Dec. 13, 2023

TRAINER'S EYE #68 - "Pokemon Encounters From A Wheelchair" ft. BirdmanDodd from This Week in Geek

TRAINER'S EYE #68 -
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Season 1 Podcasters Pokemon Trainers Living With Disabilities

In this Pokemon interview, we are joined by BirdmanDodd, a Pokemon Trainer from Guelph, Ontario and the co-host of This Week in Geek, who shares his experience with Pokemon from a wheelchair.

BirdmanDodd shares the transformative power of Pokémon GO in his life, revealing how the game opened doors to community engagement and connection. From PokéStops to Gym battles, he navigates the Pokémon GO landscape from the vantage point of his wheelchair, offering a glimpse into the challenges that shaped his experience.

BirdmanDodd candidly discusses the unique challenges of playing Pokémon GO from a wheelchair, he also unveils the profound change in perspective that the game has brought to his life. Pokémon GO has become more than just a game; it's offered him new friends and newfound empowerment and possibilities.

Trainer's Eye is a series where the stories are real and people still play this game. From PVP to Shiny Hunting, each person's Pokemon GO journey is unique and we dive into each journey here on As The Pokeball Turns!

Sources
Opening Song: "Forget You" by Alex_MakeMusic from Pixabay

Connect with BirdManDodd: Twitter | Website

Send us a text

Support the show

Connect with David Hernandez: Linktree
E-mail Me: asthepokeballturnspodcast@gmail.com

Join Our Discord Community!
https://discord.gg/AqAbD7FbRt

Transcript
WEBVTT

00:00:00.016 --> 00:00:03.596
My name is David Hernandez, and you're listening to As the Pokeball Turns.

00:00:43.993 --> 00:00:49.593
Welcome to As the Pokeball Turns, where the stories are real and people still play this game.

00:00:49.904 --> 00:00:55.896
Our journey takes us to Guelph, a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, also known as the Royal City.

00:00:56.195 --> 00:01:04.016
Here we meet a Pokemon trainer who overnight went from being an able bodied individual to transitioning into a new chapter from a wheelchair.

00:01:04.328 --> 00:01:10.567
Despite the sudden shift, he was able to find community and a way to embrace his new life thanks to Pokemon Go.

00:01:10.867 --> 00:01:18.518
He shares insight into the unique daily challenges he faces when it comes to both daily living and accessibility with playing this game.

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Accessibility is a hot topic when it comes to not only Pokemon Go, but gaming as a whole.

00:01:24.346 --> 00:01:32.736
Without knowing someone personally, or hearing from reputable people first hand, it's easy to ignore or dismiss outcries of accessibility discrimination.

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The conversation changes from someone like me who can only really theorize or imagine life with a disability to someone who lives it daily, someone who can share from personal experience what challenges they do face and really bring merit into the discussion with accessibility and Pokemon Go.

00:01:49.158 --> 00:01:57.834
My guest is the self proclaimed prophecy foretold of a nerd who would rise up from the internet and usher in a new era of glory and stupidity.

00:01:58.147 --> 00:02:00.748
He is the co host of This Week in Geek.

00:02:01.045 --> 00:02:04.034
Here is his origin story into the world of Pokemon Go.

00:02:04.337 --> 00:02:06.131
This is Birdman Dodd.

00:02:07.355 --> 00:02:11.644
today, I'm joined by the cohost of This Week in Geek, Mike.

00:02:11.644 --> 00:02:13.104
Mike, welcome to the show.

00:02:13.688 --> 00:02:14.248
Hey, Dave.

00:02:14.248 --> 00:02:16.889
It is fantastic, to, be here on your podcast.

00:02:16.889 --> 00:02:24.812
I'm very glad we had a chance to connect on Twitter because I'm not calling it x, but I'm, uh, very glad that we just randomly found, each other.

00:02:24.812 --> 00:02:34.324
I've had a chance to listen to a couple of your episodes and, uh, I gotta say, you have a fantastic podcast, and I'm so glad someone is out there interviewing players.

00:02:34.324 --> 00:02:38.389
I think your hashtag is, like, fifty two weeks, fifty two guests or something like

00:02:38.758 --> 00:02:38.998
Yes.

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It is.

00:02:39.399 --> 00:02:43.799
It's the highlight fifty two people within this past year, and they all come from different walks of life.

00:02:43.799 --> 00:02:45.419
That's why I like to do my podcast.

00:02:45.855 --> 00:02:48.860
That is fantastic, and that is such a great hook.

00:02:48.941 --> 00:02:52.401
So thank you for allowing me to be part of that hashtag.

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Definitely.

00:02:53.600 --> 00:03:02.967
And I appreciate you just being able to agree to come on the show because you're gonna share a unique perspective in regards to, you know, how Pokemon GO affects you, and I look forward to diving into that.

00:03:03.268 --> 00:03:08.862
But as I said earlier, you're actually a podcast host for a different kind of podcast, to where y'all cover stuff that's geek.

00:03:08.943 --> 00:03:10.302
Pokemon's kinda geeky in a way.

00:03:10.302 --> 00:03:10.622
Right?

00:03:10.923 --> 00:03:11.362
Yeah.

00:03:11.532 --> 00:03:25.247
my podcast originally started back in two thousand and Seven as part of a college project way back when when podcasting was still very much in its infancy, sort of like that Leo Laporte this week in text, Amber Mack sort of thing.

00:03:25.247 --> 00:03:28.805
So my original cohost at the time And I just got together.

00:03:28.805 --> 00:03:32.025
We started doing this podcast for my local college.

00:03:32.497 --> 00:03:39.479
It Started as a radio program, we asked if we could podcast it, and they let us, and we just kept going.

00:03:39.539 --> 00:03:43.384
So I've been continuously podcasting since Two thousand and seven.

00:03:43.677 --> 00:03:47.698
As far as I understand, I'm the longest running Canadian podcast.

00:03:47.995 --> 00:03:49.935
Thousands of hours of audio.

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It's taken me All across the country, and into the United States.

00:03:54.152 --> 00:03:56.013
I've been on television before.

00:03:56.103 --> 00:03:59.752
I've been a journalist, I've done a lot of interesting things in regards to that.

00:03:59.752 --> 00:04:05.039
I've been on Kevin Smith's comic book men when that show is still on the air.

00:04:05.341 --> 00:04:05.661
Yeah.

00:04:05.661 --> 00:04:15.842
It's Taking me some pretty cool places, and all I gotta do is talk about Batman fighting the master chief and why Goku could Beat the crap out of Edward Cullen from the Twilight franchise.

00:04:15.981 --> 00:04:20.401
By the way, real argument I had with someone back in two thousand and nine.

00:04:20.697 --> 00:04:21.197
Really?

00:04:21.797 --> 00:04:22.757
Oh my god.

00:04:22.757 --> 00:04:24.357
They're like, he's so powerful.

00:04:24.357 --> 00:04:26.177
Like, he could nuke a planet.

00:04:26.557 --> 00:04:27.617
I don't care.

00:04:28.372 --> 00:04:33.372
I love you, but you're clearly dumber than advertised it was a good time.

00:04:33.622 --> 00:04:41.507
It reminds me of the Goku versus Superman arguments because those that's kinda usually the big ones because Superman's kinda from the former kinda superpower kinda guy.

00:04:41.507 --> 00:04:42.814
Goku's kinda more present day.

00:04:43.112 --> 00:04:44.391
People come from both sides.

00:04:44.391 --> 00:04:50.252
Now I'm more on the Superman side, to be honest, but people go on both sides defending each character in those kind of imaginary fights.

00:04:50.706 --> 00:04:51.244
Oh, yeah.

00:04:51.244 --> 00:05:01.497
Like, way back, when the whole death battle debacle started on the old screw attack forms, which is where some people might recognize me from, as well as I'm the screw attack guy.

00:05:01.803 --> 00:05:05.850
I remember many animated conversations on those forums about that.

00:05:05.850 --> 00:05:09.326
And I'm a Goku guy because I love Dragon Ball.

00:05:09.625 --> 00:05:10.235
But, Yeah.

00:05:10.235 --> 00:05:25.541
I've had some pretty interesting who would win in a fight debates, but I think the most interesting was probably Batman versus the master chief and Edward Cullen versus Goku, which led to hours long conversations and, Clearly, having a life is not a high priority for me.

00:05:25.541 --> 00:05:26.041
So

00:05:26.137 --> 00:05:28.057
It's a It's a nerdy life.

00:05:28.057 --> 00:05:28.557
Right?

00:05:28.672 --> 00:05:33.232
It's like when we go to, like, who's gonna win a Pokemon battle or who's gonna win between two different Pokemon?

00:05:33.232 --> 00:05:36.132
Like, that's the fun part with that we live and love to talk about.

00:05:36.423 --> 00:05:36.983
Oh, yeah.

00:05:36.983 --> 00:05:42.408
Like, I fully embrace being a nerd and a dork have somehow turned it into a semi living.

00:05:42.706 --> 00:05:47.846
Like, even now, it's led to a career in the role playing game industry.

00:05:48.357 --> 00:05:54.456
It's so wild like when I think back to my adoptive parents telling me you need to get a real job.

00:05:54.456 --> 00:06:02.848
And they automatically assumed because I went to college, I would be a CEO of some computer company because they were in their sixties when they adopted me.

00:06:02.848 --> 00:06:03.668
Long story.

00:06:03.809 --> 00:06:07.641
and it was like, guys, the world Doesn't work like that.

00:06:07.641 --> 00:06:12.461
I'm not gonna be handed a multimillion dollar corporation because I took a couple of classes.

00:06:13.161 --> 00:06:14.286
So No.

00:06:14.505 --> 00:06:25.947
And it's so funny because when I recently went to school for radio, I actually went to school for television At first, I used to volunteer at my local television station in Southern Ontario.

00:06:26.007 --> 00:06:33.519
I was, a small town called Owen Sound, I used to do the Ontario, hockey league and I really started to love that.

00:06:33.528 --> 00:06:43.605
but when I went to Niagara college where I discovered radio, and I just discovered that there is a niche for it, even talk radio, there are nerdy kind of programs like that.

