Interview with Scotteh
| « Previous Article | Home | Next Article » |
I was jolted awake by a massive bump. Groggy and fearing an earthquake, I quickly tumbled out of bed to take shelter, remembering nothing but the sixth rewatching of "Frozen" I had last night. Abruptly, I rolled right within the legspace of what seemed to be a taxi. It smelled like sunburnt leather and musky cider, and my head pressed against a hard box—a suitcase.
I quickly sat up and noticed a note taped to my knee.
"Sorry about this, but we needed you early," the note read. "The last guy didn't make it."
I had previously signed up to be an interviewer for the Smog, but I was waitlisted because there was already someone prepared to take on the job. It would have been a dream come true, but I couldn't stop thinking about what happened to "the last guy." Pushing the thought to the back of my mind, I looked at the address written on the note. I was in Scotland. There was more writing on the back of the note.
"Also, put some better clothes on. No one wants to see your Teddiursa pajamas."
The taxi dropped me off at the front of what seemed to be a high end, exclusive club. Looking at the magnificent building, I made a mental note in my mind confirming every alcohol-related Scottish stereotype I had ever heard. I approached the door, but the two burly guards wouldn't let me in without a pass and a secret tap dance, which I couldn't do in Ducklett slippers. I requested that Scotteh be notified that his interviewer had arrived, and waited out in the back. After a few minutes, he came.
Hey, Scotteh!
Hi there.
It wasn't easy trying to get ahold of you, haha. I'm sure we're all excited to get to know you, so let's get some background information. Where are you from, and how did you find Pokémon Showdown?
I'm from Glasgow, Scotland. I can't remember exactly when I started going on Showdown (according to it, this name was registered in June 2012), but I've been around on Pokémon simulators since the days of NetBattle, but never really took an active role in the community until the last few months.
Awesome! For a person with such an extensive history playing Pokémon, what made you suddenly so interested in participating in the community in the last few months? What was it like, starting off?
I've been playing Pokémon for just over two thirds of my life—I think what got me involved in the community initially was curiosity more than anything else. It's definitely changed a lot in the last few years, though I got to know a few good people, and they drove me to participate even more in the community.
Well, we're definitely glad to have you.
It's great to be here.
So, tell me a little bit more about yourself. Besides Pokémon, what else do you like to do? It's quite obvious from your involvement in numerous different channels on PS! that you have many other hobbies. :)
Well, I'm currently a student (MSci in Physics), but in my free time, I enjoy playing guitar and piano. You've caught me at the back end of Freshers' Week, so the party life has been pretty crazy recently. I also program, and hopefully will end up bringing my JavaScript competence to a level where I can properly contribute to that aspect of Showdown eventually, too.
That's really neat! You're certainly quite musically talented. Are there any genres / musicians you specifically prefer? (Bagpipes, maybe?)
Haha, I tried playing bagpipes once... you need good lungs for it. The vast majority of my favourite musicians and bands fall into '60s and '70s Classic Rock (The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, Eric Clapton, Dire Straits, Jimi Hendrix, etc), but I'm often not very fussy with what I listen to, as long as it's good.
I could definitely tell, as the music flowed out of the open shutters windows from the back of the club.
So, Scotteh, you mentioned being caught up in partying. Would you consider yourself to be a party animal, or a more laid-back kind of guy?
I think I'm capable of being both of those people, but my default is probably the laidback guy—I do enjoy chilling out.
Awesome. It definitely shows from your ability to lead the chat in such an efficient manner. Speaking of which, going back to your experiences on the simulator—what inspired you to become part of the staff? How would you best describe your acclaim to fame? :)
Hmm... that's a good question. If memory serves, I first became a member of Showdown staff back in June (and at the time, mikel prefaced the promotion by asking me if I "liked dealing with dumb people"). I think what inspired me to become part of the staff was mainly the community on Showdown itself being so brilliant—everyone here is so friendly. I think it's important that we keep it that way, and improve it even more for all of the users.
I smiled inside. People like that made me glad to be involved myself.
Certainly. What are your most memorable moments on the server? They can be anything, from battles to conversations. What makes you keep coming back? :)
Well, as I said, the community here is brilliant. It's the people that keep me coming back for more. When it comes to memorable events... well, I'm always amused when Showdown celebrates an event by doing something special (for example, the AFD sprites). I also enjoy battling and watching friends battle (I'm still not as good as I'd like though—I'm working on that) though it can get a bit chaotic sometimes in our battles! It's all in good fun, though.
I totally agree.
At this point, some people walked out of the club and peeked around the corner. It seemed like Scotteh's presence was needed.
One last question before you go: What are your opinions on Scottish independence?
Oh boy, and here I thought it was all over... I've done a lot of research into it myself, and I believe that Scotland is better as part of the union. I voted no, of course. There was a pretty grim mood in Glasgow the day after the referendum, since Glasgow was one of the few areas that voted "yes" overall, but I'm glad with the outcome. It also got a lot of people involved in politics who wouldn't have otherwise, which I think is great.
Well, it looks like some of your friends are wondering where you are, so I'll let you get back to them. Thanks for answering!
Alright, take care. Be careful, Glasgow can be pretty dangerous at night.
As Scotteh returned to his party, I decided to make my way back home too. Normally, I would have been nervous about his warning, but I'd already taken a bashing getting there in the first place. Besides, I had much more important things on my mind, such as finding the nearest and cheapest apple cider café.
| « Previous Article | Home | Next Article » |