With Skype ending soon, like many others, I started looking for an alternative. While looking for alternatives, I discovered SIP.

What is SIP? SIP is basically free internet phone-calling and texting, as long as it's between SIP users. This is because, like Skype, the calls and texts are made over the internet.

Like an e-mail address, you get an SIP address with an @service.whatever, and SIP users can send their calls and texts to your address, even if it's a different SIP provider.

I had been using Skype as my IRL phone. I was paying $60 a year, which is great when cell phones are easily $60 per month.

A reputable SIP service will offer you a plan that lets you send and receive calls to and from landlines, possibly for much less than what Skype was charging. (Depending on the plan you choose.)

Here's the catch: You don't just download a program and run it like Skype.

Like how you choose from many different browsers to access the internet, there are many SIP clients to choose from to connect with your SIP account.

And then you still have to set up that program with the addresses and passwords and stuff.

But the neat part about that is: Not only are there SIP clients for Windows, Linux, Mac, and Mobile devices, but there are also physical SIP phones. With a physical device, you set them up just like any other SIP client and connect them to your router, and then they act like a normal telephone with voicemail and everything (if your SIP network provides voicemail.)

It's more difficult to set up than Skype, but you can get your tech nerd friend to help you do it, and then you have your free* alternative to Skype forever. (With a cheap subscription to get a phone number and call landlines.)

When Skype goes away, I'll be using CallCentric.

As my SIP client, I chose PhonerLite. But you can do your own investigation to decide which client is right for you.

My SIP address is:
17778941746[at]in.callcentric.com
If you're already a CallCentric user, you can leave the "in" part out.
17778941746[at]callcentric.com

I'm going to MFF. I leave in a few hours. :P

What on earth is happening? I'm not even an artist. I just colored some templates. But I've been getting almost one watch a day on average for the past week.

It seems to have been happening ever since started watching me.

I've decided to commit to going to FWA. I'm still shopping around for a room, but I'm 99% certain I'll be able to afford to go.

Tomorrow I'll buy the Greyhound ticket since they won't let me buy it online. Then all I have to do is find a room.

EDIT: And by tomorrow I mean today.

I'm going to MFF! Got my own room. :P

he can function for a day.

If you teach a man to think, he can function for life.

So  mysticsabreonic is doing a promotional giveaway. She's an amazing artist and I'd like to get in on it, so I shall promote her. xD

http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/3447399/

Check it out. You could win a free sketch if you do what I'm doing. It's worth the effort, really.

Looks like I'm going to Furry Weekend Atlanta! I just gotta make sure that I've secured a room. It's been a long time since I've been to a convention.

You know, FA web designers, there are headers you can make the server send that will tell a browser when a resource is going to expire.

If you plan your banners ahead of time, you can send a header that tells the user's browser that the image will expire at about the time you put your new banner up.

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/apple.....sed-away/59926

https://www.facebook.com/ybrook/pos.....62508833788399

Well done, Steve Jobs.

This is a log of a conversation I just had with .
Sometimes I have fun teaching her some Objectivism.

