Thursday, April 19, 2012

Steamfurries! Salon (Edited Transcript)

Baron Klaus Wulfenbach: All right - guten Abend, everyone, to our April Salon. By happy coincidence with Easter and other spring celebrations, we have Herr Blackberry Harvey here to speak to us. He has been a member of the Babbage community, contributing in several ways, for about three years, and we are fortunate to have had him build this building as well.

Bitte, remove any unnecessary scripted items, including weaponry except for carrot guns.

Herr Harvey, if you would.

Blackberry Harvey: Thank you, Herr Baron, Salonistas everywhere, people of New Babbage and all the Steamlands!



My name is Blackberry, and I am a SteamFur. Of course, that's not *my* name, it's the name of a representation of me, a SecondLife persona I adopt.

Blackberry is a furry. More specifically, he is a furry character or furry persona. I, the typist, am a furry. More specifically, I am a furry fan, a fan of anthropomorphics in art and literature. Okay, so what does *that* mean?

"Anthropomorphic" just means "human-shape". Furries are anthropomorphic creatures -- animals with human form or humans with animal characteristics. They're very common in storytelling and even in advertising -- Bugs Bunny, Mickey Mouse, Aesop's fables, Br'er Rabbit, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Tony the Tiger, the Geico gecko are all examples.

Steampunk is all about storytelling too, so it seems like a natural fit! But let me explore a bit more where this all comes from. It's not limited to only things with fur -- birds, reptiles, cetaceans, even fantastic creatures like dragons and minotaurs and satyrs have human and animal qualities to them.



I mentioned Aesop's fables... But the entire concept started even earlier than Aesop and Greek literature. The caves of Lascaux are full of depictions of humans with antlers and tails, or animals standing on their hind legs and dancing with the shaman. The earliest known "furry" art is this statue on the left, from a cave in Germany, dated at around 30,000 B.C. Together with depictions of humans, and depictions of animals, these depictions of human-animal hybrids are some of the oldest artwork our species has ever made.

And it's not just in French and German caves; it's universal. Native Australians made the same kind of paintings and petroglyphs, and Egypt... and Babylon... and Mexico... and the Pacific Northwest... and Japan...



Almost everywhere societies of all kinds sprang up, they told stories about their gods and demons and heroes using creatures with some combination of human and animal features and characteristics.

So what's going on here? Why are anthropomorphic creatures so popular in storytelling? One reason is that we, as humans, anthropomorphicize the animals first. We talk about a lion being proud, a stallion being noble, a cat being devious, a raven being tricky, a goat being stubborn, an owl being wise, a bear being a big brute, a bull being clumsy, a rabbit being timid, and so on -- we assign our own behaviors to them. Except, of course, cats really are that devious.

We make them exemplars of their characteristics because we see ourselves in them. They are us and we are they. We can then take those exemplified features and attach them to what we know best -- ourselves -- and now we have a character with both the blessings and curses of both worlds. Heightened senses but also doubt. Lightning reflexes but also guilt. Intelligence but also primal fear or rage. This isn't new. Societies which use the language of totems figured this out a long time ago. If you're strong and loyal to your family, you have the bear totem. If you're a bit of a jokester, you might have the coyote totem. We've got an instantaneous, universal language about who or what a character might be like. And these characters can interact in a story or shared fiction with human characters one on one and fit right in.

Take Bugs Bunny. Bugs exemplifies qualities we've assigned to the rabbit -- quick, clever, hippity-hoppity, curious, playful. You can know these things about him just by looking at him. All you need is a picture or a quick description and you know that without having been told and without asking.

Aesop's fables are fabulous examples of using this universal language. Reynard the Fox, whose adventures first appeared in an epic poem written around 1150 and popularized throughout many Medieval stories. Blackberry Harvey: Puss In Boots, from 1697. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, 1865. The Br'er Rabbit stories, adapted from African and Native American trickster tales and first published in 1879. I'm not just picking out rabbits here, we're just that popular! And more... The Island of Dr. Moreau, 1896. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, 1900. Peter Rabbit, 1902.

Then we get into the world of moving pictures and a new renaissance of furries as storytellers. Felix the Cat, 1919. Mickey Mouse, 1928. Porky Pig (the first of many Looney Tunes stars), 1935. Furry literature except for comic strips dies out a bit, with a resurgence at the publication of Animal Farm, 1945. Fritz the Cat, one of the bellwethers of counterculture, 1968, which began a massive explosion of furry art and literature that of course continues on today.

How many other examples of pre-modern anthropomorphics can you think of?

Ceejay Writer: Krazy Kat?
violet the all purpose animal (violet.solano): the mossflower books
Tali Rosca: The Japanese myhology and folk stories brim with them.
Arnold (gager): When is pre-modern cut off?
Blackberry Harvey: I'd say before the cinema... ?
Zanya: The Bible.
Blackberry Harvey: Oh, good one!
Zanya: Poor Snake, he's the bad guy in a lot of myth and stories.

Blackberry Harvey: You can all see what a great storytelling tool anthropomorphic characters are. So what does this all mean for steampunk?

Steampunk is a genre which I think actually lends itself better to furries than almost any other. For one thing, steampunks are very aware of the literary aspect, even the influences brought to a virtual, visual world like New Babbage. And since there's currently no way to have furries in real life, their home *is* art and literature. Look back at the list I just gave you. Many of the founding works of modern literature *period* are in that list. Books that inspired people to want to tell their own stories, with or without furries. Not to mention all the ones in our own pretend time period.

Tali Rosca: Steampunk is already "our-world-but-not-quite", so very human anthropomorphs seem to fit nicely.

Blackberry Harvey: Very true. While it hasn't been a huge part of what we would call steampunk literature since H.G. Wells, the adventurer spirit of Reynard and Puss In Boots coupled with the scientific experiments gone wrong of The Island of Dr. Moreau I think makes we furries natural denizens of steampunk stories in general and the steamlands specifically. There wouldn't be furries without literature. One could argue that there wouldn't be a good deal of literature without furries either!

Taris Quickpaw (darian.llewellyn): couldnt you say many Sci-Fi genera lend themselves well to furries?

Blackberry Harvey: Definitely. Science fiction tends to discuss encounters with the "other", whatever that is. And furries are one way to be "other" while still being familiar.

So that covers literature; what about what we do here on SecondLife, in Babbage and in all the other steamlands? Again, I think steampunks have a leg-up here, if you will, though not to pee on it.

Ceejay Writer: you mean drink coffee and dance?

Blackberry Harvey: Leg up to pee after the coffee.

Even if you don't actively roleplay when you come here, steampunks are keenly aware, moreso than most other denizens of SecondLife, of the concept of a persona. Pretending to be someone else just meshes in well with pretending to be somewhere and somewhen else. Putting on an evening gown and dinner gloves with welding goggles and a satchel of tools, talking like a Victorian and building an airship, you've got to hold the fantastic and the realistic in your head at the same time.

Ceejay Writer: I've mostly considered furries in Steampunk to be the products of scientific experimentation, myself. My steampunk persona thinks that, to clarify.

