Miss Me Yet?

 I know, I know it's been two months with no updates.  Zero. Zip. Nada.  And I one billion percent hold EA personally responsible.  I have come to believe that there is absolutely an annual vendetta there.  Before you start shaking your head and calling the loony bin about conspiracy theories let me explain.

Every year.  Every August to be exact.  Every year there is a normally benign patch for the game that comes up.  I mean that happens multiple times throughout the year but the one that releases late July/early August is always NOT benign, it's malignant I swear and the basis of the vendetta.    I have no issues with any other patch throughout the year.  This one though?  This one takes out my game and leaves me wailing and gnashing my teeth. Tears may or may not be involved.  Every August EA does everything in their power to shut me down and crumble my spirit.  The validation that I know it's personal?  The fact that the patch is for Sims 4 but it also renders Sims 2 broken with the same error message.  Sims 2 doesn't get updates so why is this happening from a Sims 4 patch?  Hence, vendetta!

Anyway, this vendetta always requires hours on chat and phone with IT doing all the pointless check lists they have to follow and always ends with well you can uninstall and reinstall the game.  Great in theory but  . . . when you live in the country the powers that be don't believe you deserve good internet.  Always something like we service your zip code or not your address baloney.  Last year I spent weeks redownloading. . .both games.  I mean it worked. . .last year.

Here's comes the annual vendetta patch.  I cried wrung my hands and whined to my Simmy friends and spent hours over multiple days on with tech support.  Guess where we ended up? Yup uninstall and reinstall.  I spent weeks making that happen.  Weeks!  And. . . same error message.  How does this not work when I've invested so much?!?  I've given up that I will never finish Strangerville nor any other sim related task ever.  Ever.  But then. . . Monday morning while getting ready for work at some unholy hour in the morning when literally no one but vampires and sleepwalkers are moving around I accidently did something with my mouse and randomly hear Sims 2 music coming from my closed laptop.  I had to take a moment ya know, it'd been so long since I had heard those sweet tunes.  Sims 2 was magically working but I was off to work.  That night Sims 4 had a patch.  That took all evening to finish and no time to do squat and no confidence that it would matter.  But. . .

Took some finagling and whatnot but this patch fixed the vendetta of the last patch.  I have my game back!  Now I just need time to play.  Story of my life.  Annual EA vendetta hate crimes are now checked off for 2021.  I have some commitments that will prevent me from being able to get the next installment out for a few weeks. . . and I need to get caught up in the story since it's literally been two months!  But, October will bring the resolution to the Strangerville story line and our time with Serenity.  August 2022?  I'm waiting for you!

Into the Strangerville Lab

 

It took time to get here but that door is coming open. . . I hope.  I mean I guess the reality is that we are about to see if the mysterious key card that showed up in the mailbox actually works.  

Something happened when we, I mean I, made it through the doors. You can see it instantly - something floating in the air. I just gets creepier as you go through the door and down the stairs. Something was - still is - going on here and now it's out. Out in the air, in the community and even at MY house! It's changing the air, the plants, the people. . .

 It is literally like everything changed as I came back up those stairs.  I know the locals know more than they are sharing and I was determined to figure it out.   

 

First order of business was to swing by Erwin's shop and compare notes and experiences.  From there I was headed to 8 Bells.   Those military guys know something and I was going to find out what.  I may have neglected to document the experience but I can share it was a doozie.  I knew my person had rank and I knew that I had to play it smart.  I found my rank and knew they were lying.  The smart part not so much. . . they knew I was playing them and it turned into a knock down drag out fight but I walked way with what I needed.  I'm not sure why I need it or how it works but it supposedly scans the air and makes the particles that escaped the lab with us visible and collectible.  Here we go!

I don't know what it's done to my neighbors but it's out of control.  He almost ripped my hand off when I tried to help him snap out of it.  I mean I tried to slap him but how else do you snap someone to reality?!?  It's even invading my house now!  Everything is changing and changing fast!  I scanned everything everywhere (even the infected) and gathered a lot of spores.  