(12:28:37 AM) Amaroq: Oh, hell yeah! I just realized that I ordered a book a few days ago and at like midnight I went to check the mail. xD
(12:28:47 AM) brooke: ??
(12:28:50 AM) Amaroq: As usual our mailbox was stuffed full of shit since we never check it. But my book was in there.
(12:29:30 AM) Amaroq: Nerdy nonfiction book written by Oists.
(12:29:39 AM) Amaroq: The Logical Leap
Induction in Physics.
(12:29:53 AM) brooke: Induction.
(12:30:05 AM) Amaroq: Yeah. Like, um.
(12:30:19 AM) Amaroq: When you learn something about reality, that's an induction sort of.
(12:30:27 AM) Amaroq: Like when you take in information about reality.
(12:30:54 AM) Amaroq: Like if you see a bunch of geese and they're all white, and you realize that this must mean geese are generally white, that's an induction.
(12:31:05 AM) brooke: Oh. Okay.
(12:31:05 AM) brooke: ...
(12:31:11 AM) Amaroq: If I'm stating that right.
(12:31:13 AM) brooke: I was just like WHAT in the fuck does that mean
(12:31:14 AM) brooke: LOL
(12:31:52 AM) Amaroq: 2
a (1) : inference of a generalized conclusion from particular instances — compare deduction 2a (2) : a conclusion arrived at by induction
(12:32:29 AM) Amaroq: Deduction is taking what you already know and applying it to other stuff. So it's kinda sorta the opposite of induction.
(12:32:45 AM) Amaroq: Induction takes the knowledge in. Deduction brings it back out and applies it.
(12:34:04 AM) brooke: AH. SO LIKE.
(12:34:16 AM) brooke: I run into a lot of weird furries and conclude, furries are weird as they say.
(12:34:17 AM) brooke: pfpfpfpf
(12:34:25 AM) Amaroq: xD So you've induced that furries are weird.
(12:35:10 AM) Amaroq: And if you meet a new furry that you've never met before, and assume they're going to be weird too because they generally are, that's deduction. You induced the premise "Furries are weird" and then deduced from it: "Therefore, this one will be too.
(12:35:12 AM) Amaroq: "
(12:35:21 AM) brooke: And that they're all into dog penis.
(12:35:24 AM) Amaroq: xD
(12:36:30 AM) Amaroq: Induced premises: Furries are into dog penis. This person is a furry.
Deduced conclusion: Therefore, he's probably also into dog penis.
(12:36:48 AM) Amaroq: Funnest lesson in logic ever eh? xD
(12:39:00 AM) Amaroq: Logic is a lot like writing programs. 'Cuz programming depends on logic. Sometime last year I think I made my first really anal logical argument from premises to a conclusion on the Oism forum. And it felt a lot like writing a program. I had to make sure the premises were supported by reality, and I had to make sure that I followed the logic precisely to the conclusions without contradicting anything.
(12:41:14 AM) Amaroq: That's actually why Ayn Rand often said "Check your premises." Because if you're using logic, you can start from the wrong premises (starting points) and logically come to a really stupid conclusion. Because logic takes you meticulously from your starting points to a conclusion. So if you seem to have logically arrived at the wrong answer, you should check your starting points, because at least one of them is wrong.
(12:41:39 AM) Amaroq: IE, if you deduce something really stupid, you probably made a mistake inducing something.
(12:42:14 AM) Amaroq: Or just made a mistake deducing, one of those two. xD But if you did perfect logic and came up with the wrong answer, then you have a bad premise somewhere.
(12:42:18 AM) Amaroq: Sorry, wall of text.
(12:42:54 AM) Amaroq: Kinda like how computers do exactly what you tell them to do, so if you make a mistake giving them instructions, they do something that you really didn't want them to do.
(12:44:32 AM) Amaroq: So I have two books I have to read at some point. xD Logical Leap, by David Harriman ( an Oist physicist, with philosophical help from Leonard Peikoff), and Human Action, by Ludwig Von Mises. (One of the founders of the austrian school of economics.)
(12:44:44 AM) brooke: DEEHEEHERRPP sorry had to feed the dogs
(12:44:53 AM) Amaroq: xD Wb Aku.
(12:45:16 AM) brooke: Oh thats neat shit actually bro.
(12:45:33 AM) brooke: So if I conclude all furries are into dog penis and am proven wrong, I must research furries more.
(12:45:45 AM) brooke: Then I'll realize, no, horse penis is included into that *CLEVERFACE*
(12:46:20 AM) Amaroq: Well, I don't know if it necessarily logically follows that all furries are into dog penis. But if that's all the information you have on them, then you could generalize that I think. xD
(12:46:26 AM) Amaroq: xD
(12:47:17 AM) brooke: I GO ON FURAFFINITY
(12:47:22 AM) brooke: FRONTPAGE: [Link Removed For Sanity] MEOWTH NOOO
(12:48:30 AM) Amaroq: Er, wait, I think that last paragraph was a little wrong. A generalization is... it might still be a kind of induction. You observe individual furries liking animal penis. And then you take in these examples and form the generalization "Furries like penis." That doesn't necessarily mean that all furries will always like penis. You don't have evidence for that. Just that they generally like penis. And then when you meet one, you apply this generalization to them. Furries love penis, he is a furry, therefore he loves penis.
(12:48:37 AM) Amaroq: Ewww
(12:48:56 AM) Amaroq: Didn't want to see Meowth with a buttplug.
(12:49:26 AM) brooke: NEITHER DID I ITS WHY I SPREAD THE WOE
(12:49:59 AM) Amaroq: xD
(12:50:44 AM) Amaroq: If you meet a furry that doesn't like penis, then you induce further. You expand your knowledge of furries to include, "But some of them don't like penis."
(12:51:29 AM) Amaroq: You'd be surprised how pretty much all of historical philosophers failed to understand that point. As far as I know, Rand was the one who solved the so-called "Problem of induction."
(12:52:24 AM) Amaroq: The problem of induction goes like this: If you induce that swans are white, you can't guarantee that you won't see a black swan some time in the future. This means that induction can never be valid. Durr.
(12:52:46 AM) Amaroq: And like philosophers have been arguing over that shit for years.
(12:53:16 AM) Amaroq: Then Ayn Rand comes along and is like "You're a bunch of idiots. A black swan doesn't invalidate your knowledge, it expands it."
(12:53:45 AM) Amaroq: And the butthurt philosophers are like "Shut up! You're not a REAL philosopher."
(12:53:51 AM) brooke: ... LMFAO
(12:53:56 AM) brooke: that was pretty great
(12:54:01 AM) brooke: I UNDERSTAND SO WELL NOW
(12:55:15 AM) Amaroq: xD
(12:55:31 AM) Amaroq: Probably because I use examples that are so meaningful, haha.
(12:55:50 AM) Amaroq: Using examples is the best way to teach someone. xD And to teach yourself.
(12:56:53 AM) Amaroq: 'Cuz you grasp stuff best when you can relate it to the real world.
(12:59:51 AM) brooke: It is very true
(1:00:14 AM) Amaroq: This conversation is like, kinda tempting to copy/paste. xD
(1:00:31 AM) Amaroq: Partially for the gay furries and partially for the butthurt philosophers.
(1:01:15 AM) brooke: Go ahead
(1:02:02 AM) brooke: be all like.
OISTS. I AM EDUCATING A GREAT MIND HERE.
(1:05:49 AM) Amaroq: xD
(1:05:53 AM) Amaroq: INDEED.

