OK, the Apocalypse Challenge is hard. I crashed and burned, big time. Didn’t even reach the top of the first career track. I’d start over but the thought of playing another founder through college is cringe-inducing. Gah.
So on to happier things…like my new Legacy family, who are doing rather well, I must say. If you’d like to hear all about them, please read on…
This is my founder, Azalea Burr. I gave her that weird botanical name because one of the handicaps I chose for her is “Green Thumbâ€. I envisioned many trees and flowers and kids with botanical names in her future.
“Ahh, isn’t nature beautiful?â€
Azalea had to be a Family Sim because she has “Strict Family Valuesâ€. No woohoo before marriage in this legacy! And every woohoo has to be a “Try for Babyâ€, because the Burrs don’t believe in birth control. (I hope that doesn’t come back to bite me in the you-know-what later on…)
I also gave her the “Noble Composure†and “Hypochondriac†handicaps, so she has a 10 Neatness and a fondness for high culture. I figured that makes her a bit of a Miss Priss.
“It’s shocking what they write in these novels of romance. Shocking!â€
By the way, here’s a list of all the new handicaps if you’re curious. I’ll give little details about the ones I’ve chosen as I go along.
You’ve no doubt noticed Azalea’s peculiar clothing. I’ve decided do with the Burrs what I was going to do with the Braytons way back when: they’re going to “go through time†over the generations. This means each generation will bring in new styles of hair and clothing as well as new technology and furnishings. I’m dying to use some of the period clothing over at All About Style, so this is my chance! It’s totally goofy and self-indulgent, so I hope you don’t mind.
Azalea is starting out in the Civil War era, roughly. It was a time of big hoop skirts and hair in low buns (think Gone With the Wind and Little Women). Azalea’s hat might belong to a slightly later era, but I thought it looked cute with the dress, so there you go. I’m not shooting for historical accuracy here, just the flavor of the period, as you will see.
OK, enough of my babbling. For the “Green Thumb†handicap, Azalea had to plant 20 plots of flowers right away. I chose the diagonal ones because of the low cost.
“A cottage for two…la da deeee….da da dooo….â€
Also, because I chose the “Middle of Nowhere†handicap, I had to buy her a car (she can’t use the carpool or taxi to go anywhere). Of course, I went for the 19th century version of a “junker”:
“How dare you call it a ‘junker’! You’ll hurt the poor horsies’ feelings.”
For “Green Thumb†and “Noble Composureâ€, Azalea had to reach 10 points in Environment and Culture respectively, so I sent her off to buy a magazine at the good old general store.
“Dear me…what on earth is this garish display?â€
Poor Azalea, no one’s created an old-fashioned magazine rack yet. She’s stuck with the modern stuff. And the gentleman she met! So forward! And wearing his undershirt in public!
“I dig your chapeau, pretty lady…HOTCHA!â€
Even though Azalea is Miss Priss, the sparks were flying between these two. Two lightning bolts!
“Oh my. Well, I…uh…it’s…well…hee?†*turns 15 shades of scarlet*
She found out the gentleman’s name was Vincentio McGregor (rowr, what a name, eh?) and invited him home for tea.
“Well, I’ll be…what the heck am I gettin’ myself into, here?â€
OK, so they didn’t have tea, but they should have! It would have been nice and proper. Unlike this kissy-kissy they did, which wasn’t proper at all!
“I don’t kiss on the first date, Mr. McGregor.†“Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.â€
Actually, it was quite proper according to Da Rules, because there was no woohooing of any kind. They just shared a chaste kiss or two. I was pleased with how well they got along. Plus Vincentio took out the garbage while he was there. Match made in heaven!
“You’d think this would get me more than just a kiss…†*grumble grumble*
But Azalea wasn’t ready to let a man into her life just yet. She had a career to work on. A career as a security guard. A security guard in a…flouncy feathery hat?
“Giggle all you want…I mean business!â€
And because I’m easily amused…check out the wagon at night! Can you imagine that thing cruisin’ down the highway?
“Are you still giggling? Safety on the road is no laughing matter!â€
For no reason I remember, I had Azalea quit her Law Enforcement job and switch to the Medical field. Maybe I figured it would suit her better, since she’s a neat freak and likes to clean all the time. She certainly didn’t look any less funny in her new uniform.
“That’s right…you can call me Dr. Burr, Medicine Woman!â€
(continued on Page 2)
Wow. Jenba, I never thought I’d say this, but I think this family (or, well, Sim so far) has overtaken the Ravelos’ #1 place in my charts. This. Is. Too. Awesome. For. WORDS. Seriously. I was giggling so much reading this that I was getting funny looks and I teared up a bit. Please, please! Encore! Encore! =o
(Recovered enough to actually comment:) Also, I think Vincentio will look absolutely dashing as a gentleman of past times! :D That extra roman face works really well with a snazzy bit of facial hair, I’ve found. Have you opted for names for the next generation yet? If not I’d like to suggest Betony, Briony, Burdock or Basil! :D I love floral names. And eee, Azalea is so pretty! I really like how you gave her face that genteel appearance, she really does look like she’s straight out of Gone With The Wind.
