments and for reblogging ❤️
You catch Joanie by her knapsack before she can disappear into the crowd. Your heart lurches as you just picture her tiny stature getting lost in the New York crush. You pull her back to you.
“Joan, take me hand,” you demand shakily.
“Sorry, I thought I saw...” she begins then shakes her head. The cat ears on her hat wiggle. She grabs your hand with her small one and you squeeze. “Nothing. I’m just excited.”
“You know mom would kill me if I lost you,” you draw her out of the way of another pedestrian. The man in his suit doesn’t spare you a single thought as he charges by.
“Ha, I’m not going to get lost,” she insists.
You grumble but don’t voice your anxiety. She’s young and it’s all so big and loud to her. She’s still to young to be scared. You admire your half-sister for that but it also fills you with dread.
“I did!” She squeals and jumps in her pink high tops. “I saw him, I saw him.”
She points and her hand bounces off the hip of a woman strutting by. You apologise and once more redirect your sister. You squint and search in the direction she pointed. Yellow taxis honk as they roll by and jay walkers dodge between them.
“Thor!” Your sister hollers and hops up again, waving her hand.
That’s when you see him. You don’t know how you missed him. There’s so much going on that all the buildings and bodies blend together. For as long as you’ve been in the city, you’re still not used to the chaos of it all.
“Thor?” You echo her.
“Duh! God of Thunder! He hangs out with Iron Man.”
“Right,” you shepherd her back before she can get underfoot. “You know what mom says about talking to strangers.”
“He’s not a stranger, he’s a hero.” She argues.
“Maybe but I’m sure he’s just trying to live his life. He doesn’t look like he’s hero-ing right now, kiddo,” you chide.
“But...” her face falls. “But we don’t have heroes at home! What if I never see another one again? I just wanna say hi.”
“I know, Joan, but I...” you pause and glance back. There are others clustering around the tall man. He smiles and welcomes them as he greets them all graciously. You just hate to be in others way. You should have considered that before you moved to one of the most overcrowded places on earth. “Alright, but we’re going to go down and cross at the walk, right?”
She harrumphs and agrees begrudgingly, “right.”
You take her down the sidewalk, clamped onto her as you steer her around the New Yorkers trapped in the tunnel vision of their own existence. You get to the corner and wait and cross with a cluster. You glance down the pavement as Joanie squirms.
“Oh no, I think he’s gone,” she whines.
You look desperately ahead and grimace. You hope you didn’t ruin it for her. You drag her along, hoping that long blonde hair will pop up again. It doesn’t. You get to the exact place you spotted him. He’s not there.
“I’m so sorry, Joanie. I just wanted to be safe.” You turn to her, your chest dropping. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s fine...” she drones and hangs her head.
You stumble as a man knocks into your hip. You try to make yourself smaller but it’s hard to dodge anyone on the sidewalk even without a little extra cushion. You peer around and your eyes catch on the hanging sign of a bakery.
“How about a treat instead? You love cupcakes, right?” You coax her.
“Mm, I guess,” she shrugs.
Her disappointment stings. You feel horrid. You know she’s going to hold onto this.
“Come on, let’s get out of this,” you pull her to the bakery door.
As you enter, you sigh. You’re happy to be free of the city crawl. You look up at the menu above the counter. You’ve never been in here before. It’s a nice place and the desserts look immaculate. They’re also expensive.
“Look they have a unicorn--” You begin and Joanie rips her hand away as she wiggles.
“He’s here!” She cries out. “It’s Thor.”
Her voice carries across the space and you cringe and you look over to find the man, or god, in question. His blue eyes round as he bites into a cupcake piled with icing. The sugary topping marks his nose as he pulls it away and gulps. He gives a goofy smile.
“Joanie,” you whisper, “he’s just trying to enjoy his food.”
“Little one!” He waves before you can deter her. “You know me.”
Joanie giggles and squeals and skips over before you can stop her. You trail after her reluctantly as she hops up to his table, “your Thor, king of Asgard, God of Thunder!” She jitters. “I know you!”
He booms with laughter and wipes the icing from his beard and nose. His cupcake is forgotten on a small saucer. “An honour to meet you...”
“Joanie!” She nearly hollers. “My name is Joanie.”
“Ah, a beautiful name,” he praises and his eyes wander over you as you hover behind her. “And this lady, your mother?”
“Sister!” Joanie replies before you can and gives your name.
You try to smile as he grins at you and his eyes seem to sparkle. You wonder if that’s a god thing. Your cheeks are hot as his gaze bores into you.
“Are you here for the cupcakes? They are delicious. I recommend the confetti.” He puts his attention back to Joanie. “Would you like to join me?”
“Oh, sir, thanks, that’s so kind but we’ll just be getting ours to go--”
“But--” Joanie begins to whine and you lay your hand on her shoulder.
“If you don’t mind. She’s a big fan.”
“Not at all,” he assures you. “Allow me to treat you. What are we having?”
He stands and you shrink as he towers over you. There aren’t many who can make you feel small. You can’t help but take a step back and herd Joanie with you.
“Um...” you look over, “it’s really—I don’t mind. I can’t get ours. We’ve already bothered--”
“I must insist. As a king, I prize courtesy above all. Please sit and allow me to bring you some sweets.”
“I want the unicorn!” Joanie demands before you can stop her. You give Thor and apologetic look. He only seems amused by her awe.
“That’s very generous of you, what do we say, Joanie?” You say.
“Please and thank you,” she chirps.
“Yes, thank you, Thor. I’m fine with something simple. Vanilla is good for me.” You move Joanie away from him, “come on, let’s sit down. We’ve done a lot of walking.”
