We’re no longer limited to building within an 8×8 grid!
You did an amazing job, Kage! Are you glad to be finished? Kage: If you don’t mind, I’m planning to get a raise or two then take all my vacation days and retire.
Right now, no one can really afford to retire because wages are our only income source.
Once Naoto clears Criminal/Boss, we won’t have to make payoffs to the mob anymore, either.
Anyway, I’d prefer to putter around at home. Also, I’m not a big fan of this work outfit…
I know, right? After all your hard work, I wish you could have kept either that James Bond tux or the Evil Mastermind suit.
Instead you get a black turtleneck, black slacks, and clunky shoes. It’s so ordinary! *shrugsKage: Anyway, we can’t have an outdoor garden without unlocking Space Ranger, but I’d like to start a profitable indoor garden.
Naoto: Hey, Porch Crew, wish me luck!
Tremain the Trashcan: Whoa, did you hear that, people? He actually spoke to us first!
Gned the Gnome: Yeah, he looks pretty frightening, but he’s quite kind-hearted underneath that hair, the scar, and those tattoos!
Mel the Mailbox: I think Naoto’s pretty cool! Watchette usually prefers those slender, feminine-looking guys with poufy hair, you know?
So Naoto’s very out of character for her. He’s not “pretty” like his relatives, but he’s appealing just the same!
Tremain the Trashcan: Well, for me, the most appealing female resident here has been Yuki!
Day 112 (Sat)
Daia: Expanding our house has not been as easy as we’d imagined, but our crib is definitely roomier now.
It’s now 10 tiles wide instead of eight. However, that’s fine for now since we can’t move any objects with a footprint larger than 1×2 tiles (Bodybuilder lock).
Rather than moving around objects, Watchette’s just been resizing rooms and moving entire rooms between floors.
Mauricio: For example, what used to be my third-floor “Music Room” is now in the back of the second floor.
Kage: And remember my plan for a garden? Watchette’s moved the B1 Focused room to the first floor.
And a gardening area has been built around it.
We can’t build outdoors yet (Space Ranger lock), but you can see the garden from the Focused Room and you can see outdoors from the Garden.
The first shot shows the entire first-floor back room with the walls down.
The second shot shows a walls-up view of the garden from the Focused Room.
Karina: Once I clear Bodybuilder, the house will be completely torn down and redone.
No use showing anymore of the house today.
Gned the Gnome: Ahem, is no one going to ask why I’m stuck inside this glass cage? You explain, Tremain. *rhymes
Tremain the Trashcan: While redoing the porch, Watchette realized that the Astronaut/Space Ranger lock bans placing any items outdoors, except the mailbox, trashcan, and rocket ship.
Mel the Mailbox: *gasps: You mean, Gned should never have been standing on the porch all this time?
Gned: That’s right, not without walls and a ceiling.
Lol, yep! But Pinstar has commented that, since there’s a lot of rules to remember, we don’t have to restart if we make a mistake; we can just fix it and move on.
Since Gned the Gnome didn’t provide any strategic advantage, just narrative fun, I’ve surrounded him in walls with a ceiling, as the Space Ranger lock requires.
I will not be restarting.
Sofie: A little after 10 pm, I arrive back with a promotion to Level 3 Food Service Cashier! I’ve cleared the Fast Food career.
Yippee! Can I go back to Windengberg now?
Great work, Sofie! You did two levels in eight days!
Sofie: Watchette, are you being sarcastic?
Karina: Hey, Sofie, congratulations! Now we can order pizza by phone and chips from a bar.
We can also eat “Quick meal” snacks from the fridge (but drinks are still banned by the Mixologist lock).
You know, Watchette considered asking you to stay here and be with Mauricio, but he’s just not into you.
Anyway, thanks for being a good sport and helping out with the cooking, cleaning, and gardening!
Kage: Everyone, say hello to the newest member of our household, little Miss Amanda Fyres!
Mauricio: Do you know why Amanda’s here, Daia?