00:06:43.605 --> 00:06:53.221
Like, I remember growing up, I was very much into, Art Bell, who was a radio host, he would do that Coast to Coast AM, and he was like conspiracy radio.

00:06:53.221 --> 00:07:03.817
But his presentation skills were second to none, and it was a big thing for me to wanna continue in the industry, but also people like Howard Stern because I'd love that over top shock jock stuff.

00:07:04.115 --> 00:07:13.550
And when I my second year courses at Niagara, they put us into radio and television, and I have no interest being on TV, though it happens occasionally.

00:07:13.692 --> 00:07:20.050
and I remember my professor at the time saying, no one's gonna wanna see a fat guy with with flaming red hair.

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I had red hair that was like a Blaziken.

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It was that vibrant

00:07:24.975 --> 00:07:26.675
Blaziken before Blaziken existed.

00:07:26.968 --> 00:07:27.528
Oh, yeah.

00:07:27.528 --> 00:07:28.567
I was so hardcore.

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He's like, you can't do that.

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I'm like, motherfucker, watch me.

00:07:34.273 --> 00:07:36.892
And he didn't like that response too much.

00:07:36.892 --> 00:07:49.463
but, yeah, it has turned into such a weird and wacky career Over the years and just understanding that you don't have to be put in this little bubble if you have that creativity and that drive to do something interesting.

00:07:49.463 --> 00:07:54.463
And if you really embrace that nerd life, you can find a way to make it work for you.

00:07:55.050 --> 00:07:58.009
I think that's the best part about just podcast in general.

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I've interviewed a lot of podcast.

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You're not the first one.

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You won't be the lsat.

00:08:01.370 --> 00:08:06.045
And they all come from the same standpoint to where they wanna create something, and they wanna create something around they're passionate about.

00:08:06.410 --> 00:08:12.769
And just to hear how you just so passionate about the nerdy side of just life, and you wanted to be able to share that with the masses.

00:08:12.990 --> 00:08:16.430
It's truly inspirational, especially going on from two thousand seven to present day.

00:08:16.430 --> 00:08:17.555
That's Sixteen years.

00:08:17.555 --> 00:08:18.694
That's almost two decades.

00:08:18.783 --> 00:08:19.283
Yeah.

00:08:19.343 --> 00:08:21.923
My podcast is old enough to get a license.

00:08:21.983 --> 00:08:28.077
It's old enough to It's almost old enough buy a lottery ticket, and hopefully, it's kissed a girl by now.

00:08:28.177 --> 00:08:33.373
so So my podcast, it's growing up so fast.

00:08:33.447 --> 00:08:34.508
Oh my gosh.

00:08:34.807 --> 00:08:36.827
Well, my last question regards to the podcast.

00:08:36.967 --> 00:08:42.899
You know, like I said, sixteen years, What about it kept you motivated to keep going just to do podcasting?

00:08:43.404 --> 00:08:47.746
honestly, it's a lot of interesting experiences and guests that I've spoken to.

00:08:47.746 --> 00:08:53.148
I've spoken to a number, number rather of voice actors, People like Sean Schemmel.

00:08:53.207 --> 00:08:56.427
I've talked with people who've worked on major movies.

00:08:57.143 --> 00:09:02.899
.My big reason to stay with podcasting is I'm a very big believer in the news should always be free.

00:09:03.202 --> 00:09:07.028
I don't like the idea of having a Patreon for my podcast.

00:09:07.028 --> 00:09:10.967
Because if I've done it for sixteen years for free, I'm not gonna start charging you tomorrow.

00:09:11.327 --> 00:09:18.100
So my belief is if I can provide you entertainment and information, infotainment, if you will.

00:09:18.403 --> 00:09:22.950
I will always do that because I love to serve an audience that has supported me for this long.

00:09:22.950 --> 00:09:32.043
They followed me across multiple websites, multiple outlets and I occasionally get some really nice emails from people saying you've helped me during a Really difficult time.

00:09:32.043 --> 00:09:34.962
In fact, there was one piece of mail that I got.

00:09:34.962 --> 00:09:43.631
he said, Mike, the fact that you've stayed so enthusiastic about stuff that you love and you've never let it grind you down, That's really encouraging.

00:09:43.692 --> 00:09:48.802
If I can hear you talk about Star Wars for two hours and you never lose your enthusiasm, that's encouraging.

00:09:48.861 --> 00:09:51.522
That gives me hope that I don't have to grow up.

00:09:51.706 --> 00:09:55.725
I don't have to be this miserable person that my parents want me to be.

00:09:56.025 --> 00:10:03.815
I like to think I'm helping in my own way just by being that in what I feel to be a true and authentic representation of myself.

00:10:03.815 --> 00:10:07.274
So just always being enthusiastic and happy about life.

00:10:07.596 --> 00:10:12.472
I think that's the main reason I keep going plus Getting free stuff is kinda cool too.

00:10:14.658 --> 00:10:16.658
This is Mike from This Week in Geek.

00:10:16.658 --> 00:10:19.873
We'll talk more about how you can connect with him later and where to check out his podcast.

00:10:20.285 --> 00:10:21.645
you focus on nerdy stuff.

00:10:21.645 --> 00:10:22.846
Focus on nerdy stuff all the way.

00:10:22.846 --> 00:10:24.046
What do you know about Pokemon?

00:10:24.046 --> 00:10:25.985
What was your first experience with the franchise?

00:10:26.676 --> 00:10:27.155
Okay.

00:10:27.155 --> 00:10:30.196
So this goes all the way back to high school.

00:10:30.196 --> 00:10:32.916
So and we're going nineteen nineties, folks.

00:10:32.916 --> 00:10:34.640
So News flash.

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I'm old as shit.

00:10:36.081 --> 00:10:36.581
So,

00:10:36.605 --> 00:10:37.105
Amen.

00:10:38.240 --> 00:10:51.650
so I remember me and my best friend at the time, Ryan, He got me into the anime, and I thought it was really cool because at that time, small town Ontario, anime was not very accessible Unless you had, like, YTV.

00:10:51.870 --> 00:10:54.691
And I grew up in the stick, so I didn't have cable.

00:10:54.910 --> 00:10:56.350
I barely had satellites.

00:10:56.350 --> 00:10:59.331
My parents wouldn't watch anything but CNN and hockey.

00:10:59.635 --> 00:11:01.966
So getting the TV was a bit of a rare thing.

00:11:01.966 --> 00:11:04.145
So we started watching Pokemon together.

00:11:04.443 --> 00:11:09.202
Then he got into the cards, but he got me into the game for the Game Boy.

00:11:09.503 --> 00:11:12.519
So I bought Pokemon red, I think it was.

00:11:12.820 --> 00:11:16.445
We also started we were heavy role players at the time.

00:11:16.445 --> 00:11:25.855
So we would play Shadowrun second edition, Star Wars West End Games, D and D, which would have been a D and D at that time, and vampire the masquerade.

00:11:25.995 --> 00:11:32.519
So my buddy developed a Pokemon role playing game that he did with the original Kanto one fifty one.

00:11:32.519 --> 00:11:36.606
He started out everything, and we used to play Pokemon the RPG.

00:11:36.606 --> 00:11:42.642
It'd just be me and him because we couldn't convince anybody else to kinda play with us, but then we started getting in into the card game.

00:11:42.942 --> 00:11:51.374
But what really kicked us off is I remember I skipped school to be one of the first in line to go see Pokemon the first movie, which was me tell you.

00:11:51.374 --> 00:11:56.354
We're the oldest kids in that auditorium at that time, so we would have been, like, fifteen or sixteen.

00:11:56.660 --> 00:12:08.667
And then the other time, Toys R Us, they had a day where if you could travel to a Toys R Us and you brought your Game Boy with you, You could link cable with one of the reps at the Toys R Us store, and they would give you mew.

00:12:08.817 --> 00:12:09.216
I remember

00:12:09.366 --> 00:12:12.101
So we drove all around Southern Ontario.

00:12:12.182 --> 00:12:17.261
We went from our little town, Owen Sound, and we drove all the way to Niagara Falls.

00:12:18.201 --> 00:12:25.774
Nobody had it, So we had to drive all the way back, and we went, so we stopped in Newmarket, which is about two hours away from where we live.

00:12:26.048 --> 00:12:29.818
So we'd hit probably about ten Toys R Us's that day looking for this Mew.

00:12:30.048 --> 00:12:32.548
Nobody knew what the hell we were talking about.

00:12:32.846 --> 00:12:36.225
I guess we found the one where the one dork just happened to be working.

00:12:36.686 --> 00:12:39.745
And we got our Mew, and we were so happy.

00:12:39.885 --> 00:12:48.537
And I think there was a Pokemon tournament or something because I've got this memory where he walked away with the little Pikachu that was like a Tamagotchi.

00:12:49.211 --> 00:12:54.571
he figured out a way if he attached it to his shoe, it would get volts quicker.

00:12:54.698 --> 00:13:01.255
So he was playing Pokemon Go before it was Pokemon Go, and it was just so ridiculous.

00:13:01.395 --> 00:13:05.961
But, yeah, like, we got Into the cards and the anime super heavy.

00:13:06.260 --> 00:13:09.764
I remember him unironically cosplaying as Ash.

00:13:09.764 --> 00:13:10.803
Like, he had the vest.

00:13:10.803 --> 00:13:13.239
He had the hat and all the And he would go to school like this.

00:13:13.239 --> 00:13:14.619
I'm thinking okay.

00:13:14.635 --> 00:13:17.855
I would like to meet girls at some point, so could you please not?

00:13:17.916 --> 00:13:24.094
Um, but The worst thing he ever did, and this breaks my heart to this very day.

00:13:24.094 --> 00:13:26.726
So he had more money than sense.

00:13:27.056 --> 00:13:33.423
And we were working at a pizza place or he was, and I was just there to kinda help out and get some free pizza.

00:13:33.721 --> 00:13:39.221
one night, we were closing up the shop, and we had his Pokemon cards on a binder on the top of his car.

