So I have my class A concealed carry firearms license for my state now and am beginning researching potential candidates for what I want to own. I have two main goals for getting my license and am soliciting feedback/opinions on the following:

1.) First goal is long range rifle target shooting. This has always been an interest of mine and am exploring different options for long range target shooting (not hunting). By long range I am talking 400-1000 yards and would be interested in bolt action, accurate rifles (preferably sub MoA...but I realize those things get pricey pretty quickly). To give you an example of what I am talking about, I like the .308 Savage Model 10 with a decent scope. Let me know your thoughts on the above or your preferences/suggestions for other models/calibers/rigs.

2.) Second goal is self-protection/home protection. While I have a decent martial arts background and can still effectively defend myself, I AM getting older and the ability to defend myself will diminish over time. I do venture into some dangerous cities from time to time and it would be nice to have a small, easily concealable firearm at my side should I feel the need. I was thinking that a 9MM should be sufficient but am not adverse to the .357SIG caliber or even a 40 either. 45 caliber is probably too much recoil for the size of the handgun I have in mind. To give you an idea of what I was thinking of, I was thinking something along the lines of the Sig Sauer P239 SAS Gen (http://www.sigsauer.com/CatalogProductDetails/p239-sas-gen-2.aspx).

Again, please let me know your thoughts/experiences with the above with my goals in mind and suggest pros/cons and recommendations.

As always, appreciate all your input!!!

-Bash

Just wanted to take the time to say that all of you inspire the hell out of me. I'm a gray muzzle and can no longer move like you all do but you truly make me want to try!!! The passion and effort you bring to the floor make me proud of our little community. I know it takes hard work and practice to perfect the art and I wanted you all to know that your efforts are very much appreciated by those of us who aspire but will never quite get there.

Keep movin' peeps!

-Bash

I miss you. I miss you all. I have been working so damn much that I have actually begun to feel *very* disconnected from all of you. Because of work, I have been working on average of about 70 hours per week (sometimes as high as 85). I am a responsible wolf and will take care of my work responsibilities, but I do in fact miss socializing, chatting, gaming, and hanging with people.

I would like to remedy this. While I cannot do much as of right now to remedy this for my friends that are not local, I can at least hold some sort of a get together for my local friends in the near future. Please stay tuned for a game night at my house, fursuits encouraged. Perhaps we could even break out the Rock Band so I can bang on the drums a bit...it's been sooooo long.

I would also love to attend some art streams/chat sessions with those I cannot be with in person. There are so many folks I have lost touch with and would really like to regain contact with. Please reach out/respond to my attempts to regain contact and I will be very grateful

Been a rough haul in all honesty and I have learned how important it is to keep myself surrounded with my friends to keep me sane. That being said, without my folf, I would have been lost a long time ago.

*hugs to all my long lost fuzzy friends*

-Bash

Somehow my phone decided it would be an awesome idea to take a swim in my toilet. Since doing so I am attempting to dry it out using the good old rice trick, and while I am pretty certain I can save it, it will take a bit and I will be without a phone for a bit.

Needless to say I feel absolutely naked without my phone. I will try and check email as often as I can since that will be best way to get a hold of me.

Talk soon I hope!

-Bash

Not the kind of kinky you are thinking about gutter brain! This Kinky: http://www.crosbylakespirits.com/br.....-kinky-71.html

Ok...so at huge risk of sounding incredibly over the top, 2 jazz paws waaaaaaaaay up gay, I have become a huge fan of mixing the above liqueur in with my favorite vodka drinks and making fantastic cocktails out of it. It adds an awesome blast of sweet, fruity flavor something akin to passion fruit with a hint of mango and blood orange. It takes a normal vodka cocktail and gives it a huge blast of fruity goodness.

I served this at my most recent fuzzy get together at the Wolf's Den and *everyone* loved the cocktails coming from it. You know who you are fuzzbutts...no denying it! It is fabulous!!!! If I but had little umbrellas on hand, each one would have needed about 13 in them for the sheer amount of fabulousity and gayness associated with each one. ^.^

I found this little gem at my normal spirit purveyor so it should be something you can find at normal liquor outlets. It is fabricated by the Crosby Lake Spirits Company out of Minnesota so if I can get it allllllll the way over here in Massachusetts it shouldn't be something that is only sold regionally either.

So if you're looking for a little something to add some punch to your cocktail repertoire, I highly recommend this little additive. Plus its super gay pink and has a cute name that serves as a great little conversation piece when people cannot place that little extra je ne sais quois in their drink...so you can't go possibly go wrong. ^.^

I shall now resume my normal, less FABulous, non jazz paw related wolfish activity.

