What’s up? I’m Jordan James Bolkema, J.J. for short! I’m 25 years old and I’m a construction worker from Salem, Oregon, but currently making a living in Denver.
Jordan "J.J." Bolkema
Age: 25 (born October 28, 1994) Birthplace: Salem, Oregon Current residence: Denver, Colorado Occupation: Construction Project Manager Marital Status: Dating Species: Sea Otter Height: 5’ 7" (171 cm) Weight: 160 lbs. (73 kg)
My entire experience in every major event of my life has been about defying expectations. Am I your average smart-ass otter bloke who likes to swim and stay fit? Well yeah, but at the same time I do feel I’m a Swiss army knife with enough flexibility, adaptation skills and the will to cast discipline away and go apeshit if I so need.
I moved from my small town in Oregon to attend college in Colorado, and ended up staying there after obtaining a bachelor’s degree in Construction Management at one of the top-ranked programs in the nation. Three years later, I already run my own small team of workers and have tackled my own share of successful projects. To be successful in leading a team at such a young age, you definitely need to come equipped with some Alpha skills – especially since sometimes you need to assert your authority, which will be tested at every possible time. I make a point of putting the client and the project first, which always pays dividends in the relations with both my team and my boss, but in many of those cases... I gotta step up and declare I got shit to say, so listen y'all.
While I may appear like the proverbial nerd to someone who doesn’t know me, and I kind of am in some way, I will gladly admit being open to bro-ing down; I’ve been in a fraternity and know how to behave around every social clique, jocks, party guys, nerds, ladies, they end all up loving the J.J..! I’ve done my fair share of roughhousing with my fellow Greeks, and ran through the full book of dumb stuff you can do when you’re a college boy with too much time on your hands. But I’ve also built a reputation around our chapter as the go-to for help with academics – which definitely never hurts, so stay in school, kids.
My interest in fitness and physical activity sparked around way back when I was in high school. At 5’7”, 160 pounds, I’ve never been the tallest or beefiest fur on the block, so I figured early on I’d better do my best with the tools I’ve been given. I headed the varsity triathlon team while in college, even helping them to two straight top ten spots at Nationals: I’m a very good swimmer, I have a running background and I can hold my ground in cycling, hence that being my main brand here, the triathlon guy, the triple threat, the ménage à trois, pfft.... And ever since I moved to Denver, I grew to love winter sports too. I'd say I am a competent skier and snowboarder, but well... when you got Breckenridge, Copper Montain and Arapahoe right around the corner, how can you not?
Some of the guys here definitely look intimidating, but I know for a fact I’ll be underestimated and I got enough tricks under my sleeve to survive this. You may feel I do buddy up to people to curry favor, but I genuinely enjoy meeting up new folks and I’m competitive enough to stack up against them and be BFFs with them afterwards. Nothing personal, it's just Alpha business!
I'm the American Mustelid Alpha because I know I can prove that putting forward a tough act doesn’t make you the baddest guy on the block, and that you can be domineering and an Alpha through smarter ways. It really doesn't matter if there are challenges I'm great at and others I can't do much about - the whole package is not about being nitpicky, but being able to survive the elements with enough finesse on your way to the top. I’m ready to take home the American Mustelid Alpha crown – and the perspective of paying off the entirety of my school debts should I win the prize money is definitely juicy too. Watch out, dudes!
***
In a house full of big, burly dudes, 5' 7" otter triathlete J.J. might go unnoticed at first glance - yet while this construction worker is happy to let others take center stage, he's ready to play a subtler game and conquer his way to the top through his cheerful, infectious personality. Many young lutrines attended the AMA selections, but only J.J. was able to secure himself a spot among the twelve finalists - can he take it a notch further and go the distance among far tougher competition?
Thanks a bunch to the amazing Crocdragon89 who took on the duty of drawing the whole cast and played a major part in bringing our vision to life! <3
From now on, we'll be posting each upcoming episode in two parts for easier reading - first part coming out on Tuesdays, second part on Thursdays. Episode 2, "What Are The Chances?", will be out on January 5th and 7th!
American Mustelid Alpha is the brainchild of HeadQuarters (the joint project of Qovapryi and Harlow). J.J. Bolkema and all mentioned characters belong to them both.