I'm moving to Minnesota in four days. I'm not sure if I'll have internet for a while. I'm leaving on the 28th via train.

Just figured I should update my journal with something big like that, haha.

For a little bit of context, here's an article on forbes.
http://www.forbes.com/2010/08/27/ay.....k-watkins.html

It appears that the U.S. government hasn't learned its lesson from the last housing bubble that burst. At least they must not have if they want to give home buyers more direct subsidies this time.

Really!? The government created this mess by indirectly subsidizing homeowners (by allowing unreliable people to get loans), and now they want to do the same thing again, more directly!?

The last housing bubble grew as a result of the fed backing loans to unreliable home buyers. Demand (and therefore, prices) increased. When these people couldn't pay back their loans, they tried to sell. Prices plummeted. The bubble burst. People who couldn't pay back their loans now had houses that were worth a lot less than they'd bought them for, and had loans to pay back. Disaster.

And the government wants to do this again!?

Even if they learn from their mistake with the loans and just give a direct subsidy, they're still artificially increasing demand. If you take the loans out of the picture to prevent the collapse, you'll still get prices rising uncontrollably for the same reason that they're rising uncontrollably in the medical industry. Subsidizing buyers creates artificial demand.

If we pursue this course, the housing market is going to follow a similar course to that of the medical industry. Prices are going to keep rising, the government is going to continue subsidizing home buyers so they can afford the more expensive houses, and this cycle will continue until we wind up with an Obama Jr. campaigning to give us socialized housing since nobody will be able to afford it.

We need to free the housing market so the forces of supply and demand can work to make housing affordable. Otherwise we'll see the same disaster that's happening in the medical industry happen in the housing market someday.

Why is it that we have the separation between church and state? To prevent religious people from using the power of law to give their group legal, forceful power over other people.

The same principle applies to separating state and economy. The proper function of the government is to prevent people from violating each other. When you allow any group of people the kind of together-ness with the state that you'd never allow a church to have, the result is nearly the same as what a church would do. You get laws where one group of people is given power over, or benefits at the cost of, another group of people.

The only way for the government to protect our rights is to bar ANY type of togetherness between any group of people and the state. Church, business, the poor, any group of people. There must be a complete separation. Laissez-Faire Capitalism.

Okay, a lot has happened over the last week or so. First, my car broke down. Sprung a pretty bad leak in the brake line or whatever. I can't afford to fix it even with my wal-mart paycheck coming this thursday.

In a panic, I start applying for jobs within walking distance. I knew I was screwed, and that I had to pick up something, anything, as quickly as possible, or else I was financially boned.

One of the things I applied for, and actually the thing I put most effort into, was a couple of game tester positions listed on Volt.com. Yesterday morning, I applied. Within a few hours, I got a response, filled out a questionnaire, and got myself an orientation for 3pm the very same day! I start my first day today.

And not just effort. I put some risk into it too. I had $27 left to my name, and I spent most of it on a skype subscription and a skype online phone number, so I had a phone number they could call me at that wasn't disabled.

Now that I have a replacement job, 5 miles away from where I live, I can call wal-mart and tell them that I won't be able to work for them anymore. I would've preferred to give a notice, but reality left me no choice in the matter.

Several very stressful days of worry, and now things are really looking up for me. To be honest, I was suffering at wal-mart. I wanted out badly. My car breaking down like that put me in a position where it was all or nothing, and I lucked out. I finally escaped from that place. I think this is the first step towards something better.

