(Editor’s Note: This article contains satire)
A local resident’s satirical posts on Reddit as Potathan, the pothole at the corner of Salisbury Street and Park Avenue in Worcester, has received attention from several city residents across social media. Some have posted some of Potathan’s content from Reddit to other social media sites, expanding the reach of the pothole’s first-person narrative.
You can follow their journey on Reddit here: Potathan Speaks.
This Week in Worcester secured an interview with the pothole that everyone is talking about. Here is the complete interview with Potathan.
1. What inspired you to get into holing?
I was born into it, really. But even if I hadn’t been, how could I have looked at these beautiful, neglected roads and not felt compelled to hole? I never would have pursued holing at UT-Divot if I hadn’t seen the private roads of Worcester. What kind of city even has private roads at this point? It’s a truly special place.
2. What are your goals for your career?
I’m focusing on acting at the moment (be sure to look for me in Yorgos Lanthimos’ adaptation of Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel!), but it’s my hole work in Worcester that keeps me grounded and most of my career goals concern ruining people’s alignments around town. This is where I feel like I’ll make a real difference.
3. How much do you think Worcester’s leadership has played a role in your growth?
I absolutely would not be the hole I am today without the city’s leadership seemingly being surprised every year when it snows here and never feeling any peer pressure to maintain Worcester’s roads as well as its neighbors’. I think they do a great job, though. I understand if residents don’t feel the same way, given that I get a lot more love and consideration from the city than they do.
4. Who are your inspirations?
A lot of holes look down to the Darvaza gas crater or Golly Hole, but I feel much more inspired by real dirt of the earth local guys. The holist who works on that low section of Webster St. underneath the bridge? Amazing stuff. It’s incredible holers like that guy who get me excited to open up each day and ruin someone’s morning.
5. What do you want the people of Worcester to know about you?
I want them to know that I really care about them: they’re the most important people in the world to me. There’s no greater joy in the world than hearing someone curse you and the city they live in after destroying their car’s alignment in you, and Worcester provides more opportunities for destruction than any other place I’ve known. Also, no, not all potholes are related, even if we look the same; we’re just peers who share a love of holing.
Potathan studied at UT-Divot (thesis was on the increasing the weight of vehicles and its impact on pavement vulnerability). They have acting credits that include Hole #3 in Michael Bay’s reimagining of Louis Sachar’s Holes and Field Hole in Goodfellas. Potathan resides and works at the corner of Salisbury St and Park Ave, where you can visit anytime throughout the day.
Image Credit: Google
