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Posted 12 years agoCalifur Report: My first con of ANY sort.
Posted 12 years agoAfter too short of a night (less than four hours of sleep), I managed to get out of the house without raising roommate suspicions about where I was sneaking off to for an entire Saturday. Having heard that lines for registration at conventions are typically horrific, I thought I’d beat the crowd and get there early. Leaving at 7:30, I was worried I’d spend two hours in a line. Lo and behold, however, there was no line for registration, which began at 10am. I was first in line, and was highly pleased to discover that a one-day registration was cheaper than the $50 my cheapskate sensibilities had allotted for the day. (The parking for the con, moreover, was only $10 instead of the normal $20, which also pleased me!)
While in line for registration, I met up with lancefoxx and burrwolf; really neat to meet them in person, and we ended up hanging out later in the day. Like I believe I’ve said before, I’m dreadfully shy if I don’t have a topic of conversation in mind, but once I have one – or I know someone in a crowd – it all shifts, and such was the case then. In fact, it was a little strange for me to actually be in a place with people whom identified themselves as furries, stand next to fursuits, walk around a room where all the merchandise for sale was anthropomorphic. I was wearing a badge that identified me as a horse; that was normal. There was a little apprehension at not knowing the norms of interaction, but I didn’t feel the sort of horror at being seen that afflicted me before the FurBQ. My anonymity, despite showing my face, was pretty much a surety in my mind. Maybe I should have been more worried, but that sense of wariness was dulled by the sleep deprivation. Who knows?
After wandering around the dealers’ den and closely inspecting one of the Dark Natasha originals there (so much easier to see techniques in person!), I headed across the hall to the hoofers meet-up. Unfortunately, there was only one other person there: raptonx. We were later joined by a very tall, slim guy in ponyplay getup with a German accent. It was, to say the least, a tad awkward, and we figured that all the other ungulates must have been sleeping in. Later we sighed in exasperation when we passed the feline and canine meetups and saw them filled to overflowing. Species with forward-facing eyes get all the love. So what if they’re more easily anthropomorphizable? :P
Most of my time I spent in the artist lounge, though. Since most of my involvement in the fandom is through art, that’s where I felt at home; I automatically had something in common with the others around me and could always ask them about their techniques if other topics didn’t spark dialogue. I ended up forcing myself into sketching new things, including a Philippine eagle anthro. (If you haven’t seen one, they’re about the only raptors that don’t look like they want to bite your face off. Instead, they look like they’re really worried about how your life’s going and want to offer you hot cocoa or something.) In so doing, I retrieved some of the sensation, the rush that got me into art originally: the allure of creating something that doesn’t exist already. That’s what got me into art. It’s refreshing to think that it can keep me going. In an effort to practice a bit, too, I did some life-sketches of Lance and RaptonX. These practices, together with discussing equine anatomy in TFs with RaptonX, inspired me to break out my lovely Encyclopedia Anatomicae again this morning. I’ve recently been a bit despairing about my art; drawing at the con with other artists, like my recent openCanvas sessions, might have given me a useful boost. I also was able to meet gargoyale and her friends lenne and ghostasaur. It was fun to watch them draw, and when I found out Lenne’s sona was a pudu (the smallest deer in the world, pudus are about the cutest things you’ll ever see), I got excited enough that we did a character sketch trade on the spot.
Mid-afternoon I also had the chance to participate in the fursuit parade. I had no idea what to expect from it, as all I know about fursuits was what I saw at the FurBQ and what I’ve absorbed from online. Not to mention that my costume, in total, cost me about $60 and a trade (which I have yet to complete), and having forgotten to make myself a hood, I found myself pulling a black T-shirt over my head. So, yes, it wasn’t anywhere near the best, but it was fun. I need, however, some way to interact, some set of gestures for performance. I figure, thus, that either I need to practice my character more before I wear the costume again, or become friends with some ‘suiters with whom I’d be more comfortable being silly.
The most intriguing thing to me, though, was the diversity of people there. It had somewhat surprised me at the FurBQ, but there I think I was too distracted by actually being able to meet people (and not die) that it didn’t sink in. For some reason, I expected everyone there to be teens or in their twenties. I could have gleaned this supposition from online furry surveys, which show age of participants skewed greatly toward the lower ages, or perhaps from my own sense, prevalent in some parts of my mind nearly ever since I started drawing anthros, that it was a phase that I (and others) would outgrow. I’ve never really assumed that it might continue beyond these formative years of my life. I’ve always thought it would end. So seeing older people there –some practically elderly by society’s standards – helped me get a sense of history and community that was rooted deeper than what you might find online. I’m not one to reduce religion to its social functions, but seeing a community bound together across so many generations (at least three) made me wonder how many of religion’s functions furrydom fulfills. This line of thought was only reinforced by hearing about the extent to which participants go in order to attend cons, dedicating thousands of dollars for a few days and, perhaps, some commissions. I so wish I could do sociological research on the furry community; I want to ask, among other things, how those furries who are religious conceive of the functions of religion and the fandom in their lives. What needs does either satisfy, and do they overlap at all? Alas, though, to do that sort of academic research would most likely require that I reveal my association with the fandom, something that at this point could be fatal for job prospects. Maybe I could use my oral history training to interview notable fandom members; something non-academic, but of quality. That would be intriguing.
I found myself leaving a little earlier than I’d expected because of another engagement that had arisen that afternoon and found myself reflecting on the con with a bit of ambivalence. There wasn’t the sort of thrill that had come from the FurBQ, but in retrospect I see that the thrill of having a good time came on so strongly then primarily because I’d been so heavily envisioning utter disaster. The two events weren’t so different in content. Califur was, however, a little quieter and more laid back than I’d anticipated. Hearing that over a thousand people would be there, I foresaw crowds milling about, but the constant press and commotion I’d pictured was not what I found. I realized instead that for many of the attendees the con is a vacation. It’s a place to relax. Escapism doesn’t necessitate (and is sometimes counteracted by) high levels of activity. It’s a time set apart to recharge. (Again, echoes of church, Sabbaths, and Israelite jubilees.)
And y’know what? Even though I was so utterly exhausted heading home that evening that I was literally (not figuratively) hallucinating while driving down the highway (could I have pulled over, I would have), I felt like I, myself, had recharged a bit.
