First Forgery

The incline leading down to Sudden Valley has been completed. Here’s an updated look at it. I still need to put more Arrested Development themed items down here, so this area will improve over time.

The completed ramp to Sudden Valley.

When I checked my mail, I was surprised to see that Keaton sent me a famous painting (the Mona Lisa) in the mail!

A letter from Keaton to Jeff. He attached a famous painting.

Unfortunately, it was too good to be true. Blathers informed me that it was a fake. A Phony Lisa. Well, at least I got 500 Nook Miles for acquiring my first forgery. So… yay?

Cube the penguin was camping at the campsite today. I noticed that his sleeping bag was the same colors as him!

Cube and his sleeping bag at the campsite.

I like Cube, so I asked him to move into town. But he declined. I wondered if it was because I didn’t have an open house plot, so I decided I would install one. More on this later…

I got my first look at Horsby’s house, now that he has unpacked. It’s not exactly the nicest house, but at least he’s trying to keep it clean.

Hornsby dusts off his magazines.
Well you can’t accuse Hornsby of having dirty magazines.

Near the sumo ring, Agent S taught me the sleepy reaction. I think it’s working, because I just yawned. Don’t catch my yawn! 😴

I learned the Sleepy Reaction! Can't...stay...awake...zzzz...zzzz...

Saharah was in town, so I bought a mysterious wallpaper and a mysterious flooring from her, for 3,000 bells each. I was very happy with my purchases: The dark-chocolates flooring looked awesome and delicious! The laboratory wall was even more impressive, because it was my first animated wallpaper! You can see bubbles rising through the water!

The dark-chocolates flooring and the (animated) laboratory wall in Animal Crossing: New Horizons (ACNH).

I later purchased a house plot, and Tom Nook confirmed it will be the last one I can install. 👎 I put it north of Nook’s Cranny, just a bit southwest of Shari’s house.

With that done, I returned to Cube at the campsite. He wanted to play a game to see if he would move in. It was a card game, similar to the ones in the GameCube game…except this time, it actually shows the cards.

Cube: I win! Sorry, but I guess I'm not moving here.

I lost, but I tried again…several times. I kept losing repeatedly, so I eventually gave up. Even though I like Cube, he’s not quite in my top tier of villagers, so I didn’t want to keep playing all night for him. If it was Puck, I would have kept trying. But it just seemed like Cube wasn’t ready for Forest. Oh well. Perhaps another time.

I used the island designer app to make a small change to my layout. I just carved out a chunk of the back of the mountain, so that you can reach Sudden Valley from my northeast beach. Just follow the path and walk onto the rocks to get there. I only had to cut away four spaces, so it was a quick little “surgery,” but it is a convenient way to get through.

Carving out a path behind the mountain in ACNH.

I also prepared a spot for a new lighthouse I just ordered, but I’ll show that next time. I just spent the rest of my time meeting some Nook Miles+ goals for extra miles. I still haven’t finished up my obstacle course, but I will do that soon.

Here is my latest New Horizons video, showing the fishing tournament and Bunny Day festivities from earlier this month.

Hornsby’s New Home

Late last night, I made some more changes to my Sudden Valley area. I dug down to ground level to make it even more of a valley. I even dug through the back wall of the mountain, so that you can see the ocean from here! I covered the area in sand, I put up a Sudden Valley sign, and I even picked a spot for a ramp going down. The only problem is that I forgot I had to pay the ramp off, so it’s not done yet. But here’s a picture of it so far, taken in the daylight today.

Sudden Valley is now a deeper valley.

Label sent me a tailors ticket and a Labelle coat in the mail.

I was surprised to find Rizzo in Nook’s Cranny today. I think it’s the first time I’ve seen a villager in there shopping. He was looking at a magazine, and he said it wasn’t grabbing him.

Rizzo: The magazine ain't really grabbing me...

And yet, he still stood there reading it. He even said “this ain’t half bad.”

Rizzo: This ain't half bad.

Kicks had a stand set up at the plaza today, and I bought some power boots from him (mainly just to be nice, and to grow my catalog).

Kicks: Welcome, chum! Have a look. No rush, no rush at all.

