Cher Shares

I have a vague idea of what I want to do for a 'hood, but I got too anxious to just start playing. I downloaded a lovely decorated 'hood, which prompted me to download all kinds of neighborhood deco sets by the same creator, because I'm compulsive like that.    Then I couldn't decide what I wanted to do, if I wasn't going to go with my more comprehensive 'hood until later. Then, just as I was drifting off to sleep one night, it came to me. I wanted to see if a sim could become self-supporting just by fishing. When I saw Toni's Jack, I knew he was the one. I even had the outfit already. Jack needed a wife, and I thought Sugah's Ella was perfect for him. Their beautiful skins sent me off on a hunt for better defaults than I currently had, so that took some time. And I needed fishing stuff, and boats, and dilapidated furniture ....

Jack Sandpiper -- Aries, Fortune Sim. I had in mind that he would not have an actual job, but would make his living at sea. His LTW is to become a Hand of Poseidon!    I'm going to have to change it, though, 'cause it's not going to happen.

Ella Sandpiper -- Aquarius, Family Sim. Her LTW is to have 6 grandchildren. She is currently employed as the manager of a local fast food franchise.



Jack and Ella just got married, against the wishes of both sets of parents, who think they're too young and don't have enough money to take care of themselves. Ella's grandmother recently died. Her final words to Ella were to follow her heart. She left Ella some furniture and a bit of money. Jack had a little money saved from working odd jobs here and there. They bought some land near the pier. The lot had an abandoned metal building on it, which Jack has converted into a temporary home. They spent most of their money on a fishing boat for Jack. They also have the car Jack bought with some of the first money he earned while in high school.





Ella's grandmother left her a little seating set and a bed. Some of the pieces are still boxed up because there's no room for them, and because there's no electricity for the lamp.





The sign over the bed, which it is too dark to see, is something Jack picked out of a dumpster when The Lonely Mermaid Inn was torn down. He named his boat The Lonely Mermaid.

They sure look happy to move in.   



Over dinner, Jack tells Ella about the new clothes he'll buy her once his fishing business has become successful.



Ella responds with her ideas on how to make that dress even more appealing.   



This is my first time playing with Autonomous Casual Romance installed. Monday, the Sandpipers moved in to their new home. By Thursday ...



  What?! So much for saving up to build a nice home with all new materials. Jack is going to have to scramble to build something more appropriate for raising a child. Something with electricity, maybe. Ella only worked two days and now she's on maternity leave.  

Cher, how wonderful! I am SO PLEASED you decided to start your won game antics thread here!
I am sorry for my delay in checking your Cher Shares (love it!   ), but I haven't been online since last Thursday.

Cher wrote:

I wanted to see if a Sim could become self-supporting just by fishing.

What a cool idea! How creative!   

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When I saw Toni's Jack, I knew he was the one. I even had the outfit already. Jack needed a wife, and I thought Sugah's Ella was perfect for him.

I am honored that you chose my Aussie gal, Ella, to be Toni's Jack's bride.
Thank you so much for downloading her and for your support.
What a lovely couple the Sandpipers make!

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Ella's grandmother recently died. Her final words to Ella were to follow her heart.

Awwww ...   

I love the pier & Jack's boat (The Lonely Mermaid - great name!).
What a neat idea to convert an old building to live in 'til the couple can build up their savings!
Although, with the new baby coming so soon ...   
And I like the way you have it decorated. Perfect for that metal abode. Realistic, too!  

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Ella responds with her ideas on how to make that dress even more appealing... 

I love it when Simmers incorporate what's in a Sim's headlines into the image description!   

Thank you for sharing, Cher.
I look forward to seeing what Jack and Ella's little one looks like.
Oh, and if you wish to change your camera setting in game to the larger size pics, that'd be just fine.
I believe the largest in game snapshots are 600 x 450 pixels, which absolutely meet our image size requirements here.
Totally up to you!

    

Jack and Ella make a really nice couple and they both seem suited to a beachy / by-the-sea kind of life. What career does "Hand of Poseidon" go with. It seems appropriate for a fisherman (even though it doesn't work with your plans.) I've been doing some challenges lately where my sims start with next to nothing and have to make their way by living off the land and fishing. I find sims can actually do pretty well just by fishing. It looks like your couple is off to a good start. I can't wait to see how they do!

Em wrote:

What career does "Hand of Poseidon" go with. It seems appropriate for a fisherman...

I believe that's the Oceanography career from Freetime, Em.
A lot of my Sims have that career track and I rather like it myself!   

