That's right folks, my new phone and  ryusyro have finally convinced me to drag myself into the 21st century and actually make a Twitter! I'm rascalovtiger on there, so feel free to say hi. :3

As you can see, I've left it til the last minute to do a FWA journal. My job has become either a joke or a nightmare, or both... So I have been neglecting all sorts of things, including FA. I apologize to everyone I haven't pestered in too long, and hope to get to see as many of you as possible at FWA! :D Which brings me to the main point of writing this... I'M GOING TO FWA!!! WOO-HOO!!!

As always, I love meeting new furry friends, just look for the long hair, curly mustache and goatee. As for where I might be found, the inflatables panel is a good start. Also known to associate with the likes of:  ryusyro  Wildmark  AzulRoosky and her awesome husband Patches. (Not sure if he has an FA..?) Hope everyone makes it there safe and sound!

I'm sure this will be a great con, but it'd be way better if my other friends could be there, such as Mac  hotrodwolf  morphy_darkstone  foxlover_H  tico_the_timberwolf and  tmdrake among others... Ah well, there's always Megaples... and next year! :3

I know I sure am! Yes, that's right, this squeaky tiger will be at Megaplex again this year. :D I'm actually already within a couple miles of the Murriot, staying with my good friend Mac. He and his family have been kind enough to put me up (or is that 'put up with me') for a week. :3 Thanks to them, I have been able to hang out with some of my wonderful furry friends that I don't get to see very often, like  ryusyro and  wildmark. I'm looking forward to seeing more friends like  hotrodwolf and  foxlover_h there. And meeting more awesome furries as I always do... I'm so excited, I'm sure its gonna be a blast! The only thing that could possibly make it better would be if  tico_the_timberwolf could be there. Miss you wolfy! Hopefully this time I'll remember to post an after-con journal... XD

That's right, folks! As the overly-obvious title suggests, this squeaky tiger will be at FWA next week. *cheers* And in the week leading up to it, I get to go to FL and visit all my friends there, which is a reason to celebrate in and of itself! For anyone who wants to meet/talk to me, I'm fairly easy to spot. Look for the long-haired dude with a curled mustache and long goatee, generally wandering about with a slightly perplexed and bemused expression... I am always happy to make new friends, so don't be afraid to come up and say hi. Just please don't run up and hug/grope/plow into me without asking first cause I'm a bit shy, and possibly slightly fragile... Anyway, hope to see you there! I never know how to end these things, so I'm gonna take my cue from the British and say...

Cheers!

Wow, what happened? Gentlemen, I have discovered the secret to time travel! Just go to a furcon, and you're instantaneously transported to the end of the weekend... XD *sigh* Sure seems like it anyway. Now let's see how much of it I can actually remember!

First, I have to say a massive thank you to  foxlover_h cause without him I wouldn't even have BEEN there! He was kind enough to invite me to stay with him and his mate  tico_the_timberwolf and they both made me feel like one of the family! <3 You guys rock!

Ok, on with the story. I had to work Thursday night, thanks to it being so close to Thanksgiving and me working in a grocery store. XP So I slept a few hours in the morning after work, then hit the road about 1:30pm. I got stuck in traffic in the Loop, so it took like 2 hours to get to the Hyatt, where I ended up 'conning' my way into the almost-full parking lot, cause Inola wasn't checked in yet... >;3 Anyway, after I got what may have been the last space left, I went inside to escape the bitter cold and get my badge. Then I met Tico, who was already there. We hit it off immediately and were soon talking like the best of friends!

At this point, poor Inola was still waiting for the weather to permit him to take off to fly down. So while we were waiting to see what happened with that, we went to see Uncle Kage's hilarious presentation on "Science, Pseudo-science and Crap" which was awesome! I hadn't had the chance to experience his unique perspective and views before, so I was glad to get the chance. About 2/3 of the way through it, Tico got the call we'd been waiting for and we went to meet Inola at the airport...

