Rainfurrest 2012

[lupestripe]

Sat in the lobby area at the end of a con, watching all the furries disappear is a typically sad time. This is no less the case today, particularly as Rainfurrest 2012 passed so quickly that it was over almost as soon as it began.

Part of this is the cramming of the schedule into three days but also the sheer wealth of things to do means you are always busy. There are tracks for writing, fursuiting, music and art going from 10am through to 10pm so there are loads of panels to attend. Furthermore, the repetition of some popular events so you can deal with timetable clashes more easily meant there was less chance of missing out on something. I attended nine events in the end, mostly on writing, and learned a great many things. The debate and advice was most welcome.

Rainfurrest is designated the 'room party con' and this is certainly true. Unlike European cons where a lot of the socializing takes place at the bar, here individual rooms are key. Consequently, unless you already know people, it can be tough to make new friends. Fortunately for us, we knew four people already - Darkenwolf, Tuxedokitty, Cal and our very own Skavi - and they introduced us to their friends. We spent a lot of time hanging out with the same groups, particularly the Portland (Oregon) furs who took us under their wing and showed us a good time. On Saturday, we went to the Elysian Brewery in downtown Seattle together - an out of town place we had given up walking to previously - where we tried their famous IPAs as well as their seasonal pumpkin ales, which certainly had a richness you don't usually find with standard beer.

Another highlight involved both the Portland furs and Darkenwolf's friends from Seattle and San Jose, California. Wolfie had gone to bed Saturday night due to food poisoning from our first ever Denny's experience (I thought the place was cheap and cheerful myself, far from gourmet food but acceptable enough in a mildly depressing kind of way) so Cal and I wandered up to the Fursuit dance to be greeted with the usual wall of noise that constitutes the music played at these things (this was one of the weaknesses of the con but then I say this after every con so I've just given up with it - I still think more diversity wouldn't hurt and others feel the same but there's no traction in it so I concede defeat).

We chanced upon a Cards Against Humanity game in an adjacent room so we joined in, playing for a good couple of hours. Now I'm not one for card games but this was great fun, not to mention hilarious, and an excellent way to make new friends. On Sunday with Darkenwolf, we were attracting furs from far and wide, plus a dog called Missy, eventually having a game with 19 participants. Again, we played all night, negating the need for alcohol although we did have a few drinks too. The card game was so good though we will probably buy it ourselves while I may look into playing some other card games too.

The hotel bar puts all UK equivalents to shame, such is the range of IPAs on offer. The Hilton is ridiculously overpriced - a main criticism but hardly a surprising one considering the brand and the fact it's an airport hotel - but the beer was what you would pay at home, far tastier and far higher strength. Consequently, we did have a few jars, particularly on Saturday night after the Elysian, and met some new friends too. The Elysian is in the gay district, where they have a gay bondage bar, we may head their tonight. Furthermore, the fact the hotel had a gym and pool area was a huge benefit, indeed managing to workout three times while I was here should hopefully negate the effects of all the good food we've been having - and the 7-Eleven hotdogs which at two dollars a time made for a far cheaper breakfast than the hotel's offerings which were at least nine times that.

Like with most cons, this one got better and better as the week went on, peaking at the dead dog party last night. The vibe was slightly different to European cons but the spread out nature of the hotel meant it didn't seem overcrowded despite the number of furs attending. On the contrary though, the con didn't feel impersonal either, it was a very pleasant and welcoming atmosphere which makes me want to attend another in the future. Wolfie was walking around draped in a Union flag and that garnered some funny comments and was a good ice breaker. Many people we have met - born furry and not - have been interested to talk about British things, so the flag helped.

As I said before, knowing people was important and we did manage to go to a few room parties, one of which involved us forming a conga line behind a guy with a ghetto blaster as we walked around the con, attracting people as we went. At another, we has an in-depth discussion on politics, which is far safer ground for me than gaming and the like.

Aside from that, I ended up talking about Leeds, my hometown, and beer with Kyell Gold in the Dealers Den. I was just buying some books for the flight home, looked up and noticed it was him who was serving me. It was great chatting, a pleasant surprise and he even signed my books too, leaving personalised messages, which made my day.

So, as the con ends, I would say I have enjoyed Rainfurrest, particularly from the furry perspective. Socially it was great fun too but it's perhaps easier to meet new people at European cons where there is more presence in the lobby and bar areas. The American furs are all lovely, at least the ones we met, and hopefully we can make it Stateside again sometime. We are tentatively looking at FC 2014 as a possibility and hopefully we can return to RF some day too. I'd certainly like to come again.

Posted via LiveJournal app for iPhone.

Comments

[gepardipoju.livejournal.com]

Glad you had a good time :)

I'm planning to get there next year, it did sound like everyone had a lot of fun!

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

It is a good con, I don't know how it stacks with other US cons but it was good. We're seriously thinking FC 2014 - would be good to see you there :)

[startide.livejournal.com]

Sounds like you had a particularly awesome time! Hee, I remember seeing Foxb wandering around with a Union flag on at the Memphis con a few years back. XD

So, did you get to meet a certain vanilla-scented raccoon there? ;)

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

I didn't unfortunately which was a real bummer - I should have logged into LJ while I was here bur didn't so I missed him.

Hopefully the UK flag thing will work at other cons too :)

[startide.livejournal.com]

I don't think he has an lj. He's mainly active on twitter.

[lupestripe.livejournal.com]

Ooh, who do you mean?