00:13:39.527 --> 00:13:40.647
So we're going in.

00:13:40.647 --> 00:13:42.187
We're just getting ready to leave.

00:13:42.484 --> 00:13:49.484
We leave an entire master set, not even kidding, of one fifty one on the top of his car,

00:13:49.719 --> 00:13:50.359
my gosh.

00:13:50.389 --> 00:13:51.908
we drove Oh, yeah.

00:13:51.908 --> 00:13:55.109
I'm dead fucking serious because he had a hollow Charizard and all that

00:13:55.214 --> 00:13:55.714
Oh,

00:13:55.749 --> 00:13:57.688
I remember pulling those with him.

00:13:58.014 --> 00:13:58.514
ears.

00:13:58.708 --> 00:14:00.053
we Yeah.

00:14:01.313 --> 00:14:02.514
So sorry, pal.

00:14:02.514 --> 00:14:08.244
But, yeah, I'm hoping some kid found that and is now living a very comfortable retirement somewhere.

00:14:08.458 --> 00:14:09.359
But, yeah.

00:14:09.359 --> 00:14:14.818
That's how I got into it, and I stayed with the franchise until probably Pokemon yellow.

00:14:15.119 --> 00:14:18.241
When gen two came out, I was so lost.

00:14:18.241 --> 00:14:22.182
I'm like, I don't have the memory to memorize another hundred and fifty creatures.

00:14:22.583 --> 00:14:26.264
it was weird because I stepped away from the franchise for a number of years.

00:14:26.264 --> 00:14:29.625
Even when Nintendo would offer me The game should review.

00:14:29.625 --> 00:14:37.803
I would have other people on my podcast network, like, other cohosts or other producers work on it for me because I'm thinking, I don't know what I'm talking about.

00:14:38.037 --> 00:14:43.272
unless it's the original one fifty one, if they're not in the PokeRap, I don't know what I'm talking about.

00:14:43.578 --> 00:14:48.250
it just kinda fell out of my life up until Pokemon Let's Go Eevee.

00:14:48.727 --> 00:14:51.668
I got back in the Pokemon at a very strange time.

00:14:51.974 --> 00:15:01.363
I got sick with a diabetic infection, which unfortunately led to me to have my lower left leg amputated below the knee.

00:15:01.923 --> 00:15:04.086
literally they told me in the hospital, look.

00:15:04.086 --> 00:15:13.599
There's not an unreasonable chance that you could die tomorrow, So you should probably get your affairs in order and before that, I'd gotten into Pokemon Go.

00:15:13.739 --> 00:15:19.874
So, Fortunately, the hospital was right on top of a gym, and it was right on top of a couple of stops.

00:15:20.413 --> 00:15:24.678
So I would play that way, And it was super, super, super casual.

00:15:24.979 --> 00:15:29.139
But when I got released from the hospital after four months, I went into November.

00:15:29.139 --> 00:15:30.839
I didn't get home until February.

00:15:31.052 --> 00:15:33.552
I finally got a Nintendo Switch.

00:15:33.974 --> 00:15:40.549
Nintendo had sent me one for review when the switch came out, and I just kinda never really paid attention to it.

00:15:40.549 --> 00:15:46.765
But it wasn't until let's go Eevee came out and let's go Pikachu that I really started to get back into the franchise.

00:15:46.765 --> 00:15:48.067
Because I'm like, you know what?

00:15:48.381 --> 00:15:49.822
I don't have to grind.

00:15:49.822 --> 00:15:52.721
I don't have to think about a thousand different stat changes.

00:15:53.116 --> 00:15:53.996
It's simple.

00:15:53.996 --> 00:15:54.817
It's accessible.

00:15:55.437 --> 00:15:57.297
I'm not gonna lose my mind grinding.

00:15:57.397 --> 00:15:59.736
it's gen one which is what you're familiar with.

00:15:59.917 --> 00:16:00.397
Exactly.

00:16:00.397 --> 00:16:01.277
And it's gen one.

00:16:01.277 --> 00:16:01.756
I get it.

00:16:01.756 --> 00:16:02.397
This is cool.

00:16:02.397 --> 00:16:03.022
I like it.

00:16:03.182 --> 00:16:07.761
I really wanted the Pokeball controller, but I sold that for twenty dollars because I'm fucking stupid.

00:16:07.902 --> 00:16:10.542
Um, kicking myself in the ass now.

00:16:10.542 --> 00:16:11.361
Believe me.

00:16:11.433 --> 00:16:14.333
but I really started to get back into the franchise.

00:16:14.394 --> 00:16:30.736
And then my sister, Shannon, was really into Pokemon Go, And she convinced me and my wife to start playing because, like, we had accounts from two thousand and seventeen or sixteen whenever the game launched, but we didn't really know what we were doing.

00:16:30.736 --> 00:16:34.197
And it was just a casual thing that it just kinda sat on our phones.

00:16:34.562 --> 00:16:44.428
But when Shannon moved in with us, we started going to Raid nights that were happening in our local town that we'd, like, kinda move to, which is Guelph, Ontario.

00:16:45.052 --> 00:16:52.590
And we started just doing remote raids because I couldn't get out very much in my wheelchair at that time because of the snow.

00:16:52.910 --> 00:17:01.705
I was kinda playing Pokemon Go really, really, really, really casual Up until about two thousand and twenty, that's when things took a bit of a change.

00:17:01.705 --> 00:17:03.705
I started to get a little bit more involved.

00:17:04.001 --> 00:17:07.838
I had bariatric surgery, which is the gastric bypass sleeve.

00:17:07.838 --> 00:17:09.116
I'm a pretty big guy.

00:17:09.416 --> 00:17:10.656
I'd lost a bunch of weight.

00:17:10.656 --> 00:17:12.896
I've been on a liquid diet for six months.

00:17:12.896 --> 00:17:13.537
Let me tell you.

00:17:13.537 --> 00:17:17.876
There's a special place in hell reserved for anybody who has to do that.

00:17:18.321 --> 00:17:19.382
It sucked.

00:17:19.685 --> 00:17:21.205
so I had my surgery.

00:17:21.205 --> 00:17:23.126
I'd lost a shit ton of weight.

00:17:23.423 --> 00:17:25.663
I had more freedom than I ever thought I could.

00:17:25.663 --> 00:17:30.267
So I've been in a power wheelchair for about a year or two, I was always afraid to go outside.

00:17:30.267 --> 00:17:32.092
I was like, Well, what if I wipe out?

00:17:32.092 --> 00:17:33.372
What if I'm too far from home?

00:17:33.372 --> 00:17:34.561
What if my battery dies?

00:17:34.865 --> 00:17:37.365
I remembered all the fun I had with my sister, Shannon.

00:17:37.682 --> 00:17:43.195
I started figuring out if I can travel on my own, I can bring Pokemon with me.

00:17:43.195 --> 00:17:45.375
I can play while they're at home.

00:17:45.375 --> 00:17:46.655
can do my own thing.

00:17:46.655 --> 00:17:52.182
So after I had my bariatric surgery, I just started playing, like, a lot.

00:17:52.182 --> 00:17:55.082
And that's when Mewtwo was back in raids.

00:17:55.862 --> 00:17:59.082
I must have raided, like, thirty in a weekend.

00:17:59.646 --> 00:18:03.426
Mewtwo is like my favorite legendary, and I was like, yo.

00:18:03.886 --> 00:18:05.406
This is really fun.

00:18:05.406 --> 00:18:07.682
I really wanna keep kinda playing this.

00:18:07.991 --> 00:18:12.449
it just literally snowballed from there, and I got more and more and more involved.

00:18:12.449 --> 00:18:13.489
I started meeting people.

00:18:13.489 --> 00:18:22.289
I met my first Pokemon Go group here in the city of Guelph, I made friends, and then I started learning more about the game.

00:18:22.771 --> 00:18:27.751
I wish I'd learned more sooner because I deleted hundos before I knew what the hell those were.

00:18:28.372 --> 00:18:34.344
look at my Pokedex and cry every so often, I've never deleted hundo legendary, so I'm not that stupid.

00:18:35.294 --> 00:18:43.705
but was just such a change for me because never thought of a mobile game as creating something like this because for years, I was anti mobile game.

00:18:43.705 --> 00:18:51.339
I just assumed it was all angry birds and cut the rope and fruity ninja and all this other stupid bullshit, stuff that I covered as part of my day job.

00:18:51.339 --> 00:18:54.944
I'd never considered that augmented reality to be anything.

00:18:55.429 --> 00:19:11.818
But Pokemon really changed a lot of it because, again, it had the one fifty one that I loved, and it had New Pokemon, I knew nothing about, but was willing to learn because then I started watching online content creators, people like Pokedaxi, Mystic7, trainer tips, Trainer club and all these guys.

00:19:12.219 --> 00:19:15.019
it's to the point now where me and my wife will wake up.

00:19:15.019 --> 00:19:16.219
We'll have coffee together.

00:19:16.219 --> 00:19:19.040
We start the day with a trainer club video.

00:19:19.374 --> 00:19:21.131
We'll see what Pokedaxi is up to.

00:19:21.131 --> 00:19:26.251
We'll sit there, and we'll binge a bunch of Mystic7's videos, that's just a part of our day.

00:19:26.251 --> 00:19:29.655
Like, Pokemon Go literally starts the day, it ends the day.

00:19:29.655 --> 00:19:37.836
Like, literally before we go to sleep, Don't forget to send a gift, and we will do that so we can get the interaction.

00:19:37.836 --> 00:19:42.412
In fact, as of this recording, he's literally in the other room doing all of our hundred trades right

00:19:42.622 --> 00:19:43.521
Oh, wow.

00:19:43.662 --> 00:19:44.221
It's really

00:19:44.652 --> 00:19:45.392
the interview.

00:19:45.500 --> 00:19:46.140
Oh, yeah.

00:19:46.140 --> 00:19:47.420
Like, it is such a thing.

00:19:47.420 --> 00:19:53.653
Like, Even tonight, while I was playing Pokemon cards, I had my, auto catcher going, and this little kid walked up to me.