Plus, I get to play Xbox 360 games that aren't even out yet. You guys must be so jealous. It's temporary though. On a project-by-project basis. This project will last up to seven months.

Sorry, I won't be able to tell you anything about the game. Confidentiality agreement and all. :P

So I've been in a coding slump lately. For a looong time. But last night, I got this really hilarious, nerdy idea. It was the most awesome, nerdiest thing ever. I loved it. I just couldn't resist getting to work on it right away.

http://www.amaroq.org/cookie/cookie.php

Go ahead. Reload it a few times. Watch what happens.

I wasn't lying when I said I put a cookie on you. Muahahahaha. Show your friends. Ask them what the countdown time is. The server keeps track based on when the cookie expires from your computer, so everyone has their own cookie countdown independent of each other.

So I finally got to attend a Bellefurs for real. Two months ago, I didn't have the day off from work, so I had to leave before it even started. Last month, I got the day off, but it had been pushed to two weeks later and nobody bothered to update the website to let newcomers know.

But this time, I made it. And though I kept silent most of the time, there were quite a few fun times to be had.

It's a potluck, so I wondered what I should bring. Something that most or all of the furries in that place would enjoy. I brought a 12 pack of beer and two bottles of Clamato. The beer disappeared within the hour, but the clamato remained for most of the night.

One of the first memorable times I encountered was this really stereotypically gay guy dancing really stereotypically gay.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=com6FqgQR6g

Here's a better picture of him. (The pictures of course turned out better than the videos because I could use the flash.)
http://amaroq.org/Images/bellefurs/0220001913.jpg

Yes, the DJ is DJing via two firefox tabs open to music videos on youtube. That's so ghetto.

There was also this raccoon fursuiter there. He played dead/roadkill. And while he was doing that, I posed his arms and hands into different motions. Including: Thumbs up, goat horns, and Spock's 'Live Long And Prosper' sign. I also used his arms to do the robot.
http://amaroq.org/Images/bellefurs/0220001905.jpg

Someone also brought their Malamute. Such a big dog. I'd never seen one before up close.
http://amaroq.org/Images/bellefurs/0221000152a.jpg

This guy also passed out and I got to watch one of the other furries stack stuff on him while he slept.
http://amaroq.org/Images/bellefurs/0221000248.jpg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=te2pOfu3NoA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLTJg_o9d3M

The rest of the pictures here: http://amaroq.org/Images/bellefurs
Another video of a USB Humping Dog here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTqq24vSz9E

Hey guys, my steam ID is Amaroq64.

I bought myself Left 4 Dead for christmas. (Didn't quite feel like spending fifty bucks on the sequel, so I spent 22 instead.)

But I also have Natural Selection (Half-Life Mod), BrainBread (Half-Life Mod), and Savage 2. As far as multiplayer games goes. I've also got Audiosurf and Portal. (And Half-Life of course. But I never play multiplayer. I only have it for its amazing single-player campaign and the mods.)

I don't remember the last time I laughed this hard for this long.

http://www.homopunk.com/

Pleas, please, PLEASE browse through every free pic they make available. xD It'll be worth your while.

This link is NOT safe for work, however. Make sure nobody sees you looking at it. Unless they're open-minded, in which case they'll find it friggin' hilarious too.

Well, uh... I just found out a few days ago that RainFurrest is going on! And that I live one friggin' town away from where it's happening!

I work the whole weekend, but I'm gonna be getting up early today and going there nice and early in the morning. I'll enjoy a few hours of time there before I have to leave for work.

...if I can get any sleep before I'm supposed to 'get up' that is. I've been too excited to sleep.

I forgot to mention this, but me and Jach (friend of mine) are moved in at last. It's been a few days and we've sorta settled in. I started my job at Wal-Mart today. It's great to be able to transfer from one store to another.

I also picked up a copy of Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand, by Dr. Leonard Peikoff. I'm only on the first chapter and I think it was worth the purchase.

I'm currently stealing someone's wireless internet. We should have real internet soonish.

X-posted from DA. We actually moved in the 1st of April.

Well, the move is finally here. And I'm already moving!

Everything I own (barely) fits in my car without obstructing my rear-view vision too much.

Before I departed, my mom gave me a couple-hundred bucks to help me on my way.

I started in Marengo, IL, stopped in Marengo, IA to eat at subway, and am now in Atlantic Iowa.

I just happened to find a hotel (yes, I know I should've picked a motel instead) with free wireless internet, so I lugged in my desktop and plugged in my wireless USB stick to get online and check a few things. And post this journal.

