Grrl Power - Dabbler’s Science Corner #3

Thank you for the support! You guys are awesome

The return of Dabbler's science corner! It's been... geeze, 10 years? Probably should have slipped a few more of those in there along the way. 

I didn't want to interrupt Peggy's flashback, but I had a sudden time crunch, and it was this or switch to some kind of stick figure art for the flashback, which... has its merits, cause I could attribute the poor art to Peggy's memory of the events being fuzzy. But this seemed like a better choice than compromising the art for a relatively serious moment in the comic. 

I don't normally share a lot of personal drama here in the comic posts, because you guys mostly come here for entertainment, and speaking personally, it bugs me when I'm looking for some light hearted laughs, but the author uses the posts as an agony aunt or therapy sessions. If it actually helps them deal with whatever they're going through, then, you know, good for them, but it is incongruous with the medium of "funny pages."

In this case, I think it's important you guys understand what my preoccupation is, because I don't like paring down the art every time I hit some kind of personal speedbump. Well, the short version is, my father passed away. If you've ever been through such a thing as an adult, then you know that a huge amount of your time is suddenly spoken for. Emotionally, I'm doing okay.  Partially I think it's because I've been prepared for some bad news about my mom for about three years, ever since she started having issues. I never really considered that he would go first, even though he was 5 years older than her, and it's this kind of slow moving shock to have this constant in my life suddenly gone. It also leaves me and my sister with some decisions to make, as my mom can't live on her own at this point, and now we've got this "large enough to host the whole family during the holidays" house with 82 years of stuff in it to deal with. Well, the house is paid off, and most of the contents can be dealt with via an estate sale, but there are some things that have emotional value, like the nice dining table we always used for holiday dinners. Unfortunately, neither me nor my sister have a lot of room for a huge table or the matching buffet table, (which is something I never once considered buying for my own home, but I kind of don't want to get rid of my parents' one) but we'll figure it out.

On a lighter note, my Dad was organized. Like, Leslie Knope levels of organized. He left nine 3-ring binders with "Here's what you do if me or me and your mom die" instructions. They've got his will, his lawyer, financial manager, lists of personal contacts, a "here's a sample obituary," thumb drives with obituary photos, other thumb drives with photos for a slideshow during the memorial, life insurance information, burial instructions, it's... a lot. And honestly it might be evidence that he was a little bored with retirement. But thank god he had all this stuff laid out because otherwise I'd be googling "what to do when your dad dies." Even with this "death by the numbers" guide he laid out, the first week felt like juggling headless chickens and chasing spinning plates. 

I know some people will suggest that it'd be okay to take a week or two off from the comic if I really need to, and while people who are used to having Grrl Power as part of their Monday/Thursday routine, yeah, that'd probably be okay. But I know there are a lot of casual lurkers who might slowly start to bleed off if I start missing posts, so the Science Corner is my solution. The flat colors and simple backgrounds help a lot, though weirdly, the quasi-chibi art doesn't save me a whole lot of time, because I'm so unused to drawing it, that I have to keep going back and squishing proportions and intentionally minimizing detail. 

I'm saving "miss a few weeks of the comic" for when I get into a car wreck and am literally in a coma. Though following my dad's example, I should buy some 3-ring binders and detail how to post a "Hey, this is DaveB's wife, he's in a coma so just chill out for a bit." Also, I should probably get a will made. Yeah. 

So that's where I'm at. I'm doing alright, but I'm bummed that I'm missing my bi-weekly Pathfinder game for the next month or two. You guys remember Fray, my monk? Yeah, I think I broke something... actually this post is long enough, I'll post about Pathfinder foibles under the next page. Until then, enjoy! 

(Oh, and I don't have a new vote incentive this month. There just wasn't time to work on it, sorry. I might re-link some of the old ones for this month or something starting with the next page.)