00:19:53.653 --> 00:19:55.494
He saw me in my Pokemon hat.

00:19:55.494 --> 00:19:56.954
He saw my auto catcher.

00:19:57.335 --> 00:19:58.615
And this kid walks up to me.

00:19:58.615 --> 00:20:02.170
He's like, Are you a professional Pokemon Go player?

00:20:02.304 --> 00:20:03.663
I'm thinking, oh, kid.

00:20:03.663 --> 00:20:05.023
You're so freaking hardcore.

00:20:05.023 --> 00:20:08.003
If I you a legendary right now, I would.

00:20:08.278 --> 00:20:17.584
I'm the most engaged with the Pokemon franchise than I've ever been in my entire life like, it's so rewarding, and I've met so many cool people.

00:20:17.584 --> 00:20:20.028
There's a girl, you've probably seen her on Reddit.

00:20:20.188 --> 00:20:25.347
She and her boyfriend created the real life Pokestop, and she also crochets.

00:20:26.208 --> 00:20:29.903
And she made my wife a life size Meowth.

00:20:29.903 --> 00:20:33.663
We have a life size Litton, and we have something else life size.

00:20:33.663 --> 00:20:36.303
Think like like a Tora

00:20:36.553 --> 00:20:37.752
She's very talented.

00:20:37.752 --> 00:20:38.073
Yes.

00:20:38.073 --> 00:20:38.232
I

00:20:38.367 --> 00:20:39.167
Oh my god.

00:20:39.167 --> 00:20:41.028
She's phenomenal, and

00:20:41.178 --> 00:20:43.018
boyfriend's like real steal or something like that.

00:20:43.018 --> 00:20:43.498
Can't remember her

00:20:43.728 --> 00:20:44.228
yeah.

00:20:44.288 --> 00:20:44.788
Yeah.

00:20:44.788 --> 00:20:45.188
Nikki.

00:20:45.188 --> 00:20:47.347
So, yeah, Nick and Chris are amazing.

00:20:47.347 --> 00:20:51.950
In fact, because I used to write for the local newspaper here, the Guelph Mercury Tribune.

00:20:52.047 --> 00:21:01.178
One of the first stories that I wrote was about Pokemon and just talking about how it opens up all these new worlds for people and how it's so accessible.

00:21:01.718 --> 00:21:12.095
And the fact that a town like Guelph, which is a university town, because we have the University of Guelph here, otherwise known in Canada as Moo Yuk, because we have a top shelf veterinary program.

00:21:12.464 --> 00:21:14.539
there's a lot of students that come through this town.

00:21:14.539 --> 00:21:18.420
There's a lot of new people coming into our local Discord talking about Pokemon.

00:21:18.480 --> 00:21:27.176
And recently, I promoted to be a mod and admin on there, And I've met, again, some wonderful people like, this blew me away.

00:21:27.176 --> 00:21:33.097
So this year, Go Fest Global was awesome, I really want to do something special.

00:21:33.097 --> 00:21:39.317
So I don't have a crap ton of money, but I make enough to support myself, and, I know how to hustle.

00:21:39.778 --> 00:21:44.849
So I decided I wanna give back to my community because they've been so good to me.

00:21:45.150 --> 00:21:48.029
So I went out and I bought a bunch of Pokemon cards.

00:21:48.029 --> 00:21:49.390
I bought some stuff to give away.

00:21:49.390 --> 00:21:51.009
I bought, like, a Pokemon backpack.

00:21:51.069 --> 00:21:54.422
I bought probably about two hundred bucks worth of stuff, Give or take.

00:21:54.422 --> 00:22:02.856
So on the back of my wheelchair, I got these two incubator backpacks that the Pokemon Center was on because I got them free when I bought, a jacket.

00:22:02.997 --> 00:22:09.507
So I filled them with Pikachu cookies, and I had another bag on the side of my wheelchair that had prizes.

00:22:10.082 --> 00:22:18.940
I had drove around this huge park where Go Fest was happening, which also happened to be Rib Fest here in Guelph, which is this celebration of ribs because food.

00:22:19.190 --> 00:22:20.650
and I said, okay, kids.

00:22:20.673 --> 00:22:25.468
If you can answer three out of five trivia questions correctly, you get a prize.

00:22:25.528 --> 00:22:34.069
So I was just randomly handing out stuff for two days over the course of Go Fest, and it made me so much more involved in this game.

00:22:34.069 --> 00:22:42.582
I even applied to be a Niantic ambassador, like, for Go because this game is awesome, and I've never experienced anything like this.

00:22:42.582 --> 00:22:46.174
And it's so different from the other video game communities I've been a part of.

00:22:46.174 --> 00:22:51.646
Like, I used to play Call of duty pretty seriously, not to the point where I had a clan tag or anything like that.

00:22:51.807 --> 00:22:53.069
I do, it's ironic.

00:22:53.413 --> 00:22:57.933
But with Go, It was so different from anything I've ever expected.

00:22:57.933 --> 00:23:02.513
Just the fact that there were little kids coming out with their parents to play.

00:23:02.816 --> 00:23:14.861
People talking gen one to whatever the current gen is, but there are a number of people in my Wednesday night raid group who are in their fifties and sixties that play with And their accounts are top tier.

00:23:14.861 --> 00:23:18.060
In fact, we rely on our one friend, Marilyn, like, hey.

00:23:18.060 --> 00:23:19.580
You got level fifty counters.

00:23:19.580 --> 00:23:20.060
Guess what?

00:23:20.060 --> 00:23:21.316
You're, uh, going first.

00:23:21.316 --> 00:23:52.303
Um, and she would do some incredible things, and we would trade stuff like, if it wasn't for my group of people that I hang out, I would not have a complete pokedex because part of being disabled means I'm not going to Hawaii anytime soon, nor am I going to go to Egypt to get Sigilyth or I'm not gonna be able to get all these regional Pokemon Unless I have people trade them to me, one of the best trades I got was a lucky ninety six, Hawlucha.

00:23:52.923 --> 00:23:56.942
When in the hell am I ever gonna be able to travel to Mexico?

00:23:57.403 --> 00:24:01.183
Because traveling while disabled is incredibly difficult.

00:24:01.183 --> 00:24:02.483
It's incredibly expensive.

00:24:02.544 --> 00:24:07.116
In fact, you'd be surprised how many wheelchairs destroyed by airlines every year.

00:24:07.416 --> 00:24:14.298
So the fact of traveling to any of these GoFests terrifies me, but I wanna go, like, when there's the one in New York.

00:24:14.459 --> 00:24:19.875
I seriously thought about it, but I have to think about how am I gonna get my kind of wheelchair there?

00:24:19.875 --> 00:24:21.631
How am I gonna go to the bathroom?

00:24:21.631 --> 00:24:23.230
How am I gonna manage these other things?

00:24:23.230 --> 00:24:28.288
Because there's so many things that creep into the disabled experience you really have to think about.

00:24:28.288 --> 00:24:36.001
Like, even when I go out and play Pokemon Go for, like, six, seven hours at a time, I have to plan out, okay, how's my chair gonna charge?

00:24:36.301 --> 00:24:37.342
Where can I go?

00:24:37.342 --> 00:24:38.561
Are there many hills?

00:24:38.846 --> 00:24:40.207
Is this terrain safe?

00:24:40.207 --> 00:24:46.467
Like, I love to off road with my wheelchair, and I've gotten myself into a few situations where it's troublesome.

00:24:46.880 --> 00:24:51.436
I've even had somebody try to jump me a couple of months ago because they thought, hey.

00:24:51.436 --> 00:24:52.317
He's in a wheelchair.

00:24:52.317 --> 00:24:53.376
He's an easy target.

00:24:53.836 --> 00:25:04.933
proved him wrong, but you would be surprised that, a chair presents so many different challenges, but As a Go player, it's also opened up a number of things.

00:25:05.232 --> 00:25:07.813
I have the platinum metal for hatching eggs.

00:25:08.156 --> 00:25:12.497
That's two thousand eggs and that's from me driving around.

00:25:13.196 --> 00:25:17.356
Because my chair on a good day, I can get about twenty five kilometers on it.

00:25:17.654 --> 00:25:22.315
I just drive across town because I wanna just run my incense, run my auto catcher.

00:25:22.535 --> 00:25:23.815
That was a game changer.

00:25:23.815 --> 00:25:26.756
Getting my first auto catcher was a dual catch mon.

00:25:27.058 --> 00:25:49.553
So me and my wife could be both connected to the same device when we drove around in the car, but when I got my own auto catcher and I could literally just explore and do my own thing, it opened up so many possibilities where I really want to explore my town where I wasn't constantly looking at my, like, phone screen and just seeing my Pokedex fill up, seeing my stardust gains go through the roof,

00:25:50.152 --> 00:25:55.791
know, your story as I was listening, your story is interesting because you're not the first person who, fell out of, Pokemon from gen one.

00:25:55.791 --> 00:25:57.836
A lot of people, they're nostalgic for gen one.

00:25:57.836 --> 00:25:58.876
There is no one fifty one.

00:25:58.876 --> 00:25:59.537
The OGs.

00:25:59.676 --> 00:26:00.176
Right?

00:26:00.317 --> 00:26:08.547
What's interesting more about your story is that what brought you back into the Pokemon franchise Is that you know, we still have all these new Pokemon around, but you still have the old ones too.

00:26:08.606 --> 00:26:19.609
And for you to be as just as dedicated to the community now With you not even had as much attachment to allow the new Pokemon post gen two to present day, which would be, I think, gen is really remarkable.

00:26:20.154 --> 00:26:26.739
What is it about Pokemon GO that catch you engaged in spite of you not having as much as your familiar Pokemon from the first

00:26:27.088 --> 00:26:30.750
I think the fact that the skill Ceiling is so variable.

00:26:31.131 --> 00:26:34.644
Like, I don't have to be a master of PVP.

00:26:34.943 --> 00:26:37.443
I don't have to have the most shinies.

00:26:37.721 --> 00:26:39.821
don't even have to have a complete Pokedex.

