[dohtml]<div class="appstyle"><br><center><div class="appstyle2">
Arthur Gates
</div><br></center><table border="0" width="200" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td valign="top"><div style="width: 183px; height: 250px; background-image: url(http://i42.tinypic.com/2wftv8w.jpg);"></div></td>
<td><div style="width: 197px; height: 250px; overflow: auto; padding-left: 3px; font-family: helvetica, arial, verdana; line-height: 110%; font-size: 9px; text-align: justify; color: 191919;">
full name: Arthur Gates
<br>
nick name(s): Art
<br>
age: 21
<br>
birthday: March 19
<br>
grade/occupation: Auto mechanic/ Small business owner
<br>
hometown: Minneapolis, Minnesota
<br>
parents: Melissa (53) and Patrick (54) Gates.
<br>
siblings: Patrick Gates II (22), Cecelia Gates (19), Lenny Gates (18), Maxwell Gates (15).
<br>
marital status: Single
name/alias: Jason
<br>
age: 20
<br>
face claim: Aaron Johnson
<br>
member group: Locals
<br>
contact: pm/email
<br>
other:</div></td></tr></table>
<br>
<center><div class="maintitle">What is your favorite color and why?</div></center><p><div style="padding: 0 5 5 5px">
"I really like the color orange. Generic, I know, but oranges are pretty much the best fruit ever invented by man. Their only real competition is blueberries and dragon fruit, but blue is boring and sad, and dragon, unfortunately, isn’t a color. To me, orange is the color of life. Whenever you see the color orange it means that there is something happening, something that people are excited about. Orange isn’t a color that is used for boring or sad events, it’s used for fairs and parties and everything on the exciting side of life. It's a color that I am always happy to see and be around."
</div><p><center><div class="maintitle">What's your worst memory?</div></center><p><div style="padding: 0 5 5 5px">
"My worst memory is from seventh grade history class. The teacher assigned us an end-of-the year project where we had to go over a period of American history such as the Civil War or the Revolutionary War. My older brother, Patrick, had had the same teacher and the same class a few years before, so I picked the same period as Patrick had, the Andrew Jackson years. I remember slaving away with the research of the period and really trying to put together a good presentation. I think it was the hardest that I had ever worked in school. After I finally presented in front of the class, the teacher told me, “Decent job Arthur, decent job.” Not even good job, then she asked, “You’re Patrick’s brother, aren’t you?” And when I nodded, all she did was let out a drawn out “Hmmm.” That “Hmmm” really hurt. I think up until then I though that I could follow right in Patrick’s footsteps and make my dad proud in the same way. That project really sucked; it made me realize that I wasn’t like Patrick or dad, I couldn’t be the same as them. I never held it against Patrick, it wasn’t his fault I wasn’t good enough. I did hold it against myself for a few years until later in high school when I realized that school wasn’t everything, and there was more to life than grades. Patrick was really cool about it and didn’t hold how smart he was over my head, and he really tried to help m find other things I was good at."
</div><p><center><div class="maintitle">If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you go? Why?</div></center><p><div style="padding: 0 5 5 5px">
"If I could live anywhere in the world I think I would go and live in Singapore for a few years. I doubt that I would stay there for the rest of my life, but a few years in Singapore would be one hell of an experience. Singapore is a huge, modern city, that is full of stuff to do. I think I could make a living in Singapore, and they all speak english, and there are so many young people. It would pretty much be a year-round party. It would be fantastic. And Singapore’s weather is so nice, it’s always warm and usually sunny. Can’t go wrong there."
</div><p><center><div class="maintitle">Introvert or Extrovert? Why? </div></center><p><div style="padding: 0 5 5 5px">
"Extrovert. Ooh yeah. Though for a while I was pretty reserved. I think that I spent some time hiding in Patrick’s shadow, but grew into my own in high school once I had given up trying to be like him. Around the house, Lenny and I also got closer, and I got really into cars, which gave me something to do with my time. I think that it is easier for academics to be introverted, because they always have so much of their brain occupied with whatever problem they are trying to solve. For me though, people are one of the most fascinating things in the world. Every person has so much story to them, and knowing other people keeps everything fresh."
