Family names and related posts

Wednesday, 26 February 2025

Jared Starchild: Week 1

We have not left Desiderata Valley but are now in its downtown area, where most of the students have moved to after graduation. This house at 36 Greaves Avenue is Jared Starchild's new address.
The house is fully but cheaply furnished. Jared has been parsimonious with his student grants and can well afford better stuff - he has still 12,000 Simoleons left after having bought the house. 
His aspiration being Family, it is not surprising that Jared wishes nothing more than to become Education Minister. He has graduated with honours (Summa Cum Laude) in Arts and made many good friends during his four years at college, even becoming a fraternity member during his Senior year. 
First, he uses Mr. Humble's computer to look for a job. There is nothing in Education, though, and so he uses his first day at the new house to settle in and getting the place furnished to better suit his taste. 
Not going to work right away also means he is here when the Welcome Committee arrive in the shape of Trisha Traveller, Ripp Grunt and Hannah Bell. 
Later, Jane Stacks, who has also just graduated and moved into town, rings and asks Jared to join her and a group of friends for an outing - "all the old gang will be there," she promises, and she's right - there are Castor Nova, Jimmy Phoenix, Martin Ruben and Jane herself, as well as Toby Scott and Allegra Gorey (just getting off the taxi on the other side). 
The friends have a good time at Lulu Lounge between the hot tub and the dance floor. But Jared has had a long day, and all the unpacking and shifting around of furniture has made him really tired. He leaves just after 9:00 pm and is in bed before 10:00.
There's no suitable job for Jared on Tuesday, either. He decides to grow a beard, and I must say I think he looks better with it.
He wishes to have his first kiss, but Jared went through his entire time at uni without developing a love interest. I check his turn-ons and find that he really likes red hair, and so when townie Kaylynn Spitzig walks by, he greets her. They get along well enough, but when Jared asks her for a date, she declines. Strangely enough, no bolts appear for her in his relationship panel, in spite of him checking her out repeatedly.
It is Wednesday, and Jared has just had his first day as a teacher at Desiderata's Elementary School. No promotion as yet, since he needs to improve his cleaning skill. 
On Thursday, Jared returns from work with his colleague Victor Aspir and a promotion to High School Teacher.
He spots another red-haired lady walking by, this one is townie Gretchen Chin. Greeting her and checking her out results in two bolts; only three will do when it comes to a townie with a non-playable name, I'm afraid, and so Miss Chin is sent on her way. 
Victor stays for dinner, and Jared spends the rest of the evening skilling for his next promotion. It seems so similar to his time at uni, when the start of every term meant mainly skilling!
It is Friday afternoon, and Jared has not been home long from work when Toby Scott, former fellow student and frat brother, appears. "If it isn't Tobs!" he exclaims, happy to see his friend.
He is also happy when I fulfill one of his rare "buy me" wishes and place an orange car on his drive. (The drive isn't really white, it only looks like that because I was still "gripping" the car when I took the picture.) 
Unfortunately, the telly breaks, and I am not sure that poking at it with a screwdriver will help. However, Jared has learnt some mechanical skills during his Art courses at uni, and the TV is soon back in working order. 
Jared has the entire weekend off and enjoys not having to get up at a specific time, but simply when he has slept enough. 
On this Saturday, he invites over a few friends from uni. Castor Nova has graduated before him and moved to a house not far from Jared's, while Sam Thomas, Jack Kim and Ty Bubbler are still at college. 
The friends sit down for a batch of freshly made hamburgers, and Sam explains to Jack how they were all best friends when Jared still lived at the dorm with them.
On Sunday, after a leisurely morning Jared wishes to win a cooking contest, and therefore walks to Copur's Kitchen Cook-Off.
Before he starts on the comfort soup he intends to win the contest with, he greets every red-haired lady on the lot, but doesn't have three bolts for any of them.
Upstairs, Toby Scott and Cynthia Kim have a game of chess. 
But Cynthia still finds time to enter the food contest along with Jared, Genesls Lee and a townie whose name I forgot immediately because it's not a "playable" one. The food judge takes his time to sample each of the very different dishes. Who is going to receive the coveted Blue Ribbon? 
Jared is!! He is really happy about it, and the prize of 500 Simoleons is nice, too. 
Marcel Jocque helps to eat the prize-winning soup, while Jared tries to convince another townie that his soup is perfect on a chilly late autumn afternoon like today, not baked Alaska.
Back home, the Blue Ribbon is proudly displayed on the wall in Jared's kitchen. 
All this has made him quite tired, but one of the nice things about having the weekend off is that one can just have a mid-afternoon nap when one's eyelids grow heavy. 
Much refreshed, Jared is up in time to spot Julien Cooke walking by. The two men have not met yet, and in greeting Julien, a wish is fulfilled for Jared's visitor. The two men spend the evening getting to know each other a little bit, and this is where Jared's first week after graduating ends. 

Will he finally have his first kiss next time I play him (or before, if someone else I'm playing chooses him)? Is there a three-bolt-lady for him somewhere in The Valley? How many more promotions before he'll have reached his lifetime want?