: D

Well this weekend I had the pleasure of entertaining  tahoetaxidinae at my place. We had a lovely sushi dinner, had some drinks back at the apartment while we played rockband and thenbroke out the fursuits afterward. Needless to say fun was had by all.

^.^

Sorry for the extended absence...life has been challenging to say the least. Here is what has been going on in this tired blue wolf's life since our last installment:

1.) I was able to secure myself new employment out of the place where I was working for the past 6 years or so. They had decided to outsource to IBM a lot of the IT functions and my department was one that they had concluded was worthy of cutting. I am now the Desktop Architect at a tech consulting firm in Boston and getting used to the new environment.

Changing jobs has faced me with a bunch of new challenges that I have not had to deal with in a long time. I am fighting through them as best I can and some days I'm good others...not so much.

2.) I got to go to Fur Fright with some REALLY fancy tap dancing and last minute maneuvering. One of the best parts? I surprised Dobie by showing up a night earlier than expected and know he appreciated the effort. This was the longest both Arinmal and I have gone without seeing him and it was a heartfelt reunion to be sure.

3.) SOOOOOOOOOOOO many good times at FF and to try to list them all would do someone injustice and I would hate that. From hanging and having drinks with my fellow New Englander at heart Twitch to having an amazing time hanging with Shortwave and his *wonderful* packmates I had an amazing time. As I get further entrenched in this fandom and more and more people get to know me, I have so much more fun when we are all together at our conventions. ^.^

4.) I am battling some serious emotionality/depression these days and if I did not have my folf at my side I would be in a very very bad place. There has been a TON of changes in the past few months and I am having issues grappling with the sheer enormity of it all. Between moving, helping Dobie transition into a new living situation, a new job with some crazy high expectations, family shit, worrying about how to keep the folf in the states, and a whole host of other shit I'd rather not detail...there has been a ton on my plate. I find myself completely worn out mentally and am doing my best to stay afloat on a day in and day out basis. Arinimal does and amazing job of keeping me focused and on the straight and narrow and Dobie helps where he can when we can interface with each other (our schedules are not conducive to great communication patterns these days...yet we stay committed and fight through it).

5.) I will be visiting Dobie up in Canada in early December and lam really looking forward to some downtime with the pup. I then get to welcome Dobie down to my place in the states in between Christmas and New Years. Looking forward to a warm and loving holiday season with my boys.

6.) Arinmal is keeping me sane. I cannot say enough about him keeping me afloat. To attempt to put my appreciation and depth of feeling into words would not do him justice. To say the least I am still kicking because he puts up with the emo wolf. You are amazing folf. Enough cannot be said on this...

7.) Miss all of you tremendously. I do not find myself with a lot of time to jump online at all and miss chatting with all of my friends. I hope you are all well and look forward to finding time to get back in touch with all of you soon.

That's all I can think of right now off the top of my head. Be good fuzzies and woof yah soon.

*hugs*

-Bash

Although...as I say every year...you're doing it wrong since Thanksgiving is REALLY in November. However, since we in the US already let you pretend that you're a country, we'll let you pretend Thanksgiving is in October as well.

^._.^

I'll be posting a journal soon letting peeps know what I've been up to since it's been a while...

-Bash

...With regard to my work situation. My entire department has been selected as appropriate for outsourcing to IBM. The long and short of it is that I can either interview for a job with IBM to work on the same job at the same place of employment, if IBM doesn't want me I get a severance package (crappy by my standards) or I can simply find myself another job.

While I have little doubt that I could get the job with IBM, I am actually leaning toward taking control over my own destiny and finding myself a new job. No disrespect to any Big Blue folks out there (*cough cough* Panzier *cough cough*) but I have heard horror stories about working for IBM on the managed services side of the house (I hear that it is great if you can work for core IBM though).

The upside is that I do not have to do anything immediately since the transition does not take place until next year so I have about 6 months to figure things out. Even in the the "worst case" scenario I interview for the IBM job, work my current job until something better rears its head.

More details to follow.

Tomorrow I go to work to find out whether or not I get laid off in 6 months. : \ I guess receiving such a large window of lead time is nice though so I can at least make alternative plans should they become necessary.

Oh well...we'll see how it goes. Thanks fully I have a folf next to me and a puppy behind me to get through all this.

Earlier this evening  Arinmal picked me up from the airport in Canada and had a beautiful bouquet for blue flowers awaiting me. We then proceeded to drive home...or so I thought. We were conversing as we normally do talking about the events of the day, car stuff, music, video games etc. Somehow he managed to get to the shore of the lake by our house without me even being aware of it and before I knew it we were driving leisurely along the shore enjoying the amazing sunset. He parked at the pier where we all swim from during the summertime and asked me to go for a walk with him.

