Bucky Bear
Ursus Arctos

Is there a difference? If so, what? The line between them is pretty fuzzy (or furry, if you like) so I don’t blame any of my followers for mixing them up. But I thought it might be good to clarify:

Ursus Arctos is me, the bear behind the camera and the keyboard. He is my alter-ego here on FA, my fursona. He likes what I like and, conversely, I hate what he hates. He appears in exactly two pieces of art:
as the orange-furred, green-eyed ursine smiling back at you from my profile ID
and as the note-taking bear on the cover of my book, Interviews (https://www.furaffinity.net/view/50827431/)

Bucky, on the other hand, is a character I invented specifically as the subject of art pieces. He’s got a subfolder in my gallery dedicated to those drawings. Bucky is a blend of characteristics, drawn mostly from my father and me. Just as my dad and I had some things in common, so do Bucky and I. Dad drove a Malibu and so does Bucky. Bucky plays guitar and so do I. You’ll have to figure out the rest on your own.

So you can call me Ursus or Bucky. I’ll answer to both and not be offended.

“But ya doesn’t have to call me Johnson.”

Back in 2016, I began writing a story called Long Division based on an idea by co-creator, Ruxx.  What began as a fun exercise in character development for a future comic, Long Division grew into a series of three novel-length books plus a companion guide.  The first volume, subtitled Roy & Tracy, is finally available for purchase from LD-Books.com in both paperback and electronic form.

The story follows a bear named Roy from his cubhood in 1917 through his meeting in 1967 with a coyote named Tracy.  Long Division is a dramatic, romantic, and sometimes erotic tale set in an anthropomorphic version of 20th century America.  The book features illustrations by  Syntech and cover art by  SpiderDragon.

I've posted the first chapter in my gallery HERE.  There is a sample from Book II, which I previously posted HERE.  You can find more sample chapters from the entire Long Division series at LD-Books.com.

Just a couple days after announcing that I had run out of photos to post, I began putting together a new home computer system. I looked at the components and thought that they might make cool subjects for my camera.

So, for the next few weeks, I’ll feature some of the shots I took during my computer build. One might say that I was "Saved by the Dell" (although the only Dell component is not included here).

By the way, thanks to everyone who posted the encouraging replies to my last journal. You folks are the best and your support means the world to me. I’m glad I won’t have to keep you waiting as long as I’d feared.

It's happened once again. All those winter months without a camera in my hand has caused my photograph backlog to run dry. The good news is that it is spring again and the warm weather should be getting me outside. I also have a computer-building project that I plan to document in photos, so you can look forward to some of those. Thanks for your patience while I get back into the swing of photography.

It's that time of year again. This one is my fifth anniversary as a member of FA. As always, I want to let you know how much all of you watchers mean to me. I can't express how much I appreciate each and every fave and comment. What a great and supportive community we have here!

Last December, I mentioned my writing project. Although it is taking longer to complete than I would like, I assure you that it is not dead. I hope to have something very special to share before Furnal Equinox this coming March.

This year featured commissions from:
 VenLightChaser
 AustralianCutCut (now  Lewis_PilotLion)
 CartoonWolf
 CautionTail (gift art from  DaiCymru)
 TheLivingShadow
 DiDihell
 Ryuuie

You can find those in the Bucky Art folder in my gallery.

I'll close by wishing you a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year in 2020.

For those of you who don't follow him, I'd like to call your attention to the new novel by DaiCymru, "A Murky Retreat." Set against the backdrop of World War II, it follows the tale (or tail) of Pilot Officer Cory Gladstone. This fox is flying a Hawker Hurricane on a mission for the Royal Air Force, when he is forced to bail out over the island of Crete.

DaiCymru has woven an intriguing adventure that held my interest, chapter after chapter. I offered my services to Dai as a proofreader in spite of the fact that I am not a big fan of military stories. But Pilot Officer Gladstone and his supporting cast of characters made this book a true pleasure to read over and over through each revision. It is a thrill for me to see this novel published at last.

Dai has a wonderful gift for describing the environment and populating it with believable characters. It's easy to imagine what it must have been like for the British soldiers serving in Crete at the time of the German invasion. You'll meet Cory and fellow soldiers from both sides of the conflict, as well as ordinary peasants and those who took part in the resistance movement against the Nazis.

"A Murky Retreat" is available in paperback and PDF editions. The novel is supplemented with historical notes, a map of Crete, and a terrific piece of cover art from Red Baron.

Visit DaiCymru's journal HERE to get your copy.

I noticed that the Chrome folder in my gallery was getting huge with 296 photos. So, I decided to reorganize those photos by the year posted. I think that 50 to 70 photos per year is a bit easier to digest.

Thanks to all of you who support my passion for this style of photography.

Another anniversary has crept up on me. I can hardly believe that I’ve been a member of FA for four years now. I continue to gather new watchers every now and then. I am so very grateful for all of you who think that my little corner of the furry universe is worth your while.

I’m not a convention attendee, but I did manage to meet two of my furry friends while on vacation in 2018. I hope to meet more of you in person as the opportunities come up.