 

 

The machine basically gave me a bunch of gibberish. . . oh I'm sure it means something but I don't know at.  Check out the top there though, I tried to go exploring but something possessed me and completely messed up my awareness for a bit.  I'm better now but I don't know something is very off about this place.  I won't give up but I'm also terrified.  I took the gibberish and met with a one of the scientists that I've become 'friendly' with.  She's going to take my data and compare with what's already stored in the systems along with any other known information that may not yet be correlated. I took my fears and met with Erwin and he had some suggestions as well.  Ultimately I walked away with an incomplete haz mat suit and a spore filter to use in it.  Just a bit more time to work up my courage and I'm going back to that lab.  I'm running out of time and the situation gets more and more complex with each bit I figure out.

There's still a lot to learn here.  A lot to explore. . . more than you realize.  However, a bit back I promised to come back and address the tiny little plant under the kitchen window.  Meet Hector, he lived, he thrived, he died all under that kitchen window.

 

Until next week. . .stay safe out there~

The Plot Thickens. . .in Strangerville

Let's be honest here, I really am in over my head.  I am loving my time in Strangerville and really enjoying spending time with my new friends but I overestimated my ability to dig in and really figure things out.  I'm running out of time!  But I also don't ever want this summer to end.   Let's be honest, I didn't anticipate my social life being such a big part of the summer and neglected to account for the need to sleep.  I feel like coffee, coffee, and coffee are all that is keeping me going right now.  But. . . I'm loving every minute of it.  

Before I ever made plans to come to Strangerville for the summer, before I rented the house and found the job (hello Coffee!) I had already started digging into the secrets of Strangerville.  I found so many message boards and blogs and even legit news sites that funneled me some information.  

You don't have to give up your summer or run around to figure this out, just check out the link attached to the picture and take some time to learn about Strangerville for yourself.  Literally, I would never have made it this far without some help!

I guess I should stop whining about being so tired and really get down to business.  The military might be tight lipped even with a few drinks and a lot of flirting but I picked up just enough to be dangerous.  Link that with the bits and bobbles I was able to sneak out of the poor scientists that are struggling to even understand what happened and yeah just enough to be dangerous.  I snuck through the fence and did a bit of poking around in the crater and found a wealth of information. 

 

 With all the information I was able to find around town (never underestimate the power of books as well!) I had enough information to peak the interest of some of the more hardcore conspiracy theorists.  Trust me when I say that you will never know you know these people.  Deep in the web on some of the hacker sites you can find a lot of information and buy a lot of street cred with that information.  Please don't tell me I'm playing with fire and it's dangerous and all that other blah blah blah.  I've met people I know I can trust and I'm also running out of time.  I can't take the slow route when I've earned my way into the fast track!

I shared what I have with some of the others out there and they shared back with me.  Someone sent me a key card.  I assume it goes to that sealed door at the lab but. . . first it literally came to the house so here's hoping it's someone I actually know because otherwise maybe I need to listen to blah blah blah.  I'm confident it's legit though so don't worry.  I'd love to share more with you but I've got plans to get through that door. Don't worry, I'm not going alone but more on that later too :D

42 days to go. . .next stop what's behind this door. . .

Strangerville Summer

 

 It was late when I rolled into town but it didn't take much to get settled in.  I had so little stuff to add to such a micro tiny house!  I feel like I'll forever be tired with work hours (5am!?!) and hearing the clock ticking on my time in Strangerville.

This!  This is what I'm here for.  Crater turned military base turned Secret Lab.  Ultimately abandoned due to an unexplained explosion - that is the reason I'm here.  I mean the history alone is worthy of time and research but the explosion that caused everyone with any knowledge, really any power, to scatter and leave everything behind that is what I want to understand.  That and the unusual plants that you don't notice in the dark but area literally everywhere!  Even in my yard!

Creepy cool looking right?  The are literally everywhere and the closer you get to the crater the more prolific they get.  I haven't yet figured out if they bloom or pod or even open.  I'm not giving up as it's just the start of what is going on in this otherwise idyllic dessert town. 

For those of you questioning the plant in the corner of the house never fear, I'll explain that later. . . I promise.  I may be exploring and studying Strangerville but that doesn't mean I'm not also completely embracing life and every opportunity that comes my way! 

And in the vein of Strangerville the first order of business, after checking out the glowing plants, is to go where the locals go.  I took a few pick up shifts at 8 Bells, the local bar where the military personnel spend their off time.  I can tell you that while they like their drinks strong and their flirt game is just as strong, so are their lips.  Not one secret shared. . . but some little tips did rise to the surface.  