The pier was devoid of people and all you could hear was the sound of the wind. He walked me out to the end of the pier hand in hand and held me close to him. I remarked at how pretty the sunset was before he turned to me and said "hey..." I looked up to face him and saw him get down on one knee and he took my paw into his. It was then that he asked for my paw in marriage.

I of course replied yes and was tearing and crying as he got back up off his knee and I kissed him and held him tightly as I was overwhelmed by emotion. WE stayed for a few moments and then headed back to the car where he remarked that he had one more surprise in store for me. He then pulled this out...http://www.furaffinity.net/view/5698210/

Kei did an AMAZING job of capturing the moment and I now will forever have a reminder of the day that my folf made me the happiest wolf in the entire world.

Arinmal, I love you with all my heart and look forward to being at your side for the rest of our lives. And nobody should worry, our big puppy  Robowolf will be with us every step of the way as tonight we went from being a pack...to becoming a family.

I am the luckiest wolf alive.

*hugs*

Love isn't what you do when things are easy. In fact, love kicks in when things are hard. It's very easy to say the words "I love you" to someone else but exceptionally difficult to stand by those words if you shy away from things the moment times get difficult. Sure I have my flaws and fall short of expectations from time to time, but I can look in the mirror and say to myself that I truly love my boys because I am steadfast in the face of adversity.

Those of you who know me understand that I am wrestling with a distance relationship that makes things exceptionally difficult at times. The loneliness and depression that kicks in when you are away from the true love of your life is immense and something I have never had to face in my (too many for my liking) years. l consider myself blessed that I was finally able to find true love and experience unconditional love in return. I am thankful for their patience, understanding and caring for me when I do break down.

This evening I am finding things exceptionally difficult to handle as I recently had to say goodbye to Arinmal after spending a week with me down in Boston. Broke my damn heart to send him away on the plane back to Canada. Only bright spot was that I knew he had Dobie to head home to and that the pup would be happy again to see him. I can honestly say that I learned a lot during his trip down here both about myself and the depth of our relationship. I can in full truth say that I am the happiest wolf in the world when I am with my boys. That being said, the converse also applies...when I am away from them (especially this time) I am the most unhappiest being in the world. Hence this journal...an attempt to make heads and tails out of the chaotic sea of emotions raging around inside of me.

I have had some serious conversations with my boys over the past few weeks about life stuff and have proven that love is not something that only exists when things are hunky dory. I truly believe that love is really truly proven when things are difficult and you have to look yourself in the mirror and persevere against whatever life is throwing at you at the time. As a result, some difficult conversations have been had and decisions have been made as a result. None of this could have happened without a deep and love that is true. If we truly did not love each other these conversations would have broken down irrevocably from the beginning rather than coming to the conclusions that they did.

One silver lining in all this is that this recent trip has jump started the process of exploring options of our little pack becoming united permanently. I have a meeting this week with the big boss man to see if I can get transferred permanently to Canada and allow our little pack to live as we should. Please cross your claws for me as I truly believe that every little bit helps.

I love you Arinmal and Dobie with all that I am. One day we will be together in the way that we are meant to...because I love you both I truly believe that we can make this a reality.

*kisses*

Your Wolfie

Just when I thought I couldn't possibly love you any more you find a way to make me fall even further in love with you.

Love you boys with all I have.

What suits will you have?
Bashful Wolf will be bouncing around

If not a fursuit or you're in a partial fursuit, what will you be wearing?
Jeans and some sort of t-shirt most likely hanging with Arinmal or Dobie

What is your gender?
Male

How old are you?
Old enough to be able to relate to Yoda

How tall are you?
5' short" Ever see Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome? Dobie and I are Master Blaster. I ride up top. XD

Can I talk to you?
Would love to chat. I can't shut up most of the time. Ask Dobie or Arnimal : D

Can I touch you?
hugs are always welcome

Can I hug or snuggle with you?
Hugs are fine. Good luck tearing me away from Arnimal and Dobie though for snuggles.

Can I buy you lots of drinks?
Sure! I drink lots for a wee little fella.

Can I give you lots of money?
Only if you make me do a lap dance for it first

How will I know it's you and not the wrong person?
I'll be wearing my badge silly...read on McDuff...

Are you nice?
I like to think of myself as nice. Chat me up and let me know if you agree or not.

You look pissed off out of suit. Can I come up to you?
I will not be pissed off. I will be with my boys. There's no time or room for anger.

