It has been…it has been a really rough couple of days. But… I just want you all to know that I love and care for you deeply. I am not always there when I should be, I do not always say what needs to be said, and I definitely do not know how to help most of the time, but, well, I love you. Each and every one of you. And our relationships mean everything to me. *hugs tight* Thank you, every one of you. Thank you for being there. Even when you are not actually there, just thinking of you makes me smile. Thank you for being you. =^.^=

Hiya internet! Jari here! One of my super best friends of all time recently hit a rough patch and has been doing lots of arts to help make ends meet. She is making eyecons (apparently that's actually what they are called and not just the clever play on words I thought it was). In fact, I got to watch her make one, frame by frame, completely from scratch. And they're amazing! So you should go check out her work, and commission her!
 Jadesay
 Jadesay
 Jadesay

Commission info here: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/6573490

Seriously, go commission one! They're awesome!
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/15988950


Also, please spread the word! Jade is a sweet and super amazing person, and needs lots of help right now!

I don't know what you're doing right now. I don't know if you're okay. I don't even know where you are, exactly. I don't know how to tell you that I stay up some nights worrying about you. I don't know how to tell you that I still smile when I look at your picture on my computer screen. I don't even know how to say I'm sorry. Sorry for all the times I wasn't there for you. Sorry for how we separated. Sorry for all the failures, for the missed opportunities. I'm sorry that all the happy times we had together are just memories.
I sincerely hope we can have more of those happy times, that our parting is not forever. But even if it is, and we never speak again, I hope that everything turns out for the best for you. I hope that the road ahead is bright and warm and continues to slope upward. Even in the valleys where everything is dark and cold and sharp, I hope that you never lose sight of the path ahead. I've seen how far you've come; I know you were once deep below and I know how high you are now. Your path has been trending uphill, despite the corners and crevasses, and I know that one day you're reach the top of this mountain. And the view will be incredible.
Thank you for all the memories. Thank you for how you burned brightly in the darkness of the mundane and everyday. I hope I get to see the fire in your eyes again, that there will be many more memories between us.

It with great sadness and a heavy heart that I must inform you that neither Noodles nor myself will be able to make it to Rainfurrest this year. I'm really sorry!
*huuuuuuugs* I miss you all already!

UPDATE: Thank you SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SOOOOO much everyone who helped out! Thanks to your awesome generosity, alastrine is on her paws again and things are looking up. You all are absolutely amazing and it's an honor to know you! Please accept this voucher for unlimited free hugs redeemable whenever you see me!
*huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugs*

Original post:

A very dear friend of mine ( alastrine) is in a really tight spot and needs help! Please visit http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/4427340 and give hugs, support, and loose change if you have it!

I'm thankful for Canadians! How about you?

It was partially mistakes on my part, partially other people's bad choices, and partially things done to me, but the result was an ugly, agonizing period in my life. For some time I was surrounded by reminders of my pain and failure, haunted by the ghost of the past and the hurt and anger and shame in the eyes of everyone who looked at me. I tried to run, moving several times and distancing myself as best I could from everything and everyone I knew. But my past hounded me, popping up in the most unexpected places, always there to slap me in the face no matter how far I fled.
Turns out I can't escape my past because it's a part of who I am; I carry it with me wherever I go. I can't hold on to my hurt because until I let go it will just keep on hurting. And I can't keep suppressing it because every time something reminds me of it, it becomes harder and harder to suppress.
It wasn't until I accepted that I had a part (however small) in the whole mess. It wasn't until I released my anger and resentment towards those involved and allowed myself to see things from their point of view. It wasn't until I stopped running and fully accepted what happened and that there was nothing I could do about it. It wasn't until I let the whole thing go that I found peace. Only then could I act rationally when confronted with something from my past (rather than instantly and mindlessly reacting with anger). Only then could I finally relax and know peace. And better yet, those around me felt my peace instead of my anger.

_{hijacked from Tenkri and crashed into a building}

Arriving/Departing:
Arriving Wednesday afternoon by train, leaving Sunday night by air

Staying:
at the Hilton (main hotel)

My room will look like:

...surrounded by birds. o.0

Fursuiting:
Of course! Watch out for Noodles, he'll be all over the place!

Hugs:
Yes! Please! Also accepts: embraces, pounces, glomps, snugs, pets, affection, and legal tender. CAUTION: May give all of the above without warning or fathomable explanation.

