I recently learned about Lizzie Velasquez. She has a syndrome that has no name, and only affects 3 people in the world. She's 23 years old, weighs only 60 pounds, and has zero body fat (it's not the dream we wish that it were).

Because she misunderstood, she has been vilified and received hate mail. And yet, she has not given up... In fact, she is a motivational speaker.

I highly recommend that you check out her website, and the next time you think life has been unfair to you, remember her. (And I'm not trying to make light of you and your situation, whatever it may be. I'm just pointing you to someone who's an inspiration to everyone.)

http://www.aboutlizzie.com/#!aboutlizzie/c66t

You should all be reading Pinkerton!
It's a fun comic!

http://www.gocomics.com/pinkerton/2013/01/06

Check his website for all the old (and current) comics

http://pinkertonpark.com/

It’s time again to reflect on happy memories & be thankful be good friends & loyal followers!

Merry Christmas & best wishes for 2013

(I fully admit to seeing someone else post something like this, and I apologize that I've forgotten who inspired me)

Two exciting things tonight (okay, Sunday night)

Steve and I celebrated 25 years together.

Also, the Orlando Gay Chorus "closed the curtain" on our 2012 holiday concert "Reasons For The Season" I already deleted the rehearsal playlist and have started erasing the songs from my brain.

Hopefully I'll get some writing done soon!

After 8 trouble-free years of owning a Honda Civic Si, I finally decided that I wanted a car with more comfort (Si has sport tuned suspension (read "rough")), gas mileage (28 MPG ain't bad, though), and toys!

I just purchased a Toyota Prius Three (Hybrid). 51 MPG, a lot more room and comfier ride, SiriusXM radio, Navigation, eTune, bluetooth and integration with my iPhone. Sooooooo cool!

Oh, and did I mention that it gets 51 MPG?

It's a very cool red, and I'll post a picture before too long.

Now all I've got to do is sell my Honda!

Here's wishing that everyone got enough Triptophan today to help them get a good night's sleep tonight!

Just a quick note.

I am still around, I am still writing, I am still working on the story with a cast of thousands of FA characters.

Things have been hectic, and I will be releasing a story before too long (I have a Christmas story from last year that I have to polish up), and I have some commissions in the pipeline, so keep watching!

I tried to order an iPhone 5 at 5:15AM, after they went on sale at 3:00AM, and they sold out of the initial stock within the first hour, so I have to wait until October 5 to get mine.

But I should have my new camera before then, so that something, I suppose.

Yeah, I know... first world problem!

Tomorrow, August 6, marks the one year anniversary of Steve and my legal marriage! This Christmas will mark a quarter century together. We're also registered with the city. Now all we need is the US government to recognize it.

I recently read a post by that began "Lately I've read posts from people saying, "Hey, it'd no big thing to be gay. Coming out is no big thing. People accept you for who you are and know what you mean, right?""

There are so many stories, these days, about people who come out and are still loved and respected by thier family and friends. But for MANY LBGT youth, that is not the case. A very high percentage (an estimated 20 - 40%) of homeless youth are kids who "came out" and we're kicked out by their parents. A very high percentage (I don't have numbers, since most coroners don't know the sexual orientation of their 'clients') of teenage suicides are people who "came out" and were rejected/ostracized by fiends and family. This is part of why Dan Savage, and others, created the "It Get's Better" campaign.

I don't know how many people have been given hope and decided not to "give up," but I believe that the campaign has help in many ways. It has, in the very least, given visibility to a very real problem.

My husband and I just came back from GALA (Gay And Lesbian Association of choruses) Festival 2012 in Denver. We had an amazing time (as we usually do). Some of the concerts we attended gave us a roller coaster ride of emotions, not the least of which was "When I Knew" by the Heartland Men's Chorus. Narrated by Dan Savage, the story and songs were created from the stories of members of the chorus. One of the songs/stories related the issue of GLBT youth suicide. It is freshen my mind, which prompted this post.

The thread that followed Dineegla's post (http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/3646532/) focused on his being sent an invitation to discuss women's issues after he volunteered for a local politician's campaign. So I decided to put this post on my page.

Thank you for listening.

I am in the final week of prepping video for the Orlando Gay Chorus concert "Changing Hearts." (If you're in Orlando, it's going to be a great concert. Saturday @7:30PM and Sunday @ 4:30mPM at Plaza Live, south of Colonial, on Bumby.)

