New Maximiliania's population has shrunk so much during the last and this round that there are only a handful students here. This dorm at Sim State Uni has 8 rooms, but some of them have been taken over by NPC students, since there aren't enough playable students to fill them all. How different was the situation before!
Our newcomers for this round are Gesine and Gerlinde Gavigan, whose family we have just spent a Sim-week with. Who are the students already living here?
Deirdre Dreamer, a Sophomore...
...Nigel Newson, in his Senior year...
...Ramon Ramirez, another Senior...
...and Sirius Swain (pictured here with two of the resident NPC students), the only Junior this round.
For the first time since the beginning of New Maximiliania, all my playable students were born in-game. Most of the original young adult students are elders now, some have even died of old age.
The first thing Gesine does after having claimed a room on the top floor next to her sister is getting on the workout machine.
Gerlinde is more sociably minded and starts getting to know her fellow residents in the common room.
Sometimes, the girls seem a bit at a loss with what to do; they have led such busy lives back home, with school, household duties and helping their parents at the gallery. So far, they have not made friends with any of the other students.
This young man certainly would like to be friendly with either girl, but the look of shock on Gerlinde's and the expression of total disinterest on Gesine's face speak volumes!
On their second day at uni, Gerlinde rolls Physics as her preferred major.
Gesine wants to focus on Biology.
Just as Deirdre and Gerlinde have a chat about arts and crafts, Nigel returns from his final exam. He has just graduated, but strangely, the game does only say "graduated" and gives his average (3.6) without adding "cum laude" or "summa cum laude" or similar.
Nigel's guests at his graduation party include, of course, Ginger Newson and her children, Nelson and Nellie.
As it happens often with parties, the guests soon split up in groups. One group chooses Gesine's room as their hang-out.
Nigel leaves campus for good. We will meet him again later on during this round.
You already know my policy of playing student households: As soon as a student has acquired the necessary skills and written their term paper, I do not control them anymore. The one exception is that I have each of them make at least one phone call each day to a friend or family member back in the main hood, in order to maintain their existing relationships.Now that Gesine is left pretty much to her own devices, she proves her good upbringing and can often be seen cleaning.
One day, she has overdone it with the working out and is so tired that she doesn't make it to her room. Instead, she passes out on the floor in front of Deirdre's room. But don't worry, I woke her up after a while and sent her to bed.
The coach makes her appearance and orders Deirdre (who is indeed very unfit) to work out.
Gerlinde and Gesine finish their first semester and return from their exams at the same time as Deirdre.
Ramon Ramirez is a neat freak and is always busy cleaning, when he has nothing better to do.
I don't think I've shown you yet which rooms the Gavigan girls chose. This is Gesine's room...
...and this is Gerlinde's, just next door.
One morning, the dorm cook sets fire not to the stove but to himself. Good job there are sprinklers at the ceiling!
The dorm has many possibilities for having fun - a huge TV, chess board, computers, stereo (to name but a few), but Sirius sometimes prefers playing in the bath tub above all else.
Ramon has been carrying around some excess weight for most of the year and finally decides (on his own accord!) to do something about it. His reward is obvious :-)
Gerlinde and Gesine rarely manage to have their meals together, but if they do, they are always happy to talk about life at university.
Ramon has graduated and invites friends and family over. Here are Perseida Powers and Martina Martin...
...as well as his mother, Lisa Ramirez, and older sister Tessa. Sorry - I should know who the Alien girl is, but can't remember her name right now!
The party is a good occasion for Tessa to return to campus for a few hours. She really enjoyed her college years.
Ramon leaves for New Maximiliania, where the next chapter of his life is waiting for him.
The Gavigan twins have successfully completed their Freshman Year.
Who is going to move to the dorm next? Is there ever going to be a time again when I'll have eight playables fill the dorm?
[I am still unsure about the week count for this family - somehow it seems like I am one week "short" with them. See their previous week to know what I mean.]
Welcome to the 6th week at the Gavigans'. They still live where I have put them when I set up New Maximiliania, in this Maxis-made house.
Mary and Nathan are both 60 now. They have been happily married for a long time and raised a son, Isaiah, and twin daughters, Gerlinde and Gesine, together. Isaiah has married into the Capp clan, and not that long ago, Mary and Nathan became grandparents. The twin sisters are much younger and still live at home.
