Author Topic: Rabbit hops in, sniffs around a bit, gnaws on server cables, hops back out (Read 4979 times)

Arbutus · « **on:** April 13, 2018, 06:26:21 pm »

Oh hi Furtopia.

I'm Arbutus, and I'm not new at all! I kicked around this place for about seven years and served as a watcher, mod, and admin for much of that time. No idea how many people are still here that I used to know, but I figured I'd pop in and find out!

My life has changed a lot since the last time we talked. I started and finished a master's degree. I moved abroad again to jump into a new career in humanitarian aid. I lived in Turkey for a year or so, then moved to Jordan, did a short deployment in Afghanistan, and now I'm living in Tunisia, where I'm working on the humanitarian response to the crisis in Libya. I'm enjoying this seaside country hugely, and I'm doing the sort of meaningful work that I've been wanting to do for a long time.

By this point, I'm long out of the furry fandom. People grow, people change, people leave parts of themselves behind, however fondly they are remembered. But I still love the stories, and the art, and all the friends I made here on Furtopia, and all the memories I made and helped to make. I still check in from time to time, and I'll probably be orbiting around the fandom for a long time to come.

I'm only stopping in to say hi, but hey, listen, I brought some snacks for everyone to share.
*pulls a large lever on the wall*
*a large section of the floor slowly rolls back*
*an enormous pile of carrots, twenty feet tall, rises from a platform in the middle of the floor*
Make sure to leave enough for everyone!

Loc · « **Reply #1 on:** April 13, 2018, 07:13:11 pm »

:O Arbutus! Great to see you again

Hope things are going well for you.

RainbowPanther · « **Reply #2 on:** April 13, 2018, 08:02:53 pm »

*offers copious amounts of carrots!*

Well ello there!

Hope you stick around! I came back after a long time away myself!

Varg the wanderer · « **Reply #3 on:** April 13, 2018, 08:18:18 pm »

Arbutus!!!! It's great to see that you are alive and well and living a fulfilling life. I doubt I could do the line of work you do and I respect those that fill that role a lot. Don't become a stranger

Iara Warriorfeather · « **Reply #4 on:** April 14, 2018, 09:55:09 pm »

Welcome back to Furtopia! I hope to see you around!

Arbutus · « **Reply #5 on:** August 10, 2020, 03:39:26 pm »

I hope it's all right if I gravedig my own greetings topic.

TBH, I'm not sure I could improve on my subject line from last time. We've already reached the top.

It's been two and a half years since my last check-in, but man, the entire world has turned upside down since then. Where do I start?

New country, first of all! I moved to Uganda last October and have been here for the last ten months. I'm still working in humanitarian aid with the same organization, but with more global responsibilities rather than focusing on just one country. This was supposed to mean that I would be doing frequent international travel to our different country offices to help out with various projects, but........ you know.

All things considered, Uganda has been an unexpectedly nice place to ride out a pandemic, and I consider myself fortunate to be here. We had an early, strong lockdown that has so far helped us avoid the worst, and I've been able to work from home from a compound filled with exotic trees and birdlife, and I have three kittens that were born in my closet just before the lockdown started, which has done wonders to keep me sane through it all. Below is a picture of the kittens, which I share to give you a sense of how hard my life has been; I have had to deliver presentations in formal Zoom meetings, camera on my face the whole time, trying to remain stoic and professional while this was happening in front of my eyes.

Now that the lockdown restrictions are starting to lift a bit, I've been trying to (safely) get out and about and see a bit more of this country I find myself in. Below please find a picture of a Ugandan elephant traffic jam:

This post is turning into an animal parade, which I guess is okay because someone told me you people like animals?

Anyway, the reason I find myself back on Furtopia after so long is that I just watched a fantastic film called The Fandom: A Furry Documentary, which I highly recommend-- it's so well done and eloquently shows what furry has meant to so many people throughout the fandom's history. So I got to the end of this film, full of all sorts of fuzzy heartwarming feelings, and they started rolling the credits with the list of everyone who contributed through Kickstarter to make this happen, and who should I see on the list but several folks I knew from Furtopia back in the day? It got me thinking about my own route into and through and out of and orbiting in circles around this crazy, joyful, exasperating, lovable fandom, and through this forum that meant so much to me for so many years, and that's when I decided to pop in and say hello again to you all.

Hi!

Kobuk · « **Reply #6 on:** August 10, 2020, 06:04:33 pm »

Quote

Rabbit hops in, sniffs around a bit, gnaws on server cables, hops back out

Hey! Cut that out! WS and Weiss just got done upgrading the server. Bad bunny! Bad, bad bunny!

Here, have a salad from my cafe instead. *hands a bowl of salad*

Anyway, welcome back.

