The 'Shroom:Issue 64/Interview
Hey, everybody! It's time again for another interview, though you probably already guessed that. This interview was a bit tedious to complete, as it took 4 attempts to find someone who did not flee the scene upon seeing my face. But fear not! I will never give up on trying to bring you an interesting person to interview. This month, I was able to get Tucayo interviewed.
The Target
Tucayo; the name rings a bell in most people's heads around this community. Why? He's been a pretty integral part of the Super Mario Wiki for over four years now. Shortly after joining in early 2008, he started contributing to The 'Shroom (if you don't know what that is, I'm going to smack you silly), a staple part of the community that he's been contributing to ever since. From Fun Stuff writer, to sub-section staff, to sub-director, to Director, to sub-director, back to Director, to sub-director again, then to Core 'Shroom Staff, Tucayo has worked the ins and outs of our community paper to the farthest ends possible. No writer has worked as long on The 'Shroom as he.
But beyond his history with The 'Shroom, he also had a short tenure in the wiki's administration. Originally promoted to Patroller during an incongruous amount of troll attacks in early 2009, Tucayo quickly proved to the administrators at that time that he was ready for a full-time promotion — even if the promotion he received was only supposed to be temporary. Once the troll attacks came to a halt, he was demoted, but not for long. His work was considered impressive, and his knowledge, fairly expansive; within a month, he was repromoted to Patroller, this time, not out of necessity. Eventually he worked his way up to Sysop before the end of that year, and stayed at that position for quite a while afterwards, only being demoted on his own terms (due to a hiatus, and later, retirement). Despite that retirement, though, he still contributed to the thing he cared about most around here: you guessed it, The 'Shroom.
On chat, Tucayo was a regular visit for a year or so, before his retirement. On Userpedia, Tucayo was a relatively infrequent user, but still helped out in certain situations involving trolls. During the aftermath of the Jorge NukeDPL Incident on Userpedia in late 2009, Tucayo was one of a small handful of users given Sysop privileges for that night; he used those powers to restore numerous pages and articles which had been deleted.
Aside from his dedication to the community as a whole, he also use to have somewhat of a reputation as "that hyper guy". His overuse of exclamation points in chat was almost iconic, although, it did annoy a hefty amount of people. He's also been known to have a heated temper during select situations, which has led to a small number of members strongly disliking him. That said, his "enemy" count has always been particularly low—it's most likely completely dissipated within the last year, due to him working more behind the scenes than ever.
All those years later, he's still a very essential part of The 'Shroom's Core Staff, putting much effort into his sections and how to keep each issue running. And now, we get to see some history from his point of view.
The Interview
Me: Alright, have a seat
Me: (Is this mic on? ...Testing, testing...one...two...syphilis...syphilis...)
Me: Okay, it works.
Tucayo: You missed "three". >:(
Me: Nobody can count that high these days. Three is a scary number.
Tucayo: Its curves are so threatening.
Tucayo: 3
Tucayo: *shivers*
Me: dem curves
Me: Anyway...*cough*...Welcome to this month's interview!
Me: I am your short, but nonetheless dashing host, Stooben.
Me: This month, I've delved deep into the depths of...uh...somewhere, to find an easily-recognizable user.
Tucayo: Depths of hell itself!
Me: Say hello to...Tucayo!
Me: (say "hi" to your fans)
Tucayo: HI!!
Tucayo: Wait, do I even have fans?
Me: Yes.
Me: It's pretty hot in here, and there's no air conditioning, so...
Tucayo: Should I take my shell off? I thought that wouldn't happen so early in the interview.
Me: You can, but the censors might get upset.
Tucayo: Censors? Does that mean I can't say "fuck", "shit", "dick", and some other words?
Me: You can. They don't mind that. :)
Me: In fact, they say them whenever you want.
Me: You just can't show everyone your...er...actually, let's skip past that.
Me: MOVING ON—
Me: I guess I will start with the staple question: When and how did you come across the MarioWiki?
Tucayo: When... It was a rainy night. Well, more of a clear night. Actually, I think it wasn't even the night. Whatever, before being a member of the Super Mario Wiki, I had partaken in various online communities, one of them being VGBoxArt. The box-arts I favored were Mario-related, and at the time I had just finished Super Paper Mario and was obsessed with Dimentio.
