Prosperity Challenge
First things first - if you haven't already guessed, Gone, my story with sims illustrations, is on a probably permanent hiatus. There are a few reasons for this, but it pretty much boils down to the fact that it turns out I do not like doing sims photo shoots. If anyone out there is dying to know how the story ends up, the whole thing is written and saved, and I'm happy to send it to you via email or something. You can sim it yourself :p.
I do, however, love to play with the sims! And so, without further ado, I would like to introduce the residents of my new prosperity challenge neighborhood.
This is Winterfell, the ironically and very nerdily named small village where four families are struggling to succeed. (It's ironic because I don't have Seasons and probably never will, so winter will never come to Winterfell. If you aren't sure why it's nerdy, my husband and I really like George R.R. Martin, and that's all I'll say!)
In these four identical modular houses, the families are trying to start new chapters of their lives. Bad memories and broken dreams haunt them all to some degree, but here in Winterfell they all feel wonderful stirrings of hope. Away from old cares and free from other people's ingrained notions of who they are, each family is determined to flourish and set down strong roots.
Burkett
In the orange house, second from the right, live Leone and Van Burkett. They are siblings from Sim City, who have moved in together in Winterfell to escape the ghosts of the past.
Leone was married for 35 years to John Field, a moderately successful attorney. Their marriage ended when the private investigator Leone had hired found incontrovertible evidence that John was having an affair. In the bitter divorce, their grown children sided with their father, and Leone told them all to go to hell. She claims to have no regrets and tells everyone she feels more alive than she ever did as a wife and mother.
Stats:
Aspiration - Romance
Lifetime Want - Become Celebrity Chef
Astrology - Capricorn
Neat - 8
Shy - 4
Lazy - 1
Playful - 8
Grouchy/Nice - 5
Leone's brother, Van, has not yet recovered from the recent loss of his wife, Janet. They had no children, and when Leone asked him to move out to Winterfell with her, he jumped at the chance. Adjusting to Leone as a roommate has been difficult for Van, who prefers his home to be a sanctuary for his many projects.
Stats:
Aspiration - Knowledge
LTW - Become Chief of Staff
Astrology - Aries
Sloppy/Neat - 5
Outgoing - 8
Active - 6
Serious - 3
Grouchy - 3
Koepple
In the blue house, second from the left, live the six members of the Koepple family. Chaos reigns in the overcrowded household, but their fierce love for each other keeps anything from getting too out of hand.
Marilyn Koepple wishes her daughter, Kelly, had been more careful. After having five children - all girls - in very rapid succession, she and her boyfriend were killed in a terrible motorcycle accident a few months ago. Marilyn is determined to keep the children together and out of trouble, and she thought Winterfell would be sufficiently isolated. Her grandchildren will tell you that she is overprotective and far too strict. Marilyn will in turn point out that the children are a bunch of wild animals who belong in the zoo - but she'll wink.
Stats:
Aspiration - Romance
LTW - Become Professional Party Guest
Astrology - Sagittarius
Sloppy - 2
Shy - 3
Active - 9
Playful - 7
Grouchy - 4
Ria is the oldest of the Koepple children. Her only priorities are keeping her sisters out of the hands of the state, and getting herself into college. Her greatest fear is that Marilyn will die and leave her in charge of the girls. She is a worrier and has trouble making new friends, so she's apprehensive about attending a new school.
Stats:
Aspiration - Knowledge
LTW - Become Chief of Staff
Astrology - Taurus
Sloppy/Neat - 5
Shy/Outgoing - 5
Lazy - 3
Playful - 8
Grouchy - 4
Belva, the oldest of the triplets - yes, triplets - is trying to scratch out an identity for herself in a family where the loudest problems get the most attention. She misses the privacy she used to have in their old home, and can't believe she has to share a room with three of her sisters.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Virgo
Neat - 9
Shy - 2
Active - 6
Serious - 3
Grouchy/Nice - 5
Nevada, the middle triplet, is often in her own world - but that doesn't mean that she won't talk your ear off about it. Her "inventions" caused a lot of trouble at her old school, and she's on strict notice that she's to leave the class pets out of her scripted soap operas this year.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Aquarius
Sloppy - 4
Shy - 4
Lazy - 4
Playful - 7
Nice - 6
Anabel, the youngest triplet, is unconsciously charming and bewitches most people she meets. Many adult visitors to the Koepple household find themselves playing dolls with Anabel and hoping to be invited to her next stuffed animal tea party.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Cancer
Neat - 6
Shy - 3
Active - 6
Serious - 4
Nice - 6
Rochell, the baby, is the one family member no one can stand to see cry. Therefore, it's doubly unfortunate that she does it so often.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Virgo
Neat - 9
Shy - 2
Active - 6
Serious - 3
Grouchy/Nice - 5
Thigpen
Winterfell's other six member family, the Thigpens, live in the pink house on the far left. No terrible tragedy lurks in their past, but many whisper that Lise demanded the family move after becoming jealous of Glen's relationship with one of his coworkers.
