I had changed Juan’s LTW from creating 3 monster to “swimming in cash” which is one of those wishes that scales to the relative to the family’s current fortunes.  In this case I think he wanted to have a net worth of 100,000 simoleans.  Paris, of course wanted a bottomless nectar cellar…at least 50 bottles and worth 50,000 I think.

Thanks to the trips to France (which I really wish I had taken more pictures of) – her skill in nectar making was maxed.  What I did was gather grapes and stuff locally and used that..but that was all normal or at best ‘nice’ quality produce, so it didn’t make valuable nectar — 33 to 40 simoleans a bottle.  What I had her do was load the fruit, smash it..then while it was brewing she read from her nectar making books.  She was able to use the bathroom there (and upstairs there are tubs for washing)..and she slept in one of the beds there and didn’t get yelled at.  So you literally could spend the entire vacation at the nectary if you wanted.

Here’s her setup in her basement at home.  Two nectar makers allow her to have two batches going at once.  I will eventually add a bathroom down there, I think.  There is also a hamper there and the washer and dryer since she makes dirty clothes each time she spins into her bathing suit to squish the fruit.

The other part of her setup..the bottles of nectar we are keeping.  I had her register as “self employed” as a nectar maker… some of the lesser quality bottles she made while skill building she will sell… and once she grows enough life fruit, flame fruit, etc… she will use recipes I got from Carl’s Sims 3 site to make high quality and valuable nectars to store and keep to count towards her LTW.

She had gotten some flame fruit in one of her adventures in Egypt and had a bunch of special seeds planted (like 7 or — some of which I hoped would be lifefruit.  During the trip I had them try for baby a few times, but no chimes.  So I used some happiness points to purchase the fertility perk for Paris.

Well, darned if that night after they got home if Juan didn’t die on Paris and me!

Paris:  Juan wasn’t much to look at, but he wasn’t bad in bed… (crying) and now I’m all alone!

This was the first in-game death I’d directly experienced and I have to admit I about jumped out of my skin when the creepy music started just before the Grim Reaper showed up.

Juan pleaded not to be taken..but death granted him no mercy.

Juan:  But dude… Paris Hilton..the woohoo.. don’t make me go!

And Paris was broke up about losing Juan.  Maybe she was afraid of whom else I might hook her up with.

Paris:  Juan was one of a kind.  (sobs)  My heart is broken!

She even cried on his shoulder when he came to haunt.  (Okay, I admit I directed that one…but Paris the sim is a lot nicer than the way the real life one portrays herself.)   Then as luck would have it, the opportunity came up for Paris to take a loved one’s remains to the science center.

And so she did..and Juan came back.  They celebrated with some human-ghost woohoo.

Paris:  (Urp)  I don’t feel so good.

Me:  *Cackles*

You would think she’d be horrified, but Paris seems sorta pleased by her baby bump.

Paris:  I don’t understand how its possible… I thought I was safe making it with a ghost…but eh..

Thar she blows!  Is it just me or is that one freaking huge baby bump?

Paris: (sticking her nose in the air)  Its just because I was so thin before.  Pbbb!

Juan seems pleased that part of him will live on through their child.  When he was alive and they were on vacation in Egypt I had him propose to Paris but then she turned him down!  So now they are just “romantic interests” and I’m not too worried about making their relationship legal.  Besides at this point how would it go since traditional vows include the words “Until death do us part”?  (lol)

The big day finally comes and Paris goes into labor.  I waited to see if she’d huff and puff and go to the hospital or have the baby(ies?) at home.

Juan: (floats by unconcerned)  Paris Hilton is having my baby.  Dude!

Don’t let him fool you, a second or two it sunk in and he went into panic / flail mode just like any living sim.

Unsurprisingly, Paris insisted on going to the hospital.  Juan floated along behind her.

Woot! Score one ghost baby!  (and hopefully an ugly one to boot).  This is London Hilton.  He loves the outdoors and is artistic.

Make that two ghost babies!  Juan is holding baby Berlin Hilton.  He’s friendly and a heavy sleeper.

I exercised the option to “cake” the babies and transition them to toddlerhood early.  I wanted to take them to the mirror to assess the damages.    Did  you know ghost toddlers and kids will appear as they would if they were living if you go to the mirror to change their hairstyles, etc?

This is London Hilton from the front.  Little stinker closed his eyes, but I do believe they are violet as Jenba showed Juan’s eye color to be.  He looks like he has daddy’s skin tone too.  And looks sorta cute from the front.

But from the side I think I see Juan’s nose and the hint of his chin too.  I have high hopes for London!

This is Berlin from the front.  And he has more of Paris’ looks I think.. hard to tell.

And Berlin from the side.  He has potential to be unattractive (I don’t think Paris is super hot like some people do).. but only time will tell which twin got hit harder with the ugly stick!

And so far I’m not planning on having Paris and Juan have more kids together..so far the shack she’s living in is do-able for them all… I enclosed part of the back porch to make the twins a small room.  If they have more kids they’d have to move and I’d have to grow Paris a new garden and dig a new nectar cellar…

This ends episode two.

Another problem was I had some trouble connecting with Chance in a ‘hearing his voice in my head’ kinda way.  I love music, but I’m not musically gifted…and Chance is. So I apologize if this entry isn’t as good as the others.  I love the Mystics, truly I do.

I had gotten a popup that Nabilla was getting old and would soon pass on…so Chance and Tawanna took the time to visit his family in their new home..and show them that generation three was on its way.

I really don’t like that outfit Nabilla’s wearing..but at this point she’s beyond my control and she’s close to passing on at any rate, I guess she has earned the right to wear whatever the heck she wants.

I find the labor faces sims make to be hysterical.  Tawanna screams to Chance that its time and they make their way over to the hospital because no way in h-e-double chopsticks is she doing this without drugs! (LOL)

Here they are exiting the hospital… it was dusk of course, which explains why the picture is so dark.

A better shot of the new family. (If you ignore the walls-down)  The entryway to the house is kind of small… I don’t think this house will suit the needs of a growing family.  But I needed to wait until I was sure the family could afford a larger house.

Gratuitous bare chested daddy and baby shot!

I left Jett in the pillbug stage and directed Chance and Tawanna to start on baby #2.  I wanted the kids to be fairly close in age because of the whole scoring window…although a better strategy would have been having them hold off on having kids until later.  Maybe I’ll remember that for next time!  At any rate even with being exhausted parents of a young baby they had no problems with “trying” more.

I’m wracking my brain trying to figure out what the heck this thing is and where it came from.. (the bear figure that is).  I think Chance got it while fishing… and I think the game gave it the name “Abracadabra”. It doesn’t seem to move..so it can decorate the dryer.  LOL

When it comes time for Jett’s toddler birthday I had Chance invite his family over…and I was surprised as anything when Brandon was the one to bring her over to the cake!

Brandon:  You know how much I love my family.  I’m just glad I can celebrate this birthday with my granddaughter…

Yeah.. no idea who the guy behind Brandon is..that is NOT Risk or Dare.  (Tawanna is sporting her maternity wear for baby#2)

And here’s toddler Jett Mystic.  She’s an excitable and a genius.

Not long after Jett’s toddler transition, Tawanna goes into labor with their second child.

Despite having been through this before, Chance totally panics.

So much time is spent dithering that Tawanna ends up giving birth at home.   Welcome to the world Joplin Mystic!

