These scenarios are, I think, all related.

Scenario 1

A friend comes to you asking to borrow $500 to pay off some bills. You say you can't help because things are kinda tight for you, too.

Next week you come into some money -- maybe a bonus at work, or a small lottery -- and you blow it on fun and frivolous stuff, even though your friend still needs help.

Is that okay?

... I talked with two people yesterday who think it's okay, or at least, mostly okay, because as long as you weren't lying to your friend at the time you declined the loan the first time, you're under no obligation to make good on that loan when the situation changes. It's your money, you can choose to do whatever you want with it, and your friend is expected to be understanding and not feel slighted. And you shouldn't feel guilty.

Am I crazy, or is that sorta slapping your friend in the face? (a 'dick move')
Am I crazy, or that friend likely to feel like it was a dick move?


Scenario 2

A friend invites me to go do something fun with him on Saturday. Friday night comes and I discover I have to work, so I tell the friend, "I have to work, sorry, I can't do that thing." My friend is sad, but cool.

Saturday morning comes, and someone else invites me to some other cool thing for the day. It's a very cool thing, so I decide to blow off work and go to "very cool thing."

Dick move, or not dick move?

In this scenario, the two people I talked to last night said they would not be bothered by that, because the situation changed only after we talked, and I didn't lie to him or otherwise slight him, so I shouldn't feel at all guilty.

Is that normal? - seems to me most people would be like, "Dude, WTF", but both folks I talked to about this agreed that there'd be no cause to be slighted, and if anyone did feel slighted, that's their problem, not mine, and I shouldn't trouble myself about it.


Scenario 3

This all came about because I was talking with two friends over dinner and a beer about how--after 8 years of volunteering at AC--I'm stepping down as Alley Department Head (yes, that's right, I'm stepping down, I'll post about that soon). The basic premise is that next year I will have very little vacation time to spare, because my mom is moving up to Colorado and I anticipate that I will need to be taking a lot of PTO (paid time off) to help her find a house, pack her things, move her things, unpack her things, fix things at the house, and so forth. If I were to run Anthrocon's Artists' Alley next year, I would need FIVE days of PTO, since it's not on July 4th (would have been 4 days otherwise, which is still a lot, but I've managed to set it aside every year for 8 years).

One of my friends at dinner says, "Hey, if you're not doing Anthrocon next year, that means ... [pregnant pause]"

"I know where you're going with this, and no, I can't go to Anime Expo either, for the same reason I can't go to Anthrocon."

"But the situation could change and you might end up with ample vacation time after all."

"That would be kind of a dick move to Anthrocon, wouldn't it?"

Dick move, or not dick move?

He didn't think it would be a dick move. Do you? If you think it's totally fine and you wouldn't hesitate to do this, can you elaborate?

EDIT: ... it's over, but the recordings will be available on Livestream for 30 days.


Livestream of Fox Amoore performing some songs from his latest album, Come Find Me, ON MY DECK! OMG.

Concert start ~8pm MDT, but if you wanna watch a piano doing mostly nothing, and me trying to grill things later, then tune in now.

Links to pre-ordering the CD are on the channel page:

https://new.livestream.com/accounts.....ooreComeFindMe
https://new.livestream.com/accounts.....ooreComeFindMe
https://new.livestream.com/accounts.....ooreComeFindMe

Come join us!

It's all here: (follow @Anthrocon_Alley!)
https://twitter.com/anthrocon_alley.....02140126199809

We've announced it on Twitter, and Facebook, and the Anthrocon.org site, and other places. Here's one more!

ANTHROCON ARTISTS' ALLEY SIGNUPS ARE CLOSING TONIGHT!

Click here to learn more

Still PLENTY of seats available in Anthrocon's Artists' Alley! Don't wait until the con to sign up, or you (a) might not get a seat, and (b) will have to wait until after we open to try to claim a spot.

http://anthrocon.org/alley/lottery/form
http://anthrocon.org/alley/lottery/form
http://anthrocon.org/alley/lottery/form

 cerberus is amazing
https://youtu.be/X-atRsitNsY

We've announced it on Twitter, and Facebook, and the Anthrocon.org site, and other places, but signups are light, so I'm spreading the word.

ANTHROCON ARTISTS' ALLEY SIGNUPS ARE OPEN!

Click here to learn more

 lauragarabedian has a new patreon page up:
http://www.patreon.com/LauraGarabedian?rf=87050

Please consider joining me in supporting her!

Levels begin at $1/mo, with lots of increments from there all the way up to $100/mo. Please join me (and rukis, looks like!) in supporting my good friend with her artistic endeavors. :)

But not here ... over on Weasyl

https://www.weasyl.com/journal/4814.....e-s-rooth-been

Ask me 5 questions (total, not EACH), and I'll give you 5 answers. In the spirit of April Fools, one of them might be true.