Lise's rumored jealousy doesn't make a lot of sense when you look at her - she is easily the most beautiful woman in Winterfell. She never seems to notice her many admirers, though. It's often difficult to distract her focus from her career aspirations - just ask her husband, Glen.
Stats:
Aspiration - Fortune
LTW - Become Chief of Staff (it's a good thing Winterfell has so many hospitals...)
Astrology - Scorpio
Neat - 6
Shy/Outgoing - 5
Active - 8
Serious - 3
Grouchy - 3
Glen Thigpen, being a modern guy, took his wife's last name when they married. Of course, that might have had something to do with the fact that his old name was Glen Chen. We won't speculate as to what effect his upbringing by his obviously twisted parents may have had on his psyche.
Stats:
Aspiration - Romance
LTW - Have 20 Simultaneous Lovers
Astrology - Scorpio
Neat - 6
Shy/Outgoing - 5
Active - 8
Serious - 3
Grouchy - 3
Marguerite is Lise's mother, and came to live with her daughter's family when they moved to Winterfell. She's a retired teacher and not sure how she feels about her new surroundings yet. Her pride is a little wounded that she can no longer afford her apartment in the city after her roommate moved out.
Stats:
Aspiration - Fortune
LTW - Become Chief of Staff
Astrology - Taurus
Sloppy/Neat - 5
Shy/Outgoing - 5
Lazy - 3
Playful - 8
Grouchy - 4
Emanuel is Lise's twin brother and Marguerite's only other child. He only intends to stay in the house until he gets back on his feet after recently declaring bankruptcy. He does not share Lise's work ethic, but is somewhat envious of her success.
Stats:
Aspiration - Popularity
LTW - Become Celebrity Chef
Astrology - Scorpio
Neat - 6
Shy/Outgoing - 5
Active - 8
Serious - 3
Grouchy - 3
Bob is Lise and Glen's oldest child. He is bothered by their hasty move, but mostly keeps it to himself. He was homecoming king at his old high school, and hopes he likes the kids in Winterfell as much as he liked the ones back home. His hair takes twenty minutes of careful styling every morning.
Stats:
Aspiration - Popularity
LTW - Become Celebrity Chef (seriously, is the randomizer broken??)
Astrology - Leo
Sloppy - 4
Outgoing - 10
Lazy - 4
Serious - 4
Grouchy - 3
Shena Thigpen has big plans. They're top secret, though. For now, she's happy pestering her brother, Bob, and trying to see how many marshmallows she can fit in her mouth.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Aries
Sloppy/Neat - 5
Outgoing - 8
Active - 6
Serious - 3
Grouchy - 3
Haynes
In the green house, on the far right, lives Lou Haynes and his grandson, Eli. Eli's father - Lou's son - was killed fighting overseas, and his mother is, as they say, out of the picture. Like many of the residents of Winterfell, Lou is grieving heavily while carrying new and heavy responsibilities.
Before Benjamin's death, Lou was happily contemplating a retirement spent fishing and writing his memoirs. The transition to daily diaper changing has been shocking, to say the least.
Stats:
Aspiration - Knowledge
LTW - Max Out 7 Skills
Astrology - Aquarius
Sloppy - 4
Shy - 4
Lazy - 4
Playful - 7
Nice - 6
Eli's interests currently include learning to use the potty like a big boy, and eating bugs.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Leo
Sloppy - 4
Outgoing - 10
Lazy - 4
Serious - 4
Grouchy - 3
What will the future hold for the residents of Winterfell? I'm playing the households in 3 day shifts - a whole week seems far too long to my short attention span. Oh, and enjoy the borders while you can, because I'm not doing that anymore after this - unless someone wants to show me how to do them all at once using GIMP. Thanks for reading!
