To say it's been a crazy week would be a gross understatement. I'm trying to cram a lot of prep work into a small window of time, so I'll start by sharing what I posted on Facebook/Instagram today:
I live in NW Indiana, and on Tuesday, we were hit with a record-breaking storm of straight-line winds called a derecho. There were also tornadoes in the system. Wind speeds were estimated between 80-100+ mph (hurricane levels).
I've never seen widespread damage like this. More than 300,000 people lost power. Most are still without it. I had no power for 3+ days but thankfully did finally get it back. During that time, I was trying to save the battery on my phone and power banks, and my internet was spotty at best. I really couldn't load posts or see/respond to messages.
My family had a lot of tree, fence, and gutter damage but thankfully nothing catastrophic. Lots of big limbs down, and several of our white pines snapped like toothpicks when the wind hit them, leaving only splintered stumps standing. Much of my time this week has been spent cutting, stacking, and hauling limbs during the day and reading at night. (I finally finished rereading A Wrinkle In Time!)
All that to say I'm very tired and sore from the physical labor but overall okay, still planning to attend ArtFeast in Old Town Lansing tomorrow. However, I have not been able to do nearly as much event prep beforehand as I would have liked. No internet. No printer. Not enough light to work much after sunset. I'm doing the best that I can, so please bear with me. I don't know yet if the damage impacted any of the venues for local events coming up on my calendar soon.
On a happier note, I have some new tote bags! (Picked them up from my local supplier a day before the storm hit!) The new totes are wider and have a zipper on the top. These are an addition to the other style, not a replacement. Moving forward, both tote options will have my prints "Good Day to Read" on one side and "Book Dragon" on the other.
The new zippered totes are a better fit for the books because they have an extra strip of fabric sewn across the bottom. Anyone who buys all four books at an event will get one of these totes for free with the purchase!
Tomorrow will be my first time as a vendor at ArtFeast... but we have to leave very early in the morning, and there's still so much to do! Here are the event details:
OLD TOWN ARTFEAST
Saturday, August 15, 2026
11:00 am - 6:00 pm
Turner Street
Lansing, MI
Other events coming up soon, assuming the venues are operational after the storms (now that I FINALLY received confirmation that I was accepted into the event next Saturday):
COMICS, ACTION FIGURES, COSPLAY & MORE MARKET
Saturday, August 22, 2026
12:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Soundgrowler Brewing Co.
Tinley Park, IL
MICHIANA REN FEST
Saturday, August 29, 2026
10:00 am - 6:00 pm
Sunday, August 30, 2026
10:00 am - 6:00 pm
St. Joe County 4H Fairgrounds
South Bend, IN
BLUEBERRY FESTIVAL
Friday, September 4, 2026
12:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Saturday, September 5, 2026
9:00 am - 9:00 pm
Sunday, September 6, 2026
9:00 am - 9:00 pm
Monday, September 7, 2026
9:00 am - 6:00 pm
Centennial Park
Plymouth, IN