I also spent some time at the Strangerville Information Center which is just a fancy name for the local library.  I mean not only are books a wealth of information but the scientists all tend to gather there.  Most are still reeling from recent events at the lab and out of any where else to go.  They too are tight lipped about why they are here and what happened to cause the explosion but a few little leads might lead me somewhere.

Don't forget the Conspiracy Theorists.  You might shake your head but let me tell you I've yet to meet someone who comes across as woo woo. There's a LOT of truth there it's just a matter of piecing the right parts together. I can say that in spending time with the locals I've made some friends, had a few adventures, (living every opportunity!) and perhaps, just perhaps a reason to return after school. . . 

Speaking of friends I've been drug all over the desert for different events.  The most recent was The Spice Festival.  Not only did I completely kill all taste buds for life but that's also where I stumbled across that tiny little Cow Plant seed, you know where that small little plant came from.  I can't wait for it to grow and see what it becomes!

Before you start judging me that I'm all play and no research I assure you that is not the case.  Remember that half the battle is building trust with the locals so that I can research.  I won't lie though I feel like the summer is moving too fast and that I'm going to run out of time.  I've got 62 days to go.

Home Sweet. . .Strangerville?

 

The more I learn about the history of Strangerville the more I know that I need to go there, to study there, and learn there.  It's the perfect example of Science and History merging into something that defies explanation.  The crater drew the military for a reason. The crater drew scientists in droves as well. Nothing is resolved?Nothing!  The more I don't learn about the scientific break throughs coming from Strangerville the longer it feels like to graduation.  My family knows my plan is to spend the summer there before University in the Fall.  They aren't thrilled that I'm leaving right after graduation but  I've already found the cutest little house with a view of the crater to rent. 

I did it!  Graduation is in the rear view and a summer in Strangerville starts this weekend!  I got a part-time job at Moondoe's Coffee Shop which gives me access to the locals, time to discover my own secrets of Strangerville, and a bit of income to tide me through the summer.  Tomorrow?  The adventure begins.  I've got 75 days to figure it all out. 
 

Matthews Family Legacy G2E2

If you're new to the Ella Matthews Legacy, you can go {here} to begin reading with Episode 1!

In the last episode (G2E1), Generation 2's matriarch Alyson and her husband Quentin had their first child (Elliott, Generation 3 heir), and her sister Amelia left home (shew!). Little by little, this legacy is continuing on. 

Even though I'm moving the non-heir kids out as soon as they get an A in high school, it's still a little sad to see them go in a way. And today Sebastian got an A. Time to say goodbye, my young klepto fan. Time to wreak havoc with the town as a young adult.

Sebastian celebrated by himself. It was at night and everyone else was in bed.

He aged up with a decent trait this time. At least he's a cheerful klepto. *snort* 

I selected an aspiration for him. Along with his skills-set, I chose for him to seek the line of comedian.

Out the door he went, and I selected a nice little home for him to live in. Hopefully he'll find a partner who'll put up with him, and maybe he'll even have a kid or two. Who knows.

He's set up in his own home now, with a new career and some furniture to get him started.
Good luck to ya, kid. Sorry you won't get my full attention anymore. But hey, surprise me with some hopeful pursuits, eh?

Back to the main legacy house... Elliott and grandma Ella (who is stiiiiill an Adult, thanks to that aging up glitch that should've taken her to Elderhood) are hanging out together. Elliott seems like a pretty talkative kid. I've noticed that some sims will sit at a table, eating or doing homework, and never speak. Not this kid. He's a Motor Aspiration sim, but I swear I think he's a closet Social Aspiration kid.

He has a B in school, so he may be aging to Teen soon.

Meanwhile, Gramps Sergio is about to kick the bucket. Poor dude has been anticipating death for three sim days now. He doesn't seem to be feeling pressure though. Although he does have some sort of rash right now. Yikes.

I figure he'll pass away on the cusp of maxing out his piano skill. We'll see.

Grandma Ella got stuck. Tried to reset her, and it didn't work. In this picture, she is in the back yard talking to her husband Sergio through two walls, where he is in the dining room eating.

Those walls must be pretty thin.

Thankfully, closing the game and reloading set her to rights. Girl, don't be pulling anymore stunts. My time is precious, you know.