Blackberry Harvey: The abundance of scientific experimentation certainly makes it very easy to explain our existence!

Anyway, you all already know how to use a characterization to exemplify traits. Mr. Tenk. Mr. Underby. Dr. O. Kaylee. Bookworm. Tepic. I can go on and on. Through my three years in the steamlands, I've met many people of all sorts from all backgrounds. Some furry, many not.

When I first came to New Babbage, the start was a bit rocky. Not everyone trusted furries. Some weren't sure of my motives. It didn't help that Mr. Ashiko Kuroe, the Bunny Bomber, had just been terrorizing the town along with Doc O's army. The real life media was having a field day reporting wild rumors and out of context third party opinions about furries. That's died down a bit recently, thankfully. It took some convincing of some people, and I'm happy to say, those same people are now some of my closest friends in Babbage.

Now, not everyone who wears a furry avatar is a furry. Some just like to put on a costume and look like and even act like someone or something else, without it being a totemic representation of some innate characterization. Some take it quite seriously -- this is who they are. Some just want to dress up, and that's okay too! But ultimately, we are all reflections of ourselves, and we put on a face we choose to put on. Mine just happens to have purple fur, long ears, big feet, and a cottontail.

Thank you. I'm sure there are lots of questions!



Tali Rosca: I see it as little different from wanting to be Barbie or Machoman. It's just other attributes you want to highlight.
Blackberry Harvey: Yes, Tali, exactly.
Please raise your hand if you have a question.
Erica Fairywren raises a hand
Blackberry Harvey: Erica?
Erica Fairywren: thank you. how do you see the current acceptance of furries in New babbage and the steamlands in general?
Blackberry Harvey: To be honest, Babbage is more than enough for me to deal with! I'm not as up on society in the other steamlands as I could be... But here, I can say that it's been up and down as ever.
Erica Fairywren looks a bit sad at that. "Thank you."
Blackberry Harvey: A few months ago, there were some disruptive people in furry avatars in town, and opinions did retreat a little based on a few individuals. But that happens pretty much everywhere, to every group and classification of people that you can name.
Erica Fairywren: unfortunate that, a few bad eggs then?
Ceejay Writer: But you could say that about various facets - not just furries, correct?
Blackberry Harvey: Very much so, Erica, and Ceejay.
Ceejay Writer: though I think it's perhaps a bigger challenge for furries to stand up to.
Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): most the other steamlands from what I seen seem to have about as many furries as babbage, barring some of the stricter rp sims that don't even like scarred reanimated corpses, no idea about acceptance though
Jimmy Branagh: Not a question, but it seems that people who are into fantastical scenarios, literature, science/speculative fiction, SL RP sims etc are certainly a bit more tolerant about new things. It's obvious the safest place for an RL ET to locate a first contact would be a Star Trek convention.
Blackberry Harvey: All those articles and bad publicity and CSI episodes just focus on a few examples, not the larger picture.
Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): well, CSI made SL in general look pretty bad, or at least confusing, as well
Zanya: I think it's safe to say that anything goes in Steelhead. ^^
Tali Rosca: My experience is that the whole "fursecution", to use a somewhat sarcastic term, is really almost two years in the past.
Zanya: Ugh, Law & Order SVU wasn't much better.
Blackberry Harvey: Well, that all started with a furry convention, ConFurence 8, which was a shambles and dragged the public opinion of furry fandom into the gutter. We're just now really recovering...
Jimmy Branagh: Oy vaguely remember those but had nothing to do with tham
Blackberry Harvey: Did I get around to an answer for you, Erica?
Ceejay Writer: (Perhaps someday Vampires will overcome the Bloodlines stigma, too.)
Erica Fairywren: yes indeed :-) i guess i will have to see firsthand. thank you
Blackberry Harvey: In short, I think we're quite well accepted in the steamlands.
Blackberry Harvey: Maybe someone will do a talk on steamvamps next!
Tepic Harlequin: never found no problem in New Babbage, MisFairywren :-)
Erica Fairywren: i'm glad to hear that
Blackberry Harvey: Questions?
Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly): Nor i, in Caledon. :)
Jimmy Branagh: DO we still have any vampires in the steamlands?
Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Some in Winterfell.
Ceejay Writer: Quite a few, Jimmy.
Solace Fairlady: Mostly in New Toulouse, Jimmy
Tepic Harlequin: course, lots of new visitors look at me an say "you got a tail!", but that's just natural admiration....
Sidonie Ancelin (ancelin): I know one in Winterfell. A very nice young man.
Blackberry Harvey: They're jealous of your tail, Tepic
Wildstar: there are vampires in WInterfell
Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): I will take that topic under advisement, danke. Especially if I can schedule it for an appropriate month.
Ceejay Writer: Blackberry - I have to personally thank you, as my concept of furs was apparently very shallow. Until today.
Blackberry Harvey: Oh? What did you learn? That we're really cute?
Tepic Harlequin: we got a long history!
Ceejay Writer: Historical backgrounds. Looking into ones self and reflecting ones nature in animal form.
Blackberry Harvey: I think if you take a look at your own bookshelves, you might be surprised!
Ceejay Writer: A creative way of expression.
Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): i just buy some furry avatars cause they look good...
Tali Rosca: Furries also tie in well with the concept of "anomalous characters"; characters straddling borderlines, which are classic archetypes.
Blackberry Harvey: Exactly, Vic puts them on because he likes the look! I put mine on because it expresses things about me.
Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Caledon has a Lioness as its Vicereine. They had better not.
Solace Fairlady: Caledon has a longer history of fFurs than any other Steamland
Wildstar: most of the Caledon naval and air forces are furry these days
Blackberry Harvey: Good point, Tali, and yes, from what I've seen in Caledon, furries are very well integrated. Babbage has tended to be... not isolationist, but more conservative in acceptance of any newcomers. There's a shakedown first!
Erica Fairywren: ah that further answers what i was driving at
Ceejay Writer: nicely put Blackberry. Shakedown. *shakes head, laughing*
Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Heh, that is a good word.
Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): usually when it comes to putting buildings on the ground....but general visitors, theres quite a few regular furries....at one point half of the residents at brunel was furries, two of them went on to buy land in the city
Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): we rifle pockets for all your stuff , worse than Bump!
Blackberry Harvey: More questions or comments? Also, if you'd like to talk at length any time, just drop me an IM or come by the CocoaJava or Huxley Hall and chat. I have many opinions on the subject!
Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Any more questions? Fur styling queries? Attachment point debate?
Blackberry Harvey: Oh, attachment points... For those of us whose body parts are all prims, we are very thankful for multiple attachment slots!
Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): my disintegrator always knocks off my claws
Ceejay Writer: I can't even cope with trying to figure how you attach everything AND your clothes. *mind reels*
Blackberry Harvey: It's a struggle... I have a new admiration for women! Furry avatars also use quite a few scripts, so we do bump up the lag, quite noticeably if a lot of us are around. But I've seen some ball gowns that were even worse...
Blackberry Harvey: Final questions?
Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya) raises hand
Blackberry Harvey: Oaho?
Blackberry Harvey: u?
Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya): Hehe, u. Why purple, mista?
Blackberry Harvey: Blackberries!
Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya): Ahhhhh, okie.
Blackberry Harvey: Actually, I can tell you my Babbage origin story sometime if you like...or you can read it in Tales of New Babbage! Available now where fine books about Babbage are sold
Ceejay Writer: Its a very good story and WELL worth buying the book!
Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Danke, Herr Harvey. You have been as excellent a guest as you have been an architect.

