Tuesday 26 January 2010

What's the world got in store?

Round 24: Autumn 2020
last update/next update

Charlton and Aphrodite Nihill are both 75, James Novak is 45, Madelyn is 40, Aaron is 17, Ethan is 14 and Connor is 7.
(Calvin is 17 and Sarah is 15)

Narrated by Aaron Novak

Grandma got in a car accident the other week and she's on doctor's orders to rest up. She's got a cast on her arm and has a lot of bruising, so she's supposed to be taking it easy but Grandpa keeps catching her trying to take the garbage out, or exercise. Anything she's not supposed to do.



She's really cranky about what the doctor said, because he also told her that she might never be as fit as she once was and she won't be able to be active any more either. She's 75, so it makes sense but she's not happy.

Someone has to be supervising Grandma at all times now.

We just have to make sure the only sporting activity she's doing is watching them on TV.

I'm still not "out" to my family but I think it's getting to the point where I'm going to have to do it. Calvin is kind of nagging me about it. He's not being pushy for the sake of it - he just honestly thinks it's best to get everything out in the open.

I'm still a little bit apprehensive about what my family's reaction will be. I don't think Ethan will care and Mum might be okay but I'm nervous about Dad. He's a little bit...uptight, I guess. He's hard to read and I'm not sure how it will go over with him.

I called Suffolk to check on my application and I got in, so time is sort of the essence now. I don't want to leave without telling my family. I'm going to tell them individually - it seems less scary to me than announcing it over dinner with six other people staring at me.

Not only was Ethan totally cool with me being gay, he was also completely not shocked. He said that he guessed I was gay when I started hanging around with Calvin so much, plus I've never brought a girl home, apart from Maia. And everyone knows there's nothing going on between me and Maia. I started wondering if my parents had guessed too.

I thought maybe my shyness would have been enough of a cover to explain why I never brought any girls home. But Ethan's just as shy as I am, and he's had a girlfriend for about a year now.

Her name is Sarah and she's the principal's daughter, which I would find kind of nerve-wracking. I guess at least he already knows her and he doesn't have to do that whole "meet the parents" thing.

Sarah has met our parents too and she's over at our place a lot these days. Seeing them together at home, in front of my parents, was what really made me want to come out to my parents. I'd like to be able to be like that with Calvin. Not making out all over the living room or anything but just together out in the open. It's like that at his house and I definitely feel more relaxed when we're together there than here.

I told Mum and once we were done talking, she just hugged me. It went way better than I thought.

I sat down with Mum first because I thought she might be a little easier to talk to than Dad. Still once she was sitting in front of me, waiting for me to say something, I was nervous.

Calvin's been out for as long as I can remember and he said when he told his mum, she said she kind of already knew. I thought Mum might have guessed too. It turns out she hadn't but it didn't seem to faze her at all.

When I told her that Calvin and I were together, I think she was a little hurt that I hadn't told her sooner though. I was afraid she'd feel like that - we've been going behind her back for a year and a half now. Mum knows how to lay a guilt trip and I practically fell all over myself trying to apologise to her. I think she's okay with it though.

If I was nervous talking to Mum, I was 100 times more nervous talking to Dad.

It went...okay. Dad definitely was not as cool about it as Mum was but he wasn't angry or anything. Just really quiet.

I could see him getting slightly more uncomfortable when I told him I was dating Calvin. I suppose it was a lot to take in. Mum said to just give him some time.

Dad's trying. He'd never met Calvin before and he was pretty good when I finally introduced them. He was very nice and welcoming. I think he's pushing himself to get used to it and it means a lot to me.

So Calvin was right all along. Things are definitely much better now that everyone knows we're together. I don't think Dad will become less okay with us, so ultimately it's all worked out pretty well.

Random pic:

FEET! Damn, I don't know if I can look at Ethan's ugly EA feet after looking at Aaron's awesome Sexy Feet. I didn't even know I had any Sexy Feet meshes but apparently I do. Seeing they don't seem to cause any lag in my game, I might go hunting for some more. How often are my Sims barefoot anyway?