The artwork done by Ella and son-in-law Quentin is adding up. Sergio's music that he writes is adding a nice bonus, and Alyson's produce is selling at decent rates now.

They have nicely racked up some money, so I did a little renovating and added on some rooms and replaced the cheapie windows with more expensive ones.

Little by little, the house is improving, and the outdoors is coming along as well.

They've got a huge lot to fill up, and I imagine that it may not take them long to do it, with how quickly the money is piling up.

"You woke me at 2AM to tell me what?"

Alyson is flapping her arms like mad, and she's so excited she can't talk straight.

Quentin thinks this could've waited till 6am. "I guess you're pregnant? You act like this is the first time. Elliott is almost a teenager, so I guess you're just dying to get your hands on a baby, right? I'll let you wake up to feed it."

She's thrilled as can be. It's about time this  house gets filled up with kids again. At least now everyone has room to breathe.

Alyson was in a good mood after announcing her pregnancy, so I had her go ahead and get an early start on the garden. Alyson has the Freelance Botanist aspiration. She's doing very well with her gardening, and I think she'll definitely finish it before she croaks.

I've not had a Cowplant in Sims 4. I only ever had one in Sims 2, and I let it die. So I'll be anxious to see what happens with this one.

Last night, Sergio spun the want to Woohoo with Ella. Since Sergio is due to kick the proverbial bucket at any moment, I figured I'd go ahead and allow him to. Well.... that 10% chance became 100% with Risky Woohoo.

I play my legacy game this way, knowing that there's always that small chance. It keeps the Legacy Challenge from getting boring. The look on Sergio's face though is classic!

And, thankfully, Alyson doesn't look a bit upset by her mom upstaging her wonderful day.

Kudos to you, Alyson.

Later that evening, little Elliott brought home an A from school. Mom made him a chocolate cake for his birthday.

He aged up nicely, and thankfully no really bad personality traits were randomly selected. His aspiration is Computer Whiz.

Alyson's pregnancy passed by quickly enough! Baby Ewan was born, and I do believe he's going to look just like his brother Elliott and dad Quentin.

I'll be anxious to see if he has any of Alyson's features.

Two hours after Alyson had "the spare" Ewan, her mom Ella gave birth to a fourth baby, Martin.

Martin appears to be taking his father's physical features as well.

Ella had Martin just as it was time to go to work, so she left him crying with Alyson to feed him a bottle while I sent Ella to her job as Illustrious Illustrator. We need that almighty dollar, ya know.

Then, oh my goodness, Sergio was literally walking out the door to go to his job that afternoon, and The Reaper showed up. Oh shoot!

What made it worse is that Ella and her grandson Elliott came home right in time to see The Reaper take Sergio's soul away. Ella didn't even get to plead. :(

I think I'll wrap it up on that note. The first has passed in this challenge. Ella still has 12 days left till Elder, thanks to that glitch. I hope she manages to age next time.

Check back for the next episode, as Elliott will be finishing up high school, and the babies will be toddlers.

Thanks for reading! And as always, if you have any suggestions for future names, please leave them below. I keep a list! Thanks to Kristin for Ewan's and Martin's names!

Sophia Reese: Generation 5 Chapter 4

We left off with the last chapter with Penelope getting pregnant with her first baby by her new husband, Gengi.

She's adorably huge but has handled the pregnancy like an absolute pro.

I think it helps that she's a work at home mom. Yes, she makes enough from her gardening skills that she can afford to stay at home!

Though she's due any day, Penny is still out working in her ever expanding garden. She did hire some help because she gets tired a bit faster because of the pregnancy but she's still out there working. I'm so proud of her!

Oh, and look what else has popped up in her garden...dun dun dun.  Penny is completely naive and really has no clue what this cutie is capable of but oh, her Maker is. I'm already rubbing my hands together and laughing maniacally. MWUAHAHAHA. Oh yes, I have plans.

All the hard work in the garden put Penelope in labor and she rushed to the nursery to have a lovely home birth.  Yes, she gave birth in the girl's nursery because she was convinced that she was going to have a little girl but...nope. In true Montgomery fashion she gave birth to a bouncing baby boy, Gabriel Daniel.  Mimi Sophia also got to meet her sweet little grandson!