Today's Starbucks "pick of the week" is an app called Run Roo Run. I've heard it mentioned in streams, and sort of forgot about it, but today you can get it free by picking up a card from the dispenser at Starbucks (they're free, too).

While downloading mine, I searched the store for 'roo' and WOW, THERE ARE A BOATLOAD OF KANGAROO APPS! O_O;

I plan to check 'em all out in the near future, but if anyone has any recommendations, I'll start with those. :)

EDIT: holy crap, that is the most ad-tastic in-your-face game I've ever downloaded. JUMPIN' JIMINIE! DO NOT DOWNLOAD

Are there any Denver furries out there able to pick me up at the airport at 12:30am tonight? I have no phone with me, but I'm monitoring email until I board in 45 minutes.

Use ride[at]rooth.org

What's your favorite Anthrocon Restaurant?

PS - any Pittsburgh furs wanting to join me for dinner tonight, email me, pittsburgh[at]rooth.org

EDIT: I'm at August Henry's
NOTE: check out BD's Mongolian BBQ in Denver (woot)

Been a while, figured I'd start a new one ... ON WEASYL this time.

No answers here this time -- go there to submit a question.

https://www.weasyl.com/journal/41565/tmi-tuesday

Love you all!

I don't normally pimp YCHs, but this one looks particularly cool. And I wasn't asked or encouraged to pimp it, so it falls outside FA's anti-viral-ness policy.

8 slots to choose from! Auction ends Thursday 10pm eastern (or later, if anti-sniping is activated).

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/12873301/

Check it out. :)

Anyfurs out there play Guild Wars 2 who would be willing to consult with an author doing research for a novel?

Email me at guildwars[at]rooth.org with your email, and I'll forward it on to the novelist.

I just was IMDB'ing Alexandre Desplat, because he got nominated this year, and I loved his music in Rise of the Guardians and Argo, and was curious what else he did.

He composed the music for A CUBIC BOATLOAD OF MOVIES. He's like a modern-day John Williams, AFAIC.

That's when I saw it ...

He's composing the score for Godzilla 2014!!!

This epic movie just got more epic.

BTW, there's a new Godzilla trailer (SPOILERS!) (not a teaser, a full 2 minute trailer, it's bad-ass, but reveals a lot more).

Trivia RE: Roar -- The original roar was created using a double bass, a leather glove, and some resin. This is where the new director began when working with the sound designer to come up with the 2014 roar.

Got a feral character?

 halopromise has this big CHARGE! YCH going on, featuring two of Halo's ferals, plus yours truly in the #1 slot. We need 6 more ferals to partake in this piece! There are already bids on the 6 slots, but wanted to get the word out so people don't see it appear in my gallery later and go "Oh damn! I woulda loved to get in on that!"

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/12838232/

Who's in?

Hello, gang!

I want to wish everyone a Happy Valentine's Day! If you've got yourself a sweet Valentine, treat him or her well today, and show each other what you mean to each other, whether it's full-blown love, or just pretty close to it.

For those of you who do not have yourselves a Valentine (myself included) -- chin up. If you want next year to be different, you've got 365 days to do something about it. GO!

If you don't give a @*$^ about Valentine's Day, then HAPPY FRIDAY! ;)

There were 32 artists participating, with many claiming the +2 bonus making a total of 77 'tickets' (see this doc for the raw list). I used this method and today's random seed to pick the winner from that list.

And the winner is ....

 purplepardus
 purplepardus WINNER!
 purplepardus

Congratulations, purple! I will email you shortly to begin arranging details. :)

Thank you everyone for participating!

Participant links:
 torafurry  rumbrave  hopefulmonsterstudios  wildroo  zhuria
 tyrnn  kurradagon  kylfu  drgn8D  NimRoderick  kathy-lu
 asterionblazing  quaylak  drawwithlaura  ritzbitz

( = )

http://lykenzealot.deviantart.com/
http://www.wintersoulstudios.com
https://www.weasyl.com/~irime
http://weasyl.com/~cial
https://www.weasyl.com/~purplepardus
https://www.weasyl.com/~rude
http://luxdani.deviantart.com/

I'm giving away an art supply shopping spree!

Viral advertising not required.

Go here: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/5472228/

 applemonsterstudios -- who made my Rooth'roo suit -- is opening for quotes this weekend. Watch their account, they'll post a journal soon with details on how to get one!

CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED
CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED
CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED

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F R E E

It's free to enter! Just do a couple of easy things before Feb 9th 2014, 1800 Mountain Standard Time (except you, firefeathers and neomi - you won in 2012 and 2013 respectively, give someone else a chance this year ;)).

