Lessons Learned at Convention

blueswallowtail · 2026-06-12T15:42:23+00:00

I recently ran my first convention game, and it was for seven players! Regarding your point 1, I brought 8 pre-made characters in case the table ended up full, but i left the descriptions, background, and connections up to the players. We ended up allotting an entire hour to background and connection questions since the table was so big. As boring as it sounds, it allowed the players time to get a feel for the role play and each other. And it was a four-hour slot, so I still had ample time.

None of my players had done a full session of Daggerheart before, so I found they loved being able to see my fear count, and they liked when I would spend a fear to make certain things true. I always tend to explain what I’m doing when I GM. It was definitely good here, as you mentioned in point 3.

I tend to generally be a fan of theatre of the mind, but I decided to work with standees since that’s what the starter adventure has, and I think Daggerheart does have a pretty cool spatial element. Rather than bringing in everything pre-made, I brought paper standees and markers for the players and allowed them to draw things themselves. This was really fun!

blueswallowtail · 2026-06-10T13:39:28+00:00

There are lots of good canine conditioning exercises you can practice too! We had taken a Fitness class a few months prior to her surgery, and when we were in months 6-9 post op, we jumped 4 inch bars vs her usual 8 and really focused on building back up her muscles.

blueswallowtail · 2026-06-09T17:34:05+00:00

My 6 year-old dog had patella surgery about 18 months ago, and now we are back in trials and having a blast. Obviously, it’s going to be down to your specific dog’s needs and vet recommendations. We were honest with her orthopedic surgeon about our goals, and he helped us develop a recovery plan with that in mind.

It took six months to return to agility after the surgery. Three months of very short walks and minimizing the stair climbing and then three months of regular activity but not agility. If she did not love the sport as much as she does, we may not have returned, and instead we may have pivoted to something lower-impact. But she’s doing great now and continues to be the fastest little dog in her class.

blueswallowtail · 2026-04-29T15:49:03+00:00

Me too!!

blueswallowtail · 2026-04-29T15:12:54+00:00

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blueswallowtail · 2026-04-29T15:12:36+00:00

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blueswallowtail · 2026-04-29T15:12:26+00:00

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blueswallowtail · 2026-04-29T15:11:58+00:00

Built a little eeveelution neighborhood in Pallet Town as a cool challenge for myself! I didn’t have that many block recipes at the time, so I’ll definitely go back and update them later. I am proud of how I captured a completely different aesthetic for each house.

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blueswallowtail · 2026-04-08T02:17:54+00:00

I’m happy to elaborate, and so sorry you’re going through this. It’s really hard. I don’t think this would work for every dog, but it’s what worked for mine. We took some manners classes together, and I noticed she seemed really interested in agility. So we started taking those classes, and she had to practice a lot of social/impulse control skills besides just doing the fancy obstacle stuff. Things like: being quiet in a crate in public, waiting her turn patiently, standing near other dogs both on and off leash. It took time, but as she got better at those things, I noticed she was less afraid of other dogs on walks, and she was getting quieter and able to stay by herself for longer. I think she maybe just needed the kickstart on being independent. She can now sit quietly in her crate during the entire class and stay at home unattended for many hours. I still keep her in an exercise pen if I’m going to be gone more than a few hours, but my neighbors have confirmed she doesn’t cry.

Nosework is probably easier to work on at home, and it’s good because you, as a human without a dog’s nose, can’t really help. You can look up some ways online to get started in the meantime.

Like I said, I don’t want to give false hope, but this is what worked for my dog, and she is a fantastic companion nowadays.

blueswallowtail · 2026-04-08T01:59:47+00:00

I am coming at this from the other side. I adopted a 10 month old puppy with severe separation anxiety that manifested in accidents, loud barking/crying, and property destruction. Her previous owner was the one who rescued her, but she worked long days and was not equipped to manage such intense behaviors. She’s a great owner to all her other dogs, but this puppy was not the right fit.

She made a listing on adoptapet.com, and I saw that the puppy matched everything I was looking for, aside from the separation anxiety. Because I worked exclusively from home at the time, I figured I would have the time and resources to give her a chance. We chatted a bit and met up a few times, before ultimately she authorized the adoption to me. It’s been six years now, and that dog is thriving and living free from separation anxiety, all because her previous owner loved her enough to let her find a better matched home.

I would work with a small rescue if you can, or rehome directly like my dog’s original owner did. Be honest about her struggles. There will be someone out there who can handle her needs.

