The field guide entry
About me
"Some heroes carry swords. I carry five stars."
I'm a man, clad in a sloth mask, embarking on a quest to be a Freelance Mascot for libraries, communities & beyond, whether they want me to or not — leaving five star reviews at places that truly deserve them. I'm drawn to libraries first. Then to community spaces. Then to the local businesses that show up for the people around them. Hidden gems. Worth-the-detour places. The institutions whose value is felt by the regulars and overlooked by everyone else. If a place has earned the stamp, the world should know about it. That's the whole quest.
The mask isn't a gimmick. The mask is my inspiration. It gives me permission to show up as a mascot for places without a spotlight, with no strings attached. My only goal is to help others get noticed. Without it, I'm just another customer. With it, I'm an ambassador of attention. A freelance mascot. A field guide for the small, careful, deserving places that can sometimes be forgotten.
One ground rule: I do not wear my mask inside the places I’m reviewing. I want new places I visit to see me as a random visitor or customer, not a “weirdo” with a fashionable sloth mask. The mask is for the road, the field photos, the quest. Inside, I’m just a quiet regular guy stopping by.
— On the philosophy —
Sometimes people and places just have an off day. If I don’t leave a review after visiting, it isn’t to bring them down. I only leave reviews when it feels like a deserved 5 stars.
Sloths carry entire ecosystems on them, and I like the idea of carrying the communities I visit with me wherever I go. That’s why I choose to remember places in full context, not snapshots of their worst moments.
— A rare moment —
Behind the mask, briefly.
I started this as a playful classroom assignment, and it snowballed from there into something with a life of its own. The mask comes off inside the places I review. It keeps the focus on the experience, not the costume, and on something that began as a simple exercise with my students. It goes back on when I’m moving through the world because the intent has changed. It’s about attention, presence, and the communities I pass through. There are stops to make.
— Field footage —
Me, in motion.
Proof that I'm living that mascot life. I take my job serious...sometimes!