</div><p><center><div class="maintitle">What is/was your favorite high school subject?</div></center><p><div style="padding: 0 5 5 5px">
"My favorite high school subject was literature. I may not be the most academic, but I think all of the hours that mom and dad read to us kids really did leave a mark. The main reason that I always really liked literature was because I was good at it, but over time, reading really grew on me. Reading a book is like having an intimate conversation with a really good story teller. My favorite genre is adventure novels. If I can’t go on the adventure myself, reading about it is always the next best alternative."
</div><p><center><div class="maintitle">What are your hobbies?</div></center><p><div style="padding: 0 5 5 5px">
"My biggest hobby is tinkering with cars. Heck, it's such a hobby that I even manage to make a living off it. I like to hang out with people and I like to read when nothing else interesting is happening. I guess the one hobby I have that not many people know about is that I really like to take the left over scraps and such from my shop and weld them together to see what I get. A couple stripped bolts here and a few metal scraps there and sometimes I can make something interesting. Most of the time it comes out useless, but every once in a while I manage to throw something together that doesn’t look half bad. I started this sort of scrap sculpting when I felt bad that I was throwing out metal and parts that couldn’t be used on cars, but which were still decent looking and not totally useless. It’s fun to try to put stuff together and see what does and doesn’t work. It reminds me a lot of working on the cars themselves."
</div><p><center><div class="maintitle">What do you want to be when you grow up?</div></center><p><div style="padding: 0 5 5 5px">
"When I grow up I want to be an astronaut. Or maybe a writer. Or an explorer. Or maybe a politician or a pilot. I’m not really sure what I want to be when I grow up. I usually try not to think too far in advance. I enjoy what I’m doing now, and I think I will enjoy it for a time yet. If I ever stop enjoying it, I’ll move on and make it work from there. That’s good enough for me."
</div><p><center><div class="maintitle">Would you rather be liked or feared? Why?</div></center><p><div style="padding: 0 5 5 5px">
"This question was originally meant for princes. I am a mechanic who tries to run a shop, and while sometimes I certainly feel like some cars are rebellious, I don’t think it’s quite the same. Either way, I would rather be liked than feared. I like being liked, and I like liking people, if you get my drift. I think it would be miserable to be feared; always looking behind your back. It would make it really hard to relate to people and to have any sort of functional relationships. You would always be left wondering if people were being honest with you, or just telling you what you want to hear. Being liked on the other hand means that people will always be honest with you, and will always show you who they really are. I value that. I want to know people on their level and have honest relationships."
</div><p><center><div class="maintitle">Are you more of a cat or a dog person?</div></center><p><div style="padding: 0 5 5 5px">
"I am a dog person. Cats drive me crazy. Antisocial little bastards just want you to feed them so they can get up the strength to shred your drapes. I think Jim Davis was spot on in his assessment of cats being hedonistic little devil-bots. Dogs on the other hand just want to be your friend, and who doesn’t want to have another friend? Can’t argue with that logic."
</div><p><center><div class="maintitle">Never have I ever...</div></center><p><div style="padding: 0 5 5 5px">
"Never have I ever stolen something. I don’t know why, but this always seems to surprise people. I guess that I kind of fall into a generalized social group that people tend to associate with theft and crime. Oh well, it bothers me sometimes when people assume that I work on cars because that as the last option open to me. I work on cars because I love working on cars. The stereotype that puts me in the bottom of society is regrettable and annoying, but I do understand, to some extent, where it comes from. I do try to not perpetuate the stereotype, and who wants to steal? Earning something is so much more rewarding I would think."
</div></div>[/dohtml]
