End of Year Updates and New Mod

Hi All,

It's that time, again! The end of another year. I have only a handful of updates, as I just updated a few weeks ago, and finally, finally the release of the Elder Pack mod. Career Services is also available for the public!

Reminder: Proper Installation Leads to Minimal Issues for Us All

PLEASE REMEMBER TO DELETE AND REPLACE UPDATES AND NOT OVERRIDE. SOME FILE NAMES HAVE BEEN CHANGED. PLEASE ALSO REMEMBER TO CLEAR YOUR CACHE. SEVERAL SCRIPTS HAVE BEEN UPDATED.

Also make sure to get the updated version of the mood pack (Nov).

Don't forget that mods have requirements. Don't install mods without double checking you have everything they require including the right packs and the right mod dependencies. This is detailed on the mod pages linked in the title of every mod of mine as well as in the summary of every mod on the landing pages. When in doubt and you have blue boxes or can't click on your sims, it's because you didn't pay attention to what you are putting into your mods folder and what's required for your mods to work as intended.

Mod Updates

***Make sure to fully delete and then drop in the new files. Do not replace. Clear your cache!***

Public Updates

Career Services v1.3 - Minor update for benefits

Divergent Sims v3.7.5- Updated the initial consultation and age up randomization. Minor tweaks.

Family Therapy v3.8 - Minor bugfix.

Pet Care Activities v1.9.5- Updated to fix issue with boarding fees.

Simulated Endings v1.6 - Updated for Elder Mod. Note that Estate Planning is no longer part of this mod. Do not forget to delete the overrides. The file name has changed as has the file's contents.

University Application Overhaul v5.6 - Fixed an issue with mod cheat

Patreon Updates

Divergent Sims v4.3  

Updated the initial consultation and age up randomization. Minor tweaks.

Added new option to force Sims in treatment centers and rehab to come home.

Healthcare Redux 8.3 

Updated for patch changes. Mod menu now available by clicking on Sims.

Added option to disable menopause as well as remove the copper IUDs. Improved compatibility and integration with RPO and WW.

New Mod

Golden Years Elder Mod (Early Access)

This a mod to expand some gameplay options available to Elder Sims. Download Early Access here.

It adds:

• 6 Brand New Aspirations including Gray Love, Sunsetting Globetrotter, and Leisurely Retirement
• The ability to open a Consulting business, work when wanted, and get a weekly paycheck based on how much effort one puts into the business
• Mentoring and Networking Opportunities
• Phone Calls from Community Members/Orgs for Interviews, Panels, Mentoring, & Networking
• Phone Calls from Family and Friends for Elders Asking for Advice or Expertise
• Over 15 Elder Specific Wants including many unique to the mod
• 8 Volunteer Career Opportunities including Neighborhood Watch, Museum Docent, School Board Member, Animal Shelter Volunteer, and Community Activist
• 18 New Hobby Activities including Birding, Antiquing, Nature Walks, Bridge, Tennis,  and Water Aerobics
• Geriatric Health Care (if HCR is not installed)
• Estate Planning including Life Insurance benefits
• Cruise Vacation
• Senior Center Rabbithole with varying daily activities
• New Senior Activity Center venue
• Hireable In-Home Residential Caregiver/Nursing Assistant
• Senior Living choices including Assisted and Independent Living Lot Traits and Nursing Home option
• Sims who are or were in certain professions, upon retirement, can collect either Veteran's benefits or Corporate or Public Service pension in addition to the game's social security

Thank You and Some News

THANK YOU!!!!

For my patrons, thank you so much to my fantastic, wonderful, and supportive patrons. On the whole, we've had a great year and I'm really happy with the mods and features that I've been able to create this year. I appreciate you and our journey! If not for you, there are several times I would've taken my mods and packed it all up this year but you guys have been, on the whole, amazing and I, bottom of my heart, thank you for that! It'll be four years since I started modding in January and I especially want to thank those who've been with me the whole time. You're stars!

The Next Couple Weeks

I'll be honest, though; I'm exhausted. I am incredibly prolific. I know it, I recognize it, I know you love and appreciate it for the most part, but I have to slow down a bit and some things have got to give. I update with new features and create new mods monthly for the last 3 years. And not just small mods but like huge, complex mods which can take weeks and months to create and update; though sometimes what one thinks is a small mod ends up not being one, too. And I've done it every single month, with a handful of exceptions, for the last 3 years. There aren't a huge group of modders, especially modders who mod by themselves like me, who have this level of constant output and there's a very good reason for it; it's an easy recipe for burnout.

I am physically, emotionally, and socially drained. I'm not a social person; I'm not a front-end, business facing type of person; I'm a back-end, we only see Bob for food type of introvert, and interacting via mod support all the time is incredibly taxing and anxiety-inducing which then makes me overwhelmed and irritable and takes copious amounts of time from actual modding when 9/10 it's not an actual mod issue. It's almost always a user related issue like not remembering to reinstall the general pie menu or installing modules for which you don't own the packs or things that are clearly addressed in the lengthy mod descriptions I create and it's starting to be a huge opportunity cost in terms of my limited time. So I have to step back.

So I'm going to take a little break in the new year to recharge but I will still be working in the background; you just might not hear from me until the end of January unless there's something game-breaking or mod-breaking. I hope you understand!

Thank you so, so, so much for all the great feedback and excitement for the mods you've had this year. I love your ideas and your enthusiasm and can't wait for more mods next year. I will have a new one for you in January and maybe an update or two, and, separately, that little collab I spoke of we'll be working hard on it for you in the new year but no ETA yet :)