takin' care of business

April 2044 - Amin and Brenda Zhang are 30, Barack is 2.

When Brenda decided to run for mayor, she wasn't expecting to be pregnant during her campaign. The baby is due in September, just two months before the election.

Lowell College: Spring 2044

Fall 2044 - Seniors: Nate Centowski, Theo Centowski, Opal Raymond; Juniors: Christian Andrews, Ellie Fairchild, Justin Kim, Meg Stanton, Aimee Wheeler; Sophomores: Isaiah Gavigan, George Smith, Tina Traveller, Riley Wilder, Curtis Wren; Freshmen: Georgia London, Harper Myers, Toby Wright.

Nate and Theo are graduating in June, which means this is the last semester they'll be living together. Even though the twins are very different, they've always gotten along well, and it'll be strange not seeing each other every day anymore.

almost ready to update again

I spent all day installing Boot Camp, but when I downloaded and installed The Sims 2, I didn't have very much space left on the partition. I think Windows 7 takes up more space than Windows XP. So I have to repartition the drive again tomorrow. At least this time it'll go faster. But I tested The Sims 2 briefly, and it loaded very quickly. I'll probably spend a day making sure The Sims 2 works on Windows 7 before transferring all of my CC and neighborhood files.

trying out The Sims 3

While I've been waiting to set up The Sims 2 on my new laptop, I went ahead and bought The Sims 3. I've been wanting to play it ever since it came out, but my old laptop couldn't handle it. I really wanted to try out the new features, and while I'm still getting the hang of it, it's a lot of fun and I think it's very different from The Sims 2.

The main difference, of course, is Story Progression. Since the rest of the neighborhood ages together, there's no need to rotate households. For me at least, I find it harder to play an entire neighborhood since they're doing stuff when I'm not looking. But it's a lot easier to play a single household. I've been playing a legacy family in Riverview, and I like that their friends, extended family, and neighbors keep aging and changing along with them. I am a little worried that there aren't enough babies being born though. What if my legacy kids don't have anyone to marry? Maybe I should download one of the Story Progression mods.

I've also been trying to play the whole Riverview neighborhood, which I've found very hard. I want to keep switching households, but then I worry about what's happening to the other households when I'm not playing them. I think for me The Sims 3 is better for playing a single family, while The Sims 2 is better for controlling an entire neighborhood.

What do other people think? What did you think about the differences between The Sims 2 and The Sims 3?

update coming soon!

I have my new computer now (woo!), but since I haven't had time to set up my Windows partition (I've been a devoted Mac user for about four years), I don't have an update yet. I'm hoping to get everything set up this weekend, and have the next update finished sometime next week.

But in the meantime, here is a teaser pic:

real life interrupts

I've been trying to get back on a regular posting schedule, but I keep getting delayed. The main problem is my computer. My poor MacBook Pro is over three years old, and the cooling system is completely shot at this point. I have to keep the fan on maximum at all times, and even then it frequently overheats when I try playing The Sims 2. This is especially problematic because I'm working on the college update, which requires me to play four households for three days each. But I ordered a new one last week, and it should be here soon. It'll take me a while to get everything transferred, but then I'll be able to play for longer than an hour at a time.

The other distraction has been setting up a new neighborhood. I've been watching a lot of Revenge, a wonderful prime-time soap about duplicitous Hamptonites, and it inspired me to set up a Hamptons-like beach neighborhood for my Sims. So I scrapped my old version of North Port (which you haven't seen, but it's where Tina Traveller and Isaiah Gavigan grew up), and have been building a new neighborhood from scratch. I'm using Phaenoh's lovely Sand Simoleon Point as the neighborhood and have been slowly adding houses and community lots. I don't have any pictures of it to share with you, but I have uploaded two of the lots on Mod The Sims, a residential lighthouse, home of Trent and Trisha Traveller, and Trisha Traveller's restaurant. Next I'm working on a beach house for the Gavigans based on the one in Revenge.

home

March 2044 - Samantha Ottomas is 60, Orlando and Sharla Bertoni are 38, Donna is 14, Veronica is 5.

Sharla never thought she'd be living back in her childhood home, but after her father died, she couldn't bear to have her mother living alone. She and Orlando had been planning to move into a larger house anyway, so it just seemed natural for them to move in with her mother.