Me: Oh man. I remember when VGBoxArt was really huge around here. Quite a few users used to contribute their own fanmade boxarts of all sorts of things.
Tucayo: I wanted to make a box art about him. I couldn't find a neat Dimension D image, until I came across the MarioWiki and this image. It's not that good of an image now that I look at it, but it worked.
Tucayo: I continued using the Super Mario Wiki as an image source, but always as a guest. Until I decided I would browse the wiki to see what else there was. And then I saw it. {{Announcement}} announcing (duh) the 2008 'Shroom Director Election. Of course, I had to see what this "'Shroom" was, so I went on and read every single issue. There were, like, eleven at the time, so it didn't take that long.
Tucayo: After that, I decided to join to know when new issues were released. That was January 16th, 2008. But I wasn't active until May 8th, 2008.
Tucayo: Also, here is said box art. It's horrid.
Me: So, it turns out that all your years dedicated to The 'Shroom...that's what also intially made you become a member of the site?
Me: That's very cool.
Tucayo: That's right. What made me join and what has kept me here all this time. By the way, this issue will be my 50th issue as writer!
Tucayo: 4 years ago, welp.
Me: Congratulations!
Tucayo: Thanks!
Me: So, let's see...that was the election where Glowsquid was running, right?
Me: (Or Blitzwing, as he was known at the time. :P)
Tucayo: Right. And he was the one who first hired me. And for three sections, so I owe him big time.
Tucayo: (I still call him Blitz sometimes but he doesn't like that. XP)
Me: Haha, yeah, he's not big on being called by his old names.
Me: Just call him "Gofer" and see where that gets you.
Tucayo: Might try it some day.
Me: Err...good luck with that.
Me: So, who was your first friend in the community?
Tucayo: Hmmm... The first people I talked to were Glowsquid, 2257 and Dom. But I made my first friends in chat. Don't know who was the first, but Paper Yoshi, SLNO, Palkia47, GreenKoopa, Neurario and Master Lucario were some of the first.
Tucayo: Some months later, I became good friends with Ralphfan, Super Mario Bros., 2257, KPH2293, Cobold, Yoshario, you and some other guys.
Me: Dom and GreenKoopa. Now there are some blokes that haven't been around in years.
Tucayo: Actually, GreenKoopa was on a few months ago in chat. We had a nice walk down memory lane. :P
Me: Wow, really? I miss everything these days.
Me: I'm assuming you met most of them back in #mariowiki?
Tucayo: Yeah, that's where I would hang every day. It was the best place to be around. Yes, there were some problems and then its downfall started, but back in the day it was a really nice place. And then I got access to #mwikistaff and met more of those who would go on to become my friends. Edofenrir, for one.
Me: #mwikistaff was a blast. I'm sure it still is, but you know me; I never come around anymore. :P
Me: How about the forum? What got you interested in joining there? I think you were also active on Userpedia at one point.
Tucayo: I actually joined the forum before I became active on the Super Mario Wiki, so I have no idea. Maybe I saw it on the sidebar and figured I should join? After all, I had enjoyed other forums I had been at. Most notably, the NSider Forums, until they were shut down...
Tucayo: Userpedia came over a year later. Everyone in chat talked about it, so I went there and requested an account. It was Glaive who created my account.
Tucayo: Oh, and the Chat Overlord Elections. I joined to post my campaign.
Me: Oh God, I completely forgot about the Overlord Elections.
Me: good times
Me: It seems like many of our more senior members were once active on NSider when it was around. Bloc Partier, Stumpers, MeritC, and some others, I believe.
Me: I was never a member there myself. What was it like?
Tucayo: It was the first online community I had joined, so I loved everything about it. For me, it was marvelous to be able to talk to other people who shared your interests, and even become friends with them.
Me: Although this isn't the first online community I've joined, I'd say that pretty much sums up my feelings for this place.
Me: I haven't had as much in common with people online at other communities as I have here. It's really nice. :)
Tucayo: It really is, I have really bonded with many people in here.