Do you do trades?
Sure...If you like the kind of art that makes blind people cry, then I'm your man.

Can I stalk you?
Not a good idea. The doberman is a trained stalker killer and the folf will become very full of teeth and angry.

How long are you going?
Should be there Friday through Monday

Do you like parties?
oh yes...very yes.

Because my lovely folf  Arinmal and sweet dobermuzz  Robowolf absolutely love to make fun of how long winded I can be in these journal thingies, I'll try to keep this one brief.

My holiday experience can be summed up simply by stating that it was singlehandedly the most special holiday season I have ever experienced. Being in love...true love...for the first time in my life has brought all the emotionality of the season to the surface and it was simply amazing being able to spend both Christmas and New Years with the people I hold dearest in my life. I got my folf a Xbox 360 with the Kinect attachment to replace the Xbox he gave to a fur in need and I got my puppy a 1 year netflix subscription (he LOVES falling asleep to movies) as well as a healthy supply of lindens to deck out his avatar in Second Life.

Before I tell you what I received from my folf, a little back story. For WEEKS he has been tormenting me about how his gift to me was going to make me cry. I of course, being the bold ole bad wolf, kept saying HMMMPH...I'm totally not going to cry and in fact...I won't cry just to keep from giving you the smug satisfaction. So going into Christmas I knew it wsa going to be something special and I would have to resolve myself to be strong.

Well, that being said, I received the most, special gift I have ever received in my entire life.  Arinmal got me a sterling silver chain to replace the necklace that I have worn non stop since December 18, 2009 (long story) and upon it were strung two sterling silver rings each one representing one of my boys. The rings are currently being engraved with their names so that each ring has one of my boys' names on it. Needless to say I took one look at it and the water works began. I cried like a 10 year old school girl with a skinned knee. Some wolf I am. ^.^

The week in between New Years and Christmas was busy. Dobie and I drove down to my place from Toronto and stayed there. Both me and the folf had to work the week between the holidays. : ( Dobie met my family for the first time and everyone loved him. We drove back up to Toronto so we could spend New Years together as a pack.

Funny story...driving back up to the great white north we were stopped at the border and told to pull aside for inspection. The border patrol pulled the car apart while Dobie and I watched in anticipation KNOWING that we were going to be questioned about what they will find. Both Dobie and I had our suits in there and my pup also had his pup gear with him. Needless to say, the border patrol got 4-5 big beefy gorillas to surround Dobie and I when they were done and asked simply..."So, needless to say I'm a little curious...what's with all the animal shit?" Dobie then had to go about and attempt to explain the concept of being furry and fursuiters to 5 border patrol agents. *giggles* Needless to say, Dobie and I and know simply "Remeber those guys that came through with all the animal shit..." stories amongst the Canadian border patrol. Embarassing to to be sure but I can laugh about it now.

We spent New Year's Eve at Firestorm Six's kick ass new year's bash. Saw so many old friends and met some new ones as well. Had a great time ringing in the new year with my boys and playing around in suit.

I reluctantly left my boys on January 2nd but kept my composure for the first time for the sake of my boys. Took an enormous amount of will to not get upset at leaving them. Pretty soon boys, we are going to have to figure this distance shit out.

I promised  Arinmal that I would remind everyone that he is an absolute monster in the sack. There hun...I did it. ^.^ ALthough, truth be told...that previous statement is an absolute *fact*. : D In actuality, both my boys are great in the bedroom but definitely have different styles. I love them both for it.

: )

So this Thursday I'll be flying up to Planet Hoth...I mean Toronto...to visit with mah boys  Robowolf and  Arinmal for our very first Christmas together. Yes, this wolf is a little bit of a romantic chick when it comes to that kind of stuff...ok...a lot of bit. Whatever...deal with it.

I'll be driving back home on Boxing Day (whatever the hell that is...all I picture is a day when all the Canuck's get drunk, come out of their igloos and fight each other in the streets. No...wait....that's St. Patrick's Day in Boston. Nevermind) with Dobie who will be staying with me in between Christmas and New Year's. Sadly neither my folf nor I could get the week in between off. Wish I could host both my mates.

Dobie and I will drive back up to the Great White North as soon as I can get out of work on Thursday to rejoin Arinmal. I will work remotely on Friday and I believe the plan is to hit Firestorm's to ring in the New Year. I will reluctantly fly home on Jan 2.

For those I do not get a chance to see, have a wonderful holiday season.