Steamfurries! Salon (Unedited Transcript)

[13:58:59] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): We will start in just a few minutes.
[13:59:11] Blackberry Harvey wiggles his nose nervously
[13:59:30] Jimmy Branagh: Hoy Miss Ceejay!
[13:59:39] Solace Fairlady: Hello Mr Victor!
[13:59:50] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): ellooo
[13:59:54] Jimmy Branagh: 'ello Mr. Vic
[14:00:17] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): ello Jimmy!
[14:01:47] Solace Fairlady: Hello Lady Tali!
[14:01:49] Ceejay Writer: the sim is split down the middle of the maze-floor, if anyone cares to balance the load. Or in the immortal words of the Three Stooges.... Spread out, you knuckleheads.
[14:01:59] Tali Rosca: Greetings.
[14:02:03] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Danke, Fraulein Ceejay.
[14:02:03] Blackberry Harvey: Why I oughta...
[14:02:12] Erica Fairywren: whoops! Mr. Mornington, could you send again?
[14:02:14] Ceejay Writer: Wob wob wob wob wob!
[14:02:24] Blackberry Harvey: Oh, a wise guy!
[14:02:24] Jimmy Branagh: Oy'm roight on the seam
[14:02:50] Ceejay Writer: Jimmy, you might split your pants should a sim vanish.
[14:03:00] Jimmy Branagh chuckles
[14:03:10] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Heh.
[14:03:22] Ceejay Writer waves at Wildstar.
[14:03:33] Wildstar waves back :)
[14:03:44] Solace Fairlady: Hello Not-Admiral!
[14:03:45] Tali Rosca: Huh. I know those tea pipes!
[14:03:53] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): All right - guten Abend, everyone, to our April Salon. By happy coincidence with Easter and other spring celebrations, we have Herr Blackberry Harvey here to speak to us.
[14:04:12] Red Quixote: hello everyone
[14:04:21] Wildstar loves coincidences
[14:04:23] Wildstar: :)
[14:04:24] Solace Fairlady: hello professor!
[14:04:27] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): He has been a member of the Babbage community, contributing in several ways, for about three years, and we are fortunate to have had him build this building as well.
[14:04:38] Red Quixote: hello Miss Solace
[14:04:40] Jimmy Branagh waves to the necomers
[14:04:41] Darlingmonster Ember applauds
[14:04:45] Jimmy Branagh: newcomers
[14:04:50] Blackberry Harvey blushes
[14:04:51] Erica Fairywren claps
[14:04:51] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Bitte, remove any unnecessary scripted items, including weaponry except for carrot guns.
[14:05:02] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Herr Harvey, if you would.
[14:05:07] Darlingmonster Ember frowns
[14:05:16] Darlingmonster Ember: wait, I have to pull my fingernails out?
[14:05:18] Jimmy Branagh: ((Gestures not working. I clapped))
[14:05:30] Darlingmonster Ember: oh dear
[14:05:32] Solace Fairlady applauds
[14:05:58] Jimmy Branagh applauds manually
[14:06:17] Ceejay Writer removes her sardonic wit and wordsmithery lest the lag be too much.
[14:07:10] Zanya: Hey Sid. ^^
[14:07:29] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) points out the tipjar for our speaker
[14:07:46] Sidonie Ancelin (ancelin): Hullo there, Zanya, Way is coming too.
[14:08:03] Zanya: O.o
[14:08:07] June Forsythe: Hello all!
[14:08:14] Blackberry Harvey: Thank you, Herr Baron, Salonistas everywhere, people of New Babbage and all the Steamlands!
[14:08:15] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): ellooooo june :)
[14:08:16] Red Quixote: hello Miss Forsythe
[14:08:16] Jimmy Branagh: Hoy Miss June:)
[14:08:17] violet the all purpose animal (violet.solano): hello
[14:08:25] June Forsythe smiles and waves
[14:08:27] Ceejay Writer smiles and waves at June
[14:08:28] Zanya: Anybody eklse see half the room dissapear?
[14:08:41] Ceejay Writer: Nope - trick of the light.
[14:08:45] Blackberry Harvey: My name is Blackberry, and I am a SteamFur.
[14:08:52] Ceejay Writer: hi Blackberry!
[14:09:11] Blackberry Harvey: Of course, that's not *my* name, it's the name of a representation of me, a SecondLife persona I adopt.
[14:09:12] Darlingmonster Ember: hullo M Blackberry
[14:09:12] Jimmy Branagh waves to Mr. Blackberry
[14:09:27] Arnold (gager): Hi Blackberry *in a self help group greeting way*
[14:09:33] Blackberry Harvey: Blackberry is a furry. More specifically, he is a furry character or furry persona. I, the typist, am a furry. More specifically, I am a furry fan, a fan of anthropomorphics in art and literature. Okay, so what does *that* mean?
[14:10:03] Blackberry Harvey: "Anthropomorphic" just means "human-shape". Furries are anthropomorphic creatures -- animals with human form or humans with animal characteristics.
[14:10:23] Ceejay Writer tries unsuccessfully to pronounce the word.
[14:10:33] Blackberry Harvey: They're very common in storytelling and even in advertising -- Bugs Bunny, Mickey Mouse, Aesop's fables, Br'er Rabbit, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Tony the Tiger, the Geico gecko are all examples.
[14:11:01] Blackberry Harvey: Steampunk is all about storytelling too, so it seems like a natural fit! But let me explore a bit more where this all comes from.
[14:11:01] Darlingmonster Ember: mmmm oh that Tiger
[14:11:05] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya): 'iyas.
[14:11:25] Blackberry Harvey: It's not limited to only things with fur -- birds, reptiles, cetaceans, even fantastic creatures like dragons and minotaurs and satyrs have human and animal qualities to them.
[14:12:01] Blackberry Harvey: I mentioned Aesop's fables... But the entire concept started even earlier than Aesop and Greek literature. The caves of Lascaux are full of depictions of humans with antlers and tails, or animals standing on their hind legs and dancing with the shaman.
[14:12:20] Blackberry Harvey: The earliest known "furry" art is this statue on the left, from a cave in Germany, dated at around 30,000 B.C. Together with depictions of humans, and depictions of animals, these depictions of human-animal hybrids are some of the oldest artwork our species has ever made.
[14:13:26] Blackberry Harvey: And it's not just in French and German caves; it's universal. Native Australians made the same kind of paintings and petroglyphs.
[14:13:45] Blackberry Harvey: and Egypt...
[14:13:56] Blackberry Harvey: and Babylon...
[14:14:29] Ceejay Writer is fascinated.
[14:14:36] Blackberry Harvey: and Mexico...
[14:15:01] Blackberry Harvey: and the Pacific Northwest...
[14:15:12] Blackberry Harvey: and Japan...
[14:15:28] Blackberry Harvey: Almost everywhere societies of all kinds sprang up, they told stories about their gods and demons and heroes using creatures with some combination of human and animal features and characteristics.
[14:15:58] Blackberry Harvey: So what's going on here? Why are anthropomorphic creatures so popular in storytelling?
[14:16:01] Zanya: Kitty! *.*
[14:16:29] Blackberry Harvey: One reason is that we, as humans, anthropomorphicize the animals first.
[14:16:38] Blackberry Harvey: We talk about a lion being proud, a stallion being noble, a cat being devious, a raven being tricky, a goat being stubborn, an owl being wise, a bear being a big brute, a bull being clumsy, a rabbit being timid, and so on -- we assign our own behaviors to them.
[14:17:16] Blackberry Harvey: Except, of course, cats really are that devious.
[14:17:23] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly) grins.
