u/Global-Exchange-7374

I posted over on r/VGC if whether or not I should take the trip to San Francisco for XP/Worlds

Full post here: https://www.reddit.com/r/VGC/comments/1t7ehxg/events_question_apparently_i_got_selected_for/

I decided not to go and my reserved spot has been released. But the majority in that thread think I'll regret it and I'm having some anxiety about that.

One person suggested I ask the personal finance sub and I figured it couldn't hurt to ask an expert opinion on whether I made the right choice.

Here's my financial situation: I have 20k in the bank. The trip would cost around 3k. I live with my parents but I sometim3s pay for their medical bills. I'm not an unpaid intern per say but I don't have a stable income. The job I'm currently doing only comes with a single $300 stipend. My 20k used to be 40k from pandemic stimulus checks but over the years it's been whittled down to half.

So what do you guys think? Was this the right choice or was it, as someone in that thread of eloquently put it, a big mistake?

But I crunched the numbers and a trip to San Francisco from Boston is EXPENSIVE

But my little OCD voice is in the back of my head saying stuff like "Hey, but you could do it. A lot of people aren't lucky enough to get that email. It's the first XP event, you can say you were there in the beginning. You'll be missing out if you don't"

So what do you guys think? To do it or not to do it?

Edit: I CAN afford it but 3k out of a 20k bank account is still a pretty hefty chunk. The question is not if I CAN, the question is if I SHOULD

Edit 2: I decided not to go and as I write this, my spot has timed out and been released. While I do have the money to go, that's money I'd rather save for a rainy day. Think of it like HP. You could take the damage, but you might need that safety cushion for a surprise boss fight. A part of me is disappointed that I won't be there for the first XP but I know that's just my OCD trying to assign meaning to something where there isn't any. I might have anxiety about this for a few days but I'll survive. I don't think I'll regret it. I don't dwell on having to leave for the last number of Symphonic Evolutions back in 2015 to catch the train home and I won't dwell on this come a few yeara either.​

I'm usually a low maintenance patient with low priority issues but this week specifically I'm very stressed out and was looking forward to the session.

What do I do in this situation? Who do I talk to instead? I feel very large amount of distress during the day and only calm down at night. It's been like this since the weekend and while I know I can make it to next week, I don't want to.

My Matsuri(hololive) nendoroid got damaged recently and I was gonna buy a replacement since it's only $30 but the Good Smile Amazon store has two versions in stock which appear to be the original and the rerelease.

Which one should I get? Mine is the rerelease but the original seems to have higher ratings. Both are the same price. Is the original higher quality or would I be missing out on improvements made in the rerelease?