After that, and some time for recovery, I will be working hot and heavy on the story that I promised. If you're one of the furs making an appearance in the story, you should be getting roughs of your chapter before too long. I'll update here when they go out!

Thanks for your patience!!

I've been a bit bogged down with a video project, and haven't been able to spend much time writing, but I do have the basic outline and character profiles written. I expect to be able to get into serious writing in about two weeks. Sorry for the delay, but I hope everyone involved with it will be happy with the outcome.

Well, I've gotten a very nice response now. I was planning on getting back with people tonight, in order to get some more character details. Unfortunately things got a bit convoluted, so I may not get back with anyone until the weekend.

I appreciate all the submissions, and your patience!

Well, I was very disappointed by the response to my post. I only wound up with two people expressing an interest. I was about to go over and submit requests on DeviantArt and SoFurry, but it dawned on me that, perhaps people didn't really understand what I am proposing. So I just posted a rough draft of Part One. This will show how we get into the story and the basic set up. After this, Mark has sexual interactions with the six (or more) characters that I choose from the submissions. I am going to submit this to those other websites in a few days, but I am giving FA first shot. (remember, there is no cost to you, and you can read the full details here: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/3192045/ )

Even if you're not interested in submitting a character, I hope you enjoy reading this "sneak peak" of my latest story. This will be moved to Scraps once all the characters have been chosen.

I came up with an interesting story idea the other day, and I've been working it out in my head. The concept is still in flux, but I know that I am going to need a bunch of furry characters. I started roughing some out, then it dawned on me... What greater source of furry character material is there than FurAffinity? (I couldn't come up with an answer, BTW)

So I'm putting this out there. Would you like to see your character in my story? Do you have an idea for a character you'd like to see in my story?

This is not going to be tremendously long story, so I am likely only going to feature a half dozen characters. But I will have a need for cameo/background characters.

REQUIREMENTS:
Must be a gay/bisexual male furry
Having a human alter ego is a plus, but if he doesn't, I'll need to create one. So please don't get upset. It you want to use your RL self as that alter-ego, that'd be great. (Human alter egos will make only a brief appearance, and will then transform into the furry character)
The furry character will need to have sex with a human (non-furry) male. (This is not relationship kind of sex. It's definitely a "one time" deal. So if your furry has a partner, this is not to interfere with that. In fact, it's possible that they both have sex with the human, if you like)
Even if your character is normally a bottom, he will need to top for this story.

Send me a note with the basic information. Breed, basic description, attitude, etc. Also include a brief description of his human alter-ego. If he sounds like a "fit" I will note back to get more specifics.

If you don't think he'll "fit" in, but would like to see him mentioned as a BG character, let me know that as well.

I'm not the fastest writer, so it's likely to be six months before the story is finished. That said, when I finish your character's section, I will send it to you, with enough of the "set up" so that you'll know what is happening, but you will be requested to not share it until I have finished the entire story.

UPDATE: Please note, character remains your property, and you will receive copyright and credit within the document, unless you request anonymity. Also, if you're not happy with your character's portrayal, I will work with you to address your concerns, or remove your character.

If you have questions about the project, feel free to ask.

I'm looking forward to getting to know more about you, and am really looking forward to this project!

Oh, and feel free to let interested FA friends know about this. Feel free to post it.

By popular demand (okay, I received one note) I'm finally working on a family friendlier version of The Prince And The Bodyguard. Not sure how clean to make it... Are penis and urine family friendly words? But it will be presentable for a lot more people, and I hope to have it up soon.

A subject very near and dear to Steve and me!

http://t.co/e0rVsr20

YouTube video link

Saw this on page, an he saw it on page and it's a subject near and dear to my part....

I Like TF Art
5/5

I Like TF Stories
5/5

I like to roleplay TF
1/5

I've had TF dreams while sleeping(none - often)
4/5

I wish TF was possible in real life
5/5

If TF was possible in real life and reversible, I'd want to try it regardless of how painful it could ever be
Probably

If TF was possible into the form that I've always wanted, but I knew I could never go back, I'd take it(yes or no)
This opens a huge bag of worms that I won't go into. I'll just say "Hell, yes!" BUT, I'd modify what

If I could turn into any animal in real life, it would be
This isn't all that appealing, per se. Given this as an option, though, I'd say canine.