*hugs*

My apologies for not getting this out sooner, but life has been a little hectic since Fur Fright. First, some background for those of you who are new to following me. This was my first furry convention and the first time I've been able to fursuit in Bash with the fandom. To sum up my experience as AMAZING doesn't do it justice but it is the closest I can come to approximating how I feel about the weekend.

I was attending the con with my mates  Arinmal and  Robowolf and they were driving down to the con separately from me. We tried to align our schedules so that I would arrive first and check into the room and get things set up. However, my puppy decided to drive down at Ludicrous speed and ended up beating me there by a good 40 minutes even though I live only 2 hours away from the convention location. I didn't think a montana could go that fast. : )

When I arrived I texted Dobie and Arinmal to find out where they were and ended up seeing my folf in partial outside the hotel chatting with some furs. I slowly creeped into his line of vision and when he saw me I got the biggest hug. Shortly thereafter, Dobie emerged from the bahhh (that would be bar to you non-Massachusetts residents) and I got my usual awesome dobie hug where he picks me of the ground and I hug him with all of my paws.

We got my bags and checked in and brought my stuff up to the room. I then helped my boys get their stuff settled as well. That night we suited up and hung outside (the cool weather was *perfect* for suiting) and I got to meet some of my mates' friends. After suiting we headed up to the room where Dobie hit the hay since he was tired from all the driving and Arinmal and I hung out catching up on things. I met  Shortwave and he spent the night with us. As you may or may not know,  Shortwave is a very strong husky...heck he even pulled a truck across the parkinglot later in the con!!! As a result of being such a strong working husky, he has a very broad build. Why i tell you this is because when he stayed over, the super strong broad husky was only given about 10 inches of bed space to sleep in and he managed not only to not fall off the bed, but get a great night's sleep. *giggles*

The next day we awoke and after Dobie and I got breakfast and coffee for us, the first order of business was to get registered and then get our desired artwork commissioned. Registration took a while and we had a few hiccups since  Arinmal has more middle names than a frigging lawfirm, but we worked through them. Once registered we then proceeded to get our artwork commissioned. I found the whole commissioning process to be fascinating. We were able to get a sketch of Arinmal and I commissioned from the *awesome*  Donryu. If you have not sampled his artwork, you must do so NOW. We were also lucky enough to be able to commission an art piece of the 3 of us from  WFA I cannot wait to see how it comes out. It will be an epic piece of our little pack. : D Dobie was still tired from the drive the day before so he went for a nap and Arinmal and I wandered around for a bit exploring the layout of the place and seeing what was being offered in the dealer's den.

We checked on the Dobermuzz and once we did the lunch thing, we suited up. We got a REALLY good session in and I met sooooooo many awesome people. Big shout out to  aurorafox who made sure I got introduced to all of the local Mass furs he could dig up for me. It was AWESOME to meet all of you fellow Massholes and I look forward to seeing you all again soon!!! Friday night was a low key night of suiting and drinking at the bar. That evening our little pack just kept to ourselves and enjoyed each other's company.

Saturday Dobie and I again got breakfast for us and after getting settled we suited up again and hit the scene. Between the bar and hanging out outside I had a BLAST. The impromptu car show outside the hotel entrance was awesome and I had a lot of fun chatting with people about their rides and dancing to the tunes that people were blasting. I really enjoyed this unscheduled event and had a great time. We were there until it was time for the fursuit parade. I had never been in the death march before so my mates ensured that I took part. I had a lot of fun wandering around the hotel and waving to peeps. After the parade, we were all hanging outside and just randomly telking with furs. I recognized  Kanic and he was one of the furs on my list I definitely wanted to chat with. Problem is...shy wolf is shy. I got all bashful and didn't approach him at first. Thankfully  Robowolf took it upon himself to go over there and break the ice and I was waved over. Had a GREAT time chatting with Kanic and he is every bit the sweetheart I knew the would be. My little pack and he chatted for a while and then we were ready to dry off and get out of suit and invited Kanic back to hang.

We got back to the room, got the suits drying, started getting the booze flowing and entertained Kanic and  Kellogg the amazing collie for the evening. We ordered pizza and wings for dinner and had a wonderful time just chatting and getting to know each other better. I really enjoy this aspect of the convention when you can sit down and get to know the people who make up the fandom. After Kellogg left to go see his roommates and Kanic left to go find Dodger, the evening for us was low key and very relaxing. That evening ended up being one of the most special of the convention for me as I stayed up very late with my packmates and had an amazing time just being able to be with the people I love.

