Fanon:Walker family

The Walker family is a family in SimVille.

Original MTS thread
My summer job is now over, and so is my summer break. Now it's back to school, and things are as busy as ever. But at least I'm home, and it's easier for me to do these things when I'm at home.

So, without further ado, let us get back to updating this thread with:

The Walker Family




 * After the untimely death of Mitchell's wife, Mitchell and his son moved to SimVille in the hopes that Mitchell's new job will help him forget about his unfortunate past.

The Walker clan was initially a young, happy family consisting of Mitchell, his wife, and their son Mike. Initially, Mitchell was a stay-at-home writer, writing novels mostly in the adventure and spiritual genres, although he had his successful ventures writing comedic pieces as well. After Mitchell's wife died, however, Mitchell realized that he couldn't get a steady income writing novels and that he needed a day job. That day job was a job at Landgraab County's Times, the largest morning newspaper in Landgraab County (And also the one with "the most boringest name", as Dan Newbie remarks). The paper's offices are located not too far from SimVille, so the Walkers moved there.



And so, their story continues...

The Sims

Mitchell Walker




 * Mitchell is a very talented writer. He enjoys reading and writing, though he likes to game every once in a while too.

Mitchell loves to write. Ever since he was a kid, he enjoyed putting pen to paper and writing whatever came to his mind... and getting in trouble for writing his own stuff instead of doing classwork like he was supposed to. Nevertheless, his teachers took notice, and he brought home no shortage of spelling bee awards. At the age of twelve he wrote his first novel, and when he was sixteen, his teacher gave the class a story writing assignment, in which the winner would be referred to a real book publisher! Mitchell took that opportunity, and before he knew it, he was making a tidy sum from royalties. He graduated from university, got married, and had a son. His writing style evolved as he aged, though they all still had the charm his readers were hooked onto, and the awards and reviews kept flowing in. However, the money he got from writing was variable, and at best could only supplement the family's income, so Mitchell's wife got a regular job while Mitchell wrote to his heart's content.

Now that Mitchell's a widower, though, he's stuck working in an office away from home, pounding away at his keyboard for things other than what his imagination desires.



While Mitchell is working full-time at his obituary writer job, it's not all gloom. For one, he does have time after work to do other things, like play video games (Yes, adults can play video games too!). He also writes in his spare time, so it's not like he's given up on creative writing completely. It does mean that novels come out at a much slower pace than when he was younger, and he does find it more difficult to overcome writer's block when he's dead exhausted from a day of work. But while Mitchell is passionate about writing, journalism—that is, finding the truth at all costs—isn't really his thing. Mitchell certainly has heard about journalists in other parts of the world who are persecuted for trying to reveal truth and reality in places where corruption runs free and the media is strictly censored and filtered, and Mitchell isn't really into that sort of thing. He would much rather settle in at home with a cup of coffee and write stories about whatever happened upon his mind that day. Has it ever occurred to Mitchell that sometimes suffering sows the seeds for a great story? And does he write to proclaim a message, or just for the money?

Mike Walker




 * Mike is all about having fun. If he's not doing something that amuses him, it's probably not worth doing in the first place.

Mike is no spring chicken to goofing around. He particularly likes to have (harmless) fun in class, though in a much more "civil" and "agreeable" manner than Bradley Day (At least when his teachers juxtapose the two with each other). He likes to poke and prod people, but seldom beyond their breaking point, and never if they disapprove. He throws paper balls and leaves sticky tack on doorknobs (Telling people it's chewing gum), but generally cleans up after he's done, or after he's told to. And if someone ever bursts into tears after being on the receiving end of one of his antics, he knows he has to apologize and set things straight.

Of course, friends, teachers, and classmates need not be around for Mike to act silly, like him doing a silly dance on the roof of his apartment.