Daia: I hear the plan is for Amanda to clear Space Ranger, but we’ll see.
Karina: Then why not just move in a teen? That’s 13 less days of sim-maintenance.
Siobhan: Duhhhh? Amanda’s got the Fyres’ genes! Watchette figures Amanda will be knockout!
Hey, Siobhan, you and Sasuke did great work together, maxing Logic tonight! Now you can relax until Monday.
Siobhan: Sasuke didn’t mind mentoring cuz it means we’ll be living as a family soon!
Week 17/Day 113 (Sun)
Naoto: While Daia and Kage are busy working, the rest of us have the day off, so we visit Sylvan Glade for the first time.
Mauricio, Karina, Go, and Amanda have never gone fishing before, so we’re all very excited!
Mauricio: When Kage gets home, he’s excited to learn that I caught a pomegranate!
Day 114 (Mon)
Gned the Gnome: Siobhan seems really hyped up about going to work this morning!
Tremain the Trashcan: You’re right! She’s doing that silly “shooting guns” gesture from her Insider trait.
Mel the Mailbox: Since coming here, she’s gone from L6 Charisma and zero Logic to maxed Charisma and Logic.
She’s endured being separated from her family and she’s worked really hard! She deserves to feel hyped!
On the other hand, her Cooking and Gardening are both Level 1, lol. All she did was work toward promotions.
Mel the Mailbox: Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Help me, arrrggghhh!!! I’m ddddyyyyiiinnng!
Gned the Gnome: Hey, Mel, what’s wrong? What’s happening?
Mel: Kage came out in his skimpy sportswear and he’s touching me!
Tremain the Trashcan: Sheesh, Mel, get a grip! It’s Monday! He’s just paying the bills…
Gned: You know, Watchette! I really hate being walled up like this! You’re just lucky I don’t have the Loves the Outdoors trait!
Karina: In other news, my little bro Naoto gets abducted while he’s out pranking the neighborhood tonight.
I hear it’s the very first abduction in four generations. Lucky Naoto!
Mauricio: Watchette built a hot tub room for us in back of the garden room this afternoon.
Siobhan, this might be your last night with us, so let’s break in the hot tub!
Karina: Thanks, Dad, for clearing the Villain career so we have the space to place a hot tub!
Day 115 (Tue)
Siobhan: Today at 4pm, I bring home the gold!
With Business/Investor unlocked, the household may sell items in Buy mode and sell collected or harvested items (farewell, 99+ mushrooms!).
It may sell items to Geo Council, publish books (but not self-publish), license songs, and sell jingles. Whew, that’s a lot!
Kage: Daia’s still at work, so I take everyone else to the spa and a gym. Everyone should learn wellness and fitness.
Lately, Daia and I have been thinking of a good match for Karina but the pickings seem slim.
At the spa, we meet romantic Otis, a gym trainer who works at the Harbor Quarter Gym.
I’m never letting Karina date a guy who dresses like this!
Kage: At Harbor Quarter Gym, Naoto asks one of the resident gym trainers to mentor him while I’m chatting with Dane Leach.
Naoto: That gym trainer must be Luciano—he’s the only good friend in my contacts who I don’t recognize.
Kage: Doesn’t matter what his name is, Naoto. He’s never dating my daughter! He’s too creepy!
Naoto: Oh come on, Kage, admit it! His gold chains are cool!
Kage: On the other hand, I rather like this Dane Leach. He’s an art lover, he loves the outdoors, and he’s neat!
Mauricio: Lol! You’re so transparent! Can you say “painting, gardening, and cleaning drone”?
I bet Dane would look really cute in short dreads! Hmmm, hmmm. *Writes his name and traits down
Kage: You know, Watchette, Karina and Mauricio both think I don’t know what’s going on with them, but I saw her giving Mauricio a “First Kiss” last Sunday.
Yeah, I saw that, too. Since then, I’ve been doing a little research about their relatedness.
Mauricio’s mother is Nancy Landgraab, which makes him the half-brother of Karina’s grandfather Tatsuya, or a “half great uncle.”