Omg. Omg! OMG! This is the coolest challenge ever! I really love the idea of the changing of eras and everything. The Green Thumb handicap looks… challenging. I always forget to water the flowers and the gardener doesn’t do a very good job at that either. :D Anyway, I’m really looking forward to the next update. Maybe we’ll even see some little Burrs? ^^
“I dig your chapeau pretty lady…Hotcha!” and “Frankly my dear I don’t give a damn” XD Omg I was giggling like a dork. And the car! lol How does she “get into” it? Is it a truck and that’s why she can be that high? (I have no clue, I don’t have any expansion packs). I love the lights on the car too, that just made my day lol. I love this challenge so far! I noticed Kay suggested some names for the children already ha ha. You can always think of that song by Simon and Garfunkel “Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme” lol. I look forward to more of this family. :)
BIGHUG – I thank you SO SO SO much for this, Jen, you know how much I adore your legacies!! Oh thank you :) – I’m also trying out a new legacy with a college sim, with some handycaps as well, but not as many as you chose – that’s gonna be quite hard for ya, I assume! SO EAGER to read on! Weeeeeeeeeeeelll done :)
Thanks, you guys! I’m seriously thrilled that you’re enjoying this, because I’m having a good time with it, too. Hugs to you all!
Kay – I love the names you suggested, and guess what — I had already used one! You’ll see which one in the next update. ;-)
Jasmine – Thanks so much! “Green Thumb” is quite hard, as you’ll see in the next update…heh.
Jadice – Haha, those names are on my list, too! And that wagon is funny – I think it’s based on the regular nightlife car, but the artist was able to change the animations so that the Sim sits up higher. It’s amazing what they can do!
Eva M – Hey you, jetsetter! I wanna hear about your new Legacy, too! The handicaps are fun; hope you enjoy it!
Okay, this had me cracking up! The hat and the uniform! I could totally see her running down the street, chasing after a burglar. She’d wave her handbag threateningly while using her free hand to secure her hat. “Stop right there, you scoundrel! It isn’t proper to make a lady run!”
Can’t wait for more… this is certainly going to be a legacy just bursting with unique personality! :D
Haha, thanks, Mao! I think we were reading each other’s posts at the same time! Weirdness. :-)
by the way, a nice flowery-name is Phyllis, aswell ;) – ages ago I planned a legacy with her (in case you remember a Morrigan marriage, I think it was Felicity, and a guest was Phyllis Palmer), which main goal was to only marry gardeners into the family and give the children ‘natural’ names ;).
came back from India this morning, Chennai to be exact, it was so exciting! oh, and I forgot to mention how cool this horse wagon is :D
I am loving this new legacy! It’s really starting to inspire me to start a new one with these new rules. I love your prim and proper founder and the handicaps you’ve chosen are adding twists to the story that are just too cute. I loved Azaela’s wedding dress and Vincentio seems to be fitting right into this era. I can’t wait to read more! Baby Burrs are going to be so cute.
Jen, there is something truly magical about Sims in your hands. It’s like loving evey movie Johnny Depp is in. I love any sim story that you write. The new challenge is great, and I love the handicaps – definitely a plus for master simmers who are getting bored. I’m anxious to see how they will work out – the flowers and whanot – and their interests – that’s interesting to manipulate as well. I seldom if ever buy magazines… Vincentio really is handsome… never seen that face quite like that before – further proof of your magic power over sims. I am anxious for more, and perhaps even inspired enough to go back to work on the next Confessions of an Heiress…. Thanks for giving me my Mt.Geneva Fix!
This challenge sounds like a bunch of fun! I really like the handicap part of it, it sounds a bit complicated but I think I’ll understand it a bit more as you continue to update! I really like how you’re moving the generations through time periods. I’ve tried to do that in my game before, and it was really fun!
Ah Jen, your sim stories are amazing!
Ugh, you’re getting a scary amount of spam, Jen! :/ When did that start? I recall seeing a few before, but not quite this kind of onslaught or as semi-sneaky. Yucky.
Eva M – Chennai! That sounds so cool. As long as you don’t have to eat airplane food all the time. ;-) I like your idea of marrying only gardeners into the family — that would be an interesting addition to the “Green Thumb” handicap.
Bitsy! Hey! I am still loving your mythic name hack. Best. Thing. Ever. I am hopelessly behind on your site, however. Slowly catching up. I love the Windlings and Datlows!
Amy, that means so much coming from you, the Master Sims Storyteller (or Evil Overlord as the case may be…)! Thank you! Now get to work on that Confessions of an Heiress update! Hehe. (Or next Heiress of Strangetown, I’m not picky — they’re all awesome!)
Mandie – Coolness! How is your Prosperity Challenge coming along?
Marcie – Hey, I just checked out your blog! I’m adding you to my links.
Kay – Yeah, I get a lot of spam, unfortunately. I should probably upgrade my WordPress, but I’ve been putting it off. So I just go in and delete them all as quickly as I can. Durned spammers!
I love it, Jen! You are very ambitious to choose so many handicaps (I read through them and don’t know if I will ever be able to incorporate them into a Legacy challenge). I look very forward to reading more about the Burr family!
I ADORE Azalea Burr. Do I need to say why? Not sure I know that myself. Lovely styling choices and wardorbe for her, as well. I love the idea of moving the legacy through the time periods, should add some fun to it. Vincentio does have an odd handsomeness about him. What a cute couple! Funny to see Azalea’s old time period clashing with the present. I’m looking forward to more. I agree with everyone, and I know you’ve been told it a thousand times, but you really do have a magic touch!