She put the baby into his bassinet and ran downstairs to celebrate her birthday and turn into an adult. Unfortunately, the birthday death curse struck and Sophia fell over dead in the nursery.  Of course Penelope was in shock. She just gave birth, celebrated her birthday and now her mom is dying. So, she ran up the stairs and begged the reaper not to take her mom.

Grim's answer was, "No Way, Jose!"  So, Sophia passed from this life and into the next.  She was loved by all who knew her.   Except for maybe her klepto son who's still pretty ticked about having to move out.

Sophia now rests in the Montgomery Graveyard next to her husband whom she loved dearly and the Legacy is now in the hands of Penelope Skye and Genji. Five complete generations down. 

Join us next time for the start of Generation #6 to start their reign! I promise babies, vacations, cowplant mayhem and more!

Sophia Reese: Generation 5 Chapter 3

  It's vacation time for the Montgomery family! Akito, Sophia and a newly turned young adult, Penelope are taking a seven day vacation at the Forest Hideaway in Granite Falls! For the next seven days this is where Penelope and Akito will be working on their aspirations and where Sophia will be a complete and total bum.  I'm jealous. Maybe I could be a bum with Sophia.

  Penelope is really in her element and has very much enjoyed hiking and finding new plants and working on her Freelance Botanist Aspiration.  She's barely seen the inside of the cabin and neither has Akito. He's been busy fishing up a storm.   Did I mention that he turned elder the first day of vacation? Crazy, right? I really can't believe it. These sims just grow up way too fast!

  During one of her many hikes, Penelope met this guy that she kind of likes.  She's a little unsure about him because for one, he looks a little bit like her daddy and he has the evil trait.  She's totally digging the uniform though.  Speaking of clothes, who goes hiking in a mini dress and heels? Someone seriously needs to talk to this girl about sensible clothing choices. But, we all know that the Maker doesn't talk to her sims. Maybe I should ask the Almighty Ruler of Everything to yell at her.  

The time on vacation was well spent and in seven days both Penelope and Akito progressed from 1/4 for their aspiration want to 3/4.  The refrigerator is well stocked with vegetables and fish.  There's even some favorites that was kept for this awesome new fish aquarium.

On the day that the Montgomery's returned home, Sophia aged up to elder. Don't ask me how it happened that their elder birthdays were 7 days apart because they'd aged to Adulthood on the same day.  Yes, I'm kind of stumped.

Since mom and dad are both elder, I've decided that I might let Penelope invite Genji, the park ranger, over to see how they hit it off. Sophia and Akito would like to meet grandchildren, I think...maybe. You never know with these two. They always keep me guessing.

HOLY...WHAT?! Akito went to work and I was in the process of inviting Genji over and Akito died very suddenly of Elderly Demise. WHAT?! I had no idea he was this old. NO STINKING CLUE!  Land sakes, how did I not realize? I'm the MAKER. The Maker doesn't make this kind of mistake.

This is totally not fair. Yes, you're witnessing the Maker freak the heck out for the first time this entire Legacy Challenge because not only did Akito die when I was unprepared...Sophia also failed to successfully plead for his life! What kind of wicked sorcery is this?

Stunned. I'm just stunned. Also, I think I deafened The Almighty Ruler of Everything.  We were on the phone when this happened. My shock is legit. Just ask her. I squealed in her ears. 

I really slacked in my Maker duties. I can't believe that my heir didn't have a spouse before her parent died. So, despite the fact that she's sad...she quickly fell in love with and married Genji Maeda in front of the family graveyard. Right next to her daddy in fact.

I wasted no time in getting them to try for a baby in the hot tub either!  I didn't even makeover Genji as I normally would before having them have their first woohoo. The big makeover can wait!

With a baby definitely on the way, Penelope (or Penny as I call her these days) has decided that her revealing clothing no longer flattered her expanding waistline so she decided on a makeover at the same time as Genji's.  It's interesting, Genji had red facial hair and eyebrows but blond hair. I felt that the red suited him better.

If I'm not mistaken, I think I have somewhere around eight days left before Sophia passes away and passes the reigns over to Penny. So, be sure to check back in to see if Penelope has a boy or girl and if Sophia makes it to the birth!  

Please leave me baby name suggestions in the comments below.  Remember, the Montgomery family prefers a first and middle name for their children. And don't forget to keep your fingers and toes crossed for a bouncing baby girl! 

