Got the first letter back from my prison penpal. He seems like he'll probably be nice to talk to, for the most part. We've got a few interests in common, with enough differences in how we engage with them that it leaves room open for discussion. There is one thing I'm kinda iffy on. I mean, I tend to get a little wary of people who are really into religion anyway, due to my own experiences with it and observances of it, but there are certain ways people talk about it in particular that get me and he's kinda riiight up on one of them? Idk, it's hard to explain what my actual problem is. I actually just tried and then deleted what I wrote, lol.

Honestly, as I'm puzzling over it, I'm realizing how much I've come to rely on having someone's social media account at my fingertips to decide if I want to engage. I mean, that's obviously not a thing in irl conversations but you can ask clarifying questions and get real-time answers when speaking someone irl. This is something else, almost in between, and I have less to go on than I would either online or in person. Feels... uncomfortable, I guess? To not have a ready guide for how to broach certain subjects? Not necessarily in a bad way, though. Idk. I want to write the next letter on Friday to have it in the mail on Saturday, so I've got time to organize my thoughts and decide how to respond.

I think the only other thing bugging me is I forgot to keep a copy of my first letter, so he asks about a couple things I don't quite remember saying.

Well, it turns out that I don't have enough black yarn to finish the scarf I've been working on for my niece. Good thing it's cheap, I guess, though I'm not sure what I'll do with the rest of the skein. I'll find something, though. In the meantime, I've started on another scarf for another niece. I don't actually think I have enough yarn for that one either, lol, but it's not like I don't have time to get it. That one's not cheap but at least I can probably use all of the skein if I do a matching ear warmer.

In other crochet news, I'll be participating in a blanket project for charity. The lady who runs Republic of Yarnia will be collected crochet squares to connect into a blanket that will be raffled off. I think this may be a members-only thing but if any of you are interested in participating, I can inquire with her.

Currently working on a scarf for one of my nieces and I think I'll have enough yarn left over for a pair of mittens to match. I'm hoping to do sets for all the niblings this year for Christmas. I don't know what all patterns I want to use for each kid but I've got a lot of the yarn picked out, at least. Should be a fairly straightforward and satisfying way to continue to chip away at my stash.

I also found what I've got left of the yarn I used for Bibbly and will be getting to work on his replacement soon. And my sister's oldest asked me for a unicorn plush recently, so there's that lined up. Of course, if she gets something, the other two will want something. Not sure yet what that'll be but there's no shortage of cute plush patterns.

Trying not to think about it all too much at once, lol, to avoid overwhelming myself to the point that I just don't do anything. I'm feeling pretty hyped about it but we all know that can go any which way.

They've got Michael Bay back developing more Transformers movies and I have feelings about it. They are not good feelings.

Like, listen, I am generally uninterested in the movies. I enjoyed Bumblebee well enough, I don't need to see another. Granted, the last two movies have each offered something I viscerally Did Not Want but even if they hadn't, I'm not sure I'd have bothered. Certainly not when it comes to the live action side of things. As far as pieces of media existing go, any future Bay films do not affect me.

As parts of a brand, though? These films have the potential to affect me very much. How much exactly is questionable, I admit. But different parts of a brand influence each other, especially when the company behind that brand gets the idea that they must to be in alignment. The 2007 movie is the reason the core team of Transformers Animated Autobots included Ratchet and Bumblebee instead of Red Alert and Hot Shot. Age of Extinction heavily influenced the Aligned continuity version of Drift. Even the Angry Birds crossovers are heavily influenced by the movies. And, yeah, the Bayverse's influence was lessened as they lost their wide appeal but if Hasbro is desperate enough to bring him back, as if the movies didn't start going downhill under him, it stands to reason that they're prepared to push whatever his vision for the brand is.

Idk, I'm trying not to catastrophize. For one thing, it's really not a big deal. But I've been so cool on so much of the newer material, this is just one more major disappointment. Also, more importantly, Michael Bay is a creep and I hate that he still has this kind of influence.

I hate when the time comes that the tedious thing I've been putting off can't be put off anymore. I've been getting some Fannish 50 posts ready but it's time to hunt down and insert the images I've decided to use and I don't wannaaa.

And, tbh, the worst part is that I don't actually really have to. No one is making me include images and it's not like I've written the posts in such a way that they're load-bearing. But they exist in the idealized version of these posts that live in my head and they won't feel ready to post without them.

I'm very upset. Mostly at myself.

So, TFcon. TFcon Chicago 2025. It's the same weekend this year as my sister's fiancé's birthday and he's been wanting to visit Chicago again, so it seemed most obvious for them to be my ride this time around. The thing is, this time, that means three adults and three kids. They let us get away with three adults and two kids last time because one of those kids was still quite small. We can't get away with this. And, tbh, none of us would want to stuff that many of us into one room anyway. Which would mean, for the first time, two rooms.

Now, I'm gonna be honest with you guys. As soon as that occurred to me, I was less than happy about it. But it's a trip I really want to take with people I want to take it with, so. Y'know. Price that's gotta be paid. That said, it's not a price I was gonna be able to accept paying on my own. My sister and I briefly discussed as much and we were supposed to decide whether they could comfortably afford to do that or if we should reconsider. Only they went through a sort of patch where I was reluctant to bug them about money in any capacity and my sister, with everything going on, straight-up forgot about it.

Anyway, there are no rooms available at the hotel that weekend. I don't even mean that there are no rooms available in the convention block. There are just no rooms available for that weekend. First time that's ever happened to me-- and I've been scatter-brained enough forget to book rooms until literally the week of the event. There's also no waiting list, so it's not like I can be alerted if rooms become available.