00:26:39.961 --> 00:26:42.829
I can choose how I engage with the experience.

00:26:42.970 --> 00:26:45.630
For example, my way of playing, I'm a shiny hunter.

00:26:45.805 --> 00:26:48.224
Freaking hardcore, but I also love hundos.

00:26:48.525 --> 00:26:53.148
If I can get a purified hundo, I'll take it unless it's a shadow of Tyranitar.

00:26:53.209 --> 00:26:59.913
Because if I purified that, you can just punch me in the face right now, um, which I had a ninety six shadow.

00:26:59.913 --> 00:27:03.034
I'm never purifying that from my cold dead

00:27:03.398 --> 00:27:05.338
Now would you do for a shundo though?

00:27:05.388 --> 00:27:05.888
No.

00:27:06.189 --> 00:27:06.509
Not

00:27:06.759 --> 00:27:08.199
for not for a Wow.

00:27:08.199 --> 00:27:09.019
You're dedicated.

00:27:09.388 --> 00:27:10.509
percent damage, man.

00:27:10.509 --> 00:27:11.469
I'm taking that all

00:27:11.693 --> 00:27:12.173
Fair enough.

00:27:12.173 --> 00:27:12.834
Fair enough.

00:27:12.834 --> 00:27:14.594
and, yeah, like, I love to raid.

00:27:14.594 --> 00:27:17.896
I love being able to help the community around me do raids.

00:27:17.896 --> 00:27:19.980
Like, I made this new friend recently.

00:27:20.151 --> 00:27:23.385
his name's Mark, he doesn't get a chance to go out and play a whole lot.

00:27:23.385 --> 00:27:26.458
But me and my wife, Our accounts are so powerful.

00:27:26.458 --> 00:27:29.577
We can carry him through raids so he can do that.

00:27:29.577 --> 00:27:31.258
So that's what I love about my experience.

00:27:31.258 --> 00:27:32.218
Like, I love raiding.

00:27:32.218 --> 00:27:33.518
I love helping people.

00:27:33.653 --> 00:27:39.752
Now it sucks that they've nerfed the remote raid system, but that's a an accessibility issue, I feel.

00:27:40.587 --> 00:27:44.827
But I love the rating community and just the fact that I can learn all these new things.

00:27:44.827 --> 00:27:52.452
Like, I've got some Pokemon from gens two and or from three and four that are some of my favorites like treecko is one of my absolute favorites now.

00:27:52.452 --> 00:27:53.833
Like, I love Sceptile.

00:27:53.992 --> 00:28:07.465
and just, you know, things like Teddiursa and Larvitar and Greninja recently became one of my favorites, not because he destroys an ultra league, he looks really freaking cool.

00:28:07.766 --> 00:28:11.126
like, there's just so many new Pokemon now that I'm just I'm engaged.

00:28:11.126 --> 00:28:12.486
There's so many cool designs.

00:28:12.486 --> 00:28:17.391
Like, I remember actually, I can tell you, Dave, the moment I fell out of the Pokemon franchise.

00:28:17.931 --> 00:28:25.346
it's from a movie I reviewed recently, because I saw it in theaters when I was a kid, but it didn't really click with me.

00:28:25.346 --> 00:28:29.605
So I saw Pokemon the third movie where there's Entei.

00:28:30.371 --> 00:28:35.188
And I saw it, and when the unknowns came out, I was like, that's a Pokemon.

00:28:35.407 --> 00:28:35.907
Really?

00:28:36.048 --> 00:28:36.948
That's stupid.

00:28:37.087 --> 00:28:37.835
I'm out.

00:28:38.141 --> 00:28:46.005
And Yet, when I rewatch those movies for my podcast, we reviewed the first three Pokemon movies with my cohost Ken I'm thinking, okay.

00:28:46.146 --> 00:28:46.946
I get it now.

00:28:46.946 --> 00:28:50.406
The Pokemon franchise has changed a lot since I was a kid.

00:28:50.467 --> 00:28:52.146
I saw through the eyes of a child.

00:28:52.146 --> 00:28:55.484
Now that I'm older And I can appreciate some of these designs.

00:28:55.484 --> 00:29:00.970
I still think the unknowns are a little goofy looking except unknown shiny exclamation mark I'm really looking for.

00:29:00.970 --> 00:29:04.589
there are some really cool designs out there, and I'm thinking, you know what?

00:29:04.809 --> 00:29:08.825
It isn't about how goofy it looks because Each Pokemon is somebody's favorite.

00:29:08.825 --> 00:29:12.438
And for me, I really started thinking about this the other day.

00:29:12.438 --> 00:29:13.798
Like, what is my favorite?

00:29:13.798 --> 00:29:16.202
And I've got but to say, It's never about power.

00:29:16.573 --> 00:29:21.474
There's this wonderful Instagram account that I follow, and I wish I could remember what it is.

00:29:21.474 --> 00:29:25.637
But it shows the Pokemon in their starter form and their evolved form.

00:29:25.941 --> 00:29:29.561
And there was one where it was a Munchlax and a Snorlax.

00:29:29.925 --> 00:29:33.750
it just shows this kid having this munchlax tug on his shirt.

00:29:34.049 --> 00:29:37.413
then when he evolves the Snorlax is giving him this big hug.

00:29:37.617 --> 00:29:46.065
Or there's a Treecko who's sitting there reading a book, and then when he's Sceptile, he's got his tail all wrapped around his trainer and their best buddies.

00:29:46.779 --> 00:29:53.079
And there's this other one, and this really made me love the game more or the franchise as a whole.

00:29:53.393 --> 00:29:57.247
It's a kid on a subway, and he hands his phone to a squirrel.

00:29:57.662 --> 00:30:00.082
And the squirrel is playing on his phone.

00:30:00.082 --> 00:30:09.049
And when I saw that, I started thinking, I don't want Pokemon because I want them be these brutal attack monsters like the modern version of cockfighting.

00:30:09.609 --> 00:30:12.494
I want Pokemon that I could That could be cute and cuddly.

00:30:12.494 --> 00:30:17.571
The idea of having an Eevee crawl up and sleep with you in your bed is astounding.

00:30:17.791 --> 00:30:24.900
Having A purloin as a buddy having a Persian, a Sprigatito or something like a Pawmi.

00:30:25.251 --> 00:30:37.655
the idea of having the most mundane Pokemon for the most mundane reasons really intrigues me like, I think that's where it always goes back to me is I think of Pokemon as friends first and foremost because I'm a very big animal person.

00:30:38.035 --> 00:30:46.625
one of the things I had on my show is I used to have a little black cat named doctor Wylie, And he was my best friend in the entire world.

00:30:46.625 --> 00:30:49.185
If there ever was a Pokemon, that was him.

00:30:49.185 --> 00:30:53.183
He was like this little purloin that always hung around on My shoulder.

00:30:53.587 --> 00:30:55.928
I love that connection to animals.

00:30:56.067 --> 00:31:00.939
And since I'm indigenous, my spirit animal is the fox.

00:31:01.638 --> 00:31:04.298
In Ojibwe, that word is.

00:31:05.770 --> 00:31:12.780
And when I look at some of the pieces I've seen of Vulpix and Ninetales, I start to connect with the franchise on a different level.

00:31:12.780 --> 00:31:26.298
I've even seen some Pokemon like Natu and Zatu, which I think have indigenous influence to them as well, and even seeing some of the Pokemon that may be more regionally represented like Sigilyph, like I said, which came out of Egypt and Greece.

00:31:26.601 --> 00:31:29.553
I see how it ties to those regions too.

00:31:29.865 --> 00:31:33.786
I love to think about the franchise in very unique and unusual ways.

00:31:33.786 --> 00:31:35.165
Like, what does this represent?

00:31:35.226 --> 00:31:36.346
How does this work?

00:31:36.346 --> 00:31:41.631
And I have some very interesting thoughts about Gengar, Gastly, and the concept of death in Pokemon.

00:31:41.931 --> 00:31:43.371
but I don't know.

00:31:43.371 --> 00:31:45.371
There's something about the franchise.

00:31:45.371 --> 00:31:59.810
There's so much There's so many more layers to it that it's more than just monsters kicking the crap out of each other, and it's a franchise that I really hope they do more with because I think detective Pikachu open the door for what could be accomplished.

00:31:59.810 --> 00:32:03.432
And I know there's like a Japanese series is that focuses on it too.

00:32:03.432 --> 00:32:07.323
It's like a live action Pokemon series, but it's like a play or something.

00:32:07.623 --> 00:32:07.953
I don't know.

00:32:07.953 --> 00:32:18.199
I just I'm so intrigued by the possibilities of this franchise, and it's drawn me in not unlike Star Wars and Star Trek where there's so much lore.

00:32:18.199 --> 00:32:21.318
And if you wanna dig for it, there's more there for you.

00:32:21.615 --> 00:32:31.766
it's so incredibly intriguing that I think it's more than just a simple video game and just simple stat blocks, and that's what I really appreciate about it.

00:32:32.375 --> 00:32:38.460
You mentioned earlier how, you know, you're connected with different communities or you have been in the past, but you said Pokemon's different.

00:32:38.619 --> 00:32:44.059
What is it about the Pokemon community that's different compared to your prior experiences in other, mediums, say, like Smash Brothers?

00:32:44.507 --> 00:32:49.424
Everybody wants to help you and in fact, two really good examples of this.

00:32:49.424 --> 00:32:56.291
So when I first started getting in the Pokemon Go, I was really afraid to approach these people I saw playing at a park.

00:32:56.291 --> 00:33:00.520
Like, hey I'm this weird big guy in a wheelchair who's in his forties.

00:33:00.969 --> 00:33:04.700
This is gonna seem a little bit weird, but I'm just gonna go up and say hi.

00:33:04.700 --> 00:33:05.660
I said, hey, guys.

00:33:05.660 --> 00:33:06.597
My name is Mike.

00:33:06.597 --> 00:33:07.978
I think you're playing Pokemon.

00:33:08.038 --> 00:33:08.758
Can I join you?