Me: Although, it seems like I'm very out-of-the-loop in this community when it comes to gaming. So, that's something I'll have to work on.
Me: That reminds me...what is your favorite Mario game?
Tucayo: My favorite Mario game has to be Paper Mario or Super Mario World, but maybe that's because I haven't played Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.
Me: The Thousand-Year Door is absolutely amazing, but its predecessor is also really fun from what I have played. I should finish it some day.
Me: Super Mario World is a classic, too. Super Nintendo had some of the best games, I swear.
Tucayo: Super Mario World was the first game I played, so it holds a special place.
Tucayo: The second was Mortal Kombat. My mom wasn't pleased.
Me: Lol, I bet not. I wasn't allowed to play Mortal Kombat back when it first came out, but I did eventually play it at a young age (six, I think).
Me: I know how you feel about Super Mario World, though. Super Mario Bros. 3 acts the same way for me.
Tucayo: I was three, and I played it with my cousin who was two, so I understand my mom's feeling, lol.
Me: Lol, that is young. You naughty boy.
Me: What would you say are your favorite non-Mario games?
Tucayo: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask and the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare series. And I was very reluctant to play them...at first.
Tucayo: I had never been attracted to The Legend of Zelda until I saw a video game show that ranked Ocarina of Time as the best game ever, and I was, like, "well, I have to play it". And I didn't regret it. As for Call of Duty, I had never been a fan of first-person shooters until my uncle (the same one who introduced me to video games) told me to play it. Again, I didn't regret it at all.
Me: Ocarina of Time is a beautiful game. Definitely one of the greatest games ever made, I have to agree with that.
Me: Considering how much I enjoy first-person shooters, I have yet to play a Call of Duty game, though. I hear the older ones were good, but that the series is very watered down and redundant at this point.
Tucayo: It looks like they have basically just added new weapons these past few installments, but I do like the first two installments in the Modern Warfare sub-series.
Tucayo: I actually prefer modern warfare games to world war stuff.
Me: I'm not a huge fan of world war games myself. But more non-sensical or fictional wars (like Team Fortress 2, obviously) really appeal to me.
Me: I'd still like to try the first Modern Warfare game, though.
Me: Let's see...how about we tackle another entertainment medium: Music!
Me: Who are some of your favorite artists, and your favorite songs by them?
Tucayo: Oh music, I love it. My favorite artists are Coldplay and U2. As for my favorite songs from them... "Swallowed in the Sea" and "Where the Streets Have No Name", respectively. (It took me three times to decide on my answers. :P)
Me: Coldplay has always been—and will always be—one of my favorite artists. I haven't listened to their X&Y album in a while, but I remember liking "Swallowed in the Sea" quite a bit.
Tucayo: X&Y is, in my opinion, incredibly underrated. Some people say it's depressive, but it's brilliant.
Me: I should probably listen to X&Y again so I could judge it better. It's been so long.
Me: As for U2, I'm not as big of a fan, but some of their songs are really powerful. The entirety of The Joshua Tree and War are really great albums.
Tucayo: I also like various types of music, but in my iPod you'll mostly find rock. From The Killers to Johnny Cash and everything in between.
Me: Johnny Cash. <3
Me: Sounds like you have a fairly expansive taste in music.
Tucayo: Heh, thanks. I try to listen to many things to broaden my musical scope. As of late I've been really into classic rock.
Me: What kind of classic rock have you been getting into lately?
Tucayo: I've mostly been into David Bowie, The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith and Queen.
Me: All of whom are huge classics.
Tucayo: Well, Queen's not-so-known songs, which are equally as brilliant as their better-known ones.
Me: I often find myself liking Queen's deeper cuts more than their radio hits, actually. Their song structures are really advanced. I love that about them.
Me: But...some songs they do...
Me: Radio Gaga. :x
Tucayo: Heh, I actually like it. It's a catchy tune.
Me: Fair enough. It is pretty catchy.
Me: What about local music? Are their any artists from Mexico that you would recommend to our readers?
Tucayo: Sadly, as of late local music has disenchanted me. It has gone downhill. Still, there are many independent rock bands that are pretty good, but I don't like most popular artists. That said, I'd recommend Zoe.
