Beautiful, Like A Puppy In The Sky
Apr. 28th, 2015 10:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lupestripeThis weekend was the main Northernfurs meet on the Leeds rotation and I'll admit I was delighted by the attendance, which was up on the usual number. We had been considering getting rid of these meets as they are somewhat anachronistic but having rare visitors from Liverpool and Manchester suggests that they may still be viable. We are certainly going to do the October "main" meet as it falls two weeks after the regular one and also on Halloween, but we are still not sure what we will do in 2016.
The general feedback I am getting is that the vast majority of people had a good time, although the unnecessary sniping from one or two people who were not there was somewhat disheartening. We do put a lot of effort into running the meets and we are always open to address concerns, which is far more productive than bitching about things on social networks. Still, I tried not to let that ruin my day although Middlesbrough's last minute capitulation at Fulham, going down 4-3 to all but blow our hopes of automatic promotion did hit me quite hard and I was somewhat glum in the final hours of Saturday. When added to the sniping comments, it wasn't a particularly great end to the day, perhaps I do care too much about the meets being a success but it is all relative to the amount of effort put in.
The bar were as accommodating as ever, except when it came to 5pm and the music was put on deafeningly loud. I managed to get this sorted pretty quickly though, although by this time the bar had started to fill up with undesirables and so most people opted to leave. The previous five hours were good though, with the furry themed shots back along with an assortment of nibbles which I hoped everyone enjoyed. We are hoping the shots will become a regular monthly feature going forward, while we also hope the TV screens will be fixed at some point so we can display our artwork. If anyone else has any suggestions regarding how to improve the meets, please let me know.
The Fursuit walk was well attended, with 23 suiters yomping around Leeds. Luckily, we managed do dodge the rain, despite the forecast predicting light showers all afternoon, although we did have to curtail the walk slightly so we didn't get wet. Sadly there was nothing going on in Millennium Square again although there were some kids on bikes who let me ride a bicycle around in Fursuit while the vast majority of fursuiters posed for a trade union campaign to save the NHS on the steps of the Guildhall. I refrained as although I support the cause, I don't really want my Fursuit being associated with something political, but these weren't concerns shared by the majority.
We called off at Almost Famous in the evening, where they were experimenting with table service, the result being exceptionally long waits for both drinks and the bill. I would revert back to the old system myself. I didn't enjoy the burger and bacon bacon fries as much as I have done previously there, that may have just been down to my mood, but it was all largely disappointing. I was alone in this view. After this, we headed to The Office, the underground Spanish bar we had gone to the previous week, which was deserted again. We bought a few drinks here but I rad feeling tired and bloated, just wanting to go home, so needing a shower after fursuiting, I made my excuses and left at around 9:30pm.
We had two sets of people staying over the weekend - Fioxy and Chargin on Friday and Nineleaves and Kunzai on the Saturday. The former arrived around 8:30pm when I had just got back from work and we had a fun night of drinking porter and chatting about a range of naughty things. At one point, I thought it would be a good idea to show everyone my testicle and then post a picture of the other one on my AD, a picture perfectly framed by Fioxy. It was a hilarious night and great fun, and hopefully something we can repeat. After the meet, our evening with Nineleaves and Kunzai was a little more sedate. They stayed behind in The Office as we got a bus home, then they biked over to ours for around 11pm. Then we just sat and chilled over whisky, musing about the state of the fandom before going to bed.
The Leeds Northernfurs meets are typically double headers, with stuff to do on a Sunday, but this too is becoming an anachronism due to the few people who travel to the event. With the weather being erratic, we hadn't really advertised a plan for the second day so it was no real surprise that no one had turned up at the station. We waited for about 45 minutes before heading off to Roundhey Park, with the sun a beautiful day for wandering. Nineleaves and Kunzai had already ridden there on their bikes so we met up with them outside Tropical World, spying the insanely long line and opting to go into the park instead (plus I refuse to visit Tropical World on account of the snakes). We grabbed an ice cream on the way down at an eye-watering £2.50 before going into a little cafe where our guests had some lunch and we shared a beer. Sat overlooking the artificial lake was quite nice although there was surprisingly no boating on it, while the cafe itself was somewhat overpriced, particularly considering all the toilets were blocked. We were placed in the conservatory as all of the balcony was taken, and the sun on our backs was quite pleasant, as opposed to the myriad of screaming kids who just got in the way and were a colossal nuisance. Still, it was a pleasurable half hour at least and prepared us nicely for our walk around the lake.
I've always contended that most places look beautiful in the sunshine, particularly places in the countryside even if they are landscaped. Walking by the lake was no exception as we strolled up to a Victorian folly in the style of a medieval gate. With the trees blossoming and the grass verdant, it was a picturesque postcard of spring, enhanced later by the fountain in the lake alongside which was a family of geese with the mother feeding her six chicks in a best built into a collapsed tree in the water. Watching the mother feed bread to her young through her beak was quite a wondrous sight and emphasized the glory of nature, while she quacked a friendly hoot to communicate with her offspring. We stood on the bank, camera in hand, for a good ten minutes soaking up the glorious natural scene before we opted to head on through the Forest and complete our little stroll. People watching was also fun and by the folly, we saw a kid lose control of his bike and another kid carrying an insanely large log. In the end, we ended up past a golf course and back on the main road, diverting along the edge of the park and back to the Roundhay Fox, which was quite quiet now as it was mid-afternoon and thus between meal sittings. Despite Nineleaves needing to bike back to Leicester, we opted for a drink and a chat in the beer garden before they had to leave, which was a nice way for them to end our stay with us. Soon though it was time to go and we walked them back to their bike, missing a bus on the way and thus necessitating a return back to the pub as Sunday evening services are exceptionally poor - every 20 minutes had just become every half hour. Still it was great to see them and we will be seeing them again on our first trip to Leicester in a few weeks' time. Should be exciting.