February

February 2044 - Peter Ottomas is 61, Samantha Ottomas is 60, Sheila and Tommy Ottomas are 33, Katie is 9, Sean is 6.

February is a quiet time for the Ottomases. With the holiday rush over at the robot store, Sheila finally has time to spend with her family again. She still has to work on the weekends, but with a later start time they can share a pancake breakfast before she leaves for work.

my girl

January 2044 - Benjamin Grove is 25, Phoebe Centowski is 23.

In August when the lease on Phoebe's apartment was up, she and Benjamin moved in together into his apartment. They've been dating for over a year now, and their ready for their relationship to take the next step.

teenage dream

December 2043 - Anne and James Smith are 43; Christopher and Margaret Long are 16; John Smith, Tom Smith, and Libby Stanton are 15; Jamie Smith is 12; Alex Smith is 10.

When Anne's father died last fall, he left Anne the family house, and they moved in just after Thanksgiving. It was hard leaving their old house, but Anne loves being back in her childhood home.

we gather together

November 2043 - Julien and Melissa Cooke are 56, Adrien Cooke is 14, Anthony Cooke is 26, Anjali Ramaswami is 25.

Julien and Melissa are excited to have Anthony and Anjali home for Thanksgiving. It's only been a few months since they moved to Takemizu Village, but it's a big adjustment not to have their son living a few blocks away.

"When are Anthony and Anjali coming home?" Julien asks.

"Sunday afternoon. Anthony says they have big news to tell us."

the crane wife

October 2043 - Anthony Cooke is 26, Anjali Ramaswami is 25.

For the next two years, Anthony and Anjali will be living in Takemizu Village. Anthony got a two-year position as a researcher, and Anjali will be working as a radiologist at the local clinic.

Lowell College: Fall 2043

Fall 2043 - Seniors: Nate Centowski, Theo Centowski, Opal Raymond; Juniors: Christian Andrews, Ellie Fairchild, Justin Kim, Meg Stanton, Aimee Wheeler; Sophomores: Isaiah Gavigan, George Smith, Tina Traveller, Riley Wilder, Curtis Wren; Freshmen: Georgia London, Harper Myers, Toby Wright.

When Gabriella Newson comes back to college in the fall, the diamond engagement ring is conspicuously absent from her hand. She and Cale couldn't make long distance work, and they broke up over the summer, just a year after he proposed.

back to school again

Fall 2043 - 2043/2044 school update

Providence Elementary School

Rose Wilder is very excited to start kindergarten and meet other kids her own age.

unpretty

September 2043 - Robert Stanton is 43, Jenny Johnson is 42, Libby Stanton is 15, Jodie and Sadie Stanton are 12.

For Libby's fifteenth birthday, Robert buys an old clunker for them to fix together. He could afford to buy her a new car, but Libby loves engineering just like him, and he thought it would be a fun project for them to do together.

I'll be back soon!

I just realized that I only posted two entries in April, and I haven't posted in several weeks! It will probably be a few more days before I get back to a normal posting schedule, but I promise I haven't abandoned this blog. I actually think there will be some interesting updates ahead; the new teenagers and college kids should provide plenty of drama. I already have a bunch of pictures for my next update, and I'm hoping to post it by this weekend.

july, july!

August 2043 - Alison Cameron and Toby Wright are 18, Bella Cameron is 2 (Dylan Wright is 12).

The other kids she graduated from high school with are getting ready for college, buying things for their dorm rooms and planning which classes to take. But Alison isn't going to college; she's living with her mom and taking care of her daughter. When her daughter is a little older she'll get a job, but they have enough money from her father's life insurance for her to be a stay-at-home mom for a few years.

summertime

July 2043 - Caroline and Charlie Wilder are 41, Riley is 18, Laura is 14, Michael is 10, Andrew is 8, Rose is 4, Lucy is 2.

The Wilders' second youngest child Rose is turning five in a few months. She's a bright, energetic girl, and she can't wait to start kindergarten in the fall.

summer wind

June 2043 - Jack Cooper is 40, Jillian Cooper is 39, Jackson is 14, Rachel is 12, Piper and Alex Smith are 9.

Jillian tries her best to console her son over his first breakup.

"I'm sorry sweetie."

"I just don't know what I did wrong. Why she doesn't like me anymore."

"You didn't do anything wrong. She just isn't right for you."

mayfly

May 2043 - Christopher and Margaret Long are 15, Jennifer Cox and Gabrielle Wheeler are 16, Jackson Cooper and Tom Smith are 14.