How to find me:
Hold still for very long, and odds are Noodles or I will careen by. Or both.
Best way to get ahold of us is to call/text, or just ask around. Or you could run through the halls yelling for me at the top of your lungs. That works too. :-P

How to get my attention once you find me:
Flying tackle hugs while screaming my name generally works. :-3

May I take your picture?
Yes, you may! Odds are I'll already have taken yours though! Bwahaahaaa!



I can't wait to see everyone there! I've been saving up for 2 years to go, so you'd better at least stop and say hi to me! *hopehope*

Guess what? Guess what?! We're having a furmeet this Friday at 6pm at UAA in Rasmusen Hall room 212! Bring snacks and whatever else you want, and we'll have fun and talk about plans for an upcoming furry dance video (amongst other things)! And then, grab your pirate gear, because we'll be heading next door to hijack the anime club's meeting! Arr!
Bring snacks, drinks, pirates, fursuits/art/stories/whatever you wanna share!
Friday, 4/6/2012, 6pm: UAA RH 211.

I's just advertising for a super friend (possibly the nicest foxcat I know!), but if you're looking for an inexpensive, nice quality fursuit:
http://www.thedealersden.com/auctio.....tion_id=109315

...because the Anchorage furs organize their meets through Facebook. I'll keep my photos and journals and stuff here, but because I have more control of the audience, I expect my facebook will have more photos and be more current than my FA.
Either way, add me! www.facebook.com/jarrardi And please also note me so I have the slightest clue who is this strange person that wants to be my friend. o.0

Hey Idaho Furs! Join me in Nampa this Saturday (1/7) at 4pm for some drama-free furry get-together fun at the Flying M Coffee Garage! Bring your sketch-books, fursuits, stories, plans, ideas, games, whatever you want, but especially bring your YOU, 'cause I really hope I get to see you there!

Hiya everypony everyfur! Are you anywhere near the Boise, Idaho area? More specifically, will you be on Saturday, January 7th at 4pm? There a furmeet in Nampa at the Flying M Coffee Garage, and I'm totally gonna go! Hope I get to see you there!

Anchorage Furmeet!
Friday, December 2, 2011
UAA Student Union (http://binged.it/uBwa5n)
4pm - whenever
Look for Jari, the cougar in the tie-dye shirt, just inside the front door! Message me for my cell number so you can call in case of can't-find-ness.
Bring fursuits, artwork, stories, sketchbook, works in progress, etc. to show off/talk about/whatever you want to do (within certain parameters :-3 )!

Hope to see you there!

If you've ever wanted to run around in fursuit, but can't afford a comission, this is too good a deal to pass up:
https://www.furaffinity.net/journal/2924119
PS. This is the same artist that made Noodles!

We'll be meeting up at 2pm on Friday (October 7th) in the food court of the 5th Avenue Mall, Anchorage! I dunno how long we'll remain at the food court, but the mall doesn't allow fursuits inside (not even ones that don't cover your face!) and there will be several fursuiters there besides myself, so I imagine we'll be heading somewhere more fursuit friendly (e.g. outside?).
Look for me in a (painfully) bright orange Hawaiian shirt! I hope to see you there!

Spread the word!

Hey Alaska Furs! It's too quiet here, so I propose a furmeet! But first, where to have it? We're not really looking for much (!!), just a good place in Anchorage that would be okay with random furs and fursuits running around! Easy to get to? Cheap & decent parking? Decent amount of room/seating? Family-friendly? With a social atmosphere? Please suggest here! Past experience tells me that coffee houses work great! My dream location would also be near UAA or a bus stop so I could get to it (no car :( ). See, not asking for much at all! :-S

Also, if you would be willing to come and have a schedule I need to plan around (e.g. "not wekdays" or "after 5pm"), please note me or reply to this journal!

I'm going to Senshi Con!
http://www.senshicon.org

UPDATE: I promised myself I couldn't go until I finished my Physics homeowrk. I just finished my Physics. No SC for me today. I'll be there pri all day tomorrow, though! If you're furry and were there today, please be there again tomorrow so I can meet you! Or just, you know, PM me. :-3

Bad news, I'm afraid. This cougar will not be able to make it to Rainfurrest this year. Even if my dying computer doesn't die, and all the other looming problems magically go away, I still just plain can't afford transportation to RF. I'll miss you all very much. I'm so sorry for backing out! *cougar hugs*

UPDATE: So yeah, computer died. I just got a new one (goodbye savings!). I miss you already, RF! *sniffles*

To the Idafurs, because the greatest good oft comes out of the greatest trials.