While in line for registration, I met up with lancefoxx and burrwolf; really neat to meet them in person, and we ended up hanging out later in the day. Like I believe I’ve said before, I’m dreadfully shy if I don’t have a topic of conversation in mind, but once I have one – or I know someone in a crowd – it all shifts, and such was the case then. In fact, it was a little strange for me to actually be in a place with people whom identified themselves as furries, stand next to fursuits, walk around a room where all the merchandise for sale was anthropomorphic. I was wearing a badge that identified me as a horse; that was normal. There was a little apprehension at not knowing the norms of interaction, but I didn’t feel the sort of horror at being seen that afflicted me before the FurBQ. My anonymity, despite showing my face, was pretty much a surety in my mind. Maybe I should have been more worried, but that sense of wariness was dulled by the sleep deprivation. Who knows?
After wandering around the dealers’ den and closely inspecting one of the Dark Natasha originals there (so much easier to see techniques in person!), I headed across the hall to the hoofers meet-up. Unfortunately, there was only one other person there: raptonx. We were later joined by a very tall, slim guy in ponyplay getup with a German accent. It was, to say the least, a tad awkward, and we figured that all the other ungulates must have been sleeping in. Later we sighed in exasperation when we passed the feline and canine meetups and saw them filled to overflowing. Species with forward-facing eyes get all the love. So what if they’re more easily anthropomorphizable? :P
Most of my time I spent in the artist lounge, though. Since most of my involvement in the fandom is through art, that’s where I felt at home; I automatically had something in common with the others around me and could always ask them about their techniques if other topics didn’t spark dialogue. I ended up forcing myself into sketching new things, including a Philippine eagle anthro. (If you haven’t seen one, they’re about the only raptors that don’t look like they want to bite your face off. Instead, they look like they’re really worried about how your life’s going and want to offer you hot cocoa or something.) In so doing, I retrieved some of the sensation, the rush that got me into art originally: the allure of creating something that doesn’t exist already. That’s what got me into art. It’s refreshing to think that it can keep me going. In an effort to practice a bit, too, I did some life-sketches of Lance and RaptonX. These practices, together with discussing equine anatomy in TFs with RaptonX, inspired me to break out my lovely Encyclopedia Anatomicae again this morning. I’ve recently been a bit despairing about my art; drawing at the con with other artists, like my recent openCanvas sessions, might have given me a useful boost. I also was able to meet gargoyale and her friends lenne and ghostasaur. It was fun to watch them draw, and when I found out Lenne’s sona was a pudu (the smallest deer in the world, pudus are about the cutest things you’ll ever see), I got excited enough that we did a character sketch trade on the spot.
Mid-afternoon I also had the chance to participate in the fursuit parade. I had no idea what to expect from it, as all I know about fursuits was what I saw at the FurBQ and what I’ve absorbed from online. Not to mention that my costume, in total, cost me about $60 and a trade (which I have yet to complete), and having forgotten to make myself a hood, I found myself pulling a black T-shirt over my head. So, yes, it wasn’t anywhere near the best, but it was fun. I need, however, some way to interact, some set of gestures for performance. I figure, thus, that either I need to practice my character more before I wear the costume again, or become friends with some ‘suiters with whom I’d be more comfortable being silly.
The most intriguing thing to me, though, was the diversity of people there. It had somewhat surprised me at the FurBQ, but there I think I was too distracted by actually being able to meet people (and not die) that it didn’t sink in. For some reason, I expected everyone there to be teens or in their twenties. I could have gleaned this supposition from online furry surveys, which show age of participants skewed greatly toward the lower ages, or perhaps from my own sense, prevalent in some parts of my mind nearly ever since I started drawing anthros, that it was a phase that I (and others) would outgrow. I’ve never really assumed that it might continue beyond these formative years of my life. I’ve always thought it would end. So seeing older people there –some practically elderly by society’s standards – helped me get a sense of history and community that was rooted deeper than what you might find online. I’m not one to reduce religion to its social functions, but seeing a community bound together across so many generations (at least three) made me wonder how many of religion’s functions furrydom fulfills. This line of thought was only reinforced by hearing about the extent to which participants go in order to attend cons, dedicating thousands of dollars for a few days and, perhaps, some commissions. I so wish I could do sociological research on the furry community; I want to ask, among other things, how those furries who are religious conceive of the functions of religion and the fandom in their lives. What needs does either satisfy, and do they overlap at all? Alas, though, to do that sort of academic research would most likely require that I reveal my association with the fandom, something that at this point could be fatal for job prospects. Maybe I could use my oral history training to interview notable fandom members; something non-academic, but of quality. That would be intriguing.
I found myself leaving a little earlier than I’d expected because of another engagement that had arisen that afternoon and found myself reflecting on the con with a bit of ambivalence. There wasn’t the sort of thrill that had come from the FurBQ, but in retrospect I see that the thrill of having a good time came on so strongly then primarily because I’d been so heavily envisioning utter disaster. The two events weren’t so different in content. Califur was, however, a little quieter and more laid back than I’d anticipated. Hearing that over a thousand people would be there, I foresaw crowds milling about, but the constant press and commotion I’d pictured was not what I found. I realized instead that for many of the attendees the con is a vacation. It’s a place to relax. Escapism doesn’t necessitate (and is sometimes counteracted by) high levels of activity. It’s a time set apart to recharge. (Again, echoes of church, Sabbaths, and Israelite jubilees.)
And y’know what? Even though I was so utterly exhausted heading home that evening that I was literally (not figuratively) hallucinating while driving down the highway (could I have pulled over, I would have), I felt like I, myself, had recharged a bit.
Califur Meme!
Posted 12 years agoHotel:
Arriving on Saturday, leaving on Saturday, no hotel for me!
Arrival/Departure:
Early Saturday morning sometime, late Saturday night sometime.
Sharing a room with:
N/A
Can I visit your room?
N/A
Who do you hang out with:
Anyone who I happen to know and doesn’t have a problem hanging out with me, haha.
Where will you be most of the time during the day/s?
I’m not really sure.
What/where will you be eating?
Probably packing my own food. Avocado sandwiches are THE BEST.
Can I come with you for food/fun/etc?
Um, sure! Just so long as you’re not creepy.
Gender:
Male
How old are you:
24
Preference:
Female and Mormon :P
Relationship Status:
Single.