I do, however, love to play with the sims! And so, without further ado, I would like to introduce the residents of my new prosperity challenge neighborhood.
This is Winterfell, the ironically and very nerdily named small village where four families are struggling to succeed. (It's ironic because I don't have Seasons and probably never will, so winter will never come to Winterfell. If you aren't sure why it's nerdy, my husband and I really like George R.R. Martin, and that's all I'll say!)
In these four identical modular houses, the families are trying to start new chapters of their lives. Bad memories and broken dreams haunt them all to some degree, but here in Winterfell they all feel wonderful stirrings of hope. Away from old cares and free from other people's ingrained notions of who they are, each family is determined to flourish and set down strong roots.
Burkett
In the orange house, second from the right, live Leone and Van Burkett. They are siblings from Sim City, who have moved in together in Winterfell to escape the ghosts of the past.
Leone was married for 35 years to John Field, a moderately successful attorney. Their marriage ended when the private investigator Leone had hired found incontrovertible evidence that John was having an affair. In the bitter divorce, their grown children sided with their father, and Leone told them all to go to hell. She claims to have no regrets and tells everyone she feels more alive than she ever did as a wife and mother.
Stats:
Aspiration - Romance
Lifetime Want - Become Celebrity Chef
Astrology - Capricorn
Neat - 8
Shy - 4
Lazy - 1
Playful - 8
Grouchy/Nice - 5
Leone's brother, Van, has not yet recovered from the recent loss of his wife, Janet. They had no children, and when Leone asked him to move out to Winterfell with her, he jumped at the chance. Adjusting to Leone as a roommate has been difficult for Van, who prefers his home to be a sanctuary for his many projects.
Stats:
Aspiration - Knowledge
LTW - Become Chief of Staff
Astrology - Aries
Sloppy/Neat - 5
Outgoing - 8
Active - 6
Serious - 3
Grouchy - 3
Koepple
In the blue house, second from the left, live the six members of the Koepple family. Chaos reigns in the overcrowded household, but their fierce love for each other keeps anything from getting too out of hand.
Marilyn Koepple wishes her daughter, Kelly, had been more careful. After having five children - all girls - in very rapid succession, she and her boyfriend were killed in a terrible motorcycle accident a few months ago. Marilyn is determined to keep the children together and out of trouble, and she thought Winterfell would be sufficiently isolated. Her grandchildren will tell you that she is overprotective and far too strict. Marilyn will in turn point out that the children are a bunch of wild animals who belong in the zoo - but she'll wink.
Stats:
Aspiration - Romance
LTW - Become Professional Party Guest
Astrology - Sagittarius
Sloppy - 2
Shy - 3
Active - 9
Playful - 7
Grouchy - 4
Ria is the oldest of the Koepple children. Her only priorities are keeping her sisters out of the hands of the state, and getting herself into college. Her greatest fear is that Marilyn will die and leave her in charge of the girls. She is a worrier and has trouble making new friends, so she's apprehensive about attending a new school.
Stats:
Aspiration - Knowledge
LTW - Become Chief of Staff
Astrology - Taurus
Sloppy/Neat - 5
Shy/Outgoing - 5
Lazy - 3
Playful - 8
Grouchy - 4
Belva, the oldest of the triplets - yes, triplets - is trying to scratch out an identity for herself in a family where the loudest problems get the most attention. She misses the privacy she used to have in their old home, and can't believe she has to share a room with three of her sisters.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Virgo
Neat - 9
Shy - 2
Active - 6
Serious - 3
Grouchy/Nice - 5
Nevada, the middle triplet, is often in her own world - but that doesn't mean that she won't talk your ear off about it. Her "inventions" caused a lot of trouble at her old school, and she's on strict notice that she's to leave the class pets out of her scripted soap operas this year.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Aquarius
Sloppy - 4
Shy - 4
Lazy - 4
Playful - 7
Nice - 6
Anabel, the youngest triplet, is unconsciously charming and bewitches most people she meets. Many adult visitors to the Koepple household find themselves playing dolls with Anabel and hoping to be invited to her next stuffed animal tea party.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Cancer
Neat - 6
Shy - 3
Active - 6
Serious - 4
Nice - 6
Rochell, the baby, is the one family member no one can stand to see cry. Therefore, it's doubly unfortunate that she does it so often.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Virgo
Neat - 9
Shy - 2
Active - 6
Serious - 3
Grouchy/Nice - 5
Thigpen
Winterfell's other six member family, the Thigpens, live in the pink house on the far left. No terrible tragedy lurks in their past, but many whisper that Lise demanded the family move after becoming jealous of Glen's relationship with one of his coworkers.
