- Joined
- Aug 3, 2016
- Messages
- 2,667
This will mark the first of many DBZeta interviews. The first person to be interviewed was the big kahuna, @SSJ2!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1) When/Why did you join forums for the first time?
The first forum that I signed up for was actually Neoseeker in 2011 to discuss Pokemon. For whatever reason I wasn’t aware that they had a Dragon Ball forum so I never checked it out. About a year later I finally came across DBZF after searching for a worthy Dragon Ball forum. I believe I signed up on September 8th of 2012, which I would count as the first real forum that I joined. I was about to turn 16 at that point, and I had been long addicted to the Dragon Ball franchise, having watched the anime some 14 times over a 5 year span. I desperately wanted to find a place to discuss it as it was one of my passions, and at the time I hated high school so it offered a positive outlet to meet new people.
2) What do you like about DBZeta?
The overall vibe of the forum. While at times some of the pettiness has gotten on my nerves, for the most part Zeta has become a very chill environment where nearly anything goes. You can come on and talk about absolutely anything as there is basically a subforum that fits any subject. That’s something that I feel like most other Dragon Ball forums lack. There’s a lack of the personal element that comes along with having such a broad forum that welcomes many interests.
3) Are you active on any other forums?
Not anymore. Obviously I was an active member on DBZF with some 18,000 (I think?) posts. Unfortunately their site got fucked by the Tapatalk merger and was never the same. I was also active on Neoseeker at various points when I was banned elsewhere. Then there were the various Shinden forums that were short lived, but always a good time. I have no reason to venture outside of Zeta now.
4) Who are some of your favorite members to interact with here on DBZeta?
In your own words, the 8 active members currently keeping us going
Nah, but I don’t want to single people out. Basically if you have stuck around this long, I enjoy engaging with you.
5) What changes would you like to see implemented on the forum in the future?
Not really a change as I feel like we’ve gotten to a good place now, but just less arguments and immaturity. It’s a waste of time to read and getting involved in it at this point is just silly.
6) How would you describe your childhood, and upbringing?
Fortunately it was a positive experience for the most part. There was definitely a lot going on. Both my sister and I played sports which meant a lot of traveling and overall time being active. But aside from sports, I spent a lot of time hanging out with friends in my late childhood/early teenage years, mostly just spending time outside, exploring forests, biking around the neighbourhood, and just having fun. I played a lot of video games in my childhood, mainly the Game Cube and Game Boy Advance. My sister and I used to wake up at 5am every morning to play Super Smash Bros, Mario Kart, Super Mario Sunshine, or other games before school. That is something I’ll always look back at fondly. The worst part of my childhood was definitely school. School always gave me anxiety, likely because I hate being confined to one space for such a long period of time. But outside of education it was definitely an upbringing that I have was fortunate to have.
7) What careers have you had, pursued, and wish to delve into?
I’ve only worked at one place, but I’ve had several different jobs. I started as a Golf Services employee at the club, back in 2015. In the following year I was promoted to the Pro Shop along with still working the Golf Services job. In 2018 I was promoted again to manage a small department within Golf Services. At that point in my life I had been out of university for ~ 2 years and I actually thought that my career would end up being in the golf industry seeing as I had experience and good connections. I stopped working there when covid shut everything down, and it gave me time to reflect and reconsider. Working in the golf industry is a thankless service job, even at upper levels. I felt if I continued down that path I would eventually come to hate the game that I love playing, as you have to spend so much of your time at the course already, the motivation to play can be low. I started working there again last year just to get the membership for free, and to give myself time to hopefully get back into university.
I recently applied for university majoring in Chemistry. Even assuming that I get in and can graduate, I don’t have any dream job within the industry. At this point I just want a reputable degree as it opens the door to many careers that require it.
8) What are your current ambitions and goals; where do you see yourself in 5 and 10 years from now?