And I just like this one, how you can see Madelyn's reflection in the mirror. Autonomous by the way!

Notes:
  • I can't find the title song on Grooveshark (which is really odd because it's just an album track, not an obscure b-side or anything) or YouTube but the title is from What's the World Got In Store? by Wilco.
  • Aaron got into university with 5 scholarships. I was pretty sure he would but I wasn't positive. I'm glad I can send him off with Calvin. Maia will be very happy to have her best friend back. But man...if I thought uni was crazy this year, it's going to be so much more so next year! I'll have 4 freshmen, 3 sophomores and 5 juniors, plus a baby, spread over 3 households! College updates are some of the most fun to play through but they are also the hardest for me to write - I end up taking a ton of pictures and it's hard to pare them down.
  • I was quite surprised James had somehow managed to not meet Calvin, seeing Calvin and Aaron have been friends since kindergarten and he's definitely been to their house before! But I found another reason to love allmenus on - I can have my Sims greet each other over and over, until I get just the right shot of them shaking hands. I used to sometimes use "appreciate" for introductions (because sometimes my Sims meet each other without my permission and then I lose the "Introduce to" interaction) but having an actual handshake will work so much better!
  • Aphrodite rolled the ROS Ouch! You've been in a car accident! Lose 5 body points and 2 active points. Miss work (or call in sick) for 2 days, physical therapy. I changed it up a little, seeing Aphrodite is retired but I ended up getting caught up with Aaron and Ethan and kind of forgot about Aphrodite. Lucky Sims don't usually do anything too strenuous autonomously! BTW, Charlton and Aphrodite's chemistry lost 3 points when I took two active points away from her. They're 3 bolters though and still are, so it was barely noticeable.

14 comments:

  1. Eww, those feet are ugly-I will never look at my simmies barefeet again :P

    Ethan and Sarah are so cute-I love Ethan's hair, btw. I'm glad he convinced his brother to come clean.

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  2. Isn't there a sexy feet default replacement somewhere? Or maybe that's only for when they're naked. I know, I hate their blocky feet too.

    I'm so glad things worked out for Aaron. I love that his dad is uncomfortable by it, but that he's clearly trying.

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  3. I'm glad Aaron finally built up the courage to tell his parents. It turned out well in the end.

    I always try to avoid looking at my sims barefeet! I haven't downloaded any SexyFeet meshes because I'm afraid of the lag but now I'm tempted to do it anyway!

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  4. Carla, beautiful writing about coming out.

    Was Aphrodite afraid of losing her fitness?

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  5. Those are some ugly feet! I hate them but haven't looked into the sexy feet much. Afraid of lag.

    Glad everythings out in the open and woot on the scholarships. You will have your hands full.

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  6. Thanks for reading, guys!

    Apple Valley, yeah, Ethan and Sarah are adorable, even if he does look like he's trying to feel her boob in one of the pics. He's 14, so he might be!

    Aaron needed a lot of convincing to come out but in the end, everything just added up and he realised it would probably be better if he did.

    Lunar, well, you know I went looking for it after you said that! Anyway, yes, there is but I haven't figured it out yet. I might have to remove some meshes I already have in the game because they conflict with themysticalones maternity replacements. I don't mind removing only the barefoot meshes there, so I might try this out today!

    James reacted better than Aaron expected but he's still got a little way to go. It'll only get better.

    Cissie, yes, Calvin was right and he's probably got some leverage in any disagreement they might have in the future now!

    You know, the blocky feet always bothered me but they never really bothered me until I saw Aaron in his PJs!

    Francesca, thank you!

    Technically, no. Aphrodite didn't have the fear of getting fat (and she's not - I only took away body and active points). But she's a Sports Sim who has always been active and it would make sense if she did have that as a fear.

    Maisie, I am both looking forward to and dreading college next year! It's going to be insane!