Em wrote:

...where my sims start with next to nothing and have to make their way by living off the land and fishing. I find sims can actually do pretty well just by fishing.

I am always fascinated by this sort of thing. I don't play with Seasons, so I don't have the option to have my Sims live off the land or sea.
But I have had a few starving artists in my game, who have lived off the sales of their paintings!
It's always fun to attempt scenarios like these with our Sims, isn't it?

Thanks for the nice comments. I'm no kind of storyteller; I've never done this before. It's fun, though, and it makes me pay a lot more attention to things like dinner-time conversations.

Sugah wrote:

Oh, and if you wish to change your camera setting in game to the larger size pics, that'd be just fine.

Yeah, I did that after I saw how small my pics were.    I'm glad I won't have to resize the big ones in order to post them here.

Em, Hand Of Poseidon is the Oceanography career, as Sugah said. I like it and it seems to come up a lot. I had already come up with the idea of a fisherman before I even downloaded Jack, so I thought it was funny that his LTW came up as something so related to being a fisherman.

Em wrote:

I've been doing some challenges lately where my sims start with next to nothing and have to make their way by living off the land and fishing.

That sounds like a lot of fun. My SIL was just telling me today that she's going to do that. She plays TS3 though, so it would work a bit differently. I did make a family once who lived only by farming. It was an insane amount of work and they pressed their children into indentured servitude. The adults had no regular schedule. They would weed and harvest and talk to plants until they were exhausted, then sleep, and start all over again no matter what time of day or night it was.

Sugah wrote:

I look forward to seeing what Jack and Ella's little one looks like.

I may not get the pics up for a couple of days because I'm hung up on building, but here's a hint: Adorable!     

Cher wrote:

I'm no kind of storyteller ... It's fun, though ...

I'm, by no means, a storyteller either, Cher.
I have no doubt my Sim antics aren't nearly as entertaining as those who are gifted in that department.
But, I agree ... It IS fun to share!  

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I did that after I saw how small my pics were.

  

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... and they pressed their children into indentured servitude.
... They would weed and harvest and talk to plants until they were exhausted, then sleep, and start all over again no matter what time of day or night it was.

    

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...but here's a hint: Adorable!

  

I thought it might be the oceanography career, but I didn't recall the title. I do have some sims in that career path, but haven't had any make it to the top yet. I guess none of my sims have that LTW (or at least not as far as I've noticed.)   

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I did make a family once who lived only by farming. It was an insane amount of work and they pressed their children into indentured servitude. The adults had no regular schedule. They would weed and harvest and talk to plants until they were exhausted, then sleep, and start all over again no matter what time of day or night it was.

Yes, farming and gardening is a huge amount of work and it takes so long to reap the rewards. I've found that fishing is a quicker and easier way to go. I think it's a lot of fun having my sims live of the land.

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Cher wrote:
I'm no kind of storyteller ... It's fun, though ...



I'm, by no means, a storyteller either, Cher.
I have no doubt my Sim antics aren't nearly as entertaining as those who are gifted in that department.
But, I agree ... It IS fun to share!

Great storytelling skills are not necessary, just seeing what happens in other people's games is fun and interesting, at least I think it is.

Em wrote:

... just seeing what happens in other people's games is fun and interesting, at least I think it is.

I really enjoy seeing how creative our members can get with game play, Em.
I am often inspired by other Simmers and get more excited about playing my own game upon reading others' TS2 antics!  

Sugah wrote:

I am often inspired by other Simmers and get more excited about playing my own game upon reading others' TS2 antics!

So am I. Reading the stories here has given me several ideas about new things to try in my game. It's also fun to see the custom content others use.

Cher wrote:

Reading the stories here has given me several ideas about new things to try in my game. It's also fun to see the custom content others use.

Me, too!   

Thanks for starting this thread, Cher. I really enjoy seeing what others do with their game and sharing via stories is one of the best ways for me to discover that. It's even better when a sim family is just starting out, so we can watch them grow and expand, as it appears this one is doing already!

I really like the Seasons EP and fishing and planting are activities that my sims do, when they can or it's appropriate. I'll often have an orchard tree or garden plot in a uni house so that the students can start developing their gardening skills there, if they haven't already.

Paloma Sandpiper!


It's nice to know Jack is happy about it, even though he'd hoped to be in a better financial situation before starting a family. He immediately began planning a family home and was able to purchase some reclaimed wood to get started on it.


