Rattler's
Where good furs meet in the heat
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It started with a casual invitation from Mike during a chat on Yahoo IM. Would my Fox and I like to meet he and Chris for dinner at Rattler's in Santa Clarita? Well, you know us, never ones to pass on an evening of carnivorous delights, so we immediately threw in with the crew that Mike described to us. We'd never met any of them before, mostly because all the new friends we were about to make save one were from out of state. An adventure!
Of course we were fashionably late, thanks to our fellow Angelenos and Interstate Five. After a pleasant if placid ninety minute drive to cover the sixty miles between our home and Santa Clarita, we arrived to find our host and his wife absent. They had yet to arrive. As we had no idea what the rest of the group looked like, we hung out on the porch outside. Turns out Teric and SonicBlu were almost within arm's reach of us while we were there.
Eventually the old raccoon and his pretty wife arrived, and introductions were made. Turns out Teric is also a resident of the OC, just a bit farther down the road from us. Sigurd Volsung and his wife were in from the Twin Cities of Minnesota, and SonicBlu was in from Columbus, Ohio. In very short order we had our food order placed and at least four separate conversations ongoing.
Of course writing, and reading what others write, was a primary topic. I shouldn't have been surprised by the fact that almost everyone at the table had written some anthro fiction at one time or another, but was pleasantly surprised to learn that anyway.
Here we find Teric, pausing briefly in conversation with Chris to flash us a thumbs up. Teric, as I mentioned, is another soCal local, an author with a presence on Shelf Five as well as at Chris Foxx's Variations Page. And as if that weren't enough, he's an artist to boot, as evidenced by his work at Furaffinity. And as if all that wasn't enough, he's also got an LJ, so after you view some of his creations you can drop him a line and tell him what you think.
I immediately liked this young fur, and came to find we had some things in common outside of the anthro authoring arena. Not the least of which was an active and diverse interest in chemistry, as we soon coupled the known combustion effects of elemental phosphor and the known side-effects of large-scale consumption of Mexican food to posit a new form of furry self-propulsion. None of us are brave enough to conduct any experiments, but as my Fox pointed out, a fur could really go places quickly...
Which brings us to Sigurd Volsung (seen here with his wife Patty). Sigurd is a well-known consumer of things spicy, so of course he was at least casually interested in the Premium grade TeriCoyote Propulsion system. In discussing the finer points of that, and how to best survive the application thereof, we quickly grew to enjoy their company and conversation. The couple hails from the twin cities in Minnesota, and I gather they live on the better side of town, over in Saint Paul. Both are authors. Taricana, Sigurd's non-furry story, can be found on the Non-Furry Shelf Three at the Raccoons Bookshelf. Unfortunately, I'm not familiar with anything Patty has written, although in listening to conversation between she and my Fox (a horror movie fan) I gather that she is a writer of things scary.
Here we find Mike, the ol' raccoon himself, in a characteristic pose. For those of you who don't know him, Mike is the "Purveyor of Fine Furry Fiction," proprietor of The Raccoon's Bookshelf. He's also the fur who set up the evening for us, or maybe I should say he's the fur who hooked up my Fox and I in the event. As you can see, Mike is almost always wired for sound, a Tech-Head of the First Order. I believe he was engaged in some high level negotiations with the leader of some third world country when I took this picture. <thinks> Or maybe he was watching a video... I don't remember.
And the celebrity for the evening was none other than SonicBlu. I had never met this fur before, but came to like him almost immediately. He is a radio show host and DJ and has one of those classic, engaging, entertainer personalities. Seen here on the left with his friend Paul, SonicBlu is bemoaning the failure of his digital camera, which was passed around to be examined by other experts at the table who pronounced it "broke." SonicBlu's Time Machine Show runs weekday nights on KWKAT, the Planet Furry Internet radio station. A short visit to SonicBlu's Realm will illustrate the breadth and depth of this fur's talent.
Sonic kept us in stitches most of the evening, regaling us with tales of air-time derring do and other fun at the expense of telemarketers, an activity I highly approve of. He came to us from that capital of all things gorgeously mephit, Columbus, Ohio.
And then there was the coyote and The Fox. He's a would-be author, she puts up with his amusing efforts and errant furry behavior. This is what we like to think we look like when we're out in public...
Image by Teric, used with permission.
However Teric (God bless him and his quick trigger finger on the cell phone camera) managed to catch us in a perhaps more predatory stance as the food was approaching. Thanks for that, Teric!
As you may see, many conversations, well lubricated by non-alcoholic consumables, went on simultaneously. That's how I knew everyone was having a good time, everyone was talking at once. It seems to be a character trait of most furs I've known, this predilection towards yapping. I myself, if you can imagine, have been tagged as the Verbose Canid at times.
<grins> Some of us were more engaged by the ol' raccoon's regaling than others. Here we find Teric engrossed, while Chris seems to be thinking of distant shores... or maybe sleep. According to her, she had been out late with the grownups the night before, chasing the initial release of the latest Harry Potter book in the waning evening heat of a 108 degree day, an undertaking that kept her out well past midnight.
As one who indulges in the regular use of the haberdasher's art (I wear hats...), I was taken by Sonic's hat, or more particularly the hat band. I never did get to ask him about it, but something tells me there is a story behind it. I was also taken by the graphics on Sigurd's shirt. Some predilection I have for canids, I can't explain it...
What this image lacks in clarity (my flash didn't go off) it makes up for in "awww" factor. Chris and Mike Regan in a happy moment, surrounded by friends old and new. It was a grand evening for all paws, I think. I know my Fox and I had a wonderful time, and I am looking forward to building lasting friendships with those we met that night.
I may be expanding this album if the other partyers feel like having their images displayed here, so check back to see if anything has been added. You never know who may have caught who unawares with a camera...!
Thanks a lot, Mike, for including us in the fun!