Have you met Matlock, Field Staff Team Lead for Parking Services? Spend the next few minutes getting to know him a little better.
Where is your favourite place on campus?
The business quad. I’ve always enjoyed the trees in that area. I also really like looking at the creeping vines on Convocation Hall.
Tablet or paper?
Paper. I’m a little bit old school. I had a tablet for a while, but I ended up finding it a little impersonal.
Name one thing you’ve brought to work from home.
My pen. I have a fountain pen I like to use. Again, I’m a little old school — I put a lot of value into neat writing and those kind of older personal skills, and this is how I express it.
What is the one thing you can’t live without?
My cat. I love that guy. He just turned three at the end of April. He’s a young guy and he brings me a lot of joy.
If you won airfare to anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Borneo. I would love to go there because it’s the home of pitcher plants, also known as monkey cups — a kind of plant that catches insects and eats them. I’ve always been fascinated by them and would love to see them in the wild.
You can invite anyone — alive or dead, real or fictional — to dinner. Who would it be?
George Carlin. He’s a comedian who passed away a couple of years ago. He was famously known for his comedy bit ‘The Seven Words You Can’t Say’ (for the most part, you still can’t say them). He’s the kind of guy who likes to push the boundaries about what’s acceptable and what’s not, and I admire that, even if it’s done through comedy.
If you could switch jobs with someone else on campus for a week, what would you do?
One of the people in charge of the greenhouses. That would be a dream job for me.
What does “uplifting the whole people” mean to you?
To me it means exactly that — we should be uplifting everyone. It also means knowing that the past may colour the future, but only we fill in the lines.
If you could solve any problem in the world, what would it be?
Loneliness. I have no idea how we’d to it, but to me it’s one of the bigger problems we’re facing these days. Through things like social media we’re more connected than ever, but at the same time we don’t really know how to talk to each other anymore — we don’t know how to connect. With all this overconnectedness, things become superficial.
What 3 words best describe your U of A experience?
Long — I have been on campus since 2005, both as a student and as staff. Inspiring — I’m from Medicine Hat, and moving to Edmonton and into Lister changed my entire worldview in a very short period of time. Challenging — as challenging as it has been, I am very grateful for these experiences.
Matlock Bolton moved to Edmonton from Medicine Hat in 2005 to get a degree in Plant Sciences. He started working at parking as a Jubilee attendant in 2006 and has been with Parking Services ever since. His interests include gardening, machines, and everything Do-it-Yourself.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.