And now I depart again. Destination: Jach's house in Utah. I've got a fourteen hour drive ahead of me, but I don't want to delay by sleeping any longer.

It's been a while since I've updated, and a lot of things have changed since the last time I've posted anything here.

For one, I'm going to be moving. Again. This time to either Seattle or Redmond, WA. The move is going to take place in late July.

The reason: Me and a friend of mine are gonna be moving into an apartment there. He got accepted to a college (DigiPen) and I'm gonna have him teach me what he learns there. And we can split the rent.

I've also recently become an Objectivist. Well, almost an objectivist. There's a few views of Objectivism I can't quite take on yet.

What's Objectivism? It's the philosophy of one of the greatest authors of all time, Ayn Rand. After reading her biggest book, Atlas Shrugged, I have a whole new outlook on myself and on life in general. Want a taste? Read Anthem by her first. It's a short story, rather than the thousand-page Atlas Shrugged. (Which you should still read anyway. xP)

I've also lost some weight, put on some muscle, and cut my hair! Check out my 'The New Me' photos in my scraps on DA. I had my mom take them with her digital camera when I visited yesterday.
http://amaroq-wolf.deviantart.com/g....._browse/scraps

Overall, I'd say my life is looking up. Every day, I come closer to my next goal, that being moving out. I have other goals to work towards once I achieve that one. Including, but not limited to: Using my computer skillz to make tons of money.

Once I have enough money to never have to worry about bills again, I'll be free to move about the country as I see fit.

[When I add updates about how my time here is going, I will add them to the end of this journal in an Day [Blah] Update format.]

It's that time of year again. In the interest of clearing that really long journal off my front page, it's time for me to talk about MFF!

Yes, I am going again this year. However, I'm having a little difficulty with rooming this time around. I've got plans to room with a friend of a friend of mine, which I'll have to pick up (and a friend of his) at the greyhound in chicago. (Ew, chicago traffic...)

The room is his and we're gonna be splitting cost. Unfortunately, it isn't even in the main hotel, so I won't get to wake up every morning already in the con. xP

Either way, I've been waiting all year for these three days, and I'll be damned if I'm going to let a few setbacks kill my fun.

Day 1 Update:
So I got to the con at about 5am friday morning. When I got there, there was just a couple of guys and a husky fursuiter sitting in the lounge. Me and the husky threw a plush soccer ball of his back and forth for about an hour. Then I blew up one of his balloons at his request, and signed my name on it. A few others, including the husky, signed their names, and it became an autograph balloon. I went to the bathroom, and when I came back, there were half-a-dozen names on it. He tied it to his tail with a rubber band (in addition to a helium filled one he had tied to his tail with string) and walked around with it, though the autograph balloon eventually disappeared. Maybe I'll see it again, but probably not. I wonder how many sigs it had before it was lost...

Once things started picking up (more people woke up), I started wandering around and doing what I do best around furries: chasing after, and hugging, the fursuiters. Oftentimes we'll scratch eachothers' stomachs or backs too, and a lot of them that I've done with this have kicked their legs against the ground. I love that, haha.


"What was that noise!?"
There's a sneaky person around here... moving stealthily from shadow to shadow. Solid Snake! There is a guy here dressed up as a pretty convincing Snake. He crouches down a little and stalks around. It's fun to watch. Whenever I see him, I quote Crab Battle, which only serves to infuriate and embarrass him. We had fun pressing our backs against corners and peeking around at each other, pretending to shoot at each other and take cover. There's no competing against the legendary Solid Snake, however. So it is I who fell to my knees and sprawled out on my stomach before his skill. Twice.

During my fursuiter hugging quest, I've met a few notable ones as far as hugging goes. This Raccoon who didn't just hug me, but stood there with me, us hugging and scratching each other for like, 20 minutes. It was really nice. I don't care if it was a male raccoon. Affection is affection, and I loved it. I've found that most of the other fursuiters will be willing to stand around and do that too for a minute or two if you initiate it. They must just be used to people giving them a quick hug and going on their way.
There's also this... uh, I think it's a husky named Razz. Probably the most adorable fursuiter I've seen yet. He has this semi-high-pitched voice that he'll yap, etc, in. I'll have to record it on my watch. But just because of that, and how adorable he looks, he's probably the one I've hugged most times in passing.
In the con suite (room on the 16th floor that serves free food for convention-goers), I saw this fursuiter and a girl enter. Both girls actually. So I do my usual hug and scritch thing, and she just stands there kicking her leg non stop while I scratch her for two or three minutes straight. I decided to tag along with them, taking advantage of how much she seems to like being scratched to immobilize her with leg kicking whenever I feel like it. xD It's fun.

