Who Would Have Guessed?

Image by spugbrap via Flickr

I am a Grandmother to 5 little ones, and a Mother to 7. Ten years ago, I was computer illiterate. I was afraid that I might push the wrong button; either I would kill the computer which belonged to my daughter and son in law, or I would contract some dreaded virus and pass it on to everyone in my address book who would then pass it on to everyone in their address book and so on and so on and eventually all computers would become infected and my lack of computer knowledge would be the blame.  Oh my…..

Who would have guessed that by the year 2009, fully retired from the outside work world, I would become an active member of Facebook online and an addict to one of their many games, FarmTown? There are thirty-something levels through which one progresses over time…lots of time…I am currently at level 25. My 30 year old daughter is at level 29. Addiction must run in the family.

FarmTown is a game of sorts. One builds their farm little by little, beginning with just a few crops to get you started. Coins are earned by harvesting these crops and also by harvesting the crops of others. As you earn more money one can purchase more land for more crops and also all sorts of other farm related items. You can be as organized and structured a farmer as you want, or if you would rather, you can be as random and free with your planting and decorating. Houses may be purchased. There are 3 houses currently available on FarmTown: small house, farm house and mansion. In order to purchase any house, you must first reach a certain level. I am still the proud owner of the small house, which is more like a cabin than a house. I have my sights on that farm house though!

One of the highlights of my time spent on the farm was the day I was able to purchase a decorative windmill! Since then I have added a picnic table and benches and even more recently, a pretty fancy looking patio set. Just yesterday I was allowed to purchase my barn. It took a lot of effort to accomplish that feat. I posted on my profile page and my other farm addicts, or rather friends, congratulated me and sent me gifts to add to my farm.

More money of course, is made by planting more expensive crops. When they are harvested, you earn more money which in turn allows you to plant even more crops. Cotton is a great one. You reap more than double what you have paid for it. I am however, more in to decorating; you know, like making sure the tulips and  zinnias look nice together, properly spaced, important details like this. I like to have fences and hedges and gates that make my farm appealing to all those farm friends who visit.  I even have a meditation garden with a bench and wishing well, which of course, also cost  money.

Other items one can purchase include flower seeds and animals, both of which add to the real life farm appeal online, however neither will bring you any money, that is unless you decide to sell them. If you do sell animals, flowers, trees, etc you can expect to receive a mere fraction of what was originally paid for the same item. I have a feeling I might be a bit slower than some in reaching my goal…but wait, what is the goal? I am not sure, but I have a feeling that I will know once I have reached it.

In reality, I guess my farm is much like my own real life. Not a lot of money, and have never been too concerned about making more of it. I want things to look and feel homey. I want my home to be a cheerful and inviting place for others to “sit a spell”. Farm Town allows me to put in to action things that I wish I could do in real life, but don’t have the money, time or let’s face it, energy.

So… are you wondering just how much time one needs to spend on the farm to reach the highest levels possible? I haven’t reached those levels just yet, however I can tell you that I definitely spend more time on the farm than I would like to admit to, say, my Mother,  who just wouldn’t understand the need to grow online crops. Nor would I admit to my best friend who still works a 9 to 5 job, 5 days a week. Do you sense a little guilt on my part? Can we just say that I check my farm morning, noon and night making sure that my crops are harvested before going to waste?

Oh, have I mentioned the social benefits to spending time on the farm? There is a handy little chat feature so one can converse with those who have hired you to work on their farm, or vice versus. I have made many new friends while spending my days .. and nights .. on FarmTown. I have also been in touch with old friends who I haven’t seen in years, but we reconnected on the farm. No kidding. The farm also allows me to be in touch with other family FarmTown addicts. You know the saying: the family that plays together, stays together…or something like that.

I could go on and on about the pleasures of working my online farm, but I am going to have cut this a bit short as it is time to check in on the crops again. Then it will be time to hire someone to harvest and plow, and I will need to decide what design I will create with my next round of planting. I wonder how close I am to the next level; I think I get to buy a farm house then!

Come join me on the farm sometime. It would be great to meet another prospective addict. I can give lots of pointers at becoming only the best.