Who's Who on The ToO: Bob

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Bren
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Who's Who on The ToO: Bob

Post by Bren »

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2021 Edition: 2
For my latest interview, I sat down with Bob. Bob first joined The ToO in 2006 and has is one of the few members from that time who still frequents the boards regularly. He can also be found in the Odyssey Chat.

Q: You first joined The ToO back in 2006. How did you find it?
Bob: Well, my early history on Odyssey websites goes back a bit further than my registration date. I first started lurking at the Town Hall some time before that - I want to say in '04, but I could be wrong on the timeline. It was long enough before that that I was active when the Town of Odyssey board was still running there and they were having elections. I remembered Hawkeye being in one, and that wasn't the last election, so either I read back, or I started lurking earlier on

So in the sense of remembering things, I was around at an earlier time than '06, even just as a lurker. But then there was a stretch of time when I didn't lurk much either (or even keep up with AIO as I had been), so it's probably a wash, I guess. ;)

I'm fuzzy on how I found ToO, though, to be honest. I could have found it from AIOHQ, which had a link to it. I might have found it after Town Hall started to go downhill (like after they killed the "Town" part). That was a bummer for me, as a kid who liked political things, even though I didn't participate.

I've always been big on forums, so I might have just looked up an AIO forum independently. My history of finding the forum is multiple-choice, but it's fair to say I had some history with the community at large anyway.



Q: What are your memories of those early years of the boards?
Bob: My memory of ToO proper is vague. I actually have a better memory of the Town of Odyssey on Town Hall, which seems a bit backwards. I signed up in '06, but that was just to make one post - a comment on a thread asking about the "What is he saying" contest in "Top This".

After that, I was inactive for several years, and I didn't lurk enough to get lasting memories. (I had a lot of other things going on in my life online during those years.)

My memory from lurking before that is pretty hazy. I remember the jobs system and some about the themes, but I didn't have anywhere near the investment in the community that others had.


Q: Who is Bob outside of the forum environment?
Bob: Well, I guess the first thing to note is that I'm not a Bob. I'm not even aware of any Bobs in the family, off-the-cuff. My first name is actually James. In the real world I'm known for being introverted, quiet, and in the background - often literally, not just figuratively. (On the plus side, that does help me survive in laser tag, tag, and blaster fights.)

I dabble in a lot of things, although I'm not professional-grade in any of them. I've historically spent a lot of time working on and with computers; I think they say I've used computers since I was maybe 3, so. You could say I have a fair amount of learned experience. ;)

I'm slightly below the average height, a fair amount above the average weight, and wear glasses that are often a little crooked.

I hold Apostolic beliefs and have attended church services since before I was born. ;) On social views I tend to be classifiable as very conservative, but on other things, rather moderate (or wishy-washy, if you prefer!)

I used to be classified as Asperger's, before they got rid of that diagnosis and made everyone autistic, heh. I have two sisters, but they're considerably older than me, 9+ years.

I'm 29 years old, but my life moves at a different pace than other people's seem to, so the number's not necessarily reflective of my experience or emotional or social maturity (for good or for bad).



Q: Do you have any pets?
Bob: Right now, we've got five; two cats, two dogs, and a conure.

The cats and dogs, in chronological order - Booky, queen of cats, 15 years, Shady, a shepherd-heeler mix, probably 9+ years old, little cat, who may be 4 now, I guess, and Buddy, who's probably 2, 2+ years old. Jean-Luc is the conure, but he was my sister's before we inherited him, and I don't remember for sure how old he was or when they first got him.


Q: What would be your dream job?
Bob: That's a tough one. If you're looking for a real job position somewhere, I've never been sure on that point. But I think I could do okay in some kind of job where I give other people a goal to shoot for, review their work, and tell them how they ought to be doing things and what's wrong with how they've done it so far - basically, like Steve Jobs. ;)

I don't think there's a big opening for 'professional design critics', so it's definitely a *dream* job.

I guess I'm a study in contradictions, though. Just the other day I said my dream employer was someone like the master in the parable of the servants, who basically shows up, drafts someone, and tells them what they need to do, where they need to go, etc.


Q: Let's dive into AIO a little bit. How did you specifically get into the AIO community?
Bob: I'd listened to the show since about as far back as I could remember, and I was a big fan in the early '00s. I'd actually signed up for an original 'Wonderworld" account at the official Whit's End website - which didn't do much, but it was nicer to have it than not. I probably looked up to see if there were other sites somewhere and found AIOHQ, which was the best one.

Arguably it may still be the best one, for the AIO era it covers. If nothing else, it provides a unique look into the state of the online community at that time.


