The Goodies - Week 1

Meet Faith and Herbert Goodie, a couple who are very alike in so many ways: 

They are both 54 years old, are Knowledge Sims and wish to max out all seven skills. Also, according to their memories, neither of them has ever had eyes for anyone else in the past - they became best friends, shared their very first kiss, fell in love, got engaged and married. 

There are no Maxis-made pictures for them and no family tree, but it is obvious that (apart from wanting to skill) they really, really want to travel! 

"Faith loves to travel! She is so excited to get to go on at least a few more adventures with the love of her life!"

"Bert has always wanted to travel, but his job kept him quite rooted to the city where he was born. Now that he is no longer encumbered by employment, he gets to live out his dream!" That's what their bios say, but it is unknown were they lived before and what job Herbert had - in any case, it can't have been a very great job, since both Goodies have not a single skill point. 

Still, they have over 20,000 Simoleons left after having purchased this modest house at 244 Hill Side Pass Road in Desiderata Valley. Are they going to spend it all on travelling? According to their household bio, "Having lived full and wonderful lives, the Goodies have decided that it’s time to see the world! Will they find the adventure of their lives?" Again, Maxis seems to have a strange view of people over 50. These two are 54, a year younger than I am in real life, but their bios make it sound as if they had just a few good years left and were keen on making the most of them.

They will need to spend at least some money on the house; as you can see, there is hardly anything there apart from a settee, a double bed, a very basic shower room with toilet and cheap kitchen units.

On this Monday, shortly after Mr Humble has delivered his computer, three neighbours arrive to welcome the Goodies: John Mole, Dora Ottomas and Mary Gavigan (along with a stray dog who has to be shooed after he or she starts to attack the settee).

Faith quickly prepares a plate of sandwiches, and the couple have their first meal along with their first guests at their new place.

Later, the phone rings and a formerly unknown Townie asks Faith and Herbert to come downtown to meet a few more people. Go Here Sunshine Park seems like a good place for that, even though the sunshine is over for that day.

Over a game of chess, Herbert makes the acquaintance of Nawwaf Lewis, who will be befriended as a potential resident of Desiderata Valley because of his surname. 

The Goodies are happy together, and happy at their new house, however sparse it may be, as is obvious when on Tuesday morning they share a moment of tenderness over their cereals.

Faith is intent on increasing her fitness and has been working on her body skill. When neighbour Matthew Picaso walks by, she takes the chance and asks him to go running together, and is rewarded with another body point.

Meanwhile, Herbert has been focusing on art. The easel was already at the house, and not only does it offer him the chance to make a little bit of money, it is also good fun and gets him skill points at the same time.

He has been painting well into the night and is still fast asleep when Faith gets up on Wednesday morning. 

She takes advantage of the sunny morning and goes for a run, resulting in another body point. 

"Nice couple, the Picasos," says Herbert to his wife later, after he has met Jessica, whose husband had paid the Goodies a visit the day before. 

Befriending Nawwaf Lewis is still on Herbert's to do list, and when he invites him over, he arrives with Sharon Wirth in tow. (I need to check whether there was something going on with these two when I played the Bell family.) Before the day is over, Nawwaf is indeed friends with Herbert. 

Faith spends good part of Thursday morning doing yoga in the kitchen... 

...followed by a rest on the settee while she does the crossword. 

Nawwaf, the man with the unusual name, is invited over. "One day I wish to meet someone who will be as special to me as you two are to each other," their younger friend says.

Speaking of special, the happy couple have finally invested into a much more comfortable bed, bedside tables and lamps. So far, not one single wish has come up about travelling, and so they might as well spend a bit of money on improving the house.

On Friday morning, Herbert discovers that a stray dog has dug a hole near the pavement in front of their house. I briefly think about having him dig for treasure before filling in the hole, but it is more important that he spends time skilling.

 In the evening, Nawwaf is again invited over. While Faith is preparing Mac and Cheese (and finally making her first cooking skill point), Herbert expresses his wish for the two men to be best friends so that Nawwaf can be asked to become a proper resident of Desiderata Valley. 

Few things make a Knowledge Sim happier than sitting down with a book for some good old skilling. The acquisition of a bookcase was long overdue, but it took until Saturday morning before I finally placed one in the house.

Christian Love walks by and is of course greeted by Faith. (That sentence has a ring to it, doesn't it!)

Herbert invites Nawwaf over for leftovers Mac and Cheese, and now that the two men are indeed best friends, Faith also suggests he should consider packing his things and move to the neighbourhood for good. 

Sunday is a really good day for Herbert: First, he maxes out the first of seven skills. 

Second, he meets and greets another neighbour, young David Ottomas. "You know my Gran," the boy introduces himself.

That's true; the Goodies know Dora Ottomas. But Herbert wonders if that justifies the teenager's behaviour - he would have never dreamed of swinging on a fridge door, let alone at the house of someone he was visiting for the first time!

Third, Nawwaf Lewis has made up his mind and moved to Desiderata Valley, briefly joining the Goodies. 

Nawwaf is a Knowledge Sim (no wonder he and Herbert made friends so easily) with the lifetime want of becoming Criminal Mastermind. He currently works as a nurse, but finds a job as a Pickpocket before he moves out to a place of his own. His inventory is empty upon moving in, but he brings 9,000 Simoleons, and so I put items worth that amount in it. His skill profile is not very impressive, but not totally blank like the Goodies' was at the start. He has a bronze badge in cosmetology and is indeed friends (nothing more so far) with Sharon Wirth.

With all the excitement surrounding Nawwaf's move in and out, Faith burnt the turkey - the first she's ever made. Never mind, it happens to the best of us!

Herbert is pleased to greet Nathan Gavigan; he already knows his wife from the welcome committee, and Nathan is a great guest, engaging in animated conversation with his host.

I like the Goodies and have enjoyed playing them, although they have not at all been focused on travelling like their bios said. Instead, their week has consisted of a lot of skilling (and I mean a LOT), plus Herbert has successfully added a new household name to Desiderata Valley.