Chapter 7 - Doug

I've been trying to write this chapter for over a week and finally just got to it. Phew! Guess I'm a busy girl.

I put up an heir poll at Sim Swap and Boolprop to determine who the heir would be for this generation. The decision seemed to be between Doug and Seth. At Sim Swap Doug received 3 votes while Seth received 5. At Boolprop Doug received 16 votes while Seth received 12. That means Doug had 19 votes total and Seth had 17 votes total. *sniffs* I'll miss Seth but the readers have made their voices heard and this generation's heir is Doug. Thank you all for voting!


Journal Entry - Returning Home From College

I know mom and dad missed us but I think Bill missed us the most. I couldn't imagine living here with our parents and no brothers to rough house with. I don't care how old you get it's always nice to have someone your own age to chill with. We made sure to include Bill in our practical jokes when we got back. He seemed to really enjoy them.


James was the first one to start a snowball fight with Bill, one of the things we did a lot as children. We always seemed to have snow days from school since it snowed so much here.


Don't let James' love for money fool you, he's a big joker. If he's not giving his twin a hard time he's messing with someone else. I often wonder how our dear mother puts up with us.


She was rather pleased to learn James adopted Tiffany off the streets. My mom loved to take care of animals but could never justify it until we got older and she restored running water. She wanted to make sure we could take care of pets properly.


I was glad to see my parents were still in love and happy to be together. They never had much of a chance to relax when we were kids but in their older age they were able to enjoy each other much more.


Tiffany's usually a pretty good dog except for the occasional moment when we catch her sitting on the window ledge. The minute she sees one of us she knows she better to off and quick.


Mom just loves it when Tiffany's looking out the window for us when we come home from work though. I must admit it's kind of comforting to know there's someone waiting for me, even if it is just because they want to be fed.


The spirits of deceased family members still haunt our home late at night. Some are angrier then others. In college I learned a lot about why ghosts do some of the things they do. I hope to get a job studying these phenomena's so I can peacefully move my family's urns outside to our backyard.


Most nights we stay off the first floor out of fear of being scared to death. Three decreased family members have died that way, if you can believe it. There is the occasional evening when the spirits seem at rest though and the family can freely roam the home without fear of being scared by a ghost.


I'm telling you, somedays it's at if James and I didn't go to college with Seth. He'll go on and on about what excellent grades he received during college without a simple mention of how well James and I did. Bill mostly just finds it amusing.


However, our mother is easily pulled into Seth's over confidence. It's not that she doesn't know James and I did well in college too but Seth has a way with words sometimes that is hypnotizing.


He can captivate all her attention with a few select words and then she's putty in his hands. He's been doing it his entire life too. That's why he could nap on the couch while nobody else could when we were young boys.

End Entry


Journal Entry - Why isn't the Job I Want Available?

While the rest of the family seems to be moving forward I feel stuck in the same place. I've been looking for the right job but can't find it. Seth is a Star on Broadway and James is Animal Linguist, but I am nothing yet.

Since my mom has raised four children and lifted the science restrictions she has taken to meeting some of our new neighbors in hopes that it will help out the neighborhood and our family some how. The one neighbor who sticks out the most in my mind is Nemo.


I suppose I remember him the most because he nearly froze to death talking outside with my mom for hours. When he finally came inside his skin had turned a pale blue. Oh, and who can forget the interesting helmet he wears.

*Little Nemo write an incredible apolegacy. I highly recommend checking it out. You can find it under the apocalypse section on the boolprop forums.


Did I mention Seth and I have matching shirts? It was all we could find and to think these shirts can barely keep us warm with the cold weather outside. I think this is the real reason why Seth decided to go into show business, not too mention he's such a people person.


We finally get running water and what does Bill do? He decides to turn the tub into a toy. It didn't take long before most of the other members in our house were doing the same thing. I must admit it's a fun way to pass some time and with my lack of a job that is all I have, time.


I'll never understand how someone puts food in the oven, walks away and forgets about it. Of course, whenever we have a kitchen fire nobody takes responsibility for it which is even more infuriating.


Bill's steadily moving up in the game world. He believe he's close to restoring power to the phone lines. Maybe he would have done that by now if he didn't spend so much time blowing bubbles. At the rate he's going Seth or James will beat him to the top of their chosen careers.


Knowing that I would have to continue the family name to bring the neighborhood back to what it once was Bill and I headed downtown to try and meet some girls. We did meet one woman of interest for me. We'll have to see how time plays out to know if she's really the right one.


James leaves for work in a lab coat nearly every day. I wonder what kind of experiments they are running where he works. I don't ask though because I'm afraid of what he really might be doing.


Recently, he was promoted to Dinosaur Cloner. That sounds like some high level work. I couldn't imagine having to clone anything let alone an extinct dinosaur.


Seth was also promoted recently. He's now a blockbuster director. From what I understand our great grandfather Brad would have been very proud of him. According to my father, show business had always been his dream up until the disaster struck.

End Entry


Journal Entry - We Should Have Seen It Coming

Everyday started merging together for me. I was growing so restless over not having a job that I'd get up in the middle of the night and binge eat. I needed to do something to keep my mind occupied and studying could only stretch so far.


Bill's been slacking off at work a lot and was demotion a position. It's really time for him to lay off the bubbles. They're starting to effect his life.


With all that wasn't going on in my life you'd think I would have noticed what was about to happen. My parents starting hanging out in the backyard more and more frequently. At first, it was playful.


Their playfulness towards each other turned into more serious conversations after awhile. I wasn't sure what they were talking about but now I have a pretty good idea.