Lise's rumored jealousy doesn't make a lot of sense when you look at her - she is easily the most beautiful woman in Winterfell. She never seems to notice her many admirers, though. It's often difficult to distract her focus from her career aspirations - just ask her husband, Glen.
Stats:
Aspiration - Fortune
LTW - Become Chief of Staff (it's a good thing Winterfell has so many hospitals...)
Astrology - Scorpio
Neat - 6
Shy/Outgoing - 5
Active - 8
Serious - 3
Grouchy - 3
Glen Thigpen, being a modern guy, took his wife's last name when they married. Of course, that might have had something to do with the fact that his old name was Glen Chen. We won't speculate as to what effect his upbringing by his obviously twisted parents may have had on his psyche.
Stats:
Aspiration - Romance
LTW - Have 20 Simultaneous Lovers
Astrology - Scorpio
Neat - 6
Shy/Outgoing - 5
Active - 8
Serious - 3
Grouchy - 3
Marguerite is Lise's mother, and came to live with her daughter's family when they moved to Winterfell. She's a retired teacher and not sure how she feels about her new surroundings yet. Her pride is a little wounded that she can no longer afford her apartment in the city after her roommate moved out.
Stats:
Aspiration - Fortune
LTW - Become Chief of Staff
Astrology - Taurus
Sloppy/Neat - 5
Shy/Outgoing - 5
Lazy - 3
Playful - 8
Grouchy - 4
Emanuel is Lise's twin brother and Marguerite's only other child. He only intends to stay in the house until he gets back on his feet after recently declaring bankruptcy. He does not share Lise's work ethic, but is somewhat envious of her success.
Stats:
Aspiration - Popularity
LTW - Become Celebrity Chef
Astrology - Scorpio
Neat - 6
Shy/Outgoing - 5
Active - 8
Serious - 3
Grouchy - 3
Bob is Lise and Glen's oldest child. He is bothered by their hasty move, but mostly keeps it to himself. He was homecoming king at his old high school, and hopes he likes the kids in Winterfell as much as he liked the ones back home. His hair takes twenty minutes of careful styling every morning.
Stats:
Aspiration - Popularity
LTW - Become Celebrity Chef (seriously, is the randomizer broken??)
Astrology - Leo
Sloppy - 4
Outgoing - 10
Lazy - 4
Serious - 4
Grouchy - 3
Shena Thigpen has big plans. They're top secret, though. For now, she's happy pestering her brother, Bob, and trying to see how many marshmallows she can fit in her mouth.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Aries
Sloppy/Neat - 5
Outgoing - 8
Active - 6
Serious - 3
Grouchy - 3
Haynes
In the green house, on the far right, lives Lou Haynes and his grandson, Eli. Eli's father - Lou's son - was killed fighting overseas, and his mother is, as they say, out of the picture. Like many of the residents of Winterfell, Lou is grieving heavily while carrying new and heavy responsibilities.
Before Benjamin's death, Lou was happily contemplating a retirement spent fishing and writing his memoirs. The transition to daily diaper changing has been shocking, to say the least.
Stats:
Aspiration - Knowledge
LTW - Max Out 7 Skills
Astrology - Aquarius
Sloppy - 4
Shy - 4
Lazy - 4
Playful - 7
Nice - 6
Eli's interests currently include learning to use the potty like a big boy, and eating bugs.
Stats:
Aspiration - Grow Up
LTW - N/A
Astrology - Leo
Sloppy - 4
Outgoing - 10
Lazy - 4
Serious - 4
Grouchy - 3
What will the future hold for the residents of Winterfell? I'm playing the households in 3 day shifts - a whole week seems far too long to my short attention span. Oh, and enjoy the borders while you can, because I'm not doing that anymore after this - unless someone wants to show me how to do them all at once using GIMP. Thanks for reading!