Nathan wants to have 5 top level businesses. His first one, "Gavigan's Game", was a home business: Sims were invited to play the ax-throwing game in the yard without needing to access the house. That business has reached rank 10 a while ago, and is now shut down in order that the Gavigans can fully focus on their current project, "Gavigan's Gallery".
Here it is. This Maxis-made community lot is originally called "Von Dough Gallery", but Nathan renamed it. It is rank 7 when husband and wife arrive on this Monday, although I am 100 % sure it was already on rank 8 when they left it at the end of last round.
Never mind. The gallery soon is at rank 8 again, and Nathan and Mary can afford to take a short break over lunch, during which they eat hot dogs.
Back home, Gesine (left) and Gerlinde (right) have returned from school and do their homework while their parents are still working at the gallery.
Gunther Goth (left) stepped off the school bus with them. Carl Capp happened to walk by later and was greeted by Gerlinde.
She finds out that she really, really, REALLY likes Gunther Goth - he is her 3-bolt-boy!
On Tuesday, Mary finally makes her Gold Cash Register Badge by ringing up Klara Williams' purchase at the gallery. This will make things so much easier!
The girls are once again on their own after school. But they are sensible kids and first do their homework before starting anything else. Gesine then does a spot of cleaning while her sister is on the phone with Gunther Goth.
Nathan and Mary have come home for a short rest, and the girls sit down with their father for a while, before all four of them go back to the gallery for the evening shift.
Nathan then makes his Gold Restocking Badge...
...and Gesine her Silver Sales Badge, making a sale to Melody Tinker.
Wednesday morning sees Nathan trimming the hedge in front of the house before he and Mary head off to the gallery for the day shift.
The girls join their parents after school and homework at the gallery again. Just as Gesine is selling a picture to Jared Starchild, the business reaches rank 9.
Most of the restocking has been done by Nathan so far, but Mary puts in an effort today and makes her Bronze Badge.
When they wake up on Thursday morning, both Nathan and Mary wish for a green energy source. Since they have more money than they know what to do with, I decided to cover their entire roof with solar panels. For the rest of the week, no bills were delivered - they generated more power than what their household consumed.
Nathan now has a Silver Cash Register Badge. Phew!
After the morning shift, the Gavigans all have a meal of chili con carne together. Gesine tells their parents that the sisters want to go to college together. They both rolled the want early on in the week, and it never went away.
During the evening shift, Gavigan's Gallery reaches rank 10 - that is 2 out of 5 for Nathan.
Just as Thursday night slips into Friday morning, a burglar appears.
Funnily enough, only the girls wake up to watch the fight (the officer wins) - Nathan and Mary never wake up, in spite of the burglar alarm going off at full blast.
It is the day when Nathan and Mary have to say good-bye to their daughters - the girls are on their way to college.
"Our little girls have grown up... I can't believe the years have gone by so quickly..." Nathan sighs over breakfast with his wife. It seems they have not yet fully accepted that Gesine and Gerlinde are gone - the table is still laid for four.
Later, Nathan registers another business: Gavigan's Garments. It is his second home business and his third business altogether.
An annex is built to house "Gavigan's Garments".
All week, Nathan, Mary and the girls have spent every spare minute at the sewing machine and are now ready to sell what they have produced.
I intended to put up the clothes racks that you see in the shops, but they weren't available - I didn't know (or at least couldn't remember) that you can't use them on a home lot, only on community lots. The shelves near the door are just deco, but they make it look more like a clothes shop, don't they.
Alexander Goth is the first customer at "Gavigan's Garments".
While Mary works at the shop, Nathan makes his Bronze Sewing Badge (the outfits for sale at the shop were sewn by his daughters).
On Saturday morning, the couple have breakfast together and talk about the price policy for their shop.
"Gavigan's Garments" reaches rank 3 when Mary makes a sale to Jennifer Burb.
Meanwhile, Nathan has been sewing away so diligently that he already gets his Silver Badge.
It is Sunday, which does not mean a day of rest for the busy Gavigans. The shop is now at rank 4.
Mary has just made her Silver Badge for Restocking. Since Nathan can not sew as fast as the outfits and curtains are sold, ready-made curtains are offered for sale in the meantime.
The week ends with the shop at rank 5. The Gavigans are now 67 years old. Will Nathan live long enough to see this business to the top, and then two more?
How are the girls getting on at college? And what about Mary's lifetime want of having six grandchildren? (So far, she has only one: Caleb, from Isaiah and his wife Ariel Capp.)
Next up will be Gesine and Gerlindes's Freshman Year.