Besides my photography, I’ve been putting in a lot of work on a writing project. I posted a sample chapter back in May. I hope to have even more to share in the not too distant future.

I set a new personal record for the number of drawings added to my gallery. In order of completed works, this year features art by:

 Sepia
 CharlestonRat
 the_raf
 wolf-mutt
 AriaDog
 chubby-shark
 Ivnousky
 nlorier
 edesk
 deadrussiansoul
 MarkRaccoon
 Sepia (one more)

You’ll find these works in the Bucky Art folder in my gallery. These are some great artists. Please go visit their galleries and give them some love.

Gosh, has it really been almost six months since I last posted a Chrome themed photo? Well, they're back and, as usual, I'll be posting a trio of them each week. For those of you who like this series, I appreciate your patience.

Oops! Tuesday has come and gone without a submission.

I've got a small backlog from a recent car show, but need to write up the descriptions. The old bear will be posting again next week. So hang in there.

I'm sure I've said it before, but I really appreciate all of you who are watching my little corner of FA.

Cheers!

Seems like I was just singing this tune, but it's been nine months or so. Once again I have exhausted my backlog of photos. I just wanted to reassure all of you that I am still here and I've already got some plans for a couple of photographic excursions. So sit tight. The photo bear will be posting again before long.

My grandma was a vast storehouse of information. When it came to canine trivia, nobody could beat her.

For instance, dogs have a triangular shaped fold on the inside of their ears. It is on the back edge, about a quarter of the way from the base to the tip. Grandma called this their "pocketbook" and explained to me that this was where dogs kept their money when they went out shopping.

One day, when I was about five years old or so, my dad and I walked to Grandma's house. Our dog, a mutt named Lucy, joined us. Upon arrival at Grandma's, her dachshund Peppy and Lucy greeted each other in the standard canine fashion. I asked Grandma why they did that and here is what she told me:

Long, long ago, all of the dogs of the world would get together every year for a meeting. Upon entering the Great Meeting Hall, each dog would remove his or her tail and hang it on a hook in the lobby, as was the custom in those days. One year, a fire broke out during the meeting. In their rush to escape the burning hall, the dogs grabbed whatever tail was handy on their way out. As a consequence, all of the tails got mixed up. To this day, dogs sniff each other's butts because they are still looking for their own tail.

That, my friends, is the end of my tail.

To paraphrase the late Admiral Grace Hopper, if you do it once, it's an accident, twice is a coincidence, but if you do it three times, you've uncovered a natural law. So as a good, law-abiding bear, here is my third annual recap:

For me, the best part of being here on FA continues to be the people that I meet. I've forged a number of friendships in my brief time here. Some have gotten stronger, others have waned a bit. Sure, I've come across a few who are less than sociable and a couple of outright nasty trolls. But overall, the people I've met here are simply terrific and I'm glad to know you.

Somewhere along the way, I reached the 5000 mark in faves received. As I said in a previous journal, I had no idea that my photos would get so much positive attention. Thanks again to all of you who have shown your support for my little hobby. To say that I am encouraged would be an understatement.

2017 saw me adding more art to my gallery than either of the years before. A few of these were gifts and I thank my wonderful friends here for those. In order of completed works, this year features art by:

 Edesk
 MisterScribbles
 KimmyKun
 Sepia
 CombatRaccoon
 Dj-Rodney
 s00t
 BearHybrid
 Ammunition

Coming up on my third anniversary as a member of FA has put me in a reflective mood. It's a twisted path that brought me here. What follows is the condensed version:

In 2014, my TV died and I decided to bite the bullet and upgrade my sound system as well. I hooked up my old PlayStation 2 and threw in Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for testing purposes. The music really took me back and I thought it would be fun to throw all of the tracks onto a music CD.

Now, I'm more than a little particular about my CD collection and I wanted to create a professional-looking jewel case insert and label for this new Sonic CD. A search for suitable artwork led me to Ink Bunny. Some furry art there caught my eye and a link from that artist led me to FA. I lurked for a few weeks and finally became a member.

The rest is history.

I had a vague idea that I was getting close to that milestone, but I wasn't watching all that closely. I remember two years ago, thinking that 500 was a huge deal. This number blows me away! I can scarcely believe that a photographer like myself could earn so much in what seems like so short a time.

I wish I knew who it was that pushed me over the 5000 mark. That's just out of curiosity. Certainly the 4999th and every one prior to that is just as important. I treasure each one I've ever received, before 5000 and since.

So to each of my faithful watchers and occasional visitors who has ever thought my photographs were worthy of a fave: I've probably already told you in a Shout, but I would like to say thank you one more time.

--Ursus

I've tried my best to post 3 or 4 photos weekly since I joined this site. But after 28 months and 420 or so photographs posted, my well of photos has run dry.

I am just a hobbyist, after all and photography is only one of several hobbies. I will try to dig deeper into my archives, especially through some old prints that might be worthy of scanning. I will get out and shoot some more, I promise you that. But my posts going forward will be more sporadic.

Let me take this opportunity to thank all of you for watching, faving, and commenting on my work. I've tried my best to send thank you shouts, though I'm sure there are some I've missed. Every one of those was absolutely sincere. I never dreamed I would get so much support here. You folks are the best!

