Midnight Sun Challenge Generation 1 Chapter 1 -Meet Ian

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Meet Ian

Generation One

Standing on the land of his new home, Ian looked out at the vast expanse of water and took a big cleansing breath. As far as his eyes could see in any direction, he saw no other land, no structures, no other sims. The silence calmed his wounded spirit and began to wash the stress from his body. In that moment, he understood he was finally home at last. Living in the big city has been interesting for a while but, all the constant noise, hustle and bustle was simply not his cup of tea. To him, this was definitely what life was all about.Ian had grown up on the farm, the only child to loving parents until tragedy struck. When his parents were killed in that hot air balloon accident last year, it left him with no one in the world to call family. They had been celebrating their twenty fifth wedding anniversary, when a thundercloud unexpectedly and rapidly rolled in striking the balloon with lightning. Unable to control the balloon, it plummeted to the earth and landed in the middle of the ocean while horrified sims watched from the shore. Rescuers searched for two days and all they found was the remnants of the top of the balloon. Ian never got over the shock of their tragic death, or the fact that he wasn’t able to properly bury his parents.

As a family they did everything together, working and living on the farm. His parents had been his whole world. They left him everything they owned, including the farm but after they died the silence was deafening.

Sitting at the deck table to eat his supper one evening, a place where they shared their end of day conversations, he realized he just couldn’t live in that big farmhouse all alone. The memories of them ingrained in everything at the farm were like darts to his already aching heart. So he left his big family home in the country and tried living in the city.

He held down several part time jobs; bagging groceries at the market, stocked shelves at the book store and even did laundry at the spa for a short spell. Nothing felt right and the unhappiness weighed him down like gravity pulling him into despair. He longed for those quiet country nights, listening to the crickets sing and they owls talk to one another from far away.

On the farm his favourite thing to do at the end of each day was to lie on the hay, stare up at the stars and watch the fireflies dance in the air above him. He had to admit he regretted selling his family home so quickly and wished he had taken more time to make the decision when the sorrow of losing his parents had not been so great. He missed the country air and the sweet smell of all the farm had to offer.

When he saw the ad in the real estate paper for this island getaway home, he immediately called the agent. He bought the island site unseen and it had taken almost all of his inheritance to do so. The view was perfect in every way. No matter which way he looked he couldn't see another soul for as far as the eye could see. Which, for most sims would be pretty daunting, but not for Ian. This was going to be the perfect place for him to work on his art and start writing those books. No disruptions, no distractions, just him completely alone and enveloped in his own thoughts. However, he had been mislead on the size of the island itself. 

 Just two strides in any direction had his feet in water. This was not an island but a pimple. But he justified that this way he wouldn't have any land to maintain that would distract him from his ambitions.

It was eight in the morning and he figured he probably had another six hours of good daylight left for the day. He had a long list of things to get done to start making this a home. He jumped right in by building a basement for shelter in the hull of the boat. He figured it was best to live below where it would be cooler in the summer, as he didn't have enough money to build up onto the platform of the boat. Walls and floors would come in time after he had sold his first book. 

 He lugged down his meager furnishings he had brought with him; just a bed, desk with chair and an art easel. He installed a toilet, on one cabinet to hold a kitchen sink. The fridge was quite the job to get downstairs, considering he only had a ladder. He had to build a winch like system so he could lower it slowly through the hole, of which it literally just fit through. It took some fancy wiggling to get it all the way down. Once the electrical was hooked up, everything was good to go. He was pretty worn out by the time he had finished, but thankful for everything his father had taught him about carpentry, plumbing and electrical.


Standing on the deck of his new home, fishing for whatever he could catch, he finally felt like he could breathe for the first time since his parents had died. It would never be the home he grew up in, but it was the best substitute he could ever wish for.

He caught about eight fish and was satisfied with that, even though it meant he wouldn't be able to afford to eat supper that night. He placed the fish in the shipping box and went downstairs to enjoy his light supper of bread and jam. Which for a frugal person like himself, was a good enough supper for now.

He finished off the light of the day by starting a painting while looking out over the vast expanse of never ending water. 

When the sun began to set and the night began to get too cold to stay outside, he looked up into the sky and said good night to his parents. He imagined them standing side by side and smiling down at him. His parents faces were something he never wanted to forget and he started this ritual a few nights after they were gone. He didn't know if he would ever be loved as much as they loved him. He had hope that someday, when he was ready, he would find a love as great as his parents. When his painting skill had reached a higher level, he wanted to paint a portrait of them, to hang above a fireplace in his brand new home. All he currently had was this rough sketch that his mother had done when he was just a baby. It was old and faded but he cherished it all the same and it helped him to remember his parents and his wonderful childhood. What he wouldn't give to have them back on earth and in his life.

Sleep beginning to take him over, Ian climbed down the ladder into his brand new home, for his very first night, in his brand new life. He crawled into bed, closed his eyes to dream of days past and a life filled with love and happiness.

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Ian's traits: computer whiz, frugal, family oriented, great kisser, artistic