I like to separate ambitions and goals. In terms of goals, my number one priority right now is to get my health in shape. I’ve made massive steps in the past 4 or 5 years, but I’m not really reaping the benefits unfortunately. I have a surgery lined up in April that will help me breathe better which could be one piece of the puzzle, but it still remains a mystery as to why I feel so unenergized and foggy every day. If I can get my health in order, that will help me attain my ambitions.
Speaking of which… my current ambitions are to graduate university and to save up enough money to get my own apartment. I’m not overly hung up on university. If I don’t get accepted then I’ll just refocus my efforts in the workplace and try to get a better job. Moving out will definitely be tricky with the current economy and housing market. I actually don’t see it being possible for the foreseeable future, unless I can miraculously get a job that pays probably double what I make now.
In 5 years, hopefully either getting close to graduating or having attained a job with worthy pay. In 10 years, have enough money that I can live the way I want to without any restrictions. Also I can’t believe I’ll be 36 in 10 years. Fuck that
9) What are some of your all time favorite movies?
Tough to narrow them down and I’ll probably forget a bunch with my elite memory
The Dark Knight, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, The Matrix, Joker, The Conjuring
10) What are some of all time favorite video games?
A lot of games from different genres and eras.
Super Smash Bros Melee and Ultimate, Mario Kart Double Dash and 8, Super Mario Sunshine, Crash Bash, Pokemon Emerald/Heart Gold/Platinum, Battlefield 1, Call of Duty: World at War/Black Ops, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Elden Ring
I’m 100% forgetting some obvious ones, blaming my memory
11) What are some of your all time favorite books?
I was a bigger reader in my youth than I am now, but I’ve tried getting back into it since the pandemic. Some good ones I’ve read are Astrophysics for People in a Hurry, Death by Black Hole, The Sixth Extinction, 1984, and How to Think Like a Roman Emperor.
12) What are your favorite pastimes, and why?
I’ve got several. Number one is golfing. Golf to me is the ultimate competitive game in which you are only competing against yourself. There are so many aspects of the game that you need to master in order to improve. The sheer difficulty of the game is what keeps me coming back; you can practice for hours a day on end and sometimes end up scoring worse when you play. It’s just perplexing at times, but it’s one of the most rewarding feelings when it all comes together and you can break your personal best scores.
Two would be video gaming. Living in Canada, there’s basically fuck all to do in the winter months. I’m unable to golf and I don’t play hockey anymore, so it leaves me few options. I’ve always loved gaming so it’s the perfect time to play, then I typically don’t play much at all over the warm months.
Third would be watching movies or TV, and I’ll group in reading manga with these two. Usually I’ll go through phases where I’m more interested in one of the 3 and spend more time on it. Right now I’m reading manga mostly at night. It can usually help me fall asleep unless the story is so good that I want to keep reading it lol.
13) Do you have any other hobbies and passions?
I’m fairly passionate about the sciences, mainly astronomy. I usually read space news several times a week to see if there is anything new being discovered. Aside from that, a side hobby that I’ve had since I was a kid is collecting trading cards. I’ve amassed a pretty valuable collection of Pokemon cards that is conservatively worth 10 grand or so should I get my cards graded. I’ve always been a fan of collecting things.
14) If DBZ never existed, do you believe that your life be completely different now?
This one is hard to say. There’s no denying that I’ve spent countless hours on these forums over the last decade. Perhaps if I never did so I’d have developed interests elsewhere, but I lacked passion back then so I probably would have spent more time gaming than anything.
15) Can you imagine your life without DBZ, now that you've experienced it?
Honestly it would be the exact same as it is now as I don’t spend much time on it these days. But I’d definitely be without the countless good memories that have been forged because of it.
16) Do you ever wish that you could erase your memories, and experience DBZ as if you were watching for the first time again?
Absolutely. I feel this way about any good media that I’ve experienced. There’s nothing like getting into a show, movie, or manga that stimulates everything you seek in entertainment. It’s a feeling that you can’t find often.
17) Do you love any other form of media, or franchises, as much as you love DBZ?
Not so much media, but another franchise that I’ve given similar amounts of time to would be Super Smash Bros. That’s probably the only other franchise that I consistently have sunk as much time into over the years.
