Cyd Roseland - Week 1

This modest house at No. 290 Hobby Drive in Desiderata Valley has recently been sold to Cyd Roseland, who has just moved in with his dog Porthos. 

According to Maxis, "Cyd and Porthos are the founders of the Dognatchi technique, which introduced the world to canine physical training through mental discipline. Together, they prove that Sims and dogs can achieve amazing and inspirational results!" ]

Here they are. 

Unfortunately, Cyd's skill profile is completely empty - not even a body skill, in spite of what his household bio says. His personal bio says that his "... world revolves around two things: physical training and his sidekick Porthos. He believes that a healthy body promotes a long Sim life and will prove it through example." Well, we'll have to see about that. He is a Knowledge Sim who dreams of being a Celebrity Chef - a very ambitious goal for someone who has no cooking skill as yet! 

The house is not only modest from the outside, but even more so inside. 

The double front door leads into a large open-plan area with nothing but a cheap settee in one part and an equally cheap kitchen in the other. Inexplicably, in the kitchen part there is also a makeshift book shelf - wouldn't that make more sense near the settee? In the top left corner is a bathroom and in the top right corner a bedroom. The lower left corner is taken up by a relatively large room which is empty so far. 

Everything is of the lowest quality, and Cyd can't afford to replace anything just yet - his personal fortune amounts to a mere 35 Simoleons! That's not even enough to buy the most basic things for his dog. What to do?

The settee and the bookshelf are sold, allowing at least for a food bowl and a bone for Porthos. Then, Cyd proceeds to dig a hole in the garden and is lucky enough to find two rocks (which he places in the garden) and not one, but TWO tattered old maps. He sells them and can now afford a dog bed for porthos as well as the cheapest desk & chair (Mr. Humble's computer needs to go somewhere) plus the cheapest dining table and four chairs for Cyd's existing and future friends. 

Those future friends turn up soon to welcome their new neighbour. Matthew Picaso, Trisha Traveller and Hannah Bell share a platter of sandwiches with Cyd who, by the way, has put Mr Humble's computer to good use and found a job in the culinary career, starting tomorrow. 

Julien Cooke invites Cyd for an outing, and because he wants to take Porthos along, the group order the taxi to take them to Sim Center South.

There are Mary and Nathan Gavigan, Elizabeth Aspir and of course Julien Cooke. 

Cyd first makes a batch of hot dogs for the group and then he, Elizabeth and Nathan have a swim before it is time for Cyd and Porthos to head home.

On Tuesday morning, Cyd tells Porthos: "I'm sorry, pal; you'll have to stay alone all afternoon and evening today. I'll make sure to fill your bowl before I go, and I promise you a nice bath for tomorrow."

It is 10:00 pm when Cyd finally returns home from his first exhausting shift as a Dishwasher. It is also his last (unless he'll be demoted because of a chance card), as he has been promoted to Drive Through Clerk. With his wage and the bonus, he is not quite as worried about today's bills as he was this morning - he now has 683 Simoleons. Phew! 

Porthos gets the bath Cyd has promised him - and it was really necessary! Of course it meant that the shower had to be replaced by a tub.

Cyd sleeps into Wednesday, dreaming of his next promotion and the bonus that will allow him to gradually improve things further for his four-legged friend and himself.

Just as the mailman is picking up the paid bills, Porthos was going to make the acquaintance of the skunk - but the mailman provides enough distraction, and no skunky perfume is sprayed that would make another bath necessary. 

Later, Porthos meets Bailey, the leader of the neighbourhood wolves.

For Cyd, Wednesday has been a day off. He invests into an easel, since he needs creativity for his job. That brings his cash down to 61 Simoleons. 

Early on Thursday morning, Porthos meets Kim. The cat is slightly bigger than himself, and he makes sure she knows that he is a friendly dog. They get along very well and even play a bit before Kim is on her way again.

That evening, Cyd returns with a promotion to Fast Food Shift Manager. Today's wage plus the promotion bonus and a generous tip from a rich customer (chance card, of course) mean he can pay his bills, buy a new food bowl and the best food for Porthos, and still has 579 Simoleons left.

Cyd will be picked up for work on Friday only at 4:00 pm, which gives him a chance to clean Porthos' bed as well as do other household jobs and a bit of skilling.

While he's out, Porthos greets every passers-by he can, and some are kind enough to spend a little time with him. 

When Cyd returns with another promotion - his bank account is now at almost 1,300 Simoleons, the most he's ever had -, it is just in time to catch Porthos throwing over the bin and rolling in its contents. He can't really be mad at Porthos; the little dog is alone a lot. But it can't be helped, and so Cyd gives him his third bath of this week before going to bed. 

On Saturday, Cyd has to say good-bye to Porthos for the day once more. 

But when he returns mid-afternoon (not with a promotion this time, as he needs two more logic points and so far has no chess board or telescope to acquire them), he invites some of his friends over so that Porthos has more chances for social interactions. 

He encourages Julien Cooke to adopt a pet while Tara Kat and Nawwaf Lewis talk politics. Natasha Una has also come over but is powdering her nose. 

The friends spend part of the evening fishing, and by the time they leave, all Cyd can do is put his freshly caught fish into the fridge before falling into bed, exhausted but happy. Things are definitely looking up! 

Sunday is just another working day for Cyd, and so Porthos looks for company in the shape of people walking by again. 

But of course Cyd looks well after his dog when he is home. "Time to give you another bath, pal," he announces. 

He then invests in a chess table and gets started on the logic points he needs for his next promotion. 

It will be a while before we'll see Cyd and Porthos again, unless we'll bump into them at a community lot or visiting another household. 

I felt a bit sorry for Porthos being on his own so much, but he was fine most of the time, especially once Cyd bought the best food bowl for him. 

So far, there has not been any romantic interest in Cyd's life, and working hard to earn some money for himself and his dog has left little time for anything else. Still, he managed to talk on the phone to friends and even invite some of them over - not a bad week, all things considered.