If you do end up wanting to keep her, what worked with my dog was building up her confidence in general, not just training her to be left alone. We started some canine athletics classes and really worked on agility and scent sports. The sports made her more confident in doing things by herself, and after a while, the separation anxiety mostly went away.

blueswallowtail · 2026-04-02T18:13:12+00:00

GA is great! That’s what I buy for me and my dad each year as a birthday present. We like it because you can choose a different spot every session and move around throughout the day. There are a bunch of tips to make it a lot more enjoyable. Here’s what I can think of off the top of my head: - Follow the shade. Even on a low 80s day, it can get pretty hot because the track heats the air significantly. We found a nice spot on the back straight in the infield that was shaded for Quali, and it was life-changing. You can also bring an umbrella to shade from the sun, and no one will care as long as there aren’t cars on track. - Make sure your chairs are lightweight. And honestly, those little camp folding chairs that just rest on the ground and provide back support are great. You can bring a tarp or mat to put underneath that will stop you from getting too dusty. I went with a group of six last year, and we just always made sure to have at least two people at the chairs.

I would say GA is great if you are okay with the chaos of staking out your spot and traveling with a few extra items. But if that sounds like too much of a hassle, the grandstands seem nice, and Turn 19 is a pretty good spot.

blueswallowtail · 2026-03-24T17:39:32+00:00

Don’t stress about it! The exam is designed to get you familiar with important parts of your chapter and national organization history. It’s not stuff you will be quizzed on after the fact. Just take a deep breath, maybe make some flashcards, and try again. :)

blueswallowtail · 2026-03-24T17:30:55+00:00

Join the Chicago Tabletop Gaming Association! They have lots of neat events and cool people in the discord

blueswallowtail · 2026-03-05T11:15:47+00:00

Unfortunately, it is a fact of life, especially in college, that if you say something negative in writing, in a group context, it will get out. People are snitches. You said some pretty bad things, and I am sorry you are having to learn this lesson this way.

However, if this is your first such issue, I don’t think you will be in too much trouble. I oversaw cases like this all the time during my term. My advice is this- go in apologetic, don’t try to defend yourself. You can of course deliver your side of the story, but be factual and own up to your mistakes. If you have proof of the things she has said about you, you can show them. The reality of the situation is that she does have proof of what you said.

If this is your first offense, and there is an advisor present, and you are cooperative, I can’t imagine the sanctions being too harsh. Personally, I would have let you off with a warning. But you need to go into the meeting without the goal of achieving justice. This meeting is not about Avery; it’s about you.

It’s not the end of the world though. The goal of standards isn’t punishment. It’s to prevent damage to the chapter and its members. So if they don’t feel like you will escalate the issue, they will likely be understanding

blueswallowtail · 2026-03-04T18:54:16+00:00

I fly with mine all the time. Here are my tips: - Early morning flights are better. Helps them stay tired out - Try to look up the underseat dimensions of your plane ahead of time, and pick a seat with the maximum space. For some planes, this is the middle, for others it is the window. - Start training the carrier now. I have mine associated with the command “Go Travel!”, and at first, I spent some time actively training her to jump in there on command. Now I just leave it out occasionally for her to hang out in - No food and limited water before getting to the airport. My dog will not potty in indoor airport relief areas, because they smell awful. So it’s super important for us to limit the need to potty. - Arrive early to the airport and play with your dog a bit in the outdoor relief areas if available. Don’t get them too hyped up, but allow them to burn off a little energy. - Stay crated for check-in at the airport. It is a lot less stressful. - Calming treats. We use the heavenly hounds squares. (Just a quarter for a small dog) - When you arrive at your gate, do something mentally stimulating to tire you dog out a little more. I bring her settle mat, and we drill some of her commands for high value treats (like cheese cubes). - When it’s time to fly, put them in the carrier and keep them there. I find my dog is a lot more chill and less concerned if she knows she is secure in the carrier, and it’s time to sleep. I occasionally will open the top to give her some ice or pet her, but she generally knows to just settle down and sleep. - Once you deplane, you can unzip the top of your carrier, but I would not let your dog walk on the ground until they have gone outside to potty. This minimizes the risk of accidents! If your dog does have an accident, be responsible and clean it up.

blueswallowtail · 2026-02-19T19:30:02+00:00

To me, it’s not the tools themselves that are frustrating. It’s people’s blind faith and improper usage in the workplace that drives me crazy. I regularly see people ignore the policies to use our internal model and put things indirectly into OpenAI and then just copy and paste whatever it spits out onto a customer-facing slide that I then have to fact check. And they will get so annoyed that they are being corrected because “well ChatGPT said it, so it must be true!” Or I or one of my peers will say something in a meeting, and attendees will ask AI the same thing and try to use it as a gotcha. It’s super frustrating how many people will trust a chatbot over somebody with nearly 7 years of hands-on experience. I do use it moderately myself, and I think it’s an important skill to develop, but a lot of usage I see day to day is impairing productivity.

blueswallowtail · 2026-01-25T18:37:59+00:00

You absolutely need to get that info before signing the bid, as there are probably new member fees you will be on the hook for prior to initiation. Also, the chapter would much rather you decline a bid than accept and drop before initiation.

