GregHowley.com

After having just seen Anne-Marie's 7 Random Things, a blog post that seems to be all the rage on the 'tubes, I thought I'd join in and post seven random things about myself. I'll try hard not to repeat anything I included in my recent life synopsis post. That actually makes this a lot harder. Let's see...

1. I've had to get stitches three times in my life, and every time it was on my face. First, when I was about three years old I ran into the backyard to break up a fight between my cat and another neighborhood cat. The other cat didn't like that and had sharp claws. Secondly, in 2nd grade we were playing dodgeball and a couple kids decided to use rocks. A half-inch lower and I'd have lost an eye. Thirdly, when I was running the Laser Tag league when I was in college, I got pistol-whipped.
2. Sometime around 2003, I spent a solid year, averaging about 3 hours a night, coding a video game called Farkendry in Neverwinter Nights' Aurora engine. The game turned out great, but only one person ever got to play it, since the version I uploaded publicly got corrupted. Paul, don't you dare say Fart-Henry. I know where you live. Anyway, I found the forum topic about the game's development if you're interested in reading it.
3. Back when I was dancing Lindy Hop five nights a week, my partner Gretchen and I were paid to dress up and pose for a series of pictures that ended up in a few catalogs and possibly a billboard or two. So technically, I'm a professional model.
4. I lived for a year in the old Colt Armory in Hartford, which was once used to manufacture firearms that were used in the Old West and in World War 2. The building was converted to loft apartments, and I had what I believe is the best possible view of what little skyline Hartford has.
5. I don't actually have a college degree, although I have a full college education. I stopped when I had three classes left to take, and I believe most of those are electives. I've never been one to feel like I have anything to prove to anyone, and I'm secure in my career, so right now I've got no incentive to go back and finish.
6. I used to be able to jump over a the roof of a car without much of a running start. I could also jump over a shoulder-height chain link fence from a stand. A couple guys from a LARP I used to go to referred to me as "The guy with superhuman speed".
7. I play piano by ear. Although I'm no good at sight-reading music, I can generally pick out a tune and play it well if I'm familiar with the melody.