Where do I even begin?

I'm gonna try to keep this to just major highlights of different events. First just let me thank everyone I met even if all we shared were me yelling "I'M A PRETTY KITTY," followed by a glomp hug. You all really made this con great for me with your overwhelming support, kind words and lots of smiles. and don't forget the hugs and pictures! Sooooooo many hugs and pictures. If you find any of me or have some let me know. I'll fav the heck out of any pics of me in suit on FA! I really want to see what I looked like as a mummy in the fursuit games! If I find any links to some of the things I mention I'll add them in later.

So it all started Friday morning when I received my brand new fursuit that he finished for me days before the con. The craftsmanship on this thing is amazing. All those stripes are hand sewn in, a fursuit builder told me in the green room one day that her hands hurt just looking at all my stripes. So a big THANK YOU to Snap! It was great to meet ya and I hope I did the BC4C family proud.

One thing I was really excited for was the Charity Texas Hold'em event. They even let me play in full suit for about thirty minutes! Instead of getting mad about having to take off my head and ruin magic, I reminded myself to be thankful for what time I did get and my big chip stack that I already accumulated. I had a great time with everyone at the table and even ran into a few around the con. The crushing blow to my chip stack happened when someone hit quad eights on the flop. *sigh* but it was still a blast and was for charity!

I finished at the poker with just enough time to rush across the con to the fur suit dance prelims. I made it really far in the preliminary heats and got lots of support from the people who were watching. I think I most impressed them when at the end of a song I did what I call the 'dead mans drop' and trust fell right onto my back. I didn't make the finals but several people I didn't know told me I showed the talent to be there. It was disappointing and despite several people encouraging me to stay with the dancing group, I decided not to go to the group dance I was invited to.

My decision there was based on me realizing that I could use my ability to get a crowd going in areas that get less attention. Which leads me to the Fur Suit Variety Show. Despite the fact that I didn't show up till the second practice, the people in charge gifted me with two minutes on stage. and I will be forever thankful for that.

Between FSVS practice and rehearsals I got to go with a group of fur suiters into the car show next door. What started as a "5-10" people thing snowballed it to 70-80 fur suits getting to parade through the car show and stopping for two different group pictures. The car show was so enthusiastic in their support for our costumes and we received a warm welcome from everyone there. We might even end up in an article in Hot Rod Magazine. If anyone ever runs into that you've got to let me know!

I think the FSVS was the most moving experience for me. I was able to help one guy with his public speaking and stage nerves so he could perform a poem he had written for all the people of MFF. I was very proud of him for performing and facing his fears. Another act who wanted to sing a Coldplay song that to him defined how the fandom helped him through hard times, was in danger of losing his act because it wasn't furry themed. I was able to help him keep his spot by dancing on stage and giving him a biiiiiiiiiiiiiig hug at the end. As many compliments as I got for my two minutes of jokes, I am most proud of my role in helping these guys express themselves. This is what the con is all about. Not making the dance finals was one of the best things I could have asked for.

This is a video of my performance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfKGaEyToGc

By this point my in suit personality was really starting to come out. One person even described me as "Such a ham."

Ham- Someone funny but in a cheesy way. Or romantically gushy person. The class clown. When someone does or says something phony but funny, they would be a ham. Really bad puns are hammy. This is not a derogatory term.

I can't deny this! Particularly if you saw me at the Fursuit Parade. I must have put my nose in like every camera I could find and posed for sooooo many pictures. It is tough to herd a cat and I did more than my fare share of wandering out of line and yelling "I'm a pretty kitty." and there was that epic moment where i threw a hand full of ones into the air and walked through it like a balla. It was a good laugh and was great to hear all the "Did you see that!" going on behind me. From the YT video's I have seen I'm generally 9-10 minutes into the parade. I really had fun with it ^^

Skip to 10:10 to see me making it rain: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjPR2oj87SM

Last but not least was the fur suit games where I cemented my ham status, most notably during musical chairs I very vocally gave my chair to 'charity.' I will never forget chasing the eventual "most creative cheater" award winner through the Con Suite losing my badge and bulldozing poor innocent people, lol. It was very satisfying to tackle him as he tried to come to a stop as everyone else blocked the door! I am thankful to announce that with the help of a very enthusiastic crowd I was given the award for "best character performance" and promptly ran circles around the huge room until receiving my shiny trophy. I am and always will be very proud of this achievement. There were lots of great characters there and to be considered the best unanimously was a big honor. It felt like all the heart and soul I put into my performance in suit was finally being recognized by something I could hold in my hands.

Besides these there were lots of special moments and I got to meet lots of amazing people. I already don't expect many people to read as much as I have already written but I just want each person I spent time with to know that I appreciate their time and support and that every smile help fuel me to stay in suit for the vast majority of the con. So from the bottom, or maybe top, of my heart... THANK YOU for making this such a great experience for the pretty kitty ^^

*Gives everyone a big hug*

-Shadow