[14:17:24] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya) snickers
[14:17:26] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): :D
[14:17:28] Darlingmonster Ember: :D
[14:17:30] Ceejay Writer grins
[14:17:32] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) chuckles
[14:17:32] Jimmy Branagh: hehe
[14:17:39] Blackberry Harvey: We make them exemplars of their characteristics because we see ourselves in them. They are us and we are they.
[14:17:44] Arnold (gager) raises an eyebrow.
[14:18:03] Blackberry Harvey: We can then take those exemplified features and attach them to what we know best -- ourselves -- and now we have a character with both the blessings and curses of both worlds. Heightened senses but also doubt. Lightning reflexes but also guilt. Intelligence but also primal fear or rage.
[14:18:21] Erica Fairywren giggles! ツ
[14:18:23] Tepic Harlequin: errrrr..... guilt?
[14:18:26] Blackberry Harvey: This isn't new. Societies which use the language of totems figured this out a long time ago. If you're strong and loyal to your family, you have the bear totem. If you're a bit of a jokester, you might have the coyote totem.
[14:18:32] Ceejay Writer thinks that's nicely explained.
[14:18:34] Blackberry Harvey: Oh, maybe it's just me who gets the guilt then.
[14:19:27] Blackberry Harvey: We've got an instantaneous, universal language about who or what a character might be like. And these characters can interact in a story or shared fiction with human characters one on one and fit right in.
[14:19:43] Blackberry Harvey: Take Bugs Bunny.
[14:19:58] Darlingmonster Ember: boy.... would I
[14:19:58] Blackberry Harvey: My hero!
[14:20:06] Jimmy Branagh: Yay!
[14:20:07] Darlingmonster Ember fans herself
[14:20:15] Ceejay Writer: My goodness.
[14:20:39] Blackberry Harvey: Bugs exemplifies qualities we've assigned to the rabbit -- quick, clever, hippity-hoppity, curious, playful. You can know these things about him just by looking at him.
[14:20:53] Blackberry Harvey: All you need is a picture or a quick description and you know that without having been told and without asking.
[14:21:12] Blackberry Harvey: Aesop's fables are fabulous examples of using this universal language. Reynard the Fox, whose adventures first appeared in an epic poem written around 1150 and popularized throughout many Medieval stories.
[14:21:47] Tepic Harlequin: now there's a noble fox!
[14:22:13] Blackberry Harvey: Puss In Boots, from 1697. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, 1865. The Br'er Rabbit stories, adapted from African and Native American trickster tales and first published in 1879.
[14:22:40] Tepic Harlequin: there yer go, where a fox leads, others follow! heheh
[14:22:52] Blackberry Harvey: I'm not just picking out rabbits here, we're just that popular!
[14:23:09] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya): AN yummy.
[14:23:20] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya) giggles
[14:23:24] Blackberry Harvey: And more... The Island of Dr. Moreau, 1896. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, 1900. Peter Rabbit, 1902.
[14:23:28] Tepic Harlequin: rabbits have always been popular with my family....
[14:23:35] Blackberry Harvey hides
[14:24:11] Blackberry Harvey: Then we get into the world of moving pictures and a new renaissance of furries as storytellers. Felix the Cat, 1919. Mickey Mouse, 1928. Porky Pig (the first of many Looney Tunes stars), 1935.
[14:24:19] violet the all purpose animal (violet.solano): some rabbits are armed
[14:24:25] Blackberry Harvey: Furry literature except for comic strips dies out a bit, with a resurgence at the publication of Animal Farm, 1945. Fritz the Cat, one of the bellwethers of counterculture, 1968, which began a massive explosion of furry art and literature that of course continues on today.
[14:24:41] Darlingmonster Ember: nods
[14:24:42] Blackberry Harvey: How many other examples of pre-modern anthropomorphics can you think of?
[14:24:46] Ceejay Writer remembers Fritz the Cat and blushes.
[14:25:02] Ceejay Writer: Krazy Kat?
[14:25:02] violet the all purpose animal (violet.solano): the mossflower books
[14:25:10] Tali Rosca: The Japanese myhology and folk stories brim with them.
[14:25:10] Arnold (gager): When is pre-modern cut off?
[14:25:25] Blackberry Harvey: I'd say before the cinema... ?
[14:25:26] Zanya: The Bible.
[14:25:33] Blackberry Harvey: Oh, good one!
[14:25:56] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): redguard
[14:26:08] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): woops, wrong window
[14:26:10] Zanya: Poor Snake, he's the bad guy in a lot of myth and stories.
[14:26:32] Blackberry Harvey: You can all see what a great storytelling tool anthropomorphic characters are. So what does this all mean for steampunk?
[14:26:58] Waylett Brear (tanithal.lastchance) wonders if Dreamtime stories were mentioned
[14:27:06] Zanya: A pressing need for more dandruf shampoo!
[14:27:14] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly) giggles.
[14:27:19] Blackberry Harvey: Steampunk is a genre which I think actually lends itself better to furries than almost any other.
[14:27:30] Blackberry Harvey: For one thing, steampunks are very aware of the literary aspect, even the influences brought to a virtual, visual world like New Babbage. And since there's currently no way to have furries in real life, their home *is* art and literature.
[14:27:53] Jimmy Branagh: ((They're working on it))
[14:28:08] Blackberry Harvey: Look back at the list I just gave you. Many of the founding works of modern literature *period* are in that list. Books that inspired people to want to tell their own stories, with or without furries. Not to mention all the ones in our own pretend time period.
[14:28:25] Ceejay Writer nods thoughtfully
[14:28:51] Tali Rosca: Steampunk is already "our-world-but-not-quite", so very human anthropomorphs seem to fit nicely.
[14:29:05] Blackberry Harvey: Very true. While it hasn't been a huge part of what we would call steampunk literature since H.G. Wells, the adventurer spirit of Reynard and Puss In Boots coupled with the scientific experiments gone wrong of The Island of Dr. Moreau I think makes we furries natural denizens of steampunk stories in general and the steamlands specifically.
Blackberry Harvey: There wouldn't be furries without literature. One could argue that there wouldn't be a good deal of literature without furries either!
[14:29:29] Taris Quickpaw (darian.llewellyn): couldnt you say many Sci-Fi genera lend themselves well to furries?
[14:29:35] Jimmy Branagh chuckles
[14:30:03] Blackberry Harvey: Definitely. Science fiction tends to discuss encounters with the "other", whatever that is. And furries are one way to be "other" while still being familiar.
[14:30:03] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): even star trek has catgirls
[14:30:06] Tali Rosca: Science-fantasy, at least. Science is often used as a good excuse for hybrids.
[14:30:24] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly) thinks of her wife and grins.
[14:30:26] Zanya wonders if they'll ever make a version of Ironclaw set in the 1800s.
[14:30:47] Blackberry Harvey: So that covers literature; what about what we do here on SecondLife, in Babbage and in all the other steamlands?
[14:31:02] Blackberry Harvey: Again, I think steampunks have a leg-up here, if you will, though not to pee on it.
