Your school counselor never told you that being a Pokemon hunter was an actual job option, but tell that to Tom Currie.
The 24-year-old Currie, who lives in New Zealand, decided to leave his current job and instead travel far and wide to fulfill his quest of literally catching them all. All meaning the 151 Pokemon contained within Pokemon GO (via The Guardian).
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“I wanted to have an adventure,” Currie said. “I have been working for six years and I was desperate for a break. And Pokรฉmon gave me the chance to live that dream.”
During his travels, Currie has stumbled upon other Pokemon seeing individuals, including a mass amount of them in Sumner.
“I think the most exciting experience so far was in Sumner, Christchurch, which has become a hot spot for Pokรฉmon hunters,” Currie said. “There were about 100 people there hunting. And some of these people would usually be shut up at home and really reclusive. Hunting for Pokรฉmon is bringing them into the real world. It was such a buzzy atmosphere, when someone spotted a rare Pokรฉmon they would shout out to alert the crowd.”
It’s a bold move that many wouldn’t pursue, but as Currie’s mother says, it has always been part of his personality.
“Tom is a very spur-of-the-moment, independent kid, he always has been,” said his mother, Tania Dobbs. “His nana and I don’t understand the game but I remember him loving it in his childhood. I am just glad he is out enjoying his life and seeing so much of New Zealand. I back him 100%.
While his chosen profession doesn’t pay at the moment, transportation companies have offered to give him rides to remote areas. He’s already made a good deal of progress, catching 90 of the 151 available Pokemon.