Can I kidnap you for *Censored*:
No rustling this horse, please :P
Can I take your picture?
When I’m in my humansuit I’d prefer not ;)
Can I give you stuff?
… Um, sure? So long as it’s not (metaphorically) sketchy stuff. Literal sketchy stuff is cool :D
Are you an Artist:
Eeyup!
Do you do free art?
If you’re a friend or a fellow artist, sure!
Do you do trades?
Depends on your skill :P
Do you take commissions?
Yup!
Are you a Fursuiter:
Ironically, only a feathersuiter so far, haha. And we’ll see how that turns out.
How many Fursuits are you going to bring/wear:
1
Which Characters:
Danny! (The toucan)
Attending parties:
I’m terrible at parties. If I don’t know anyone, I run away from them. If I know people, I try to leave and talk to them outside the party. XD
Do you drink:
Mormon! Water for me :)
Can I buy you a drink:
Bottled water IS expensive, but I’ll get it from the public troughs :P
How can I find you?
I think I’ll be in a brown polo and khaki shorts – that is, if I don’t have a big honking beak on my face!
Are you nice?
Pretty much invariably. It takes a lot to get on my nerves.
If I see you, how should I get your attention?
Just don’t whistle or try to call me over with sugar cubes or horse-calling noises. I see through that sort of thing! Otherwise, just say “HEY KHEDVU!” and be prepared to tell me how you know me. “HEY KHEDVU YOUR STUFF IS THE BEST” can also work :D
Are you attending any panels:
We’ll see! Probably the hoofers get-together on Saturday morning.
Stage or public performance:
Eek, no. Unless I’m Danny, in which case I might just be wandering around and spreading fun stuff :)
How do I identify myself to you:
Just tell me your name. Please, no glomping :P
Rules of engagement (physical Contact out of Suit):
Well… I’m pretty reserved. Danny gives hugs; Khedvu keeps those for closer friends.
Personality Type:
Introverted unless I have something to talk about. Then I talk, haha.
How do I know if you're not looking to socialize (angry, busy or upset):
I’ll let you know!
Anything to add:
This is only my second furry event, so if you’ve got any tips or want to introduce me to people, if I’m not otherwise occupied, I might just tag along. I’m looking just to enjoy myself, meet some people, and unwind :)
Arriving on Saturday, leaving on Saturday, no hotel for me!
Arrival/Departure:
Early Saturday morning sometime, late Saturday night sometime.
Sharing a room with:
N/A
Can I visit your room?
N/A
Who do you hang out with:
Anyone who I happen to know and doesn’t have a problem hanging out with me, haha.
Where will you be most of the time during the day/s?
I’m not really sure.
What/where will you be eating?
Probably packing my own food. Avocado sandwiches are THE BEST.
Can I come with you for food/fun/etc?
Um, sure! Just so long as you’re not creepy.
Gender:
Male
How old are you:
24
Preference:
Female and Mormon :P
Relationship Status:
Single.
Can I kidnap you for *Censored*:
No rustling this horse, please :P
Can I take your picture?
When I’m in my humansuit I’d prefer not ;)
Can I give you stuff?
… Um, sure? So long as it’s not (metaphorically) sketchy stuff. Literal sketchy stuff is cool :D
Are you an Artist:
Eeyup!
Do you do free art?
If you’re a friend or a fellow artist, sure!
Do you do trades?
Depends on your skill :P
Do you take commissions?
Yup!
Are you a Fursuiter:
Ironically, only a feathersuiter so far, haha. And we’ll see how that turns out.
How many Fursuits are you going to bring/wear:
1
Which Characters:
Danny! (The toucan)
Attending parties:
I’m terrible at parties. If I don’t know anyone, I run away from them. If I know people, I try to leave and talk to them outside the party. XD
Do you drink:
Mormon! Water for me :)
Can I buy you a drink:
Bottled water IS expensive, but I’ll get it from the public troughs :P
How can I find you?
I think I’ll be in a brown polo and khaki shorts – that is, if I don’t have a big honking beak on my face!
Are you nice?
Pretty much invariably. It takes a lot to get on my nerves.
If I see you, how should I get your attention?
Just don’t whistle or try to call me over with sugar cubes or horse-calling noises. I see through that sort of thing! Otherwise, just say “HEY KHEDVU!” and be prepared to tell me how you know me. “HEY KHEDVU YOUR STUFF IS THE BEST” can also work :D
Are you attending any panels:
We’ll see! Probably the hoofers get-together on Saturday morning.
Stage or public performance:
Eek, no. Unless I’m Danny, in which case I might just be wandering around and spreading fun stuff :)
How do I identify myself to you:
Just tell me your name. Please, no glomping :P
Rules of engagement (physical Contact out of Suit):
Well… I’m pretty reserved. Danny gives hugs; Khedvu keeps those for closer friends.
Personality Type:
Introverted unless I have something to talk about. Then I talk, haha.
How do I know if you're not looking to socialize (angry, busy or upset):
I’ll let you know!
Anything to add:
This is only my second furry event, so if you’ve got any tips or want to introduce me to people, if I’m not otherwise occupied, I might just tag along. I’m looking just to enjoy myself, meet some people, and unwind :)
Guess who's (probably) going to Califur...! Who else?
Posted 12 years ago... only Saturday, though, and I won't be spending the night.
I just found out that I might be able to move my date to Friday instead of Saturday, freeing up the day to head down to Irvine. I hope it works out, as I'm kind of getting excited for it already.
So, who else is going? Who should I meet while there? What should I expect? Where's best to hang out? What's the funnest thing to do? Is it an alternate universe of wonder and hybrid anatomies?
I just found out that I might be able to move my date to Friday instead of Saturday, freeing up the day to head down to Irvine. I hope it works out, as I'm kind of getting excited for it already.
So, who else is going? Who should I meet while there? What should I expect? Where's best to hang out? What's the funnest thing to do? Is it an alternate universe of wonder and hybrid anatomies?
How my first furry event was like church
Posted 12 years agoFirst, I’ll summarize my experience at the barbecue. Then I’ll provide a little reflection, as well as explain what in the world my title means.