[14:31:06] Ceejay Writer: you mean drink coffee and dance?
[14:31:23] Blackberry Harvey: Leg up to pee after the coffee.
[14:31:40] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Heh.
[14:31:47] Blackberry Harvey: Even if you don't actively roleplay when you come here, steampunks are keenly aware, moreso than most other denizens of SecondLife, of the concept of a persona.
[14:31:57] Blackberry Harvey: Pretending to be someone else just meshes in well with pretending to be somewhere and somewhen else.
[14:32:13] Blackberry Harvey: Putting on an evening gown and dinner gloves with welding goggles and a satchel of tools, talking like a Victorian and building an airship, you've got to hold the fantastic and the realistic in your head at the same time.
[14:32:15] Ceejay Writer: I've mostly considered furries in Steampunk to be the products of scientific experimentation, myself.
[14:32:32] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly) giggles.
[14:32:33] Ceejay Writer: My steampunk persona thinks that, to clarify.
[14:32:44] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): or eating a timelord, with bbq sauce
[14:32:50] Blackberry Harvey: The abundance of scientific experimentation certainly makes it very easy to explain our existence!
[14:32:55] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): o.O
[14:33:00] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya): Ewww. Bbq sauce.
[14:33:14] Blackberry Harvey: Anyway, you all already know how to use a characterization to exemplify traits. Mr. Tenk. Mr. Underby. Dr. O. Kaylee. Bookworm. Tepic. I can go on and on.
[14:33:19] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): My home has quite a few chimerae.
[14:33:42] Tepic Harlequin: oh! me!
[14:33:46] Blackberry Harvey waves to Tepic
[14:33:47] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): YAY!
[14:33:50] Jimmy Branagh: hehe Tepic
[14:34:07] Blackberry Harvey: Through my three years in the steamlands, I've met many people of all sorts from all backgrounds. Some furry, many not. When I first came to New Babbage, the start was a bit rocky.
[14:34:18] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): relax victor, it was one of the multiple tennant ones, hardly will be missed
[14:34:26] Blackberry Harvey: Not everyone trusted furries. Some weren't sure of my motives.
[14:34:39] Blackberry Harvey: It didn't help that Mr. Ashiko Kuroe, the Bunny Bomber, had just been terrorizing the town along with Doc O's army.
[14:34:40] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): *cough* evil coffee baron *cough*
[14:34:45] Mr. Scribe (devon.scribe): good evening all ... do go on with the lecture and I'll catch up don't you fret
[14:34:59] Blackberry Harvey: The real life media was having a field day reporting wild rumors and out of context third party opinions about furries.
[14:35:10] Blackberry Harvey: That's died down a bit recently, thankfully.
[14:35:21] Blackberry Harvey: It took some convincing of some people, and I'm happy to say, those same people are now some of my closest friends in Babbage.
[14:35:29] Zanya: When I (or at least my character) left the Vatican, there were certainly some lively debates on the subject.
[14:35:55] Blackberry Harvey: Now, not everyone who wears a furry avatar is a furry.
[14:36:02] Blackberry Harvey: Some just like to put on a costume and look like and even act like someone or something else, without it being a totemic representation of some innate characterization.
[14:36:05] Erica Fairywren arches an eyebrow
[14:36:36] Blackberry Harvey: Some take it quite seriously -- this is who they are. Some just want to dress up, and that's okay too! But ultimately, we are all reflections of ourselves, and we put on a face we choose to put on.
[14:36:49] Blackberry Harvey: Mine just happens to have purple fur, long ears, big feet, and a cottontail.
[14:36:59] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) smiles
[14:37:01] Blackberry Harvey: Thank you.
[14:37:07] Blackberry Harvey: I'm sure there are lots of questions!
[14:37:16] violet the all purpose animal (violet.solano): and its a good look
[14:37:17] Tali Rosca: I see it as little different from wanting to be Barbie or Machoman. It's just other attributes you want to highlight.
[14:37:17] Zanya: `*.¸.*´ APPLAUSE `*.¸.*´APPLAUSE `*.¸.*´
[14:37:21] Rhianon Jameson applauds
[14:37:23] Erica Fairywren: ♪♪♫♫♫ APPLAUSE ♫♫♫ ♪♪
[14:37:26] Blackberry Harvey: Yes, Tali, exactly
[14:37:26] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya): Yeah, why cottontail?
[14:37:26] Jimmy Branagh applauds!
[14:37:31] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner) claps
[14:37:35] Solace Fairlady applauds enthusiastically
[14:37:49] Ceejay Writer: YAY!
[14:37:54] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly) applauds. :)
[14:37:55] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Splendid.
[14:37:55] Solace Fairlady: YAY!
[14:37:56] Blackberry Harvey: Thank you, everyone :)
[14:37:58] Jimmy Branagh: Good stuff!
[14:38:02] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) applauds
[14:38:17] Blackberry Harvey: Please raise your hand if you have a question.
[14:38:19] Sidonie Ancelin (ancelin) applauds
[14:38:24] Solace Fairlady: Wonderful presentation Mr Blackberry, so informative and well put together!
[14:38:29] Mr. Scribe (devon.scribe) bows with respect to the Baron
[14:38:41] Arnold (gager) nods at the last thing Mr. Harvey pointed out.
[14:38:44] Erica Fairywren raises a hand
[14:38:54] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) nod back
[14:38:56] Blackberry Harvey: Erica?
[14:39:21] Erica Fairywren: thank you. how do you see the current acceptance of furries in New babbage and the steamlands in general?
2012-04-15 [14:39:51] Blackberry Harvey: To be honest, Babbage is more than enough for me to deal with! I'm not as up on society in the other steamlands as I could be...
[14:40:01] Blackberry Harvey: But here, I can say that it's been up and down as ever.
[14:40:14] Erica Fairywren looks a bit sad at that
[14:40:20] Erica Fairywren: thank you
[14:40:27] Blackberry Harvey: A few months ago, there were some disruptive people in furry avatars in town, and opinions did retreat a little based on a few individuals.
[14:40:47] Blackberry Harvey: But that happens pretty much everywhere, to every group and classification of people that you can name.
[14:40:55] Erica Fairywren: unfortunate that, a few bad eggs then?
[14:40:56] Ceejay Writer: But you could say that about various facets - not just furries, correct?
[14:41:07] Blackberry Harvey: Very much so, Erica, and Ceejay.
[14:41:13] Tepic Harlequin: hehhehe Tennents!
[14:41:16] Ceejay Writer: though I think it's perhaps a bigger challenge for furries to stand up to.
[14:41:21] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): most the other steamlands from what I seen seem to have about as many furries as babbage, barring some of the stricter rp sims that don't even like scarred reanimated corpses, no idea about acceptance though
[14:41:29] Jimmy Branagh: Not a question, but it seems that people who are into fantastical scenarios, literature, science/speculative fiction, SL RP sims etc are certainly a bit more tolerant about new things. It's obvious the safest place for an RL ET to locate a first contact would be a Star Trek convention.