18) Do you ever want the Dragonball franchise to end, or would you like to see more content in your lifetime?
If the content is on par with what we’re getting now I’d prefer it to end. Dragon Ball desperately needs some fresh, creative energy injected into the series. If they could find a competent writer who could make that happen then I’d be happy with it continuing indefinitely. I’ll still read what is being put out now for the entertainment value and because I’m still a fan of the series, but it’s been disappointing to say the least.
19) For the 8 active users on here, what else could each individual do extra in order to help sustain the livelihood of the forum?
This is a tough one. I haven't been good at it myself recently, but simply being active goes a long way. People will feel more inclined to stick around if there is more happening. Perhaps we could start utilizing the challenge thread again to challenge other users to make threads. Aside from that, spreading the word to anyone who might be interested in joining - whether that be people you know online or in life.
20) Do you have any intriguing ideas as a way to freshen up the forum format, that hasn't really been done before?
It's something I haven't thought about much honestly. Forums are admittedly older technology and lack the fast paced options that other social media offer. I'm not sure it would be possible to fully revolutionize it. I could always make new themes to change up the look of the site, and look into adding extensions (difficult to do without destroying the site), but outside of that I'm at a loss.
21) Do you believe Giveaways help keep the forum active?
Sure. They can be a good tool to generate interest or activity on the forum.
22) Are there any new features that you could implement into the forum, however, are currently too lazy to do so?
Adding in things like we had on Zetaboards or phpBB such as rep would be one. I'd rather hire someone to install such things than do it myself. I've attempted to do it in the past and it's resulted in the site being down for several weeks at a time, as you need knowledge of how to properly implement such features. Even following guides I managed to screw it up. Our site has legacy coding from 3 different forum software which makes it easy for things to go wrong.
23) Aside from the drama, are there any other aspects that need to be toned down?
I'd like to see more serious threads and responses in the Dragon Ball sections. I'm not concerned about the rest of the site, but we are a Dragon Ball forum and should represent ourselves well there.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you, @SSJ2 for taking the time to respond to the interview.
This will give the 8 active users a better idea of who their leader is!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1) When/Why did you join forums for the first time?
The first forum that I signed up for was actually Neoseeker in 2011 to discuss Pokemon. For whatever reason I wasn’t aware that they had a Dragon Ball forum so I never checked it out. About a year later I finally came across DBZF after searching for a worthy Dragon Ball forum. I believe I signed up on September 8th of 2012, which I would count as the first real forum that I joined. I was about to turn 16 at that point, and I had been long addicted to the Dragon Ball franchise, having watched the anime some 14 times over a 5 year span. I desperately wanted to find a place to discuss it as it was one of my passions, and at the time I hated high school so it offered a positive outlet to meet new people.
2) What do you like about DBZeta?
The overall vibe of the forum. While at times some of the pettiness has gotten on my nerves, for the most part Zeta has become a very chill environment where nearly anything goes. You can come on and talk about absolutely anything as there is basically a subforum that fits any subject. That’s something that I feel like most other Dragon Ball forums lack. There’s a lack of the personal element that comes along with having such a broad forum that welcomes many interests.
3) Are you active on any other forums?
Not anymore. Obviously I was an active member on DBZF with some 18,000 (I think?) posts. Unfortunately their site got fucked by the Tapatalk merger and was never the same. I was also active on Neoseeker at various points when I was banned elsewhere. Then there were the various Shinden forums that were short lived, but always a good time. I have no reason to venture outside of Zeta now.
4) Who are some of your favorite members to interact with here on DBZeta?
In your own words, the 8 active members currently keeping us going
Nah, but I don’t want to single people out. Basically if you have stuck around this long, I enjoy engaging with you.
5) What changes would you like to see implemented on the forum in the future?
Not really a change as I feel like we’ve gotten to a good place now, but just less arguments and immaturity. It’s a waste of time to read and getting involved in it at this point is just silly.
6) How would you describe your childhood, and upbringing?
