The Vincis (A) - Round 14

Starring:

Gretchen Chin, Elder Knowledge Sim, 4th LTW Own 5 Top Level Businesses

Craig Chin, Elder Knowledge Sim, 2nd LTW Max Out 7 Skills

Bitsy Ray, Knowledge Servo, 4th LTW Become Space Pirate

Cole Chin, Adult Popularity Sim, LTW Become Hall of Famer


~*~*~*~*~

Last round at the Vinci house wasn't terribly entertaining. Mostly, Craig, Gretchen, and Bitsy worked on their careers and earning new badges. Bitsy earned a gold sewing badge, a gold pottery badge, and a gold toymaking badge. Gretchen and Craig each earned a gold sewing badge. Let's see if they manage to be interesting in round 14. (SPOILER: They don't.)

Craig and Gretchen had to admit: having Cole home was definitely an adjustment. It surprised them how interested he was in making new friends, especially since he had always been so painfully shy. They suspected his new clothing choices were chosen with the intent to override that innate shyness and attract attention. It didn't seem to suit him, but Craig and Gretchen were mature enough at this point to know that Cole was an adult capable of making his own decisions and developing his own personality.



Craig, having finally reached his lifetime want of becoming a criminal mastermind and his second lifetime want of maxing out all seven skills, decided that his last goal on earth would be to eat as many grilled cheese sandwiches as was humanly possible.



Bitsy, in honor of her creator, chose the same secondary aspiration. As she watched Craig get older, she was filled with dread for the day when he would no longer be around. This was a way to honor him while he was still here.





The household tradition of earning as many badges as possible was also still going strong. Bitsy tackled gardening next, and Craig tackled pottery. Both felt convinced that between the four residents of the house, every talent badge possible could be earned, and they worked hard at this pastime goal.




Cole, knowing he needed to contribute to the household income somehow but unable to find a job in his chosen field, decided to start writing novels. After all, he was an alien...there was a huge market out there for sci fi fans who wanted to read about the life of someone who was spawned in outer space.



Fortunately, after a brief while, a new opportunity opened up in the athletic field, and Cole snapped it up. With all of his skills and his seemingly unearthly ability to learn new things and make friends despite his shyness, he was sure he would be a Hall of Famer in no time.






Bitsy, too, continued to reliably climb the job food chain. Even though she really wanted to be working in the Adventurer career track, that didn't mean she couldn't be good at what she did.





Luckily for her, too, a job suddenly came up in her path of choice, and she quickly snapped it up. She would be a space pirate no matter what it took!






As for Cole, it only took him a few weeks on the job to make it all the way to the top. He had to admit it was thrilling to achieve such a lofty goal, but on the high of his success, he decided he needed something else equally challenging to tackle. From now on, he would put everything he had toward becoming a celebrity chef.




The success of his achievement allowed him to change his world view a bit as well. Sure, it was awesome to have lots of friends...it counteracted the loneliness he felt as an essentially shy person. But now that he was an adult and watching his parents in their golden years, he knew he wanted something more. Commitment? Lasting relationships? Perhaps not. But a good woohoo now and then would be nice!





Sadly for Cole, the luck that day would go to his parents, not to himself. A genial gypsy left them a magic lamp that would allow up to three wishes to be granted. Craig and Gretchen, as the senior members of the house, got first dibs.






Predictably, Craig wished for the power to cheat death, and Gretchen wished for a longer life. They weren't quite ready to shuffle off this mortal coil quite yet. The genie granted each wish happily.







Bitsy was a bit oblivious to the new, magical influence in the house. With no finite lifespan and never knowing someone who died, she wasn't as concerned with the end of life as her human counterparts were. She just kept plugging along at her job.



This boost of confidence that a servo could never, in fact, actually die only gave her more motivation to do well... perhaps to support the family, and perhaps to encourage her maker and his mate in their golden years.



Bitsy became almost obsessed with proving to Gretchen and Craig that she could and would take care of things around the house as the couple passed into their golden years. Though a servo wasn't familiar with the concept of grief, she knew the couple well enough to understand that they wouldn't be along forever, and that that knowledge worried them.




Happily, Cole managed to find a job in his next chosen career field: the culinary field. Bitsy could see that it did all three of her human friends' good to see these successes.




...which was exactly why she hid the fact that she forgot to pay the electric bill and had to sacrifice an expensive bed to the repo man. She replaced it with her own funds. After all, she had a family that consisted of two elderly sims longing to feel they made a difference in the world and a brand new adult who was still just feeling out his way. Bitsy felt both stressed and grateful to know that she could be the one consistent driving force in the Vinci house that could keep it going for generations.



