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Yeah, you probably haven’t seen it. It’s pretty underground.

I first began to suspect a furry:hipster overlap in the dealer’s den at Furry Weekend Atlanta, when I observed that the ratio of hat-wearing men was precipitously high. Not ballcaps, mind you — fedoras, flat caps, bowlers, and other examples of the sort of headwear that one would expect to find less in Atlanta than in, say, 1954.

If hats aren’t your thing (and how do you fit your ears through them, anyway?) you may defer instead to the Skinny Jean Quotient, which is also elevated. If anybody asks why you’re staring at their pants, just tell them it’s for research. Nobody wants to stand in the way of science.

As it happens, this helps explain a lingering geographic dilemma I’ve had. If you take a bunch of furries and group them by state, you can create a sort of density map: what percentage of furries live in any given state compared to what percentage of Americans in general reside there.

When you do this, you don’t find too many anomalies. Furries are underrepresented in New York, possibly because, let’s face it, most of us can’t afford to live there. And in general it’s what you’d expect: we’re slightly less common in the American South; more common on the west coast. Standing out as islands, as compared to their surrounding states: the Pacific Northwest, Michigan, and Colorado.

What’s the common thread?

By instinct, you want to look for furries in high tech density areas, because the basic idea that “furry=geek” is pretty well established. But only 8% of furries work in technology fields; a majority, 60%, are students of some stripe or another. This latter angle bids I point out that these islands are, for example, also where you can score high-quality pot. But I’m sure furries know nothing of that (certainly I don’t; I don’t like smoking, and I can’t eat brownies because chocolate is poisonous for dogs).

Anyway, when seen through a hipster lens, the inclusion of places like Portland, Seattle, Denver, and Ann Arbor suddenly fall into place. And this helps to explain the hat-wearing. It also helps to explain the results of a microsurvey I put together a few weeks back. I asked several hundred people 32 questions on their personal beliefs and behaviors, and I plugged this into a sinister machine of my own devising, the Behavioral and Attitudinal Tabulation, Mapping, and Analysis Navigator.

I asked BATMAN for “two-box” responses: when it tells me a general skew, it’s because a given respondent either “agreed” or “strongly agreed” (conversely: “disagreed” or “strongly disagreed”), leaving out the middle parts and focusing on the extremes. The computational engine whirred and thunked, and then it told me this:

• 80% of furries say that trying new things is fun and interesting
• 36% say they’re often the first person in their group of friends to try something new
• 29% say their friends look to them for advice on music, movies, games and so forth

BATMAN pointed out, in its surly fashion, that only 10% of furries say they’re ahead of the curve where pop culture is concerned. But that’s not surprising, actually: 44% describe mass media as being too “lowest common denominator” for them and 41% describe corporations and their products as “rather soulless.” That probably explains why 55% of furries agree or strongly agree that they’d rather patronise a small business.

These figures are all positively correlated with each other: the more likely you are to be asked for advice by your friends, the more likely you are to reject mainstream pop culture and the more likely you are to gravitate to small businesses. They’re also related to the creative spark: 58% of furries say creativity is one of their strongest assets, and 37% say they’d rather make something than buy it.

Beyond the numbers, this shouldn’t really be surprising to anyone who has spent much time around the fandom. We trade heavily in social currency — who you know and how well you know them. Listen in at the discussions at your next convention:

“Oh my god, who did that drawing?”
“Is that conbadge one of…?”
“Have you read…?”
“This is the new work by…”
“I’m getting a commission from…”

It’s all about the names. And since nobody is, let’s be honest here, really going to break out of the furry fandom, celebrity here has to be milked for what it’s worth. So there’s a fair degree of bandwagoning, as well, and you can get props for picking up a ‘famous’ person’s work at the auction just as easily as by discovering an up and coming artist on FA.

I don’t think it’s a particularly mysterious phenomenon. Hipsterism tends to arise in bohemian cultures where monetary capital is undervalued (either because everybody has money or nobody does). We’re certainly bohemian — on the fringes of social acceptability, wildly creative, anti-establishment, consuming mass media and pop culture only as far as it lets us repurpose it…

And, of course, money has no value in the fandom because we’re all digital here. Physical possessions and the means to acquire them are, more or less, completely irrelevant. As long as you have enough money to pay your ISP, you can plug into the fandom. So establishing your credibility has to rely on something else, and social capital steps in to fill that gap.