[14:41:36] Blackberry Harvey: All those articles and bad publicity and CSI episodes just focus on a few examples, not the larger picture.
[14:42:04] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): well, CSI made SL in general look pretty bad, or at least confusing, as well
[14:42:09] Zanya: I think it's safe to say that anything goes in Steelhead. ^^
[14:42:13] Tali Rosca: My experience is that the whole "fursecution", to use a somewhat sarcastic term, is really almost two years in the past.
[14:42:23] Zanya: Ugh, Law & Order SVU wasn't much better.
[14:42:47] Blackberry Harvey: Well, that all started with a furry convention, ConFurence 8, which was a shambles and dragged the public opinion of furry fandom into the gutter. We're just now really recovering...
[14:43:01] Jimmy Branagh: Oy vaguely remember those but had nothing to do with tham
[14:43:04] Blackberry Harvey: Did I get around to an answer for you, Erica?
[14:43:14] Ceejay Writer: (Perhaps someday Vampires will overcome the Bloodlines stigma, too.)
[14:43:15] Zanya: I never heard of that.
[14:43:19] Erica Fairywren: yes indeed :-) i guess i will have to see firsthand
[14:43:24] Erica Fairywren: thank you
[14:43:34] Zanya shudders a bit at vampires.
[14:43:42] Blackberry Harvey: In short, I think we're quite well accepted in the steamlands.
[14:43:48] Ceejay Writer smiles benignly at Zanya.
[14:43:49] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly) nodsnods.
[14:43:51] Blackberry Harvey: Maybe someone will do a talk on steamvamps next!
[14:43:52] Tepic Harlequin: never found no problem in New Babbage, MisFairywren :-)
[14:44:04] Erica Fairywren: i'm glad to hear that
[14:44:05] Blackberry Harvey: Questions?
[14:44:07] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly): Nor i, in Caledon. :)
[14:44:11] Jimmy Branagh: DO we still have any vampires in the steamlands?
[14:44:21] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Some in Winterfell.
[14:44:25] Ceejay Writer: Quite a few, Jimmy.
[14:44:26] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): in winterfell maybe?\
[14:44:26] Solace Fairlady: Mostly in New Toulouse, Jimmy
[14:44:41] Tepic Harlequin: course, lots of new visitors look at me an say "you got a tail!", but that's just natural admiration....
[14:44:43] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): baron beat me
[14:44:43] Sidonie Ancelin (ancelin): I know one in Winterfell. A very nice young man.
[14:44:48] Jimmy Branagh: Oy was a vampire when I forst came to SL, long before Bloodlines
[14:44:49] Blackberry Harvey: They're jealous of your tail, Tepic
[14:44:58] Wildstar: there are vampires in WInterfell
[14:44:58] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): I have laid not a finger on you, sir.
[14:45:02] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) grins
[14:45:05] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly) giggles.
[14:45:11] Sidonie Ancelin (ancelin) chuckles
[14:45:20] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): I will take that topic under advisement, danke.
[14:45:32] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya): Dats jus 'course yah haf ah pretty tail, Tepic.
[14:45:41] Tepic Harlequin: yep, recon so! :-)
[14:45:50] Ceejay Writer: I would most definitely come to a salon that intelligently discussed vampires, just saying.
[14:45:56] Blackberry Harvey smiles
[14:46:02] Zanya: I as well.
[14:46:04] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner) has odd experiences with people asking his main avatar if he was a vampire, always makes me facepalm
[14:46:16] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Especially if I can schedule it for an appropriate month.
[14:46:19] Ceejay Writer: Blackberry - I have to personally thank you, as my concept of furs was apparently very shallow. Until today.
[14:46:30] Blackberry Harvey: Oh? What did you learn?
[14:46:40] Blackberry Harvey: That we're really cute?
[14:46:41] Tepic Harlequin: we got a long history!
[14:46:49] Jimmy Branagh: hehe
[14:46:49] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) chuckles
[14:46:49] Ceejay Writer: Historical backgrounds.
[14:46:52] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): :D rofl
[14:46:54] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): need to get Footman to do a salon on zombie ans reanimation maybe
[14:47:03] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) makes a note
[14:47:13] Ceejay Writer: Looking into ones self and reflecting ones nature in animal form.
[14:47:19] Blackberry Harvey: I think if you take a look at your own bookshelves, you might be surprised!
[14:47:22] Ceejay Writer: A creative way of expression.
[14:47:29] Zanya: My order's "official" position was that all vampires should be done away with, but in reality, there were more than enough openly aggressive ones to busy ourselves with without harressing the non-violent ones.
[14:47:32] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): too many cute furries, we need more tapeworms and lampreys, and other ugly animals!
[14:47:36] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): i just buy some furry avatars cause they look good...
[14:47:47] Mr. Scribe (devon.scribe): well I was a tad late today, sadly. but I gather that Caledon and New Babage do not discriminate furry-wise?
[14:47:48] Tali Rosca: Furries also tie in well with the concept of "anomalous characters"; characters straddling borderlines, which are classic archetypes.
[14:47:55] Ceejay Writer: Well Vic is shallow, but OTHERwise. *winks*
[14:48:00] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): :-o
[14:48:01] Blackberry Harvey: Exactly, Vic puts them on because he likes the look! I put mine on because it expresses things about me.
[14:48:03] Tali Rosca: And apropos, vampires are too, straddling life and death.
[14:48:03] Arnold (gager): (Maddox packed her computer already and is sorry to have missed it.))
[14:48:07] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Caledon has a Lioness as its Vicereine. They had better not.
[14:48:08] Solace Fairlady: Caledon has a longer history of fFurs than any other Steamland
[14:48:19] Wildstar: most of the Caledon naval and air forces are furry these days
[14:48:19] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly) grins to the Baron. :)
[14:48:20] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): i just like dinosaurs and thought it was a funny character
[14:48:25] Blackberry Harvey: Good point, Tali, and yes, from what I've seen in Caledon, furries are very well integrated.
[14:48:37] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Damen and Herren, we have about 10 minutes left.
[14:48:39] Mr. Scribe (devon.scribe): well, that quite answers that, doesn't it
[14:48:45] Ceejay Writer: Seraph City's Java Jive has a regular guest who is a leopard, and is quite the popular gent. Very charming. That town is very accepting.
[14:48:47] Blackberry Harvey: Babbage has tended to be... not isolationist, but more conservative in acceptance of any newcomers. There's a shakedown first!
[14:48:59] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Bitte, consider supporting our excellent speaker and this Salon with financial donations.
[14:49:10] Erica Fairywren: ah that further answers what i was driving at
[14:49:13] Ceejay Writer: nicely put Blackberry. Shakedown. *shakes head, laughing*