In a few months Christopher and Margaret will have their driver's licenses, but until then they're stuck at home most weekends. Their parents work a lot on the weekends, and Forest Hills is too far from Providence to walk.

So when Jackson calls and says he has a bunch of friends over, Margaret and Christopher are happy to join them. "Why don't we meet at the park?"

alone in Kyoto

April 2043 - Cynthia Kim is 46, Julie Kim is 9 (Robert Kim is 46, Justin Kim is 19).

Over spring break Julie and her mother take a trip to Takemizu Village. Cynthia wanted Justin to come too, but he refused. Julie wasn't sure she would go, but her father thought it would be a good idea for her to spend time with her mom.

Cynthia has been making lots of changes to the house. She's been talking about moving here after the divorce is finalized. "What do you think of the house? I bought some new artwork for the walls, and I got some new furniture. I'm still working on it, so let me know if there's something specific you'd like for your room."

Lowell College: Spring 2043

Spring 2043 - Juniors: Nate Centowski, Theo Centowski, Opal Raymond; Sophomores: Christian Andrews, Ellie Fairchild, Justin Kim, Meg Stanton, Aimee Wheeler; Freshmen: Isaiah Gavigan, George Smith, Tina Traveller, Riley Wilder, Curtis Wren.

There are a lot of relationship changes this semester. Curtis Wren and Ellie Fairchild are dating, although both of them insist it's not serious.

tears in heaven

March 2043 - Andrew Carter and Kate Myers are 40, Harper Myers is 17, Avery Myers is 10.

It starts out like any other morning. Their parents are both gone before they leave for school, so Harper makes sure they have breakfast and leave for school in time. When both of your parents are doctors, you get used to taking care of yourself at an early age.

February

February 2043 - Patrick Seiff is 29, Clara Seiff is 24, Molly is six months (Viola Cameron is 51, Alison Cameron is 17, Bella Cameron is 18 months).

Clara and Alison try to get their daughters together at least once a month. Since Clara is seven years older than her baby sister, they were never close when they were growing up, but they've gotten closer over the last year, and they want their daughters to be close.

I took some time for Christmas

January 2043 - Amin and Brenda Zhang are 29, Barack is 16 months.

Last November Brenda ran her first national campaign and was elected to Congress. She's excited to be stepping into national politics, but she also worried. In a few months she'll be sworn in as a congresswoman, and then she'll be commuting between Providence and D.C. Since the election she's been frantically trying to get everything ready before the move, but she tries to spend as much time with Barack as possible.

are you coming over for Christmas?

December 2042 - Orlando Centowski is 48, Steffi Centowski is 47, Benjamin Grove is 24, Phoebe Centowski is 22, Nate and Theo Centowski are 20.

Phoebe stops by to visit her mom a few weeks before Christmas.

"I wanted to ask you about Christmas dinner," she says.

"You're still coming, aren't you?"

"Of course. I wanted to know if my friend Benjamin could come."

"Who's Benjamin?"

"He lives in my building. He's in the military, and he doesn't get enough days off for Christmas to go home, so I thought he could come here."

"Of course honey."

raised by wolves

November 2042 - Cynthia and Robert Kim are 46, Julie is 9 (Grayson Wheeler is 16).

Cynthia never thought she would be just another suburban mom. She was an actress and then a best-selling novelist. But her last TV role was over a decade ago, and its been years since she published a book. She met with her editor last month to discuss a new book, but she hasn't had any time to write. School has started, and her days are full of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, driving the carpool, and helping with homework. Even when Julie is at school, Cynthia can't focus on her writing. She hasn't seen Grayson in months, but she still can't stop thinking about him.

here comes the bride

October 2042 - Priya and Sanjay Ramaswami are 53, Gavin Newson and Anthony Cooke are 25, Anjali and Padma Ramaswami are 24.

On a beautiful fall afternoon, Priya and Sanjay drive to Bridgeport for the wedding of their daughter Padma. Priya and Sanjay are happy about the wedding, although Priya wishes Anjali were getting married.

"Anjali and Anthony have been together a lot longer than Padma and Gavin," Priya points out.

"I know," says Sanjay, "but she says she's not interested in marriage."