00:33:08.758 --> 00:33:09.397
Like, yeah.

00:33:09.397 --> 00:33:09.755
Sure.

00:33:10.051 --> 00:33:11.971
And I just found them really welcoming.

00:33:11.971 --> 00:33:15.195
And as I started getting more comfortable, they would answer my questions.

00:33:15.195 --> 00:33:16.336
They would give me suggestions.

00:33:16.796 --> 00:33:19.756
They would trade with me, and I started developing a real friendship.

00:33:19.756 --> 00:33:22.540
So I found that community incredibly welcoming.

00:33:22.682 --> 00:33:27.097
Like, it was just so wholesome, and it didn't matter what I looked like.

00:33:27.097 --> 00:33:29.278
It didn't matter what where I came from.

00:33:29.522 --> 00:33:33.670
We were all there to kick the crap out of Mewtwo, and that's what mattered.

00:33:33.670 --> 00:33:45.214
We were all there to have a freaking blast and Even this last year, just before, fall kinda rolled up on us, we had all our Pokemon Go group come to my house for a barbecue.

00:33:45.214 --> 00:33:54.730
There was, like, probably, like, twenty five of us, And it was just so awesome, plus meeting so many people in the park over the course of giving out all those prizes.

00:33:55.231 --> 00:33:58.932
That's a wholesome welcoming community you don't get elsewhere.

00:33:58.991 --> 00:34:06.029
Maybe in the role playing game community at a convention, you might get Some people that are really excited to teach you d and d, though not always.

00:34:06.480 --> 00:34:10.748
And then the other experience, We have a comic book store here in Guelph known as The Dragon.

00:34:11.057 --> 00:34:16.730
And between three PM and six PM on Wednesday nights, So really close to raid, which sucks.

00:34:16.730 --> 00:34:21.710
they have cards, and I haven't played the cards since the nineties.

00:34:21.864 --> 00:34:23.784
I have no idea what I'm doing.

00:34:23.784 --> 00:34:29.001
My only experience with the card games of late has been Mystic Rips channel, but I really got excited about it.

00:34:29.001 --> 00:34:35.927
So I bought myself a binder collection of one fifty one, and I started buying packs every so often.

00:34:35.927 --> 00:34:39.976
I buy, like, a pack every time I go out for lunch or if I go out for something.

00:34:39.976 --> 00:34:43.614
So probably couple packs a week, but usually about twenty bucks or so I'd spend.

00:34:44.014 --> 00:34:49.139
So I started doing this, and I approached them last week.

00:34:49.452 --> 00:34:50.431
I said, hey, guys.

00:34:50.461 --> 00:34:51.472
I have all these cards.

00:34:51.472 --> 00:34:52.672
I don't know what I'm doing.

00:34:52.672 --> 00:34:54.112
Will you teach me to play?

00:34:54.409 --> 00:35:00.110
these guys came out, this kid named Owen, Cyrus and Trey another person whose name I didn't get.

00:35:00.414 --> 00:35:13.760
they sat down, and they helped me build a deck, which is an Alakazam EX, it eats people alive, and they helped me develop a modified Greninja battle deck, which was really, really, really fun to play with too.

00:35:13.760 --> 00:35:16.900
So down at the dragon, they have it set up.

00:35:17.074 --> 00:35:19.635
So if you play three games, you get a pack of cards.

00:35:19.635 --> 00:35:22.302
If you play four games, you get to pick out of this huge binder.

00:35:22.601 --> 00:35:27.411
the kid that taught me, Owen, he's the one who taught me primarily how to play and played two games with me.

00:35:27.949 --> 00:35:31.632
and then, everybody got their card packs, myself included.

00:35:32.172 --> 00:35:34.980
Everybody got an awesome hit except for him.

00:35:35.286 --> 00:35:38.043
So I got my hit, and I'm like, hey, man.

00:35:38.043 --> 00:35:40.409
You taught me how to play, this is yours now.

00:35:40.409 --> 00:35:45.864
And I gave him a Reggie VMAX or something, And this kid was, like, stunned.

00:35:46.164 --> 00:35:54.070
And I'm just so surprised at how welcoming the card community is like I said, I'm a pretty imposing person, but I'm always super friendly.

00:35:54.070 --> 00:36:03.695
And these people have no reason to be nice to me, But they are and it was just such heartwarming thing like, literally, it's like coming home after so long.

00:36:03.695 --> 00:36:17.755
Like, I remember how happy Pokemon made me when I was in high school and how much I love that experience and now to experience that in my forties that isn't playing Dungeons and Dragons or isn't playing Star Trek adventures or something like that.

00:36:17.755 --> 00:36:19.365
It's something I did not expect.

00:36:19.965 --> 00:36:24.016
And from my experience too, like, it's not just within Pokemon, TCD, Pokemon Go.

00:36:24.016 --> 00:36:26.436
It's from my experience, I've been in Pokemon the entire time.

00:36:26.735 --> 00:36:28.195
They're always willing to help.

00:36:28.411 --> 00:36:35.150
And my theory again, I'm not a expert by any means, and this is unfortunately beyond my realm of what I can cover on this podcast.

00:36:35.565 --> 00:36:43.340
My theory, though, has always been that Pokemon, for some reason, brings out that childlike, innocence because a lot of us engaged with Pokemon back when we were younger.

00:36:43.400 --> 00:36:57.181
I know you engaged in more of the teenage years, but even as a teenager, you know, it's not like when you become an adult, You're still trying to figure stuff out as a teenager, and I think part of that is probably what helps bring out the childlike willingness to help other people because it doesn't have that...

00:36:57.889 --> 00:36:58.869
I don't wanna say Call of Duty.

00:36:58.869 --> 00:37:06.780
The other games are old for older people, but a lot of them usually engage it at a much older level, and they're more competitive compared to, say, like, the Pokemon franchise in my opinion.

00:37:07.101 --> 00:37:10.998
Yeah, totally, it's just one of those things where we're all there to cooperate.

00:37:11.217 --> 00:37:17.282
We understand That we're dealing with a franchise that doesn't need big, you know, machine guns.

00:37:17.282 --> 00:37:22.246
We're it doesn't need to be, like, brutal Edgelord dark whatever.

00:37:22.697 --> 00:37:30.061
We're just there to have a good time and it's not something I expected from a modern video game like this.

00:37:30.061 --> 00:37:36.556
But I'm so impressed that it came out to be such a welcoming experience that seems almost Universal.

00:37:37.016 --> 00:37:41.592
And just the fact that I'm connecting with people of all age ranges, that's astounding.

00:37:42.056 --> 00:37:46.568
I never thought that would happen from a mobile game of all things.

00:38:57.396 --> 00:39:03.184
you talk about how you got your leg amputated back in twenty seventeen, and, obviously, I would imagine your life changed after that.

00:39:03.480 --> 00:39:08.648
Like, for example, I loved how you talked about how you have to think about, you know, is terrain good to, ride your wheelchair on?

00:39:08.728 --> 00:39:09.648
You know, is there gonna be hills?

00:39:09.648 --> 00:39:10.748
Is there gonna be bumps?

00:39:10.889 --> 00:39:14.065
That's stuff that a lot of people like myself, we never would think about.

00:39:14.367 --> 00:39:19.943
What are other things that maybe we miss, particularly especially with Pokemon Go that are a barrier and struggle for you?

00:39:20.539 --> 00:39:23.903
Well, basically, can I get to a certain pokestop?

00:39:24.043 --> 00:39:25.403
Can I get close enough?

00:39:25.403 --> 00:39:28.782
Can I get close enough to that gym to spin stuff like that?

00:39:29.128 --> 00:39:30.728
can I get across that field?

00:39:30.728 --> 00:39:35.626
If there happens to be a stop or a raid in the middle of an inaccessible area, Can I get to it?

00:39:35.626 --> 00:39:38.567
Because it's not just, you know, is my battery gonna run out.

00:39:38.764 --> 00:39:40.259
Is the terrain good?

00:39:40.572 --> 00:39:46.213
I remember one time, I was coming back from the park, and the winter had just really kinda broken.

00:39:46.213 --> 00:39:49.838
It was springtime, but there was still ice on the sidewalks but not a lot.

00:39:50.144 --> 00:39:56.789
I got stuck in less than an inch of ice and I had to have a friend of mine who was a city counselor Come bail me out.

00:39:57.092 --> 00:40:01.679
So you have to think about terrain, you have to think about, can you get close to something?

00:40:01.679 --> 00:40:03.519
battery power is always a major concern.

00:40:03.519 --> 00:40:05.059
How close are you to bathrooms?

00:40:05.702 --> 00:40:11.208
One of the things people don't think about is in a wheelchair, you have to have turning radius to go to the bathroom.

00:40:11.427 --> 00:40:13.347
Can you even transfer from your chair?

00:40:13.347 --> 00:40:26.105
Because some people do what's known as pivot where you literally put down your limb, if you have them, or a leg, if you can use it, and you put your weight on that to slide onto the toilet or whatever.

00:40:26.164 --> 00:40:29.224
Some people don't have that ability, so you have to do a slide transfer.

00:40:29.650 --> 00:40:35.460
That means you're carrying another piece of equipment with you or if you drop your phone, what do you do?

00:40:35.786 --> 00:40:52.590
one of the things how I play Pokemon Go now is I have this adaptive arm device which attaches to my chair, and it's literally It's an arm per wheelchair, and it's a motorcycle rig that secures my phone and that's something I never thought about two years ago when playing the game.

00:40:52.590 --> 00:40:55.706
I never thought about using accessibility aids like that.

00:40:56.018 --> 00:41:13.302
And it's just it's weird little things that you don't think about and Since Niantic rolled back some of the changes for, like, COVID, getting to Pokestops is a little bit harder and if you can't get outside to play, Incense are next to useless one spawn every five minutes.

00:41:13.302 --> 00:41:21.606
Well, you just threw that dollar down a hole or when I was really sick and I couldn't leave the house because I was housebound for a while.

00:41:21.920 --> 00:41:22.320
Yay.