Arbutus · « **Reply #7 on:** August 10, 2020, 06:10:49 pm »

KOBUK

*huge hugs*

Really glad to hear from you again! And not only because you brought me delicious salad.

*eats the salad in one bite, sniffs at the wooden bowl, continues to consume the bowl*

Kobuk · « **Reply #8 on:** August 10, 2020, 06:17:06 pm »

*hugs back*

Well, at least the bowl has fibre in it.

Loc · « **Reply #9 on:** August 10, 2020, 07:35:08 pm »

Hey, welcome back again

Old Rabbit · « **Reply #10 on:** August 11, 2020, 01:05:05 pm »

Glad to have you back.

Arbutus · « **Reply #11 on:** August 11, 2020, 01:51:59 pm »

Great to hear from you again, Loc and Old Rabbit. Hope you've both been doing well. *hugs*

Kay Alett · « **Reply #12 on:** August 15, 2020, 09:39:29 pm »

ARBY! *pouncehugs*

Oh goodness it's been so long since I last heard from you. I'm glad you're doing well.
I also see that you're still a far-traveller.

Jade Sinapu · « **Reply #13 on:** August 16, 2020, 09:16:20 pm »

Hi Arbitus,
Thanks for sharing your stories and the pictures!
I never got to know you well before you started traveling... But your stories of traveling and doing things that you believe in makes me wonder what my purpose is in life. Maybe it is time for me to do something more fulfilling? I just can't travel that much.

Cool that fellow furtopians contributed to the documentary. I liked it myself.
Hope to see you again!
Also,

What does a giant rabbit eat in Uganda?
Is there carrots?

Kay Alett · « **Reply #14 on:** August 17, 2020, 07:22:14 pm »

Quote from: Jade Sinapu on August 16, 2020, 09:16:20 pm

Also,

What does a giant rabbit eat in Uganda?
Is there carrots?

Aw come on Jade, rabbits eat more than just carrots. There's all kinds of plants for them to eat... I really wouldn't know what exactly since I'm a hardcore carnivore (seriously IRL I mostly eat only meats) but I'm sure there's got to be something out there... Assuming the elephants haven't eaten it all.

Jade Sinapu · « **Reply #15 on:** August 17, 2020, 10:45:26 pm »

Haha!!
I know. Rabbits also eat lettuce!

Or if you read Red Wall, rabbits ( hares actually) eat EVERYTHING they can get paws on!

But in Uganda, like most places, I suspect there is a lot of greens, root vegetables, etc. Shrubs too.

Arbutus · « **Reply #16 on:** August 18, 2020, 04:07:28 pm »

Quote from: Kay Alett on August 15, 2020, 09:39:29 pm

ARBY! *pouncehugs*
Oh goodness it's been so long since I last heard from you. I'm glad you're doing well.
I also see that you're still a far-traveller.

Kayyyyyyyyyyy *hugs while doing a backflip* So glad to see you again!! Yeah, I have been through... a lot of countries in the last decade or so, which is great, because I couldn't have picked a better time to get out of the US!

Quote from: Jade Sinapu on August 16, 2020, 09:16:20 pm

Hi Arbitus,
Thanks for sharing your stories and the pictures!
I never got to know you well before you started traveling... But your stories of traveling and doing things that you believe in makes me wonder what my purpose is in life. Maybe it is time for me to do something more fulfilling? I just can't travel that much.

Hey there, good to meet you! Looks like you arrived in Furtopia while I was away, so here, have a Carrot of Welcoming! *gets up on a ladder, removes a ceiling tile, and a leftover secret stash of Carrots of Welcoming from like 2010 pours out. They're still good!*

On doing something you believe in... no traveling required, necessarily! Especially in this age of simultaneous protests and pandemic, where so much valuable non-profit work has moved online. But I would say the main things you need are 1) an awareness of what it is you do believe in, 2) a commitment to work your tail off to get yourself from where you are now to where you want to be, and 3) a willingness to jump into the unknown once you get there. It's easier said than done, for sure; since college, I've gone through three jobs, night courses, and a master's program to set myself up for my current career. But now I'm here, and it's been so worth all the effort.

Quote from: Kay Alett on August 17, 2020, 07:22:14 pm

Quote from: Jade Sinapu on August 16, 2020, 09:16:20 pm
Also,

What does a giant rabbit eat in Uganda?
Is there carrots?
Aw come on Jade, rabbits eat more than just carrots.

This is false.

But actually, for starters, we have four different types of bananas here, all of which are very different from each other and used for different purposes. One of them, matoke, is a Ugandan staple food and is served boiled and mashed as a base, like the equivalent of rice. It's, uh... I feel like it is not the best of our four types of bananas?

It tastes nothing like you would expect, very bland and heavy. But I think I've developed a taste for it (though it's better with salt).