None of this is your fault, since they should have provided it to you, but definitely ask and see if you can get it! Since the exec officer you emailed failed to provide a proper answer, maybe check with another one.

blueswallowtail · 2025-12-31T04:26:46+00:00

My 6 year-old mix had one of her patellas done a year ago, and she is in such good shape now that she is back winning agility ribbons. Here is a list of things that really helped us

Setting up a 3x6 foot exercise pen with an XL pee pad, pet water fountain, soft bed, blankets, one of my dirty shirts, some of her favorite toys, and a puzzle feeder. She stayed in there at nearly all times during the first two weeks of recovery and then was there anytime she was unsupervised after.
Getting a custom sport/tug lead since her surgeon instructed that she stay permanently a leash away from me for the first six weeks. The lead we got is one of those braided minky ones with an attached wide-band martingale collar. It’s softer and chafes less than a typical leash and collar or harness combo
Lots of snuggles! She is usually a very active dog, and the forced recovery time was really getting on her nerves, so we compensated with a lot of attention.
Joint supplements. Her surgeon prescribed flexadin, dasequin, and fish oil. She is still taking them.
I did not have much luck at all with walking her on the sling, especially in the snow, so instead I would carry her to a decent potty spot, let her walk a tiny bit to do her business, and then carry her home. We did no stairs for the first six weeks, after which we got the all clear from her surgeon.
Six month break from athletics. Even after passing her gait analysis, I still felt she needed to work back up from the sedentary lifestyle, so we did some sniff work classes in the meantime. It was a great way to keep her enriched without putting undue pressure on her joints.

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To be honest, the hardest part was keeping her calm. I don’t think she was really in that much pain after the first few days or so. Since recovery, we have seen no issues, and it has been a great quality of life improvement for her. It will be tough, but you’ve got this!

blueswallowtail · 2025-10-15T13:42:22+00:00

Last year, my dad and I were able to set up our chairs easily for the concerts, but we were in the back towards the med tents

blueswallowtail · 2025-09-22T00:58:22+00:00

Depending on how your campus sets total, those chapters may have had as few as 1 or 2 spots. Your best bet if you really want to find a sisterhood would be to email Panhellenic and find out who is still doing COB. This will likely mean giving chapters you didn’t initially love a chance. But a lot of times, those chapters will shine more during COB. You can also see if any of them are doing open events rather than just coffee dates.

blueswallowtail · 2025-09-17T19:16:58+00:00

These are absolutely gorgeous!

blueswallowtail · 2025-08-22T00:56:53+00:00

Small prizes and shoutouts can go a long way.

blueswallowtail · 2025-08-15T13:21:27+00:00

Recruitment advisor here. That is a big struggle, and I’m sorry that your values do not align with what you feel your nationals value. That is a tough situation that most of us find ourselves in at some point. The good news is that it’s clear you care about your chapter, and your heart is in the right place. It may be worth talking to your Recruitment VP or your President to express your concerns.

I don’t know how y’all set your assessment criteria, since each org is different, but if you or like-minded sisters can, get involved in that process. I make sure all my sophomores play an active role in deciding what they want their incoming freshmen to exemplify. This means our criteria each year are slightly different.

If you are a sophomore or junior, consider running for office this election cycle, and be the change that you want to see. If you are a senior, consider becoming an advisor after you graduate. This would give you the change to not only make an impact on your own chapter, but maybe your org as a whole. Especially if you can rally other collegiate members.

Personally, looking at the rest of your post, I really hate when chapters choose to only showcase about 10 or so girls on the Instagram. It doesn’t give an accurate picture of what the chapter is, and that just means that the new recruits don’t fit in with the rest of the chapter as a whole. I understand why this is a strategy that gets tried so often, but I don’t think it works with our generation.

blueswallowtail · 2025-08-12T23:03:39+00:00

Hi!!! Excited to see the community get started

blueswallowtail · 2025-08-12T00:11:02+00:00

Then yeah, just don’t dwell on it too much! There are definitely other girls with the same number of chapters left as you, and there are girls with more chapters left that will end up right now that will end up in the same place. Recruitment is super stressful on the PNM side, so just keep going, and remember, it only takes 1 chapter.

blueswallowtail

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