Mike was once an A+ student, but his grades have fallen slightly. Mitchell attributes it to his goofing around and tells him to "stop acting like a dolt all the time." What Mitchell doesn't notice, however, is that the drop in grades occurred after his wife's death. Like Bradley Day, there's clearly a deeper reason as to why Mike's the way he currently is. Mitchell is a writer, and writers tend to ask lots of questions, but he rarely ever probes into the affairs of his son. Has he stopped and asked himself questions about his own son? Writing a diary or journal seldom produces any money, but maybe it's time Mitchell got serious about what's going on deep inside Mike's head and started putting down on paper more about his only child. Mike has no siblings, unlike Bradley, so his father's the only person close enough to him that he can confide his secrets to. That is, if Mike ever feels comfortable doing so.

The House

The Walkers live in Council Flats, a modified version of the Council Flats download on MTS. These British style flats are rather small, but they're comfortable and effective, and they offer a nice balcony. I modified the lot to add a rooftop communal area and added spiral staircases as an alternative to taking the elevator.



The Walkers live on the second floor, across from the Picasos. They have a small room that serves as their kitchen/living room combo, as well as two bedrooms and a bathroom. The balcony has a dining table, an easel, a punching bag, and a trash chute (No need to go out to the curb to dispose of waste!).







The communal area is accessible only via stairs. Good thing Sims in this game don't have accessibility issues! There are some chess tables, a grill, a mini fridge, some tables and chairs, a stereo, a basketball net, and some monkey bars. It's actually pretty nice up here.



A brief glimpse of life in the Walker family

6am wakeup is the norm here.





After Mitchell's wife's death, Mitchell has had to hone his cooking skills, which sure satisfies the Knowledge aspiration in him. Today he's had enough of the cereal and makes some omelettes instead.









The Walkers have their dining table out on the balcony; their flat simply doesn't have room for an indoor dining table if they also want a couch and a TV. Fortunately, SimVille has a very warm, almost tropical climate year-round, and their balcony is located under a roof, so it's usually okay, even during thunderstorms.



Mike's off to school at 8am. The Walkers live on SimVille Street, right at the first Mohawk Crescent intersection just east of the bridge, and there are a lot of shops, apartments, and traffic nearby. Mike has to be ready to get on the bus when it arrives, because it's not going to like holding up the entire town forever.



Mitchell's shift starts at 11am, so he has some time to himself at home. He doesn't really feel like writing today, though, so he plops down on the sofa and watches a movie instead.



Oh, look who's here! Miss Beth Love, how was your "date" with Cody Day?!?!



After that, Mitchell's off to work writing really nice things about dead Sims he has never met before. Fun. Mitchell really misses the old days...



Mike gets home at 3pm. He brought home the two Kovax brothers with him: Joey and Tim. Mike gets along well with his peers and shares their love for sports, so they head up to the basketball court and take turns shooting hoops.







At 5pm, Mitchell gets home. While he's not a complete introvert, he's not the most sociable person either. He does, however, find great joy in frequenting online chatrooms.



Mitchell's culinary skills really get put to the test in the evenings. Joey and Tim are staying over for dinner (Angela and Jones are a lot laxer with them than most other parents in the hood) so he has to worry about what other people might think about his cooking! Today he made chili con carne...







Success!







I actually realized how rarely I have Sims over at other people's houses for meals.

After Joey and Tim leave for home, Mike jumps up and down on the couch...



...then, after his dad scolds him, he jumps on his bed...



...until finally he's too tired and decides to go obediently to sleep.



Mitchell's trying to overcome writer's block. Trying.







Maybe Mitchell's just in dire need of a pillow to lay his head on. He concludes the day, having written zero new lines in his book. No ETA on when it'll be finished.



Conclusion

It's not easy being a single parent, that's for sure. Mitchell misses the good 'ol days of the past, but alas, mourning his loss isn't going to help him now. Mitchell has bounced back reasonably well after his wife's passing, but he needs to pay more attention to Mike if he wants to understand why his grades are curving downward. As for Mike, he has to learn to keep a tighter lid on his mischief, but I'm sure he'll grow out of it eventually. After all, mischief seems almost licit when you're an adult.

Thanks for reading. Stay tuned for more! Original post