Boy, I wish real life mothers regained their figure so soon after the baby was born!

(Oh, and I forgot to mention..it wasn’t long after this that Brandon passed on.  I regret not getting Chance and family to visiting him beforehand…but having his death occur “offscreen” did help me not be as sad to have my founder pass on.)

Here’s Joplin as a toddler.  She loves the outdoors and is artistic.

This lady (I didn’t write her name down) cracked me up when I saw her glitched up hair.  At this point I did not have custom content so this is pure EAxis phail.  Anyhow as it turns out she is the woman Risk Mystic is involved with!

Not long after Joplin’s toddler transition I have the family move to this place.  They could afford the house and it comes with an onsite pond which is perfect for having kids and teens skill up with fishing without having to worry about that pesky curfew.  Plus they needed a larger house with a third child on the way.  (What can I say… both Chance and Tawanna rolled a want for another child..and since I was already very tempted to have Joplin be my heiress, I knew I needed a younger sibling to fulfill the role of spare to the heir.   I wasn’t keen on the outside look of the house, but decided to follow Jen’s example and remodel the house.. that is within reason provided I don’t change the basic footprint.  Of course I’m a little unsure of my remodeling capabilities, but the only way to get better is to practice!

Actually, Jett did transition before the move..but when you’ve seen one set of toddler sparkles, you’ve seen them all. (lol)  Here she is as a child.

And when Tawanna goes into labor for the third (and final even if they both roll another want) time, Jett panics and screams for her father.

Jett:  Daddy!  Come quick!

She calms down as daddy Chance comes down to call the babysitter to watch Joplin while he takes mommy to the hospital.

Chance:  Go to school Jett… you’ll get to meet your new brother or sister when we get back from the hospital.

They go to the hospital.  Normally I might have omitted yet another hospital shot, except for the fact they went on that big old black bus… I think because it was Chance’s carpool ride?(scratches head trying to remember)… Let’s just go with that as the reason I put that shot in. (lol)

It was another girl… that I named Tina (for Tina Turner).  My notes stink, so I don’t remember what traits I rolled or gave her.  I can’t help but thinking Tawanna looks a little manic here.  Perhaps back to back kids have driven her to the edge.

Tawanna:  I’ll never achieve my lifetime wish if I can’t go to work, you doof!  And you call yourself a simmer.

Yeah.. her lifetime wish was to be a master Thief.. I’m thinking of changing it.. career related wishes don’t do as well when you have that enforced maternity leave.

Chance, on the other hand is rocking (haha) up the career path.  At this point he was either a backup singer or lead guitarist.. I forget which.  Now isn’t that the type of badass look you’d expect from an up and coming rock star?

The kids continued to grow.  Joplin transitioned from toddler to child.

The outfit did get changed.. eww!  But she is a cutie.

And Tina from pillbug to toddler.

Poor third child.. destined to be a spare and with a simmer who takes few pictures and poor (if any) notes.

Then it was time for the older girls to do transitions to teen.  I was thinking that I wanted whomever was going to be heiress (and I was still leaning more towards Joplin) to go for the cooking related LTW… but to give myself an easy out I gave Jett the trait “Natural Cook” too (was planning to give it to Joplin) in case I changed my mind.

Here’s Jett’s natural transition look.

And her madeover look (still pre-CC)  I think she looks good, but am not superly overfond of those thin eyebrows.  Superficial of me, but there ya go.

I sent Jett to town to scout start socializing.. maybe even do some mate-scouting for her and her sisters.  And if you’re wondering.. yes that is Dare and Risk right behind her…

Jett:  Jeez, overprotective much?

They’re your uncles, dear.  And entitled.

Then it was Joplin’s turn to transition.

OMG, my eyes!  Not only is the outfit horrible, but the lack of hair is just disturbing!

That’s better.  (And yes, the inside of the house needs a makeover too..its done in that 70s orange that I supposed used to be considered attractive.)

The sisters enjoy talking about cooking and taking turns cooking for their family.

Chance seems to enjoy having good meals to come home to.  Hey Chance you don’t have to wear your sunglasses inside the house.

Chance:  With this decor, I do.   And Rolling Stone wonders why I won’t have them in to the house for an interview…

Sheesh!  Everyone’s a critic… I’ll makeover the house the next chance I get!

Then, finally thanks to Legacyland’s own Captain of the Minionettes, yours truly got the step by step, for dummies instruction on how to install Custom Content. (CC).  Thanks Captain!  I had fun downloading some a few hairs which I had to test out if only just because.

Jett:  I look lika boy.

Nah.. I think that short, sassy haircut looks great on you.  It takes a confident woman to rock a short ‘do like that.  But if you don’t like it, I’ll change it back.

Jett:  Yes, please.

Joplin looks lovely in this braid.  She’s definitely keeping it.

Joplin:  Awesome!  But I think you like me best ’cause I’m a redhead.

Well, I am fond of redheads.

Joplin: Because you are one?

Because I married one.   And then had a blonde haired child and adopted a girl with gorgeous black hair.. just goes to show real life genetics can be almost as weird as sim genetics.. or is that vice-versa?

I’ll end this update with Tina’s toddler-to-child transition.

Those guys in the background are some of her sisters friends.  The two older girls are always either bringing someone home or going over to someone else’s house after school.

Tina:  Even at my own transition, you still talk about my sisters more.

Sorry Tina.

Tina:  S’okay.  I’m a spare.  I guess I’m lucky to get any face time at all.   Besides, you’ll have to make it up to me when you’re trying to get me to achieve my LTW (Whatever that ends up being) before Joplin moves out.

True enough, that.   (This pretty much catches me up to current gameplay)

A little bit of background first… we currently have two PC’s in the house.  The Mystic family is on one..and previously my son preferred to use the other computer, allowing me to sim in peace.  Lately, however, he’s been using the PC the Mystics are on…so there are large chunks of time when I can’t get to play on that PC.  But the other one is free.  At some point I may try and copy my save games on a flash drive to transfer from one PC to the other, but for now I’ve just got to go with the flow.

So I decided to start another wishful living family on the “other” PC.  But as I said earlier, this one is going to have a twist.

The scene opens at Twinbrook.  Specifically a ramshackle building on the edge of a murky swamp.  A small figure can be made out just in front of the shack.

The camera pans in closer.

Paris:  All right, what gives?  The Simple Life ended ages ago, and no way in hell is this what I had in mind for my new show.. my new BFF.”

Oh, simple, Paris.  This is the reality show to end all realities… and if you’re lucky you’ll fulfill all your dreams and make a lot of friends!

Paris:  Really?  In this dump?  You have got to be kidding me.

(pulls the mike back so Paris can not overhear).  Yup, a Wishful Living family with Paris Hilton as our foundress.  The twist I mentioned earlier?  Something about Mizz Hilton annoys the crap outta me, so while I will fulfill her lifetime wish, I’m gonna hook her up to the fugliest sim I can find and mutate her descendants! {insert maniacal laughter}

A little background on Paris herself:  she’s a young adult and her traits are: ambitious, flirty, neurotic, snob, party animal.  The version I am using in game came from Mod the Sims.  (The traits that came with the download were the same except one.. they had her as lucky, and I thought ambitious suited her better.)  Of all the lifetime wishes I had to choose from while in CAS, I thought Bottomless Nectar Cellar suited her the best. (The goal of that wish is to h ave at least 50 bottles in your nectar cellar totaling $50,000 Simoleons in value.)  And once she gets to having kids, she might need that booze to look at them.  (giggles)

The camera pans back to Paris who is still looking at her new “home” with her lips curled in disgust.    Well Paris, before we talk more about the show, why don’t you explore the town a bit and start that friend making?