Just this week I heard about the FurBQ down in Irvine and, with my plans to attend Califur derailed by new events, I decided I’d try out the barbecue, at least. Besides, it was located halfway between me and the only person whom I knew for sure would be there - shadowfox014. Meeting him was my primary objective, and we’d come up with a very hastily constructed plan to interview people with incredibly silly questions, thinking of editing the interview snippets together to make a little movie.
Various things contributed to frustrating these designs. One of them was just a discomfort at interviewing people in a crowd; the main one, however, was my timidity. Now, I can be relatively gregarious in circumstances where I know the other person or at least have a topic of conversation; I get a little awkward when I’m not sure what to talk about; and when I’m in a crowd of people whom I don’t know at all, my first reaction is to bolt. When I arrived at Irvine Regional Park, I drove by a group with tails and ears… and promptly parked elsewhere. And sat there, stewing, for about 30 minutes.
This was only exacerbated by my overimaginative mind’s prediction that if I went out into public with my toucan mask, pictures of me would go viral online, some random person on the internet would trace it back to my DA gallery (or FA or Transfur), through some evil hackery discover my identity, and ruin my life forever. It didn’t help that the park was a lot more public than I expected it would be: there were people everywhere. Set freak-out meter to as high as it can go without reaching “run away screaming” level. Well, not screaming. I’d more like drive off and hope that Shadowfox would forgive me for ditching. Probably would’ve, too, if I didn’t have the commitment to meet him.
Eventually, I was able to get a hold of Shadowfox and we finally met. I then promptly sequestered myself in a dark bathroom stall with my phone as a “mirror” in order to slather my face with white, black, and orange in proper toucan patterning. I knew no one would recognize me, but I was still terrified enough to delay my public avian debut about ten minutes after I finished my preparations.
After a bit of conversation, Shadowfox and I decided that our previous idea –interviews – was probably untenable. There were only a handful of fursuiters (who were going to be our subjects in our original conception) and everyone seemed too engaged in their pockets of socialization which we were both loath to break.
My real social breakthrough was finding someone new with whom I had something to discuss: raptonx. I’m afraid I came off as a tad overexcited, since I literally greeted him by pointing excitedly in his direction and declaring, “Hey! I know your art!” My outburst was conditioned both by my appreciation of his art (which was some of my favorite stuff during my first years being a fandom lurker online) and my expectation that I wouldn’t run into anyone whose name I would know. Anyway it’s spun, however, I think we had a fun conversation. Just the fact that I would have a conversation with someone I’d met for the first time –well, sort of – was a triumph in my mind, and I thank RaptonX for putting up with my enthusiasm.
As I hung out, a couple more people complimented my beak, including at least one name I recognized: Chris Sawyer, most of whose art resides behind my FA filters but who nonetheless does marvelous equines I’ve admired for a while.
I didn’t quite overcome my bafflement at how to interact with people in fursuits, and my plans to play my toucan character evaporated. Maybe it was the fact that my eyes and body were still exposed, and I had designed my suit to be one in which I’d talk; I was still identifiably human, bodily and speech-wise, so it was harder to act unlike myself.
All in all, though, my experience was highly positive. None of my worst nightmares came true, and many of my anxieties were allayed. One of the strangest moments for me was when I was sketching a horse transformation for RaptonX (my head turned to one side, in appropriate avian fashion); someone asked me what I was drawing, and I could answer with little hesitation. The subject matter was par for the course; in fact, the asker complimented my drawing ability. There was no need to justify my drawing it, no neuroticism about hiding it lest someone catch a glimpse, no surreptitious scanning when no one’s paying attention. And it wasn’t in a Livestream or openCanvas session. I was drawing in person, face-to-face, and the only discomfort was in the anticipation of disapproval that never came.
Nor were there divisions, endless esoteric debates around who’s a “furry” or an “anthro” or an artist-but-not-community-member or TF fan or lurker or whatnot; we were all mushed together into amorphous anthropomorphism. Labels vanished, judgment suspended. The internet had not prepared me for this. In the world of words and pictures online, it’s hard to imagine other people as people. Relationships are merely based on words, images; there are few faces, and it’s relatively easy to be disconnected. In person, however, the feeling is almost wholly distinct. Even though I did feel a little marginal, I felt no more marginal than normal. That sort of thing just comes when you’re an introvert.
And here’s where the FurBQ was like my experience with my church. I have extensive experience studying my faith, both in the classroom and in conversations online. Online, communities are fractured; you get partisans of one theological concept staking their claims against opponents whose disagreements are incomprehensible to the vast majority of my coreligionists. I write papers and discuss concepts with similarly-minded people in scholarly communities.
However, I’m also still very active in my congregation. There, we’re grouped by geography, not ideology; we don’t self-select our community. In church on Sundays, I interact with Tea Partiers; with recent converts; with students in other programs; with a veteran who survived a shot to the head overseas. We’re a motley bunch. But it’s part of my duty as a professed member of the community to contribute to the wellbeing of my fellow church members and fill my role there. And despite our huge differences and disagreements, I still feel a degree of love there that I don’t over the internet and which in the classroom is always open to doubt: do we like each other, or do we just agree? If you never attend, you'll only have a skeletal idea of what the community means. The flesh and blood is hard to access.
Now, it’s not a stark difference. I’ve had wonderful online friendships with people in the furry/anthro/TF community, ones that have been deeply significant to me in various ways, just like I’ve had deeply spiritually meaningful conversations in my history courses. But there’s something about being able to belong to a group, not just a friendly or scholarly dyad, that’s special.
Maybe I’m romanticizing things. I know I only saw a tiny sliver of the community, and there are lots of things in other parts that I won’t sample. But that’s okay. If “community” meant “absolute similarity,” we’d all be terribly lonely and would miss out on a lot of life.
Long story short? I’m pretty sure I’ll be going to more events. :)
Just this week I heard about the FurBQ down in Irvine and, with my plans to attend Califur derailed by new events, I decided I’d try out the barbecue, at least. Besides, it was located halfway between me and the only person whom I knew for sure would be there - shadowfox014. Meeting him was my primary objective, and we’d come up with a very hastily constructed plan to interview people with incredibly silly questions, thinking of editing the interview snippets together to make a little movie.