00:41:22.320 --> 00:41:38.855
I can do five remote raids and not get any XL candy, that sounds cool! I'll tell you one thing, and I don't wanna name the person specifically, but a fairly prominent content creator made a joke during the summer, and they joked about how do you hatch eggs, for example.

00:41:39.199 --> 00:41:42.900
And he's got this number one hack, and he's like, use your own two feet.

00:41:43.119 --> 00:41:47.161
And some people in the thread were like, In fact, majority of them were.

00:41:47.458 --> 00:41:48.945
But another guy is like, hey, man.

00:41:48.945 --> 00:41:52.699
you know there are people with neuropathy and mobility issues.

00:41:52.798 --> 00:41:53.815
That's not funny.

00:41:54.121 --> 00:41:56.442
even me, I enjoy the good dark humor.

00:41:56.442 --> 00:42:01.197
Hell, I was there when South Park started back in nineteen ninety seven or whatever year it was.

00:42:01.510 --> 00:42:04.550
So I can appreciate a good dark joke now and again.

00:42:04.550 --> 00:42:06.885
But I even said to this prominent person like, hey.

00:42:06.885 --> 00:42:07.784
A little insensitive.

00:42:08.164 --> 00:42:08.885
I get you.

00:42:08.885 --> 00:42:09.605
I feel you.

00:42:10.001 --> 00:42:15.869
And then somebody in that thread had the nerve and the gall to say, Well, the game is called Pokemon Go.

00:42:15.869 --> 00:42:18.530
If you can't go, maybe you don't belong here.

00:42:18.829 --> 00:42:21.014
And I've heard that a couple of different times.

00:42:21.014 --> 00:42:30.820
And that's the only time the Pokemon Go community has never seemed particularly welcoming because there seems to be this backlash against Accessibility, thinking it's an easy mode.

00:42:31.304 --> 00:42:32.983
Accessibility is not an easy mode.

00:42:32.983 --> 00:42:35.324
It just means more people can play.

00:42:35.619 --> 00:42:41.902
one of the things that I think people need to understand and about disability and it's gonna be a hard thing to hear, so listen up.

00:42:42.362 --> 00:42:46.907
You are one bad day away from becoming disabled.

00:42:47.208 --> 00:42:49.228
you could fall in the shower.

00:42:49.534 --> 00:42:55.938
You could randomly have any number of different things happen to you, And your life changes forever.

00:42:56.559 --> 00:43:00.952
On November twenty fourth, I thought I was gonna walk again.

00:43:01.317 --> 00:43:03.253
November twenty sixth proved that wrong.

00:43:03.554 --> 00:43:10.159
And as our population ages and changes, Accessibility across multiple fronts is gonna become a thing.

00:43:10.539 --> 00:43:13.054
you think of games like The Last of Us.

00:43:13.054 --> 00:43:17.592
People who are completely color blind and blind can complete that game.

00:43:17.891 --> 00:43:27.740
I think one of the best players for Mortal Kombat is completely blind., and I wish Niantic would just listen to its player base to make people happy because Heartwarming story.

00:43:27.740 --> 00:43:29.740
There's a kid I go to hockey with now.

00:43:29.740 --> 00:43:39.139
His name is Chiruk, and he has cerebral palsy and he plays Pokemon GO because he saw me playing He uses a auto catcher like we do.

00:43:39.139 --> 00:43:40.726
My wife has got him set up.

00:43:41.039 --> 00:43:46.960
He doesn't know much about the Pokemon world or the franchise as a whole because he just wasn't born at the right time.

00:43:46.960 --> 00:43:48.815
I think he's, like, twenty five or something.

00:43:48.815 --> 00:43:53.324
So it's just it wasn't in his wheelhouse, plus he is from, overseas somewhere in Europe.

00:43:53.648 --> 00:44:14.114
And He's involved in it because he sees the fun we're having, so the fact that I'm bringing disabled players into this game, That's really cool, and I hope Niantic actually pays attention to the disabled population because I think we can make a better game for all of us if we're willing to have those open dialogues and it's not just a lot of finger pointing.

00:44:14.717 --> 00:44:18.603
Well, from your standpoint, how accessible is Pokemon Go in your opinion?

00:44:19.201 --> 00:44:22.675
I think for the most part, it's pretty accessible.

00:44:22.817 --> 00:44:25.179
Obviously, there are some things I would change.

00:44:25.476 --> 00:44:39.034
I wish there was less of a reliance on the curveball system mostly because like my friend, Sharuk, with his physical disability, I don't know how he's ever going to throw that, that's why he relies on The auto catcher.

00:44:39.034 --> 00:44:43.134
I wish there was an option to change some of those challenges for something else.

00:44:43.467 --> 00:44:46.257
so that's a manual dexterity problem.

00:44:46.382 --> 00:44:48.081
can you solve that with software?

00:44:48.302 --> 00:44:48.802
Yes.

00:44:48.862 --> 00:44:54.625
But then people would claim it's a easy mode, which it's not, some people need That accessibility.

00:44:55.014 --> 00:45:07.155
I think I would probably add incense would spawn a little bit quicker, which I'm pretty sure that's something that they nerfed as well, Just in case someone isn't moving around so much that they can still play.

00:45:07.615 --> 00:45:14.021
I would maybe open up the nomination system for pokestops to be a little less stringent as long as nobody's abusing it.

00:45:14.021 --> 00:45:16.681
But then again, that's like asking water to not be wet.

00:45:18.485 --> 00:45:18.985
Yeah.

00:45:19.525 --> 00:45:26.847
Because I've seen some weird things get through the nomination process through the Niantic Wayfarer System or whatever it's called.

00:45:27.144 --> 00:45:41.407
think there's some room for improvement, but I think with the right accessibility consultants and working with the disabled community, I think Niantic could really accomplish some real kinda good here and open up an entirely new section of the player base that may not be served right now.

00:45:41.987 --> 00:45:46.293
Yeah, for sure, and Like I said, people who have disabilities and, like I said, I'm not one of those people.

00:45:46.293 --> 00:45:47.753
I'll be the first to admit it.

00:45:47.922 --> 00:45:55.318
they struggle with things that, Like, stuff you mentioned, like, I never would have thought, having enough of the angle to be able to get on the toilet would be an issue.

00:45:55.318 --> 00:45:56.777
I never would have thought that.

00:45:56.998 --> 00:45:58.697
But for you, that's a real struggle.

00:45:59.346 --> 00:46:06.710
like, it's just a lot of little things, but one thing I will say about Pokemon GO, It changed a lot how I viewed my disability.

00:46:07.246 --> 00:46:09.423
Pokemon Go gave me my freedom back.

00:46:09.715 --> 00:46:11.940
I was afraid to go travel.

00:46:11.940 --> 00:46:20.476
I was afraid to go explore But the fact that I literally took a line from the Pokemon theme song, I will travel far and wide.

00:46:20.842 --> 00:46:25.961
I took that to heart because I wanted to see places I'd never seen before.

00:46:25.961 --> 00:46:33.903
I wanted to find the beautiful places in my community to not just take pictures, to share time with my wife, but to play and grind.

00:46:33.983 --> 00:46:48.190
Like, I found so many cool parks in this city so much so that I joined, my city's, accessibility advisory council to make sure the park systems are more accessible for children so people can get out there and do more.

00:46:48.563 --> 00:46:50.943
Any public park, that's a place to play.

00:46:50.943 --> 00:46:56.489
Those are always nests for whatever, that's how I got my hundo Houndoom, my hundo Rhyperior.

00:46:56.829 --> 00:46:57.809
It's places like that.

00:46:57.809 --> 00:47:01.489
And if the park wasn't accessible, I wouldn't have been able to kinda get there.

00:47:01.489 --> 00:47:05.791
So I want other kids and other adults to have this wonderfully open experience.

00:47:06.090 --> 00:47:15.226
So Pokemon Go changed a lot of how I view the world, And I'm really glad it changed me for the better, and I'm really hoping more people will give this game a chance.

00:47:15.541 --> 00:47:22.010
There's so many fun things this game can open, and I'm so glad it changed my perspective on life.

00:47:22.389 --> 00:47:32.628
It's really helped with my mental health struggles too and it has just been a wonderful shining beacon of what a community can be, I could not be more grateful for it.

00:47:33.226 --> 00:47:37.469
to add on to what you said, like, you didn't let it beat you, now how many people did let him beat him?

00:47:37.469 --> 00:47:37.789
Right?

00:47:37.789 --> 00:47:43.159
Because you're one of maybe few who not to discredit what you said, but you're one of the people who kinda found power into it.

00:47:43.456 --> 00:47:49.173
Not everybody can do that and there's people who don't have a voice, who are literally sitting at home thinking this is the end this is as good as it gets.

00:47:49.173 --> 00:47:51.114
There's no more left my life and whatnot.

00:47:51.568 --> 00:47:52.528
Oh, hundred percent.

00:47:52.528 --> 00:48:01.329
Like, you would be surprised how many people have let this happen, and there's even a part of this that I haven't really spoken about when it comes to my indigenous background.

00:48:01.844 --> 00:48:09.619
I'm what's known as a sixties scoop survivor translation, the Canadian government illegally adopted me out to a family that wasn't my own.

00:48:09.619 --> 00:48:11.867
I grew away and apart from my culture.

00:48:11.867 --> 00:48:16.782
So on top of being disabled, I have that intergenerational trauma as well.

00:48:17.108 --> 00:48:20.900
I should be the most depressed person on the planet, now On paper, I am.

00:48:20.900 --> 00:48:21.880
I'm bipolar.

00:48:21.940 --> 00:48:26.920
I suffer from that depression all the time, and I've never been afraid of talking about that struggle.

00:48:27.266 --> 00:48:31.505
But not everybody has the same happy go lucky perspective on life.

00:48:31.505 --> 00:48:32.146
And you're right.

00:48:32.146 --> 00:48:33.186
It does beat people.

00:48:33.186 --> 00:48:38.543
Mental health is a struggle, and there are many factors that can lead to addiction and substance abuse.

00:48:38.543 --> 00:48:46.597
And, unfortunately, sometimes it doesn't go the way that they want it to, and it's game over for lack of a better description there.