Me: Haven't heard of Zoe, I may give them a listen.
Me: Let's see...
Me: Aside from playing games and listening to awesome music, what kinds of hobbies do you have in real life?
Tucayo: I enjoy reading, watching television, playing baseball, and simply hanging out with my friends.
Tucayo: All of that sums up my summer. :P
Me: Haha. Hanging out with friends is always the best thing.
Tucayo: Especially when they're as crazy as I am.
Me: So you play baseball? Do you play casually, or are you on a team?
Tucayo: I used to play casually until my family got a softball team. Now we play in a local league. It's not baseball, but it's the closest I can get. :P We won our first real game some weeks ago, so yay for us!!
Me: Wow! Congrats! That sounds pretty exciting.
Me: You read too?
Tucayo: Yeah, I've been reading since Harry Potter got me into it. :P
Me: Do you have any literary recommendations for our readers?
Tucayo: For those who haven't read The Hunger Games trilogy, I highly recommend it. The Inheritance Cycle is a heavy read, but it's definitely worth it. If you are searching for not-so-known books, I can recommend Monster by Jonathan Kellerman, Search and Destroy and Timecaster. Oh, and I'll be reviewing a book on this month's issue, so check that out.
Tucayo: I prefer to read fiction and thrillers. Not a huge fan of literature, but if you are searching good literature, A Hundred Years of Solitude is a great choice.
Me: Those are some mighty fine recommendations. I can't wait to see your book review this month, either.
Me: The Hunger Games has gotten surprisingly popular in recent years, so I'm tempted to give that one a read.
Tucayo: It's a light read, but it's amazing. The last one is the only book that has made me cry.
Me: Wow, it must be a pretty powerful read!
Me: Hm...speaking of hunger...what are some local dishes you like to eat?
Me: I know I constantly jokingly associate you with tacos...but, surely there's some fine cuisine you really enjoy? :P
Tucayo: Ooooooh, food! Hehe, actually, tacos are my favorite Mexican dish. But as I have told you before, real tacos. With celery, onion and salsa (not Turb). Of anything; be it tongue, testicles, intestines, or whatever, they all taste great. Frijoles Charros are also great. They are beans with sausage, bacon, chile, tomato, and more.
Me: I've never had a REAL taco before. But I don't eat Taco Bell, either.
Me: Taco Bell is sacrilege.
Tucayo: I actually like Taco Bell, but I would NEVER consider it Mexican food.
Tucayo: Tamales are great as well. They are balls of mass made either of corn or of flour, and filled with something. As with all food, there are different types, but they are all good.
Tucayo: And, not a local dish but it's as local as tacos, Tequila!
Tucayo: I say not a local "dish" because it's a drink, but yeah. :P
Me: Tequila is a pretty potent drink. I've had it before (I'm underage, don't bust me), and its effects are something to tell stories about.
Me: One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, FLOOR.
Tucayo: Hehe, I'm underage as well, so I won't bust you. But yeah, it's pretty potent. It's not my first choice of spirit, actually. I just drink it when there are mariachis around because otherwise I'd feel bad hehe.
Tucayo: I'm more of a vodka kind of guy.
Me: I've only tried vodka once, but I don't remember liking it too much. Rum is my favorite, hands down.
Tucayo: I love the sweet taste of rum, but the cocktails you can prepare with vodka make me like it more.
Tucayo: Some of my best stories have started with vodka, olol.
Me: lol
Me: Maybe I should try it out again.
Me: Any stories you'd care to share? Or are they too embarrassing?
Tucayo: I shared one in chat some moments ago, so yeah, I'll share one with you. Or well, I'll sum it up.
Tucayo: I was running around naked, with a Mexican flag around me and screaming stuff in a mixture of English and German.
Tucayo: Good times...
Me: They should film that and show it every Christmas.
Tucayo: Hehehe, that would have been... inconvenient.
Me: But entertaining!
Me: I guess I'll circle back around to the wiki for a bit.
Me: What would you say is your proudest achievement around the community?
