4/6/2026
This past weekend we visited Durham, NC for Bewhiskered, 2026! It was our second trip to our most-local furcon and we had a great time! It was my first time getting to wear my commissioned therian mask out of the house. We got some great photos with some furries with really neat fursuits. I participated in the fursuit photo, though I was only wearing a partial with a therian mask. The panels were not what I expected, but the Battle Zoo dance competition was outstanding, just like it was last year. The highlight for me is just getting a chance to wear my furry stuff around other furries and feel comfortable. It’s hard to overstate how good that feels. Seeing furries – and being one of them – in the downtown of a big city is very precious to me.
We also did some non-furry stuff in Durham, including a really nice night out at Nanasteak by the Durham Bulls stadium. On Sunday we had a Big Bad Breakfast before heading to Boxcar Arcade. We learned that Jess is better than me at air hockey, skee ball, and video games, though I tend to do better than her at pinball. The Pokemon pinball machine was my favorite, of course. We also dumped several dollars each into the big, immersive House of the Dead rail shooter, which was awesome.
After we exhausted our tokens, we strolled around downtown Durham. We found a little park that had a big cardinal sculpture!
cute community-owed bookstore, as well as a small vintage shop that had an Audubon print from the 40’s! I was quite taken by it, though I did not have the $250 it would have taken to carry it home with us.
Other bits – Jess does not like driving around Durham, and has declared that next year I will be our pilot. Our hotel was nice – not one of the con hotels, just a Hilton relatively nearby. Overall it was a lovely trip. Jess is a perfect travelling companion and I can’t wait to go again next spring!