The general feedback I am getting is that the vast majority of people had a good time, although the unnecessary sniping from one or two people who were not there was somewhat disheartening. We do put a lot of effort into running the meets and we are always open to address concerns, which is far more productive than bitching about things on social networks. Still, I tried not to let that ruin my day although Middlesbrough's last minute capitulation at Fulham, going down 4-3 to all but blow our hopes of automatic promotion did hit me quite hard and I was somewhat glum in the final hours of Saturday. When added to the sniping comments, it wasn't a particularly great end to the day, perhaps I do care too much about the meets being a success but it is all relative to the amount of effort put in.
The bar were as accommodating as ever, except when it came to 5pm and the music was put on deafeningly loud. I managed to get this sorted pretty quickly though, although by this time the bar had started to fill up with undesirables and so most people opted to leave. The previous five hours were good though, with the furry themed shots back along with an assortment of nibbles which I hoped everyone enjoyed. We are hoping the shots will become a regular monthly feature going forward, while we also hope the TV screens will be fixed at some point so we can display our artwork. If anyone else has any suggestions regarding how to improve the meets, please let me know.
The Fursuit walk was well attended, with 23 suiters yomping around Leeds. Luckily, we managed do dodge the rain, despite the forecast predicting light showers all afternoon, although we did have to curtail the walk slightly so we didn't get wet. Sadly there was nothing going on in Millennium Square again although there were some kids on bikes who let me ride a bicycle around in Fursuit while the vast majority of fursuiters posed for a trade union campaign to save the NHS on the steps of the Guildhall. I refrained as although I support the cause, I don't really want my Fursuit being associated with something political, but these weren't concerns shared by the majority.
We called off at Almost Famous in the evening, where they were experimenting with table service, the result being exceptionally long waits for both drinks and the bill. I would revert back to the old system myself. I didn't enjoy the burger and bacon bacon fries as much as I have done previously there, that may have just been down to my mood, but it was all largely disappointing. I was alone in this view. After this, we headed to The Office, the underground Spanish bar we had gone to the previous week, which was deserted again. We bought a few drinks here but I rad feeling tired and bloated, just wanting to go home, so needing a shower after fursuiting, I made my excuses and left at around 9:30pm.
We had two sets of people staying over the weekend - Fioxy and Chargin on Friday and Nineleaves and Kunzai on the Saturday. The former arrived around 8:30pm when I had just got back from work and we had a fun night of drinking porter and chatting about a range of naughty things. At one point, I thought it would be a good idea to show everyone my testicle and then post a picture of the other one on my AD, a picture perfectly framed by Fioxy. It was a hilarious night and great fun, and hopefully something we can repeat. After the meet, our evening with Nineleaves and Kunzai was a little more sedate. They stayed behind in The Office as we got a bus home, then they biked over to ours for around 11pm. Then we just sat and chilled over whisky, musing about the state of the fandom before going to bed.
The Leeds Northernfurs meets are typically double headers, with stuff to do on a Sunday, but this too is becoming an anachronism due to the few people who travel to the event. With the weather being erratic, we hadn't really advertised a plan for the second day so it was no real surprise that no one had turned up at the station. We waited for about 45 minutes before heading off to Roundhey Park, with the sun a beautiful day for wandering. Nineleaves and Kunzai had already ridden there on their bikes so we met up with them outside Tropical World, spying the insanely long line and opting to go into the park instead (plus I refuse to visit Tropical World on account of the snakes). We grabbed an ice cream on the way down at an eye-watering £2.50 before going into a little cafe where our guests had some lunch and we shared a beer. Sat overlooking the artificial lake was quite nice although there was surprisingly no boating on it, while the cafe itself was somewhat overpriced, particularly considering all the toilets were blocked. We were placed in the conservatory as all of the balcony was taken, and the sun on our backs was quite pleasant, as opposed to the myriad of screaming kids who just got in the way and were a colossal nuisance. Still, it was a pleasurable half hour at least and prepared us nicely for our walk around the lake.
I've always contended that most places look beautiful in the sunshine, particularly places in the countryside even if they are landscaped. Walking by the lake was no exception as we strolled up to a Victorian folly in the style of a medieval gate. With the trees blossoming and the grass verdant, it was a picturesque postcard of spring, enhanced later by the fountain in the lake alongside which was a family of geese with the mother feeding her six chicks in a best built into a collapsed tree in the water. Watching the mother feed bread to her young through her beak was quite a wondrous sight and emphasized the glory of nature, while she quacked a friendly hoot to communicate with her offspring. We stood on the bank, camera in hand, for a good ten minutes soaking up the glorious natural scene before we opted to head on through the Forest and complete our little stroll. People watching was also fun and by the folly, we saw a kid lose control of his bike and another kid carrying an insanely large log. In the end, we ended up past a golf course and back on the main road, diverting along the edge of the park and back to the Roundhay Fox, which was quite quiet now as it was mid-afternoon and thus between meal sittings. Despite Nineleaves needing to bike back to Leicester, we opted for a drink and a chat in the beer garden before they had to leave, which was a nice way for them to end our stay with us. Soon though it was time to go and we walked them back to their bike, missing a bus on the way and thus necessitating a return back to the pub as Sunday evening services are exceptionally poor - every 20 minutes had just become every half hour. Still it was great to see them and we will be seeing them again on our first trip to Leicester in a few weeks' time. Should be exciting.