Fortunately it was a positive experience for the most part. There was definitely a lot going on. Both my sister and I played sports which meant a lot of traveling and overall time being active. But aside from sports, I spent a lot of time hanging out with friends in my late childhood/early teenage years, mostly just spending time outside, exploring forests, biking around the neighbourhood, and just having fun. I played a lot of video games in my childhood, mainly the Game Cube and Game Boy Advance. My sister and I used to wake up at 5am every morning to play Super Smash Bros, Mario Kart, Super Mario Sunshine, or other games before school. That is something I’ll always look back at fondly. The worst part of my childhood was definitely school. School always gave me anxiety, likely because I hate being confined to one space for such a long period of time. But outside of education it was definitely an upbringing that I have was fortunate to have.
7) What careers have you had, pursued, and wish to delve into?
I’ve only worked at one place, but I’ve had several different jobs. I started as a Golf Services employee at the club, back in 2015. In the following year I was promoted to the Pro Shop along with still working the Golf Services job. In 2018 I was promoted again to manage a small department within Golf Services. At that point in my life I had been out of university for ~ 2 years and I actually thought that my career would end up being in the golf industry seeing as I had experience and good connections. I stopped working there when covid shut everything down, and it gave me time to reflect and reconsider. Working in the golf industry is a thankless service job, even at upper levels. I felt if I continued down that path I would eventually come to hate the game that I love playing, as you have to spend so much of your time at the course already, the motivation to play can be low. I started working there again last year just to get the membership for free, and to give myself time to hopefully get back into university.
I recently applied for university majoring in Chemistry. Even assuming that I get in and can graduate, I don’t have any dream job within the industry. At this point I just want a reputable degree as it opens the door to many careers that require it.
8) What are your current ambitions and goals; where do you see yourself in 5 and 10 years from now?
I like to separate ambitions and goals. In terms of goals, my number one priority right now is to get my health in shape. I’ve made massive steps in the past 4 or 5 years, but I’m not really reaping the benefits unfortunately. I have a surgery lined up in April that will help me breathe better which could be one piece of the puzzle, but it still remains a mystery as to why I feel so unenergized and foggy every day. If I can get my health in order, that will help me attain my ambitions.
Speaking of which… my current ambitions are to graduate university and to save up enough money to get my own apartment. I’m not overly hung up on university. If I don’t get accepted then I’ll just refocus my efforts in the workplace and try to get a better job. Moving out will definitely be tricky with the current economy and housing market. I actually don’t see it being possible for the foreseeable future, unless I can miraculously get a job that pays probably double what I make now.
In 5 years, hopefully either getting close to graduating or having attained a job with worthy pay. In 10 years, have enough money that I can live the way I want to without any restrictions. Also I can’t believe I’ll be 36 in 10 years. Fuck that
9) What are some of your all time favorite movies?
Tough to narrow them down and I’ll probably forget a bunch with my elite memory
The Dark Knight, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, The Matrix, Joker, The Conjuring
10) What are some of all time favorite video games?
A lot of games from different genres and eras.
Super Smash Bros Melee and Ultimate, Mario Kart Double Dash and 8, Super Mario Sunshine, Crash Bash, Pokemon Emerald/Heart Gold/Platinum, Battlefield 1, Call of Duty: World at War/Black Ops, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Elden Ring
I’m 100% forgetting some obvious ones, blaming my memory
11) What are some of your all time favorite books?
I was a bigger reader in my youth than I am now, but I’ve tried getting back into it since the pandemic. Some good ones I’ve read are Astrophysics for People in a Hurry, Death by Black Hole, The Sixth Extinction, 1984, and How to Think Like a Roman Emperor.
12) What are your favorite pastimes, and why?
I’ve got several. Number one is golfing. Golf to me is the ultimate competitive game in which you are only competing against yourself. There are so many aspects of the game that you need to master in order to improve. The sheer difficulty of the game is what keeps me coming back; you can practice for hours a day on end and sometimes end up scoring worse when you play. It’s just perplexing at times, but it’s one of the most rewarding feelings when it all comes together and you can break your personal best scores.