Paris:  I wanna go to France! (whines)

In a bit, m’dear.  In a bit.  Our producers are arranging your ticket now.  But in the meantime why not explore Twinbrook more, maybe take a class in charisma?

Paris:  I don’t need charisma.. I am Paris Hilton!

Just go to town.

Paris: (huffs) Well, all right.  Fine!

So Paris goes to town and takes a charisma class, because no matter what your lifetime wish, a little schmoozing and socializing never hurts.   I was on the lookout for a specific sim, but since we didn’t see him, I sent Paris to France.  (Now doesn’t that sound funny?!)

Paris:  This is more like it!  France.. home of nectar making and all the finer things.

So before I have Paris take an adventure she goes to buy the three nectar making books.   Then off to the nectary to harvest some grapes (Renoit and Cherimola Blan)..THEN she heads off on her adventure.

Paris:  This SUKS! I got my books and nectar maker, I wanna go home!  Why do I have to do this?

Because you got the two common varieties of grape, Paris.  You want the more uncommon and rare ones you have to do adventures to build up your visa level.  And Edith wants her baseball..so move it!

Paris:  Ack!  Bugs!  Call in my stunt double!

This is reality, Paris.. deal with it.

Eventually she does find the treasure baseball…and its late into her second day of her three day stay.  She has enough time to do one more mission, which is to convince three locals to use the store..which she does.  Then she heads “home” to her shack.

Like I said before, I had a special sim in mind for Paris’ partner/spouse.  I had thought he was a stylist, but as it turns out I guess his profession can vary from game to game.

I apologize for the small image.. it must have gotten resized in the upload.  But yeah.. Juan Dryer.  Its hard to see in this picture, but dear Juan has lots to recommend himself on the ugly front… a jutting chin, a huge nose and a unibrow.  Ah, think of the spawnlings!

Juan endears himself to me by immediately getting with the program.

Juan:  oooh yeah baby, get a load of those!  I wonder if they’re real…

Earlier in gameplay, Paris had gotten enough happiness points to purchase a reward..and I purchased “observant”.  Personally I don’t think she’s all that up there, but observant helps with learning traits..and if you build the charisma skill high enough it makes life so much easier with starting bonuses to friendships, etc.  Paris invites Juan in and in talking to him learns three of his traits:  insane, neurotic and (blanking on the third).  But since they both share the neurotic trait, they hit it off.

and then some!

Paris:  I think I just threw up in my mouth.  Ewww!

One thing leads to another.  Paris doesn’t realize I hit “try for baby”, but alas..no chimes were heard.

Paris:  Juan, we’ve only known each other for a little while…. but I’d like you to make an honest woman of me.  (mutters) Plus something is making me do this!  Note to self: call the lawyers for an ironclad prenup!

Juan:  Hey baby.. I’m insane but not nuts!   And unlike you, I’m not that easy!

Yup.. Juan shot her down.

Will Paris convince Juan to make a semihonest woman out of her?  Will there be sims the likes of which God has never seen?

Stay tuned!

Camera fades to black… [End Episode 1]

For some reason I had the idea in my head that being declared grandmaster in martial arts meant getting to rank 10 (from 1)  but at rank 5 the game declared him a grandmaster and the wish was achieved!

Dare: You’ve been pwned by a teen… better run now.  (LOL)

It was hard to supervise all of the ranked matches Dare needed and send Chance on adventures..but I did do a few of gather this, fish that… he got to Visa level 1 before they went home.

Okay, so the spare to the heir has his LTW, the founder achieved his before having kids… all that was left was to see if Nabila could achieve her LTW before Chance was 3 days into young adulthood and the scoring window closed.  Her wish was to top athletic (or to be a superstar? I can’t remember the exact wording.)  At any rate I thought that meant level 10 of the career.  And she was only at career level 7 with a few days to go before Chance turned in to a YA.

I steeled myself for disappointment as we neared a spate of birthdays.  First up was Risk Mystic… from child to teen.

I can’t remember what I changed his outfit too, but even though he wants to be an illustrious author, that look was just too doofish for me.

He won’t count for scoring, but I wanted to see how close I could get him… for that lifetime wish he needed at 10 in painting and 10 in writing…and he had gotten the painting and was at 9 for writing by the time the scoring window closed. 

Next birthday up was Brandon.  It was hard for me to see him transition to elder, but I think he wanted to… so he and Nabila would match.

He transitioned outside in the dark playing at the sprinklers, which is why he was wearing his swim trunks.  I sent him to the mirror so I could get a closeup and assess the damage.  Not terrible for an elder, looks-wise..so he kept his haircut.

Sometime in there I started to focus more on Chance. 

About time too, you have more pictures of my brother the spare than you do me!

Hush, you.  You didn’t spin up the lifetime wish I wanted for you until after the China trip.  But finally he did… lifetime wish to be a Rock Star!  Woot!  He wanted to play the guitar for tips..and knowing that skill was going to be crucial to his lifetime wish, I sent him to the theater to play.

As you can see, he gathered quite a crowd.

Its hard to see, but the chick on the left towards the back in the white top?  That’s Kaylynn Langerak.  she’s a YA.. and one of her traits was unlucky… so I was frowning on her as a future spouse.

At any rate, Chance played for a few hours (I had to keep that dratted curfew in mind for a few more days…grr!) and raked in over 800 simoleans in tips.  Nice!

Then it was the twins teen to YA transition.

I missed Chance’s sparkles.  Doesn’t he look like a blonde version of his father?  I didn’t like the outfit, so that was quick to go.

\

Here’s a better picture of him.  I should go back later and recolor the outfit to spiceberry (his favorite color)… but for now this works.

Not only was this picture outside, I think I took it at a weird angle…

Dare:  How do I look?

OMG, my eyes!  I liked Steve Irwin, but that look is soooo not you, Dare!

Not long after the twins transition, Brandon wanted to retire.

He’d done everything I’d asked of him and then some, so I let him.  Nabila and Chance threw confetti to celebrate.  Cute.

So now with our heir transitioned to young adult, I had three days for Nabila to achieve her wish..or forfeit her point.  And darn it…she was so close.  Then on the very last day before Chance was to move out… she did it!

Doesn’t she look thrilled, folks?

Nabila:  Hor-freaking-yay!

I apologize for the dark picture, but athletic career hours run until 9 or 10pm.

Take the glasses off of Dare and he looks a LOT like his father… except a bit more muscular, I think.  Brandon tended to want to go jogging more than anything..whereas Dare pumped a lot of iron in addition to all the martial arts stuff.   I was experimenting with him doing photography and figured I could use him to scout out girls for himself and his brother.  (I forgot this ones name, she would have been a match for Dare, but she was married.)

Anyway, while he was at the park, a dude died!  Apparently the chick who’s name I can’t remember is either a coward or has one of the new traits dramatic.

Dare:  Cut her some slack, it is traumatic to see someone die in front of you.

