This, for those who don't know, is my completed Furvey, updated for 2008. The idea is that it will hopefully fill in a few more details About Us, for anyone who is actually interested. ;) Being a 'furvey' of course, it is very much biased towards furry questions. Can you handle it? With big purry thanks to Loganberry for telling me where to find the template. :)

1. What is your name?

Eliki. (A name, along with Leana, which turned up in a dream and, though I totally forgot the rest of it, those names seemed very celtic and unusual. So they stuck. Turns out Eliki is a lost Greek island but I'd never heard of it before that dream.) A few people call me Nicky from time to time. Fewer have lived to tell the tale. ;)

2. What is your email address?

Seek and ye shall find.

3. Are you male or female?

Yes. No. Maybe. Either or, one or the other, take your pick and stick with it. Male, actually. I think we'll quietly forget to mention that originally Eliki was a name I gave to a female snowkitten character.

4. How old are you? / What is your date of birth?

Younger than my gums and a little older than my teeth, as someone somewhere once said. 7th April 1973. Okay? Happy now? ;)

5. Where do you live?

In a stately home, staffed by over forty diligent workers, in an extremely wealthy part of the world called Colley Gate. Well okay, the fact I live in Colley Gate is true at least, and just so you know, that is near Halesowen, not far from Birmingham, in the UK.

6. What are your interests/hobbies?

Well, the obvious one of course is furry art and furry in general, though there are some aspects of furry that I have no interest in. But certainly drawing and looking at furry art is a main hobby. I do a lot of painting and drawing, and more recently I've been working on my snowkitten story, and what might, by a very loose definition, be called music. Which also lends itself to me mentioning that synths are also a big interest of mine. Retro games, such as from the Spectrum or early consoles, are something I like a lot too, and M&Ms hold a small amount of fascination for me as close friends know all too well. I love wandering round local woods and fields, and collecting damn fine kitty plushies and fairy ornaments.

7. What do you do for a living?

8. How would you describe your personality?

I think the predominant "feature" of my personality would have to be shyness, and I can be extremely nervous and quiet around people I don't know very well. With good reason, but that's not for here. What hasn't helped is the fact I have severe panic attacks which can sometimes happen for no reason at all, and tend to put a bit of a dampener on generally getting on with life, meeting people, and relaxing.

If people take the time (and have the patience) to get to know me, I can be a right chatterbox but it does take time. I do get on well with people most of the time though, and I love making friends where possible, plus I'm known as a good listener. I tend to be more optimistic than pessimistic, with the firm belief that mostly things do work out in the end, and often that is exactly what has happened. I have a strong romantic streak, which isn't a bad thing but does sometimes lead to some pretty bitter disappointments with life. I tend to daydream a lot, which is all to the good when dealing with panic attacks, believe me!

9. Do you believe in ESP? Do you consider yourself to be psychic?

No, not really. I have an open mind, but I'd say that mostly I'm just not sure it is possible.

10. Are you a meat eater?

Give me your leg to gnaw on and you'll find out...

11. Who are your favourite furry characters?

Too many to list. The ones that spring to mind straight away though would be Lucy from Better Days as well as Sabrina and Amy (both characters created by Eric Schwartz). I also like the cat(?) princess thing from Lavender Castle, though her name escapes me at the moment, Robin Hood and Maid Marion from the Disney version of the film, Zigzag (a Max Blackrabbit character) and Maxine Blackrabbit (also oddly enough a character created by Max Blackrabbit) and Pyndan from Katmandu.

12. What type of furry artwork do you enjoy viewing?

Almost always it tends to be cute furry art, which is why Michele Lights art grabbed my attention many years ago and still does. I like gothic furry art too, but avoid anything violent or gory, as that doesn't appeal in the slightest. And some furry adult art, as long as there is at least some sort of romantic streak to it. (Yiffy art for the sake of it generally just doesn't appeal all that much.)

13. What type of furry literature do you enjoy reading?

I haven't done a lot of reading recently owing to lack of time, but a few examples from the last few years would have to include "Tailchasers Song" by Tad Williams and "Book Of Night With Day" by Diane Duane. Both very good books written a bit like Watership Down, with their own language systems and everything written from the cats perspective. I also read the mighty "His Dark Materials" trilogy by Philip Pullman, which is somewhat furrier than most kids' books and also far better than the film, in my humbug opinion. Aside from that, just a few online comics such as Better Days, Catena and Sabrina Online. Not much else, as I'm just too fussy for words.

