In the year of 2003, there was a reporter that came onto the TexasFurs.org list that wanted to interview us for a story about furry fandom in the Houston area. Most people on the list were upset about this as they believed you couldn't trust reporters. That they'll turn whatever you say to them into something else just to make it sound more interesting. That I'm sure is true with a lot of them, but some of us believed that he might help us in having a good story for once. Those of us who were more calm about it were interviewed. I went with Gwaland, Rowena and KT at a near by IHOP. We basically told the reporter how we felt, stating what the fandom meant to us. Most of us there were in the fandom as a hobby though, not a lifestyle, and that's what he really wanted.

   So yes, basically we and a few others weren't interesting enough to be apart of the paper. I know, cause when the article was finally published, a lot of us weren't mentioned. It upsets me that reporters, and even some furs believe that you're not really apart of the fandom if you don't treat it like a lifestyle. I'm sorry, but I'm not going to act like an animal just to seem interesting. I'm going to act like myself. It's the stereotypical people the reporters are looking for, and once they find them, they always get the most attention to be made fun of in the papers. People who don't know anything about the fandom will read that and believe we're all like that.

   The article that was written was well done I have to agree. It didn't make fun of anyone, more of down the lines of trying to explain that a lot of what you read isn't always true. That you have to experience something's for yourself to get the real picture. There are a lot of people out there who are afraid of telling others they are apart of the fandom, and I can understand that with the nonsense in papers going around. I myself have never thought of being in the fandom as a big deal. It didn't take much for me to tell my parents when I was watching cartoons that "Hey, I like this!" That's mainly what the furry fandom is about, people who like cartoons and like to role play made up cartoon characters as their counterpart. It's the way some people carry themselves that make things more difficult than they really are.

   There was also an episode on CSI about furries that was aired October 30, 2003. Most of us heard about the show ahead of time and watched it as soon as it aired. At first, most of us were worried it would reflect a bad image on the fandom to people that know nothing of it. It was indeed something to make fun of the fandom, but I have to say, there can't be anyone ignorant enough to believe what they acted out. To most of us it was hilarious, cause it was too ridiculous for anyone to believe.

   The furry fandom has been a rather interesting hobby for me. I've met all kinds of different people over the years with all kinds of interests. I've met nice people who care about you for who you are, and others who are so deep into the fandom that they dislike you for being in the fandom for a hobby rather than a lifestyle. It's true, the furry fandom to me is no different than most hobbies I'm into when you have to deal with people. You have those that are nice and those that are not, that's life. Though what bothers me is that some furs believe they're better than those who aren't into the fandom; claming that they're mundane and not open-minded enough to deal with. It's true, there are people out there who are close-minded and difficult to deal with; but calling people mundane just cause they're not interested in the same things as you isn't right. Those to me, are people who take the fandom too seriously.