00:48:46.909 --> 00:48:54.088
But the more we can open the world up to make things more accessible to make it seem like there is hope.

00:48:54.398 --> 00:48:57.990
That's the one thing that has always kept me going that there is hope.

00:48:57.990 --> 00:49:02.963
In a game like Pokemon, At the end of the day, it's about wanting to be better.

00:49:02.963 --> 00:49:13.418
It's about wanting to explore and know yourself like the journey of Ash and Pikachu, That's a journey of friendship, and that's a very positive thing to take away from it.

00:49:13.418 --> 00:49:16.731
These games, like I was telling you earlier, you choose how you want to engage.

00:49:16.731 --> 00:49:17.905
Do you wanna be a shiny hunter?

00:49:17.905 --> 00:49:19.686
Do you wanna be a PVP expert?

00:49:19.686 --> 00:49:21.766
Or do you just wanna collect them all?

00:49:21.766 --> 00:49:23.365
You can choose how you wanna do it.

00:49:23.682 --> 00:49:32.230
so, like, I'm not saying this game is the be all to end all to everybody's solutions, and disability and trauma from other sources can very be a thing.

00:49:32.309 --> 00:49:37.733
But it's finding ways to deal with your trauma, be it through a mental health professional or through a healthy outlet.

00:49:37.733 --> 00:49:39.012
This is my healthy outlet.

00:49:39.012 --> 00:49:43.360
Like, I do this, and I collect transformers, and I play Dungeons and Dragons.

00:49:43.704 --> 00:49:49.369
All this considered, I'm I'm a pretty harmless dork, and it's a lot better than going to a substance abuse problem.

00:49:49.750 --> 00:49:53.161
So this is how I choose to engage with it.

00:49:53.755 --> 00:49:56.976
One thing I was wondering, and this is probably the last question I have in regards to accessibility.

00:49:57.461 --> 00:50:00.724
In what way has your community helped you feel more involved?

00:50:01.436 --> 00:50:04.882
Honestly, they let me run the Facebook group.

00:50:04.882 --> 00:50:06.646
They let me run the Discord.

00:50:06.706 --> 00:50:09.686
They let me lead the charge when it comes to information.

00:50:10.148 --> 00:50:11.427
I'm known as oh, yeah.

00:50:11.427 --> 00:50:11.987
That's Mike.

00:50:11.987 --> 00:50:13.367
That's the stats guy.

00:50:13.507 --> 00:50:16.228
So whenever a raid starts, I'm like, okay, guys.

00:50:16.228 --> 00:50:19.422
The hundo is Seven forty three, nonweather boosted.

00:50:19.512 --> 00:50:21.612
weather boosted, it's x x y, whatever.

00:50:21.831 --> 00:50:23.112
Here are your counters.

00:50:23.112 --> 00:50:23.672
Line up.

00:50:23.672 --> 00:50:24.311
Let's go.

00:50:24.311 --> 00:50:27.177
And I'll literally take control of a group like, Okay.

00:50:27.177 --> 00:50:28.137
You're in raid one.

00:50:28.137 --> 00:50:29.356
You're in raid two.

00:50:29.577 --> 00:50:30.396
Stand back.

00:50:30.456 --> 00:50:30.956
Wait.

00:50:31.016 --> 00:50:32.536
Don't mega evolve.

00:50:32.536 --> 00:50:34.317
You want this candy, you get that.

00:50:34.697 --> 00:50:40.695
And it's like commanding troops on a field, but they let me work that because they trust me.

00:50:40.695 --> 00:50:42.679
They let me work with them.

00:50:42.679 --> 00:50:52.775
And if somebody has a superior knowledge, I easily pass off that, like, chain of command to someone who knows better than me because we've all built that trust up within each other.

00:50:53.088 --> 00:50:57.393
the thing that they've really done to encourage me is if I get stuck.

00:50:57.393 --> 00:51:02.233
if my wheelchair can't do something, they'll push me or, you know, they'll help me get unstuck.

00:51:02.373 --> 00:51:10.748
One of the best things that they do is we play with this family and this little kid named Jacob is this Absolute ray of sunshine.

00:51:11.266 --> 00:51:16.855
sometimes I'll take him for rides on my wheelchair, and we zipped around Go Fest like that.

00:51:16.855 --> 00:51:18.454
he was basically my Pikachu.

00:51:18.454 --> 00:51:21.538
He rode on my back, and it was such a fun time.

00:51:21.538 --> 00:51:27.353
But the fact that The mom and dad trusted me enough with their kid to have that kind of an adventure.

00:51:27.353 --> 00:51:31.324
Again, wholesome, innocent, And it made for a pretty funny TikTok video.

00:51:31.625 --> 00:51:34.744
I like the fact that my community has placed trust in me.

00:51:34.824 --> 00:51:39.403
They have their faith in me, and I like the fact that for the most part, all of us are friends.

00:51:39.702 --> 00:51:42.103
If I've got a problem, I can talk with them.

00:51:42.103 --> 00:51:45.759
If I have something that I'm confused about, I can ask about it.

00:51:45.818 --> 00:51:47.179
There's never any judgment.

00:51:47.179 --> 00:51:49.759
There's been very little drama in our group.

00:51:50.403 --> 00:51:52.403
Everybody's there to have a good time.

00:51:52.403 --> 00:51:57.262
And I like the fact that I can make friends in my forties, and it doesn't feel awkward or weird.

00:51:57.262 --> 00:52:02.242
I can connect with all different ranges of people, and we're all there to do the same thing.

00:52:02.746 --> 00:52:04.449
Well, Mike, you've been a wonderful guest.

00:52:04.751 --> 00:52:07.971
I do have one last question before we close this taco stand.

00:52:08.391 --> 00:52:08.791
Alright.

00:52:08.791 --> 00:52:09.619
Hit me up.

00:52:10.210 --> 00:52:12.775
you talked about how you really have affection for animals.

00:52:13.242 --> 00:52:18.565
if you could have six Pokemon inside your house as pets, which six would you pick?

00:52:18.873 --> 00:52:20.425
Uh, let me see.

00:52:20.460 --> 00:52:27.125
I would love an Eevee for sure, a Volpix, providing it doesn't use flamethrower in the house..

00:52:27.539 --> 00:52:29.318
Growlithe would be a lot of fun.

00:52:29.628 --> 00:52:31.514
Pawmi, furret.

00:52:31.835 --> 00:52:35.135
I honestly want, like, a Persian, a shiny Persian.

00:52:35.431 --> 00:52:36.490
A shiny Persian.

00:52:36.795 --> 00:52:37.114
Yeah.

00:52:37.114 --> 00:52:42.050
Because it'll be a big, dark boy, and I can pet his tummy and play with his murder mittens.

00:52:42.050 --> 00:52:42.949
It'd be awesome.

00:52:45.273 --> 00:52:46.793
Well, Mike, that is the interview.

00:52:46.793 --> 00:52:48.393
Thank you for coming on the show.

00:52:48.393 --> 00:52:54.371
Before you do go, if people wanna connect with you, if they wanna check out your podcast, Where can they go, by all means, please plug away.

00:52:54.896 --> 00:52:55.376
Alright.

00:52:55.376 --> 00:52:55.617
Cool.

00:52:55.617 --> 00:52:59.757
So if if you wanna find me on social media, you can follow me@BirdManDot.

00:52:59.777 --> 00:53:05.152
That is Twitter, Instagram, And TikTok, you wanna follow the podcast, ThisWeekinGeek.Net.

00:53:05.172 --> 00:53:07.351
We are available across all major podcasters.

00:53:07.731 --> 00:53:13.047
Um, you can also find me over At weeklyspookies.Com, right, I occasionally contribute stories.

00:53:13.047 --> 00:53:18.186
My most recent story was episode two twenty three, Carolyn Quinn vampire hunter.

00:53:18.751 --> 00:53:25.811
I am also going to be a published author rather soon, so you'll see my book of in indigenous poetry available.

00:53:25.871 --> 00:53:28.085
That'll be available, I think, December first.

00:53:28.085 --> 00:53:33.306
So I should have more information available at birdman dot on Twitter and across all my socials.

00:53:33.367 --> 00:53:37.271
And, occasionally, you can hear me across Canadian radio because it's about that time I'm right.

00:53:37.271 --> 00:53:41.452
Talk video games and other nerdy crap, so I'm always around.

00:53:43.041 --> 00:53:47.996
Cool beans, and I'll make sure to include links to everything that he said in the description of today's episode.

00:53:48.590 --> 00:53:49.150
Alright, guys.

00:53:49.150 --> 00:53:55.898
And as I'm fond of saying whenever I sign off My podcast, I've been Mike the Birdman saying, be excellent to each other.

00:53:56.505 --> 00:53:59.494
Thank you for listening to As the Pokeball Turns.

00:53:59.798 --> 00:54:05.730
If you want to support the show, consider becoming a patron by either clicking the link in the description or going to patreon.

00:54:05.730 --> 00:54:07.739
com slash as the pokeball turns.

00:54:08.079 --> 00:54:11.510
Now here's a sneak peek for the next episode of As the Pokeball Turns.

00:54:11.797 --> 00:54:18.836
I always, like, fit in all these Pokey puns, like, when Mawiles were spawning in the wild, I was like, oh, it's in the Mawild, wow.

00:54:19.197 --> 00:54:19.987
It's been a Mawile.

00:54:20.416 --> 00:54:21.686
Yeah, I say that, yeah.

00:54:22.157 --> 00:54:24.967
If I see a Sveal and I click on it, I'll be like, oh, it's no big Sveal.

00:54:25.027 --> 00:54:28.786
And then sometimes it'll be extra, extra large, and I'm like, that is a big Sveal, yeah.

00:54:28.916 --> 00:54:29.487
I don't know.

00:54:29.516 --> 00:54:33.786
Well, okay, whenever I see a Marill, I'm always like, wow, Marill Streep is such a talented actress.

00:54:33.836 --> 00:54:36.507
She can play any role, like, even a Pokemon.