Pony Name: Knitty Gritty Real Name: Minty Location: Umatilla County, Oregon Age: 32 Occupation: Trying to get a job If you could be a cookie what kind would you be? One that can't be eaten since I don't wanna get eaten! Pants or no pants? Pants suck unless it's cold What do you like/dislike most about yourself? I like that I have such a good imagination that I can spend my life in a world of ponies, and I do! Unfortunately, imagining money doesn't pay the bills, so I don't like that I'm not rich and I have to work for a living, like most people I guess. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? I change my mind about this frequently, but usually it's either England or Tasmania or some other place in Australia, but I guess I'm just as happy here as I'd be anywhere. Do you collect anything other than ponies? I collect socks. Got a photo? Paste it here! I don't post pics of myself online. PONY BASICS Collecting Since: 1988 Who was your first pony, EVER? How did you get it? How old were you? Snuzzle, and I was 9 I think. My sister was "daddy's girl" and my dad kept buying ponies for her every time she asked and he wouldn't buy them for me. I asked my sister to ask dad for them for me, but even though she did, those ponies became hers anyway. So I finally asked my mom one time when we were at Kings and there she was. And she bought her for me!!!! And I love her soooooo much even this very moment! What generation(s) do you primarily collect? G1 and G3 (primarily 2003-2007 plus one of each 2008, and I keep 2009+s if I get them as gifts) (and I might start collecting G2 if I get rich someday). Who is your favourite pony and why? Every time somebody asks me this, I say something different. This time, I think I'm gonna say Toola Roola because I think she needs me to be her friend the most. Who is your favourite "Nirvana?" I donno, I'm too poor to think that far beyond my means. I really really want Tira-Mi-Su and Mochanut, but I don't think I'm gonna call them my Nirvana. Who is your least favourite pony and why? Whistle Wishes, because ..... I donno! I do love her though. I can't help it. I have so much love for all ponies! What are your thoughts on..... - G1s? I love them! - G2s? I'm so slow adapting to them for some reason, but I think I'm finally ready for them now. - G3s? I love them too! The movies helped me get to know them really well, and they kept me young. - G3.5s or whatever they're being called today? Um, I try not to think about them much. - Ponyville? I ignored them as much as possible and protested whenever my friends bought one because I was afraid Hasbro might think that just because they were making sales on them, people must like them, so they'd make more and stop the sane-looking ponies. I guess that's what they did by releasing the new look. What do you REALLY think happened to the Breezies? Did something happen to the Breezies? Who is the one pony you have sworn you'll NEVER OWN IN A MILLION YEARS and why? There's like this huge baby pony that looks more like a care bear than a pony ... um, that's not a pony to me, so I don't want it ever. What would you like to see offered next in the G3 line? I'd like to see all the G3 ponies re-released in the G3 line in the 2003-2007 styles, and pretend 2008, 2009, and 2010 never happened. Would you rather have: (a) MOC Mimic (b) Loose Ladybird (c) MIP Caribbean Delight & Beach Belle (d) Dude, just give me the cash! A! Poor Mimic got sick in the show, and so if I had her, I could take care of her. How do your family and friends feel about your pony habit...or are you still in the collecting closet? I thought they accepted me with my collection, but I'm starting to get the feeling that they wish I'd stop. I could no sooner stop collecting ponies than I could cut my own arm off with a butter knife. Do you ever see yourself *not* collecting anymore? What do you think would make you stop? I can't imagine voluntarily stopping. I'd have to be sentenced to life in a prison where ponies are not allowed, or worse. MOC G1s Preserve them or let them free? Let the ponies free! They're trapped and want out! How would you like to be trapped in a form-fitting piece of hard plastic tied to a wall by your hair for 20 or 30 years? Tell the truth! Do you ever still play with your ponies? Yes, every little chance I get! I make sure every pony knows she's loved more than anything in the universe! Are you a customiser? If not, would you ever? No, not really. I don't think I want to. If I could learn to build an authentic-looking/feeling/etc. pony from scratch, I might make my own persona and some of the ponies