True, that.  but that didn’t stop you from getting a picture of it, hmm?  (Now watch, when I have someone with a photography related LTW I will NOT be able to catch a picture like that!)

Dare also took some time to catch up with Chance who was again playing for tips in front of the theater.  The dude in white with his back to us is Michael Bachelor..and the chick in the middle is Bella. And when Dare asked her if she was single  he found out she is in a relationship with Mortimer Goth!  (cheers!)  So sometimes EA’s story progression does get it right.

I think this woman’s name is Sandi French.  She’s a stylist at the new styling/tattoo salon.  One of her traits is “Cant Stand Art” and since Chance is artistic, they obviously didn’t hit it off.   (But when I moved Chance out of the Mystic household, Dare shows up as in a relationship with her.. or at least I think that’s her!)

Chance wanted a tattoo, but was a wuss when it came to getting it.  The tattoo artist laughed at him.  But Chance still thanked him afterwards.

This is Tawanna Hillman, the Mystic’s maid.  I think she’s rather cute..and a closeup of her face didnt’ reveal any lines..so I think she’s YA.  When Chance talked to her he found out she was: Charismatic, Eccentric and Kleptomaniac.    I thought that was kind of cool and wondered if she would have a wish to do with inventing…so she was definitely a contender for spouse!

Here’s another shot of her.  I think she’s cute and she seemed to hit it off well with Chance.  (That’s one thing I miss about TS2, the whole attraction guage..although I suppose trait compatibility is sort of comparable.)

Here they are talking at Chance’s new bachelor pad.  Its kind of small, so I can see moving him out soon.  Doesn’t she clean up nice?  I decided to have them interact enough for her to move in… figuring if she was too old I’d just kick her out.

Despite how this looks they only slept together (as friends) and not had woohoo.  Tawanna Hillman:  Brave, Neat, Eccentric, Charismatic and Kelptomaniac.  Her lifetime wish on move in was:  Possession is 9 tenths of the Law. (to posess 50K in stolen goods)..

I decided to change her lifetime wish.  I didnt’ feel ready for the possession one, and to be honest was hoping her eccentric trait would cause her to spin up an inventing-related lifetime wish.  And while I waited for that, I thought I’d send her to the scrapyard to gather stuff.

She had a wish to make out with Chance and he had a wish to serenade her, so I had them meet up in the park.    Here he is serenading her.

And the makeout.

They are cute together… a totally romantic moment.

So it should come as no surprise (except maybe to Tawanna) when Chance drops to one knee and proposes then and there.

She accepts and he puts on the ring.

When they get back to the house, Tawanna receives a phone call from her future mother-in-law.   The two chat for awhile.  To me it looks like Nabila is grilling Twalla or maybe relating some sort of long drawn-out story.. lol

I decided to have Chance throw a wedding party at the park where he proposed to her.  The wedding was to take place on his day off (I hadn’t had her get a career at this point.  She almost had enough happiness points to change her lifetime wish.)

If I had been smart, though, I would have planned her formal outfit ahead of time.  I didn’t even think of it because her everyday clothes looked so nice.  And I guess this pants-suit looks okay, but I would have liked to have done her up in a long, flowing gown.   Ah well.. not like Chance duded himself up either.

First kiss as man and wife.

Then to be a bit more unconventional, the groom gets out his guitar and provides the reception music himself.  Tawanna goes to talk to her father-in-law since she can’t dance with her husband.

A good time is had by all.  Tawanna and Brandon are dancing and behind them and to the right is Nabila and Dare talking.  And there are some invited guests and townie party-extras.  (Don’t want to call them party crashers, since the wedding was in a public park..and I know if I happened to visit a park and a party was going on, I’d look.. might not partake of the food, but I would look!)

And of course after the wedding comes the wedding night…  I could have taken the two lovebirds to one of the travel destinations, but to be honest I was a bit traveled out at this point.  Maybe later.

Houston, we have next gen!  (or signs next generation is on the way.)  In retrospect, I should have waited to have them start on their kids since both have career related lifetime wishes — Twalla never got an inventing one, the one I picked for her was master thief.   But oh well… I have to admit to being curious as to what these two will produce — especially since EA claims the last patch will blend the genetics better.

Tawanna tells Chance the good news.

He looks wonderstruck by impending fatherhood.   Again, this catches me up to current game play.    Chance and his siblings were given names related to Brandon’s defining trait — adventerous.  (I guess I could have also used travel related names since that was his wish)…

I think for this next generation I’ll use names of famous rock stars… so any suggestions would be welcome!

The great thing about having a founder with Level 3 visas and “prepared traveler” perk is that you can spent like 15 days (or is it 18?) in a location.  Once Risk was a child (and old enough to come along), I sent the family to Egypt.

But before we look at some of the pictures from Egypt, here is the family vacation home in China.  I liked how it turned out, except I screwed up the basement– added it in after the house and thought I had put the stairs in right to be accessed from inside the house, but it didn’t work.  I’ll probably either redo the whole house at some point or just make the basement be an outside access. (shrugs)

Just before the family left for Egypt Brandon became a full adult and Nabila turned elder.  (She is 10 sim days older than he is… I wonder how that translates to in real life ages?…)

Here’s Brandon in his “sports superstar” suit.  (Yeah, he has the same job that I gave Nabila, but its her lifetime wish to get to where her husband is career-wise.)   Originally her lifetime wish was “Golden tongue, golden fingers” (maxing charisma and guitar skills) but I am going to save that for a spare, I think.

Here is Nabila as an elder… ooh, this outfit is SO not her!  I used the dresser to get her back to her previous everyday clothing choice.

Now before the family left I had the kids skilling some.  Dare read the beginning martial arts book and that took him to level 3 easy-peasy.  (He probably skilled fast that way due to the fact one of his traits is “disciplined”.)  Then I discovered another way to raise his skill quickly.

Sparring with Dad.

Brandon:  Prepare to have your ass whupped, son.

Dare:  Look Dad, you still aren’t mad about me being out after curfew, are you?  It was just that one night..and I was at the gym, honest!

(hehehe – Dare did get caught out after curfew, ’cause I’d never had a teen in TS3..or rather I’d never had one out late.. when IS curfew for teens anyway?)

There will be more sparring pictures later, and I may have them out of order in terms of belts, etc.  I should have took notes as to what belt gets earned at what skill rank.

But back to the Egypt vacation home.  I neglected to take far away shots of it to begin with.. which is just as well since I’m not 100% happy with the layout (especially the downstairs bathroom!)

Here’s a picture of Sultan Sam and a friend gnome that Chance fished up.  Unfortunately later Sam disappeared and I can’t find him on the lot anywhere! (bah!)

In the Egypt house I did a similar layout to the Chinese one, but with a flat roof… the patio is for martial arts equipment (but later I did put 2 easels on and a chess set for little Risk.)  There is a bathroom right off the patio so stinky martial artists don’t have too far to go to get clean.

This shot I included because for some reason Dare spun into glasses with his martial arts gear.  Maybe he thought it would help him land his blows better?  Or maybe he was hoping Dad wouldn’t hit a guy in glasses (lol!).  That said I think it did something for his face — made him look a little less doofy… I dunno.

Don’t you just love the background scenery in the game?   Brandon bought a plot of land right along the Nile.  I was trying for a vacation house in each location that was sorta central to make it easier to visit various locales.

