Meet the candidates: Adam Fire Cat
This interview is the third in an ongoing series that will help us all learn a little more about who’s running for mayor here in Fayetteville. Look for a new interview every couple of days (i.e. as soon as these folks respond). Links to these interviews will be easily accessible in the Mayoral Candidate Zone located in the sidebar over there to the right.
In order to create a repository of information rather than a battlefield for supporters, comments will be closed on these interviews.
Fayetteville Flyer: How long have you lived in Fayetteville?
Adam Fire Cat: We’ll just say a cumulative 15 years total, give or take the times I’d left for various purposes. One being the six month of training for the ARMY Reserves, a brief stint in Spokane, Washington, and then the two months I’d returned to my old hometown of Clarksville, Tennessee.
FF: One of the questions we always ask everyone is “what have you been listening to lately?” What’s in heavy rotation at the Cat household?
AFC: I’m not sure about the meaning of the question here. If you’re asking what music I spin, I’ll listen to anything except polka. Try as I may, I just cannot get into it. I’ve pumped up everything from death metal to rap, from classic rock to country, from alternative to techno. But for the love of friggin’ god, no polka in my household! However… if you meant how am I keeping up on world events, then I do so through the newspapers and internet, both for local, national, and international news.
FF: So, tell us about the name. Were you always Adam “Fire” Cat. Where did the “Fire” come from?
AFC: “What’s with the name?” I get this question quite often at the V.I., and my official response is “My parents were hippies.” And this is true, but it has nothing to do with my name. This just ends what could be a long explanation. This is how it went down… Upon my birth, my father named me Adrian Hubert Standridge. After the violent divorce of my birth parents, my mother had me renamed at the age of zero. The new name was Adam Daniel Phillips. I’d discovered this much later in my life after me and my sister came across my original birth certificate. We were under the misimpression we had an older brother. When we asked my mother why she never told us about him, she explained the whole thing. Man that was some awkward *expletive*. Adam was a name she picked up from a character on Bonanza, the eldest son of the Cartwrights. Since I was the first born of both parents, she thought it was appropriate. The middle name was just “made up on the spot” as I was told. The last name was that of a man my mother married almost directly after the divorce. This marriage also failed, as well as a few thereafter. But that name had stayed the same. I don’t even remember this Phillips dude she was married to, and that last name was as generic as they come. Phillips is as common as a Smith. Do you know how many Phillips there are in a phonebook? Do you know how many Wongs there are? There are at least two pages worth of Wongs. That’s a lot of Wong numbers. And if you didn’t see that coming a mile away, you have my semi-apologies. The older I became, the more I’d found a love for writing. My pen name was Adam Fire Cat. Adam I’d left the same because I dug the creative streak my mother had when she thought it up. The rest never really felt like part of me. And I picked something from a children’s book I had been raised on called “The Fire Cat”. Upon the age of twenty-one, I had the legal papers filed to have it changed as thus, both to avoid any royalty complications over my written works, and ultimately to complete what I felt was a deficiency in my personal designation. The books I’ve authored under my name haven’t been successes, but I’ve enjoyed the feeling of accomplishment from the completion. They were Fayetteville Legends, Inconsequential Gods, and Chad Warr vs. The Clock Castle, as well as my comic strip A Girl Named Mars.
FF: Are you a Razorback fan? If so, have you ever called the Hogs? What’s your opinion of sports in general?
AFC: No, I am not a fan of the Razorbacks. Sorry. Not my preferred sports team. And my opinion of sports? I like sports better as a participant than an observer. I tend to get bored off my arse just watching. If someone asks me who won the game today, I probably won’t know. Somehow though, this subject became like talking religion with some people. You have to tiptoe through it so as not to offend anybody. Easy killers…
FF: We’ve seen you at work at the Village Inn in Fayetteville, and we have to ask, what is going on in your head when you bus a table? Cause we have to say, you look pretty ticked off.
AFC: I take that time to contemplate random topics. Everything from modern politics to philosophy. I try to keep my mind occupied or I tend to wander aimlessly… Thus I concentrate on the nature of the universe. Never take it personally if I seem ticked off as it were. That’s just me running one mode of thought versus another in endless stack of debatable subjects. It’s either that or my face just falls that way and I’m really quite a laid back cat. I’m sure it’s one of those.
FF: We heard you won the National bussing championship in Las Vegas, NV. Is this true, and how’d you get into something like that?
AFC: Well, it’s more of a competition than a championship, although I don’t know of any others that have gone on over the years. The story is rather long, so the short of it is that I forfeited after beating the final opponent. The reasons are, to say the least, complex. This competition was called “The Outbuss” and it used to be held in the Stratosphere, the rotating restaurant in Vegas. Kind of like the Space Needle in Seattle, Washington. I always suggest trying this place, although it is quite pricy. But if you went to Vegas, you obviously don’t want your money that bad. At the end of my story, due to my forfeit, I was not the victor. And after one more year, the Outbuss Competition was no more. In fact, I don’t think there is any other competition to date. Still, I do what I’ve done over the years because I enjoy it. I go to Shogun every once in a blue moon to watch the chefs do their thing. People enjoy it because people enjoy a change of pace. That’s what I try to put into it. If people like it, I’m happy I could make their day better. If not, I still get paid, yo!
FF: What was the last book you read and how was it?
AFC: The last book I’ve read was The Way Of The Weasel by Scott Adams. Hilarious. Through all of Adams’ works, The Dilbert Principle was still the best.
FF: We know you host Karaoke at You Know Uno’s off Dickson Street. Do you sing, and if so, what songs?
AFC: Oh, I’ve been known to break out a tune or two…I Can’t Dance – Genesis, Clint Eastwood – Gorillaz, The Look – Roxette (I sing both male and female parts fairly accurately). Those are my favourites right now, but as is the way of the KJ, these change like the seasons… or something supposedly deep like that.
FF: To this point, you haven’t had a lot of experience in politics. What makes you want to throw your name in for the mayoral race in Fayetteville?
AFC: I always thought that if someone were to involve themselves in the politics of city, county, state, or nation, then their first priority is to protect the freedoms of the people they represent, even if they want to give their freedom away. What has motivated me is my observation that there is a severe lack of this from present elected officials. There have been many ordinances passed that I have disagreed with in my time here. The final straw is that which ended up getting me and the roomies evicted from our rental home. This was the ordinance which limited four cars to the driveway. That is purely cosmetic, and does not in any way change your property value. It is just someone’s idea of… “pretty” over another. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and now my trust in elected officials has been abused. Then there is, of course, the financial model of the city to consider, but I will leave such things to be discussed in future questions.
FF: You’ve gained an endorsement from Dylan Ferrell, host of the W.T.F show on CAT TV. What do you think about community television, and community blogs like the Fayetteville Flyer. Do you think they are beneficial to a community, or do you think they can do more harm than good?
AFC: I love the forums on the government channel as well as the vari
ations on the CAT station. Yes, I believe they benefit the community greatly. I would think anyone in a political office would want to know how the people view them, even if you disagree. Hell, I think all politicians should have a monthly subscription to MAD Magazine for the sheer political satire. If you’re going to whine about how the public perceives you on any station, radio or television, get the hell out of politics. Now.
Comments
The Fayetteville Flyer doesn't necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post. Read our full policy.
Trackbacks