This week (is a little late) I interviewed talented and long time Arena member Gator! Thanks so much!
Personal Interview-Where did you get your user name?I had created my own Big Brother pegasus named Gator, who had two alligators for his symbol (sort of like Happy Tails pony style). When I found the arena, I picked him as my name and persona.
How old are you?45
Do you go to school or work?Work. Licensed veterinary technician.
What are your hobbies?Reading, writing, and drawing. Toy collecting.
Do you have any pets?I currently have four cats. Cena, named after wrestler John Cena. Austin, named after wrestler stone cold Steve Austin. My Austin has one blue eye, so that is his stone cold blue eye
. I picked wrestler names because as kittens they loved to wrestle! Carter, named after Sheriff Carter from the hit television series "Eureka". And finally Sassy.
I didn't name her, the neighbor's daughter did. My dog and chickens have passed away recently in the last year or so
What do you like/dislike about yourself?I like that I'm creative and a hard worker. I dislike my appearance and my anxiety.
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?I would love to go to New Zealand or Australia. I passed up an opportunity to be an exchange student in high school to Australia and I still regret it.
Do you collect anything other than ponies?Transformers, Disney animation related items (art books, VHS/DVDs, Disney diecast Cars collection), some pokemon, 80's toys from my childhood. I used to collect Breyers as a kid. I still have my collection but have not added to it in a long while.
Ponies-How long have you been collecting ponies?I started collecting about 1995 when I was in college. I had ponies in the 80's as a kid. But they were not toys for boys, and I was forced to get rid of them. My dad even burned Applejack in a burning pit we had.
Why did you start collecting ponies?In 1995, on my way home from college for a weekend, I stopped at a flea/antique store. I found a baby Yo-yo newborn. The memories of my childhood ponies, the tv series, the Rescue at Midnight Castle, all came flooding back. Soon I was scouring flea markets, Goodwill, and thrift stores for ponies. Then I stumbled upon ebay! Uh-oh!!!
Who is your favorite pony and why?Paradise. I had her as a kid and she was one of my favorites then. Her colors really appeal to me, the red and the green.
Who is your least favorite pony and why?Not a specific pony, but I would say the SHS ponies. I don't collect them. I just feel like with their super long legs they don't fit in with other pony groups.
Who is your favorite pony from another country?Brazilian Heart Throb! I found her sometime between 1995-1998 at a thrift store in Georgia, here in the USA. For years I didn't know what she was. I thought she was a fakie until I discovered the online pony community. So now for years I've wondered how she journeyed to the US herself and ended up in that thrift store. Did she journey with her little girl across countries and continents, and then like Jessie on Toy Story get left behind?
Who is your favorite fakie?No fakies for me.
Who was your first pony?My first pony as a child was rainbow Windy.
What pony did you get recently?I just got Vanilla Treat, the cookery pony, as well as some amazing HQG1C ponies!
What is your favorite generation?G1
What is your favorite part about collecting?Imagining a magical world full of colorful and amazing creatures. I think that's why I'm drawn to animation and fantasy, and why I collect. You want to visit those worlds. I want to go to Dream Valley. I want to go to the Forest of Feelings or Care-a-lot. I want to escape.
I think of Dream Valley and colorful horses/ponies when I hear "A Million Dreams"
"I close my eyes and I can see
A world that's waiting up for me
That I call my own
Through the dark, through the door
Through where no one's been before
But it feels like home.
Cause every night, I lie in bed
The brightest colors fill my head
A million dreams are keeping me awake
I think of what the world could be
A vision of the one I see"
All the colors! All the magic!
How big is your collection? A lot. Not counting SHS, Precious Pocket, adult Ballerinas and a few others I don't actively collect, I have almost all the US ponies I want. The ones I need are, of course, the harder to find expensive ponies I may never have.
What do your friends and family think about your collection?Because I'm a guy not very many know about it. I've kept my collection hidden in boxes for twenty years, and I have only started to pull them out and display them the last four years or so.
Do you still play with your ponies?Not really play. I like to move them around and rearrange them, etc.
What rare or popular pony makes you ask why!?Rapunzel. She doesn't appeal to me. Sweet Scoops is pretty. I would like her one day.
If you had to have a pony symbol tattooed on your butt, which would you pick and why?I'm not a tattoo person, so hard to say. If I had to, um, Starshine or Sunbeam's sun? Simple and wouldn't have to mean anything?
If you could have any pony remade in a different generation, who would you choose and why?Paradise. Wouldn't she look cute as a G3 or G4?
What has been the worst part about collecting?The money! It's getting too expensive! As a struggling college student, I had no money. Now as an adult, those ponies from 20 years ago are skyrocketing in price!
Wish I could have or would have bought more back then.
What is your ultimate collecting goal?Just to finish the ponies I want. Like I said above, I skip a few sets, and I'm not into a ton of variants though I have a few.
What is your biggest collecting accomplishment?Mommy and Baby mail order.
What is your biggest collecting regret?Not sure a biggest one. Many times I just wish I had bit the bullet and bid higher on some auctions!
Who is your grail pony and why?Sweet Scoops. She's very pretty and IMO just have to have!
Do you have it?No
Do you prefer loose or MIP ponies?I like both. I have several MIB/MOC ponies, but then I do like to have a loose one to hold.
Quick! Close your eyes and grab a pony! Who did you get?Baby Shaggy. I have a box at hand of newborns I'm trying to re-home.
Are you a customizer?I have used HQG1C blanks to do a few, and I only just recently used a Baby Moondancer to customize. She was pretty rough, so I think she likes being reborn into something beautiful again. It was a hard decision to use her though.
Would you ever be?yes
What do you think of custom ponies?I like them, though I prefer simple, G1 inspired ponies and themes.
What are acceptable and unacceptable pony flaws, in your opinion?I don't like hair cuts or badly damaged eyes/symbols.
Would you rather have a bait pony or a fakie?Bait
Do you watch pony shows/movies?Yes
Which ones?I love to watch the old G1 stuff. I did watch some of the G4 series, but not all. Like I hated G3 Pinkie Pie, but loved G4 Pinkie in the series.
Do you read pony comics?no
What is the worst thing you've ever done to a pony?I have used two Basic Fun Starshines as wing donors for my customs
Fill in the blank!"I wish Hasbro would make more G1 inspired ponies of course!"
"When I was new to ponies I didn't know Perfume Puff's hair was supposed to look like that! I thought some kid really messed up Dainty's hair! I cut it off!"
"I think the most underappreciated pony is Tootsie because I like her colors."
"I think more ponies should have so soft fuzz!"
"I don't like Precious Pockets because how do you live with that stuff hanging off your butt?"
"I love ponies because they make me happy and make me smile."
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