There is a bright side here. The convention organizers have arranged similar discounts at a nearby hotel. It's not in my network, which sucks, but it has got a decent enough rate and does provide free shuttle service to the hotel where the con is being hosted. And since this hotel is still connected to the event, other con-goers will be booked there and so a proper room sale is still a possibility. All in all, an okay consolation prize. Or, at least, it would be if I could book the frikkin rooms. The website was fine when I first got on but I've been trying for about an hour now. I even tried calling (*shudder*) and after finally getting through to someone, was told that they're experiencing problems with the system. It's only a little bit longer until the time they suggested I try to call back but if the website still isn't working-- which it isn't-- then I don't expect the problems have been resolved.

I am cautiously optimistic that I will be able to book these rooms. I mean, hey, not like anyone else can book them out from under me just now, at least. It's just really, really frustrating to not be able to get it done, especially with the weight of the unavailability at my first choice of hotel weighing on me.

ALSO. UNRELATED TO ANY OF THAT. Bibbly the frog, the first ever plush toy I crocheted for my niblings, was left in my sister's van. And has been eaten by mice T^T

After a one-day reprieve, the larger case loads have continued. I did ninety-three today and had to leave about seventy on my desk for Monday. I'm not sure what I'll be getting on Monday but it's definitely more than twenty-three, so some of those are going to have to be split with the folks across the way. If this is going to be the new normal, I might have to beg for another officemate. And here I've gotten used to not needing to use my earbuds :/

In more positive news, my sister's van should finally be getting fixed this weekend. I'm not sure when she'll be available again-- a family of mice have moved into it, apparently, so they'll have to be shooed out-- but it's good to know it won't be much longer. I nearly forgot how expensive it is to have to order rides every day. She's been worried about not being able to get to my niece in case of emergency at school, too, so that'll be a load off her mind. And back to me, this means I can consider furniture pieces on Marketplace again, since she's previously expressed willingness to help me pick up larger items. A lot more has popped up there recently!

And in continuing positive news, I got a package from my LA cousin. He went to SDCC and he asked me while he was there if I wanted him to proxy-buy one of the new wave of Biker Mice from Mars action figures. I've been hesitant to get any non-Transformers toys to take up space but, I mean, that's my childhood right there. But not only did he get the toy I sent him the money for-- Modo, my beloved-- he included a few extras for me! A Modo magnet, the first issue of the BMfM comic which I only recently learned was coming and had no idea was out yet AND Modo's motorcycle!! The magnet is standard clipart fare but still nice. The comic was fun! I don't care for the art but the story so far has got its claws in me; I can hear all the characters' voices from the cartoon and it's doing a good job in setting the stage on Mars, before the titular Mice come to Earth. The book is part of a shared universe and I'm not wild about that but I think I'll pick up the first trade, at least, since I saw in the backmatter that it's currently available. The backup strip did look interesting, ngl. I'm super stoked to be able to mount Modo on his beloved bike-- I just don't know where I'm going to put it! I'd been thinking of the Mice-- and their human companion, Charley-- as potential desk toys but that's sure not gonna work now, lol. Ah, well, I'll figure it out.

Yet another artifact of my childhood, SWAT Kats, is also due to be getting a comic soon. I'm cautiously excited for that. The original creators are on it but it looks like it's going to be a darker, grittier take on the story than the cartoon was. Which, hey, nothing wrong with that. Not everything edgy is try-hard. I remember reading that they'd wanted something more like that to begin with, maybe in the vein of Batman: The Animated Series or Gargoyles, but Hanna-Barbera insisted on lightening up a little. I'm not gonna sit here and say they shouldn't be able to steer their own creation in the direction they always wanted to. Just. Y'know. The version we got, even if it is the result of executive meddling, is what I still remember and love. I'm eager to see what's in store but I can't help but feel a little sad at the idea that something I've been waiting a decade for-- seriously, they've been trying to get a revival off the ground since 2015-- might not be what I want.

I nearly forgot about a Transformers toy I had pre-ordered through Hasbro Pulse. AotP Sky-Byte was delayed by a month or so and is set to finally ship next week. But juuust before I get paid, so that was a no. Bit sad to not be getting him but it's just as well considering I'm still trying to re-home some toys and I don't even have a display in mind for him yet. He's not likely to sell out and he's already been spotted in stores, so it's not like it was a hard call. Tbh, I'm not sure why I bothered pre-ordering him in the first place, much as I want him.

Three other pre-orders are coming up next month and I'm considering cancelling those too. I'm pretty sure I mentioned these three before-- Masterpiece Rattrap and the two Missing Link Arcee variants. I very much want them, far more so than I do Sky-Byte. And I'm less certain of their availability after release. And I pre-ordered through AmiAmi, which means it'll be a strike against my account if I cancel. But. These premium pieces all release together, which means they make for one expensive order. And they're due out at the end of next month, which is only about a month before TFcon at the end of October. Then there's the AmiAmi thing again. They'd be shipped from Japan and overseas shipping is, uh, pretty tenuous right now. I read that the company has suspended some of their shipping options to the US, including my usual choice. And, of course, currency conversion is always a bit of a gamble when you're a ways out from paying. If I do cancel, my plan is to instead put in a pre-order with DeepDiscount. They're stateside, so it'll be an extra few months before they're ready to ship-- and, therefor, to charge. On the other hand, they've scheduled their shipments for the end of December, which is also a pretty shaky time to be spending money...

At least I have time to decide what to do. I don't want to take up all that time deciding, of course, but I do appreciate having it. I might give it until the end of this month and see where things stand then.