Amber Sutton

It's been a week, man.

Last weekend, Blair and I took off to attend No Brand Con, a little con that has been going on for a long, long time but had taken a few years off when Covid knocked it off the map. Its comeback was less than impressive: only a couple of hundred people, maybe. Only fifteen vendors, twelve artists, one special guest ("special"), a few panels, a room to play games in, and honestly not that much cosplay.

Since we go all in, of course we killed.

The dance party was kind of fun too, even if it was mostly dead. I just enjoyed dancing with Blair. Her sister, Dana, and Dana's husband/our DnD DM, Gabe, also came down for Saturday, so that was nice. The hotel was also very swanky and cool, and the on-site restaurant had good food.

Blair's grandfather passed away that Sunday. The drive home was a little somber, even if his passing was expected. He had been in steady decline for a few weeks now, and had been placed on hospice. That doesn't make it much kinder for the family, of course.

On Tuesday we spent the day in Rochester, loading up with a massive Trader Joe's haul and looking around in the mall for something for Blair to wear to the funeral.

Blair's grandfather has been/will be profoundly celebrated and mourned this week. Yesterday was the visitation, which I didn't go to because I had to work. Today was the funeral this morning, then the graveside visit after that, and then a luncheon at the Legion after that. Tomorrow there is a Celebration of Life at his favorite bar that is likely to last late into the night. I am not planning to go to it; as it is, I already feel like an outsider in the midst of the family mourning. I would likely just sit there quietly for hours while his family reminisces, and I feel like I'm better off at home.

I met this man a handful of times and he was very kind, but I feel people'd out.

Yesterday was also the big ticket sale for the massive Star Wars Celebration event. Much like San Diego Comic Con, tickets sell out without hours, and it's very competitive especially since this next one will be the 50th Anniversary and it will also be in Los Angeles, so it's an event people are wanting to flock to. Thanks to the kindness, coolness, and unending tenacity of the incredible sweettartheart, I was able to have a spot in the queue despite being stuck at work, and Blair and I have been blessed with three glorious days at the upcoming shindig.

Velma is once again ill. This time, she's assumed a massive hankering for food and an insatiable urge to guzzle water, and has been peeing herself whenever she sleeps. We tried diapers, but she would rip them off. We have a water proof blanket for her bed, which is helpful, but it smells and has to be washed constantly. Today a friend of ours did us an incredible favor, skipping the funeral to take Velma to the vet all the way in Black River Falls (over an hour away) and spending the morning there while the pup was tested (for Cushing's). We'll have to wait a couple of days for the results, I'm sure. While Cushing's is common for middle-aged and elderly pets, the prognosis on medication is only "fair to good," and a little worse in animals that have pre-existing conditions, like heart disease, which Velma has. We're wary, understandably.