The Island Journal

Remember when comic book nerds (that’s me) went to conventions and people thought it was weird? Now it’s a slice of Americana and an accepted subculture. Remember the sci-fi or anime conventions and the SCA and remember when these groups were looked on with some distain? I remember my mom saying the SCA was a cult when I was 15 but when I joined in college, it was fine. Tech geeks (me again) were once ridiculed but now we’re revered and why? What has changed about the world? What is it that has molded the universal American conservative view and squished the misconceptions of days gone by?

I was watching an episode of CSI several years ago about “Furries” and found the psychology interesting and the concept baffling as it was portrayed. I did some research and found that CSI got it wrong. “Furries” are not inherently sexual. Yiff doesn’t mean what they said it meant. A “furpile” is not a orgy. Nonetheless I bought into the misinformation machine. Through my research I have found that they’re not all that different from SCA members… many of them are less intense individuals. There isn’t really a psychology behind it all but rather, just a good natured and expensive hobby.

Don’t get me wrong… there are some weirdos out there. Plushies are people who like plush animals but the word “plushie” also refers to people who like to have “sex” with stuffed animals. Yes…. You read that right. Furry or anthropomorphic porn is also fairly prevalent though bestiality is not really part of it. See, these are not seen as animals in the strictest sense. At least they’re no more animals than Mickey mouse or Bugs bunny. The film industry coined a term, “Funny Animal” to separate upright walking, talking and clothes wearing animals from their lesser counterparts. It’s the difference between Dippy Dog (AKA Goofy) and Mickey’s pet Pluto. Both of them are dogs but Goofy is “funny” because he’s anthropomorphic. The sexual deviance is a discussion for another day and I’m just as guilty of getting hung up on the most bizarre aspects as every one else is. We’ll leave that for a later discussion as it’s not relevant here.

Alright, where am I going with all this? Well, aside from being a hobbiest writer and anthropologist and poet, and philosopher, psychologist, and etc. etc. I am also very crafty. I have looked at web sites about creating “Fursuits”, the full body costumes worn by some furries (most prefer partial suits or even just ears and tails) at furry conventions. Recently, Christina and I were discussing how best to make a realistic, person sized, self balancing cat tail for her Halloween costume and in researching that, I came again upon furry sites which proved very useful for our purposes. Anyway, I’ve decided to try my hand and make a bear head… mask… thing. I doubt I’ll ever make a full suit because they seem to be pretty difficult, but I’ve always wanted to try my hand at soft sculpture and I’ve never worked with fur so it seems like it might be an interesting project. I could do a whole series. And it all came from not understanding something, researching it, and finding it’s not as odd as I thought.

I guess the point of all of this is that you can’t believe everything you see on television, though I think we all knew that already. The problem is we do… at least a little. I believed these people were sex crazed bestiality fetishists at first and then I just thought maybe they were just a little off. Once I considered that I’d worn a kilt for a good portion of my career in the SCA and that I have been to a comic convention and I’ve considered cosplay at an anime convention… well, it’s not that strange now.

Don’t judge…. Even if the media say it’s alright.

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Tags: culture, furries, halloween, philosophy
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Ointments are a new interest of mine…. yes, ointments. Like for rashes and bug bites. I’ve decided to see how easy or difficult it might be to make some home remedies and try them out. So far, I’ve made a boric acid ointment that smells of lavender and I’ve made a citronella ointment that sadly does not keep the mosquito’s away. I think that one needs a little something extra.

Recipes are easier than I thought they’d be. A little bees’ wax, some carrier oil (vegetable, corn, or olive), and a few drops of essential oil to taste… or smell rather, and you’re in business. There is some fire involved and there’s some creativity in adding some additional medicinal ingredients, but for the most part, it’s just that simple.

People have made home remedies for centuries… well, since the first homes I would imagine. Folk healing practices are based on cause and effect, trial and error. The witches in Salem were usually only wise old women who knew some local herbs could cure a sore throat. They weren’t evil, just knowledgeable. Today we lack the simplest understanding of the medicinal benefit of the natural world… something I’m hoping my ointments will cure me of.

So far, I’ve only played with a few different recipes, but if you have any suggestions, please feel free to email me or comment. I’d love to hear them. I eventually hope to have a steam distillery set up so I can express my own essential oils… won’t that be fun?

Yeah… I’m a big ol’ dork. But I smell good.

Tags: beauty, culture, news, odd, opinion
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I find it amusing that people get reiki symbol or kanji tattoos without understanding the meaning behind them. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have anything against the culture. On the contrary, I tend to lean more towards an eastern philosophy in my own life and I have no genetic ties to the far east. I do not, however, adorn my body with the symbolism of these cultures because I am a white, middle class American. I have yet to meet a Japanese or Chinese person with the word “Water” tattooed anywhere on their body in times new roman or book hand.

I like tattoos for the artistic or meaningful inspiration they provide the wearer. I don’t have any ink myself, though some day in the future, maybe I will. I just believe people should carefully consider whether they are getting permanently marked for a good reason. My friend Andy has a tat on his left arm, a Celtic knot work band. To my knowledge, he’s not a Celt and as far as I know, he’s not entirely happy with it. It’s not meaningful to him in a symbolic way… it’s just his first tattoo. Recently, on his shoulder he’s had a paw print done that I designed for him. He was specific in his wishes about the content and structure of this tat. The paw print symbolizes his connection with the spirit of the wolf. Now, by the same token with the Celtic arm band, he’s no more a wolf than he is a Celt, but people in all cultures, including modern western civilization, animals factor into how people view themselves. I think that justifies his desire to have the paw print. It’s his mark.

I know others who have symbols of their own design or mythical creatures that encompass who they are or how they view themselves, or how they relate to others and these are the most important and informative marks they have on their bodies. Many are beautiful and delicate, others are forceful and proud but they are all personally meaningful and culturally, unbiased. Far be it from me to down someone for trying to express themselves. I am all about self expression in a multitude of forms. My primary point here is, try to express yourself within the bounds of your own culture.

What does that mean to a modern, melting pot society like the U.S.? Well, I know that I’m Scottish, French, German, Italian, and so on. I know what distinct relationships I have with the places of my ancestors births. I feel a distinct connection with those origins and so I could see having some Celtic knot work, a flur de lis (not in a million years), an iron cross (the Nazis ruined everything), or pretty much any Greco-Roman or Germanic symbol (ie Thor’s hammer, a Fenrir symbol). I could see heraldic blazon or a crest of some sort. I can not, however, justify in any way, shape, or form a kanji symbol on myself because I am not related to the far east, no matter how much I admire the culture.

All I ask is that if you get a kanji or reiki symbol on your body, have it placed correctly. Who’s to say what correct is? Well, the culture from whom you’ve taken the symbol. There are specific placements for reiki symbols on the body, most of which are in “hidden” areas. Kanji for specific forces, earth, air, water, metal, and so on placed on different parts of the body mean different things… it goes far beyond the simple “I’ll put a cool looking symbol on my coccyx to draw attention to my butt.” Which brings me to another point… A tramp stamp is placed on or no more than an inch above the coccyx. Higher than that and it’s just a lower back tattoo. I don’t make the rules.

In conclusion, get inked… by all means don’t let me stop you from displaying something meaningful to you on your body for all time. Please, consider the meaning before you usurp another’s culture for your the purposes of your own expression. Respect the culture from which you take “your” special symbol.

Tags: culture, tattoo
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