More sparring.  I had them spar two or three times a day and it REALLY raised Dare’s levels up fast… from like 3 to 7 in no time at all.  After that, he would autonomously use the dummy trainer or the board breaker.

In my head as they were sparring they were trash-talking each other.

Dare:  You’re going down, old man!  (Cause of course anyone older than a teen is old.)

Brandon:  I brought you into this world, and I can take you out…

and somewhere along the line Brandon also quipped to Dare, “Old age and treachary will overcome youth and skill… and I’m still more skilled than you are, punk!”

And while they were doing this I had Nabila reading a Nectar-making book Brandon had bought (I had him buy copies of the various skill books to leave at each vacation house)   And she worked in the garden.

Risk spent much of his time glued to the computer refining his writing ..or at the easel painting… with an occasional side trip to town with mom or dad when he got the stir-crazy moodlet.

Risk’s first book was a nonfiction titled Ruh Roh Raggy:  Mummy Snacks and Other Fun Facts about Egypt.  (Title I made up and cracked myself up with… hehehe)

His second book was a children’s one called:  The Potty Cried (game generated title)

Both did well.  (His lifetime wish is to be an illustrated author.. and he’s at level 8 for painting I think..and 8 or 9 for writing.)  I know you can only have one designated spare..but i wanted to see how hard it would be…

Chance spent his time adventuring.. most of those “gather X amount of THIS” but he did go into one tomb — the servants quarters at Hatshepsut’s…  This pic (sorry its so dark) is him getting his level 3 visa for Egypt.   It was level 3 even though the game showed it as level 2… yay EA glitches!

I figure since he’s my heir (with no lifetime wish locked in yet).. I ought to get him a good visa for each destination so he can one day take his own heirs on skilling vacations.

Here is Dare getting his level 10 rank/belt in Martial arts.  Now all he has to do is to become a grand master in the tournaments to achieve his lifetime wish.

Dare:  I am fluid like the water.

Dare:  I gotta spar an old woman?

You gotta work your way up, kid…

*I took Dare and Chance to China on their own…not sure how long it would take Dare to work his way up the ranks… I think at day 3 of their 6 day stay (visa level 0, +3 days for prepared traveler for Chance)… Dare is at rank 4 or 5.

And that catches me up to current game play.

His first stop upon arrival was at the Moussa household.  His heart pounding in nervous anticipation, he rang the bell.

A young man  opened the door and stepped out to greet him.  Brandon felt his heart sink.  The man looked to be about his own age.  When they had last spoke, Nabila had told him she was single… perhaps this had changed between that time and this.

“Uh-” Brandon wasn’t quite sure how to begin.  “Are you the man of the household?”

“I am.  My name is Ameen… Ameen Moussa.  And you are?”

Brandon let out the breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding.   Nabila had said she was unmarried…for Ameen to share her last name meant he was family… Brandon guessed he was her brother.

“I’m Brandon… Brandon Mystic.  I-  on my last trip here to Al-Simhara I met … a woman of the house.”

Ameen smiled broadly.  “Please, come in.”  He gestured Brandon inside the house.

“So rare for an ajnabi to display such discretion.  Tell me, do you speak of my grandmother… or mother?”

(AN:  I used an online dictionary to find a phonetic spelling of what it said was the arabic word for foreigner.”)

Brandon paled.  “M-mother.. I’m afraid.. there must be some mistake.”

“Well,”  Ameen said calmly.  “If a mistake was made, perhaps it was your own.   This household consists of my grandmother Uuma, my younger brother Aziz, myself, and my mother.. Nabila.”

Brandon  looked at Ameen in stunned silence.  He really didn’t know what to say.   His first thought was an irreverent “Dude, your mom is totally hot!” but that would hardly be politic.  Finally he spoke.  “I thought you were her brother.”  he said truthfully.  “And as the man of the house… I was… going to ask your permission to.. court her.”

Brandon was relieved when Ameen didn’t laugh in his face – or look disgusted that this stranger wanted to court someone who was old enough to be his own mother.  Instead he nodded.  “As is proper.  But are you certain this is something my mother would wish?”

“I don’t know.”  In the face of this question Brandon had to wonder.   Maybe he had mistaken Nabila’s words for something more when she was merely being friendly?  “But I intend to find out.   But if she does… as head of household…”  he let his voice trail off.

“My mother is her own sim, regardless of what culture would dictate.  But if you need it, you have my permission.”

Brandon couldn’t stop the grin from spreading across his face.  “I.. uh.. that’s great.  Really.”  His glance flicked towards the door.  “But you’re right.. I.. might have made a mistake.  I should..”

“You should go talk to her.”  Ameen said.  He grinned at the retreating figure.  There was a small part of him that was a bit squicked that someone his own age would want his mother in a… sexual fashion… but at the same time he’d warmed up quickly to this young man.. his new friend.  In any case, the man had probably been mistaken… and if not, well… as he had said, his mother was her own sim.

(AN:  Brandon has done 2 of the Charisma skill challenges… he leaps to friend status very quickly with those he chats with!)

* * *

Brandon all but ran to the souq.  He had to see Nabila… talk to her.  She looked to be his age… and yet..so did her son..   Her eldest son, he thought, remembering that Ameen had mentioned a younger brother.    At last he reached the food stall..and there she stood behind the register, just as he had seen her on his last visit.  He watched as she waited on a few customers.   Eventually those left and he was alone with her… for how long was anyone’s guess.

“Nabila” he called out, pleased to see her face light up in a smile.

“Brandon… how wonderful to see you.  What brings you back to our land?”

“I came back to do some work for those who resist the company.”  He answered.

“And.. to see you.  I..I wanted to know if you could…” he started to trail off, shyly, but faint heart never won the lady fair.  “I wanted to know if you could.. love… someone like me.”

“Oh Brandon..”  she sighed.  “I could.. I really could..but..”

“You just want to be friends?”  he said dully, feeling like the world’s biggest idiot for mistaking friendliness for something more.  His cheeks burned with embarrasment.

“Oh Brandon..  You flatter me.. But you must know… I have a son.. two actually..and one is your age.”

“I know that.”  he told her, “I met him when.. when I asked his permission to court you.”  He paused then blurted, “I thought he was your brother!”

Nabila smiled.  “How very kind of you to say that.  And while you do not ask, I will tell you.. my having a child as old as Ameen was something dictated by the code of EAxis.. neither he or Aziz have a father..but this does not stop other men from thinking I am a woman of easy virtue.”

“I don’t think that!  I wouldn’t!”  he protested.

“Nevertheless.. I am older than you.  It would not be fair to you.”  she said firmly.   Several tourists entered the souq exclaiming over the wonderful smells of Nabila’s cooking.  “You should go.”

There wasn’t much he could say without causing a big scene…and he didn’t want that.

Brandon left and reported to (name).  She sent him after the relic of eternity.  “You must reach it before the Sukurom* thugs do, Brandon.  It belongs to the people of Al-Simhara, not Sukurom.”

*AN: not the real name of the corporation, obviously, just my little jab at Securom.  (hehehee)

Fine.. easy-peasy.  He thought.  Gaining entrance to the Great Pyramid wasn’t that hard.  But the passing of the ages had dulled the mechanism on some of the secret doors, requiring him to shove with all his might against them.  He’d also already found and disabled quite a few traps..and he didn’t expect that was all he’d have to face before he managed to find the relic he sought.

