An artist called  Mergremil is doing an art lottery! Want a chance to get a free pic of your character? Go to https://www.furaffinity.net/view/61938043/ and get the details. Have fun! Thanks to  Thwaitesy for making me aware of this.

No, really!  libertades is offering them! Go to https://www.furaffinity.net/view/61527383 to learn more.

So one day  Thwaitesy was posting and commenting and making shout outs, and the next day he and his account were gone! Or at least that's the way it feels to me, considering how abruptly he left. Does anyone know why it happened, or what he's doing now?

P.S. Fortunately. he's back now.

Check it out: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/60607038/

Just thought I'd mention it.

A cool artist called  Visage48 is doing a free art raffle for canine characters! Sign up to get your delightful doggo drawing at https://www.furaffinity.net/view/60336275/ ! Raffle ends on 30 April 2025.

The Onion KNOWS.

https://theonion.com/pioneering-fem.....zootopia-porn/

She's a talented artist who's going through a tough time --but we can fix it. More info here.

And let's hope against hope that 2025 is a good year.

Good news, everyone!  falling_star_radahn is giving away more excellent artwork! If you're interested (and why wouldn't you be?), https://www.furaffinity.net/view/58959648/ is the place to go.

 Falling_Star_Radahn, who's a really good artist, is offering a free art raffle until November 21. Go to https://www.furaffinity.net/view/58865197 to get the lowdown. Good luck !

I've actually had a BlueSky account for quite a while; I just never announced it here. (Also, I haven't closed down my Twitter account just yet, although it won't last much longer.) However, many furries have been announcing their escape from Apartheid Boy's Haven for Nazis, Trolls and Grifters lately, and for once I have decided to join a trend. You can find me at https://bsky.app/profile/bfltoons.bsky.social .

 KaeMantis, an artist whose charming work I've admired for years, has a cat who needs help, so she's taking commissions. (More details here: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/57793611/.) I can't afford to hire her , but maybe you can.

 Iampuma (aka Catsnextdoor, formerly known as Swagsurf3rr) is one of my favorite artists; he's created many charming and lovable characters, two of which I wound up adopting. He's also an incredibly talented photographer. As recently as ten days ago, we were messaging each other about my adopting more of his characters, and possibly meeting up. But now he's suddenly deleting all his social media accounts and art site pages. Maybe I'm taking this too seriously, but does anyone know what's going on with him? He's a really good guy, and I hope he's okay. If you know him, or you are him, please contact me.

This time the artist is is Metallwaves, who I was unfamiliar with until recently, but the work is good. Details about the raffle are at https://www.furaffinity.net/view/57236060/ .

Actually, I take the headline back. You see, I've entered the raffle, and the less competition I have, the better. (rubs hands together evilly) So whatever you do, don't click on https://www.furaffinity.net/view/56741963/ ! The artist is RZ54.

...and while I can't afford to do another commission right now, at least I can spread the word. https://www.furaffinity.net/journal/10848855/

Enjoy the day!

Enjoy whatever you choose to celebrate!

Yes, I've gotten a Bluesky account, just like the rest of the furry fandom. And today, I got an invite code! Want it? Just ask me!

...Emphasis on had, because I'm okay now. (Whoops! Spoiler alert!) Anyway, here's my story of survival, for whatever it's worth. It's a little lengthy, but I'll try to keep it as short as possible. I've also divided the post into (at least) two fun sized parts to make it easier to read.

1. "It's lump, it's lump, it's lump/It's on my neck..."
Yep, that's how it all started. One ordinary night in March 2022, I felt a lump on my neck. I knew enough to take it seriously, so the next day I made an appointment at my local hospital (Metro Health in Cleveland) to have it checked out. Not to be overly dramatic, but if I hadn't made that appointment, I might be pushing up daisies by now.

The nurse said it was probably harmless, but I should keep an eye on it anyway. and come back if it didn't go away by itself in a month. As you've probably guessed, a month later it was still there, so a biopsy was scheduled. Being anesthetized and operated on was a new and scary experience for me, at least until it happened. It turned out not to be a big deal -- I went to sleep, I woke up. The big deal came when I was told the results of my biopsy: "Congratulations! You've got non-Hodgkins' lymphoma!"

Okay, so maybe I'm making up the "Congratulations!" part.

The doctor who operated on me told me that the lymphoma was in an early stage, so it was very treatable. Besides, as I soon learned, I couldn't have gotten cancer at a better time. You see, MetroHealth just happened to be starting a stem cell transplant program, and they'd brought in an expert oncologist from another city to run it. And she wanted little old me to be the first subject! I was happy to accept this offer; not only would I get the treatment I needed while becoming part of MetroHealth history, but my results would be used to help future patients. Such a deal!

2. Of apheresis and astronauts: Finally, a furry angle!
I underwent a process called apheresis, during which my stem cells were removed from my blood by a machine so they could be stored and replaced later during a bone marrow transplant. (The rest of the blood was returned to me.) The blood donation process was continuous, so I couldn't be disconnected from the machine for any reason, including going to the bathroom. (I had to use a bucket and a privacy curtain instead. Not my most dignified moments.) I had a lot of time to kill, much of which I spent talking with the nurses, who were all very nice and helpful. However, I also had a book with me -- and it was the kind of book that FA members would appreciate.

