1-2-1
Created | Updated Jun 20, 2003
Well, here we are again... another week and another 1-2-1 interview. This week we will be
chatting with the one the only...
WOWBAGGER!!! I know the excitement of
delving into the world of 'The Great One' makes all your hearts skip a beat so please, any of you with health problems please consult your physician before reading any further. Now, without further ado, let's have a warm welcome for Wowbagger!!
I don't know about the rest of you but I was quite curious as to how the famous Wowbagger spent his days so, I asked him. He responded by saying that he started the normal way... he got up. Once he recovers from the shock of a new day he stumbles in to feed the family cat then leaves for work. (How about getting showered or dressed?, wonder how his co-workers feel about him coming into the office fresh from bed?) Work at present involves a complex series of buses. Nothing about work seems average for him at the moment, as he's only just finished his first week there, but so far he's designed animation characters, created model sheets, edited scripts and created story- boards. He has also roughed out a few designs for e-cards and suggested colour schemes for the characters (whew!).
Normally he returns home about 6p.m.where he proceeds to check his e-mail then visit h2g2 for an hour or so. Once these necessities are taken care of he swallows a bite or two of food, catches a bit of TV then it is off to bed for him where he starts all over again. (Hopefully he thinks about showers and clothes on the next day. ;-) )
He has been quite active in h2g2 for quite some time now and one of his most famous escapades on h2g2 was running for virtual mayor over on Shazz's page. He found the whole concept to be a fun idea and making an appealing platform was the best part for him. If I recall correctly he was the one who suggested turning the cabinet into a life-sized replica of the Enterprise-D (from Star Trek). This actually succeeded in getting him a few votes which amazed him LOL!! He was aware of the fact that he was not really in the race due to Fenchurch's presence. In his words;
'Fenchurch is a sweet person and thoroughly deserved her win.'
He was however very surprised and flattered to be in the 'second group' when it came to the number of votes received. In fact he loved this experience so much that whenever the next election comes up he will be there with bells on.
When asked about how he came to draw the wonderful cartoons that he shares with us each week he credited it to boredom at school. He found it was a nice way to drift off and still look as if he was working! In high school he used to set himself the challenge of drawing the teacher then showing said teacher his masterpiece at the end of class. There was always pressure when it came to doing this and not getting into trouble with the teacher for it (if that doesn't hone your skills nothing will). He spent some time working at flea markets and such as a portrait sketcher but thinks that does more harm than good for your technique. While he was teaching he became heavily involved in amateur theatre, and made posters for 6 years worth of productions as well as any other artwork they wanted him to do. When he needed a break from teaching he found out about an animation degree being offered at Brisbane University and decided to go for it! Which brings us to where he is now, working where he can do what he loves... Draw.
He is currently the sole employee for a company who wishes to create a series of web sites for kids. He's been hired as an animator, but is doing a lot of other things for them as well such as; writing scripts, designing characters and deciding on content (his teaching background is going to help him out a great deal there). He will also be learning a bit about web page design so that they can begin making games, activities and projects. He says it's pretty much early days in terms of saying what the content is going to be, but finds it to be a lot of fun and should be a great adventure. He's only been working there for a week now, but has enjoyed it thoroughly so far and feels it is going to be great fun! :-) (Work and Fun in the same sentence? Is that legal? ;-) )
When not working he admits to being addicted to h2g2, finding that he really enjoys the pocket universe that the site has created. He still marvels at how this site attracts such friendly and good-natured people. One of his greatest joys is creating cartoons for the POST, especially h2g2 life, because he's never done that sort of thing on such a regular basis. There are, however, weeks when he finds himself a bit stumped about what kind of cartoon to do, so if anyone out there has any suggestions for a cartoon please feel free to drop him a line about it on his homepage.
Outside of h2g2 (what? IS there a life outside?) he watches a lot of movies, reads not as many books as he would like, hangs around a lot of bookstores though, enjoys eating nice food cooked by talented people, and has a very large and very diverse CD collection (everything from AC/DC to Frank Zappa). He jokes around with his wife Yvette, who sometimes tolerates his sense of humour, and wrestle with their cat Tasha, who barely tolerates either of them (Yip, that's a cat for you;-) ).
Finally... while chatting with Wowbagger I wondered what his drink and food of choice was... well, ask and ye shall receive, right? That is exactly what happened. He used to drink bourbon until his tastes grew too expensive for his wallet. Now he mainly drinks beer, with Guinness being his drink of choice. He also finds that a good Australian red wine (the finest red in the world) goes down a treat too. He is, however, quick to say that you'll have to come to Australia to get it, because they keep the best stuff for themselves. He is the cook in his house (hmmm... must have my hubby talk to him ;-) ), so he loves getting out and eating whatever someone else has cooked. In this he is not fussy. He loves seafood restaurants, Japanese, Italian, Thai, Indian, Vietnamese and Turkish. After a good meal he loves to top it off with a great dessert... this is just about anything for him, if it is sweet and fattening he will attack it at once ;-).
Well, there you have it Dear Readers, Wowbagger the man. Now, why don't you all put on your thinking caps and post some great ideas for future cartoons on his homepage. Just think of the pride in knowing that your idea was turned into a Wowbagger Original!!