Q: In your opinion, which era of AIO is the best?
Bob: In terms of the average quality of episodes - like trying to determine which episodes are technically the best - I'd probably pick the Whit-less era first, but it's a close call. Nostalgia has a big impact on how you view things, and I think newer episodes are often better than they're given credit for.

So I guess my personal preference is for Hal's era first, but I think objectively the no-Whit era is probably slightly best.

I'd give an honorable mention to late-90s/early 2000s episodes. They probably wouldn't win any quality awards, but they were a lot of fun. It probably helps that I grew up listening to them on new cassettes and on the radio.


Q: If you could teach any lesson through AIO to reach your generation, how would you do that?
Bob: I suppose it depends on which lesson I want to teach. ;) There's a wide array of options, whether for positive or negative examples. Of course, I'm not in a good place to judge, because I have such a sheltered background and might not understand the perspective people who haven't grown up like me come from. A lot of people 'in the world' tend to criticize Christian media, and the basic premise of what they're getting at is that it's too self-centered: more interested in preaching to the choir and getting people who already believe this to feel good about themselves than actually being good. I think AIO is probably above average in this respect, but they're not perfect.

There are some episodes I love and that I think are great episodes, like "Real Time", that may not go over well from someone else who doesn't already believe the message.

But earlier today, I was thinking about the "Cross of Cortez". You'll remember that in that episode, Dan Isidro - a missionary, a devout man, as we know from other episodes - is caught up in the supposed power of the eponymous object. Like the others, he's seeking it to further his agenda.

What's curious is that his agenda seems to be a good one. He wants to use it to "bring thousands of people to Christ". But in the process of striving for that goal, he apparently lost a firm grip on his relationship with God.

It reemphasizes the point in the Bible that there is a way that 'seems right to a man', "but the end thereof are the ways of death".

It isn't enough to try to do good things, or even to have what seem like good motives. If it isn't firmly rooted in a proper relationship with and understanding of God, things are going to go wrong sooner or later.

At the risk of preaching, Matthew 7:21 refers to a group of people who we would classify as very spiritual people - performing miracles, signs, and wonders, and yet Christ says that He will say, 'Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity; I never knew you'.


Q: What is one lesson that God has taught you during the COVID pandemic?
Bob: I'd say that over the past two years, I've learned a lot about God's drawing - that is, the way He tugs on you to bring you towards Him. You know, we tend to think of sin and fleshliness and 'carnality' and all that as extremely dangerous and powerful. But it occurred to me recently that, since we're agreed that mankind leans towards sin - you could say it has the 'home advantage' - then by definition, God's drawing must be more powerful than sinful inclinations. Otherwise, it stands to reason that if the flesh is stronger and the battle is in its territory, it would always 100% of the time win.

A lot of people say 2020 was a horrible year. Many churches lamented the decline or collapse in their membership. But for me, it was one of the greatest years of my life. I don't say it's because I did things right, but I can perceive that God has been drawing me closer to Him - over the long haul, but at an accelerated rate over the last couple of years or so.

I guess framed this way, it might not be a lesson so much as an experience. But it is comforting to think that in some subtle way, God's constantly drawing you towards the right general direction, a little like gravity - even if you often end up exerting force to go the opposite direction.


Q: If you could give any advice to your fellow ToOers, what would it be?
Bob: I would say that it's important to stand on the whole word of God, firmly, from Genesis to Revelation. It saddens me when people seem to be changing some of their biblical beliefs that were based in doctrine to things that are more acceptable in American culture. I don't know anyone's circumstances or how they got from one point to the next. But when the Bible is very clear on a subject, I don't mind saying that I'm discouraged to see trends that go in the opposite direction of that. If we have a bad definition of what love looks like, for example, we need to go back to the Bible and find the correct one, not pull one out from American culture.


Thank you for once again taking the time to read this interview. While it was more on the spiritual side this time, I hope you found it to be a good read and that you got something out of it. As always, if you would like to read past interviews, you can find a list here
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Post by Catspaw »

Yay! I was so excited to see a new edition of Who's Who interviews, so thanks for doing this, Bren! \:D/

Bob, thank you for taking time to provide such detailed and thoughtful answers. It was interesting to read about your long history with AIO online. I totally agree with you that nostalgia makes it hard to identify the "best" period of AIO episodes. I know that's a big influence for me. Thanks for sharing how God is at work in your life. :D
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Post by coffeeappreciation »

This is awesome!
Psst! Hey, you! Yeah, you there! Thanks to everyone who helped hatch my dragon egg! :anxious:
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Post by KODY 105 »

Who?

You'd think I'd remember such a venerable person such as Bob. And Bren even told me he goes by a different name in the chat room. Welcome to the forums, Bob!
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Bren
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Post by Bren »

I'm glad everyone is enjoying the interview so far. My hope is that these interviews bring us closer together as a community.
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