Lowell College: Fall 2042

Fall 2042 - Juniors: Nate Centowski, Theo Centowski, Opal Raymond; Sophomores: Christian Andrews, Ellie Fairchild, Justin Kim, Meg Stanton, Aimee Wheeler; Freshmen: Isaiah Gavigan, George Smith, Tina Traveller, Riley Wilder, Curtis Wren.

Lowell College finished construction on the townhouses this summer, and Nate, Theo, and Opal are some of their first residents. They share a three bedroom unit laid out on two floors; Opal and Theo share a room, and they use the empty room which would have been Matt's as a study. Nate has the downstairs bedroom and his own bathroom.

back to school again

Fall 2042 - 2042/2043 school update.

Providence Elementary School

Samantha's grandson Sean Ottomas started kindergarten this year, and Samantha loves spending time with him at school. Two of her grandchildren are at Providence Elementary - Sean and his older sister Katie - and next year their cousin Veronica Bertoni will be joining them.

long haul

September 2042 - Phoebe Centowski is 22, Benjamin Grove is 24, Nate and Theo Centowski and Opal Raymond are 20.

Phoebe has wanted to be a cop since she was a little girl. She thought her mother was a superhero. But now that she joined the police force, she doesn't feel very heroic. As a rookie, most of her work days involve doing paperwork and writing traffic tickets. And when there is an emergency to respond to, it's not as thrilling as she had imagined. A month later, she can't get Matt's car crash out of her head - the mangled metal and blood, the smell of smoke and gasoline. She can't forget the sight of Matt's parents collapsed on the couch as her mother told them about the accident.

happy birthday to you!

August 2042 - Patrick Seiff is 29, Clara Seiff is 24.

Clara may have learned all about childbirth in medical school, but going through it is a lot harder than she had expected.

last kiss

August 2042 - Peter Ottomas is 60, Samantha Ottomas is 59, Matt Ottomas is 20.

Matt is home for summer break, and things are tense in the Ottomas house. Samantha loves her youngest son, but she's secretly looking forward to his going back to college. He stays up late and comes home in the middle of the night, he borrows the car without asking, he eats all of the food in the refrigerator. He disrupts the quiet life she and Peter have made for themselves since all of their children left home.

Round 2042-2044 Schedule and ROS

Here's the schedule for the next round, which covers August 2042 until July 2044.

Fall/Winter 2042
August 2042 - Peter and Samantha Ottomas
September 2042 - Phoebe Centowski
school update
Lowell College Fall Semester
October 2042 - Ramaswami
November 2042 - Kim
December 2042 - Centowski

Spring/Summer 2043
January 2043 - Zhang
February 2043 - Seiff
March 2043 - Carter/Myers
Lowell College Spring Semester
April 2043 - Cynthia Kim
May 2043 - Long
June 2043 - Cooper
July 2043 - Wilder

Fall/Winter 2043
August 2043 - Cameron
September 2043 - Stanton
school update
Lowell College Fall Semester
October 2043 - Cooke/Ramaswami
November 2043 - Cooke
December 2043 - Smith

Spring/Summer 2044
January 2044 - Grove/Centowski
February 2044 - Tommy and Sheila Ottomas
March 2044 - Bertoni
Lowell College Spring Semester
April 2044 - Zhang
May 2044 - Sophie Ottomas
June 2044 - Cormier/Johnson
July 2044 - Picaso


Random Events:

These are pretty dramatic events! My neighborhood is becoming a lot darker.
death by car accident: Matt Ottomas
death by illness: Andrew Carter
move away: Anjali Ramaswami
oops! preggy: Meg Stanton

here comes the sun

July 2042 - Cyd Roseland is 39, Christa Roseland is 37, Charlie is 10, Connor is 5, Carrie is 2 (Michael Wilder is 10, Andrew Wilder is 8).

(Technically these are the ages as of August 2042, but I wanted to age up Connor and Carrie before I wrote the update.)

The Roseland family has lived in the same little farmhouse since Cyd and Christa got married, but with three kids the farmhouse can barely fit the family. Carrie's crib is in a corner of the living room, and Charlie and Connor share a tiny bedroom barely big enough for two beds.

the blessings

June 2042 - Phil Jitkamusal is 32, Tara Jitkamusal is 30, Anna and Kat are 3.

Usually Tara stays with the girls while he's at work, but on days when she has to be at the bakery early, he stays home with them. He's supposed to also be working, but taking care of the twins takes up the entire day.

love story

May 2042 - Georgia London, Alison Cameron, Harper Myers, and Toby Wright are 16.

