We've just decided for better or worse that we are going to FanFest 2016. Yes, it is probably the worst idea, we really shouldn't continue to rob Peter to pay Paul but life is short and I almost booked us a trip to an all inclusive resort in Mexico instead. Since returning from FanFest this year, I've thought of nothing but going back to Iceland. I loved everything about it. Then as usual things kept happening and stuff kept breaking and lawyers needed money and we should be adults and buckle down and fix our house. But then a friend from high school sends a group email, a friend I visited with not long after FanFest. She has liver disease and needs a transplant, my cousin who has always been a better sister than my biological sister and isn't that much older than me finds out she has a brain tumor and has to have emergency surgery. At 42 my blood sugar and cholesterol have shot through the roof, I am a cancer survivor, so the heart thing is a huge concern.
So fuck buckling down, fuck fixing the house, I want to travel. I'll drink less soda and get my blood sugar under control and Rixx and I will go to Mexico. But then I researched a bunch of resorts and watched videos. Because I have a need to plan and research a lot (it's a sickness for me). I was so excited, skip FanFest next year, let's got to Mexico instead. And then I watched more videos, videos of people who would probably talk to me at the bar because we wouldn't be distracted by our three children. People who would ask what I do for a living and other crap I don't wanna talk about, and after I explained they'd say "oh so you work with computers? The email on my phone isn't working could you take a look?" I was high after our trip to Alabama. I love the beach, I loved taking the boys to the Gulf of Mexico, I loved getting tan and making fun of Rixx's sunburn. Then my tan got itchy and I watched more videos about all inclusive resorts in Mexico, the cold I developed the day we returned turned into bronchitis. Hey, I didn't get sick when we were in Iceland, nor when we returned, and the people at FanFest didn't ask for computer help, and were not likely to talk to me about really dumb meaningless crap I have no interest in discussing with strangers. Hey Fanfest isn't really strangers. So there is my thought process, so we are going to FanFest 2016.
Once I made the decision the other day, still itchy, still coughing from bronchitis, I started looking at hotels more thoroughly and became disappointed rather quickly. It was looking like it would cost more than last year. And after the 1100 mile drive back from Alabama I was not interested in driving to DC to fly to Iceland, I wanted to fly out of our airport and transfer, so that on return Rixx and I weren't stopping every 15 minutes in the middle of the night to change drivers, eat candy, drink soda just so we can make it home alive after returning from Iceland. I am getting too old for this shit. I spent some of last week looking at hotels telling Rixx we can't afford where we stayed last time, I don't like what's left in the way of hotels, I don't know how we can do this. Then I remembered that back in March at FanFest we had asked Roc Weiler where he was staying and he mentioned an apartment. That's it, I will look for apartments, that's a much smarter idea. Thank goodness Reykjavik isn't a huge city. I spent all of Saturday and Sunday reviewing EVERY apartment available during the FanFest time frame.
My issue was I really liked our hotel's location at this year's FanFest. We were next to Nora and just about everything else. I was worried that I couldn't find an affordable place in that area. I don't want to live like I am in college for a week. I work too hard for that anymore. I want to be able to get to bars but make it home quickly before the angry irish drunk in me shows up. I would like to be able to store my precious Skyr in a refrigerator without removing the mini bar items first, and not eat out EVERY day. I managed to narrow it down to four places near where we stayed last year. I found a really practical, clean place that was on a main street, then a clean, cute, kind of strange but nevertheless nice place, a too good to be true swanky place, and a cottage that screamed this is the place for you.
I spent all day asking questions and receiving really pleasant responses from the owners and came home from work to Rixx with a choice of 1. too good to be true swanky OR 2. the place I really wanted but was a tad more money than the other three. Something about the too good to be true swanky place had nagged at me all day. I finally gave in to that gut feeling (after driving Rixx a little more crazy with my rationalizing) and knocked it off the list. I found a really cute cottage that is near everything and we can sort of maybe afford, not really, but Peter won't mind if I rob him again.
Life is short, if you are on the fence about anything take the plunge and do it. Hopefully you are considering taking the plunge to attend FanFest. If you are I can help guide you to some nice rentals that I have thoroughly researched in Reykjavik or even some nice all inclusive resorts in Mexico if you want to go hang out with strangers who probably don't enjoy video games.