Sloane City - Gen 5!

Heyo, the Sloanes are back! I've been playing a lot lately, so things have really picked up! May I present to you the fifth generation of Sloanes, starting with...

Here's Christine, the first-born to Vivienne and Andrew. Truth be told, I'm 90% sure this is a picture of her as a teen, but it's the only one I have. But anyway, yes. I was so excited to see her with red hair, which she got from Andrew and possibly Austin as well. I forget. Her brown eyes are from Andrew, that's for sure.

I debated for a while whether or not she would be heir, but I was a little disappointed by the fact she looks exactly like her mother and grandmother, but with red hair. I wanted a little variety in my future Sloanes, so Christine had to go. Plus, unfortunately, she got a little eclipsed by her siblings. But fear not, she's still a lot of fun to play! I was sad to see her go.

Christine married their maid, Darron Kane. She is in the journalism career, and it's her LTW to be a star news anchor! She and Darron had a baby named Irma (clearly not my choice). Yay, Christine!

Can't wait to have your own Christine? Click here to download!

Onto baby #2! Meet Emmett Sloane - the heir of generation five! Much like gen four, Emmett is the second-born and the only boy sibling. Heir was an unusally tough pick, but Emmett won me over with his adorable charm. I liked him a lot as a child and teen, but it was when he aged up that he really did me in. I can't even put my finger on it, but he's just a really likeable Sim. He is currently pursuing the politics career, and doing pretty well at it! I think one of the reason I like him so much is because he stands around giggling to himself, despite being hot-headed. It's pretty cute, as are his childish traits (childish seems to be the dominant one!). Plus, he was the best big brother to his younger sister - even though she's moved away now, they talk/visit every day, and it's pretty adorable.

Emmett married his high school sweetheart, Jada. Unfortunately, things aren't going so well, so we'll see what happens next...

Excited to have an Emmett to call your own? Click here for some downloading fun!

And finally, may I introduce...

Miss Stella Sloane! I apologize for the weird face she's making. But here she is! I wasn't too crazy about her at first, but she really grew on me, especially since she and Emmett did their homework together every day and became BFFs. Stella gave Emmett a serious run for his money, but the reason she ultimately lost is because she looks too much like her mother. She even has the green eyes and blonde hair, and as gorgeous as she is, I kinda would like my next gen kids to not look exactly like the previous generation. Sorry, Stells! We're trying to take good care of your garden.

Stella got a job in the education career (because a total whackadoo is exactly the person you want teaching your kids, am I right?). She married her high school sweetheart, Ray(mundo). They just had a baby, Cruz (again, not my choice!). Since she and Emmett are such good friends, I expect to see a lot of Stella during gen 6!

You say you want a Stella? Click right here!

So there's generation five - halfway there and we're still loving it! I'd say I love this gen the most, for lots of reasons, but mainly because the kids were so great!

Other Updates:
*I bit the bullet and moved the Sloanes - I just couldn't take their house anymore! Considering how big it was, there just wasn't enough space for everyone. So I built them a place across the street - and yes, I remembered to bring along all the graves and paintings by Jon. I plan on moving the last generation back to the original house, but we've got a way to go.
*Vivienne and Andrew became vampires, but Andrew took the cure potion, so he's back to normal. Being a vampire seems to suit Viv.
*Christine and Darron somehow became 4-star celebrities. I have no idea how this happened!
*Andrew and Viv are, at this point, at level nine of their careers (Rock Legend and Emperor of Evil, respectively). One more promotion each and they reach their LTWs!
*Morgan and Lee died :(
*Rosie died :(
*Jon went back to the netherworld, or whatever you want to call it. I AM SO DEPRESSED! Jon can never come back, and I missed the whole thing! It happened sometime during Christine and Darron's wedding/move out of the house. I sent Jon down to the bistro with Andrew, since they were both hungry and were BFFs, but Jon never came back. They screen never shifted automatically to Jon, like it does when Sims die the first time around, and I never got a pop-up saying anything had happened. I suddenly realized he was missing, and when I saw a gravestone at the bistro, I wanted to cry. RIP Jon, we'll miss you!

I'm Starting the Movement

I don’t normally watch Private Practice, the Grey’s Anatomy spinoff. But Thursday’s episode dealt with the immediate aftermath of one of the character’s attack and rape. A few days have passed since the episode ended, and for a show I don’t normally have an interest in, I haven’t been able to shake it off.


Show creator Shonda Rhimes made a good point when she stated that most TV rapes are seen from the law enforcement’s point of view; rarely, we see it from the other side, from the victim’s side. The Private Practice episode was beautifully written and acted, but the last few moments where the rape was portrayed will haunt me for a long time.

I could barely watch the episode. If I wasn’t feeling sick to my stomach, I was near – or in – tears. The power behind the situation was palpable, and it’s hard to let go. Kudos to the show for showing what I imagine is a realistic – if sickening – portrayal.

