With the Big Bed comes the chance to Propose...

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On Monday, 26 Autumn of my First Year, Thomas delivered my Bed Bed to the farmhouse at 6.00 a.m. He embarrassed me somewhat when he asked, 'Hey Freya! The Big Bed that you ordered was just delivered. What do you plan to do with such a huge bed? Are you living with somebody?'

How very RUDE!!! And he's the Mayor of Mineral Town??? For shame!!! He then apologised, but the damage was done.

To be honest, however, nothing could dampen my spirits. I wasn't about to settle for any one less than Skye, but I certainly had every intention of going through a 'dress rehearsal' of a marriage proposal with each of the Valley bachelors. One after another, I displayed my Blue Feather and catalogued their responses...

For the sake of other girls, of course, so that they will know what they are taking on if they choose any of these guys for better or for worse.

I have a daily gift-giving routine and I followed the same routine as I made my round of proposals. Rock was first on the list because I always Teleport first to the Inn to give gifts to any guests and then all regular residents.

Rock was typically disarming, telling me that even if he lived with me on the ranch, he couldn't imagine he would do any work. When we told his mother of our plans to marry, she was blunt in her assessment of her son as fairly worthless in terms of husband material. I was a little taken aback! You could see that beneath her very unflattering declarations, she truly DOES love him though. As a matter of fact, it is said that sons are created by their mothers so if Rock is feckless and lazy, it has to be Ruby's fault! Nonetheless, he is a loveable guy and I know he'll never lie to me.

Griffin was next on the list. He was almost pathetically grateful to me for choosing him as a husband. There is something deeply romantic about Griffin, beneath his rather matter-of-fact exterior. I have to say that, as I experienced his heart events, I developed a rather profound affection for him. That doesn't mean I am willing to choose him over Skye, but...

In fact, Muffy was so sweet about our engagement announcement that I never could marry Griffin after THAT. She deserves to have some happiness and it is obvious to me that they belong together.

So off to the Yurt next to propose to Gustafa. As I might have expected, his talk was all of his songs. He sees me as his source of inspiration now. There was absolutely no inclination on his part to offer to HELP me on the ranch. Where Rock actually appeared to be slightly apologetic about his inability to work, Gustafa appears to believe that his music places him high above ordinary mortals who must work with their hands to live...

Nami can have him, with my blessing... Although he did say he didn't need to travel any longer for inspiration now that he had me as a source, I expect he and Nami are better suited to one another. To be honest, I would have been more inclined to keep my engagement with him if he had suggested that WE travel somewhere together. What does he think, that I don't want to see the world??? Does he imagine I have no sense of adventure? Yes, I work hard and care about the success of the ranch, but I long to see the wonders of the world as well!

After Gustafa, I popped into Vesta's farmhouse to propose to Marlin. What an odd event that turned out to be! He showed me an expression that almost put me off for life, it was so peculiar. He looked like a character out of Dickens, cringing and looking up at me with his head cocked at an odd angle. Marlin isn't a bad guy, once you know him, but I would have to make him promise never to show me THAT expression again if I were to marry him.

It was what happened when we visited Vesta to tell her of our engagement that the event became truly bizarre. Vesta began to threaten him with GBH should he ever behave badly towards me!!! I mean, we're talking about Marlin here. It was rather hilarious in a way. I have to believe every one was teasing him. A beating from Vesta would kill him in his delicate state of health!

Seriously, though,

Finally, I visited the tent to propose to Carter. Did I write about his fourth heart event, when he became as drunk as a skunk, took me down to the beach and told me I was the light of his life??? I never knew HE was such a romantic. When I proposed to him, however, his primary concern was the difference in our ages. Rather tactlessly I thought, he pointed out that he was old enough to be my father. I tried to tell him it didn't matter, but when we announced our engagement to Flora, her responses made me realise that marriage to Carter was out of the question for me, even if it would save him from a life of Curry! Flora was almost nasty to me, and she always tells me I am her best friend... I can see how long THAT would last if I married her darling Carter... So that's another engagement that will be broken.

In any case, I am off to experience Skye's 5th and Final Heart Event. I shan't marry any one immediately in any case. I want to experience the Starry Night Festival with each and every one of the Valley bachelors. Moreover, I yet have attained marriage eligibility with any of the Mineral Town bachelors. I expect it will be Spring before I am free to marry my sweet-talking Skye.

N.B. The full text of all Heart Events and each Marriage Proposal Event will be found in My Courtship and Marriage Guide for HM Cute.

The 'Big Bed' in Harvest Moon

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Any one familiar with classical Harvest Moon games knows about the 'Big Bed'. It is, not surprisingly, one of the requirements for marriage. If you don't have a 'Big Bed', no one will marry you? Is it a question of wealth and status? No! It's a very practical one. Another person would not be able to fit in your small bed with you and certainly not a spouse AND a child.

In Magical Melody, the Large Beds can be purchased at the Workshop but in Mineral Town and Forget-Me-Not Valley, you have the luxury of 'catalogue shopping' via the Shopping Network.

