Considering the general off-center-ness of San Luis Obispo (and especially last year's embarrassing Sheriff's Alert about Pedobear) this would be a good place for Anthrocon West (gotta use the Madonna Inn Expo Center for something). And for anybody who gets too concerned, tell them it's all about unaffiliated Sports Team Mascots.

Meanwhile the Dork Tower webcomic is rerunning its classic Furry Story Arc.

It's actually one of the biggest conventions here every year and the convention authority lobbied hard to get them.

Official Flickr pool

I was visiting my parents once during Anthrocon (but had no idea such a thing existed) and took a shuttle from the airport through downtown . . . let me tell you, there are few things weirder than seeing a bunch of furries wandering around like eating lunch and stuff.

Cases of Mountain Dew. Hee.

I'm a little surprised they don't overflow into the hotel-rich Oakland area, but I guess it's too close to the hunting grounds of the furries' most dangerous natural enemy, the Drunken Fratboy.

I kinda love the idea of "the furries" as an example of how the internet changed the world for so many of us. Years ago, surely people did harbor the desires that surface at furries' gatherings, but it wasn't really A Thing, at least not A Thing that intruded into the mainstream consciousness.

But then the internet appeared, like a fairy godmother in a bedtime story, and TA DA they found each other. It's really magical when you think about it.

There are several furries where I work, though not as many as in the early days. I don't suppose they're altogether closeted, but (not surprisingly) it doesn't come up much in general workplace conversation.

Once a new guy started nattering on the chat system about how weird his vacation experience was, inadvertently sharing a hotel with a furry con. Dead silence ensued. Awk-ward.

I say, you go furs! ::circle snap::

You know, I have read the term "furries" before on MetaFilter and elsewhere, and always assumed it was a fetish thing. But these articles read like it is just an enthusiast thing.

So I guess I just have a dirty mind.