Sunday emerged and we fell into the routine of breakfast, suiting, drinking and eating. I had a great time suiting on Sunday and met soooo many people...too many in fact to name. We bounced between the bar and hanging outside and wandering the convention space. Lots of pictures and hanging out with people. Funny story at the bar...I was hanging with Dobie and Arinmal at the time and we sat down and ordered some beers. Bar tender does his job and cards us. Arinmal shows his ID and the bar tender hands it back. Dobie shows his ID and the bar tender evaluates it and hands it back. I hand him my ID and he looks at it, pauses for a long while, then says without batting an eye "Wow...you're old." Gee thanks pal I respond and say you know you're supposed to insult your patrons AFTER they tip you. Got a few laughs from the bar patrons and I shrugged it off.

We had a really nice dinner that night as I splurged a bit and brought my pack out for sushi and hibachi at a local restaurant. We ordered WAY too much food but it was really good stuff.

That evening I hung around with my pack and spent a good chunk of time hanging with the energetic and sweet  Bitshep After suiting for a loooooong time, Dobie was at the bar while Arinmal and I were bouncing around. I wanted a drink and went up to Dobie and while chatting with the pup when I heard a familiar voice but couldn't place it. That's when Dobie looked around me and introduced me to  twitchdawoof who was sitting in front of me and out of suit at the time. I introduced myself in person as I had exchanged tweets back and forth a few times with him but *really* wanted to meet him in person. Later that evening we were just messing around, hit the dead fur party briefly (was surprisingly vacant) and ended up just hanging out at the bar with random visits from Kanic and Bitshep among many others. A small furpile of Firestorm Six fursuits may have erupted at some point too : D At last call Dobie put our drink orders in and must have said something to Twitch since he was now in suit and made a point to come on over and shoot the breeze with me. My pup knows I am shy and would not have done so on my own. Thank you pup!!!! I got the chance to hang with Twitch and get some hugs in for about a half hour. Loved every second of it. I love his personality and attitude. I was laughing the whole time we were hanging out. : ) Oh by the way, if you've never seen Twitch out of suit, he's really cute. : D

Monday morning Dobie slept in and Arinmal and I went for breakfast at the local diner. Was REALLLLLY good. Great diner food and well run establishment. Reality was setting in that the con was over and soon I would have to say goodbye to my packmates. i am teh SUCK at saying goodbye and usually drown myself in alcohol but since I had to drive I was not given the luxury of doing so. We packed everything up, said our goodbyes and went on our way. The ride home was one of reflection and appreciation for what has become a touchstone of reality for me.

Big shout out to the convention staff who were AWESOME and all of their hard work is appreciated. Hotel was fantastic and being able to drink around the hotel and outside the hotel lobby was INCREDIBLE.

My first con could not have been any better or gone any smoother. Thanks to my packmates for making everything so special. I love you both very much.

*hugs*

Whew...just back from another trip to Canada to visit the pups and pick up my completed fursuit. I had a wonderful time seeing my boys again.

Quick recap is that I got the opportunity to spend some decent quality time with the Dobie puppy on Thursday and Friday. Poor little Robomuzz got sick...yeah...sick...on Friday and watched me work from "home." I just didn't happen to tell work I was working from home in a different country : ) It was actually fun taking conference calls with a cutie doberman on the couch next to me and a sexah folf playing WoW in the other room. : D

After getting the work stuff out of the way, I got the opportunity to hang with  Nighthawk,  Inari,  Jamesbluewolf,  Mune, and  GreySnowCat who had all descended on the place to help do some work on the house. We had a great night just hanging out, chatting and getting caught up with each other and I had a lot of laughs. I love hanging out with cool furs.

Saturday was a day of toil essentially putting the subfloor down on the loft space and getting a staircase installed. Everyone put a lot of hard work in and by the end of the day, there were stairs, an awesome loft, and the bed, futon and TV were all in place.  Arinmal is an amazing worker. What took Dobie, Grey and I about 5 hours to do, he did twice as much in 3 hours. Plus he looks cute using power tools. : D Seriously, everyone busted their hump to get the place further toward completion and earned their fun on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.

In between working and screaming "fuckin' a fooooot" at each other and giggling like schoolgirls,  Mune was tied to the desk (sometimes literally : ) and was forced to work on artz. I caught a glimpse of the commission he was working on and it is incredible. I won't let the proverbial cat out of the bag before it is completed, but needless to say it is a *very* special piece of art.

Saturday night I went with Dobie and  JamesBlueWolf to  FirestormSix's place and picked up my fursuit and did a quick photoshoot. I'm no ashamed to admit that I very nearly cried when I saw Bash's head in person. This is such a huge step for me personally in terms of making things that at one point in my life were only fantasy now becoming reality through a hell of a lot of hard work (as well as a ton of support from my fellow furs). While picking up the suit, I had the good fortune to see  Howiepup,  Deoge, and  Redwolf78. Was great to see you sweeties.

