Wow, what happened? Gentlemen, I have discovered the secret to time travel! Just go to a furcon, and you're instantaneously transported to the end of the weekend... XD *sigh* Sure seems like it anyway. Now let's see how much of it I can actually remember!

First, I have to say a massive thank you to  foxlover_h cause without him I wouldn't even have BEEN there! He was kind enough to invite me to stay with him and his mate  tico_the_timberwolf and they both made me feel like one of the family! <3 You guys rock!

Ok, on with the story. I had to work Thursday night, thanks to it being so close to Thanksgiving and me working in a grocery store. XP So I slept a few hours in the morning after work, then hit the road about 1:30pm. I got stuck in traffic in the Loop, so it took like 2 hours to get to the Hyatt, where I ended up 'conning' my way into the almost-full parking lot, cause Inola wasn't checked in yet... >;3 Anyway, after I got what may have been the last space left, I went inside to escape the bitter cold and get my badge. Then I met Tico, who was already there. We hit it off immediately and were soon talking like the best of friends!

At this point, poor Inola was still waiting for the weather to permit him to take off to fly down. So while we were waiting to see what happened with that, we went to see Uncle Kage's hilarious presentation on "Science, Pseudo-science and Crap" which was awesome! I hadn't had the chance to experience his unique perspective and views before, so I was glad to get the chance. About 2/3 of the way through it, Tico got the call we'd been waiting for and we went to meet Inola at the airport...

Ok, I took along my GPS, thinking it would be easier... Turns out, the damn thing can't figure out how to navigate around the back of O'Hare to get to the Schaumberg Regional Airport, where he was. So we ended up getting a bit lost and driving past the FedEx depot and stuff. So much for "easier!" D'oh! XD Anyway, once we finally got back to the hotel, we checked in after touring the parking lot for a good 20 minutes in a futile search for an empty space til Tico finally made his own space... XD

Once we got our stuff (mostly toys) up to the room and inflating a few, we ordered pizza. Delicious, but it seemed to take forever! Especially since we were starving... X3 Then it was time to start meeting furries! Inola took us to a party thrown by the one and only  ipequey who I was honored to meet. He was really friendly and interesting to talk with! :3 It was so kind of him to take the time to chat with this shy, squeaky-loving tiger! I also met the awesome  hotrodwolf there. Our paths had crossed more than once here on FA, so it was great to actually meet and party with him and his mate  morphy_darkstone who is also very cool and funny. Another awesome furry I met there was  rikku_lion who was really friendly and adorable. Actually, everyone I talked to all weekend was unbelievably welcoming and downright neighborly! :D We also went to Hotrod and Morphy's room and got to see some of their toys and hang out. After a trip out to a certain someone's car for some 'fresh air,' (thanks again, dude! You fuckin' rock!) things get a little hazy and I do believe I slept for a bit... >;3

I think most of that actually happened Friday night and the early hours of Saturday morning... O.o Let's see, by now we had Inola's Patch, (a pp husky) and his Balto, my Nero, (G&G wolf) and Sascha, my pp vixen up in the room, though we had to deflate Tico's adorable Spark (IW dragon) to fit Nero, sadly. Next, an epic trek through a blazingly cold wind to a Giordano's Pizza for a delicious lunch led to us MISSING the FURSUIT PARADE!! D: I was really disappointed about that, but it's just one of those things... We all thought it was later and none of us checked the schedule. Again, d'oh! XD So then we hit the dealer's den so I could commission a badge and get a cute tiger t-shirt. Then I went with Tico to get Holly from Ipequey's room and got to talk with Rikku again for a while, which was nice. After that? I don't remember, a blur of partying and hanging out with amazing furries! At some point I was thrilled to see  crazyjoe1952 in his Mountain Blue Fox fursuit! I first met him at Megaplex back in July and it was great to see that funny, frisky fox again! :3 I think that was Friday, but I'm not sure... I also got to see his Silver fox suit, which is every bit as kickass as all his others! I love the black and silver fur, and his inimitable animatronics. Its also fun to see him playing with big,squeaky toys... XD But I digress... Saturday ended shortly before dawn Sunday morning... ;P

Whew! Alright, Sunday. Hmm, I think we got up around noon. Hotrod and Morphy suggested breakfast, which ended up taking what seemed like hours to organize! X3 We finally ended up storming Sally's House of Pancakes (or something like that) with 12 furs, though we ended up split into 2 groups... Anyway, I was freaking STARVING! I had a huge skillet thing with steak and hashbrowns and eggs, with some delectable pancakes on the side. It was sooo good! Then, after getting a bit more fresh air, I floated back into the hotel for more mischief... Tried to back to the artist's alley and dealer's den, but they were already closed. Probably for the best, i need to save some money anyway... By Sunday evening, pcd was already setting in for all of us. D: It had all happened so fast, where had the time gone!? I think it was about this time that a certain very naughty tiger may have taken a certain very generous fox's Balto into the shower... >;3 I never ended up going to sleep Sunday. I just kicked it with my furry brethren til about 3am, then texted Hotrod to go say goodbye to him and Morphy. After that, one of the hardest parts, saying farewell to Inola and Tico, two of the most caring and wonderful furries I have ever had the privilege of knowing! It was after 4 by the time I left for home, but since its only 65mi from my house, and there was almost no traffic, I was home in a depressingly short time. The only thing that helped in my sadness was the knowledge that I had made so many wonderful friends. Well, that, and my Max pouncing tiger, which I had to get out after seeing Tico's Holly... ;P

All things considered, it was everything I could ever have dreamed of and so much more! I loved every minute and can't wait for next year! The only thing that could have made it any better would be if my friends from Megaplex, especially  silverwolfoneofmany,  ryusyro and  wildmark could have been there. Even though they weren't with me, they were in my thoughts the whole time! Love you guys and miss you so! Ok, I have to wrap this up before I'm crying too hard to see. Peace and love to all!