Some of this we can acquire by dint of our own creativity — those of us who are skilled at drawing, writing, music-making, fursuiting, roleplaying, or any other audience-focused activity can trade our abilities there for recognition and status. And if we can’t make things ourselves, we can know people who make things, and serve as a proxy to their own works: being the first person to share a new picture or story is the next best thing to having written it yourself.

Every meeting of furries I have ever been party to inevitably involves some modicum of gossip and discussion, frequently about those people whose talents we respect (or envy) and whose work we enjoy. And gossip, too, is essentially hipsterish: we prove how “in the know” we are by being the first to a scoop (or, if not the first, by having the most information!). It’s the common ground, for when novelty-seeking iconoclasts band together.

So we have attracted some of the trappings of what, ironically, I would have to call mainstream hipsterdom: the self-referential humor, the love of memes, the unorthodox fashion. To this we have added our own spin: I joke about having a mole for a furry avatar, but I’ve seen species propagate from a single point — somebody cool decided they were going to be something, and a bunch of people jumped right on. And artists acquire the same fetishistic attachment here as they do in any Seattle enclave.

But before you all try and close the circle by Rule 34ing Hipster Kitty, let me suggest that it’s not such a terrible thing. It’s who we are, and in a sense it’s what makes us unique: a shared sense of identity, a shared love of the new, the interesting, the exciting, the different, the crazy, the creative, the passionate. You could do worse than that, and if it helps you find a great new artist or two, your life’s all the richer.

Besides, at least PBR is cheap.

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Christmas is over! We talk about church, Monks, Iron Chef, the History Channel and racism. 002 - Sacralicious - Christmas is over! We talk about church, Monks, Iron Chef, the History Channel and racism.

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It's a packed studio once again with TK and Eeve3 joined by Salamander3, Floating Lime, and Felis. So, of course, things run on a fair bit once again because we all love going off on tangents, right kids? For Done and Dusted Eeve3 has her turn talking about Sonic CD on the PSN. Salamander3 nitpicks Sonic Generations on the PS3. TK reviews The Smurfs in 3D, and Felis reviews Marvel Ultimate Alliance and Metal Slug 4 and 5. Starring TK, Eeve3, Salamander3, Floating Lime, and Felis. TigerTails Radio - Season 6 - Episode 18 - Boxing Day Special

Uhmmm....

The National Geographic Channel will be doing a segment on furries and the furry fandom on an episode of "Taboo," 1/3/12 at 9PM PDT.

http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/national-geographic-channel/shows/taboo-1/ngc-furries.html

Sometimes, stuff like this makes me want to step OUT of the famdom....
Maybe I am getting too old for this?
-J

What is in a name, anyway? For us here in the fandom, a name can be several things: a pseudonym, a description, even a whole other being, however fictional.  It’s safe to say, then, that names are pretty important to furries, and so maybe that’s worth taking a look at.  You have to start somewhere, so lets begin with how to construct a name.  There are, of course, many other ways to construct a name, but we’ve listed just a few of the best here.