So while tagging along with the fursuiter and girl (who are sisters actually), we wind up meeting up with  swiftkill and some of her friends. Long story short, the two girls were gonna be rooming with Swiftkill, but couldn't. She invited them to tag along, so since I was tagging along with them, I got to tag along too. Oh, and one Swiftkill's friends (why is that the only one whose name I can remember? Gah!) recognized my name, and turned out to be a former mate of... either Harpe or Konstance, I forget which. So basically I got to meet one of my former pack members at this convention. And Swiftkill recognized me as someone who used to RP in her dream. (She was delighted that I recognized her name.)

While we were stopping off at Swiftkill's room, the fire alarm went off on the first floor. We did what we needed to do, and left. We found out later it was because some pot-smokin' furries were smokin' up in their room and set off the alarm. They've been banned from the con for life and are in jail right now. Good times. xP

Me and eleven other people (including the girls and Swiftkill, and a couple of guys) (Sorry, I suck at remembering names) all got this gigantic booth (that was just big enough for all 12 of us) at this really amazing restaurant within walking distance from the con. I swear to god, all of the food that restaurant serves tastes better than anything I've ever eaten in my life. Even the bread is amazing. Hell, even the broccoli is better tasting there than half of the things I've tried in my life.
I got a 16oz rib-eye steak, with a giant onion ring (one of them got a picture of me wearing the thing on my hand), two potato/cheese pie things, and some cooked vegetables. There was not one thing I ate last night that wasn't absolutely amazing. It was a huge meal too. Took me an hour to methodically consume the whole thing.
I got to dip some bread in the sweet onion soup of the guy sitting next to me, and I swear, it tasted like someone had taken sweet onions, captured the flavor, and made the broth out of it. I could've sworn I was eating real sweet onions, though those were in his soup as well I think. The bread was sourdough, and was so good I couldn't believe it, the rib-eye steak was so tender it practically came apart as I swallowed it... The cheese/potato pie things were like a perfect melding of cheese and potato. Even though the potato part was actually chopped potatoes, I couldn't tell where potato ended and cheese began. I spent $30 on that meal (And gave them a $10 tip for how amazing it was, and for the amazing service). It was totally worth it, and I would do it again in an instant.

After that, we went back to the hotel and I shook all their hands and we parted ways for the night. I had to go pick up the guy I was rooming with, from the greyhound station in Chicago! God, that was an infuriating trip. Mainly because I kept getting lost and barely was able to find it in the end. But overall, it's been an awesome day and I look forward to today. I missed the rave last night because of how long it took me to get my roomie, but luckily, there's another dance tonight, so I look forward to that.

Day 2 Update:
Ah, where to begin.
*thinks* The fursuit parade was pretty big. But what I wasn't prepared for was a picture someone showed me of all the fursuiters gathered outside after the parade. It was the biggest crowd of fursuiters I've ever seen. There were 300+ in the parade, and if I'm not mistaken, many that weren't even in the parade but who gathered outside at the end anyway.

I've been seeing Snake every so often. But last night, there was something different about him... Someone told me, but I couldn't believe it. So I went to find him, and it turned out to be true.
He was walking around under a cardboard box! Apparently he had gotten a mission from the General to remove the heads of every fox in the con. Which probably explains why a fox was following him the whole way. The fox must have caught wind of this and was tagging along behind Snake to foil his mission.

For the most part, I did what I've been doing most of the time anyway: Wandering around and hugging fursuiters. I did check out the dealer's room, artist's alley, and the art show. There were some really neat pictures at the art show. I saw Longcat ( http://pseudo-manitou.deviantart.co.....sktop-91566574 ) there, and I might buy it if nobody else does. I might also buy a tail and maybe a trinket or two, or maybe a T-shirt as well. Just because I never buy anything at MFFs and this time I want to bring something home to remember it by.

Which reminds me, I saw Swiftkill again in the artist's alley. And it turns out, one of the two sisters I mentioned before (Her name is Latka, I remember it now), was at the table next to her. They invited me to see Bolt with them, but I had to decline in favor of going to the dance. I asked Swiftkill if she was selling her BBA comic, and she was. However, she offered me a copy for free. I asked her how much she sells it for, and she told me $8. But I only had $3 on me, so I gave her that. She and the other artist who works on the comic (Bah, I forget her name..) signed it for me too. So I've got that in my car right now. I came back in time to help them pack up in preparation to leave to see Bolt, and then bid them farewell as they left to see the movie.

The dance was really fun. Last year when I went to the dance, I took a two-hour break in the middle. But this time, I managed to go straight through, only taking a short time-out to get a drink of water. Though it also helped that the people often gathered into a ring in the center to watch breakdancers show off their stuff. There were even some really good fursuiting breakdancers too!

