Disney Infinity 3.0, the figure-based game featuring characters from most Disney properties, released August 30. The big news for most followers of video games and other such hobbyist pursuits is the addition of multiple characters from the Star Wars franchise, which follows version 2.0's inclusion of Marvel comics characters. For normal nerd and geek types, the thought of Luke Skywalker joining the Avengers is the kind of crossover normally reserved for fan-fiction, so the fact that this is really happening would be exciting, but we're furries. Our biggest hope for Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens is that an Amaran appears long enough onscreen to gain an action figure.

More exciting for fans of anthropomorphic animals is the pair of, well, anthropomorphic animals Nick and Judy from the upcoming movie Zootopia (you might have heard something about it) as playable characters/collectible figurines. As the movie doesn't come out until March next year, the figures were not available at launch; there isn't actually a release date for them yet. YouTube footage of Judy and Nick has surfaced; note that the channel these videos appear on do not seem to be official Disney channels, so they may not be available for long.

Furry social network Furry 4 Life is raising funds to leave the Ning social platform. Over $800 has been donated towards a $3000 goal of two years of hosting.

Established in 2008, Furry 4 Life boasts over 24,500 members, but has become hamstrung by an abandoned platform. Staff hope to complete the move by the end of the month, although they warn migration may last until January 2016.

Network creator Shy Matsi, who also founded adult-only furry social network FurriesXtreme, explained why the community was moving, while cautioning that some data would be lost:

Ning, back in 2008, was the best answer to the question "How can I build a social network for my niche community?". They really were the best option and still remain a powerhouse in hosted social software platforms. We really do owe a lot to them, but we are moving in different directions, and the Ning Platform is no longer a solid solution to our growing community.

One of the drawbacks of living in South Africa is that the furry scene is currently rather small. Despite attempts to bring furs from all over the country together for a national meet, we had limited successes and, even when we managed a national furmeet, only assembled between 14 and 16 attendees. Things have improved during the last few years, and meet sizes have increased quite dramatically, even to the point that plans are underway to reboot the South Afrifur convention in 2016.

So, when I moved to Europe, I was glad to finally have the opportunity to attend proper, large-scale furry conventions. I chose two different cons to attend. One was Lakeside Furs, which is a relatively small (approximately 50 attendees) Austrian convention. It made sense as I was now living in Austria and it offered a way to meet the Austrian furry community. I also chose Eurofurence which, as the largest furry convention in Europe, is an almost obligatory furry visit. Although I didn't realize it at the time, both Eurofurence and Lakeside Furs were started by Unci, although he is no longer involved with Eurofurence.

In Norse mythology, the squirrel Ratatoskr (whose name is usually translated as "bore-tooth", and who is sometimes depicted with a unicorn like horn) is the messenger between the serpent at the base of the world tree Yggdrasil, and the eagle living at the top. Neither eagle nor serpent much like each other; Ratatoskr does not help matters, as it is known as a gossip who keeps the two rivals angry with each other. That's pretty much Ratatoskr's role in Norse mythology. The squirrel is a very, very minor character.

Despite its small stature (both literally and figuratively), Ratatoskr has managed to gain an important role in a Marvel comic and become a playable character in a popular video game. And the squirrel's two entrances happened one day apart.