Name:
Thomas Argyll (Knight)
Age:
35
Appearance:
Thomas is a big man, even amongst the rest of the Highlanders. At 6'4 and getting up near 220 pounds, he is impossible to miss. Blue eyes are frame by a red beard and collar length hair of the same colour. Having spent the majority of his life outside he looks a bit weather worn and certainly comes across as a rugged mountain man, which is exactly what he is. He tends to dress the part as well, wearing well known outdoor brands like Arc-Teryx, Patagonia and others.
He certainly gives the impression of someone who is confident in his abilities when it comes to being outdoors and enjoys talking to others. Though he rarely cracks a smile, and tends to speak in the same tone of voice much of the time, he is not unpleasant to converse with and is certainly nice to look at.
Family:
- Spencer Knight (Father : TV Producer : Canada)
- Margaret Argyll (Mother : Distillery Owner : Scotland)
- John Knight (Brother : Professional Free Style Skier : USA)
- Lauren Knight (Sister : Brewery Owner : Canada)
Occupation:
Thomas used to be a Mountain Guide for Canadian Mountain Holidays, a Heli-ski Company based out of Banff, Canada. However, about three months ago, he won Lotto 649, an estimated $63.4 Million, the largest jackpot in Canadian history. He became distressed by the number of "friends" who suddenly appeared in his life, the media attention, and unending solicitations from unwanted businesses, scam artists, etc. In an effort to escape he has moved closer to home and temporality adopted his mothers maiden name of Argyll. She lives not far down the coast in Oban.
Personality:
Thomas is a very guarded person, more so since his lottery win, and tends to not share much information about himself until he gets to know a person, and be absolutely does not talk about his sudden wealth. That said though, he is kind to his friends and all animals, avoids children like the plague, and is an excellent man to have at your back. He loves to be outdoors at all times if he can manage it and is a technological disaster in motion. He still uses a flip phone, no longer has an email address, and only uses his computer for working on photos, one of his many hobbies.
Thomas is often sarcastic, without using it as a tool to hurt other people. He hates the media, advertising, television, and wants very little to do with anyone who wants to talk politics. A friend once accused him of burying his head in the sand to which he had simply replied "And it's so quiet in here".
He is currently struggling with his new wealth and sudden isolation from everyone he used to know, except another Canadian ex-pat friend who lives in Bristol and immediate family. While willing to talk to anyone, about most things, Thomas is shying away from serious friendships and relationships due to his new wealth and being unsure how it will make him appear to others. With women he is always polite, is not opposed to light flirting, and will happily pay for the odd coffee or lunch out.
History:
Thomas is the oldest of three children born to a Canadian father and Scottish mother. When he was ten his parents decided to go their separate ways. His father, Spencer, was rising in the North American television world as the creative director of the Amazing Race, and his mother, Margaret, wanted to return home to Scotland. They separated just before Thomas's eleventh birthday. The kids, dual citizens, spent the school year with their Dad and flew to Scotland for the summers to spend time with their mother.
During this time Thomas indulged his love for the outdoors in both places, equally beautiful in their own way. In Banff he engaged in hiking, skiing of various sorts, rock climbing, and more. In Oban he continued to hike but added sailing to his skillset. By the time he was eighteen and leaving home he was already considered a "rogue" or "adventurer" by his friends.
On his eighteenth birthday his father met him at the bottom of the stairs with a backpack and an envelope. "You'd better start packing, your plane leaves in 24 hours." In that moment Thomas's life was changed forever. The plane ticket took him to Argentina where he lived with a friend of his fathers for a few weeks before back packing across the continent. He took every opportunity he could to explore and outdoors and live as locally as possible. In the year he was gone he learned to speak Spanish fluently and when he returned home to Canada he continued to converse with several penpals he had met on his journey.
Now nineteen, he worked his butt off to become an accredited mountain guide. As the Canadian certification was recognized worldwide he began to travel again and work on expeditions wherever he could, from Africa, to Europe and into Asia. In Nepal he climbed Mount Everest and was turned back a thousand feet from the summit by storms. Deep in Africa he summited Mount Kilimanjaro, and back in South America he conquered Aconcagua. In the middle of it all he took three years to sail the world on the tallship
Eye of the Wind where he earned his sailing master ticket.
In 2011 he finally returned to Banff with stories that few others could appreciate. He began to guide heli-hiking for Canadian Mountain Holidays and spending some time with his father who he had seen rarely in the proceeding eleven years. His siblings, who had also taken strongly to the outdoors, were still visiting regularly and he began to enjoy seeing them, and their kids again.
Then, in 2013, he bought his first, and only, lottery ticket while fuelling up a work truck. Four days later he wont the largest jackpot in Canadian history. In an instant his life was turned upside down. For someone who had lived on couches, slept on mountain sides, and enjoyed the hospitality of the poorest people on the planet, it was a complete shock. Never comfortable with undue attention he was suddenly inundated with visits from people he had met one time, con-artists looking to cash in, and life became unbearable.
Desperate to get out of town he packed up his rented one room apartment, bought an economy class airline ticket, told only his family where he was going, and left town. Now, not far from his mother and her family he is looking to try and settle his nerves, slow things down a bit, and decide what to do next.
Other:
Thomas is currently living under his mothers maiden name of Argyll.
Thomas speaks English, Spanish, French, and Gaelic.
Thomas can play the guitar.