[14:49:22] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Heh, that is a good word.
[14:49:53] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): usually when it comes to putting buildings on the ground....but general visitors, theres quite a few regular furries....at one point half of the residents at brunel was furries, two of them went on to buy land in the city
[14:49:57] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): we rifle pockets for all your stuff , worse than Bump!
[14:49:58] Blackberry Harvey: More questions or comments? Also, if you'd like to talk at length any time, just drop me an IM or come by the CocoaJava or Huxley Hall and chat. I have many opinions on the subject!
[14:50:43] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Any more questions?
[14:50:56] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Fur styling queries?
[14:51:10] Blackberry Harvey nods to Vic, "It depends on the phase of the Tenk..."
[14:51:10] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Attachment point debate?
[14:51:16] Blackberry Harvey: Oh, attachment points...
[14:51:18] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): :D
[14:51:27] Arnold (gager): I'll be reading through this a few times I think.
[14:51:36] Blackberry Harvey: For those of us whose body parts are all prims, we are very thankful for multiple attachment slots!
[14:51:43] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): my disintegrator always knocks off my claws
[14:51:53] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly): Yus! :)
[14:51:53] Ceejay Writer: I can't even cope with trying to figure how you attach everything AND your clothes. *mind reels*
[14:52:05] Mr. Scribe (devon.scribe): how very terrible of you sir
[14:52:05] Blackberry Harvey: It's a struggle... I have a new admiration for women!
[14:52:18] Erica Fairywren chuckles
[14:52:20] Zanya: ^.^
[14:52:23] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly) giggles.
[14:52:24] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Heh.
[14:52:24] Tepic Harlequin: "Add" is wonderful!
[14:52:28] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya): Most bunnehs do.
[14:52:28] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): langain explained it to me at one point, she mostly just wears pants
[14:52:30] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya) snickers
[14:52:46] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): also...the Outfit system is very handy....set up your avatar and save it as an outfit..
[14:52:51] Blackberry Harvey: Furry avatars also use quite a few scripts, so we do bump up the lag, quite noticeably if a lot of us are around. But I've seen some ball gowns that were even worse...
[14:53:11] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): i've seen hair that froze time
[14:53:11] Zanya: Or hair, if the resizers are left in.
[14:53:12] Ceejay Writer: I love the outfit system.
[14:53:47] Blackberry Harvey: Final questions?
[14:53:49] Zanya: I tend to be a bit of an offender if I leave my weapons on. >.>
[14:54:22] Arnold (gager): I think that answered all my questions, and one my friend asked all the time.
[14:54:26] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya) raises hand
[14:54:29] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): depends how the weapons are scripted, DCS and forget it, you draw a sword and noone's moving
[14:54:31] Blackberry Harvey: Oaho?
[14:54:34] Blackberry Harvey: u?
[14:54:47] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya): Hehe, u. Why purple, mista?
[14:54:54] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): :D
[14:54:59] Blackberry Harvey: Blackberries!
[14:54:59] Erica Fairywren: XD
[14:55:05] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya): Ahhhhh, okie.
[14:55:05] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly) grins.
[14:55:05] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): he;s purple?
[14:55:06] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) chuckles
[14:55:11] Jimmy Branagh grins
[14:55:13] Zanya: ^.^
[14:55:22] Blackberry Harvey: Actually, I can tell you my Babbage origin story sometime if you like...or you can read it in Tales of New Babbage!
[14:55:33] Blackberry Harvey: Available now where fine books about Babbage are sold
[14:55:37] Ceejay Writer: Its a very good story and WELL worth buying the book!
[14:55:41] Erica Fairywren makes a note to do just that
[14:55:42] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Danke, Herr Harvey. You have been as excellent a guest as you have been an architect.
[14:55:50] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya): Hehe, ah will when it gets ut as e-book. Mailing it over da wurld costa fortune.
[14:55:56] Blackberry Harvey: Thank you for all your support, Baron, and everyone!
[14:55:58] Sha'uri Cheshire-Angel (lianndraa.gothly) applauds!
[14:55:58] Zanya: Oh? Where can your builds be seen?
[14:56:00] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): A reminder that he built this building, moving walls and all.
[14:56:01] Rhianon Jameson: Very informative, Mr. Harvey!
[14:56:03] Rhianon Jameson applauds
[14:56:03] Erica Fairywren: /claps
[14:56:06] Jimmy Branagh: Yay Mr. Harvey!
[14:56:08] Zanya: Oooooo!
[14:56:11] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): your standing in one of his builds Zanya
[14:56:11] Jimmy Branagh applauds
[14:56:11] Zanya: `*.¸.*´ APPLAUSE `*.¸.*´APPLAUSE `*.¸.*´
[14:56:12] Ceejay Writer: You are standing in a Blackberry build!
[14:56:16] Sidonie Ancelin (ancelin) applauds
[14:56:17] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): He won a contest against very difficult competition!
[14:56:18] Solace Fairlady: Thank you Mr Blackberry!
[14:56:18] Blackberry Harvey: This one, I've remodeled the CocoaJava, and Huxley Hall/Wilde Hospital is a new one of mine
[14:56:19] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): wylde hospital's one of his too
[14:56:34] Ceejay Writer: Busy bunny.
[14:56:40] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): evil coffee baron as well
[14:56:45] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Next month, the Salon will welcome Herr Jarl Otenth Paderborn of Orcadia and elsewhere.
[14:56:47] Blackberry Harvey: I think I can finally build a building that's above ground... you humans live in tricky places.
[14:56:58] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): He will take up "Religion in Second Life" as the topic for the Aether Salon on May 20
[14:57:00] Solace Fairlady: Thank you Herr baron for the Salon, and I look forward to the next one!
[14:57:03] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): he's an orc?
[14:57:04] Blackberry Harvey: Thanks for coming everyone! Support the Aether Salon!
[14:57:15] Solace Fairlady bobs a curtsey
[14:57:20] Zanya: Ooooo! I wanna be here for tat one!
[14:57:23] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): We will then take a break over the summer, for you RFL supporters!
[14:57:29] Jimmy Branagh: Thenks Mr. Harvey! Thenks Herr Baron.
[14:57:32] Zanya: I almost made my ship a flying cathedral. ^^
[14:57:46] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Remember, May 20th.
[14:57:56] Tepic Harlequin: well, them voles woun't milk emselves, bye everyone!
[14:58:01] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Danke for attending.
