A Quiet Week After Dragon Con With a Few Unexpected Detours

This past week was a little more laid-back after Dragon Con, although we still had a few unexpected things happen.

We came home with some great memories from the convention, including meeting someone I had wanted to meet for a long time. Then a thunderstorm knocked out our internet, which changed our weekend plans a little more than expected.

Between recovering from Dragon Con, watching UFC in the conference room, and looking ahead to more travel, it ended up being a pretty interesting week.

Meeting Lena Headey at Dragon Con

One of the biggest highlights from Dragon Con this year was getting to meet Lena Headey.

Most people probably know her as Cersei Lannister from Game of Thrones.

For me, though, the bigger connection was 300.

She played Queen Gorgo in the movie, which obviously makes her especially memorable for someone who marches with the 300 DC Spartans every year.

We had hoped I might be able to meet her while I was still wearing my Spartan gear, but the timing did not work out that way.

I saw her later in the day after the parade, once I had already changed out of the costume.

It still made for a great moment.

We have a wall where we keep photos from some of the celebrities and people we have met over the years, so I was happy to add her to the collection.

After marching as a Spartan for so many Dragon Cons, getting to meet the Queen from 300 felt like a pretty fitting way to finish the weekend.

Coming Home to an Internet Problem

We were only home for a few days before a thunderstorm created another problem.

Lightning came through the area and apparently fried our modem.

At first, I assumed everything simply needed time to reset.

Eventually, I realized there was no power going to the modem at all.

That started the process of calling Comcast, troubleshooting the system, and eventually going to pick up a replacement modem.

I hoped it would be a simple plug-and-play situation.

It was not.

We installed the new modem ourselves, but the internet still would not come back.

The outage lasted through Friday and Saturday, and at one point it looked like we might be without internet for even longer.

Then, early Sunday morning, it suddenly started working again.

I am still not entirely sure what finally changed, but I was happy to see it come back.

Watching UFC in the Conference Room

Being without internet at home meant we needed another plan for watching the UFC fights.

It was UFC Noche, and we did not want to miss it.

So Holly, Sam, one of Sam's college friends, and I ended up watching the fights in the conference room.

It was definitely not the original plan, but it worked.

Sometimes technology problems force you to improvise a little.

We had internet, a screen, and somewhere to sit, so the conference room became our UFC viewing room for the night.

It actually ended up being a fun way to watch the fights together.

Finding BTS Oreos

While I was at the store, I also noticed something that immediately made me think of Holly.

There were BTS Oreos.

Holly is a big K-pop fan, and BTS is obviously one of the biggest groups in that world, so seeing them with their own Oreos was pretty funny.

We did not actually buy them.

Still, I had to stop and take a look because I did not expect to see BTS branding on a package of Oreos.

Apparently, there really is a collaboration for almost everything now.

If anyone has tried them, I would be curious to know whether there is anything different about them or whether it is mostly the packaging.

Kingston Knows His Favorite Person

I also came across a cat meme during the week that made me think of Andrew, so I sent it to him.

Almost immediately, he responded that Kingston was lying right beside him.

Apparently, Andrew is very clearly Kingston's preferred human.

Anyone who has a cat probably knows how that works.

Cats tend to make their own decisions about who belongs to them, and once they choose their person, there is usually not much anyone else can do about it.

The timing of the message made the meme even better.

Recovering From Dragon Con

Holly and I are also still recovering a little from Dragon Con.

Between all the walking, standing, costumes, the parade, and several long days, you definitely feel it afterward.

One of our favorite things to use for sore muscles is Tiger Balm.

We tend to prefer it over some of the other topical pain relief products, so I picked up some while we were out.

Dragon Con is always worth it, but there is definitely a recovery period afterward.

Every year I am reminded that several days walking around downtown Atlanta feels a little different than it did when we first started going.

More Travel Coming Up

The next several weeks are going to include quite a bit of travel.

Most of it will be connected to work or family.

One trip I am especially looking forward to is Parents Weekend at High Point.

It will be our last Parents Weekend there, which feels a little strange.

We have been making those trips for several years now, and suddenly we are almost at the end of that chapter.

One son has already graduated, and the other is heading into his final year.

I am looking forward to being done with the college years, but it is also strange realizing how quickly they passed.

It feels like we spent years planning around school schedules, move-ins, Parents Weekends, and college events.

Now there are only a few of those left.

Final Thoughts

This week was quieter than Dragon Con weekend, but there were still plenty of memorable moments.

Meeting Lena Headey was a great way to cap off Dragon Con, especially after spending another year marching with the Spartans.

Back home, a lightning storm left us without internet for a couple of days and turned the office conference room into our temporary UFC viewing area.

We also found BTS Oreos, confirmed that Kingston still knows exactly who his favorite person is, and spent a little time recovering from several long days at the convention.

Now we are looking ahead to another stretch of travel and one final Parents Weekend at High Point.

It feels like several chapters are beginning to wrap up while new ones are starting.

For now, though, I am just happy the internet is working again.

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