Published in 2015, The Furry Future was one of several short story anthologies that the late, great Fred Patten edited for FurPlanet Productions. As you can tell from the title, it had a science fiction theme, so it was really in my wheelhouse. I bought a copy at one of the Anthrocons I attended, read some (but not all) of the stories, then set it aside for years. I decided to finish the book during my hospital stay, a choice that had a larger impact on me than I expected.

So during apheresis, I reread Thebe and the Angry Red Eye, a novella by David Hopkins of Jack fame. It's a compelling and very well-written narrative, but it's also very bleak, even considering its grim subject matter. The main characters are a crew of astronauts who are all furries, although the story barely mentions this; in fact, the protagonist is the only one whose species has been revealed, at least so far. (He's a cat. ) They're sent to Jupiter's moons to search for extraterrestrial life, but... let's just say things don't go well. (The story is no longer online, but a complete plot synopsis written by yours truly is available here. I also wrote this TV Tropes entry. Beware of spoilers in both articles.) I'd read "Thebe" before, and it definitely made an impression, but this time I really got a case of the feels. As I read, one thought kept going through my mind: I've got to save these people. I can only assume that on some subconscious level, I came to identify with the heroes' lonely struggle against certain doom. I also chose Dr. Slawvitz, the altruistic medic, as my favorite crew member, probably because she reminded me of the wonderful nurses who were caring for me. Anyway, I've already written a few isolated fragments of a fix fic sequel in which the protagonists' final fate will be far more pleasant than in the original story. All I have to do is get off my lazy ass and keep writing...

And on that note, I'll give you all a break. Tune in next time to hear the story of my transplant, my multiple strokes, and my ultimate triumph! Same cancer time, same cancer channel!

So I'm watching  Jerberjer do his weekly Sunday sketch stream, and his first pic is micro/macro, and I have an epiphany: "Hey, I know a Twilight Zone episode like that! In fact, I know seven of them!" I've listed them here in broadcast order, along with links to their TV Tropes recaps and the reasons why size differential fans might want to check them out. The last three have SPOILER ALERTs where I felt it was necessary to reveal the twist ending. The series is streaming on Paramount +.

1. "The Invaders": A rural woman is attacked by a tiny alien -- or so it seems until the twist ending.
2. "The Little People": Two astronauts stumble upon a civilization comprised of ant-sized aliens (whom we never see clearly, so don't get your hopes up). One of the astronauts is a sociopath who enslaves and terrorizes the aliens while declaring himself their god. Let's just say that in the end, he gets his comeuppance in a way that will interest macro fans.
3. "Four O'Clock": A paranoid extremist declares that at 4:00, he's going to shrink all the "evil" people in the world to two feet tall through sheer force of will. Not quite as micro-tastic as the previous episodes, but let's just say that the guy's plan pays off, although not in the way he'd hoped.
4. "Miniature": A misunderstood introvert (played by a young Robert Duvall) sees that the dolls in a museum dollhouse are alive, and gets drawn into their world.
5. "The Last Night of a Jockey": A thoroughly corrupt and unpleasant jockey (Mickey Rooney) has always felt insecure about his height and pleads with his alter ego (also Rooney) to make him taller. SPOILER ALERT: The guy eventually becomes 10 feet tall, but it only makes things worse for him, which is exactly what he deserves.
6. "Stopover in a Quiet Town": After a night of drunken partying, a bickering married couple wake up in what seems to be a dollhouse in a model railroad town. SPOILER ALERT: That's exactly what it is, because they've been kidnapped by a gigantic alien child and her mother.
7. "The Fear": In an isolated rural environment, a state trooper and a vacationing socialite are confronted by invading aliens, one of whom is 500 feet tall! SPOILER ALERT: However, it's an illusion created by the real aliens, who are actually tiny and scared and had tried to trick the humans into defeat.

Last year I said that I was planning to commission  Jerberjer for an epic new illustration featuring a whole bunch of characters, several of which I acquired from  IAmPuma , and that it would appear early this year. So what happened? Well, of course the more characters you add to a pic, the more money it costs, and I didn't have enough to include all the characters I wanted. Also, if all goes well, I'll be coming into some more money this May, which will allow me to ask for more characters. Therefore, the new pic is postponed until... well, I have to get the money and send it to Jerb, and then he has to actually draw the pic (on top of all his other work), so June, maybe? If anyone is actually waiting to see this thing I promise, the wait will be worth it!

IMPORTANT UPDATE: A friend just told me he isn't seeing the ads. In that case, mea culpa, FA, though I'd still like to know how and why they're appearing on this site. Original column is below.

If it's not just me, then hey FA, cut it out! You don't need to carry ads for fascist insurrectionists.

Context: Last year, I praised FA for "taking immediate action upon any users or content sympathizing with or promoting this terrorist attack upon our country", namely the January 6 Capitol siege. Sadly, times may or may not have changed. This year, I started seeing ads on FA for Tucker Carlson Today, a Fox News show starring a media commentator who has consistently supported the seditionists, is beloved by white supremacists, spreads anti-vaxx disinformation, likes Vladimir Putin, and is generally a lying, bigoted asshole. Oh, and he boasted about physically assaulting a gay man once.

I have no idea if everyone is seeing these ads, or if an algorithm is following me because I read about politics so often. But just in case: Come on, FA, you don't need Fox News's blood money. Find better advertisers.