[[Author's Notes: Gosh, these guys are boring. Even Cole is boring, though I suspect he'll be booty-calling Willow Vinci on a regular basis in the next round. I'm going to shoot for earning ALL of the talent badges on this lot, which should be easy since Bitsy will live forever, but I have no clue where I stand and what still needs to be earned. I'll possibly post about that next round to give everyone a status update. No bloopers for you; this house was definitely a quick, simple play!]]

Read More......

The Vincis (A) - Round 12

Starring:

Craig Chin, Adult Knowledge Sim, LTW Become Criminal Mastermind

Gretchen Chin, Adult Knowledge Sim, 4th LTW Own 5 Top Level Businesses

Bitsy Chin, Knowledge Servo, 3rd LTW Become Hand of Poseidon



~*~*~*~*~

Last round at the Vinci house, Gretchen achieved her 3rd LTW of maxing all seven skills. Sadie earned a bronze gardening badge and was promptly shipped off with her brother, Cole, to Sim State University. Craig aged into an elder and continued his molasses-slow progress toward achieving his first LTW of becoming a criminal mastermind. Bitsy worked toward her 3rd LTW with her usual success. Let's see how the elders and the servo do this round without the kids in the house.

Craig, perhaps because of the enormous time spent in the criminal field, was finally making some smart decisions about how to handle himself in this particular line of work. Not only was he impressing his superiors, he was also making extra money to bring home to his family.




His promotion to smuggler was one of the happiest days of his life. He may have set the record for the sim taking longest to achieve an LTW, but the fact was that his many years leant him experience that he could feel would eventually lead to him achieving his goal.




Bitsy, as usual, continued to receive promotions on a regular schedule, moving up quickly in the oceanography career despite the unfortunate rust factor.




Bitsy knew that her creator, Craig, was getting older, and for some reason, this drove her to work even harder. Maybe it was to please him, and maybe it was simply because she knew that someday she would be without him and would be responsible for watching out for his children. Either way, she threw herself into her hobbies when she wasn't working or doing chores, earning her bronze talent badge in sewing.




She also discovered that the whole family had a lot of rewards from their careers that they never took advantage of. One of the most exciting was a koi pond, which Bitsy delighted in tending. Just because she was a robot didn't mean she couldn't appreciate zen theories.





Gretchen, too, involved herself in various hobbies. Taking over Sadie's garden, which had once been Salvatore's garden, she managed to gain her gold gardening badge almost without effort. She didn't realize how much time she'd spent there.






Bitsy the overachiever managed to get to the head of the oceanography career.




She quickly decided that, though she had enjoyed her time on and under the sea, it was time to get a job that was a little more dry and a little less rust-prone.





In light of how much pleasure she was taking from her new hobbies, Gretchen decided to retire from her job to thoroughly enjoy spending her days however she saw fit.




She and Bitsy were relating a lot lately anyway on their new-found passions for their hobbies. Bitsy managed to rack up another plaque for her sewing, which was improving by the day.




The greatest miracle that season in the Vinci house was that Craig FINALLY achieved his goal of becoming a criminal mastermind. Congratulations, Craig! It only took you like thirty years! He could barely believe how lucky he was, and how tired he was after spending his whole life chasing this goal.





He had to admit that the perks of actually being a criminal mastermind weren't to be beat, though. He knew he would stick with this awesome job until the day he could no longer physically do it.




In the meantime, he wasn't without other more minor goals, like finally becoming a jack of all trades - a romantic notion to him.




Of course, with fewer hours spent at his job, this task was quick work, especially compared to his first lifetime want. Gretchen was just happy that her husband was home with her more often, where they could commiserate on the aches and pains of elderhood together and occasionally indulge in a rousing game of chess.



[[Author's Notes: Ugh, this entry was so completely boring, and I apologize for that. Mostly, I just stuck them on hobby things to keep them busy when they weren't attending to their needs. I know my complete lack of enthusiasm for this household came through in the entry, but it was really quite a boring round. Next round will likely be much of the same, so I apologize in advance for that. At least Slow Kid Craig FINALLY reached the top of his career, after attempting to get there throughout his entire adult life. Meh. Anyway, only one blooper for you.

Blooper:
Craig, that would have looked so much better if you'd had that job as an adult instead of an elder. ]]

Read More......

