"I've never wanted anything I couldn't have."

For the first official wishbone clover interview, we speak with Matthew, who used to be a buyer for our favorite San Francisco emporium of weird, Paxton Gate. When I first interviewed for a job with Knickerbocker, I was unconvinced that corporate life was for me. When I walked into Cat's dimly-lit office, spied her green nailpolish, and chatted about stationery and monkey skulls, I thought I'd fit right in.

Matthew: Is this the interview now?

Me: Yes.

Matthew: Would you like water or cheap beer that isn't refrigerated?

Me: Beer. How did you get a job with Paxton Gate?

Matthew: I was living down in Humboldt, a friend came back from visiting San Francisco and said, "I found this place in San Francisco that looks just like your bedroom. It's called Something Gate." I was working for a place in Humboldt called Something Gate, so I didn't think much of it. Then I was traveling through Uruguay and decided to move to San Francisco. On Tribe, I found a job at Paxton Gate listed under the "bizarre" category. I had to jump through a lot of hoops to get it, but they were intelligent hoops.

Me: How long did you work there?

Matthew: 10 months. Hey! I found my fortune! (He pulls out a Mason jar filled with slips of paper from fortune cookies.) In the end, I wanted a life outside of work.

Me: What's the weirdest thing you were ever offered?

Matthew: A film reel of a monkey being tortured. I purchased a still, but I had to get rid of it. I couldn't stand to look at it.

Me: Do you shop there now?

Matthew: No, I've always had an affinity for finding odd things on my own. Which is probably why I worked there. We really got into taxidermy when a retired captain of industry offered us his collection. He had a warehouse of trophies from his safaris.

Me: What's the one thing you wouldn't sell, no matter how much someone offered you?

Matthew: My art. Any of it. That's a heart in a vial. Vertebrae. A preserved duck heart. Some wings.