I immersed myself in furry culture. You don’t understand them.
We’re going to wander up to the third floor of Mason Hall — up those evil stairs — on a Sunday afternoon and stumble into room 3427. We’ll find a happy crowd of a few dozen students, picking their way over a spread of colored pencils, scissors and other art supplies. Someone is drawing. Someone else is streaming a football game on their computer. It is Sunday, after all.
Oh, also, I should mention: You might see fuzzy, dismembered, anthropomorphic animal heads on tabletops around the room. That’s because we have discovered the furries of the University of Michigan, officially known as the Anthropomorphic Art Association.
On the day I walked into Mason 3427, a few minutes late, I was greeted warmly by Dante Garetto, a stylish, mulleted LSA junior from Singapore and the president of the AAA, who proceeded to introduce me to his audience:
“Liam Rappleye, an award-winning student journalist, will be here today working on a story about us,” Garetto said. I scoffed at the aggrandizing introduction, but sat down and took my place nonetheless. The two hours I had arranged for this interview have since turned into three enlightening weeks.