I visited RAINN.org, the organization that worked with Rhimes and KaDee Strickland (Charlotte, the character who was raped). There’s tons of information on the site, including some horrifying statistics such as 1/6 American women has been the victim of an attempted or completed rape. ONE out of SIX.

As difficult as it was to watch the show, I hope it raises awareness about rape and sexual assault. I always hope there’s a movement that removes “rape” and all forms of it from our casual vocabulary. We’ve all heard someone say something along the lines of “I was raped by that mid-term today!” THIS IS NOT OKAY. Likening a tough exam to such a disgusting, life-changing violation IS NOT OKAY. I’m starting the movement, and I hope you’ll join me.

For more information rape and sexual harassment, please visit RAINN.org

Sims 3 Nightlife: A Review

The lastest EP from The Sims came out recently, and here's what I have to say about it!

The Good:


• Overall, I’m really pleased by the game! I like how it combines elements of The Sims 2 Nightlife and The Sims Superstar, two great games of the past.

• The addition of celebrities: this is a big one for me, since I loved Superstar, despite finding it frustrating. However, it’s a little easier this time around, at least with the Sim I created to test the Late Night waters. It’s still enough of a challenge, since you have to “impress” celebrities higher than your star rating before you can chat to them like regular acquaintances. But if you join the film career, it shouldn’t prove to be too difficult. (This was a major problem I had with Superstar. Maybe I was doing something wrong or missed something major, but I played a Sim with every skill maxed out, sent him to Studio Town all day, every day, yet never managed to get above 2.5 or possibly 3 stars. Grr!)

• Great new additions to clothing! I love the sexier look of the game overall as well.

• A lot of new objects to make the game a little more fun, such as keyboards, cello and drums, among other things.

• Hot tubs! They’re awesome.

• I like the feel of Bridgeport, a true metropolitan city. Hitting up to Hot Spots every night is actually pretty fun!

• Bands. I haven’t explored this option yet, but I like the idea of starting up a band and possibly getting to do it full time, if you’re good enough.

• Maxis has added a few new features in CAS. There’s a muscle definition and breast size slider, which is pretty awesome. They’ve added two new traits (I was hoping for more, but oh well): shy and star quality.

• Apartments are back. While I don’t completely love them, I’m glad to buy a place and have lots of money left over. I can buy more skilling objects without having to cheat or wait forever to save up for them, which is cool.

• Food carts in the park! Awesome!

• I love how people begin treating you differently the more famous you get. My Sim is always getting her picture snapped by fans, and she’s gotten a few freebies/discounts. Sweet!

• Swimming pools are more versatile. I haven’t explored this option too much yet, but you can now have them indoors, on the roof, etc.

• You can read about which place will be the “hot spot” de jour in the newspaper. Since my Sim has the aspiration to max out her star power, I find this handy.

• I’ve noticed a lot of new wishes, which is always good since it adds variety. A lot of them have hilarious icons, too!

The Bad

• I really, really hate the subways. Majorly. Instead of taking a cab somewhere, my Sim will hop in a cab to a subway station, take the subway to another stop (which is admittedly fast), but then hop in another cab for the duration of her destination. It’s fine when your destination is attached to a subway stop, but usually the scenario I just described is what ends up happening. It’s immensely frustrating. I highly recommend buying your Sim a car if this sounds tedious to you (which it is). I live in a big city myself and have to rely on transit, so maybe this hits too close to what I have to deal with every day. I’m considering editing them out in Bridgeport and see how that goes.

• Elevators have returned, and while I like the possibilities of making out or woohooing in one, I find them too slow. You have to wait around for one, and since some of these buildings are huge, it can take a while for it to get to you.

• Among those lines, I find it a little annoying how some of the community lots are within high-rises. For instance, you can’t just walk into the gym and have that be that, you have to take an elevator up dozens of floors. It doesn’t seem worth it.

• Another big problem I have is everything seems to take a lot longer. Getting around takes a lot longer than it used to, even with a car, and there’s the elevator problem I mentioned above. I have to have my Sim leave for work when I get the “the carpool will be here in an hour” popup or she’s late for work (and really late – like 45 minutes late). I moved her to a building across the street from work so this isn’t a big problem anymore, but I can see it being annoying if there are no places to live right by other professions.

• While I don’t mind the apartments, I really wish we had a say over which unit our Sim gets when they move in. I don’t think my Sim had any neighbours at all, yet she ended up on the 11th floor in her first building. After I moved her, she was on the fourth floor, which wouldn’t be too bad if she wasn’t insistent on taking the damn stairs (really! Four flights of stairs?! I know I just complained about the elevators taking a long time, but in this case, I’m thinking the elevator would be faster).

The Others (Things that are neither good nor bad):

• Vampires are back for this EP, but I haven’t played as one yet. I didn’t care too much about vampires in Night Life, and my feelings of indifference haven’t changed yet. Someone on Amazon.com commented on how they think Maxis designed the vampires after Twilight, which I can sort of see, but whatever. I do like how you get a negative moodlet when you’re around an unfamiliar vamp.

• More building options! Woo! I’m not much of a builder, but I’m sure this will please many people.