Saturday night everyone was tired from a hard day's work and the evening was spent chilling and video games. That night I got to sleep with my mates on the custom bed that the folf put together. Had a wonderful time to say the least. Love you pups. : )

Sunday we had the best of intentions of getting a lot of work done but ended up finishing the railings for the loft and staircase and spent the larger portion of the day relaxing and enjoying each other's company. I somehow managed to get a 2 x 4 dropped on my head thereby sealing my commitment to the house with blood. Now that she's tasted it, I'm sure the house thirsts for more : )

Sunday night and Monday were spent with my mates and I had a great time just being with them. Lots of laughs and a lot of fun just hanging around the homestead.

Monday night was the dreaded departure and I dealt with it in the time honored tradition my forefathers from Ireland have passed down from generation to generation to me...I began drinking at something silly like 10:30AM. Needless to say, having to say goodbye to  Arinmal and  Robowolf is the hardest thing I have had to do. I hate leaving them and look forward to a time when I no longer have to.

Thank you all for another wonderful time and I look forward to seeing you all again very soon.

Be good my pups...I'll see you at Fur Fright.

Well that was just an amazing trip to Canada wasn't it? I had the opportunity to both meet soooooo many incredible new furs and reconnect with furs I already knew were awesome : ).

First off, a note of thanks to my esteemed hosts  Robowolf and  Arinmal. Love you both guys and thank you for the opportunity to again see your world. Soon pups...our worlds shall collide and become one.

Second, a note to new friends that I had the opportunity to finally meet:
 Redwolf78 (super sweet and awesomely sexy wolf...was great hanging with you and cozying on the couch with you...you MUST come to Fur Fright sweetie...no pathetic excuses will be accepted. You did an amazing job on the back room too hun.)

 Howiepup and  Deoge (a cuter couple you will never meet. Howie needs to be voted sweetest fur of all time and Deoge is just plain awesome...even if he is 17 feet taller than I am *jealous* : ) Howiepup's ability to peer into a fur's soul is simply amazing)

 Treznor1138 (sad to see you go back overseas but please know that you are loved and missed by all Canadian furs and at least one crazy Yankee blue wolf. Be safe and come back to us in one piece...so you can cook me amazing eggs with hollandaise sauce again... XD)

 GreySnowCat (I still owe you snuggles kitteh! Pleasure meeting you in person!! Nice to have a muzzle to a name now!!!)

 munkybizniss &  empirewolf (Awesome couple, had a great time hanging with you both, and it was great to see Munkybizness in Howie's fire fighter gear! I felt very safe around the campfire despite being surrounded by a bunch of sick and twisted furry pyro's XD)

Third, a shout to old friends that I got the chance to see again:
 Inari (Sorry we did not get chance to play in Inari...Fur Fright my friend! Thank you for the scritches and the cozying on the couch!)

 Nighthawk (You and Trez make a great couple...too bad you're getting dumped when you turn 25 because you officially turn too old. OH I SAID IT! XD Seriously, great seeing you again and wish we had more time than just one day : )

 Firestormsix (*hugs tightly* Was GREAT to see you again and I hope the back massage helped you out my friend...get some rest will you?!? Oh forgot to ask while I was there...my fursuit will be ready next week right? *giggles* JUST KIDDING!!!! Do not work too hard my man. Take time for yourself once and a while and be with friends that love and care for you.)

Lastly, a final word of thanks to my pups  Robowolf and  Arinmal. A better pack I could not join. See you both soon pups. I'm counting the days. *hugs*

In closing, I had an amazing time hanging with some of the nicest people on earth. Thank you all for your kindness, your hospitality, your trust and, most importantly, your friendship. Without people such as you in my life, it would be a very dreary existance. I wish you all good luck and look forward to seeing each and every one of you again *very* soon. What can I say? I'm addicted to over taxed beer and crappy Horton's coffee...how can I NOT come back?

: D

Be well all.

-Bash

So over the July 4th weekend I was lucky enough to visit  Robowolf and  Arinmal (and Canada for that matter) for the first time and had an absolute time of my life. Despite me befouling their pristine countryside with my atrocious Bostonian accent as well as my Irish heritage drinking ways, Dobie decided to invite me back...thereby confirming the conclusion that all Canadians have suffered one too many hockey pucks to the head. Despite this fact, I have decided to accept Dobie's kind invitation to return and will be up there beginning the 20th of August and staying through the weekend.

