Monday 23 October 2017

Catch hell blues

Round 37: March 2045 (Autumn)

Sylvia Draper and Alice Jacobson are 19 and Ruby Lane and Ramona Nihill are 18.
(Simon and Matthew are 20)

Narrated by Ramona Nihill

As soon as I found out there was a newspaper here, I decided I had to write for it. So perfect for a journalism major like me! I’ve spent most of my spare time since then putting together some writing samples to submit to them.

I think it’ll look good on my resume when I graduate if I’ve done some writing and had it published, even if it is just in a campus newspaper. And I just really want to exercise my writing muscles outside of class too.

Hopefully, they’re good enough. I’ve been sending them to Dad to get his feedback. He loved them but I’m hoping he’s being honest and not just telling me what I want to hear because I’m his daughter.

I’ve asked Sylvia to look over them for me as well. She’s not a journalist but she is a writer and a fellow lit major. She might be able to give me something useful.

Ruby lives here at Moretti Hall with me and she is underwhelmed by the place.

It’s not girls-only by design but it’s ended up that way anyway, so there are no guys living with us.

I tried to sell her on it, telling her that here we have our own rooms, while a lot of the rooms in the co-ed dorm are shares but she’s still bummed.

Ruby was hoping to start dating as soon as she arrived on campus, so this development has been very unimpressive to her.

We’ve been hanging out at the uni bar in our free time, scoping out the guy situation there.

Well, Ruby has been, anyway. Nothing serious but she’s met a couple of guys she likes since we got here.

She's been out with one of them a couple of times now but I'm still not sure it'll go anywhere.

I haven’t really had the urge to start dating lately. Jonathan and I drifted apart towards the end of high school and I haven’t spoken to him since. I know he’s off at uni somewhere and that’s it. But I’ve been thinking about him a lot. I sort of miss him.

I’ve contemplated texting him, just to say hi, but I haven’t worked up the nerve so far.

Ruby wants to find me a new guy to “get over” Jonathan but I’m good, honestly.

I have no intentions of pining away after Jonathan the entire time I’m here but I also don’t feel like finding someone to hook up with just for the sake of it either.

Ruby and I have very different views on dating though, so I’m not really surprised she’s pushing this the way she is.

Being on campus now, I’ve been hanging out with Aurora a bit again. We were friends in high school but haven’t really kept in contact too closely for the past year.

Visiting her in her dorm, I almost regretted choosing Morett Hall over Novaki. Aurora shares her room with Bianca but it’s enormous!

Bianca even has space for her sewing machine in there. I cannot imagine fitting any extras at all into my tiny little room.

But I’ve made it as homey as I can and I’m content there, so I won’t complain too much.

I’m even lucky enough to have a balcony off my room, which is nice if you want some fresh air and still have a bit of privacy.

Ruby and I never hung out much with Sylvia or Alice in high school but living together now, it’s hard to avoid.

We don’t have a ton in common but we all get along relatively well despite that.

Alice recently broke up with her boyfriend Matthew, so she’s not having such a great time at the moment.

She caught him cheating on her and from what people have told her since, it wasn’t the first time or the only other girl.

Apparently, it’s been going on for most of the time he’s been on campus, so she’s feeling kind of stupid at the moment.

She shouldn’t feel stupid. Matthew is the one who should feel horrible.

I don’t think he does though. Alice said he hasn’t even tried to call her or contact her in any way since she dumped him.

Maybe he thinks it’s a lost cause…but you would think he’d want to at least apologise or something.

I hope his brother Simon is a nicer guy, at least for Sylvia’s sake. To my surprise, she is all of a sudden really into him!

I never would have thought either of them would be interested in the other but there has been some mutual flirtation going on lately.

He’s Ruby’s cousin, so she knows him fairly well. She says he’d been dating around a bit recently but he did have a steady girlfriend in high school. So he’s not totally avoidant of commitment.

Honestly, I don’t know where he’d find the time to date anyone else at the moment. He’s an almost constant presence around here and he’s spending all that time with Sylvia.