Various things contributed to frustrating these designs. One of them was just a discomfort at interviewing people in a crowd; the main one, however, was my timidity. Now, I can be relatively gregarious in circumstances where I know the other person or at least have a topic of conversation; I get a little awkward when I’m not sure what to talk about; and when I’m in a crowd of people whom I don’t know at all, my first reaction is to bolt. When I arrived at Irvine Regional Park, I drove by a group with tails and ears… and promptly parked elsewhere. And sat there, stewing, for about 30 minutes.
This was only exacerbated by my overimaginative mind’s prediction that if I went out into public with my toucan mask, pictures of me would go viral online, some random person on the internet would trace it back to my DA gallery (or FA or Transfur), through some evil hackery discover my identity, and ruin my life forever. It didn’t help that the park was a lot more public than I expected it would be: there were people everywhere. Set freak-out meter to as high as it can go without reaching “run away screaming” level. Well, not screaming. I’d more like drive off and hope that Shadowfox would forgive me for ditching. Probably would’ve, too, if I didn’t have the commitment to meet him.
Eventually, I was able to get a hold of Shadowfox and we finally met. I then promptly sequestered myself in a dark bathroom stall with my phone as a “mirror” in order to slather my face with white, black, and orange in proper toucan patterning. I knew no one would recognize me, but I was still terrified enough to delay my public avian debut about ten minutes after I finished my preparations.
After a bit of conversation, Shadowfox and I decided that our previous idea –interviews – was probably untenable. There were only a handful of fursuiters (who were going to be our subjects in our original conception) and everyone seemed too engaged in their pockets of socialization which we were both loath to break.
My real social breakthrough was finding someone new with whom I had something to discuss: raptonx. I’m afraid I came off as a tad overexcited, since I literally greeted him by pointing excitedly in his direction and declaring, “Hey! I know your art!” My outburst was conditioned both by my appreciation of his art (which was some of my favorite stuff during my first years being a fandom lurker online) and my expectation that I wouldn’t run into anyone whose name I would know. Anyway it’s spun, however, I think we had a fun conversation. Just the fact that I would have a conversation with someone I’d met for the first time –well, sort of – was a triumph in my mind, and I thank RaptonX for putting up with my enthusiasm.
As I hung out, a couple more people complimented my beak, including at least one name I recognized: Chris Sawyer, most of whose art resides behind my FA filters but who nonetheless does marvelous equines I’ve admired for a while.
I didn’t quite overcome my bafflement at how to interact with people in fursuits, and my plans to play my toucan character evaporated. Maybe it was the fact that my eyes and body were still exposed, and I had designed my suit to be one in which I’d talk; I was still identifiably human, bodily and speech-wise, so it was harder to act unlike myself.
All in all, though, my experience was highly positive. None of my worst nightmares came true, and many of my anxieties were allayed. One of the strangest moments for me was when I was sketching a horse transformation for RaptonX (my head turned to one side, in appropriate avian fashion); someone asked me what I was drawing, and I could answer with little hesitation. The subject matter was par for the course; in fact, the asker complimented my drawing ability. There was no need to justify my drawing it, no neuroticism about hiding it lest someone catch a glimpse, no surreptitious scanning when no one’s paying attention. And it wasn’t in a Livestream or openCanvas session. I was drawing in person, face-to-face, and the only discomfort was in the anticipation of disapproval that never came.
Nor were there divisions, endless esoteric debates around who’s a “furry” or an “anthro” or an artist-but-not-community-member or TF fan or lurker or whatnot; we were all mushed together into amorphous anthropomorphism. Labels vanished, judgment suspended. The internet had not prepared me for this. In the world of words and pictures online, it’s hard to imagine other people as people. Relationships are merely based on words, images; there are few faces, and it’s relatively easy to be disconnected. In person, however, the feeling is almost wholly distinct. Even though I did feel a little marginal, I felt no more marginal than normal. That sort of thing just comes when you’re an introvert.
And here’s where the FurBQ was like my experience with my church. I have extensive experience studying my faith, both in the classroom and in conversations online. Online, communities are fractured; you get partisans of one theological concept staking their claims against opponents whose disagreements are incomprehensible to the vast majority of my coreligionists. I write papers and discuss concepts with similarly-minded people in scholarly communities.
However, I’m also still very active in my congregation. There, we’re grouped by geography, not ideology; we don’t self-select our community. In church on Sundays, I interact with Tea Partiers; with recent converts; with students in other programs; with a veteran who survived a shot to the head overseas. We’re a motley bunch. But it’s part of my duty as a professed member of the community to contribute to the wellbeing of my fellow church members and fill my role there. And despite our huge differences and disagreements, I still feel a degree of love there that I don’t over the internet and which in the classroom is always open to doubt: do we like each other, or do we just agree? If you never attend, you'll only have a skeletal idea of what the community means. The flesh and blood is hard to access.
Now, it’s not a stark difference. I’ve had wonderful online friendships with people in the furry/anthro/TF community, ones that have been deeply significant to me in various ways, just like I’ve had deeply spiritually meaningful conversations in my history courses. But there’s something about being able to belong to a group, not just a friendly or scholarly dyad, that’s special.
Maybe I’m romanticizing things. I know I only saw a tiny sliver of the community, and there are lots of things in other parts that I won’t sample. But that’s okay. If “community” meant “absolute similarity,” we’d all be terribly lonely and would miss out on a lot of life.
Long story short? I’m pretty sure I’ll be going to more events. :)
I need suggestions: Humorous questions for furries?
Posted 12 years agoHey y'all!
So tomorrow morning I'm headed to a local furry barbecue, wearing my toucan mask (and trying to take on that character). At the barbecue, I'll be meeting up with shadowfox014, and with him I'll go around interviewing various furs.
I'd like to ask them things that are mostly silly and will inspire humorous reactions, but I'm having a hard time thinking them up. Here are some that I've got so far (remember, I'm supposed to be a toucan):
1. So what’s up with this “fur” stuff? I don’t really get it. I mean, what IS it? What do you DO with it? Doesn’t it get itchy? How do you wash that stuff? You LICK it off? Gross! I preen every once in a while, but yeah...
2. Do you ever find yourself craving some anthro herbivore? I see you're a feline. I’m hoping I’m safe talking to you. *edges away*
3. Don’t you think the “Fur” part of a “furbecue” is a little limiting? What about animals that want to walk around in skinsuits?
