This is Maude, your friendly neighborhood phantom, with another one of those “catching up” stories. This time we’ll check back in with the Kilmans, who have gone from poor and happy to not-so-poor and not-so-happy. You’d think a bigger house and more money would make their lives easier, wouldn’t you? But of course, it’s never enough.

We’ll start with Rhonda Kilman. After her subtle makeover, she applied for a few jobs and received a callback for an interview at SimCorp, the place where her son Joey worked. Rhonda didn’t really know what SimCorp did, but she didn’t seem to care, as long as they hired her. Time to ditch the mangled jean shorts and kiddie top and go for something a little more impressive…

That’s right, Rhonda bought a new blue dress for the occasion and couldn’t believe what a difference it made. She stood in front of the mirror several times a day just checking herself out and whispering, “Oh yeah, babe, you’ve got it made. Made in the shade, babe. Made in the shade.” I had no idea what she was talking about, but she seemed pretty pleased with herself.

Her confidence and sparkly new appearance must have won over the people at SimCorp, because they hired her on the spot…as a forklift operator. Apparently the fact that Rhonda had never driven a forklift in her life didn’t concern them overly much.

In her new job, Rhonda had to wear a uniform and work extremely long hours. She and Alessandro only saw each other at breakfast, and even then, they had to eat so quickly that they had very little time for conversation.

Rhonda often came home exhausted and sometimes didn’t make it to her bed in time, passing out on the front lawn. She seemed to like her job, however, and hoped that with enough hard work and dedication, she’d be “noticed” and promoted to something less demanding, like coffee girl.

In the meantime, her children were growing up fast. Joey, who was almost never home, graced the family with his presence long enough to blow out his birthday candles and become an adult. After which he promptly packed his bags and moved out. I think it was the shortest birthday party I’ve ever seen!

The Kilman family was slowly dissolving, bit by bit. It was sad to watch, really, considering how close they all were when Sid was alive. One bright spot was that Tiffy finally got into private school, something for which she had been wishing and working most of her teenaged life.

The first day Tiffy went to Guildenstern Academy was also her last, for her birthday was that evening, and she would no longer be required to attend school of any kind. She was thrilled, however, to have made it that far. Now that her boyfriend Jasper had moved out of Mt. Geneva to attend SimCity University, her love of knowledge was all she had. She dreamed of going to the university herself, but the family just couldn’t afford it.

As for Joey, he moved into a trailer right across from the old Kilman Trailer and continued to commute to SimCorp for work every day. At least, I think he was going to SimCorp. I’m not sure, because he would come home, go immediately to his room, and dump a bag of rumpled Simoleon bills onto his bed. Either his employer was paying him in cash or he was breaking open every vending machine from here to Veronaville! Something fishy was definitely up.

Joey also had a thing for Bailey Singleton and invited her over almost every night. After watching TV and making small talk, he’d try to kiss her, and she would refuse him. They went on like this for days.

Joey was in love with Bailey but knew he didn’t have much to offer her. Ever since he had been a little kid, he had wanted to be rich, but now it meant more to him than ever. His future happiness depended on it, or so he thought. Of course, dear readers, you and I know that money isn’t everything, but Joey hadn’t learned that lesson just yet.

One day Tiffy, now a grown woman, visited Joey at his trailer. She brought her friends Adrian and Stella, who kept a safe distance from the slightly scary looking man in the mohawk. Tiffy revealed that she had gotten a job as an emergency medical technician at the Mt. Geneva Clinic and was moving into the old trailer house across the street. Joey looked surprised — and perhaps a bit nervous, I gathered — but eventually gave his sister a congratulatory hug.

Later that night, Joey sat in his PJs watching Letterman and forming a plan in his mind — at least, I think he was forming a plan. He was keeping his thoughts so close to himself that even I couldn’t see them! What I could see, however, were the wheels turning behind those eyes of his — wheels made of Simoleons.

(to be continued)