Joshua Lane (Ian Anthony Dale) is looking for garage employees.
WANTED CONNECTION: garage employees.
FOR CHARACTER(S): Joshua Lane (Ian Anthony Dale).
REQUIREMENTS: none!
SUGGESTED FCS: completely up to player!
SPOTS OPEN: 1/4 mechanics, 0/1 office help.
CONNECTION DETAILS: Josh and his father (Takato) own Takato's Garage, which is a bike & classic car garage, although they do work for locals that they know well, too. This connection is for anyone who would want to work at the garage! Obviously, general mechanic knowledge is necessary, and if you went to school for it or have training, even better -- but they could always use people to work at the front desk, too, and would be willing to have an intern!
family: Charles & Madison Lane (adopted father & mother), Takato Shimizo (birth father)
relationship status: in a relationship with Esperanza Tamayo.
personality
A genuinely positive person who has always been in touch with his emotions and feels things very deeply. Josh is the kind of person who would take a bullet for a stranger and is often told that he cares a little too much about the world around him, although he wouldn’t have it any other way. He has a soft, warm personality, the kind of person that lights up the room without trying to. He draws people to him, but isn’t a pushover, knowing how and when to say no and to set boundaries. An absolute cinnamon roll, who just so happens to always have grease baked into the cracks of well-used hands from fixing your car.
portrayed by Ian Anthony Dale; penned by Katie.
full biography / background
triggering / sensitive content warning: anxiety.
The moment that Takato’s partner expressed disinterest in becoming a parent – despite the positive pregnancy test in their hands – he did everything that he could to arrange the best life possible for his unborn child, contacting the adoption agency and lining up a new home for the little one. On April 12th, 1978, when Joshua entered the world and then was placed in the arms of his new parents – Madison and Charles Lane – the only request made was that he was given the middle name Akio; a name often given to boys in Japan to help maintain their path towards their shining future. It was all that Takato wanted for his little Akio.
Childhood in Merrock was pleasant. Josh was the only child of two parents who made sure that he never wanted for anything, but never at the expense of raising an entitled child. He was never made to feel any different than the other kids in town, but his parents never held back on answering any questions about where he came from, or the culture that he would have grown up with back home, even incorporating some of it into their daily lives. He loved to play sports, and spent most of his summers on the beach, whether it be boogie boarding, learning to surf, or just splashing in the water. Every Sunday morning – at least the ones that cooperated, weather-wise – his family took long hikes in the state park with a picnic lunch by the water.
But that perfect, idyllic childhood didn’t come without its shake ups, as a young, teenaged Josh was introduced to his birth father on a random Monday afternoon, seeing him for the first time on his living room couch, nervously wringing his hands. For the first few years of their time together, Joshua felt angry and upset, unsure if he should let his father back into his life, not understanding why he wanted to be in his life now, why he hadn’t wanted him as a baby. But with time came understanding – from both of them – and with the permission of the Lanes, Takato made the move to Merrock full-time to build a relationship and a life with his son. He spent weekends taking him fishing, on a motorcycle ride for his sixteenth birthday, attended all of his track and field meets, and became his best friend, as well.
While flourishing in his relationship with his father, coming to love and appreciate this adoptive family even more, being active on a few sports teams, and pulling some of the best grades in his school, Josh also dealt with a lot of anxiety. He was the one hard on himself when a track meet didn’t end the way he wanted, or cried when he got an answer wrong in school. It was no surprise that his fingers shook as he read his prepared valedictorian speech. Dealing with those emotions and the distress that came with it made him want to dig in a little deeper, and he chose to attend the University of Maine (close to home!) to study psychology. During his college years, he lived a pretty clean, studious life, choosing to watch a movie with a friend over attending keggers, drinking seltzer waters over glasses of wine. To this day, he hasn’t smoked a cigarette. But he didn’t live like a complete monk; Josh also discovered his love of women, having broken things off with his high school sweetheart, Espie, for them to explore their options in their young adult years. But it didn’t break his focus, and he graduated at the top of his class.
Luckily for Josh, the ‘Lane’ last name came with recognition to go with his diploma and educational qualifications, and he soon landed himself a position as a psychologist at a clinic just outside of town, quickly amassing a large amount of happy clients due in part to his kind, easygoing, laidback nature. But it didn’t stop him, a few years into his practice, from starting to feel that nagging feeling in his chest that he was doing the wrong thing, that this wasn’t where he wanted to be. Mostly because he realized that he was helping people who could afford the help… and not those who really needed it the most. Still, he held fast, doing everything that he could to regain the passion that he felt he was losing for his chosen career until he hit the ripe old age of forty… and also burn out.
In another stroke of luck, Takato offered Josh a job – and business partnership – working in the motorcycle garage that he had just opened, having finally saved up enough money to open his own business. Having loved that bike ride at sixteen, and spending the time with his father, he accepted the position eagerly. It wasn’t long after he settled into what he thought would be his forever routine that another opportunity came knocking in the form of the director of the community center. Despite not having much money to offer, nor a promise of good hours, Joshua was asked to become a counselor at the center for those who needed the help but maybe couldn’t afford to see a psychologist.
For the past few years, Josh has been happily building up his reputation in the community center -- where he spends as much time coordinating and helping with events as he does healing young minds -- and the bike and classic car garage that he and his father have built up together. He is happily in a relationship with that high school sweetheart he could never quite get off his mind, and spends most of his free time fishing, running, walking his dog, or tending to his aquarium fish... when he's not on his bike.
Joshua Lane (Ian Anthony Dale) is looking for garage employees!
WANTED CONNECTION: employees at Takato's Garage.
FOR CHARACTER(s): Joshua Lane (Ian Anthony Dale).
REQUIREMENTS: none!
SUGGESTED FCS: anyone you would like!
SPOTS OPEN: 5/5.
WANTED DETAILS: Takato (Josh's father) opened his bike garage in 2015 after servicing bike riders since 1993 in various garages around town. In 2018, Josh took a position as partner, and the two run the garage together, with the addition of classic cars added to the line-up. I'd love to have some mechanics to work in the garage, as well as front desk workers who are interested in a fun work environment!
Joshua Lane (Ian Anthony Dale) is looking for biker buddies!
WANTED CONNECTION: biker buddies.
FOR CHARACTER(s): Joshua Lane (Ian Anthony Dale).
REQUIREMENTS: absolutely none!
SUGGESTED FCS: anyone you would like!
SPOTS OPEN: 4/5.
WANTED DETAILS: this would just be a group of people who get together to take bike rides in and around Merrock, or up and down the coast! Nothing super specific, I just ask that they have their bike license and be able to ride. Can be any age, any gender, not picky!