Some areas of the pyramid even required him to swim in deep pools (which were thankfully clear of traps or crocodiles — he wouldn’t have put something like that past the ancients who built this place!)

He gaped when he came across what looked like an inner oasis.  How did the plants grow without sunlight?  Or those lamps stay lit?  Maybe the lamps were magic, he thought.  The statues anchored firmly to the foundation, otherwise he would be tempted to remove one to take home and examine.

But the dangers and wonders of the pyramid couldn’t distract him completely from his exchange with Nabila.  He felt such a connection with her – one he thought could be love…but the age difference wouldn’t be fair to him she had said.  Shouldn’t he be the one to decide that?

He decided that he would change her mind somehow.  In the meantime, he had a pyramid to explore and an artifact to find.

He found quite a bit of interesting items, such as “Sultan Sam” – the Egyptian counterpart to a Simmerican magic gnome.  He hadn’t gotten a magic gnome at home yet, but he was delighted with Sam.

“You’ll have a place of honor once I get a home here.”  he remarked aloud to the gnome.

The sarcophagi he approached with greater caution.  Many were empty (or their mummified contents were immoble)… a few had treasures within them.  He searched them all because for all he knew the next one would have the relic he sought.

It’s got to be in here, he thought as he searched the chest edged in gold.  Or maybe in that sarcophagus behind it. He hadn’t gotten much further than opening the chest when he heard the low grinding of stone on stone.  The sarcophagus had opened and an obese mummy was shuffling towards him.  This one seemed more aware than the one he’d encountered in the Temple of Burning sands.  Its eyes glowed with malevolent fury.

He retreated to the next room back but the mummy was not baffled by the stone fence maze.  “You have desecrated the waters of the Temple of Life!” it rasped.

Aw, Rubbish! Brandon thought.   He fought the creature but felt the musty stench of its breath upon him.  The creature must have felt its honor (and that of the temple) was satisfied for it shambled back to its sarcophagus and closed the lid behind it.

Brandon felt cursed but decided later he must not have been becaue he felt better after a bout of deep meditation.*

(AN:  He got the cursed moodlet and I was like “Oh crap!” but it did disappear after he meditated..was that a glitch that worked in my favor or does meditation honestly remove the mummy’s curse?)

He wasn’t sure how long he had stayed in the Great Pyramid, but eventually he did locate the relic of Eternity and turned it  in.  He was rewarded with enough visa points to reach level three.

Aw crap, there she is,  he thought  turning his face from the dour special merchant.  But he felt no wave of dizziness… perhaps her mojo only worked on those lower than visa level three?

He had enough time remaining in his vacation to purchase a vacation lot and…more importantly… track down Nabila.  It took some time* but eventually he convinced her to visit him in Simmerica.

*AN:  I didn’t stage that converstaion.. in actuality they were good friends already and I just had him call her up.    It was then that I discovered just how perfect they were for each other.. they shared a favorite color (grey) AND…

*AN:  Both are athletic!  How cool is that?

“We have so much in common.”  Brandon said.  “I’m willing to take a chance on us…are you?  Or will you let something like a little difference in age drive us apart?”  Brandon used every ounce of charisma skill he had..and in the end he did get his way.  Nabila consented to be Mrs Mystic.  The two married in a quiet ceremony at Brandon’s house.  Ameen and Aziz elected to remain in Egypt with grandmother Uuma.

“I believe Ameen would like to make his brother his heir.”  Nabila said.  “He has a fear of commitment and will not willingly get married.  And I am sure they feel it is their duty to care for Uuma now that we have married.”

Brandon hoped it was true.  He’d hate to think they stayed away because they disliked him… he thought the three of them were rather good friends.  (AN: Brandon did make friends with both Ameen and Aziz!) But before too long he was too distracted to give the two more than an occasional thought.

He was going to be a father!  Forget tomb raiding, he thought, staring in wonder at the swell of his wife’s belly.  This has got to be the greatest adventure of all!

Since Nabila was naturally athletic, she exercised all during the pregnancy.  In fact she went into labor during one of her walks around Sunset Valley.  (AN:  Okay, so it was supposed to be a “jog” but she really looked like she was just walking!  lol) A good samaratin flagged down a taxi for her and Brandon met up with her at the hospital.

She was so glad to have her husband there..not just for moral support, but to help carry home the babies… twin sons!  They named the eldest Dare and the younger one Chance.

Time seemed to fly and soon it was time for the twin’s toddler birthdays.

Here is Chance Mystic.   He is a very excitable little guy.   He also enjoys scribbling… very artistic for someone his age, really! (AN:  Not sure where the blond hair comes from!  Maybe grandma Moussa? LOL)

This is Dare Mystic.  He seems to know less fear than even your average toddler (brave) and quite focused and intent on whatever has his intrest. (disciplined)

“I can not imagine trying to teach the two of them on my own!”  Nabila said as she and Brandon tag-team taught Dare and Chance.

“I know.”  Brandon said feelingly.  “If we didn’t have each other for support we’d be outnumbered!”

And they were able to teach both boys all three toddler skills before they aged to children.   Now that the boys were old enough to travel, Brandon arranged a trip to Shang Simla.  The vacation house still needed some work…and the time away would allow both the twins and Nabilla to work on skills while Brandon pursued the quest to end the curse of the Dragon cave forever.

(AN: at least I think that’s the quest he was working on!)

Here is Dare Mystic as a child.  He is brave and disciplined and athletic like both of his parents.

Chance Mystic.  He is excitable , artistic and a virtuoso!

Author’s notes below:  This entry is mostly written in narrative style but I kinda went back to commentary towards the end.  I may bounce back and forth between the two for awhile… (sorry!)

Neither boy has a lifetime wish  locked in yet.  Originally I intended Dare to be the spare and pursue a martial arts related lifetime wish… and for Chance to be the heir and pursue Rockstar.  But with the release of Ambitions (which I has — woot!) I’m not sure if I should stick with that plan or not.

I wish kids could work on more skills beyond fishing and painting.. they can’t read the beginning martial arts book…but Dare did something that surprised me:

He went to the bookshelf in the vacation home and pulled out the Baby Incoming book..and was reading it!  (He was also giggling.. makes me wonder if its got some graphic illustrations or something! LOL)   So kids can’t learn martial arts but they can learn where babies come from EA?!?

This entry catches me up to current game play with the family.

Like now, for instance.  Here he was in Egypt.  In Egypt!  He was finally here in Al Simhara.   He might be an experienced adventurer in China and France*, but somehow this place seemed so very different.

*Author’s Note (AN) – Visa level 3 in China, Visa level 3 in France!

The landscape was different.   There wasn’t as many plants overall as there were in Shang Simla, or Champs Les Sims, or even home, but there was a certain stark beauty to the land.   The sand sparkled in the blazing sun and heat rose in waves from the ground.

“Let’s see what kind of chaos we can get into, shall we?”  he murmured to himself.

With no one else to talk to , he sometimes used the word “we” when talking to himself, even though he wasn’t afflicted with the insane trait….though he wouldn’t blame anyone that overheard him if they thought that.