I daydream about TF when there is downtime
4/5

I like goo-based TF
3/5

I like latex/rubber TF
3/5

I like in-animate TF
0/5 Pointless

I like animal TF
3/5

I like anthro TF
5/5

I like TG
0/5 I'm a man, who likes men. I like what I've got and want to keep it that way!

TF has always been an interest for as long as I can remember
I've wanted to be a centaur since I first saw one. I got into TF with American Werewolf in London

TF is instead an interest a friend/community brought me to
No

Favorite Parts:

I like tail growth
5/5
I like head transformation
2/5
I like the hands/feet change
4/5
I like the bodily covering change(fur, feathers, scales, general skin change)
5/5
I like wing growth
0/5
I like size change
1/5 Not into macro growth. A little enlargement might be ok

---end favorite parts---
I like group TF
4/5
I like TF that occurs in front of people
4/5
I like clothing restraint in a TF
3/5 I like clothing shredding under massive muscle changes
I like when the person transforming is resisting/not enjoying it
4/5
I like when the victim loses his human mind
0/5 Again, pointless, for the most part
I like FORCED TF
5/5
I like blood in a TF
1/5
I like bondage during a TF
2/5
I like TF that occurs in less than 5 minutes
4/5
I like TF that takes much longer
4/5
I like magic-based TF
5/5
I like injection-based TF
5/5
I like other TF methods
5/5
I don't care how a TF is started
5/5
There are too many questions
0/5 Never enough questions.

Contribution Section:

I am a TF artist
I commission TF art
I am a TF writer
Pretty much
I've withheld my answers/lied about some of them.
Nope

If anyone has TF questions feel free to ask in this journal!

I received approval from the commissioner of my latest story. He loved it, and wants to see it posted soon.

Problem is, I found a few errors, and a couple of things need to be added.

Look for my story to go up in the next week or so!

Yes, it'll have centaurs and sex, and within another week or so, I'll be posting a non-spooge version!

No new Halloween story this year. I am just finishing my commissioned story

If you haven't read it, check out my Halloween story from last year, A Fantasy of Fur

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/4988545/

I hope everyone has a great Halloween this year!

I just updated my my submission of the Dalmatian Transformation series to include links to the larger sized single frames, and sepia originals.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/6617374/

Rest in Peace Steve Jobs

I mentioned, when I posted Fantasy of Fur, that I'd written a lot of it on my iPad, and I had someone ask me exactly what my writing workflow is/ Now, as I finish writing my latest story, I figured I would take a moment to post how I write my stories.

If you're not a writer, you likely won't find this interesting, and should consider looking at the next person's journal entry. I understand that he/she has a link to a very funny YouTube video!

I use an app on the iPad called "Elements" It's a nice simple text editor that saves your work to DropBox. As I go along, and once I finish, I pull each section up in SimpleText on my Mac, and copy & paste into Scrivener. Along the way, I use an app on the iPad that is called OmniOutliner to keep notes on the various elements, such as Character profiles, locations, etc. I then email it to myself, since it doesn't currently work with DropBox, and then copy the various elements into profile sheets and such in Scrivener. (Supposedly, the author of Scrivener has finally been talked into creating an iOS version of Scrivener, which will greatly streamline and simplify this process.

When I've gotten everything finished, I have Scrivener compile it into an eBook, drag that book into iTunes, and then go through and do my proof-reading in iBooks. There I can highlight and add notes while mobile (I do a lot of the iPad stuff at work, and around), and then make the changes when I get back to Scrivener.

The workflow has been modified since I wrote Fantasy, but it seems to be working well for me. (Once Scrivener comes to the iPad, it'll be mush less convoluted.) You can decide when I finally get to post my next masterpiece (the cute Australian who commissioned it gets first dibs, of course!)

.Steve & I got married on August 6th, and after a few other events, I am back working on a commissioned piece that I hope to be posting before long. I'll keep you all updated.

Thanks for the well wishes everyone. It was appreciated.

I think, by now, most of you realize that I am a fan of equines, and many of my watchers are as well. Therefore I would like to make you aware a free art raffle:

Here's the link: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/2608117/
Rules are as per :iconryan~

-Only MALE equine characters - Feral or Anthro
-Artist will be   redrevolution
-There are four slots
-Check the link above for how to enter!

Check it out!