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Thomas A. Garcia

Profession: Reporter with the Quay County Sun.

Born: Aug. 8, 1980

Hometown: Nara Visa

What’s your idea of a perfect day? A warm February evening, I am in Miami, Fla. The crowd stands as the National Anthem is sung. Then after the coin toss the teams line up and the game begins with thousands of camera flashes capturing the kickoff of Super Bowl 44.

Tell us about your pet: Krisko is a weenie dog. He is a bit of a pain at times but all in all he’s a great dog.

What is your theme song? “My own Worst Enemy.”

What would you like printed on your gravestone? “Vacancy.”

Who’s invited to your fantasy dinner party? Redd Foxx (Fred G. Sanford), Richard Pryor and Rodney Dangerfield. I could only imagine the stories and fun from that dinner party.

What do you think about Quay County? It is home. You can travel around the U.S., but when it comes down to it you feel a lot better once you start getting closer to home.

What’s your favorite TV show? My favorite show from the past would have to be “All in the Family.” As for my favorite show now, that would be “Venture Brothers.”

Who is your favorite entertainer? James Brown.

What’s so great about your favorite sport? Vince Lombardi said, “I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle — victorious.” That about sums it up.

What is the greatest football team in history? The Green Bay Packers.

If I could do anything, I would ... Get season tickets to watch the Packers.

Tell us about a time you cried: At the rosary for my godmother, Eliza Romero.

I was standing next to my mom. As the service went on, I began to cry.

I wanted to be strong for my mom and the family and did not want them to see me cry and I did not know how I was going to do that.

Then it began to rain outside, and when we walked to our cars my tears were masked by the rain.

To this day, I still think my godmother heard my thoughts and answered my prayer.

Tell us about a happy time: Fourth of July 2009. I spent the day out at Ute Lake State Park with friends and family. I can’t go into detail about what all we did, but it was a great time.

What was your most embarrassing moment? I would have to say it was falling off the bus in high school in 1998. The bus driver (who will remain nameless) ran the bus out of diesel and the students all decided to push the bus up Lake Street to Route 66 in Tucumcari. Well, as I was getting ready to exit the bus, which was already in motion from being pushed by several students, my friend Dustin stepped on the back of my foot and I went head first out the door and tumbled as the bus rolled on by.

Do you have a favorite joke? A magician is working on a cruise ship and for three nights he wows the audience with his act. During the performance of the fourth night, a voice began to shout from the crowd: “It is in his sleeve.” And “It is not the same hat.”

The voice came from the captain’s parrot who was giving away the act.

For two more nights, the parrot ruined the magician’s act. On the seventh night, the cruise ship hit an iceberg and sank.

As the morning dawn came, the magician was holding onto a piece of wood, staying afloat. The parrot was at the other end of the board. For five days, they stared and glared at each other, hardly blinking, until the parrot walked over to the magician and looked him straight in the eye.

“OK, I give up,” the parrot said. “What did you do with the boat?”

Tell us a story about your childhood: I spent my childhood in Nara Visa. There was not much to do, but we managed to get into trouble and have a good time. I had three close friends, who are still my closest friends — Cassie Huffman Tracy Hardy and my brother from another mother, Jimmy Miller.

Tell us a story about your mom or dad: A lot of people say I am just like my dad and I take great pride in that. My dad is never one to hold anything back. If he had something to tell you, he would. There are too many stories to tell and many of them I would have to edit for content.

What do you envision your life being like in 10 years? Married, with kids and rich beyond the dreams of King Midas. OK, financially stable would be OK, too.

When you were a kid, what did you think you’d be doing as an adult? I always wanted to be a cop. For many years that’s what I thought I would be doing.

If money were no object, what would you do to make the world a better place? Advance the research on cancer, AIDS, MS and other diseases to extend out lives.

Who is your hero and why? My mom, Virginia Garcia, and dad, Ralph Garcia. They have done so much for me and loved me through all the ups and downs in life and I look up to them.

Tell us about your greatest individual accomplishment: To be honest, it was seeing my byline in the paper for the first time.

What is your greatest fear? Being locked in a room full of spiders and ninjas.

What is your greatest hope? My family staying healthy.

What is your favorite taste? Vanilla wafers.

What is your favorite smell? New shoes.

What’s your favorite part about your job? Meeting people

What is your most prized possession? The railroad watch that my dad gave me.