Any other questions you'd add? :D
So tomorrow morning I'm headed to a local furry barbecue, wearing my toucan mask (and trying to take on that character). At the barbecue, I'll be meeting up with shadowfox014, and with him I'll go around interviewing various furs.
I'd like to ask them things that are mostly silly and will inspire humorous reactions, but I'm having a hard time thinking them up. Here are some that I've got so far (remember, I'm supposed to be a toucan):
1. So what’s up with this “fur” stuff? I don’t really get it. I mean, what IS it? What do you DO with it? Doesn’t it get itchy? How do you wash that stuff? You LICK it off? Gross! I preen every once in a while, but yeah...
2. Do you ever find yourself craving some anthro herbivore? I see you're a feline. I’m hoping I’m safe talking to you. *edges away*
3. Don’t you think the “Fur” part of a “furbecue” is a little limiting? What about animals that want to walk around in skinsuits?
Any other questions you'd add? :D
PS Brush Advice?
Posted 12 years agoWhat brushes do you all use to paint in Photoshop? Every time I try digital painting, I end up hating the brush I'm using...
Temporary Absence
Posted 12 years agoHey y'all,
I've got about 25 pages to research and write for in the next 10 days (as well as a summer job to find), so I'll be a little more absent here and on chats. At least, I should be, and you might want to bug me if I'm not!
Anyway, talk to you presently ;)
-Khed.
I've got about 25 pages to research and write for in the next 10 days (as well as a summer job to find), so I'll be a little more absent here and on chats. At least, I should be, and you might want to bug me if I'm not!
Anyway, talk to you presently ;)
-Khed.
MANIP AUCTION - Pick Khedvu's Fate!
Posted 12 years agoI’ve noticed that some people would like to commission things from me, but either lack the funds to do so or are incapable, for any reason, of taking suitable stock. With a mind for helping these people participate and have a fun time while doing it, I’m opening up myself to be the manipulation subject of this auction. Yup, you’ll get to decide (within reason) what I become!
Just make sure you follow these Rules:
Bidding will be open for about two weeks, or until midnight on May 11.
Bids should be made in the comment section below. Each bid should start on its own root comment. This will help keep the different proposals with their bids (see below) separate. Remember to refresh the page regularly to keep track of bids!
Each starting bid must be attached to a certain manip proposal. This is because manips are complicated, and I don’t want someone to win only to find me declining their request. Proposals can be as simple as designating a species and whether it’s anthro or transformation. That way, I can let you know if your idea is acceptable or not before anything bad occurs!
(All proposals must include significant facial manipulation. Unacceptable proposals would include TG, anything explicitly fetishy or sensual/sexual, a rating over PG, and things with exoskeletons. There might be others outside of these that I would want to veto, however.)
People can add to others’ initial bids. Check others’ proposals first! If you don’t have much money and you find that another person has proposed an idea you like, you can contribute to the success of that bid. (If Joe starts the bidding for an otter anthro manipulation at $40 and you want to see an otter, add $10 to that bid.) This also means that incredibly specific proposals might have a harder time winning – unless the proposer is loaded with cash. Additional bids should be done in at least increments of $10, if at all possible.
The amount paid will influence the final product. For many proposals, the prices set on my commission guide would indicate what you’d get: winning the auction at $30 would get you a headshot, while going up to $100 would get you a lot more detail and work.
Different proposals can have different minimum prices. If you want something more complex –horns, feathers, wrinkles, scales– you should add at least $20 to the base prices in figuring out your proposal, if not more. That means, for example, that a snake headshot would be $40-50, or that a bid for a dragon that raises $80 could simply be a partial body manip (whereas the same amount would get you a full-body dog or the like).
If enough people bid on various proposals, I might award multiple winners!
Work will begin on the manip once each contributor to the winning bid has paid. Payment is to be made through PayPal. If a person neglects to pay, the bid might be lost or the proposal downgraded (say, from partial body to headshot).
If you have any questions, feel free to ask! And happy bidding!
Just make sure you follow these Rules:
Bidding will be open for about two weeks, or until midnight on May 11.
Bids should be made in the comment section below. Each bid should start on its own root comment. This will help keep the different proposals with their bids (see below) separate. Remember to refresh the page regularly to keep track of bids!
Each starting bid must be attached to a certain manip proposal. This is because manips are complicated, and I don’t want someone to win only to find me declining their request. Proposals can be as simple as designating a species and whether it’s anthro or transformation. That way, I can let you know if your idea is acceptable or not before anything bad occurs!
(All proposals must include significant facial manipulation. Unacceptable proposals would include TG, anything explicitly fetishy or sensual/sexual, a rating over PG, and things with exoskeletons. There might be others outside of these that I would want to veto, however.)
People can add to others’ initial bids. Check others’ proposals first! If you don’t have much money and you find that another person has proposed an idea you like, you can contribute to the success of that bid. (If Joe starts the bidding for an otter anthro manipulation at $40 and you want to see an otter, add $10 to that bid.) This also means that incredibly specific proposals might have a harder time winning – unless the proposer is loaded with cash. Additional bids should be done in at least increments of $10, if at all possible.
The amount paid will influence the final product. For many proposals, the prices set on my commission guide would indicate what you’d get: winning the auction at $30 would get you a headshot, while going up to $100 would get you a lot more detail and work.
Different proposals can have different minimum prices. If you want something more complex –horns, feathers, wrinkles, scales– you should add at least $20 to the base prices in figuring out your proposal, if not more. That means, for example, that a snake headshot would be $40-50, or that a bid for a dragon that raises $80 could simply be a partial body manip (whereas the same amount would get you a full-body dog or the like).
If enough people bid on various proposals, I might award multiple winners!
Work will begin on the manip once each contributor to the winning bid has paid. Payment is to be made through PayPal. If a person neglects to pay, the bid might be lost or the proposal downgraded (say, from partial body to headshot).
If you have any questions, feel free to ask! And happy bidding!
Documentary on Therians and Otherkin: Thoughts?
Posted 12 years agoWatch it here. The coverage is shockingly even-handed and non-sensational, but the content can induce cringing, I think.
And not just because around 28:00 the leopard guy talks about eating gemsbok in a past life. (Er, why does that affect me?) And pronounces it jemsbok. (Why that affects me is obvious.)
Your thoughts?