Ok, I took along my GPS, thinking it would be easier... Turns out, the damn thing can't figure out how to navigate around the back of O'Hare to get to the Schaumberg Regional Airport, where he was. So we ended up getting a bit lost and driving past the FedEx depot and stuff. So much for "easier!" D'oh! XD Anyway, once we finally got back to the hotel, we checked in after touring the parking lot for a good 20 minutes in a futile search for an empty space til Tico finally made his own space... XD

Once we got our stuff (mostly toys) up to the room and inflating a few, we ordered pizza. Delicious, but it seemed to take forever! Especially since we were starving... X3 Then it was time to start meeting furries! Inola took us to a party thrown by the one and only  ipequey who I was honored to meet. He was really friendly and interesting to talk with! :3 It was so kind of him to take the time to chat with this shy, squeaky-loving tiger! I also met the awesome  hotrodwolf there. Our paths had crossed more than once here on FA, so it was great to actually meet and party with him and his mate  morphy_darkstone who is also very cool and funny. Another awesome furry I met there was  rikku_lion who was really friendly and adorable. Actually, everyone I talked to all weekend was unbelievably welcoming and downright neighborly! :D We also went to Hotrod and Morphy's room and got to see some of their toys and hang out. After a trip out to a certain someone's car for some 'fresh air,' (thanks again, dude! You fuckin' rock!) things get a little hazy and I do believe I slept for a bit... >;3

I think most of that actually happened Friday night and the early hours of Saturday morning... O.o Let's see, by now we had Inola's Patch, (a pp husky) and his Balto, my Nero, (G&G wolf) and Sascha, my pp vixen up in the room, though we had to deflate Tico's adorable Spark (IW dragon) to fit Nero, sadly. Next, an epic trek through a blazingly cold wind to a Giordano's Pizza for a delicious lunch led to us MISSING the FURSUIT PARADE!! D: I was really disappointed about that, but it's just one of those things... We all thought it was later and none of us checked the schedule. Again, d'oh! XD So then we hit the dealer's den so I could commission a badge and get a cute tiger t-shirt. Then I went with Tico to get Holly from Ipequey's room and got to talk with Rikku again for a while, which was nice. After that? I don't remember, a blur of partying and hanging out with amazing furries! At some point I was thrilled to see  crazyjoe1952 in his Mountain Blue Fox fursuit! I first met him at Megaplex back in July and it was great to see that funny, frisky fox again! :3 I think that was Friday, but I'm not sure... I also got to see his Silver fox suit, which is every bit as kickass as all his others! I love the black and silver fur, and his inimitable animatronics. Its also fun to see him playing with big,squeaky toys... XD But I digress... Saturday ended shortly before dawn Sunday morning... ;P

Whew! Alright, Sunday. Hmm, I think we got up around noon. Hotrod and Morphy suggested breakfast, which ended up taking what seemed like hours to organize! X3 We finally ended up storming Sally's House of Pancakes (or something like that) with 12 furs, though we ended up split into 2 groups... Anyway, I was freaking STARVING! I had a huge skillet thing with steak and hashbrowns and eggs, with some delectable pancakes on the side. It was sooo good! Then, after getting a bit more fresh air, I floated back into the hotel for more mischief... Tried to back to the artist's alley and dealer's den, but they were already closed. Probably for the best, i need to save some money anyway... By Sunday evening, pcd was already setting in for all of us. D: It had all happened so fast, where had the time gone!? I think it was about this time that a certain very naughty tiger may have taken a certain very generous fox's Balto into the shower... >;3 I never ended up going to sleep Sunday. I just kicked it with my furry brethren til about 3am, then texted Hotrod to go say goodbye to him and Morphy. After that, one of the hardest parts, saying farewell to Inola and Tico, two of the most caring and wonderful furries I have ever had the privilege of knowing! It was after 4 by the time I left for home, but since its only 65mi from my house, and there was almost no traffic, I was home in a depressingly short time. The only thing that helped in my sadness was the knowledge that I had made so many wonderful friends. Well, that, and my Max pouncing tiger, which I had to get out after seeing Tico's Holly... ;P

All things considered, it was everything I could ever have dreamed of and so much more! I loved every minute and can't wait for next year! The only thing that could have made it any better would be if my friends from Megaplex, especially  silverwolfoneofmany,  ryusyro and  wildmark could have been there. Even though they weren't with me, they were in my thoughts the whole time! Love you guys and miss you so! Ok, I have to wrap this up before I'm crying too hard to see. Peace and love to all!