Two years some concerned citizens and I started a revolution because we felt that a convention's leadership was burnt out and was only holding on out of a misguided feeling of responsibility. So we set up our own convention, which later collapsed when everyone realized we were also only holding on out of a misguided feeling of responsibility.

Fast-forward to now. Your community is on the verge of collapse. Everyone is blaming everyone else, and no one is happy with the decisions because they feel they had no say in them. Your leaders all are only holding on to their positions out of a misguided sense of responsibility. Let us take a lesson from Egypt or Colonial America: if your leaders aren't serving your best interests you need to elect new ones. I hope the leadership recognizes and accepts help when they see it, and that they realize this is in everyone's best interests. This may not require a hostile takeover. But it might. First, please take a lesson from my past: when you take control, do what you do because you want to and because you see how you can fix things, not just our of a misguided feeling of responsibility.
May the will of the group be your will, and the voice of the people your voice.


EDIT:
I owe you all an apology. I posted this hastily, without reviewing it to be sure it said what I intended, and also without fully understanding the situation. This is the first time I have had internet since then, or I would have retracted it immediately after posting.
A clearer expression of my stance on this issue will be forthcoming, once I fully understand the situation. As things stand now, though, something needs to change or else everything will fracture. Democracy is good, but it cannot be offered only in small parts. Egypt taught us that.


UPDATE:
I still don't fully understand the situation, but it seems to have blown over, so let's all just pretend this never happened, eh?
What I was trying (and failing miserably) to say was that any complaints that anyone has with their leadership (no matter what sort of organization or government we're talking about) are INVALID unless you're willing to do something about them. This certainly doesn't mean automatic revolution, as my original message seems to say. Try to get your grievances redressed through normal channels. And if you don't think that will work for whatever reason, get ACTIVELY INVOLVED. Most of the informal/social organizations in the world suffer from insufficient leadership. And often what leadership there is cannot optimally handle the sheer volume of chaos that goes on (mostly) behind the scenes. Instead of complaining, maybe you should ask how you can help out. Or at the very least, suggest ways to resolve the problems you see instead of just whining.
This is what I was referring two above. A few years ago, I and several other concerned citizens could see that the management of the time was overburdened and burnt out. We offered, and indeed tried to help, but we felt that the whole mess had become institutionalized to the point where constructive change and progress were impossible. We could have given up. We could have sat around complaining about it, and being bitter. Instead we set about changing the institution. Things quickly got out of control and it went from a takeover to a full blown revolution. Not quashing the revolution before it could form was our mistake, and in my opinion it was the only one we made. It ruined a lot of good people and crippled a pair of wonderful (if arguably already crippled) organizations. Nevertheless, it remains that we DID something. If you can't say that you DID something, or that you are GOING TO DO something, you have no right to complain.

Yay! You may call/text me now. If you called/texted me between the dates of 5/13 and 5/16, I never got it. Please resend. Thank you! *cougar hugs*

Hiya! Jari here just asking you to please not call or text me until I can get my phone fixed. I will not receive your voicemails, texts, or even any record that you called. I'll post another entry when this issue is resolved. Meanwhile the only way to get ahold of me is by email. Sorry for any inconvenience.

'EDIT: All fixed now! Call away to your heart's contect! *cougar hugs*

I've given this advice out to roughly a dozen people in the past week in various forms, so I'm just gonna toss it out to everyone. It's good advice (in my biased opinion), and I think everyone should try to live by it (including you, Jari! Seriously, take your own medicine sometimes!):

If you don't like something, don't do it. If a group of people are making you feel bad, don't hang out with them. If looking at something causes your stress, stop looking at it. If a certain restaurant tastes horrible, don't eat there. If you think someone gives out bad advice, don't follow their advice. Etc. The world does not have to completely agree with you for you to be happy. After all, the world is not responsible for your happiness. You are.

I've tried to keep this quiet until I had all the details ironed out, but it's all official and stuff now. I'm moving to Alaska in May (which was earlier than originally planned), and I will be staying up there for the foreseeable future (at the least until I finish school). I'll miss all the Idahofurs I'll be leaving behind, but I gotta do this now or I'll never get it done.
Thoughts? Questions? Sentiments? Suggestions?
I love you all!

PS. I'm gonna try my hardest to get to Rainfurrest this year!