He's hoping to add on, but this as all they can afford for now. Jack did make sure the nursery was completed before anything else, but there was some money left over to spend on a living room. With winter coming on, Jack made electrical wiring a priority, though they don't have many lights. He was also able to make a small woodstove out of a barrel he found at the landfill. NOTE: I'm not much of a builder, but I'm trying to follow a floor plan as closely as possible. I usually just remodel downloaded lots.

Karen (aka Twerp) wrote:

It's even better when a sim family is just starting out, so we can watch them grow and expand, as it appears this one is doing already!

  

Welcome, Paloma! Pretty name (meaning: Dove)!
I can already see she has great skin tone like her folks.
I love her little infant wear, Cher.
I'm assuming it's a default download?
Where did you find it?

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purchase some reclaimed wood...

I am happy he found some that he likes at a good price.   
Thank you for your ongoing support, Lady C.
What is that object in the sea?
I am always looking for 'hood decore.
Is it a ferry? One of Criquette's?

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Jack did make sure the nursery was completed before anything else...

Way to go, daddio!
Adorable sea theme! I like the pretty, soft colors, too.

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I'm not much of a builder...

I feel ya. 'Tis not my strength either.
Hey, we can't all be Frank Lloyd Wright, right?   

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He was also able to make a small woodstove out of a barrel he found at the landfill.

  

Where did you find those web lawn chairs, Cher?
I would like to have (and recolor) some for my game.

I enjoyed meeting the Sandpiper's tiny dove and seeing their progress.
Thanks, again, for using my Ramshackled and By the Sea walls.   

 

Sugah wrote:

I love her little infant wear, Cher.
I'm assuming it's a default download?
Where did you find it?

Isn't it cute? I found it in reply #202, set 9 through Sims2Defaults (a great place to find defaults for genetics and clothes). The GOS download has a bunch of colors, so if you get bored with the default you've chosen, it's easy to swap it out.

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Is it a ferry? One of Criquette's?

It is. It's the ferry carrying cars from the Ferry Mini Set. I'm late to the party, as usual, since I just started paying attention to hood deco after putting my new system together. I'm playing this game in Carnen Bridge, which uses a lot of Criquette's deco pieces.

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Where did you find those web lawn chairs

It's an example of how easily I am distracted. I saw a download on BPS by Raynuss, which led me to look at all downloads by Raynuss, which led me to the Let's Go Camping set, which led me to the lawn chair. This is how I manage to lose hours out of my day.  

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Thanks, again, for using my Ramshackled and By the Sea walls.

It's my pleasure. I originally thought I'd use the Ramshackled set for trailers and wouldn't be using it right away. When I decided on the story for Jack and Ella, I thought they'd be perfect for their seaside home.

Wow! That was quick!   
Thank you for sharing the links to the default infant wear at GoS.
I normally don't visit that site, so I appreciate the heads up on that, especially.

I love Criquette's hood decore. Don't you?
I believe it was our very own Jules (aka Jayce, aka Toni's hubby   ) who first turned me on to Criquette's amazing hood stuff.
I bet I had that mini ferry set in my other desktop before it died. Just downloaded it into my new one.   

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I'm playing this game in Carnen Bridge, which uses a lot of Criquette's deco pieces.

Oooooh! Me likey!!!   

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It's an example of how easily I am distracted. I saw a download on BPS by Raynuss, which led me to look at all downloads by Raynuss, which led me to the Let's Go Camping set, which led me to the lawn chair. This is how I manage to lose hours out of my day.

Hahahaha!   
I have no doubt you are one of many who is easily distracted when downloading for our beloved TS2!    
I'm going to check out the camping set and lawn chair links, now.
They might be perfect for our "Celebration of Dads" update this month!

 

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When I decided on the story for Jack and Ella, I thought they'd be perfect for their seaside home.

  

It's great to see that Jack has his priorities straight. The nursery looks great!

I too find that I'll start at one site for a download and then five sites later I've got a ton more and forget why I started the search in the first place.   

I love swapping in defaults. It can change the game so easily. Some townies are even acceptable after a few default swaps.

Thanks for the update, Cher.

Sugah wrote:

I love Criquette's hood decore. Don't you?
I believe it was our very own Jules (aka Jayce, aka Toni's hubby  I love you ) who first turned me on to Criquette's amazing hood stuff.
I bet I had that mini ferry set in my other desktop before it died. Just downloaded it into my new one.  

I do love it, and in the interest of completeness (ha!), I downloaded all of it. I have no idea if I'll be able to figure out how to use most of it and make it look nice, but I'm going to try to put some of it in my big hood. If I ever get around to my big hood, that is.

Now for the latest with the Sandpipers:

I had to put this in because the dog's name is Sugar.    Ella walked outside one day and just decided to play fetch with a neighborhood dog.