The husky I encountered on the first day (Duncan the Dog, I remember his name now too) still has the autograph balloon! There were 25 sigs on it last time I counted. He was at the dance too, and he gave me another balloon, a helium filled one this time. I tied it around my arm and danced most of the dance wearing it, though it was kind of annoying when it came down and hit me in the head.

During the dance, a konga line (Or I think it was a soul train...) formed, and I joined in on it. It weaved back and forth a few times and we gave the front half of the line high fives as we passed them. Then at some point, the line broke up slightly, and the guy at the front lead us out of the dance. So there's this long line of furries holdilng the shoulders of the ones in front of them, weaving all around through the hall. Then... the guy at the front of the line lead us OUTSIDE IN THE COLD! We all started screaming, but we went outside anyway. Once outside, the train finally broke apart and we all ran screaming back into the warmth of the hotel, and back into the dance.

There were a few awesome performances during the dance. At one point, the DJs played some fast paced music while we formed a circle and people swung glowsticks/glowballs/etc around skillfully. It was a sight to behold. Then there was a laser show, animated against the far wall of the dance, to Still Alive, the ending theme to Portal. The lasers drew images on the wall that fit the song. And at the end, the cake was drawn on the wall in laser, and the robotic arm came down and pinched the candle out, ending the laser show reminiscient to how the final cutscene of the game ended. This prompted the whole dance floor to roar with cheers.

Unfortunately, there was no slow dance at this dance. Apparently the dance the night before had a slow dance, and this one did not. I'm disappointed. Last year, I sat the slow dance out. This year, I was determined to dance with a fursuiter if I had to run up and claim one. Oh well, there's always next year, and I enjoyed the dance immensely.

There was also a terminator llama! I saw it earlier in the day, and after the dance, its head was just sitting on the table, talking to us. After much confusion and looking around, I saw this guy in a leather jacket hanging out near the back, talking into the palm of his hand subtly. I can only imagine how much money it costed him to build that suit.

I've probably forgotten a few things, but oh well. It's time to go back to having fun, socializing, hugging fursuiters, etc. I'll be going to the Dead Dog Dance tonight, but that's the smaller one that always happens hours after the con is over. It's never as good as the main dance (or two dances we had this year), but maybe there'll be a slow dance there. *snickers*

Toodles for now~

Day 3 Update:
I didn't get the longcat picture. Or anything. By the time I thought to look for any of it, the rooms they were sold in were closed. :( Oh well, at least I have the BBA comic.

A friend of mine, Grant the GM, got here today, just in time to host the Iron Artist! It's basically an art competition where there is only one rule: The rules are constantly changing!

In a nutshell, 12 artists, four at each of three tables, were given a piece of paper while Grant and a helper or two told them what to draw.
"You have been commissioned by a company to draw the front cover for their new comic. The title of this comic is..." Then he turned to the audience as they shouted out answers.
"...Grenade Epic!" (Someone had shouted something about a Grenade from Antioch.)

In addition to ever adding and changing what they were supposed to draw (You have a main character who is a... *turns to audience* raccoon. You have a damsel in distress who is a... gerbil. And because it worked so well last year, draw a muffin somewhere in there too...), there were also... distractions. In the form of people and fursuiters walking around the table basically just doing whatever they wanted to distract the artists. Some hit the artists/tables with balloon hammers, others made random noises or banged the tables, etc. I got up and helped.

I was probably the most disgusting distraction there.

First, I leaned over their art, my long hair draping down onto their papers as I 'innocently' admired their work. Then, I took off my shoes and put them both on one table. One of the artists, disgusted, shoved my shoe off the table. I repeated this with the other two tables of course. Then, I marched around all the tables, farting loudly with my armpit. If you know me, you know that I can do loud, longish, realistic sounding farts with my armpit. This prompted much laughter.

The rules themselves also changed, of course. Draw with your offhand with your eyes closed, find colored pencils held by a random person in the audience, give your paper to the person on the left... But the best one was when we tipped their tables over. The first one was an accident. We were just going to move the table on them. But it fell over on its side, and the artists held their papers up against the table and continued to draw while sitting on the floor. So of course we did it with the other two tables as well. One of the artists at the last table pressed his paper against it and continued to draw as the table was falling over.

The second place winner got a golden (empty) beer bottle. The first place winner got a golden mannequin statue that was poseable. While demonstrating its poseability to the winner, one of the arms fell off.