that are so rare I can't get my hands on them, but I don't think I wanna customise any. What are your thoughts on custom ponies? I guess people can customise if they like. I like Hasbro's though because I can fit them into my personal MLP cannon without making up too much extra stuff. What rare/popular pony just makes you ask...WHY? I can't think of any right now. If you could help up Hasbro on working on a MLP line (either G1, G2 , G3 or G3.5), what job would you like to do? I donno if I could do a job on the pony line without drooling all over the place unless it was new look ponies. But I might get sick if I worked on them too long. But if we wen't back to 2003-2007 style, I'd love to paint the eyes! I'm good at repetition, and I don't get bored with it, especially if it's something cute! Hasbro offers you a position on their MLP design team, but you must give up one of the following to get in: your collection, your friends/family, or your bank account. Which will it be? My bank account. There's nothing in it anyway. Which pony would you rescue in a fire? I'd grab every pony I could and start chucking them out the window if I had to to get them out in time. I'd definitely get a plushie out though or I wouldn't be able to sleep. I don't know how to sleep without a plush pony. Really, I don't. If you had to have a pony symbol tattooed on your butt which would you pick and why? G3 Minty on one side and Pinkie Pie on the other, because if another pony fan saw them, they'd know there's no mistaking that they're definitely from MLP. If you had to pick between a fakie or a bait pony, which would it be, and why? A fakie, because if it was a bait, it would probably never get done, and I'd rather have a fakie than nothing at all. If you had to pick a G1 or G2 to be remade and released with the G3.5 line, who would you choose and why? Uuuuuum, Snuzzle or Minty? Or Parasol? Their symbols have lots of specific shapes that they'd have to try to fit on the puny bodies of the new look. I'm sceptical that they could, yet intrigued that they may. How many pony meets/cons have you been to? None. Can you leave ponies behind at boot sales/ thrift shops etc, or do you have to rescue them? I have to leave them because I have no money to buy them, but I feel really sad about leaving them every time. Is there one colour of pony you own more of than any other? Pink. Do you think there are some as-yet undiscovered G1s out there? Where would you imagine they'd be from? Undiscovered? I'm sure somebody knows about them. YOUR COLLECTION What got you started collecting as an adult? I wanted my own ponies instead of having to play with my sister's ponies when we played together. The rest of the story is near the top of this interrogation I think. About how many ponies are in your herd right now? - Total? I estimate a bit over 50. Earlier estimates are closer to 100, but I've since counted them and found that I was off by about double, LOL! - From each generation? G1 I have probably about 15, G3 I have about 35 or so, new look I have 1 McDonalds Happymeal pony. Cheerilee. What's your biggest collecting regret? That I don't have the money to buy the ponies I want when I find them! And my family deeply underestimates the value I place on ponies. Can I have two? What's the one pony that just seems to elude you? Lily Lightly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What is your favourite pony pose and why? Either Garden Wishes or Jazz Matazz where they're looking up at me looking sooooooo cute wanting me to do something for them, like kiss them on the nose or hold them or something. Who is your grail pony and why? Do you have it yet? Serendipity most likely. In the storybook "Butterfly Hunt" she is soooooo sweet and nice to Sparkleworks and cute and pretty, she make me smile so much and make that stupid face that I make when I see something cute, I want a real one I can hold and groom and kiss on the nose! Do you collect mostly MIP or loose ponies? Why do you prefer that? I buy them in the package because they tend to be in the best condition, and then I remove them from their package because they're suffocating in there! People say, well, they're worth more in the package. What do I care? I'll be dead before I ever sell a pony! In your opinion, what are some acceptable and unacceptable flaws in ponies? Since I get most of mine in the original package, the sorts of flaws I get are mostly hair related. I hate when the hair is sewn in a folded position in the package without the plastic strip straight. It takes me years to get that crease out without damaging the hair. Do