Change in plans, apparently

We've decided to give up on Otakon for this year. It would be really expensive, and both Danielle and I would just barely be able to afford it. Plus, Doug's mother apparently thinks she controls his life and his money. She pretty much shot him down when he mentioned just driving here for a long weekend, saying he can't afford it. I have a feeling she'd do the same shit for Otakon, and there's no way Danielle and I could afford to go if Doug had to cancel. So before we paid to register and then lost that $55 each, we decided we were better off not going.

I'm disappointed but at the same time I'm not really. We decided we'll just try for next year instead. We'll make sure to book the hotel much earlier so we get one of the cheaper rates. That alone would cut the hotel cost in half, at least. Plus next year Doug won't have to worry about his mother causing problems if he wanted to go.

So that leaves me with the money I would have been spending on Otakon freed up for other things. Hotel, registration, gas, tolls, food, and spending money. After talking about it earlier with both Danielle and Doug I'm thinking of taking a couple of smaller trips. It might actually work out better this way; I'll spend the same amount of money (or thereabouts) but I'll get two or three weekends away instead of only getting to Baltimore. I'll also get to visit more of my friends.

First off we're probably going to go and visit Doug. Maybe over the same weekend we were going to Baltimore, since Danielle is off work. I already looked and hotels up there are maybe 1/3 of what the Baltimore hotel cost, so it's definitely doable. Then we'd still get to hang out with Doug.

Also thinking of a trip to Philly to see some people, possibly with Danielle. We mentioned that tonight as well, though we'd have to work out more details on it before I can be sure. Even if she can't afford the trip I still may go out for a few days.

With the money saved from Baltimore I'll also be able to go and see Shelly one weekend at least. I only need to pay for gas for that but I wasn't sure if I could before, considering how much gas is right now and how much I needed to save for Baltimore. I'm definitely excited for that, and she hasn't even moved yet. >_>

Finally, my Ireland trip is tentatively back on. Even with these other trips I should have money left. I'm going to talk with my family and see if they'd cover the rest of a plane ticket as a birthday gift. Prices for flights drop drastically just after Labor Day so it wouldn't be all that expensive to go for a week toward the beginning of September.

Honestly, I'd be happy if even one of these trips ended up working out. But there's actually a good possibility of all four of them happening (and the first three are pretty definite) so I'm really excited. My summer might not be quite as boring as I thought it would be.