Kage: Wow, I never even knew this term existed. Thank you, EAxis!
So Mauricio and Karina share a “coefficient of relatedness” of 1/16 (6.25%). That’s halfway between first cousins at 1/8 (12.5%) and second cousins at 1/32 (3.125%).
Kage: Thanks for the migraine, Watchette. I think Mauricio’s a great kid, but…
I know, Kage. And Mauricio has always been her BFF. We still have other options, though.
Kage: Let’s look for other matches for them, okay? But don’t say anything to Karina yet. She’ll throw a fit.
Day 116 (Wed)
Daia: While Siobhan and I mentor Naoto and Amanda in Logic, I notice Karina with Mauricio in the garden room.
I wonder what they’re talking about?
They make such a cute couple! Too bad! *sighs
Kage: We forgot to introduce you to our new housemate, who moved in this evening soon after Siobhan moved back to Windenberg.
Sara: Hi, everyone! My name’s Sara Shin and I hail from The Bin. I attend high school with Karina.
I’m a Genius, Active Nerd Brain. When I age up, I’ll be joining the Astronaut/Interstellar Smuggler career!
My friend Tao Kaneda and I were both children when our immortal dynasty household failed, but we’ve been rescued and aged up to teens for this challenge.
Since Sara and Tao are both teens-aged-up-from-children, they have only three traits each plus whatever skills they’ve built since moving into the neighborhood.
In Sara’s case, that’s Level 4 Video Gaming; Level 1 in Charisma, Comedy, Gourmet Cooking, and Logic.
They’re definitely not Wonder Children but they’re both very cute!
Day 117 (Thu)
Mauricio: This morning, I aged up to a young adult and immediately joined the Entertainer career to become a Musician.
I don’t really look that different in my baggy clothes but I’m definitely not a lanky teen anymore.
I maxed Violin and Piano already as a child, thanks to my half-brother Kenta’s mentoring, so my career-related skilling is done!
Kage told me he doesn’t approve of my dating Karina. I rather thought he wouldn’t but Karina was so…enthusiastic.
But then, who should I marry and take with me later to live in the Landgraab home?
Day 118 (Fri)
Amanda: In Windenberg, I was living with my mom, grandpa, grandma, Uncle Sasuke, and my cousins Erich and Nessa.
So when I first came here, I was soooo lonely! But there’s one person here who always has time for me!
He looked a little scary at first, but he’s pretty funny and really kind.
Amanda: Yay, Naoto’s my new bestest friend! Now, I’ve finished tier two of my Social Butterfly aspiration!
Naoto: Hey, I know this looks bad but it totally isn’t what it looks like, people! I can explain!
I want you to know that I was just minding my own business when she asked me to be her BFF and then initiated this hug!
Naoto, Naoto! All the ladies—young and old—just find you too irresistible! What are we going to do with you?
Day 119 (Sat)
Kage: Instead of celebrating her elder birthday here today, my darling Daia opted to move out last night.
She’ll be living right next door with her mother Yuki. When I leave here, that’s where I’ll be heading, too!
Karina: Our new roommate is our neighbor from across the street. He’s an old friend of Sara from The Bin!
Tao: Hey, everybody! Like Sara, I’m also a teenager. When I age up, I’ll join the Athlete/Pro Athlete career.
I have only three traits—Cheerful, Active, and High Metabolism (Bodybuilder aspiration). My skills are nothing to write home about.
I have Level 2 Video Gaming plus Level 1 in both Charisma and Logic.
Obviously, I’m no preskilled Wonder Child, but I have that slim, effeminate look that Watchette prefers, hehe.
Tao: Psst! Watchette, I can’t believe you made me say that myself!
Both of these sims appeared together several updates ago. Sara looks exactly the same.
When Tao joined the household, however, I ended up changing his hair and all of his clothes.
Somewhere in another simverse, a young girl crooned “Pastel is the New Black.”
For that reason, I’ve changed Tao’s hair from a brownish-black to a very soft pink.
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