Notes:
  • Title is from Catch Hell Blues by White Stripes.
  • So as you may have guessed, Sylvia and Simon were my surprise romantic pairing I mentioned in the last uni update. I just heard the "first kiss" music, scanned the lot and spotted Sylvia and Simon out front! Their chemistry is pretty high. It's currently 2 bolts but that's with no matching turn-ons, so I suspect I could get it higher if I adjusted. I'm just going to see how they go. :)
  • I didn't think they made any sense at all at first but upon thinking about it, I can see it. Facially, Sylvia bears some resemblance to Simon's ex, Annabel. And they're both creative types - Simon with his music and Sylvia with her writing. So I think I can work with that!
  • Perhaps Simon has inspired Sylvia to work a bit harder, for some reason, because she actually rolled a want to write a term paper this session, bringing her GPA from 3.3 to 3.4. Ramona and Alice both have a 4.0, while Ruby has a 3.3 GPA. 
  • Ruby is really hard to find someone for! I may have to add some guys to my townie pool. The one with her here is actually the school mascot and it'll be a big fat no to marrying any mascots or cheerleaders into my hood! For those in the dark, mascots and cheerleaders keep their college behaviours after graduation. So they still do the stupid cheers, they still do pranks and they default back into their mascot/cheerleader outfits each time you load. I did it once and will never do it again! 
  • Ramona had lost interest in Jonathan and it seems to be rekindled now? I don't know. I'm going to see if I can match her up with someone else but so far, she's not too interested. 
  • Often when I have sims break up, the dumpee will stay in love with the dumper but that didn't happen with Alice and Matthew. So I think it was definitely time these two split. I think Alice is better off for sure. 

14 comments:

  1. Didn't expect that romance, but when you explained it, it makes sense. I'm glad Alice dumped his a$$. Too bad he's not showing remorse, at least pretend.

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    1. I think I remember noticing the chemistry between Simon and Sylvia a while back but didn't imagine them ever getting together...but you know sims! I should have known better. ;) We'll see how it goes though!

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

      All feelings between Matthew and Alice just vanished with that dumping! But next time I see him, I'll have to check how he's feeling about the whole thing. I'm hoping for a couple of Alice wants, so he can maybe redeem himself (though not get back together with her).

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  2. I didn't expect Sylvia and Simon, but it seems like it could be a good pairing. Looking forward to seeing what develops with them!

    I'm glad Ramona isn't rushing out to find a new guy. It's good for her to take her time and just enjoy her days at college for now. :)

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    1. I have two students graduating this year and none entering next year, so I'll have fewer students to focus on next time around. Hopefully, that will leave more time for Sylvia and Simon!

      Current Ramona seems to think she's already found her guy, lol! But she's definitely not desperate to get back into dating or anything, so I'm just keeping my eye on her for the time being. She might find a non-Jonathan guy some day!

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  3. By the look on her face Ruby certainly does seem unimpressed. lol At least she is getting out there though to find guys. If you want something you can't just sit around and wait for it to happen so good on her. ;)

    Ramana is really cute and seems like the more mature one out of her friends. Shame her and Jonathan didn't stay in touch, hopefully she plucks up the courage to text him. Maybe he would like to be hear from her.

    Love the surprise pairing, very cute couple! It's nice when something like that happens naturally between two sims. I've got one couple, though they aren't really a couple yet and one of them is currently married, who recently had sparks fly naturally in game. It did make me happy because the current marriage just doesn't seem to be working out. It might be my first divorce that I haven't instigated. lol

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    1. I think that's basically Ruby's attitude to life! I'm not liking the offerings in the guy department so far though. Most of my playable guys around Ruby's age are related to her!

      I adore Ramona and I was so excited to get her to college. I'm glad she's not the type to rush, as I need to ponder this whole Jonathan thing. ;) She's really thrown a spanner in the works here!

      I do love it when sims get together on their own, so I was happy with Simon and Sylvia, as surprised as I was with the pairing! I often end up having a real soft spot for these surprise couples.

      Interesting about your impending romance in your game! It should be very intriguing to play out, no matter what happens.