Sophia Reese: Generation 5 Chapter 2

Alexa has passed and surprisingly Akito is handling her loss much harder than Sophia. I think it's because Sophia was sleeping after a hard day at work and Akito witnessed his Mother-in-Law's death. He keeps weeping and heading out to the graves to weep and cry.

Michael aged up to teen the day after his grammy passed and I was a little surprised to see that he's a a bit on the large side. This just won't do. His mom is a doctor! A doctor should be feeding her family nutritious meals and encouraging exercise. So, she sent him to the gym. Unfortunately, he broke out in hives shortly after stepping on the scale. He looks like he has leprosy. Geez! Maybe he should see is dear mother for a special cure.

Speaking of, dear mama has advanced to level 9 of her career. Just one more promotion to go! Oh, and Akito is level 7 in the politician career.

All these promotions paid for a birthday celebration (luckily no deaths during this one.)  Penelope aged up to a teen and wowzers...mama and daddy are gonna have their hands full with that one.  Akito better start practicing his fighting skills because I'm already imagining all the boys she's going to be bringing home

During the same birthday celebration...Sophia and Akito aged to Adult. I slacked in maker duties and forgot to get a picture of Akito when he aged up but look at Sophia. She's getting quite puffed up. That girl thinks she's all that! Well, she is but that's besides the point. I must have a talk with her about being so smug.

Then again, she does have a reason for that smug attitude because this sweet girl is now Chief of Staff just like her grandma Jordan was!

The teen years are just flying by at a rapid pace. Both of the kids are fairly well rounded kids aside from Michael having sticky fingers at school.   So far Sophia and Akito have managed to keep him out of jail and they're trying really hard to lecture him about what it means to be a responsible sim.

Michael and Penelope are really getting along. I don't know if I've ever had siblings in this family be as close as these two are. They're always talking to one another and whispering to each other. I mean, Jordan and Ezra were close but she was so much older than him that it was more like a mother/son relationship than brother and sister. Seeing these two so close is the sweetest thing ever!


 Michael and Penelope are both A+ students and they're really smart and already have a lot of skills unlocked.

Michael however is really slacking on his Aspiration. He seems to have very little motivation for anything other than lifting books from the school library.  Penelope is really into hers though and is already 2/4 into realizing her dreams as a freelance botanist.  Someone really should talk to her  about her choice of clothing for gardening though...sheesh!

Before I knew it, it was time for birthdays yet again in the Montgomery Household. This one too held a birthday curse.  Something bad always happens on birthdays in this family.

Michael aged to adult, got a job and went to work right away.   Unfortunately, his kleptomania wasn't kept in check and he stole something from a coworker.  Like mothers always do, this was found out and Sophia had to ask him to leave the home.  It was one thing when he was stealing a book or two at the library. She could easily return those  and pretend that they had forgotten to turn them in. 

When you steal a baby doll from your boss though...something has to give. Sophia felt that she couldn't be expected to  babysit a grown man.

The stress of the situation and knowing that this behavior could ruin her and Akito's careers was absolutely the last straw.  The last thing either of them needed was a scandal. It was time for Michael to take responsibility for his own actions.

The decision for Michael to leave was very hard on Penelope. Michael and Penelope were so close but she had no idea that her brother had been stealing things for quite some time.  It broke her heart to side with her parents but  as the heir of the Montgomery family she understood that nothing can be allowed to tarnish the family's good name. Not only that, she hoped that a little tough love would help Michael find the courage to seek some professional help for his little problem

Without the added stress and worry of having to keep his son from ruining his career—Akito was able to get a promotion to level 8 (Representative) Politician and to celebrate this promotion (and Penelope's Young Adult Birthday—Gosh, don't they age fast?) he scheduled a family vacation! The very first family vacation for the Montgomery family! 

Remember, Akito's dream has been to be a fisherman and since his daughter is into the great outdoors as well...it just felt right. 




 Additionally, Sophia got her third pay raise since becoming chief of staff and is making §300 an hour! There is a lot to celebrate! Plus it'll get their mind off of missing Michael. 


So, I leave you with that! Join me next time to see what amazing outdoor adventures that the Montgomery family get into. Who knows, maybe Penelope will even find a man to have some fun with...or two.   You never know what adventures will await in Granite Falls!