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NetworkMAT: Streetscaping 001 (Sidewalks & Sewers)
Published: 5-23-2024 | Updated: 7-16-2024 (+hood visibility)
SUMMARY
“Accentuate the streets, pedestrian paths, and roadsides in your city …”
“Rubberall is made from upcycled rubber, metal, and other materials. It's ten and a half times weather resistant as regular rubber and twice a pretty. Order it in bulk today!”
“Build a functional water and waste management system in your city…”
Another edition to the Network Materials (networkMAT) (Simmons, 2022-2024) series! This modular set includes 80 low poly objects for pedestrian paths, sidewalks, decorative foundations, and other roadside streetscaping. Objects are designed to be used with the Streets of 2morrow (Simmons, 2023) set - but they’ll work without them just fine. There are also matching neon curb lights.
How about functional sewer/water management networks?! You also get a canal, tunnel, deco, and functional items for making your own sewer network. The drains will clear the lot of any unattended puddles and garbage every few hours – visible exhaust rises from them during this process. The utility box and pipes earn the lot owner a small credit at each billing cycle – SimCity rewards good infrastructure!
DETAILS
Requires all EPs/SPs.
§0 and §100-1000 for lights/bollards, §300-1000 for sewer items
Build > Architecture/Columns and Buy > Lighting/Plumbing/Electronics > Misc
Most objects are repo’d to the BBNiche1Master (BuggyBooz, 2012) and/or Element Repository, which are both in the Repo Pack (Simmons, 2022). Don’t forget to grab some recolors – I recommend the “element” set HERE (Simmons, 2023) for the sewage water/material. See the following tags for more swatches: #co2recolors, #ts2recolors, #ts2repo #co2repo #co2repopack
IMPORTANT:
2-click objects are for 2-click/step foundations and foundation pieces are for default foundations/stages. Still – you’ll be able to mix and match in a variety of ways.
You’ll need “move object on/off” and “grid on/off” cheats to place some objects.
Foundation pieces match default foundations/decks which are slightly larger than a 1x1 tile space. They will overlap slightly – so depending on your design, you may want to shift things around with cheats.
Some items are asymmetrical/oversized so they’ll fit better with others in the set and give the paths a bit of a “distressed” look.
The 1x1/2x2 round corners use angled (not rounded) curves; this detail is apparent when you apply solid color txtr’s to them.
Some lights are repo’d to the neon plutonium rod (Nightlife EP) and will use the same light colors.
There is a short tutorial for this set HERE.
ITEMS
SIDEWALKS
2-Click Platforms, Planters, and Ramps (12-100 poly)
4-Click Foundations (32-64 poly)
Bollards 001-002 (230-262 poly) – Bollard 001 is repo’d to the Plutonium Rod (Nightlife EP)
Step Covers (Steps/Ramp) (~18-24 poly) -place with cheats; – center/side pieces work as
Rubberall Platform 1x1/2x1 (20 poly)
Rubberall Ramp Cover 1x1 (66 poly)
Rubberall Corner (Left/Right) (96 poly)
Rubberall Curb (14 poly)
Just8, 1x1 Transition Curb Left (24 poly)
Just8, 1x1 Transition Curb Right (24 poly)
Just8, 1x1 Transition Platform (44 poly)
Lighting (166-332 poly)
Solo, 1x1 Planter (20 poly)
Solo, 2x2 Planter (20 poly)
Urban Future 4, 1x1 Curb (66 poly) – curb MESH; includes invisible recolor
other curbs, curves, corner, and accent pieces (6-305 poly)
SEWERS 001
Beam (Deco) (44 poly)
Beam (Column) (44 poly)
Canal (7x9) (140 poly)
Pipes 001-003 (1000-1024 poly)
Rails (1-Tile/3-Tile) (115-192 poly)
Tunnel (7x9) (448 poly)
Utility Box (Functional) (266 poly) – earns the lot owner a small credit for each billing cycle.
Utility Wires (896 poly)
Zogorman Drains (1x1 /3x1) (42-126 poly)
K76 Drains (1x1/2x2/Raised) (728-744 poly)
DOWNLOAD (choose one)
from SFS | from MEGA
COMPATIBILITY
Compatible with Shiftable Everything (Lamare, 2022) and Object Freedom (Fway, 2023). Shift trees and garden plants into place before adding the planter pieces.
CREDITS
Thanks: Sim Shenanigans Discord folks, UV Mapping Tips (Frac, 2024). Sources: Beyno (Korn via BBFonts), Dosch SciFi Materials V1.1 (2022; 2009), EA/Maxis; Metal Grate (RBG_illustrations, 2019 via CCA), Modulo_Sewer_01 (Polo_Art, 2022 via Creative Commons Attribution), Modular Sidewalk/Curb Kit (Just8 2022-2023 via CCA), Neon Floor Lamp Add-On (PineappleForest, 2022), Nooks & Niches (Buggybooz, 2012), Offuturistic Infographic (Freepik), Retro Simlish Font/Simlish Manbow Solid (Adele, n.d.), Rubber Traffic Inspirations (Pewex, 2019), Sewer grate (Katy76 via PC Sims, 2007); Sidewalk (Zogorman, 2018 via CCA), Spawn of Square Stair (Khakidoo, 2007;), Textures (CuriousB, HugeLunatic, 2018; Simmons, 2023; 2010; Stonemason, 2011; Klevestav, 2013; 2010; EA/Maxis); Tree Planter w/ Grate (LordSamueliSolo, 2021 via CCA), Urban Future 4 (Stonemason, 2011).
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