Old Rabbit · « **Reply #17 on:** August 19, 2020, 11:24:05 am »

It's good to see your doing well. My eyesight is too poor to draw like I used to, Or I would do a new drawing
of you, my favorite rabbit on Furtopia.

I am doing pretty good otherwise. Try to hop by every chance you get. We always enjoy your visits.
Tosses you a chocolate chip cookies.

Old Rabbit

Arbutus · « **Reply #18 on:** December 11, 2021, 03:29:25 pm »

*pokes their beak back into Furtopia to say hi*

...wait. Did I say "beak"?

I've changed since the last time you heard from me! I'm going by the name Viridia now, and I'm a bird-- a Ross's turaco, to be exact, one of the most beautiful species of birds I have in my garden here in Uganda. I'm back into the furry fandom deep these days, and it felt right to take on a new fursona to reflect where I am in my life and how much I've changed since I created Arbutus over twenty years ago.

I think I'll still always stay Arbutus on Furtopia though, in tribute to all the memories this rabbit made here with you. So don't think I'm gonna give away my carrot stash just like that.

You can't just... well, hmm... okay, I might be willing to trade for a large pile of tropical fruits and berries. Let's talk.

These days, I've been hanging out in two places I never would have imagined a year ago. First is Twitch, where I've found a group of wonderfully wholesome furry streamers and have found so much acceptance and love in the communities surrounding them. Second is VRChat, and this is the one that's still crazy to me. I got a VR headset very recently and have been spending a lot of time hanging out in the virtual world with friends I've made through Twitch. It's still blowing my mind that I can look down at my own body and see myself as a furry, and I can hang out "in person" with a bunch of other fluffy animals, despite the fact that most of them are 10,000 miles and several continents away. It's something that I thought would never be part of my life again after I moved abroad, but sometimes technology works miracles. If any of you folks from the old days of Furtopia happen to have VRChat, come say hi to ViridiaRoss.

So that's what I've been up to!

Arbutus · « **Reply #19 on:** December 12, 2021, 01:15:26 pm »

Double post, but...

Do y'all remember Mazz? I lost touch with her years ago when we both stopped posting on Furtopia, and I didn't know she remembered me or even knew about my new fursona or name. But today, out of the blue, I opened up FA and found this.

Small acts of kindness, man.

Kobuk · « **Reply #20 on:** December 12, 2021, 08:59:23 pm »

Nice to see you stopping in for a bit. *hugs*

A bird, eh? Interesting. Guess I'll have to go and get some bird seed for ya.

Or would you prefer something else?

I don't think anybody has heard from Mazz in a really long time. I can't remember the last time she was here on Furtopia.

Is this the link/image you were trying to post?

https://www.furaffinity.net/view/44998670/

Kay Alett · « **Reply #21 on:** December 12, 2021, 10:05:59 pm »

Arby! Good to see come around again and join the feathered side

That art of your bird is epic!

Arbutus · « **Reply #22 on:** December 13, 2021, 10:35:16 am »

Hey Kobuk buddy, glad to see you around! Thanks for the assist on the image - forgot you couldn't link directly to FA images on here.

Quote from: Kobuk on December 12, 2021, 08:59:23 pm

A bird, eh? Interesting. Guess I'll have to go and get some bird seed for ya. Or would you prefer something else?

Thanks for asking! I'll take all the figs and guavas you can load into the dump truck. TIA.

Quote from: Kay Alett on December 12, 2021, 10:05:59 pm

Arby! Good to see come around again and join the feathered side

That art of your bird is epic!

Hey, thanks a lot, Kay! I'm really thrilled with how well it helped Viridia come to life.

And I almost forgot you had gone feathery too! *wing high-five*

Firelight · « **Reply #23 on:** December 16, 2021, 04:53:04 pm »

*Sniffs from afar as I'm an introvert*
"Hi. What's up doc?" XD

Arbutus · « **Reply #24 on:** March 01, 2023, 05:44:29 pm »

The best thing about being a bird is that you can fly up to all the places you're not allowed to go.

Been thinking about this place lately, and I just wanted to pop by and say hi! As always in my life, a lot has changed since my last message. I'm still working in humanitarian aid, but I've moved up to our HQ in Switzerland. I'm steadily getting better at French and building a new life in Europe. My three cats are here with me, and although getting them to Switzerland from Uganda was one of the biggest travel nightmares I've ever gone through, I'm so glad to be reunited with them again.

Am still birb. (Chirp.) Am still very into the furry VR community. I've been to two cons in VR recently, Furality Aqua and Furality Luma Festival, and both were absolutely beautiful and amazing experiences. Somehow, after all these years, I've still never been to a real-life furry con and have barely met any furries IRL. But I'm going to fix that in May, as I'm flying across the Atlantic to come spend a week with some close furry friends I've met through Twitch and VR. I'm more excited than I've been for anything in a long time.

I hope you floofs are all doing well.