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  4. Poor Ruby, it can be really rough for sims when they arrive on campus wanting to date and don't find someone. That happened with my Lucy Burb in the Pleasantview save I was playing casually earlier this year. I also have a soft spot for couples who get together on their own. Also, I'm glad Alice got rid of Matthew before when she did!

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    1. Part of it is that I just rarely get excited by townies and I find it hard to have my sims "settle" for them! Ruby's age group was very girl-heavy, unfortunately!

      I am also glad Alice is done with Matthew. I have other plans percolating for her now. ;)

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  5. Oh, the mascots! I made the mistake of letting someone marry one, too. Like you say, never again!

    I love it when sims do things on their own. Back in TS2, that was how Cory and Rose got together - I would never have planned that one. It's why I like having story progression in TS3 (with some limits set via NRAAS). I like these guys writing their own stories.

    I feel for Ruby. My hood is female-heavy too... there was no one for Ivy in TS2 after she broke up with Danny. I'm hoping she can have better luck in TS3.

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    1. Aren't mascots the worst? I was so annoyed when I later married in a cheerleader and found the same issue. I wonder if married in coaches also keep wandering onto lots demanding people work out?

      I've already decided I will visit Sylvia for her 18th birthday in May, just so she and Simon can go on a proper date and I can play them together a bit more. :) Sometimes sims know better than us!

      My hood is actually more male-heavy than female-heavy! It's very close but males outnumber females by two. But in Ruby's age group, it's slim pickings. Four of the guys around her age are her brothers and cousins, so...lol. I remember I had the same issue with a few sims in the Moretti family a few years ago.

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  6. Ramona should see how tiny the rooms are at my Dresden College. 4x6 for two girls, if I recall. And I don't even let them have double beds, lol! That balcony she has though, as a freshman! That's a good deal!

    I don't remember Jonathan. Was he a townie boyfriend? Or is he from one of your families?

    Sadly, I think we all saw that coming with Alice and Matthew. She'll be better off without him, for sure!

    Sylvia and Simon! How funny that they picked each other without your permission! I think it's nice to be surprised sometimes, and they even seem to have some good chemistry and common interests, so win-win!

    OMG, somehow I don't think I even knew that about marrying mascots and cheerleaders, lol! My sims used to date them, but I don't think any of mine ever married one. Good thing they didn't!

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    1. Ha, that is very small indeed! I think Ramona's room is 4x5? But she does have it all to herself. ;)

      Jonathan is a townie...who I will have to start referring to as Jon if he becomes a major player, because Lila and Connor's baby is called Jonathan. He's a playable, so he gets first dibs. ;) Honestly, I never focused much on him because I never imagined he'd have anything at all to do with anything once Ramona finished school. He showed me, lol!

      I've been going back through older posts lately, in my retagging quest, and Sylvia and Simon shouldn't have surprised me so much! She actually had a little crush on him when they were teens, which I think he was vaguely aware of. This was like five years ago (in real time!) though, so it's no wonder I'd forgotten. But anyway, 12-year-old Sylvia would be very impressed with her 18-year-old self!

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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  7. Sylvia and Simon are cute together, I like when unexpected relationships bloom. Hopefully it works out better for Sylvia than it did for Alice, though it does sound like it was time for those two to move on.

    A sewing machine in a dorm room is luxury! Too funny that their dorm ended up being a girl-only dorm just by chance. I've had that happen before, and that is definitely not fitting into Ruby's college expectations. Hopefully you can find/make some guys for her to date, she's waited long enough. ;)

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    1. Yeah, I was pretty happy to see this surprise thing develop with Simon and Sylvia! I didn't really have concrete plans for either of them, so they can go for it, as far as I'm concerned.

      Novak Hall is definitely my luxury dorm, lol! The rooms are all huge. Moretti is smaller and always seems to be girl-only, much to Ruby's chagrin. There might be a guy out there for Ruby - I'll have to get my hands on that matchmaker crystal ball again and see if she has high chemistry with anyone she hasn't met yet. :)

      Thanks for reading and commenting!

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