Personal Digest Saturday (but posted on Sunday!): September 9 – September 15

Life news this week:

• Saturday I did some online stuff (including blogging) and hung out with my family. We finished our Cookie Cats, went bowling together, ate sandwiches, and played Jackbox games. We made angel food cake from a box in honor of our mom's upcoming birthday and this was the cake she used to make us often. I then reluctantly packed for staying overnight in Sarasota. I hate packing.
  
  
• Sunday we had cake for breakfast and headed off to Sarasota in two cars. We went to the Eternal Reefs site to have the viewing of my mom's reef ball. We made rubbings of the plaque with her name, and we got to see the "pearl" made out of her ashes. Then we went out to lunch (minus Lindsay who went to see one of her friends). I had a nap while the others swam and hung out. I wrote a mail to a new friend and wrote the storyboard for my webcomic, and then we got pizza, ate, and played Cards Against Humanity (family edition) together. My dad won. :)
  
  
• Monday we all had to get up early to get out to the boat to go see our mom's reef ball be put into its underwater home. We guzzled coffee and trekked out to the departure site, where I had an adventure getting a donut. We filed onto the boat and spent some time just enjoying the wind and sun and salty air. Dolphins followed the boat and we got pictures and video! We also decorated a "tribute reef" with flowers. We watched the reef ball be lowered into the water and said our last goodbyes to her. And my dad played the Andy Griffith theme song on his phone because that was her favorite show. :) I got sunblock in my eyes. We headed back to the shore and got boba after. I took a damn nap. Later, after some of the family went swimming, we left Sarasota and took Lindsay to the airport, and then picked up SoFresh for dinner and I unpacked before going to bed.
  
  
• Tuesday I went back to work. Didn't get much coffee talk time with Patricia but we did have coffee! And angel food cake. On what would have been my mom's 69th birthday. I helped my sister with a few packing tasks and saw them off as they were picked up for the airport. Then I caught up at work, sent Meg a Polo about the Eternal Reefs activities, and paid bills. I organized a BUNCH of photos and set stuff up for my sister to give me their photos too. And I worked on my comic while practicing music and putting away laundry.
  
  
• Wednesday I missed my sister coffee talk. Had a pretty ordinary day at work. Got some cleanup done, more Poloing, putting beds back together, and finishing my comic. Then Jeaux came over and we ate at Burger 21, went shopping, and caught up on What We Do in the Shadows.
  
  
• Thursday I did some utility work and reports. Dad picked me up for our last band practice in the afternoon so we could prepare for our big concert on Saturday. We went through the entire set list and determined we just had too many songs. We wanted to review the recordings to decide what's weakest but the recordings didn't actually work. Dang. Dad actually took me home late at night and ate soup at my house, then decided to go home with the assistance of coffee. That guy!
  
  
• Friday I worked on a database and a report, and some utility stuff. I sent the band a list of what songs I thought we should drop and everyone agreed. Then after work I went to Target and actually found two pairs of jeans that fit, along with some other cool stuff. Came home, sorted purchases, did laundry, and practiced some of the songs that are tougher for me. And I printed out new business cards for us. Also posted my comic.

New Reviews:

• Deanne gave The Invisible Orientation a two-star review on Goodreads, noting that it was too much like a textbook and that wasn't what they personally wanted.

Health Plan Update:

• Weight stuff: Have had a few extended times of not being hungry while I'm really busy. High weight: 123.1. Low weight: 121.5.
  
• Nutrition stuff: Still a little low on protein and high on carbs. It's been a bit of a hodgepodge because I'm eating some stuff that was left here after family visited. Still consistently taking the vitamins.
  
• Activity stuff: I met my walking goal every day this week. My low day was Monday at 10,028 steps, and my high day was Thursday at 13,835 steps.

Books Read: 

• Finished Reading: None.
  
  
• Currently Reading: Be Gay, Do Comics by Matt Bors. I'm on page 88.

New singing performances:

This week's karaoke song is "Stuck on You" by Lionel Richie.

Stuff drawn:

Webcomic Negative One Issue 0957: "Being Worse." 

Videos Made:

None.

New photos:

There's an entire album here for Mom's Memorial and the surrounding vacation with my family. But here are the highlights. In thumbnails--please click through if you want to see the full pictures.

Making Cookie Cats with family:

Bowling with family:



























My sisters and me making the angel food cake our mom used to make us in honor of her birthday:







Eating Cookie Cats:





Angel Food Cake in the morning:







Images from Viewing Day with my mom's reef ball:



Restaurant afterwards: Ash got overwhelmed by a waffle.



Swimming at Dad's:







Ash with watermelon:



Playing Cards Against Humanity with family:











Images from Dedication Day on the boat to place Mom's reef ball (and boba tea after):



Ash reading End of an Era, the Steven Universe art book:



My family eating Cookie Cats together:



Me with angel food cake on what would have been my mom's 69th birthday:

Social Media Counts: 

YouTube subscribers: 5,436 for swankivy (no change), 675 for JulieSondra (1 new), 17 for v & V Vids (no change), 191 for Not-So-Giant Women (2 new), 71 for Tides of Time Band (no change). Twitter followers: 852 for swankivy (no change), 3,874 for JulieSondra (lost 1). Facebook: 296 friends for swankivy (no change), 646 likes for JulieSondra (no change), 82 followers for Negative One (lost 1), 244 likes for So You Write (no change), 97 followers for Not-So-Giant-Women (no change). Tumblr followers: 2,432 (no change). Instagram followers: 260 (no change).