Apparently, according to  Arinmal, there are several metric assloads of furs (trust me...that's an awful lot of fur for those not literate in the metric measurement of "assload") visiting to meet me. I look forward to meeting you all! That being said, let's get this out of the way now shall we? Yes...I sound funny. I do indeed "pahhhhk my cahhhhh in Hahhhvahhd Yahhhd before going to the bahh for some beeyah". You all sound funny to me because you pronounce every single one of the letter R's in your speech....so nyahhhh *sticks tongue out at all the Canucks and then giggles*

Seriously, looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones and know that we will all have a great time. If not, I'll simply make fun of you until you leave thereby giving me one more beeyah to drink. ^.^ Peace out Canada.

*hugs*

- Bash

So over the 4th of July weekend I was hosted by  Robowolf and  Arinmal to visit them up in the great white north. Hands down, this trip was the most amazing experience of my life. Was able to leave the woes of the States behind for 5 days and swim, eat, drink, snuggles and exploration. Huge hugs to  robowolf and  Arinmal for their hospitality, kindness, and generosity. Words fail to express how impactful this journey has been and the impact that it has had on my life going forward.

I met so many awesome people and made some really good friends. Was able to meet and hang out with  drakis37 ,  Nighthawk ,  Mune ,  JamesBlueWolf , Raverfox , and  inari. Special nod and wink to  drakis37 : D

Special thanks to  Inari for allowing me to don his fursuit and join in on the fun. I'll be posting some pictures that were taken shortly.

Also had a chance to dine with and meet with  FirestormSix and finalize the details of my fursuit that is now being prepared. He is an *amazing* person and an incredible artist in every meaning of the word. *rubs paws together*.

All in all an absolutely mind blowing trip that will be with me for the rest of my life. I only hope that my feeble expressions capture just how incredible it was to be able to meet and hang with such fine people and have the best time of my life.

Bash out

Hi folks,

Well after a fairly long and somewhat grueling 8 hour procedure, the ole ticker is now fixed and should be fixed for good this time! W00T!!!!

Took the EP techs a while to find the rhythm this time whereas the first time I had this done, they found the anomalous rhythm fairly quickly. We once again confirmed that my tachycardia was SVT (Supra Ventricular Tachycardia...this is the less dangerous kind of tachycardia) that was being masked as VT (Ventricular Tachycardia....this is the very dangerous kind since if you have runs of Vtach, your heart is not pumping blood effectively all the while...that's bad : ) I basically have (had) a condition known as Wolff Parkinson White syndrome (the weird part of me intellectually gets off a little bit that my condition has the word wolf in it...but I digress). Means I had an additional accessory electrical pathway that needed to be ablated so the electrical signal can progress through the heart chambers normally. All fixed now!!!

Thanks EVERYONE for your well wishes and your support. I also want to AGAIN call out the cast of characters that require extra super special thanks know who you are. I love you all and cannot thank you all enough for helping me through this and the rest of the drama (Dobie, Fox, Xavior, Ramzin, Wolfie et al.) Words cannot express how thankful this wolf is to have friends such as you in my life. I only hope that I can help each of you half as much as you have helped me.

Take care again everyone and I thank everyone for all of the support.

Peace....

-Bash

Well tomorrow is the day I go in for my heart procedure. For the curious I am having an electrophysiological procedure performed on my heart to correct an electrical anomaly so that my heart rhythm normalizes. I've had it done once before a few years ago and this should *hopefully* be the last time I ever have to go through it. I'm a little anxious but since I've been through it before, I at least know what to expect. It's a lonnng procedure (5+ hours) and you have to be awake through it the entire time, but it is definitely doable. It's just weird getting your heart hooked up to what essentially amounts to a dial and then the doctors play with your heart until they find the anomolous rhythm and then fix it. Sounds kind of Dr. Frankensteinish, but it does work! XD Recovery is relatively easy since it is not open surgery and is done through radio leads inserted through the legs that are snaked up to the heart.

I'll post when possible to let everyone know how it all turned out.

PS - special thanks to all of you who have supported me throughout the past few months. Without all of you, not sure how I would have handled everything (Fox, Xavior, Wolfie, etc.). You guys have kept me sane and laughing throughout everything since December of 09 and I thank you all for everything.

PPS - *Extra special thanks* go to a certain canine who has absolutely been there for me at every turn...you know who you are doggie...*giggles* as the doggie hates the limelight...

*hugs*

-Bash

Hello to all the fellow MA furs out there that greeted this old wolf ever so warmly. While I will not be able to make this Sunday's Feb. Fur Meet, I will definitely make the March fur meets. Looking forward to meeting all of the local fur soon!