The Jocque Family: Week 1

For the Jocque Family, Maxis have prepared a set of pictures to go with their family bio, according to which "Sophia, Marcel, and Violet have a wonderful family life, but can they continue through the stresses to come? Will they find the time to relax and enjoy life?". 

Here, we see Violet talking to the Edward and Opal Contrary, the parents of her best friend Rick, who is watching the scene with a somewhat skeptical look. Violet's bio says that she "and Rick have been best friends forever, but Rick is going through some rough times. Can she help him understand his parents? Can she help his parents to understand him?"

Opal and Sophia are best friends, as it not only illustrated here but also part of Sophia's bio: "Sophia loves to work out, and has a pretty demanding job. Can she and her best friend, Opal, find time for themselves in their busy schedules?"

Again, it looks as if Maxis have got the chronology mixed up - the first picture showing Marcel has him putting a toddler-age Violet in her high chair when we've just seen her as a teenager.

Marcel loves food - not only according to his biography, which reads "Marcel loves food, but Sophia loves a fit man, can he strike a balance between his love for delectable delights and his waistline?", but also as shown here. Funnily enough, when the game starts, he does not have a single cooking point. 

When she was big enough to reach the ballet barre, Violet learned her first moves from her sporty mother. But upon entering the lot, it looks as if Violet is more into all sorts of ball sports, and there is no ballet barre anywhere.

The house at 1055 East Leisure Lane in Desiderata Valley is one of the ones where Maxis seems to have forgotten a few windows. 

On the ground floor, the front door leads straight into the open plan kitchen and dining area, with a toilet leading off it. There is also a lounge with fire place, settee, TV and stereo, and something not every family can boast: a room with a pool table and bar. 

On the upper floor, the stairs end on a landing spacious enough to hold workout equipment and a desk with a computer. Three doors off the landing lead to Marcel and Sophia's bedroom, Violet's room and the family bathroom. Funds are relatively low at just under 1,500 Simoleons, but if need be, some of the sports equipment or even the pool table can be sold. 

Violet should be at school at this Monday morning, but we find her in the back garden where by the looks of it she was just about to have a shoot-out at the football goal. I send her to school straight away. She is a Popularity Sim with - surprisingly - the lifetime want of being a Rock God, nothing to do with sports. 

Her mum is similarly not really sports-oriented (and has only one body skill point!). Her aspiration is Popularity, too, and she sees herself as future Hand of Poseidon.

Just like the rest of the family, Marcel's lifetime want does not match his Maxis-written bio: He wants to be Chief of Staff, not unusual for a Family Sim.

After school, I have Violet ask her mother for help with her homework.

Meanwhile, Marcel sits in the lounge with the welcome committee: Dora Ottomas and her son Peter as well as Herbert Goodie.

Once Violet's homework is done and everybody has had a sandwich, I send the family to Sims Gone Wired - this may be their only chance at visiting a community lot easily; once Marcel and Sophia start on their careers, it could be difficult to take time out from skilling and working.

The choice of community lot was down to Violet's wish to buy a cell phone, and here she is doing just that. 

Sophia meets Mary Gavigan, who admires her for her athletic figure - "You are one of the few ladies above 20 who really can pull off the tummy free look!"

Violet meets Jill Smith, a potential new resident for Desiderata Valley. Soon afterwards, the family head home, and it is not long before everyone is in bed. 

On Tuesday, Sophia leaves for work so early that everybody else is still asleep. Marcel has not yet found a job in his coveted career and so does all the household tasks.

Starting early also means returning home early. Sophia's job as a Fish Chummer does not even pay enough to cover today's bills, but it's a start - I am sure she will make her way up to being Hand of Poseidon one day. 

First, though, she invites her good friend Elizabeth Aspir over for a round of pool. Life is not just work, there also has to be some play!

Marcel has a lone breakfast on Wednesday, with his daughter being at school and his wife at work. 