Sunday, 23 February 2025

Jane Stacks: Senior Year

We met Jane first here.

After what felt like a long time spent in Strangetown, we're now in Desiderata Valley. To be precise, we're at Sim State Uni and will be spending a year at this rented house, No. 20 Peanut Street.
Jane Stacks and Allegra Gorey live here; Martin Ruben, who originally shared the house with them, has since moved to the fraternity house on invitation of his older brother Joshua Ruben. 

We're here for Jane, whose Senior Year has just begun. Allegra is younger and only a Sophomore. Jane is a Family Sim who dreams of raising 20 puppies or kittens. She's in love with Martin and right now wants nothing more than to get engaged to him, but she has always been the sensible type and understands that they can better focus on their studies not living together until they have graduated. 

Allegra's boyfriend is Castor Nova, and she, too, wants to get engaged. A typical Knowledge Sim, she fancies herself as a future Media Magnate. 
When she returns from class on the first day of her Senior Year, Jane is met by the Cow Mascot. NOT FUNNY!! She instantly asks the cow to leave.
She wouldn't have time to entertain guests right now anyway, what with three creativity skill points needed for this semester. With the benefit of the Thinking Cap plus it being autumn, it only takes her one afternoon. 
She proceeds to write her Term Paper right away and finishes late that same evening. Well done, Jane! (Allegra only had one skill point to acquire and wrote her paper several hours earlier.) 
Jane may not be a good cook yet at just one cooking point, but she knows how to make vegetable soup, and with the colder season fast approaching, it is the best type of food. Also, making a big batch means the ladies save time they can invest in other things. 
Jane and Allegra wake up at 6:00 the next morning, as (nearly) always. A chest of drawers, bedside tables and lamps have been bought with part of their grants. 
But the ladies want outfits better suited for the wintry weather, and after class walk to the University Way Shops. 
Apart from Ty Bubbler, no other playables appear, and no unknown Sim with a playable surname. Therefore, once the outfits have been chose and bought, Jane and Allegra head back home. Their combined bank account now shows a balance of 2,342 Simoleons - nothing to worry about, but not enough to throw caution to the wind and start spending unnecessarily (although a better fridge and stove would be nice).
Once the friends have changed into their new winter clothes, they enjoy a meal of spaghetti, prepared by Allegra on her own initiative. 
In fact, both Allegra and Jane are rather good at taking care of the house without me having to tell them.
The next day, just as the girls return from class, Martin appears for a surprise visit. Jane shows him just how much she loves surprises - especially Martin-shaped ones ;-)
The house is full that afternoon, with the cheerleader, the Llama mascot and Martin all having turned up on their own accord. 
Jane smiles - she has something in mind to distract Martin from his research, and moments after this picture was taken, she is successful and gets his full attention.
Later, the cow mascot turns up, and the cheerleader shows the cow how unwelcome a guest he or she is.
In spite of all that's going on, Allegra and Jane have to leave for their end-of-term exams. Upon their return at 11:00 pm, the house is empty, and the girls are happy to have recieved not only an A+ each but also the full grants, which increases their bank balance to over 4,700 Simoleons. 
This semester, Jane needs only one skill point, and that is mechanical. It is almost convenient, therefore, that the upstairs toilet clogs up and Jane has the privilege to sort it out instead of calling the repair service ;-P 
The bills arrive, but at a mere 89 Simoleons to pay there is nothing to worry about.
In fact, the girls invest a little bit of their grants in a matching settee and armchair as well as a floor lamp. They have not gone over the top with those new acquisitions; it's a rented place, after all, and Jane will move out after graduation, which will be happening this coming spring.
This semester, Allegra's class is in the evening while Jane's is in the morning. But in between, the friends have enough time to play chess or do other things together, such as going to the shops. 
Today, they're not looking for new outfits, but need to stock up on groceries. 
The only playable Sim they meet is Heather Huffington, and so they head home well in time for Allegra to go to class. 
Allegra's grades are already the best possible, but she still wishes to do an assignment almost every day. That's Knowledge Sims for you, I guess. 
Jane is so NOT looking at the streaker when he surprises her just as she comes out of the bathroom! :-D
The girls' hard work and wholesome lifestyle pays off: Jane graduates well enough with a GP of 3.6 (stragely enough, it doesn't say anything like "summa cum laude" or "cum laude" etc.), while Allegra's name is on the Dean's List once again. For her, the Junior Year is about to start. 
Since the girls return from their exams very late at night, Jane throws her Graduation party the next day. Of course top of the guest list is Martin, and he gives his sweetheart a long and delicious congratulation kiss.
The party ends a roof raiser, and Jane feels quite ready now to tackle the next chapter in her life - it will be a lot of work to raise all those pets, but she knows she'll have Martin by her side once he's graduated, too. 

Without it being boring, the two ladies were easy to manage and to keep happy. They were even able to fit in a community lot visit each term!
For now, Jane resides in the Bluewater Village part of Desiderata Valley, waiting for Martin to join her. Allegra has the house to herself now, and I am not sure yet whether she'll move to the Tri Var Sorority house for the second half of her time at uni or finds one or two housemates to move in with her here.