He ran his finger along the notices, and let it randomly stop on one.  A company was seeking adventurers.  Interested parties could seek out Tahiya Wasen.  Brandon’s eyebrows raised speculatively.    Al Simharan culture was  more conservative than his own.   He was more than a little surprised to see a woman’s name listed.   In his mind’s eye he pictured an older woman, a widow perhaps…  From the marketplace he was able to get directions to Wasen household.  He knocked on the door and blinked in surprise at the young woman who answered.

“Yes?”

“I’m looking for Tahiya Wasen.”

“I am she.” came the reply.

For a minute Brandon was unable to form a coherent thought.  Tahiya was nothing like he had pictured, that was for sure!  “I’m..er.. here about the job.  On the notice board.”

“Ah.. yes.”  she said.  “I want you to contact Raffi Barakat, our local field rep, do whatever he tells you to do.  When you are finished, return to me, please.”  She named the reward he would receive in simoleans, as well as a promise for visa points which would enable him to stay in the country longer on his next trip.

Local field rep? Brandon thought.  I thought that’s what you were. But he didn’t say anything.  He would get his reward either way, so why not?

Raffi  asked him to gather up four samples of Tanzanite for the company to pay the local tribesman with.  Again with this use of “local”.  Brandon thought it strange that so many of the people he had dealt with so far didn’t consider themselves local even though he would have taken them for such.  Maybe it was like some places back in Simmerica, where you had to have been someplace for generations..and if you weren’t, you were the “newcomer” regardless of how long you had lived there.

When he completed that contact he returned to Tahiya where he did receive his promised reward.  Then she sent him on a mission to speak to three local people about the company, to see what they thought really thought about it.

“You will have to gain a level of friendship with the villagers first,” she warned.  “Otherwise they will not speak their true feelings to you.”

Gaining the trust of people he met did take  a little time, but by this point in his adventuring career, Brandon had gained some skill in charisma…and he was observant enough to be able to quickly pick up on traits of those he met… making conversation and friendship building much easier.

He was walking through the market when he felt the weight of someone’s eyes upon him…. different from what he had felt in times past.   Looking around he saw a woman about his own age who looked down and blushed.

The blush was totally charming.  And since he still needed to talk to a third local, he went over to her.  “Hi.  I’m Brandon… Brandon Mystic.”

She wouldn’t quite meet his gaze so he could tell she was feeling either shy or embarrassed…possibly both.   “I know custom says you shouldn’t talk to me without being introduced…but I’ve only recently arrived in Al Simhara and don’t know anyone who could introduce us.”

He thought he saw a flicker of …something… at his acknowledgement of custom.  “My name is Nabila Moussa.”  she finally responded.

He smiled.  As they began to chat, he sensed she was a good person with a good sense of humor.   Her clothes were neatly pressed and despite the dust and heat of the day she was immaculate.   When he asked her about the company she met his gaze, her eyes blazing.  ”I hate them.  They are corrupt and need to be stopped.”  She looked like she was going to say more, but then thought better of it.  ”I must go.  I am late.  It was nice meeting you, Brandon Mystic.  Peace be upon you.”

“And you.”  Brandon responded.  He made his way back to the Wasen house, deep in thought.

“Monsieur… Comment beau vous voir encore.”  A familiar voice called out.

Brandon stopped and turned.  It was Camille Boutillier, whom he had met on his trip to France.  ”Camille!”  he exclaimed.  ”Fancy meeting you here.”  Even as he said it, he wasn’t sure why he was so surprised.  When they had met in France, he knew Camille was interested in photography.. and that was one of the many things El Simhara was known for.

“Ah yes.”  she said, switching to English, “I am quite ‘appy to see you.  I am a damsel in distress, Monsieur Mystic… having so foolishly spent my last simolean on film for my camera…and now I find myself without funds for lunch.”   It was quite a blantant hint and while Brandon would never mooch himself, he would also never let a sim starve if he could help out.  He gave her some simoleans, more than enough for her lunch and walked alongside her, the two of them chatting amicably.  They parted ways just as they entered the souq.   Brandon spotted the special merchant and made his way towards her, intending to see what goods she had for sale.

But when she got close he found himself overcome by a wave of dizziness and crumpled to the ground, passed out.*

(*AN:  They actually did chat..and something she said did cause him to pass out.  Not sure if she bored him to passing out or what!)

When he finally came to the special merchant was gone..and he was weirded out enough by the encounter that he didn’t feel like seeking her out again.  Instead, he made his way to the Wasen house where Tahiya rewarded him for his information..and said that she had another mission for him… This one was to retrieve five pieces of flamefruit from the Temple of the Burning Sands.

“I would advise you to make sure you have the essentials before you go… dried food, a tent..and of course, showers in a can.   The temple is rumored to be quite hot.”  Tahiya said.

The Temple of Burning Sands was immense.  Brandon felt insignificant beside it.   Still, by this point in his life he was an accomplished adventurer… more than up to its challenges.   Steeling his courage, he ventured inside.

It was very hot.  Even hotter than the desert sun at midday.  Part of it was from many torches inside.  He wondered what arcane sorcery made them continue to burn when they logically should have run out of fuel years ago.     It almost felt like the place was built on top of a volcano..but surely that was impossible, wasn’t it?  As far as he knew there were no volcanoes in Egypt.   He crept forward cautiously – carefully inspecting the ground and walls for secret doors or traps.

And trapped it was.  He found numerous traps which he either disabled himself – thank goodness he was handy! – or deactivated by pushing a statue onto them.  Eventually he found the flamefruit and  decided to explore a bit further before turning them in.

Then trouble hit… trouble in the form of overconfidence and cockiness.  He had spotted a hole in the far wall of a long hallway and made his way toward it.   In his haste he forgot to inspect the walls and floor.

“Aaaaahhhhh!”  he screamed as jets of flame spurted from the concealed trap and engulfed him, igniting his jeans.  ”WTFBBQ!!  My ass is on fire!!  Aaaaahhhh!”    The hallway he was in was a long one.. very far from the nearest divewell.  At first his panic caused him to flail ineffectively at the flames until he heard  Tahiya’s voice in his mind saying the words “shower in a can”.  He reached into his IPOC* — found a can and doused himself.

*AN:  IPOC = infinite pocket of crap.

He was much more cautious after that little misstep.  He disabled the trap and continued on… pausing only to eat some food and meditate for awhile… to clear his mind and regain his focus.

So focused was he that he didn’t even blink when an honest to goodness mummy came out of the sarcophagus and started towards him.  He continued to calmly examine the chest he had opened, confident he could easily evade the shambling wreck that shuffled towards him.

*AN.. he wanted to fight the mummy, but I wasn’t sure how.. and didn’t want to chance the outcome.  Still, the mummy didn’t attack him.. just shuffled back and forth.

Deciding he’d had enough of the Temple of Burning Sands, Brandon took his leave of the place and went back to Tahiya.  She sent him on another mission to locate some incriminating documents on the company she was secretly working against..and some mummitonium to fund the resistance effort.   When he returned from those missions she wanted him to infiltrate the company hideout.  He accepted the mission, but knew its execution would have to wait until his next trip to El Simhara.  His stay was almost up..his plane would be taking off soon for Simmerica.

He had enough time remaining before his flight to explore the souq one last time.  He kept a wary eye out for the special merchant as he walked along…eventually by mouth watering smells to a food stall — run by Nabila!

“And how are you finding my country?”  she asked him as she served him a plate of Falafel.

“Very…hot.  But filled with beauty.”  he answered truthfully.  ”I wish I didn’t have to leave.”