I went to that restaurant again with a couple of local furries who live in the area and who I already know: Aiden Raccoon, and Paw. The name of the restaurant (I know it now), is Claim Jumper. This time I got the Widowmaker, a really really big burger. My meal was a little smaller this time than when I got the 16oz ribeye steak (or maybe my body was more open to eating more by then, *shrugs*), but it was still nice and filling.

As if having Snake wandering around the con wasn't enough, there's a Darth Vader here as well. Not exactly a furry costume, but I hugged him as well. Yes, I hugged Darth Vader. Later, I saw him walking down the hall holding an empty Happy Meal box. Darth Vader. With a Happy Meal.

Just an hour ago, I heard the unforgettable phrase, "That guy just ran away with Darth Vader's Happy Meal." Sure enough, some furry had grabbed his happy meal and ran away with it. Darth Vader, of course, gave chase. He eventually got it back. There are very few things more epic than seeing Darth Vader pose, intimidatingly holding his arm up, palm gripped tightly and menacingly around the bottom of a McDonalds Happy Meal.

After taking my roomie back to the Chicago Grayhound (which went a lot more smoothely this time, but still a bit bumpy at first), I came back, hung out a little, and went to the Dead Dog Dance. Basically, the con is over and it's an unofficial dance held on the last night of the con. I walked in to Weird Al Yankovic - Alternative Polka, and eventually started dancing. Me and a few others wound up hitting a balloon back and forth while we were dancing. A circle of people joined arms around Darth Vader as people took turns breaking away from the circle and dancing up against Darth Vader in an attempt to impress him with their moves. After that was over, we went back to dancing and a few of us, different ones this time, hit the balloon back and forth some more.

Now, things have died down a bit. I'm sitting in the Den (computer room / free food and drinks room). There's less fursuiters about, and less furries about as well. Though this room still has a lot of people in it. Probably because it has food and internet enabled computers. I think I may have accomplished my mission well this con, as one of the fursuiters earlier in the day recognized me as the guy who has hugged him several times throughout this convention. Yay me! I'm gonna hang out for a while, see if I can get in some more hugs (though I can't compete with the fursuiter holding the counter that he increments every time he gets a hug. He's got 2,800-something at last count.), then later I'll go back home. Gotta make sure I get enough sleep for work tomorrow.

This has been a really fun experience for me. The happiest three days I've had all year. I'll be sad when I have to go home. But there's always next year!

Day After Update
Just when I thought things had died down...
I must have completed my mission better than I'd thought. Two or three other fursuiters recognized me and gave me big, long, heartfelt hugs. I know at least one or two others recognized me too, as we were friends by the end of the con. Duncan the Dog came up to me out-of-suit and wanted me to guess who he was. I couldn't, even though him gesturing back to where his tail should have been should have tipped me off, as he had a balloon tied to his tail when in suit. I had a feeling of this, but I still had to look at his badge to see. Also, Pepper (guy Pepper) told Pepper (girl, blue-haired Pepper) that "That Amaroq guy is crazy." Since he was one of the fursuiters that I hugged A LOT during the con.

Anyway, me and a couple of other guys are sitting in the Den, being tired and silly and dickin' around, when one of us gets a bright idea to test whether Pixie Stix has the same effect on Diet Coke as Mentos does.

Guess what... it does. Which we didn't even expect. It was supposed to be just playing around, but sure enough, his diet coke foamed over onto the table. We cleaned it up with a towel, and then... I grabbed a diet coke and five pixie stix, trying them out over a nearby trashcan.

We were laughing and joking all the way up until I left at 6am. There's a lot of other stuff that went down, but I can't remember most of it. Just that the pixie stix / diet coke thing was the highlight of the night, and was especially funny because of how much of a mess we made trying it out.

It was snowing when I left the con. It's as if the weather knows what I'm leaving and what I'm going to be returning to. Post-Con Depression hasn't hit me yet, because I'm remembering the fun and good times I had. But who knows, it'll probably rear its ugly head soon. It always does.

This has been the best three/four days of my year. Surely the funnest and the happiest. I can't wait to go to a con again.

Autograph Balloon Status:
Duncan still has the autograph balloon, and the last count he gave me put the number of sigs on it at 45!

It's that time of year again. In the interest of clearing that really long journal off my front page, it's time for me to talk about MFF!

Yes, I am going again this year. However, I'm having a little difficulty with rooming this time around. I've got plans to room with a friend of a friend of mine, which I'll have to pick up (and a friend of his) at the greyhound in chicago. (Ew, chicago traffic...)

The room is his and we're gonna be splitting cost. Unfortunately, it isn't even in the main hotel, so I won't get to wake up every morning already in the con. xP

Either way, I've been waiting all year for these three days, and I'll be damned if I'm going to let a few setbacks kill my fun.