And not just because around 28:00 the leopard guy talks about eating gemsbok in a past life. (Er, why does that affect me?) And pronounces it jemsbok. (Why that affects me is obvious.)
Your thoughts?
Anyone want to mess around with OpenCanvas?
Posted 12 years agoI just got openCanvas and was instructed on how it operates. For those who don't know, OC is a drawing program that allows you to connect with others and draw on the same canvas - social art, if you will!
Anyone interested in hanging out and sketching sometime? :)
OC can be downloaded (for free, and it's a TINY file) here: http://wistinga.online.fr/opencanvas/
Anyone interested in hanging out and sketching sometime? :)
OC can be downloaded (for free, and it's a TINY file) here: http://wistinga.online.fr/opencanvas/
Discovered: The Best Thing
Posted 12 years agoSo, whiteflamek uncovered a 1988 Filipino movie about a boy who is cursed to turn into a horse and the title of which translates to "Petra the Horse and the Naughty Kitten," according to Google Translate.
It features this amazing dream sequence music video.
You're welcome.
It features this amazing dream sequence music video.
You're welcome.
New Sona!
Posted 12 years agoForget hooves, talons are in!
http://s808.photobucket.com/user/Th.....sort=6&o=1
http://s808.photobucket.com/user/Th.....sort=6&o=2
http://s808.photobucket.com/user/Th.....sort=6&o=1
http://s808.photobucket.com/user/Th.....sort=6&o=2
Commissions List!
Posted 12 years agoHey guys!
Well, posting my prices had an effect, and I've now got a commissions list. This is how it stands at present:
Paid
1. RyanR Anthro Manip
2. Vectordragon TF Manip
Confirmed, to be paid
3. AgentCypher TF Sketch
4. AgentCypher TF Sketch
5. Lobolito Anthro Manip
6. Lobolito Anthro Manip
These might take a few weeks to go through, but if you too want a commission, just let me know and I can add you to the queue!
Well, posting my prices had an effect, and I've now got a commissions list. This is how it stands at present:
Paid
1. RyanR Anthro Manip
2. Vectordragon TF Manip
Confirmed, to be paid
3. AgentCypher TF Sketch
4. AgentCypher TF Sketch
5. Lobolito Anthro Manip
6. Lobolito Anthro Manip
These might take a few weeks to go through, but if you too want a commission, just let me know and I can add you to the queue!
Impala Fursuit for Sale (from Melaceroses)
Posted 12 years agoHey guys! Note from a friend:
"Mela the Impala says:
"Times have gotten rather sticky for us lately, so it's come down to either selling the fursuit or moving back in with my parents - and I'd much rather take the higher road here and part with it and send it to another caring fur.
"Details can be found here: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/10178649/ "
If you haven't seen it, it's a beautiful 3/4 suit, and he's willing to part with individual pieces of it. Any ungulate lovers out there want it?
"Mela the Impala says:
"Times have gotten rather sticky for us lately, so it's come down to either selling the fursuit or moving back in with my parents - and I'd much rather take the higher road here and part with it and send it to another caring fur.
"Details can be found here: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/10178649/ "
If you haven't seen it, it's a beautiful 3/4 suit, and he's willing to part with individual pieces of it. Any ungulate lovers out there want it?
Meme time! And I'm curious what questions you have for me.
Posted 12 years ago1) Tell you something I learned about you by looking at your FA page for 10 seconds.
2) Tell you a color you remind me of.
3) Tell you my first memory of you.
4) Ask you a question.
5) Tell you something I like about you.
6) Tell you the object that is in front of me.
7) Dare you to do this yourself in your own journal! (Not really, it can be a hassle)
And feel free to ask me questions, too! I'm curious and will see if I can answer.
2) Tell you a color you remind me of.
3) Tell you my first memory of you.
4) Ask you a question.
5) Tell you something I like about you.
6) Tell you the object that is in front of me.
7) Dare you to do this yourself in your own journal! (Not really, it can be a hassle)
And feel free to ask me questions, too! I'm curious and will see if I can answer.
Does the Western mind breed furries?
Posted 12 years agohttp://www.psmag.com/magazines/paci.....onomics-53135/
"The WEIRD[Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic] mind also appears to be unique in terms of how it comes to understand and interact with the natural world. Studies show that Western urban children grow up so closed off in man-made environments that their brains never form a deep or complex connection to the natural world. While studying children from the U.S., researchers have suggested a developmental timeline for what is called “folkbiological reasoning.” These studies posit that it is not until children are around 7 years old that they stop projecting human qualities onto animals and begin to understand that humans are one animal among many. Compared to Yucatec Maya communities in Mexico, however, Western urban children appear to be developmentally delayed in this regard. Children who grow up constantly interacting with the natural world are much less likely to anthropomorphize other living things into late childhood.
"Given that people living in WEIRD societies don’t routinely encounter or interact with animals other than humans or pets, it’s not surprising that they end up with a rather cartoonish understanding of the natural world. 'Indeed,' the report concluded, 'studying the cognitive development of folkbiology in urban children would seem the equivalent of studying "normal" physical growth in malnourished children.'"
Just thought this might have interesting implications for the fandom.
"The WEIRD[Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic] mind also appears to be unique in terms of how it comes to understand and interact with the natural world. Studies show that Western urban children grow up so closed off in man-made environments that their brains never form a deep or complex connection to the natural world. While studying children from the U.S., researchers have suggested a developmental timeline for what is called “folkbiological reasoning.” These studies posit that it is not until children are around 7 years old that they stop projecting human qualities onto animals and begin to understand that humans are one animal among many. Compared to Yucatec Maya communities in Mexico, however, Western urban children appear to be developmentally delayed in this regard. Children who grow up constantly interacting with the natural world are much less likely to anthropomorphize other living things into late childhood.
"Given that people living in WEIRD societies don’t routinely encounter or interact with animals other than humans or pets, it’s not surprising that they end up with a rather cartoonish understanding of the natural world. 'Indeed,' the report concluded, 'studying the cognitive development of folkbiology in urban children would seem the equivalent of studying "normal" physical growth in malnourished children.'"
Just thought this might have interesting implications for the fandom.
I Need Username Advice. (For Weasyl account to come.)
Posted 12 years agoHey guys!
So, I'm considering getting a Weasyl gallery (since it's becoming a more viable option, apparently, and has some cool stuff going on), but I'm not sure what username to use.
