Carlos Contender and Trisha Traveller: Week 1

[Note: This was played and written in 2008 or 2009.]
Carlos Contender was added to our games with the Apartment Life expansion pack and originally lived in this house in Belladonna Cove. He still lives in the same house, only that it is not in Belladonna Cove anymore, but in New Maximiliania - my big neighbourhood where ALL Maxis-made families have settled in all the Maxis-built houses that ever came with The Sims 2 and all of its expansion packs.

The back view of the house reveals what you already suspected from the front view: the owner of this place is no poor man. We find a pool, jaccuzzi, bar, deck chairs and barbecue here.

And this is the man himself: Carlos Contender, retired Hall-of-Famer who now dreams of having 20 best friends at the same time. He does not look 83, does he? Oh, by the way, he is a Sociable Celebrity - according to the reputation system that became part of the game with "Apartment Life" and which I usually totally forget about :-) Carlos is indeed not a poor man; on top of owning the house, he has 72.097 Simoleons to his name - and he has 3 bolts for Trisha Traveller!

But Trisha is married and a lot younger than Carlos, and so he lives here on his own, filling his days and some sleepless nights with activities such as gardening.

It is a lonely life, and no Sim, especially not a Popularity Sim, can be entirely happy when there is a 3-bolt-love out there but not with them.

So, I'm afraid I have to admit I had Carlos invite Trisha Traveller over on the Monday morning and ask her to move in - which she did not think twice about! She added 549 Simoleons to the household account - well, that wasn't really necessary... Trisha is a Popularity Sim just like Carlos, but wishes to earn 100.000 Simoleons. Was her quest for money the main reason behind her accepting Carlos' invitation? She does have 3 bolts for him, so I am inclined to think that their mutual "feelings" are genuine.

Don Lothario happens to walk by and is promptly invited in. "Yes, best friends for life is what I am trying to be with all my ladies," Don tells Carlos. Well, we all know what matters more to Don than being best friends with them when it comes to the ladies!

The three-bolt-couple enjoy their life together. Trisha does not seem to waste a single thought about her husband Trent or their daughter Tina.

Late on Monday evening, Carlos pepares hot dogs... and they turn a lot hotter than expected, when the grill suddenly catches fire. Trisha manages to extinguish the flames within minutes, though.

So, we have reached that stage now? Discussing their wedding party, while Trisha is still legally married to Trent (and shows a red heart for him as well as for Carlos).

"It is much nicer when there is just the two of us," Trisha confides in Carlos, giving today's lunch guest Georgia Newson the cold shoulder. Not very polite, dear!

When Georgia has left, Trisha jumps into Carlos' arms to show him how much more she likes being on her own with him. (They do that all week, kissing, giving each other back rubs, Trisha jumping into Carlos' arms and so on. Well, they ARE a 3-bolt-couple, after all.)

On Thursday, Carlos turnes 100 years old, and of course this does call for a celebration - and what better celebration could there be for a retired Hall-of-Famer than a sports party? Herbert Goodie, Beaumont DeBateau, Lisa Ramirez, Goneril Capp, Marissa Cleveland and Sam Thomas are on the guest list...

...as well as Ajay Loner, who strangely enough prefers a bag of crisps to the lovely berry pie our centenarian has prepared for his guests.

At first, the sports party does not offer much in terms of sports, until Carlos puts the sports channel on.

Soon, everybody congregates in front of the telly, and the party turns out to be a big success. Happy 100th birthday, Carlos!

On Friday, nothing worth mentioning happens apart from an infestation of bugs, which the couple manage to get rid of very quickly.

Marissa Cleveland comes visiting again. She would be so much better suited for Carlos, wouldn't she? Alas, these two have only one bolt between them and really are just friends.

I have been observing Trisha all week - she is suffering some kind of eating disorder. Unless I tell her to prepare something to eat, she does not go and get food until she is close to starvation. This happens more than once, and the fridge is fully stocked and accessible.

While Marissa Cleveland is still there, Carlos is once again unlucky in his attempts to use the grill; this time, he was trying to be a good host and offer delicious spare ribs. Again, Trisha is the one who saves not only the day but also everyone on the lot from a most firey death.

She may be a clever girl when it comes to using a fire extinguisher, but she still has difficulties with her own eating. This time she was really very close to death from starvation until she finally went to the fridge on her own accord and stuffed her face.

On Sunday, Carlos receives his membership card to Games of Glory. He is now 103 years old, while Trisha still has 10 days left until reaching Elderhood.

No matter how old or young - that eating disorder is quite worrying!

But I can assure you that when I left the couple on Sunday night, they were both alive and kicking, happily cuddling under the stars (they did that on their own accord and I found it rather sweet to watch). 

How long is Carlos going to live? Will Trisha stay in this house after his death or go back to her husband and daughter? She has done nothing at all this week to get closer to reaching her lifetime want; what is she going to do about that? Actually, I have no answers to any of these questions yet :-)