Sophia returns with a promotion to Dolphin Tank Cleaner - a little more pay and slightly more comfortable hours, but still a long way off. "I feel we're getting somewhere," she smiles at her husband nonetheless as she joins him in the living room, studying for her next promotion.

Violet spots David Ottomas walking by and invites him in. The two of them only have one bolt, but it seems like David is rather interested in her - he flirts on his own accord. No pink hearts are seen flying, though. 

Her parents enjoy a tender moment over the nutritious and tasty vegetable soup Marcel has made for their evening meal. 

Thursday isn't off to a great start for Marcel when the tap in the downstairs toilet breaks. Money is too tight at the moment to have the repair service come in, and so he spends quite a bit of time doing the work himself. 

When Violet is home from school and sits down for lunch with her Dad, he tries to have That Conversation with her. "You and Rick have been close friends for a long time now, sweetie... is there anything... umm... more happening between the two of you... like... erm... kissing?"

"Oh Daaad!!! Don't be embarrassing! Rick and I will be best friend for life, no matter what..." Violet really has not have anything "going on" with Rick yet, or any other boy. But who knows what will happen in spring!

For now, it is autumn, and Marcel puts in an afternoon of gardening while he still has time. Once he'll start working in the medical career, things will be harder to juggle.

Mother and daughter sit down for some skilling that evening. Both have good reason to smile: Sophia has been promoted to Sea Lice Research Assistant today, while Violet has received her first A+ report. 

Everybody sleeps much better now in the more comfortable beds purchased with the promotion bonus and earnings Sophia has brought home. 

She and Violet leave for work and school at the same time on Friday morning, and when I habitually check on the names of the drivers, I notice that they must be related - both go by the surname of Dallas :-) 

(I won't attempt to make them playable - drivers are among those NPCs who cause problems when you do that, and it's not possible with regular gameplay anyway.) 

It turns out to be Promotion Day for the Jocques! First Sophia is made Dive Master, and heads straight back to work for an extra shift.

With both her parents out, Violet has free reign after school. When she says goodbye to the townie classmate who came home with her, this is how :-D (She has two bolts for him; if it were three, I'd let her act on it.) 

Today's second promotion is for Marcel: After he finally found an opening as EMT, he returned from his first day on the job as Paramedic.

And Sophia was lucky with a chance card, resulting in a promotion to Underwater Demolitionist. Now husband and wife need several skill points; good job it is autumn when skilling is easiest.

Violet wants to throw a party, and a sports party at that. She invites her friends Rick and David over, plus Rick's parents - she likes them, too, and (remember her Maxis-written bio?) has helped the family through a rocky patch when Rick was constantly at odds with his Mum and Dad. 

Rick and his mother seem to wonder what Violet invited David for.

Violet and the two boys... Rick her oldest and closest friend, and David clearly interested in her. What is going to happen?

Nothing dramatic - instead, the guys get along really well, and Violet is equally taking care of all her party guests.

When Sophia returns from work with yet another promotion (she is now a Marine Biologist, and the koi pond is put in the front garden), she is happy to see the Contarys playing with Marcel. The two couples have been friends for a while, too, and Violet's sports party ends as roof raiser.

Funnily enough, I seem to have not taken any pictures for Sunday - I could have sworn I did, but there are none in the folder.

Anyway: Marcel is promoted to Nurse, and after work meets & greets Matthew Picaso. Sophia spends quite a considerable amount of time skilling for her next promotion, and what time is left is used for phone calls or to talk among the family members; it is winter now, and they roll the typical winter wishes to talk or play with a relative - easily fulfilled.

I enjoyed this week with the Jocques, and they did well.

In the house, I have only improved the beds and the shower/bathtub combination once the money was there. Also, selling one of the two computers and one of the two exercise machines meant they could afford a chess board and two comfortable chairs for it; Marcel especially will need more logic in his career.

What Violet will do romance-wise (if anything), remains to be seen. She wants to go to college, and that is going to happen next time I play here.