My DA is Khedvu, mean to be uber-distinctive. I'm the ONLY Khedvu online. It contains none of my TF stuff.
My FA is, as you know, out-of-the-boks. This was meant to be clever but also almost entirely unsearchable. I don't link from DA to FA, so this allows me to show my DA to friends without them coming here and seeing overall FA sketchiness or my TF stuff.
My Transfur is Ciervo, meant to be distinctive in a primarily Anglophone interwebs but also to be generic enough (it means "deer" in Spanish) to not be found in searches.
I'm not sure what name I would go under; it basically depends on whether I would want to post TF stuff there as well as anthro. If I go for TF + anthro, I'll choose one of the latter. If anthro alone, Khedvu.
What would you want to see in another gallery?
So, I'm considering getting a Weasyl gallery (since it's becoming a more viable option, apparently, and has some cool stuff going on), but I'm not sure what username to use.
My DA is Khedvu, mean to be uber-distinctive. I'm the ONLY Khedvu online. It contains none of my TF stuff.
My FA is, as you know, out-of-the-boks. This was meant to be clever but also almost entirely unsearchable. I don't link from DA to FA, so this allows me to show my DA to friends without them coming here and seeing overall FA sketchiness or my TF stuff.
My Transfur is Ciervo, meant to be distinctive in a primarily Anglophone interwebs but also to be generic enough (it means "deer" in Spanish) to not be found in searches.
I'm not sure what name I would go under; it basically depends on whether I would want to post TF stuff there as well as anthro. If I go for TF + anthro, I'll choose one of the latter. If anthro alone, Khedvu.
What would you want to see in another gallery?
PLANES
Posted 12 years agoThat time when your class reading is about werehorses
Posted 13 years agoEeyup. It was a little bit uncanny to read this.
http://i808.photobucket.com/albums/.....psb87fb857.jpg
(From Peter Singer's "Practical Ethics")
http://i808.photobucket.com/albums/.....psb87fb857.jpg
(From Peter Singer's "Practical Ethics")
I could see this becoming REALLY popular in certain circles.
Posted 13 years agoA tail that wags based on your heart rate:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects.....ou-get-excited
From where else but Japan?
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects.....ou-get-excited
From where else but Japan?
Anatomy Panels at FC - Could someone record them pour moi?
Posted 13 years agotrogan is doing presentations on anatomy at FC. Though I can't see over half his art because it lives behind FA's marvelous filters, what I have seen is evidence that the depth and thoughtfulness of his knowledge of speculative anatomy should be the envy of all of anthrodom. It most certainly is mine!
Are any of you attending FC? Would those attending be able to record what's said, maybe even images? If so - and if that's not for some reason illegal - that would be AMAZING.
Here's the info:
Anatomy and Physio - Carnivores
Saturday, January 19th
4:00-5:30pm
Anatomy and Physio - Herbivores
Saturday, January 19th
6:00-7:30pm
Are any of you attending FC? Would those attending be able to record what's said, maybe even images? If so - and if that's not for some reason illegal - that would be AMAZING.
Here's the info:
Anatomy and Physio - Carnivores
Saturday, January 19th
4:00-5:30pm
Anatomy and Physio - Herbivores
Saturday, January 19th
6:00-7:30pm
Happy New Year's Eve!
Posted 13 years agoAnd thanks to the 65 people who watched me in the month of December 2012 alone! I appreciate the support :)
A Merry Hoofer Christmas!
Posted 13 years agoEnjoy the most ungulate-heavy Christmas carol there is, brought to you by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir :D
Bible Predicts Hoofpocalypse
Posted 13 years agoIn my daily Bible reading today, I came across something that might explain what some of you might see in the next few hours as the world ends. The following passage is from the Book of Joel, chapter 2, describing the army that will desolate the world:
“Blow ye the trumpet in Zion,
and sound an alarm in my holy mountain:
let all the inhabitants of the land tremble:
for the day of the Lord cometh,
for it is nigh at hand;
a day of darkness and of gloominess,
a day of clouds and of thick darkness,
as the morning spread upon the mountains:
a great people and a strong;
there hath not been ever the like,
neither shall be any more after it,
even to the years of many generations.
A fire devoureth before them;
and behind them a flame burneth:
the land is as the garden of Eden before them,
and behind them a desolate wilderness;
yea, and nothing shall escape them.
…
“They shall run like mighty men;
they shall climb the wall like men of war;
and they shall march every one on his ways,
and they shall not break their ranks:
…
“Neither shall one thrust another;
they shall walk every one in his path:
and when they fall upon the sword,
they shall not be wounded.
…
“The earth shall quake before them;
the heavens shall tremble:
the sun and the moon shall be dark,
and the stars shall withdraw their shining…”
Earth-shaking, invincible, torching armies? Yup. Now, what do they LOOK like? Verse 4:
“The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses;
and as horsemen, so shall they run.”
Earth-shaking, invincible, torching armies OF ANTHRO HORSES. YES PLZ. :D
… or ponies, I guess.
“Blow ye the trumpet in Zion,
and sound an alarm in my holy mountain:
let all the inhabitants of the land tremble:
for the day of the Lord cometh,
for it is nigh at hand;
a day of darkness and of gloominess,
a day of clouds and of thick darkness,
as the morning spread upon the mountains:
a great people and a strong;
there hath not been ever the like,
neither shall be any more after it,
even to the years of many generations.
A fire devoureth before them;
and behind them a flame burneth:
the land is as the garden of Eden before them,
and behind them a desolate wilderness;
yea, and nothing shall escape them.
…
“They shall run like mighty men;
they shall climb the wall like men of war;
and they shall march every one on his ways,
and they shall not break their ranks:
…
“Neither shall one thrust another;
they shall walk every one in his path:
and when they fall upon the sword,
they shall not be wounded.
…
“The earth shall quake before them;
the heavens shall tremble:
the sun and the moon shall be dark,
and the stars shall withdraw their shining…”
Earth-shaking, invincible, torching armies? Yup. Now, what do they LOOK like? Verse 4:
“The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses;
and as horsemen, so shall they run.”
Earth-shaking, invincible, torching armies OF ANTHRO HORSES. YES PLZ. :D
… or ponies, I guess.