Hey everyone! Sorry I haven't been on much lately, its been a busy time with work and all. Yes, as the title implies, I am going to be at Midwest FurFest this weekend. I will be rooming with my friend  foxlover_H since he was kind enough to offer. :3 I'm really excited about MFF cause I live nearby in NW Indiana, so I'm hoping to make friends with some furries who live in my area. Anyway, if you want to find me there, give me a shout or just look for the guy with the curled mustache and long goatee... I'm a little shy, but I love to make new friends. Hope to see you there! ^^

Wow! Where to even begin.... The beginning, I guess.... :D I left for Florida on the Sunday before, and drove for twelve hours to meet up with  ryusyro so I could leave my Crossfire in his garage and ride the rest of the way with him. That was the best ride ever! We got to talk for about nine hours straight, and found so much in common. It really was one of my favorite parts of the trip! :D When we arrived, we were greeted by  silverwolfoneofmany and his family. They were all so kind and welcoming that I felt right at home immediately! Mac, Syro and I had a blast hanging out for the week leading up to Megaplex, then the REAL fun started....

We picked up  Fox_E_Wolf from the airport on Thursday, then headed over to the Murriot to check in and check out the room. I was rooming with Mac, Fox_E_Wolf and Syro, who reserved the room. Thanks again Sy! :3 We got our badges, then started bringing massive amounts of inflatable animals to fill the room... ^^ I think we might have overdone it a tiny bit... We had FOUR Fenris wolves! 8D Plus two Zenith dragons, a 15-foot Merek tiger, a Max pouncing tiger, a Merek dragon, an IW dragon, a Halo husky, a Puffy Paws vixen and the one-and-only Bolt! :O By the time we had everything in the room, it was past time for the bowling to start, so we high-tailed it over to the bowling alley, where we hung out with the most awesome furries! Other than the fur meet I attended with Mac and Syro on Tuesday, it was my first time ever being around furries and fursuiters.... It was amazing! I never felt so welcome and accepted before! Hehehe, we never even got around to bowling! XD

We didn't get to sleep until like 5am, so we woke up late and missed most of the opening ceremonies! D'oh! XD I did get to see the fursuit parade, which was too cool for words! (Can't remember if the parade was Friday or Saturday, so I'm putting it here...) Then we got some lunch and wandered aimlessly around the dealers' den and the rest of the con space... We met so many awesome furries, and I got so many hugs from adorable fursuiters! It was unbelievable! I still can't get over how kind and friendly everyone was... Thank you to all the furs who made me feel right at home, even though they didn't know me! <3 I wish I could list eveybody I met, but I would leave somebody out, then I'd feel bad... Suffice it to say, I'm trying to at least watch everyone...

I think the pool party was Friday night... We brought Fenris and a Balto toy, and I got more than my fair share of chances to ride Fen in the pool! :D Speaking of inflatable wolves, I feel kinda bad that Nero never even got inflated the whole time I was there... D: But I'll find a way to make it up to him! >;3

Saturday was the inflatables panel, which was a comedy of errors! Due to scheduling snafus, we didn't even get in the room til long after it was supposed to start, but we eventually filled the toys with air, and the room with toys! I was allowing folks to sit/lay on my Merek tiger, so chances are that if you managed to get in the room, you got to do that.... we wanted to get pics of all four wolves, and also a pic of three Zenith dragons (including  tmdrake's, who was gracious enough to put his up in the panel room) but we ran out of time... Deflating the toys caused me to miss most of Fosgate: Ferret Loan Officer... Oh well, it was still well worth the effort! :D We also had an awesome dinner with tmdrake and  crazyjoe1952 at Denny's. I can't recall if there were others, sorry if I left you out! X3

Sunday, I started to watch the Pawpet Show, but had to miss most of it, due to various distractions. But it was worth it, since I had a chance to have a fascinating conversation with  wildmark Hope I got the his FA right... If not, it will be corrected soon! ^^ I also got to play with Syro's IW dragon! <3 Such an awesome dragon.... <3 Later, we started packing, cause Syro and I had a long drive home ahead of us on Monday. I can't believe how fast that weekend went.... Its funny, I missed most of the scheduled events, but I don't feel like I missed out... I'm not saying they weren't awesome, I wish I could have seen them! I mean that I still thoroughly enjoyed myself without having done so... :3