Nabila met his eyes at that.  ”I, too, wish you didn’t have to leave. Perhaps you will think me forward, but you have been in my thoughts often since we first met.”

I think I’ve met.. my destiny.  Brandon thought.  Hr had always thought love at first sight was something found only in songs and storybooks.  Now… he had to wonder……..

AN:  I was inspired to write this in a more narrative style rather than my previous commentary style.   Also, no offense is meant to Muslim culture…

I tried to show traits this way, skills this way, and lifetime happiness perks this way.. hope I can remember this for future entries!  LOL

And finally.. just because I can.   A linkie to the song that fit the title of this one in so many ways.

Well, before we talk about France, let’s take a moment to see Brandon having a bit of trouble in China.   He was doing the adventure in Dong Ho’s tomb, I think.  And as (bad) luck would have it, he got caught in between two or three sleep dart traps… literally stumbling from one into the other and then eventually getting stuck behind a stairwell.  Ouch!  That looks painful.

Brandon:  You’re telling me.   uuuuhhhhhh.  (Thud)

Well, at least he didn’t hear me giggling at him when he passed out.  In the end, I “cheated” (well, not really, but it felt like it).  I used escape dust to get out of the stuck spot…then had him zenport into the room where the treasure was and escape dust out of there and turn the spear/relic in.  (I wish I could have gotten the treasure the old-fashioned, solve-the-puzzle kind of way, but (shrugs))

Just before Brandon left China he got a phone call from someone that told him that in order to permanently remove the curse from the Dragon Cave, he had to talk to someone in France.

Brandon needed a level 3 visa there too in order to fulfill his lifetime wish, so it didn’t matter to me whether it was France or Egypt next.    Soo…. once the “I had an adventure and can’t travel again right away” moodlet wore off… to France he went.

The China quest had him talking to this lady – Manon (I forget her last name).  She gave Brandon a key to get into Chateau Landgraab…there is where he would find what he needed.

But before Brandon took his leave of her, I had him learn one of the French songs.   He really seems to be singing it with passion, doesn’t he?

Brandon:  Hmmm.. maybe taking that treasure off the pedestal wasn’t such a bright idea..

Not to worry though, putting any object back onto the pedastal deactivated the trap.  I just had him leave a low value mineral and kept the high priced statue!  (heehee)

Since Brandon was in France, I decided to start scouting around for potential spouses.  At first I thought this one looked a bit odd, but thought her face was interesting and we could always do a hair makeover later.  Unfortunately she was married and Brandon isn’t the type to break up a marriage.

I really liked the look of Leah, with her sleepy, sultry look.  But she was married too!  Drat!

So.. back to adventuring.  Smashing rubble:

Pushing statues.

Pulling statues….

Brandon:  Commentary…not… help(pant)ful.   Harder… than… it… looks. (pant, pant).

Eh.. don’t mind him.  He’s got 8 skillpoints in athletic ability by this point.  Part of them came from his job:  I put him in the athletic career track and one of the “tones” is to workout in the gym while at work.  (Yeah!)..and part of it was that sometimes I had him jog from one place to another (without breaking a sweat) — instead of riding the moped or bike.  That’s why some of the pictures have him in his shirtless athletic wear rather than his standard everyday wear — I had him jogging.

Brandon: (muttering): and you had fun ogling.

Do you hear me denying it?

By the end of day 5 (of his 6 day stay) he had a level 3 visa in France!  Score!!!

He’d also met two potential spouse candidates.  There was Camille (I forget her last name):

And Camille earned herself some brownie points by thinking about our boy as he ran off to turn another quest in.

Camille:  Il est très beau. (sigh)

And Berthe (I also forget her last name).  Berthe may look familiar.. in my “Chronicles of a Man-ho” (Slutty Don challenge) she was the one who gave Don Lothario handsome twin sons.

If I am going to have Brandon secure one of these ladies as his spouse, I ought to have him do it soon, before EA’s borked story progression elderfies them.  (I don’t have Twallan’s storyprogression downloaded yet – because the computer I am playing on has Vista and I’m not sure about my downloading skillz.)

Brandon:   France has so many lovely ladies.  I don’t know what I should do….

Nectar merchant:  I think, monsieur you should.. .how do you Simmericans say it?  Put a frelling shirt on.

Don’t mind him, Brandon, he wishes he looked that good.

So.. what do you think.

I’m attempting a challenge created by a friend of mine, the Wishful Living Challenge, and thought that perhaps I’d do better and stick with it more if I recreated that founder, Brandon Mystic.  And that perhaps I would also do better to try and write about it.

Brandon Mystic… His lifetime wish is to be a seasoned traveler (Level 3 Visa in all destinations).   To help him achieve this goal I gave him the following traits:  adventurous, athletic, friendly, handy, lucky.     I also gave him black hair like he had in TS2, but decided on violet eyes just to see how long it would last in the family.  Besides with a last name like Mystic I thought they deserved an unusual eye color.

No real reason for the next picture other than to show off his good looks.  Athletic and sleepwear is just pants only… when he’s a droopy elder he can put a shirt on.  (lol)

As I commented to my legacyland friends, Brandon did something I had never seen a sim do before which totally cracked me up the first time I saw it.  Heck, who am I kidding, I still giggle each time he does it.

He made “guns” with his arms and sang “Deh deh deh DEH!  Deh deh deh DEH!” (Really, you had to hear it..but it sounded like the “charge”)

A side view of the “guns”.. actually I’ve also seen him doing first one arm, then the other (both arms in the air) as he walks along… but haven’t managed to stop laughing in time to catch it as a screenshot.

He’s a fairly happy go lucky sim.  Autonomously singing in the shower or as he cooked food.  (Random songs before he learned the two songs in China.. now he’ll do those if he’s in an idle moment.)

Much of the time spent so far has been running around in China.  His first trip was the standard 3 day trip…and in that time he got visa level 1.  Before his second trip he had enough points to secure the reward of “prepared traveler” giving him +3 days at his destination.  Useful perk for this lifetime wish!

But the running around from quest to quest did get tiresome…

“I’ll say… man, if I have to run “X” to person “Y” one more time… when there is nothing wrong with their legs… I’m gonna let them have it with this wrench.”

(giggles at the “To the Moon Alice!  expression on Brandon’s face)

But at long last the quest we were both waiting for came up — Pangu’s Axe.   I really wanted this one before I sent him to other locations, so he could explore more easily.

“I have the POWER!!” (cue cheesy He-Man music)  Okay, so that joke has been done before, but I couldn’t resist.  Didn’t even try, really.

(giggles)   Personally, I like to call the axe by another name I heard it called “smashy thing“.

And that’s it so far.  At the end of last gameplay, Brandon had earned his level 3 visa with China and purchased an empty lot for a vacation home.    Nothing built on it yet – that may be for future heirs to do.  Brandon still needs money to finance his other trips.

Speaking of heirs… my plan is to scout out likely spouses on his trips… no rushing into marriage and family too soon.

But his coworker/boss Monika (I forget her last name) hasn’t heard that… or hopes that she’ll get picked given she has red hair like TS2 Brandon’s spouse Brandi LeTourneau (cheerleader, not the infamous ice-queen townie).

At any rate she looks like she’s thinking “Mmmm hmmm… I’d like me a bite of that!”