Two would be video gaming. Living in Canada, there’s basically fuck all to do in the winter months. I’m unable to golf and I don’t play hockey anymore, so it leaves me few options. I’ve always loved gaming so it’s the perfect time to play, then I typically don’t play much at all over the warm months.
Third would be watching movies or TV, and I’ll group in reading manga with these two. Usually I’ll go through phases where I’m more interested in one of the 3 and spend more time on it. Right now I’m reading manga mostly at night. It can usually help me fall asleep unless the story is so good that I want to keep reading it lol.
13) Do you have any other hobbies and passions?
I’m fairly passionate about the sciences, mainly astronomy. I usually read space news several times a week to see if there is anything new being discovered. Aside from that, a side hobby that I’ve had since I was a kid is collecting trading cards. I’ve amassed a pretty valuable collection of Pokemon cards that is conservatively worth 10 grand or so should I get my cards graded. I’ve always been a fan of collecting things.
14) If DBZ never existed, do you believe that your life be completely different now?
This one is hard to say. There’s no denying that I’ve spent countless hours on these forums over the last decade. Perhaps if I never did so I’d have developed interests elsewhere, but I lacked passion back then so I probably would have spent more time gaming than anything.
15) Can you imagine your life without DBZ, now that you've experienced it?
Honestly it would be the exact same as it is now as I don’t spend much time on it these days. But I’d definitely be without the countless good memories that have been forged because of it.
16) Do you ever wish that you could erase your memories, and experience DBZ as if you were watching for the first time again?
Absolutely. I feel this way about any good media that I’ve experienced. There’s nothing like getting into a show, movie, or manga that stimulates everything you seek in entertainment. It’s a feeling that you can’t find often.
17) Do you love any other form of media, or franchises, as much as you love DBZ?
Not so much media, but another franchise that I’ve given similar amounts of time to would be Super Smash Bros. That’s probably the only other franchise that I consistently have sunk as much time into over the years.
18) Do you ever want the Dragonball franchise to end, or would you like to see more content in your lifetime?
If the content is on par with what we’re getting now I’d prefer it to end. Dragon Ball desperately needs some fresh, creative energy injected into the series. If they could find a competent writer who could make that happen then I’d be happy with it continuing indefinitely. I’ll still read what is being put out now for the entertainment value and because I’m still a fan of the series, but it’s been disappointing to say the least.
19) For the 8 active users on here, what else could each individual do extra in order to help sustain the livelihood of the forum?
This is a tough one. I haven't been good at it myself recently, but simply being active goes a long way. People will feel more inclined to stick around if there is more happening. Perhaps we could start utilizing the challenge thread again to challenge other users to make threads. Aside from that, spreading the word to anyone who might be interested in joining - whether that be people you know online or in life.
20) Do you have any intriguing ideas as a way to freshen up the forum format, that hasn't really been done before?
It's something I haven't thought about much honestly. Forums are admittedly older technology and lack the fast paced options that other social media offer. I'm not sure it would be possible to fully revolutionize it. I could always make new themes to change up the look of the site, and look into adding extensions (difficult to do without destroying the site), but outside of that I'm at a loss.
21) Do you believe Giveaways help keep the forum active?
Sure. They can be a good tool to generate interest or activity on the forum.
22) Are there any new features that you could implement into the forum, however, are currently too lazy to do so?
Adding in things like we had on Zetaboards or phpBB such as rep would be one. I'd rather hire someone to install such things than do it myself. I've attempted to do it in the past and it's resulted in the site being down for several weeks at a time, as you need knowledge of how to properly implement such features. Even following guides I managed to screw it up. Our site has legacy coding from 3 different forum software which makes it easy for things to go wrong.
23) Aside from the drama, are there any other aspects that need to be toned down?
I'd like to see more serious threads and responses in the Dragon Ball sections. I'm not concerned about the rest of the site, but we are a Dragon Ball forum and should represent ourselves well there.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you, @SSJ2 for taking the time to respond to the interview.
This will give the 8 active users a better idea of who their leader is!