• [adjective][species] – This, of course, goes without saying. It’s the only method of choosing a furname that’s endorsed by an entire website. On the Internet! The pros? Well, obviously, the first impression will go much smoother, now that everyone knows your a SlutFox or an AngstWolf*.  There is simply no mistaking what you are, is there? It’s also food for subversion! Who knew, SlutFox is a virgin, and AngstWolf is really doing pretty alright in life!  As for the cons, well, if you can’t change the name, but you wind up changing your species, you could be SOL.
• The suedonym – Sometimes, you just can’t think of a name.  Or…well, you can, but they’re all taken.  Well, that’s no reason to stop you!  Why, I was once !Xabbu (from a book by Tad Williams), then Ranna (from a book by Garth Nix), who then became Astarael (same book).  The pros – don’t really need to think too hard; it might already be memorable! The cons – it might already be memorable as something else; it might already be memorable by many others (I wasn’t the only Ranna…). Subcategory: The they-can’t-suedonym - You know, if works even better if you don’t have to worry about the problems associated with a stolen name.  Like if the author or origin is long dead.  I knew a cat named Merlin, for instance.
• The appropriation - Why not just appropriate another word for yourself?  I very rarely go by Happenstance, which is also the name of a French film (pure happenstance, of course).  I have a good friend named Whiskey, too.  That’s good, I like whiskey and Whiskey!  Pros: pretty memorable. Cons: this one’s pretty safe, actually. Subcategory: l’appropriation - Bonus points if you appropriate from another language.  Just.. be careful of Japanese, okay?  There are a few Ookamis out there.
• The punny animal - Of course, these are totally memorable for reasons that make people want to hit you in the mouth.  My otter-sona is named Macchi.  As in Macchi-otter.  In fact, the back story is that he’s got light fur and his parents weren’t very inventive, so they named him Caramel.  Caramel “Macchi” Otter.  Sigh.  Pros: totally memorable.  Cons: people want to hit you in the mouth.  Subcategory: The recondite lingual obfuscation of humorous intent - If the pun of your name takes more than a few words to explain it…may actually be a pretty good name, because then people won’t hit you in the mouth so much.
• The real name - I…er…hmm.  I guess I may have met someone who used their real name once.  Maybe?  I mean…hmm.  Hey, was that guy Ty really named Ty?  Does Karlhockey count? This could be big, guys, I don’t know…maybe the new, unique trend in furry pseudonyms would be to just use your real name.  I mean, that’s pretty inventive, and it’s already © you… Pros: inventive.  Cons: now they know your name.

* See: http://rikoshi.gd-kun.net/furry.html

Guess How Much I Love You is an popular and award-winning children’s book written by Sam McBratney and illustrated by Anita Jeram. Now SLR Productions has created Guess How Much I Love You: The Adventures of Little Nutbrown Hare, a 2D animated TV series with young children in mind. Like the book, the series takes place in an idyllic woodland where Little Nutbrown Hare lives and learns with his father, Big Nutbrown Hare, and all their friends. The series has been running on Disney Junior Australia, and is set to premier soon on Disney Junior USA. If you check out the SLR Productions web site for the show, you’ll find a link to another interesting TV series they’re working on called Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs. Yes.

image c. 2011 by Anita Jeram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, that’s all for now. Except, of course, to say MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY HOLIDAYS to you all.  We’ll see you in 2012!

I just recently (19 hours ago) got involved in Steam because of Skyrim, and fell in love with all the $5 holiday game sales. Long story short, $100 and 20 or so games later, I realize I have no friends that use PC games. I figured I'd add some fellow furs to chat/play with, but I couldn't find a Steam thread, which seems strange considering that I see them all the time around Reddit. If there already is a thread, could someone please point me to it?

If there isn't, who wants to have a new friend? :3

edit: Doh! My Steam username is 'TehSofaWolf'

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This episode Roo and Elias are left to fend for themselves (due to Thay visiting family).  They take this time to talk about the special season and sing carols, read Christmas stories, and sing carol parodies written by themselves and other listeners.  If you want to sing along to this episode's funny carols, please visit our website (www.furwhatitsworth.com) and click on the 'sing-a-long' tab.  Have a merry Christmas! Also, here's the funny 12 days of Christmas video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=AwfSQgVtP5s Now Listen: Christmas Special - This episode Roo and Elias are left to fend for themselves (due to Thay visiting family).  They take this time to talk about the special season and sing carols, read Christmas stories, and sing carol parodies written by themselves and other listeners.

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In this episode, the hosts of Fur What It's Worth talk about making the best of a convention including suiting tips, the 6-2-1 rule, going to panels and more! Join them for a fun discussion about the best weekends you will have! This episodes picture, drawn by Thay, is of a cute green husky and a magenta deer. Elias still thinks the husky would have looked awesome in beige. The music breaks for this episodes are Burn On by The Queenstons and Low Noon, by NDever. Links http://colorschemedesigner.com/# http://www.furaffinity.net/user/yuuryuu/ http://cov1ous.deviantart.com/ Our next episode will be a Holiday Episode. Send your emails with furry versions of classic Christmas songs or poems to cast@furwhatitsworth.com. You can email Elias at elias@furwhatitsworth.com, Thay at thay@furwhatitsworth.com, and Roo at roo@furwhatitsworth.com Now Listen Episode 6 – Furry Conventions - In this episode, the hosts of Fur What It's Worth talk about making the best of a convention including suiting tips, the 6-2-1 rule, going to panels and more! Join them for a fun discussion about the best weekends you will have! - This episodes picture,

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