Many new players of Harvest Moon become agitated when the bachelor or woman of their dreams has been courted, has reached red heart level but will not accept the Blue Feather. If all heart events have been experienced, the reason for rejection often is the lack of a Big Bed in the house.

Harvest Moon games are founded on practical logic for the most part. The Shopping Network will not offer a Kitchen until you have expanded your tiny house once. There simply would not be enough room for it! With similar logic, the Shopping Network will not offer the Big Bed until you have expanded your house TWICE. Again, there would not be sufficient space for a large bed if you do not expand twice.

In Harvest Moon DS and Harvest Moon Cute DS, the Big Bed will be the next item offered as soon as your second house expansion is completed. That is why I do not expand my house for the second time until I have purchased ALL Kitchen implements. I feel that it is far more important to complete my Kitchen and be able to cook all dishes than to have a Big Bed that I will not use until later in the game...

At this point in my own game, on Saturday, 24 Autumn, I have two bachelors at deepest red heart level and the other ordinary bachelors at Orange Heart Level. I have experienced all four heart events for each of the ordinary bachelors. My second house expansion was completed this morning and as it is Saturday, the Big Bed should be offered today. As I rescued over 60 Sprites, thus rescuing the Harvest Goddess, my Blue Feather will be accepted if I offer it now.

It was at this point that I discovered a very interesting twist to the game. Although my house expansion has been completed today, if I access the Shopping Network Channel BEFORE I go outside to speak to Gotz, the item that is offered will be the 'Clock' instead of the 'Big Bed'! If, however, I go outside and speak to Gotz to receive his official annoucement of the completion of my 2nd house expansion, the item that will be offered today will be the Big Bed!

I never would have known this if I had completed my 2nd house expansion on a day other than Saturday. It is a small detail but potentially useful if any player goes into a panic, finding that the Clock is on the agenda when he/she expected the 'Big Bed' to be offered! In my game, actually, it was the 'Big Bed' that was offered, but I had gone outside to speak to Gotz before I accessed the Shopping Channel... I then decided to reload my game, to see what would occur if I didn't speak to Gotz...
My theory that the Shopping Network somehow was connected to Gotz' announcement proved to be accurate. I was offered the 'Clock' instead. All I had to do then was reload the game once again and speak to Gotz before I accessed the Shopping Channel.

It is situations like this that prompted me initially to write guides for Harvest Moon. I delight in these little 'puzzles' and feel a small sense of triumph when I solve them. Most often, the emails I receive from players ask questions that are answered in my guides but once in a great while, I get a question that is based on a peculiar set of circumstances such as the one I have described here. Now this information will be added to my Cute General Guide as well as my Courtship and Marriage Guide. Always speak to Gotz FIRST before you access the Shopping Network if your 2nd house completion occurs on Saturday.

For those players of 'Friends of Mineral Town' and 'More Friends of Mineral Town' who wonder how they will be able to order items from the Shopping Channel without having a telephone, the answer is: use the telephone at the Inn. You will find it on the bar counter. It costs only 10G to use. Watch television on Saturday in order to be offered the next item by the Shopping Network, then go to the Inn and use the telephone to order it. Zack will deliver it on Monday. If you try to use the telephone at the Inn without having watched the television first, you will not be able to purchase anything. You actually must watch the programme on television.

Similarly, in HM DS and HM Cute DS, you must watch the Shopping Channel before you use your telephone to ring TV Shopping. If you receive the message: 'There's no answer.', it will be because you are trying to contact them outside of business hours. Wait until 9.00 a.m. and try again.

Incidentally, business hours for all shops and businesses are included in my guides but in HM DS and HM Cute DS, they can be found in your BOOKS as well. Go to your bookcase and you will find a wealth of information about shops, crops and other aspects of life in Forget-Me-Not Valley. (In the U.K./European version of HM DS, there is no way to access your books. That version was NOT made by Natsume, by the way. I suggest that players in Europe order from a distributor in the U.S. via internet in order to be able to play the game the way it was intended to be played. Worse than the deprivation of the books is the fact that the Mineral Town characters cannot be unlocked in the European/U.K. version! It really is inferior in many respects to the Natsume version BUT it does contain ALL the nasty glitches such as the 'freeze file glitch'. So go Natsume ALL THE WAY.)

For those who have not experienced the glories of 'catalogue living', I have included a couple of photographs of the 'Shopping Channel' when it offers the 'Big Bed'.

Those players familiar with HM DS probably know the signature speech by heart but here it is for those who have not played this marvelous game yet:

That's right, it's that time again! It's surprising, it's exciting, it's catalogue living! It's time for TV Shopping!'

'Today we introduce to you... the 'Big Bed'! It's hard to sleep in a small bed. doesn't that trouble you? Sleep sprawled out on this bed, no problem. This 'Big Bed' is a mere... 10,000G! Call now if you want this!! TV Shopping pays the shipping costs for you!'