OK, good ol Randy was kind enough to tag me to do one of these so let's get it over with
I'll try to keep it short and sweet.
1. First car I ever owned was a 67 Buick GS-400 back around 1979. It didn't handle very well but it was incredibly fast. I'm fortunate I didn't get killed with the way I used to fly that thing! 
2. I'm not into reality TV but the one show I watch is Ghosthunters, mainly because these guys come from Rhode Island, where I spent most of my life.
3. The one big trip I went on was about 16 years ago when Shannon and I toured castles throughout southern England and Wales. Also spent one afternoon in Paris frantically trying to see as much as we could before the boat went back to England!
4. Favorite all-time movie - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. It's also ranked as #4 all-time on IMDB.com. Hard to believe this movie is 42 years old! I'm not really into Westerns but this movie is incredible. Great action and actors that were born to play these parts. 
5. While we're on the subject, my all-time favorite actor would be Christopher Lee. I admit he gave me nightmares as a kid with his portrayal of Dracula, but this guy is the epitome of cool. He continues to be a powerful actor plus he was a Special Operations Executive during WW2, which he can't talk about since it's cl***ified, but during filming of Lord of the Rings he did explain to director Peter Jackson the accurate way someone would die if they were knifed in the back
6. I've been a major WWE/WWF fan for 25 years and have gone to many shows. Still prefer the oldschool and the Hulkster and HBK are my favorites.
7. Played defensive end in highschool football. Got the nickname of "Head Hunter" since I would sack the QB by jumping on their back. Really not the most effective way to tackle but it looked cool
8. The weekend before I got married Shannon and I spent the day at the beach and got horrible sunburns. I couldn't even walk for a couple of days because my legs and feet were so swollen. I still remember limping to City Hall to get our license. Fortunately by the wedding day we had recovered but it was close!
9. My all-time favorite cereal was Pink Panther Flakes, which unfortunately hasn't been available since the 70's.
10. At the time of this blog I had just passed 12,000 posts on Gamespot. Nothing really significant about that but I've always had a fascination with numbers, guess that goes with being an accountant.
I haven't been on GS very much over the past week as last Wednesday morning I received a phone call that my Father passed away. It wasn't a complete shock as he was 92 (he was 46 when I was born) and had been in failing health for awhile. I actually got a call Tuesday night that he had been taken into the hospital as he had kind of reached a point where he was just shutting everything down (wasn't eating or responding to much of everything). Still, when you get the final news it's never easy. Thankfully he passed away peacefully.
I've mentioned him in past blogs, he had quite a life. Apparently he was a wild and crazy guy that kept hounding my Mom but she kept him at bay as she was a pretty conservative Christian. Not sure what to do with his life he joined the Army in the late 30's and went into the Armored corps. He then volunteered to fight with the British in North Africa in WW2 and had the experience of fighting under General Montgomery. He then came back to the US for awhile and eventually went back to Europe, serving under General Patton in France and then into Germany. He had many great stories to tell and I still have vivid memories as a boy sitting on his knee as he talked about fighting the Nazi's as a tank commander in his Sherman tank. Anyways, serving in the Army seemed to give him more direction in his life and after the war he became a Christian, went to college and became a minister. Did he do all that just so my Mom would marry him? We'll never know
Anyways, he had a great career as a Minister that had several churches throughout New England and I'll always remember him as a man that had incredible energy. Of course, if you have a kid when you're 46 you better have some energy! He was also a school teacher on the side and was an avid reader. Both of my parents really stressed the importance of education and certainly influenced me to get my college degree. To any of you that have actually read through this entire blog, I appreciate it and I'm glad I have a place like Gamespot where I can share some of this with my friends. For anyone that's interested here is a link to my Dad's obituary - Rev. Oakley E. Woodward.Will I look like that when I'm 92? Will I make it to 92, that's the main question Anyways, thanks again for letting me share all this with you.
Check out the "User Reviews" on the Gamespot Community Blog, as they mention my review of Tales of Vesperia (a great JRPG, btw). No big deal, but it's nice to see that they recognize greatness.
Also, you may recall in my last blog (back in November!) talking about going to a Celtic Thunder concert. Well, my wife Shannon and oldest daughter Darrah had the opportunity to go to a second show in Orlando, and they got there early enough to meet two of the five singers. That's Ryan from Ireland on the left and George from Scotland on the right. Surprisingly enough Shannon still came home to me after hanging out with these guys, guess it was a good thing Darrah was there to keep her in line.
Ryan, Darrah, Shannon and George
Ryan, Darrah and George