The Vincis (A) - Round 11

Starring:

Gretchen Chin, Adult Knowledge Sim, 3rd LTW Max Out All 7 Skills

Craig Chin, Adult Knowledge Sim, LTW Become Criminal Mastermind

Sadie Chin, Teen Fortune Sim, LTW Become Space Pirate

Cole Chin, Teen Popularity Sim, LTW Become Hall of Famer



Bitsy Chin, Knowledge Servo, 3rd LTW Become Hand of Poseidon


~*~*~*~*~

Last round at the Vinci-Chin house, Bitsy achieved her 2nd LTW of Becoming a Media Magnate. Gretchen achieved her 2nd LTW of Becoming a Game Designer. Craig continued slowly making progress toward his first LTW, still. Sadie and Cole each took teen jobs and worked on skills that would earn them scholarships, like physical fitness and dancing. This round, the teens will be leaving for university. Let's see how the house handles it.

Cole immediately got a promotion at his new job. It wasn't very hard since he'd studied so hard as a young person. He already had all the skills he needed to be more than just a teen employee. However, without a degree, he was trapped at this lower level in the sports career path. It was okay for him, though. His paycheck was a nice bonus for buying food, clothes, and the occasional electronic equipment.

Sadie actually began to apply for scholarships, and she was delighted when they started rolling in with Yes answers stamped all over them. She was going to have more than plenty of money to handle her semesters at university. Not only would she have enough for books, tuition and food, she could probably buy herself a cool laptop or some other stuff with the leftovers.

After all that hard academic work, she decided that she deserved a break from cracking the books. She spent a lot of time in the family greenhouse, learning about plants and really taking an interest in how they grew and flourished. She was rewarded with a bronze gardening talent badge.

The kids weren't the only ones with interesting things happening, though. Craig was finally ready to join his beloved bride in elderhood. Gretchen teased her younger hubby that his cake looked like it might set off the smoke detectors, and Craig only stuck his tongue out at her before blowing out the candles.



Seemingly before everyone's eyes, he shrunk a bit and his black hair turned silver. Craig was officially an old man, now.





Gretchen was an old woman, and she was glad to see her husband join her in the golden years. But her age didn't slow her down a bit. By indulging in a lot of relaxing and stress-reducing yoga, she managed to achieve her third LTW of maxing out all seven skills. It was a good day to be Gretchen Chin.



With her newly-developed interest in finance, she thought that her next goal might be to own a chain of very successful businesses, but in reality, she knew this would probably never happen. It was okay, though, she'd had a long and very fruitful life.



Sadie, too, got a teen job, in the same field her father had struggled in for years. When she quickly brought home a promotion that set them equal to one another in career stature, she could see the hurt in her father's old eyes. She decided he didn't need that competition and that, moreover, she had something important to do.




A few days later, she packed up her things and all the scholarship paperwork and headed off to Sim State.



Not wanting to be left behind, Cole quickly tallied his own scholarship awards, and before the family could say "see you at thanksgiving," he was heading off to Sim State with his sister.







It wasn't that he was anxious to leave home, he just really didn't want to do that college thing without Sadie around.




With the house quieter than the three adults could remember in ages, the promotions began rolling in again. Bitsy was slowly making her way forward in her new oceanography career (despite the obvious challenge of exposure to rust and damaging salt water). Craig continued to try to achieve the position of criminal mastermind.




Life became very quiet in the house. Gretchen kept Craig company while he pursued his interest in working on his knowledge, and Bitsy quietly kept the house clean and her "family" fed.




Bitsy, who had been working in the Adventurer career track while she waited for a job in the Oceanography field, decided that it was finally time for her to start putting her heart and soul into looking for a position in her chosen field.




After hours of searching, she finally found a low position in the Oceanography field, and though it was below her skills, she took it, knowing that she could work her way up.



Her determination paid off, and she was promoted almost instantly. Bitsy was on her way to the top of her career track yet again.


[[Author's Notes: This house was kind of boring after the kids left, in case you couldn't tell. I guess someone will move back into this house, though I'm not sure who, when they graduate from college. I love that Bitsy is constantly around to keep the house neat and cook and add funds to the household worth. My first servo is definitely my favorite. Nothing else really important to report for this house. I leave you with a few bloopers.

Bloopers:
Who peed in your cornflakes, Aurélie? Oh that's right, no one, you're just mean. // I got bored and wondered what would happen if I ordered Bitsy to take a bath. Ultimately, it just drained her battery. Boring. ]]

Read More......