14. What types of furry media do you create?

Ooooh, well I draw furry art, as can be seen on this website, I've been creaking along with my snowkitten story, and now and again I do pencil crayon pictures of animals. That is pretty much it for now, but one day the Snowkitten Kids comic might eventually appear. I really wouldn't hold your breath where that is concerned though....

15. What types of animal/furry themed decorations adorn your living space?

Oh just a small handful of kitty plushies (and a few that aren't cats) which are on the bed, on shelves, hanging down from shelves, all over the top of my monitor and scanner, over the beanbag, covering the bed... A few cat pictures here and there, but there isn't a lot of room for those any more, what with all the shelves etc. Some cat mobiles too, and a kitty cushion literally shaped like a fat cat.

16. Describe your ideal plushie.

Cat shaped, possibly with a big, long, fluffy tail and packed with more than a squeeze of cuteness.

17. Do you enjoy wearing fursuits and/or furry accessories?

I have a cat pendant and a charm bracelet with little kittys all round the edge, but beyond that I don't go in for the furry accessories thing really. I do have a very nice pair of black kitty ears made specially for me by Fionacat, and maybe one day I'll have the nerve to wear those again in public. But certainly a full fursuit is not something that appeals to me in the slightest. It just isn't for me. As for collars, well as I said before, they imply ownership and you can take it from me that nobody owns a snowkitten. ;)

18. Do you feel 'furrier' when wearing a fursuit/collar/tail etc?

At one time I would have said yes to that, but these days I think the honest answer would be no, not especially.

19. Describe your favourite/ideal 'furry' appearance.

I can't really add anything to that which hasn't been written in Q17.

20. What are your phenotype(s)?

Snowkitten! Mystical magical mogs and cute as a button to boot. ;)

21. How/when did you discover the identity/species of your phenotype?

I found it in the bottom of a cornflake box. Nah, its just that I've always liked cats and admired them, so that in itself was a major reason for the "choice." The idea of the whole snowkitten thing was a result of putting together my story, or at least the notes for it, and it seemed an obvious choice to make the characters feline. My furry persona(s) were a natural choice after that, even more so. As for when, try this little essay for a full and thrilling account. ;)

22. What conditions help you to enjoy/express your furriness?

Through my furry art, mostly, though it also is very enjoyable doing a bit of role-playing on LJ and in emails to furry friends. (And sometimes by accident to non-furry friends, which can be just a little bit awkward. ;) ) The snowkitten story is also a very important part of expressing my furryness, since that is pretty much what started it all.

23. How and when was your furriness first evident?

And again might one point one in ones direction of ones little essay which will tell one all one will ever need to know and more besides. Allegedley.

24. How much of your furriness is 'instinct' vs 'learnt'?

I've never had any luck trying to answer this question. It just isn't something I think about or worry about. I just get on with it.

25. How does your furriness influence your thoughts and emotions?

Again, it isn't something I really think about a great deal, certainly not these days. I do think it has made me feel closer to cats, if that makes sense, and I've always loved exploring places like the local woods and fields, and the nearby huge deserted quarries. I do also know that since discovering furry, my plush buying abilities have increased in direct proportion to my willpower AGAINST buying plushies starting to vanish. These days I also always notice if there is a cat nearby, and they always seem to notice me...

26. Has your furriness improved the quality of your life?

Without any doubt at all I can say yes to this one. I've been able to be vastly more creative, with the furry art and the story, and had a lot of support with those projects from friends. And speaking of friends, I've found some invaluable and truly wonderful friends via furry, who really do mean the world to me, and who have helped with so much over the years. So that is a certain yes for this question!

27. What do you think caused your furriness?

A bad peanut in an M&M.

28. How does your furriness manifest itself externally?

If I'm annoyed about something and not happy, I'll sometimes hiss a bit. And mostly for fun, I've purred at people, though not so much these days, and done the "claw" thing with my hand. Aside from that I don't think there's much else to report, apart from someone mentioning that if I'm listening to something that I can't identify, I sometimes tilt my head slightly sideways.

29. Do you act furry in public?

See the previous question. Due to being so shy and nervous, the odds of "acting furry" in public are pretty much stacked against me anyway.

30. How does your furriness influence the way you interact with people?

I'm not sure it does, at least not face to face. It does affect emails - mostly to other furs - as I said elsewhere, but that is mostly about it really.