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PRIZE: $200 SHOPPING SPREE

Shopping spree!! You make a wish list at https://www.dickblick.com (or other art supply site of your choice), and I'll buy it for you, up to $200. :) International artists are welcome to participate -- we can work out some arrangement, I'm sure (the winner from last year, neomi, was in this category).

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R U L E S

Entering is easy. Just follow these 3 simple steps (too simple? Click here for details):

(1) be a furry/anthro artist
(2) fill out this really short form
(3) post a comment in this journal

The deadline is Feb 9th, 2014, 1800 Mountain Standard Time (that's Feb 10th, 0100 GMT)

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P I T C H :: Why I'm doing this

P S A First of all, I want to draw attention to the rules at Anthrocon's 2013 Artists' Alley. In 2012 they changed a lot, and there are a lot of them, so I want to be sure everyone gets a chance to look at them ahead of time! In particular, sometime in May you will need to sign up ON LINE, BEFORE THE CON. No more at-con lottery. No more at-con craziness every morning.

BIG CHANGE IN 2012: we now charge 5% of your sales for using Artists' Alley!. I know, blasphemy, right? Thing is, my department was the only department not bringing in any revenue to counter our costs. In fact, the Alley lost money every year. Supplies, credit card charges, cash registers, power rental, space rental, labor (union), charge-backs, etc. So, now I have to collect something. There were a few options that were considered, and the 5% fee was selected. It'll be deducted from daily payouts when you come to collect (rounded to the nearest dollar, or maybe quarter).

On the plus side, we WILL have new registers! They've already been puchased, and the interface is being designed and programmed in advance of the Board meeting a month from now.

And with that PSA out of the way, on to the real reason I'm doing this:

B E C A U S E . . . January is now the unofficial month for me showing my appreciation for the artists in the community (aside from the usual thing, in the form of commissions). January 2014 marks the end of my 23rd year in this fandom, and the 3rd annual RAAM!

You artists contribute so much to the community, beyond just what you do to make a buck. There's a vim to your vibe that I think is the engine for this fandom. I love that about you. There's this ripple effect I see echoing from what you do, from how you act and feel in your posts, from the art you draw, the stuff you craft, and the cheer you bring to each customer and friend with your creations.

The world needs more of that. The world needs more of YOU.

Throughout 2013, you've put up with all sorts of stress and change and drama and annoyances. Some more than others. Some A LOT more than others. Y'know that one customer who constantly asks for more free changes? Y'know that one dude who was all pissy about how you drew too many toes on his 8-limbed character who is NOT a spider? Y'know that one gal who complained 'cause you didn't deliver the art on time, even though she didn't give you a deadline? Y'know how FC2014 was kind of a low-profit con for you? Y'know how the customs agent at the border TOOK ALL YOUR SHIT? (I'm looking at you, maxblackrabbit, and reusing that from 2013's RAAM, because damn!).

Yeah, you've put up with all sorts of grief. Well, here's a little something to balance that. It's after the holidays, y'all have gotten your gifts. Now it's time for one more. =)

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R U L E S (detailed)

Click here for the skinny

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R A N D O M I N G

I use random.org, per this completely indisputably transparent above-board corruption-free method. It's repeatable, drama-free, and 100% fair. Go read up on it if you care. ;) It's the same method I use for Anthrocon's Artists' Alley raffle, and the same method I used last year.

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D I S C L O S U R E

This raffle is completely unaffiliated with Anthrocon itself. This is totally my personal doing, and my personal funding. I did not coordinate with anyone on this in any way. Beyond just wanting to express some good will toward artists in general, as the Artists' Alley manager at Anthrocon I just wanted to avoid some at-con insanity by spreading the word about the Alley changes and lottery signup changes.

----
----

That's it!
Thank you so much to all the artists in this fandom. You all rock. :)

Hey, gang!

I'm looking for a site where I can sell a second hand costume (not either Rooth!). I know of FurBid and FurBuy. FurBid seems completely defunct, with only 5 active auctions (all general commissions). O.o FurBuy looks much more active, with 173 auctions in the fursuit category alone. So I'm guessing FurBuy wins, but are there other places I should consider?

Misplaced my iPad in Tanq for a few minutes. Went back to get it, it was gone. Went onto Find My iPhone on my cell, and saw it walking away, but then stopped nearby. Went hunting for it, and overheard some furry at the bar talking with security. Sounded like it was about my iPad. I showed my map, and the security guy took me to the front desk and produced my iPad.

I tried to buy said furry a beer. He wouldn't let me. Left shortly after.

Thanks guy, whoever you were!