Warning: This story is intended for mature readers and contains sexual situations.

Since Alison had her baby, Georgia has been spending most of her time with her friends in Bridgeport. Her parents aren't thrilled with her going into the city on school nights, but they're so busy with work it isn't hard for her to sneak out. Her friends in the city don't have cars, but they have access to their parents' credit cards to rent a town car for the night.

the start of something

April 2042 - Toby Wright, Alison Cameron, and Harper Myers are 16; Dylan Wright is 10, Avery Myers is 9.

Toby and Alison used to spend the time before the first bell flirting by the lockers, but ever since Bella was born, they've been spending most mornings fighting.

Lowell College: Spring 2042

Spring 2042 - Senior: Phoebe Centowski; Sophomores: Nate Centowski, Theo Centowski, Matt Ottomas, Opal Raymond; Freshmen: Christian Andrews, Ellie Fairchild, Justin Kim, Meg Stanton, Aimee Wheeler.

This semester Matt has been trying to patch things up with Meg.

"So what do you think of college so far?"

"It's good. My classes are interesting, and I've met lots of cool people."

"I heard you're dating Christian."

"Yeah, I am. What about you? Do you have a girlfriend?"

"Uh not really. You know..."

"Yeah."

you ruined everything

March 2042 - Viola Cameron is 50, Alison Cameron and Toby Wright are 16, Bella is six months.

Alison's days begin before dawn with the sound of Bella's cry through the baby monitor. A year ago she would hit the snooze button on her alarm clock over and over until her mother insisted she get up, but now she gets out of bed before her eyes are fully open. After six months of parenthood she's perfected the half-asleep stumble from her bedroom to Bella's for the first diaper change of the day.

it's alright

February 2042 - Orlando and Sharla Bertoni are 36, Donna is 12, Veronica is 3 (Samantha Ottomas is 58).

Ever since Emma and her family moved to Bridgeport, Samantha has been coming over to visit more often.

meeting across the river

January 2042 - Andrew and Emma Larrea are 28, Jason is 3 (Peter Ottomas is 59, Samantha Ottomas is 58).

There's been an increase in the number of break-ins, and the latest victims are the Larreas.

By the time the police arrive, the burglar has gotten away.

Santa baby

December 2041 - Benjamin Long is 50, Elizabeth Long is 44, Patrick Seiff is 28, Clara Seiff is 23, Christopher and Margaret are 14, Charlotte is 4 (Will Gray is 15).

Next year the child care arrangements will be a lot easier; Charlotte will be in kindergarten during the day, and Christopher and Margaret will watch her after school. But for now Benjamin and Elizabeth do their best to arrange their schedules so that one of them can take care of her.

little lessons

November 2041 - Peter Ottomas is 59, Samantha Ottomas is 58, Orlando and Sharla Bertoni are 36, Sheila and Tommy Ottomas are 31, Donna Bertoni is 12, Katie is 7, Sean is 4, Veronica Bertoni is 3.

This is the first year Tommy and Sheila are having Thanksgiving dinner at their house instead of going to Tommy's parents' house. Tommy and Sheila get up at dawn to clean the house and start preparing dinner.

"Katie, can you please play with your brother?" Sheila asks. "I'll be right in the kitchen if you two need anything."

"Okay Mommy."

just another

October 2041 - Anne and James Smith are 41, George is 17, John and Tom are 13, Jamie is 10, Alex is 8, Margaret Long is 14.

Fall is a busy time for the Smith family, with five kids in school and a mother who's a college professor.

Lowell College: Fall 2041

Fall 2041 - Senior: Phoebe Centowski; Sophomores: Nate Centowski, Theo Centowski, Matt Ottomas, Opal Raymond; Freshmen: Christian Andrews, Ellie Fairchild, Justin Kim, Meg Stanton, Aimee Wheeler.

This year Lowell College has a big freshman class. Justin, Meg, and Ellie are all freshman and live in Cabot Hall, along with their friends Christian Andrews and Aimee Wheeler from Bridgeport.

back to school again

Fall 2041 - 2041/2042 school update.

Providence Elementary School

Samantha's class is very small this year, so she can give her students extra attention.

"Andrew, it's your turn to pick out today's story. What would you like to hear?"