[14:58:05] Jimmy Branagh: Byee Tep!
[14:58:13] Jimmy Branagh: Oy gotta run too. Byee all!
[14:58:24] Zanya: Thank you again for the wonderful discussion. ^^
[14:58:30] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) applauds
[14:58:32] Blackberry Harvey: Thanks for coming!
[14:58:37] Sidonie Ancelin (ancelin): Yes, thank you!
[14:58:39] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): great salon Baron and Blackberry :)
[14:58:40] Ceejay Writer: Very enjoyable, thank you!!!!
[14:58:46] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Danke, Herr Victor.
[14:58:47] Jimmy Branagh: Hmmm
[14:58:50] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): good job
[14:58:52] Jimmy Branagh: It won;t let me ...
[14:58:57] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Try crossing the line.
[14:59:04] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): aand, now for coffee, brb
[14:59:05] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): right im off back to my TARDIS, got a console to rescript....laters all!
[14:59:15] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Your what?
[14:59:15] Waylett Brear (tanithal.lastchance): Good afternoon all... enjoyed listening to the discussion.
[14:59:17] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) coughs
[14:59:20] June Forsythe: bye V!
[14:59:21] Vic Mornington (victor1st.mornington): :D
[14:59:24] Wildstar: lovely talk ... thank you Mr. harvey .. thank you Herr Baron ... good night all
[14:59:37] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): your public one? because it confused the heck out of me trying to find buttons victor XD
[14:59:58] June Forsythe: bye all
[14:59:59] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Danke, Herr Admiral.
[15:00:01] June Forsythe waves
[15:00:09] Ceejay Writer: I must return to my Prim Perfect article - I'm on deadline! Take care, friends.
[15:00:10] Blackberry Harvey: Coffee at the CocoaJava for anyone who'd like it!
[15:00:18] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Danke, Fraulein Ceejay.
[15:00:33] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) picks up the tipjar
[15:00:39] Dr. Dinosaur Runner (doctordinosaur.runner): getting rl coffee first, then maybe virtual coffee
[15:00:45] Ceejay Writer: byeee!
[15:01:16] Mr. Scribe (devon.scribe): this has been a very interesting discussion ... thank you all for your contributions to it and good night to you
[15:01:31] Erica Fairywren: thank you Mr. Harvey, most enlightening
[15:01:35] Oahu Planer (oahu.wijaya) waveswaves an scitters.
[15:01:36] Blackberry Harvey: I'm glad!
[15:01:52] Arnold (gager): Will the transcript be posted?
[15:01:59] Blackberry Harvey: Arnold, Tosh, Dr. Dino, Mr. Tabby, nice to see you
[15:02:02] Erica Fairywren: au revoir tout le monde :-)
[15:02:12] Arnold (gager): Someone I know understands nothing about anthros. At all.
[15:02:18] Tabby (tabitha.bakerly): Ms. Tabby
[15:02:20] Blackberry Harvey: Ms. Tabby, I mean!
[15:02:25] Tabby (tabitha.bakerly): :)
[15:02:29] Arnold (gager): 'Why do they exist' is all I ever hear about it.
[15:02:32] Blackberry Harvey: Sorry, Arnold's scent was blocking yours.
[15:02:33] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): The transcript will be available on the aether-journal for the site.
[15:02:36] Tabby (tabitha.bakerly) is only a Mr. in all the ways that don't count here
[15:02:47] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): You can share that as you like.
[15:03:14] Blackberry Harvey: A lot of people seem to be totally baffled by the concept, yet they think nothing of getting Exxon gas or Frosted Flakes
[15:03:33] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Fraulein Ember, are you all right?
[15:03:34] Arnold (gager): They don't get that either.
[15:03:45] Arnold (gager): They're a sad case.
[15:03:46] Tosh Harker (toshiro.tigerauge): Im suprised not to have seen some fo the folks that usualy pop up to say there shouldnt be furs here.
[15:03:46] Blackberry Harvey: Disney movies?
[15:03:47] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): WATCH THE DOORS.
[15:03:55] Arnold (gager): I mean they are a SAD case.
[15:04:06] Tosh Harker (toshiro.tigerauge): Also I cant see acadamy again :/
[15:04:07] Blackberry Harvey: That's too bad.
[15:04:18] Arnold (gager): They don't get why anything is ever anthropomorphized in anything or it's uses or appeal.
[15:04:22] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): They do tend to flicker.
[15:04:29] Blackberry Harvey: There could be entire salons on the impact of Disney or Warner Brothers.
[15:04:40] Blackberry Harvey: Oh, well, maybe my discussion will shed some light on it...
[15:04:53] Blackberry Harvey: Also I only talked about animal anthropomorphs.
[15:04:58] Arnold (gager): I hope so, it was certaintly more clear.
[15:05:07] Darlingmonster Ember: excellent talk M Harvey
[15:05:13] Darlingmonster Ember: sorry I missed so much
[15:05:15] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): If anyone should like to do a sequel of this Salon, I would be most appreciative to schedule it.
[15:05:27] Darlingmonster Ember: nods
[15:05:27] Blackberry Harvey: The Brave Little Toaster, the Hamburger Helper mitt, even Jehovah as an old man with a beard are anthropomorphics.
[15:05:39] Darlingmonster Ember curtsies
[15:05:40] Zanya: Has there ever been a discussion about clanks, and artificial life?
[15:05:46] Darlingmonster Ember: off I go!
[15:05:51] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Gute Nacht.
[15:06:01] Blackberry Harvey: Calling your car a name or "she"...
[15:06:02] Sidonie Ancelin (ancelin): Good night, Ms. Ember
[15:06:13] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): Fraulein Zanya, I do not remember for certain. Bitte, check the journal.
[15:06:26] Blackberry Harvey: It's what humans do, assign traits to things to better understand them.
[15:06:30] Zanya: My ship is both he and she, in a sense. ^^
[15:06:44] Sidonie Ancelin (ancelin) stifles a cough
[15:07:10] Arnold (gager) nods.
[15:07:14] Zanya: >.>
[15:07:31] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) raises an eyebrow
[15:07:32] Arnold (gager): I understand, but putting it in a way they can accept has proven frustratingly pointless till now I hope.
[15:07:33] Blackberry Harvey: Also it's very hard to keep typing "anthropomorphics" correctly.
[15:07:41] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) chuckles
[15:07:55] Sidonie Ancelin (ancelin) sidles out of easy reach off Zanya, just in case
[15:08:19] Arnold (gager): It's like trying to talk to Sheldin from the Big Bang Theory or some computer sometimes.
[15:08:29] Blackberry Harvey: Thank you again for calling on me, Herr Baron. I hope I did all right.
[15:08:46] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander): You were splendid. I am most appreciative you stuck with the task.
[15:09:03] Blackberry Harvey: RL quite conspired to give me many other priorities instead of this...
[15:09:18] Baron Klaus Wulfenbach (klauswulfenbach.outlander) nods

Thursday, April 5, 2012

SteamFurries! Salon



Join us on April 15th (get your taxes done first, Americans!) for a discussion about furries in the Steamlands, lead by Blackberry Harvey.

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Academy%20of%20Industry/2/56/106
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Babbage%20Palisade/254/60/106