Monday was sad. D: Before Syro and I left, we got to have lunch with our roommates and Wildmark, plus  dragonmelde and another wonderful artist whose name I didn't get... Sorry, awesome nameless artist! D: If someone could tell me who she was, I will gladly add her name... Anyway, after saying a sad goodbye to everybody, Syro and I hit the road and had another amazingly fascinating conversation until we reached his house. It was so hard to say farewell to him, he and Mac are such close friends that the word friend doesn't adequately describe how much they mean to me! I am actually crying as I write this because I miss them so very much. But I digress. I must say that driving my six-speed, RWD roadster home through the twisting roads of the Smoky Mountains at breakneck speeds in the middle of the night was absolutely incredible! 8D Truthfully, I was generally about 10 MPH over the speed limit all the way home, so I made the twelve hour trip in about eleven! But since the roads were almost deserted, and I am a very careful driver, I wasn't taking a risk of anything worse than getting a speeding ticket... ^^ Then I got home, unloaded the car and crashed hard. I slept for twelve hours straight! XD

In closing, I just want to say thank you to everyone who made my first furcon magical and unforgettable!!! I feel like I've begun a whole new chapter in my life. I truly feel that I can now say I am furry and loving every minute!! Now all I need is a tail, so I don't feel naked the next time... :D Peace, love and goodwill to all furries everywhere!!! <3 And thanks to anyone who actually stuck around long enough to read all this! :3

As the title implies, this is my first attempt at a journal. I don't usually write them cause I can't imagine anybody's actually gonna read them... But since I have the unique opportunity to go to Orlando and stay with my awesome friends Mac and Syro as a guest of Mac's family, I just had to make an entry about it! I'm sooooo excited!!!! I get to see them for a week leading up to my first con ever! Yes, that's right, you heard right, I have never been to any sort of gathering of furries... So if you're going, keep an eye out for the dude with the long ponytail and peculiar goatee! I hope to make lots of new friends, so if you see me please come say hi!

I've always been shy, and never really joined any groups cause I didn't ever feel like I fit in with any... I always struggled with my identity, and for a long time I hated myself without even knowing who I really was. I spent most of my childhood miserable and hopeless. I simply could not believe anything good would ever happen in my life, and literally couldn't stand to be me... But since discovering the furry community, I have discovered sooo many wonderful, caring folks that I feel like I can be myself and be accepted and loved for it!

One of the hardest things for me to accept about myself was my love of- or fetish for inflatable toys/balloons, which, ironically is what led me to discover furry fandom! I was always deeply ashamed of it, and tried to avoid it entirely cause I thought it was such a bizarre fetish that no one could possibly understand or accept it. But I couldn't resist secretly playing with balloons occasionally... Then, one day shortly after I finally got internet and a place to privately surf it, I started discovering videos on YouTube with looner fetish stuff. I finally realised that I wasn't some horrible freak to be scorned and rejected, but just a guy with a kinda odd kink. Totally changed my view of myself and I could finally start to learn about and love myself for who I am! Then I saw a vid of Merek Geiger 'demonstrating' one of his 7-foot tall wolves and fell in love! It was through trying to find one that I discovered PuffyPaws on eBay, which led me to the Zenith dragon and FA!

It still took me almost a month to gather the courage to actually order a Zenith cause I was so afraid if I got one, I wouldn't be able to keep him hidden. And the thought of having to try to explain a huge inflatable dragon to friends or family was almost enough to prevent me from getting one! Luckily for me, I finally decided that, if someone saw him, they'd just think I'm some kind of crazy fool. But since I always feel like a fool no matter what I do, I figured, why not be a happy fool? And my dragon makes every day a joy! That then gave me the courage to eventually join FA, though I'm still too shy to note anyone I don't know... In fact, I've never even watched anyone! But I'm getting more outgoing by the day, and Megaplex represents a giant step forward for me! Aww, now I've got "Giant Steps" by John Coltrane stuck in my head! D'oh! *sigh* I knew I wasn't gonna get through this without any song references... Wow, that turned out really long... If anyone reads this far, could you give me a shout or comment so I know I didn't type all this stuff for nothing? Thanks! :3