While she was out having fun, Jack was not. He never lets Ella know how worried he is about their future. It's winter, so he can't be out on The Lonely Mermaid fishing. It has given him more time to work on their house, but there's only so much he can do until he can bring in more income. Ella gets a little bit of money while on vacation/family leave, but fast food managers don't make that much money.


Baby Paloma grew into a sweet toddler, and both Ella and Jack love teaching her how to walk and talk.


A little leftover birthday cake for breakfast. Don't judge.


Later in the day, Ella has a craving for a healthy snack.


Uh oh. Perhaps Jack should have shared some of his concerns with Ella. Maybe she wouldn't be having these cravings if he had.

Cher wrote:

I have no idea if I'll be able to figure out how to use most of it and make it look nice...

Oh, I hear ya!
I have downloaded a bunch of Criquette's hood decor and am still at a loss as to how to place some of it correctly!  

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I had to put this in because the dog's name is Sugar. 

    

Did you download that fabulous sky mod Toni told us about awhile back, Cher?
Your Sim skies look awesome! And I love the marina in the backdrop of the "fetch" pic.

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While she was out having fun, Jack was not. He never lets Ella know how worried he is about their future.

Awww...
Poor Jack. He truly does take his responsibilities seriously.
I hope he finds a way to earn more money until he can resume fishing on The Lonely Mermaid SOON.

Baby Paloma is GORGEOUS! WOW!
Has Toni seen the beautiful babe her Jack and my Ella created yet?
What a darling child and great skin!   

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A little leftover birthday cake for breakfast. Don't judge. ...
Later in the day, Ella has a craving for a healthy snack (Famous Amos cookies).

  

Uh oh! Ella is with child again!
I wonder if both she and Jack should take up painting?
Perhaps that would help them bring in some extra cash 'til the fish start biting again...

  

Thank you for checking in on my thread.

Sugah wrote:

Did you download that fabulous sky mod Toni told us about awhile back, Cher?
Your Sim skies look awesome! And I love the marina in the backdrop of the "fetch" pic.

I chose that lot specifically so I could see the marina! I love seeing hood deco in the background of my lots.

I thought it was the same sky mod when I downloaded it, but I don't think it is the same one Toni uses. I couldn't remember where I'd seen her reference to the mod she uses, so I just searched for sky mods on MTS2. I found a buyable sky called New Weather Atmosphere; it has 12 difference skies that change each day, or you can manually choose the sky you want. The skies are supposed to coordinate with the various seasons. The only disadvantage is that, if your lot is too far to the edge of your hood, there will be a spot somewhere that isn't covered by the sky. I need to hunt down the one Toni is using and see how I like it in comparison to this one. I do like that this one changes daily without my having to do anything.

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Baby Paloma is GORGEOUS! WOW!

She really is, isn't she? I still zoom in just to admire her!    That kid got some terrific genes.

I've played a bit since then, so I'll try to get an update posted soon.

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I wonder if both she and Jack should take up painting?

That's not a bad idea. Ella just doesn't seem at all concerned by their lack of income; she's happy and carefree.   Jack has taken up investing, but since he doesn't have much to invest, the returns have been pretty small. Happily, fishing season has returned.

I've been working on my big hood. I think it might take me forever. I like the hood, but there's a lot of unlevel terrain. I'm trying to decorate the hood (something I haven't done much of in the past) and it's hard! The beach lots are odd, too, because they always work best if you can place them in the same spot they were created. I'm not much of a builder, though. I'm a remodeler and redecorator. Most of the houses I've built in the past are from actual blueprints. It's slow going, but I'm trying to balance working on the new hood with continuing to play the Sandpipers. Speaking of Sandpipers ...

Edited to add that I checked out the skies that Toni used. The mesh is cloned from the mesh I'm using, so there is still a gap in the sky depending on where the lot is situated. I don't mind working around it because the skies are so gorgeous.

Cher64 wrote:

I've been working on my big hood. I think it might take me forever. I like the hood, but there's a lot of unlevel terrain. I'm trying to decorate the hood (something I haven't done much of in the past) and it's hard! The beach lots are odd, too, because they always work best if you can place them in the same spot they were created. I'm not much of a builder, though. I'm a remodeler and redecorator. Most of the houses I've built in the past are from actual blueprints. It's slow going, but I'm trying to balance working on the new hood with continuing to play the Sandpipers. Speaking of Sandpipers ...

