Yes, don't. Seriously, if you have an invitation to go over to a friends house, bring your own set. Oh, and if he's a casual player, be prepared to argue over the rules or bring a rule book (and still argue probably). "I don't care what that rulebook says. My move doesn't count until I let go of the piece; until I do of course I can change my mind and use another piece" OR "This is America, we don't speak French so that rule doesn't apply". Well, you get the idea...
Playing on strange boards?
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I've been getting decent at chess over the past couple months, but it was like everything I learned had disappeared when I went and played at my friend's house. He had one of those specialty sets where all the pieces are animals or whatever. I couldn't get a good sense for the board at all because I was constantly trying to remember which pieces were which. Has anyone come up with a good way to play on weird chess sets?