Hello and welcome! Today, January 9 was the day when I decided to join FurAffinity in 2012, and I did learn a lot about the community and about drawing. I do feel no regrets joining as I have many friends that I can talk to and even meet. For the past three years, I am getting over my shyness and being more open to others. Though being in a clan is easier, I do have aspirations to go outside the clan.
I do consider it a second birthday for me, and I am glad to make it through another year here on this site. Although I do have Weasyl ( https://www.weasyl.com/~excelsior30 ), I use it lightly because this site has less restrictions in uploading and it is the largest. Yes, there is drama, but I am aware, and there will always be drama wherever you go, even offline. For those watching me for a long time, I thank you SO much!

For those that have recently watched me- since I started FA, I felt that I should have best friends from the last year. I do keep track of them and for whomever has been actively chatting on responses to my or your journals, uploads, or notes; or even faving what I post, I give them some sort of gratitude. These are for those that watch me and I watch back-I do call them friends or more likely, "watch-watchers." For them, they would have a certain amount of friends with me in common, or if I like the artist/user a lot, I watch them and s/he watches me back. It will also qualify if the one that is not a watch-watcher actively is in my life of FA, or by a Christmas drawing, he or she is one of the 5 picked to be a watch-watcher. For the watch-watcher, I assign points for whatever they have done that pleases me-examples are faving my art, commenting, noting, RP, IM'ing/Skype, etc. For last year, it is secret, but for this year, I will put up as a little change, the point structure, and do note that in every year, the points will change. On this day, whoever is in the top 3, they will be featured in an art with me from an artist I choose.

For the 2014 art, I have decided to not go for free art like the years before and instead go for a commissioned art. A change here is that this year, the first place fur will pick the theme or go ahead and let me pick (S/he will say "It's my choice" to let me think of a theme.) Here are examples of the arts-I picked the theme:
2012: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/11008410/
2013: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/13636672/

If the watch-watcher is an artist and has done something so incredible in the past year, I will ask for a commission or free art. For this year, I have plans to have  marquis2007 do an art for me because I could not thank him any more for one day- he had faved 12 things from me in one day! He will not be in the art because he is not in the top 3, but has been close and also did something memorable.

This year was close, and the top 3 were not determined until last week. The third place user of FA did beat out the fourth place user by just 30 points, and at one point, he was just about to overtake third-was 2 points away. Today, the third place fur hung on and got the invitation of being in the art. Compared to 2013, there is a newcomer, which means that one FA user from 2013 had to go in terms of standings. However, I do say that he was the one that ended up in fourth and I do value him as a friend so much.

Before I say who won this art that is considered a gift art to them, I would like to give honorable mention to  furshinku-I met him last August, and on that very day we did click as friends and he received A LOT of points-it is a record 134 points in one day! He is a good friend, & I value him greatly. It also goes to show you that you can get lots of points in a day.

All right, here are the winners of the art, and I will say that it is unbelievable that the one who finished first nearly got 1000. I will also give you proof of the standings of the top 50 via Dropbox link.

This year the winners are:
BRONZE: (527.3 pts)  lolukelawliet98 the shingami dog (second time!)
SILVER: (654.5)  sammypanther the maroon Canadian Lynx (Officially in the art-second time!)
GOLD: (950.4)  creepsome the white wolf (Officially in the art- a newbie)


Therefore, to Creepsome, he will have his pick on the theme of the upcoming art I'll commission to Marquis (or he can give me the pick), but he will have to accept his winnings before he can do so, otherwise, I will go down the line. (UPDATE: he has yielded his pick to me-I'LL select and he wants to be surprised.)

Alas, I will say sorry to  louiefox for being that close and missing the bronze medal. You deserve the pewter medal, and you are still a best friend to me. (He has appeared in the last two gift arts.)

So to the winners, do respond to this journal before Monday to say that you accept your character being in the upcoming art, and that Marquis has the freedom to use your ref sheet when he is open for commissions. (I will send the RS links to him.)

For the ones that made my year a good one, I thank you for all the entertainment, happiness, information and fun you have given me in the past 365 days. Since FA will be down tomorrow, the contest will begin when the site is up again and when I post my journal that it has started again. Once again, watch-watchers, thanks for the memories of 2014, and to the ones expecting music today, this is special since the contest ended on a Friday-the songs I listen to include celebration, so let's have these three be congratulated with these songs while they are on the medal podium!

Good luck next year, folks! I love you guys! (It's not like Barney the Dinosaur. )

PS: Here is the standing list of the 51 if you are interested: https://www.dropbox.com/s/llydraci3.....55.16.png?dl=0