31. How much control do you have over your furriness?

It doesn't control me and I don't control it. I just get on with it, as I've mentioned elsewhere. :)

32. Would you become an animal/furry, if you -couldn't- change back?

What a stinker of a question. If it was tried and tested technology, and I had total control over the species (snowkitten of course) so I could be exactly like the characters I've drawn, then I suspect the answer would be a yes. Maybe. I don't know for sure though.

33. Describe your ideal physical form.

As mentioned in the last question, I'd want to be a snowkitten. The big fluffy tail is a definite must too. The magic side of things would be a nice extra, but that wouldn't be the main thing.

34. What kind of furry, non-sexual fantasies do you have?

Seeing as you said NON-sexual, that does somewhat limit it. ;) I suppose outside of whatever I draw in my furry art and write about in my story, there isn't a lot else I can really add to this answer.

35. Is your furriness compatible with your religion?

My beliefs are very unconventional and are totally my own, so I think it would only be fair to say a yes to this question.

36. Has your furriness led you to reconsider your religious beliefs?

See above - it just isn't something that really applies.

37. Have you ever communicated with an animal spirit?

No, not to my knowledge, not at all.

38. Do you believe that you were an animal in a former life?

No, and I don't believe in reincarnation. I suppose it would be a very nice thought if I knew for sure I HAD been a cat in a former life, but I really don't think it could have been the case.

39. Do you believe that you have an animal soul?

Oh yes, locked in a little pendant and only I have the key, and at night it howls to be unleashed. (The soul, not the key!) But I show no mercy. No. None at all.

40. What animals are you most/least comfortable with?

Well here is the scary thing - strangely enough I'm most comfortable around cats. ;) I don't like horrible little snappy dogs, but as long as I feel safe around a dog, I get along okay with them too. Actually I seem to be okay with most animals, though I am nowhere near as keen on snakes as I used to be, and insects really bug me. Gerrit? Hahaha. Oh never mind. ;)

41. Do you believe that animals have ESP?

See Q9. I'm not at all sure I believe in it. I do think that some animals have a strange instinct that we just don't know about yet or understand, but I don't think it would be ESP. What I'm thinking of is when cats can find their way home over huge distances, or track down owners that have moved a long way away. Or you sometimes find dogs know the exact moment their owners are on the way home, even if they are a very long way away at the time.

42. Do you think it is acceptable to hunt/raise animals for food?

I'm a meat eater, so it would be somewhat hypocritical to say no, really. I don't much like the fact they are treated like that, but what are the realistic alternatives?

43. Do you think it is acceptable to hunt/raise animals for fur/leather?

No, I really don't think that is acceptable, when there are plenty of synthetic alternatives which are just as good.

44. Do you think it is acceptable to hunt/raise animals for sport?

Hell no. Now, if you were to ask if it was acceptable to chase chinless wonders for sport, I might be more positive in my answer...

45. What are your favourite websites?

These are a few of the ones I like a lot:-

Jay Naylor/Better Days
Sabrina Online
Furaffinity
Catena

The above simply don't apply so there didn't seem much point answering them.

51. Describe your ideal partner. (Species / appearance / personality etc)

I've never been a big fan of this question, so for starters I'm missing out a reply regarding species. I'm not willing or able to say that a potential partner has to be furry. That makes no sense to me at all. If someone can't accept the fact you like furry art etc and that it's a part of who you are, then they aren't worth knowing in the first place. Appearances aren't so relevant - I would be mortified if people judged me from what I look like, so I wouldn't want to put that onto other people. Cute is a must though. With personality, I expect a few cliché bells will be ringing, but quite simply, they would have to be intelligent, trustworthy, honest, caring, funny, and patient enough to be able to deal with the various panics etc that I'm stuck with. Without those at the very least, they wouldn't get a second glance regardless of how good looking they were.

52. What type of furry sexual fantasies do you have?

That is none of your beeswax, bub. That one is for the closest of friends only.

53. Has your gender preference changed since discovering the furry community?

That is a tricky one - the simple answer is no, but things are never that simple with me.

54. What species of animal do you find the sexiest?

Well, let's just nip this one in the bud. I dislike zoophilia very much, and don't find actual animals sexy at all. As for anthro characters, kitties tend to be very high on the list, as do huskies, skunks, and bunny girls.

55. What part of an animal's body do you find the most attractive/sexy?

Very often the eyes. It tends to be the eyes that draw my attention first, closely followed by big fluffy tails, if at all available for eyeballing. Hence snowkittens were gifted with big fluffy tails!

56. What cartoon characters are/were you attracted to?

See Q11 for the main clues. Tina and Alison from ASB still rate pretty high though.