Tucayo: Around the community, it would be a joint achievement (of you, me and our amazing Core Staff). And that would be returning The 'Shroom to its old glory. Those were tough times. Wiki-wise, the lists of recipes. They have been improved since I last edited them, but they required a lot of work.
Me: I have to agree with that. The 'Shroom is thriving quite well now, too. After all this time, your (and everyone else's) efforts have paid off.
Me: I remember when you were working on the recipe lists, too. If memory serves, you polished it up so well that it got nominated for a Featured Article.
Me: ...Which led to a proposal being made on if "list" pages should be featured.
Tucayo: Oh yes, but it was featured. And it's still the article I feel the most proud of.
Tucayo: Proposals can be so problematic. :P
Me: Haha, yes. More fights and grudges have been born on the Proposals page than I can count. :P
Tucayo: But friendships have also flourished in that page; that's how I met SMB.
Me: Going back to your pride over your accomplishments with The 'Shroom...
Me: How does it feel knowing you've written for fifty issues?
Tucayo: Oh man, it's amazing. And it doesn't feel as I have been in here that long. It actually surprised me when I found that out. It's great because I have seen The 'Shroom change in so many ways, and I have helped with some things. I have also met some great friends in here.
Me: I know what you mean! It hardly seems like it's been 50 issues (over 4 years, haha).
Me: I know I haven't been writing for The 'Shroom non-stop like you have, but the thought that I started on issue...8, I think, and that we're on 64 now...
Me: It's rather mindblowing.
Me: What's your favorite section that you've written for The 'Shroom?
Tucayo: I have written 49 Mystery Images sections, so that holds some special value, but the sections I feel the most proud of are the World Cup Recap (I even teared up while writing Mexico's part), this issue's From the Mushroom Vaults, the Special Holiday Issue's Decade Top 10.
Me: I loved your Top 10. In fact, somebody was just recently asking me what some good 'Shroom reviews were, and that was one I recommended.
Tucayo: Heh, thanks. :)
Tucayo: That Special Issue was fantastic. Especially because no one expected it.
Me: Yes. It turned out fantastic, too. Definitely a shining spot in The 'Shroom's history.
Me: How about the Awards Ceremony? Are you excited for that this year?
Me: It's less than a month away now. :D
Tucayo: I'm really hyped!! I didn't partake in the Awards Committee this year because I couldn't make it to any meetings, but I'll be hosting 'Shroom Awards and presenting S9! There will be surprises! ...Or not!
Me: Surprises? I would ask...but...then they wouldn't be surprises.
Me: I'm excited to see the turnout this year.
Tucayo: I can tell it's going to be the best ceremony so far. And I always love them. They bring together the community, retired users come back, it's always a good celebration.
Tucayo: It's good to see the ideas of the Fail and 'Shroom Awards have worked so well.
Me: I agree. The 'Shroom Awards will be pretty big this year, I bet. It's nice to see Fail get an expansion too. I can hardly wait.
Me: oh wow i'm starting to run out of questions
Tucayo: So, let's turn things around.
Tucayo: Will you be presenting this year?
Me: You bet! Two presentations. A9 and U10.
Me: I'm a bit nervous, since I didn't present at all last year. I feel out-of-practice. :P
Tucayo: U10 is Lifetime Achievement, that's a big one! Any teasers on what may we expect?
Me: Nope, I'm keeping my lips zipped shut. B)
Tucayo: I'm most certainly intrigued.
Me: Good, you should be.
Me: I'm hoping for a somewhat unique type of presentation (not a game, though), but I'll have to see what's doable in the time I'm allotted.
Me: My plan...everything is coming together perfectly...muahahahaha
Tucayo: Oh Poochy, what have I done!?
Me: Oh, it's nothing you've done. Purposely, anyway.
Tucayo: Next question... Why is it you are the blue Yoshi Kid?
Me: Oh, that's an easy question.
Me: The Yoshi Kid has the best personality out of anyone (except maybe Bobbery) in The Thousand-Year Door.
Me: And pink...er...blue is my favorite color.
Tucayo: Well, your hair is pink. Is that its natural color?
Me: Yes, I'm a natural melonhead.
Tucayo: Interesting, I have never met one.
Me: Well, now you have!