Where has the time gone?  I did one of these year-end recaps last December and thought I'd try again.  I promise to be brief.

First and foremost, I must thank each and every one of you who has been watching this little corner of mine on FA.  I've approximately doubled my count from the end of Year One and have just surpassed the 200 watchers mark.  I'm continually amazed that anyone cares enough about my photography to watch at all, so I offer all of you my deepest, most sincere thanks.

I continue to make new friends, young and old.  The furry fandom is far from perfect, but there are some really good people here.  I feel privileged to be associated with some of the very best.

These are the artists who have done some terrific gift and commission art for me in the past year.  I encourage you to visit their pages and to shower them with faves and watches.  They deserve it.  In order of completed works, they are:

 ArchaicNewBear
 Antrage
 CombatRaccoon
 Sepia
 deHavilland

With works in progress by:

 Edesk
 Dragonley

Today's batch of four photos is the last of my submissions from the USAF museum. Thanks for indulging me and my interest in things that fly. I've got some new chrome photos coming up in the coming weeks and there are a couple of reptiles to look forward to.

I wanted to take a little time and plug a couple of my favorite wildlife rescue organizations. I don't get to visit these often enough, but I am very proud to be a supporter of:

Eagle Valley Raptor Center
EVRC is located in Cheney, Kansas and specializes in birds of prey, including Eagles, Hawks, Owls, Kites, Falcons, and Vultures. They release whenever they can but will provide a lifetime home for birds that cannot safely be returned to the wild.

Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge
TCWR in Eureka Springs, Arkansas provides a lifetime refuge for rescued animals. Their residents are mainly large cats: Tigers, Lions, Ligers, Leopards, Cougars, Bobcats, a Serval. But the refuge is also a home to other species, including several Bears and a Coyote.

Thanks for taking the time to read this far. Please visit the links. If you have a few dollars to donate to either, I can assure you that these are two very worthwhile organizations.

If you write dates like we do in the US, today, March 14, is 3-14.
Swap out the hyphen with a period, and you get 3.14.
And for grins, since this is 2016, it's even more accurate: 3.1416.
I'm a math geek, what can I say?

This isn't the journal you're looking for... Move along.

A year ago (December 11, 2014 to be exact) I opened this account on FA. I was a complete newbie in every way, having learned about the furry fandom only a few months prior. A lot has happened in that short year.

Let me start by thanking all of you who are watching my little corner of FA, or who have added my photographs to your favorites.

I am now just shy of 100 watchers and have slightly over 1000 pure faves (not counting those for commissioned or gift art). These numbers may seem insignificant when compared to some of the hugely popular artists and photographers here. But they are far more than a hobbyist photographer like myself ever expected.

There is a small group of you whom I have thanked again and again for supporting my photos. As many times as I have said it, I can never thank you enough. It makes me smile every time I see your names appear on my list of new favorites.

In my year, I have
- discovered some amazing art, photography, music, and writing
- learned a few things about photography that I hope to utilize in the future
- found the courage to attend my first furry convention
- learned how to handle trolls
- commissioned my first pieces of art

In 2015, these fine artists helped bring my character, Bucky Bear to life:
 Lukas_Artair
 FigN01
 blackteagan
 yoan0131
 Sepia
 RayFkm
Watch them. Fave them. Give them some love.

Most important though, I have made some good friends from around the world. Exchanging Notes here on FA or texting via Skype, we've talked about photography, art, films, music, and games. We've shared hopes and dreams, successes and disappointments. We've talked about pets, food, culture, work, school, aviation, and travel. We've shared some stories about growing up and some thoughts about love & life. We have critiqued each other's work. What a marvelous world we live in that brings us together this way!

I am not the total rookie that I was a year ago. But even an old bear like me still has room to learn and grow. I am eager to see what the next year brings.

Best wishes to all of you for a safe, healthy, and fulfilling 2016.

I am frequently asked about the proper pronunciation of my family name, Arctos. Does it have a short 'o' sound, rhyming with cross or a long 'o', rhyming with dose?

To find the answer, you must go back several generations to my great, great, great, great, great uncle Artimus "Artie" Arctos who was the first to use the long 'o' pronunciation. Artie was a bit of a rebel and even went so far as to marry a polar bear, Ursula. But I digress...

Artie was quickly joined by his twin brother, Arthur, and their youngest sibling, Austin, who wanted to do everything Artie and Arthur did. But this did not go over well with older brothers Angus, Andy, and Alan, all of whom felt the long 'o' was a bastardization of what they claimed was the traditional pronunciation used by their father, Amos.

It may come as no surprise that this has caused quite a rift (and even some seriously hard feelings) between the two halves of the Arctos clan. On the other paw, this schism has made it easy to choose up sides for badminton or paintball games at family gatherings.

Now, you may be wondering which side of the badminton net I am on. As a descendant of Angus, I use the short 'o'. It may help you to remember that, if you throw something to me, the path it follows is an arc. Therefore, you have made an "arc toss".

*Ba-dump! Shisssss*