you collect foreigns or variants? If so, what draws you to them? No, I don't have the money. Who's the one pony you'd never, ever get rid of and why? Toola Roola. She'd be scared at night without me! Really, I can't imagine letting any of my ponies go! Which pony do you secretly carry around in your purse with you? Plush Minty, just in case I get stuck somewhere and need to spend the night, I can cuddle with her! Where's the weirdest place you've got a pony right now...and why is it there? Tucked in my bed with her head on my pillow. For me, that's normal, but the rest of my ponies are really in completely normal places. She's my big plush Toola Roola, and she's afraid of the dark, so I hold her at night so she won't be scared. Quick! Close your eyes and grab a pony. Who is it and how did you get it? Crystal Lace xD I bought her one day when I wanted a new pony and she had the lowest price. BACK IN THE DAY... Did you have ponies as a kid? If so, how many? Yes, I had about 12. Did you improve them by giving them haircuts, painting them with glitter polish, or anything else fun? Not really. I tried to "fix" them when the dog got a hold of them sometimes. I used fingernail polish from time to time in doing so, but in my mind, the damage was done. I was just trying to make repairs. Who were the stars of your childhood herd? Moonstone and Minty Who were the bad guys? I don't remember having bad guys very often, but sometimes we had the Grave Aliens, which were our horse toy figures. We went on epic journeys across the back lawn, up and over the rock garden and the barbecue grill and stuff. One time, we went all the way to the park with them, LOL! Did you watch the TV show? What was your favourite episode and why? Yes, I think my favourite episode was Sweet Stuff and the Treasure Hunt because I loved Sweet Stuff! What's your very first pony memory? My sister let me play with one of her ponies. I think it was Blossom. I was so happy! Did you have any rare ponies as a kid? Who? I don't think so. Tell us something evil you did to your ponies: One time I was putting on my bathrobe in a hurry and I whipped the tie thing around myself, and it whacked about 30 ponies off of my bed-side table and they went flying all over the floor. I felt really bad about that and picked up each one by one, cleaned them off, brushed their hair really pretty and gave them kisses and held them close to me telling them I was sorry and that I love them and I would make sure I never do that again. And it hasn't happened again yet! THE REAL WORLD What do you like to do for fun? You mean besides ponies? Nothing. Well, I play Guild Wars, but all of my characters are named after ponies. I don't do much other than ponies really, and there's nothing in my life that I haven't figured out some way of merging with My Little Pony. Do you have any other hobbies? Please share! I guess collecting socks is sort of a hobby. Maybe yarn. I donno, like I said, ponies is about my life. Got kids? No. Unless you count my ponies. They're all my sweet babies, and I love them like they're my children! Would you ever name your kid(s) after a pony? If so...what? If I could find one that people wouldn't make fun of, but I haven't thought of any because I don't think I'm actually ever gonna be able to have kids of my own. Got pets? Nope. I'm allergic to dogs anyway. What three places are you dying to see? (NO, Pandora does not count!) Nowhere really. I like it here fine. FILL IN THE BLANK I would like other collectors to think of me as....... somebody who loves ALL ponies more than anything in the world. I really wish that Hasbro would...... go back to making G1 or 2003-2007 style ponies and episodes (or both) for the rest of eternity. My best eBay deal was..... Um, I don't remember <.< When I was new, I didn't know any better that... I'm not sure I understand this statement. Um, that the original series and MLPT were separate and distinct shows? Yeah, my sister and I mixed up characters from each when we played. I think that the most under-appreciated ponies are...... Jumbo Plush ponies. What sets me apart as a collector is.... that I looooooooooooooove my little girls so much like they're all my babies, and they're always always always on my mind, and I would never sell my babies, and I'd never let anything bad happen to them! I know they are made of plastic and stuff, but to me, in my heart, each and every one of them is alive and has her own unique personality and deserves my love. What sets me apart is the way I feel about my collection. And finally Mr. Moochick: Friend or foe? I'll get back to you on that.