Me: People have been known to hunt my kind because natural pink hair is so rare.
Tucayo: You better watch out, some people might want to get some of that hair. Maybe a bald Koopa right here...
Me: You better stay away from my hair, punk.
Tucayo: And now, for the obligatory question: is this not uncertainly in a parallel universe the last question?
Me: ...This...might...be...
Me: WAIT—
Me: Why are YOU asking the quesitons?
Tucayo: What? I was the one who asked you if you wanted to be interviewed.
Tucayo: I'm the one in the interviewer seat.
Me: Wait...when did this...huh, how? o_0
Me: are you that magical old spice guy
Tucayo: Of course I am.
Tucayo: We're on a horse.
Me: What happens if I look down?
Tucayo: Uh...I wouldn't be able to answer that
Me: oh god maybe we should move on
Me: i don't want to scare away the last of my viewers
Tucayo: I agree, by now the only one reading us is probably Edofenrir, and he's required to read all sections.
Me: He'll be gritting his teeth right about now.
Tucayo: Let's not scare him away. HI, Edo!
Me: Hi Edo! your hair is more lovely than usual today
Me: (please don't kill me)
Editor's note: Really tempted, but I'd have to bend all the way down just to get you, so nah.
Me: So, right, I have one last question before the last question...
Me: Favorite flavor of ice cream?
Tucayo: Tough one... I could go with a classic and say chocolate, but that would be boring. Hill Country Fare's 1904 Vanilla is pretty good. Blue Bell's Triple Caramel and Triple Chocolate are orgasmic (can I say that? I guess I can't... "Enrapturing", then). And I bet Ben & Jerry's Schwedde's Balls tastes great; Saturday Night Live made me want to taste it.
Me: That's an actual flavor of ice cream? 
Tucayo: It is! I was surprised. And freaked out.
Me: I think that would freak anyone out.
Tucayo: Wait, poor choice of words on my part on that last sentence, that can be misinterpreted, lol. But that's the point of that ice cream.
Me: you worded it brilliantly
Me: ...I think Edo just walked away. ffff
Me: LET'S WRAP THIS UP, SHALL WE?
Tucayo: That means we can swea—YES
Me: .-.
Me: Is that your final answer?
Me: ...wait no
Me: Is this the final question?
Tucayo: Seventeen.
Tucayo: That IS my final answer.
Me: You know what's funnier than seventeen?
Tucayo: What?
Me: Eighteen.
Tucayo: olol you funny guy
Me: me so funny
Me: Also...your answer...
Me: Hm...I'm sorry to tell you this, but... :(
Me: I'm going to be broke.
Me: You just won a million dollars!
*Stooben releases the confetti*
Tucayo: OMP!!!! Did I also win the TV toaster thingamajig over there?!?!?!
Tucayo: I bet I'm the first interviewer to win that much
Me: No, you didn't win that well.
Tucayo: May I buy it?
Me: It costs $1,000,003...
Tucayo: I have some spare change in my shell somewhere..... I swear I did.
Me: Change is good.
Tucayo: Here, money. Now gimme my TV toaster ._.
Me: (Yay, my get-rich-quick scheme worked!)
*Stooben gives the TV toaster*
Me: (TV toast sold separately.)
Tucayo: We all won!!
Me: A winner is we!
Tucayo: Thank you for reading how I interviewed Stooben, this is Tucayo signing off, good night!
Me: Thanks for interviewing me. It was a pleasure. :)
In Closing
Regardless of how long he's been working around this community, he's always found the time to be a normal person. A guy who cuts up and goofs off in chat, plays around on the forum (in fact, he is a frequent player of Mafia games there), yet one who is completely serious in his dedication and work. I think any 'Shroom writer who sets their goal to be like Tucayo, is a 'Shroom writer that's setting himself up for a steady "career" and a tenure of extremely useful contributions to the longest-standing staple of this community's group efforts. The 'Shroom has been one of the most celebrated and dearly-enjoyed aspects of the Super Mario Wiki for over half a decade. I think Tucayo is largely to thank for its success in recent years. ...As well as the rest of our senior Core Staff. Honestly! You guys do amazing work too!
... oh god please don't fire me.