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm......maybe you need to look at the Tutorial I wrote:

https://sugahsplace.forumotion.net/t1119-how-to-modify-your-hood-to-accommodate-beach-houses-by-caleb

Hi Cher! ^_^ I'm just now checking out your thread. Nice story so far and I love the lot. Don't fret about modifying downloaded lots; I do it ALL THE TIME, although I did take the time and actually make one the other day based loosely off of an apartment layout :p I"ll post it later on my thread that one of my BACC folk lives in right now.

My my, such a rough start these two are having, but hopefully things'll work out in the end. :)

Yes, acr is a tricky devil so you have to watch your sims AT ALL TIMES. If you've not discovered it you can put them on BC to not have any more kids until you're ready for them to otherwise you'll end up with 20 kidlets! :p (half kidding on that too...)

Check back in soon!

Caleb thank you for the tutorial. I've been wondering how to work with beach lots for some time now. Bless you!   

Russell wrote:

maybe you need to look at the Tutorial I wrote:

I really do need to look at it. I plan on quite a few beach lots in my big hood. Thanks for the link. I also want to let you know that, once my game started taking almost 7 minutes to load, I put back in the more RAM tweak to see if it would make a difference. My game loaded in just over 4 minutes.   

Jean, this is my first time playing with ACR and it's certainly been interesting! For now, I'm just going to let them do their thing. This isn't where I plan to (eventually) do my main playing, so it's fun to see what happens. It's good to know about the BC, though, for what I hope to make my regular hood. I'm sure I'll want much more control over things there.

I'm a bit behind in here, Cher. So great to see all the activity in Cher Shares!   

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I found a buyable sky called New Weather Atmosphere; it has 12 difference skies that change each day, or you can manually choose the sky you want.

How fascinating! I am going to check out the link you provided.
Are these the skies you checked out that Toni has in her game: Ja-Viera's OMG Skies and Keoni's sky recolors?

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Jack has taken up investing, but since he doesn't have much to invest, the returns have been pretty small.

Most of my Finance Sims dabble in playing the market. I love that option!
Some have gained quite a lot through investing.   

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I'm not much of a builder, though. I'm a remodeler and redecorator.

I wish I were ANY of the above!   
I imagine if I enjoyed building and decorating more, I might be better at it...

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Most of the houses I've built in the past are from actual blueprints.

I've been meaning to return to that method for building Sims abodes, Cher.
THIS is the site I used for house ideas and floor plans.
You?

Another beautiful babe for the Sandpipers! Gavin looks like he is going to be as adorable as his big sis.
I love Jack's small smile as his son's face shines happily up at him.   

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...I'm not trying to make Jack miserable, but he can't seem to stop worrying.

Awww!   

Adorable nursery, btw!!!

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I couldn't put the walls up and get a good picture of Paloma, so Ella is photobombing in her bikini.

  

And Paloma is as darling a child as she was a toddler, Cher!

 

Thanks for checking in, Sugah. I'm pretty sure those are the skies Toni referred to. They're the ones I just added to my game. I don't know why, but I really enjoy seeing a lovely sky (or even the overcast ones) in the background.

Sugah wrote:

I imagine if I enjoyed building and decorating more, I might be better at it...

I'd guess that has something to do with it.   I enjoy doing those things IRL, as well. Randy and I have done a lot of home projects. I keep thinking one day I'm going to build our house to use in my game. I did build one of the condos we stayed in when we went to Hawaii.  I'm just glad you enjoy creating and recoloring.   

Thanks for the link to the house plans. I haven't used anything online until recently. In the past, I've used blueprints from a book my SIL has, and floor plans I've picked up at home tours. Sometimes the bigger cities will have a weekend where various builders developing a new area will have home tours, and they always put out flyers with their various floor plans. I collected those for a while, but they're usually huge and not good starter homes.

The home Jack is building came from here, and just today I found this site. I've used Russ's tutorial on beach lots, but I can't seem to get some of the terrain set to the proper level for two of my downloaded lots. They fit in some places in my hood, so I can still use them, but I think I'm going to have to build some homes.   

I read somewhere that downloaded beach lots should never be turned when placing them in your hood or it can cause the game to crash. In my old game, I'm sure I had lots that I turned in order to place them where I wanted. I did have crashes, but there are any number of reasons I might have had them, and it wasn't when I was in any of the beach lots.

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Adorable nursery, btw!!!

Thank you. I love setting up the nurseries. I can never have enough adorable kid stuff.

In keeping with the theme, Gavin means "white falcon" or "little falcon." I'm further along in my game than what I've posted, so I can tell you he's more proof that Jack and Ella make gorgeous kids together.