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  7. Carla, LOL at your comment above to Apple Valley because when I looked that picture that's exactly what I thought -- "Is he trying to feel her boob??" Ah, boys, LOL ;)

    I'm glad Aaron finally came out to his family! I'm sure it's a lot for his dad to become adjusted to, but hopefully in time things will get better. :)

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  8. I'm so glad that Aaron came out....I'm sure it's tough but it just makes things so much easy when he doesn't have to sneak around.....and now Calvin won't feel like Aaron's embarrassed by him.....and I had never even HEARD of sexy feet!

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  9. Thanks, guys!

    Shana, LOL, he's got such a sly look on his face too, it just makes the picture. It's about as good as the time I caught Jacob with his hand up Maia's skirt when they were in high school.

    I think James will definitely get used to it. It was before I did much characterisation outside of what the game gives you but he went to college with Betsy so he has a gay friend. I guess it was just different for him to be faced with it so close to home.

    Mizzgin03, it was tough for Aaron but the good thing is he'll never have to do it again. It's all over and it wasn't as bad as he thought it would be. It's much healthier for his relationship with Calvin too. And I mean, I'm planning for them to live together at some point - how long can the lie really on then? "Hey, this is my...roommate".

    I'd never bothered to look into Sexy Feet much but after seeing Aaron's feet, I went a bit crazy. I have replacements for most of the Maxis barefoot meshes now, including the nude ones. It's very exciting for me! When I was playing Rose and Joanna last night, I kept zooming in on their feet. I'm such a nerd!

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  10. Aw, what a sweet update. I'm really happy for Aaron, and Calvin too. I liked how you wrote it and how we found out all of Aaron's feelings about the situation.

    OMG, what I would give for a mom like Madelyn! She's wonderful, kind, understanding, and very pretty.

    LOL at the disgusting feet next to the awesome ones. If we're paying 300+ dollars for this game, you'd think they would put a little more effort into it!

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  11. Awww, all the happy couples in this one! What a relief that must be for Aaron and Calvin now, not having to hide. And lol, Ethan and Sarah are cute too, even if he is being a slick fourteen year-old boy, lol! :)

    I'm so jealous of your Sexy Feet, lol! I thought about getting some after seeing them used in some other stories, but then I figured what was the point having a couple pairs of nice feet, when all my other Sims would have the default ones.

    But oooh, can I get a link on this default replacement??? :)

    LOL, I know it about the college updates! That's why I do mine in two or three parts these days :)

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  12. bbop, thank you, I'm glad you liked it.

    Madelyn is a total sweetheart. 10 nice points, which makes her somewhat of a black sheep in her family (her aunt is Collette, she of the singular nice point and a lot of her cousins aren't very nice either).

    The Sexy Feet are great but if they're going to cause lag on lower end PCs, I'm kind of glad they didn't include them. If it was a choice between Sexy Feet and some awesome feature in the game, like chemistry, for example, then I'll take the block feet. ;) But the Sexy Feet replacements are working out pretty well for me so far.

    Laura, oh, my next few college updates are definitely going to be a few parts! My problem is when I have the one household, I find it hard to find a good place to break it in half, even when it's long so I tend to just do a marathon session to get it all in.

    The Sexy Feet replacements are from here. There are a few different files but I have no idea which one I installed to get the Sexy Feet for kids and toddlers. I don't remember putting a file in for that but somehow, they have the cool feet. I'm not going to complain!

    I don't think Aaron realised the relief that he'd feel once he was out until he saw Ethan with his girlfriend. He's very reserved, the poor boy.

    And Ethan...well, even the shy ones have hormones! LOL.

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  13. This is too crazy (not the update, that was great lol). I was looking at stuff to download yesterday and I ran across sexy feet and briefly started looking into it. And here you are posting about it. I was really tempted, and even moreso that you've done the side by side comparison, but there are so many different files!

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  14. Danielle, I still don't think I've figured out the Sexy Feet properly. I'm definitely missing some files because I still have Maxis meshes using the ugly feet. I'm just living with it now though! Too lazy to try to figure it out again. :D

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