The grim reaper came for my mom on the second afternoon they spent outside. I could see my dad's mind was going too because for a few minutes after grim showed up he just sat there acting as if my mom was still there talking to him. The whole thing was very sad to watch.


That night when Seth got home and heard the terrible news he went into a deep depression. It wouldn't be good for his rep if word got out he's been seeing a shrink though so we're trying to keep it on the down low.


As it's like in Simmywood for big stars like Seth we get crazy neighbors doing all sorts of odd things. One lady even stole our newspaper because it was delivered to Seth Pitt's house. He hadn't even touched the damn thing yet!


As if my mother's passing wasn't hard enough on the family my dad past away a couple days later. He obviously knew it was time and that's why he waited outside for grimmy. Although, he enjoyed being haunted by the various urns laying around the house he knew most of us didn't.


My brother's and I mourned the loss together while Tiffany howled near my parents graves in honor of them. Our lives will be forever changed without them in it.

End Entry


Journal Entry - Things Get Back on Track

The day we've been waiting on for so long has finally happened. Bill has become a Game Designer and in the process figured out how to restore regular phone access. That means we no longer have to wait until Tuesday's to call our friends and we can use the computer any day of the week to find a job. Hopefully, that will help me get the job I've been searching so desperately for.


Bill wasted no time moving out after he fixed the phone lines. I think he wants his own place so he can have the freedom to bring home as many woman as he wants without anyone criticizing him. He was always on his best behavior around here but I think he'll go buck wild out on his own. Good for him! He worked hard and deserves to have some fun.


With all the free time I've had I was able to max all my skills. I was rather proud of myself and since Seth loves to go on and on about how well he did in college I decided to brag about my big accomplishment to him. He seemed happy for me but I bet he was at least a little bit jealous.


I'm jealous too though. Seth's been promoted to Icon and all of the women of the neighborhood swoon over him while the men wish they were more like him. He has more friends then he knows what to do with. His huge popularity has brought back a few things friends love to do; outings and dates. The neighborhood also seems to be much more materialistic then before. Women are wearing makeup while men are making sure to groom themselves more frequently. The neighborhood is a much more vain place now that Seth is an Icon.


Remember the trip I took downtown with Bill to find a future wife? Well, it turns out my dad knew her from his earlier years. He said Marina had always been very kind and nice to him and that he thought she'd make a wonderful wife for me. With my father's blessing I invited her to move in with my brothers and I. Seth and James were planning on getting their own place soon so before long it would just be Marina and I.


With the wave of fashion awareness throughout the neighborhood I headed downtown to buy some nicer clothes for my brothers and myself. Marina's happy with what she's wearing but Seth and I cannot survive another day wearing matching shirts.


Seth decided to go with a shorter hair cut as part of his new look. He'd always wanted to show off his special ears more and now he finally can.


Man, I wish I could be an Icon. It must be nice to make $4,000 simoleans a day and only have to wear sweats to work. But no, I had to decide on a job that doesn't even have any openings!


The long awaited news that I finally found an opening in the paranormal career was overshadowed by James becoming an Ecological Guru. His news was far more exciting anyways. He had found ways to improve on so many small details in our lives from lush, green landscapes again to healthy and delicious chef salads.


It was now my turn to shine though. On my first night of work as a Police Psychic I was promoted up to UFO Investigator. I was only two postions away from reaching the top!

End Entry


Journal Entry - Life Is Good

I've maxed all my skills, got the job I've been waiting patiently for and Marina's agreed to marry me. I'd say things are going fairly well for myself at the moment.


And it got even better when Marina and I made our future together more definite. We could have thrown a party and gotten married under a wedding arch but decided to keep it simple. The neighborhood was showing great signs of improvement and we didn't want to jinx it by going all out.


Marina had a little wedding surprise for me. Apparently, we hadn't been very careful over the past couple months and now she's expecting our first child. Even though we weren't exactly expecting this everything should work out just fine. Hopefully, I can manage to top off my career before it's born so I can help out more.


I don't think that'll be a problem because I seem to get promoted every day I go to work. One evening I left as an Exorcist only to come back as a Cult Leader.


I had figured out how to communicate with the dead and put them at ease when their graves/urns were moved. Slowly, one by one I moved my deceased family members urns outside to our backyard where their ghosts could peacefully roam the yard. I even had a chance encounter with the grim reaper. It seems if a sim is about to die before their time is truly up a close friend or family member can plead for their lives. I don't know why nobody knew that before but I will make sure everyone is aware of it now.


Marina and I are both really looking forward to the new baby. We're trying to decide on a name and think we have one picked out if it's a boy but have no idea if it's a girl. We still have a few months to go so we'll worry about that more later.


I have slept better these past few months since Marina moved in then I ever thought possible. Her warm body wrapped up against mine puts my whole being at ease. I'm so glad I decided to make her my wife.


It won't be long now before Marina goes into labor. She's getting bigger and bigger all the time. We still haven't quite decided on a girl's name yet but we have a few ideas.


Whoa! I had no idea James was so comfortable in his body. I wonder what he's doing at work to wear something so skimpy and if his female colleagues wear something similar. If so, I wouldn't mind working there. I know...I'm a married man, but c'mom I'm still a guy!


The time came for Seth and James to move out. They are going to move into a double lot down the road and propose to their girlfriends from college. I will sure miss them. This place won't be the same without them, but it's time for me to fully start the next phase in my life.


You didn't think James would leave Tiffany behind with us, did you? She always was and always will be his dog.

I have already played through the next chapter and just need to write the story. I think there'll be two parts for Marina since Doug and her haven't even had their first child yet. Hopefully, I'll get the next chapter out soon.