I found Claudia singing….to a tree! She was literally facing a tree and singing! I had to adjust the camera to see her, but the tree was directly in front of her! I guess that’s one way to start a singing career: Start by singing to just a tree, and then branch out later.

Claudia sings to a tree in Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
I don’t think the tree was impressed; it was throwing shade.

Hornsby has officially moved into Forest, so I made sure to say hello to my new friend. He becomes my 2nd favorite villager now, just behind Agent S and ahead of Tia. It’s nice to have one of my old GameCube buddies join me here! 🙂

Hornsby: Man, we gotta hang out sometime! I've got so many snacks to share with you, Jeff!
I can’t wait, schnozzle!

Right at 7:00 tonight, shooting stars started appearing in the sky. I made sure to stop to wish on a few of them.

Jeffster wishes on a shooting star in Animal Crossing: New Horizons (ACNH).

A few other notes about today:

  • Tia was sick, so I gave her some medicine. She gave me a diner apron in return.
  • Sable gave me some more patterns.
  • I used my tailors ticket to buy a mohawk wig.
  • I paid off my new incline, so it will be completed tomorrow.

Have a great day, and I’ll see you next time. I hope your islands are progressing well! 🙂

Carving a Valley

Last last night, I made a banana pattern (though I’m not totally satisfied with it), and I turned a stall into a banana stand. That’s a reference to Arrested Development (an old TV show that I love).

Jeff stands at the banana stand.
There’s always money in the banana stand!

I worked on my obstacle course, and I realized I had a big problem. I needed fencing on the far left edge at one point, but that’s where the beach was. So I pretty much had to shift the entire course one space to the right. It was a time-consuming task, but it will allow me to make the changes I want to make. More on this later.

I earned the Cast Master achievement for catching 100 fish in a row without letting one get away. I was relieved to get it out of the way last night. Especially because there was a fish that did get away from me today! That would have ruined my streak if it had happened yesterday. 😛

In the mail, I received an annyeong tee that I ordered last night. Annyeong means hello in Korean, and Annyong is also the name of a character in Arrested Development. Technically, it’s not his name, but everyone calls him that. He would always say “annyong” (hello) when meeting someone new, so everyone thought he was stating his name.

Anyway, I got some good news from Tia today: She informed me that Hornsby is moving in! Hornsby is one of my favorites from way back many years ago in the GameCube game (in the early months of Forest). Even though I used an Amiibo card to get him in New Leaf, I’m happy to be getting him in New Horizons as well. 🙂

Tia: You know that empty lot that was for sale? Well, I just noticed the name Hornsby on the sign...

Label was at the plaza today, and she wanted me to wear a formal outfit. She gave me a collarless coat as an example of what she’s looking for, so I put it on and spoke to her again. And she was satisfied with that!

Label: Yes, this is what I mean when I say I'm looking for a formal style.

With Arrested Development on my mind (as I recently started re-watching the early seasons), I decided to make some dramatic changes to town: I want to have an Arrested Development themed section on my island. I moved my upper northeast waterfall to the west a bit, and it’s now horizontal instead of vertical.

Two waterfalls.

I then carved out a valley: Sudden Valley. It’s obviously still a work in progress, but I have ideas to put a number of Arrested Development themed attractions here.

The entrance to Sudden Valley.

Here’s a look at the map, before and after. I know the new section is still pretty rough, but I will work on improving it over time.

Before and after, Sudden Valley.
Before and after.

I then went to work on my obstacle course more. The new course will have two water sections you’ll have to vault across, in addition to several climbing sections. So you will need to change tools multiple times. The new pillar-jumping area may have multiple ways you can go. 😉

I also made a new finish platform. Instead of ringing the bell to win, you’ll light up your tiki torch. This also eliminates the possibility of two players merging at the finish line, because each will have his/her own goal.

The new finish line of my obstacle course.

I have the layout pretty much done now, but it still needs some cosmetic changes to finish it completely. That includes some paths, fencing, and some water that will fill in some gaps between the pillars.

Just a couple of other notes from today:

  • I decided to destroy the rock right in front of Nook’s Cranny. It was starting to annoy me, especially with the remodeled entrance being right there.
  • Sable gave me another set of patterns to use when customizing furniture.

Hornsby moves in tomorrow, so I’ll be back with another entry then!