-Furlandia is my hometown con. I've been attending since its inception in 2013 (with two years as a volunteer). The convention has a long history of alienating its staff and attendees, but the current staff are working hard to repair Furlandia's reputation and build a healthy community. The con rose from the ashes of COVID and grew exponentially over the past few years. It's amazing to see.

-We had a record-breaking 2700+ people crammed into a venue not built for it, which was a headache. To go anywhere or do anything, we had to stand in long lines, elbow our way through crowds, and/or cram into spaces like sardines. It was a fire marshal's nightmare. Thankfully, this was our final year at the Sheraton airport hotel—the end of an era. Next year we'll be at the Hyatt Regency Portland by the convention center, which is bigger, better, more accessible, and closer to the heart of the city.

-I was too frazzled to do much on Friday and too tired to do much on Sunday. Saturday was when I hit my stride. Highlights for me included the sketchbook swap, the fursuit parade, the unofficial skunk-furry gathering, the Poketubers panel, the Dealer's Den, and just generally fursuiting and hanging out.

-Shortly before the con, I realized that I'd gained too much weight to wear Clopan 2.0. And even if I COULD squeeze into the bodysuit, I no longer have the stamina to perform in him. (Three years of constant depression-eating and napping will do that.) I took that as a wake-up call to be more active.
I vibe more with Lullaby and Summer these days, but it was disappointing not to be able to wear Clopan. I hope to get fitter over the next year, so I can get the most out of my costumes and events.

-Furlandia culminated in a reveal of the theme and artwork for next year: "The Furry Wild West." The poster art was clearly AI-generated. When called out on it, staff attributed the art to an anonymous "employee at the hotel," quietly took it down, and refused to elaborate further. Word on the street says the in-house art team was PISSED. My educated guess is that the new hotel really DID gift Furlandia with some AI-generated art. They probably thought they were making a nice gesture. The new chair, being a baby boomer, didn't have the trained eye to recognize AI art when he saw it. Neither did the two people who supposedly "verified" the image. Instead of running the promotional art past their team, they kept it a secret for the sake of a dramatic "reveal," and here we are. I know the chair personally and I think his heart was in the right place; this was just an unfortunate lapse of judgment.

-Overall, it felt like a full, positive experience. It's exciting to see what the future holds for this con.