Octopus Overlords

How about we all post one random, little known fact about our selves that have little relevance on our lives. Please keep them withing the realm of reality, the first person who claims to have dated Jessica Alba gets pummeled....


Mine:
I had a music producer offer to produce a rap cd for me. To which I answered: "I'm way too white to consider this a viable future."

I once dated a porn star...

I came very close to becoming a millionaire with Wizards of the Coast.

EDIT Wow, I forgot about posting this. I guess "millionaire" is a bit of an exaggeration, but I think I would be very comfortable now. It was back before they got big. They were going around to various local game stores in the Seattle area trying to sell stock to launch themselves, and one of them happened to be in the same one I was one afternoon.

He offered me some stock, and I had money to buy it with but I was there to buy a stupid Warhammer 40K set. Being a dumb guy in my early twenties, I bought the Warhammer set. I have kicked myself many times over this stupidity. The real awesome part is that I never used that set for anything.

Doomboy wrote:I came very close to becoming a millionaire with Wizards of the Coast.

Seriously ? Can you tell more about that?

I can't think of a single (interesting) thing that I haven't already posted about.

Once in the showe...... nevermind

Had a kernel of corn stuck in my ear canal for over 10 years.

My head was on fire.

Little known fact: In 2005, I sat next to Queen Elizabeth II for a couple of hours.

Several people at work volunteered for a big local event and put pressure on me to volunteer. So I did somewhat reluctantly. I was expecting to be a ticket taker, or someone who set up the stage or something. During the volunteer training, someone came in looking for 'big guys'. As I'm 6'3", 200 lbs, and as most of the volunteers were ladies or older gents, I was selected. They needed guys for 'security'. People were assigned to various jobs, and somehow I wound up with the 'Royal Protocol' team. I was informed that it was a grave insult to walk in front of the Queen of England during a performance, so they needed a volunteer who had the sole job of keeping the royal sight lines clear.

Come the big night, I'm selected for the job. I sit to the left of the Queen of England. I'm actually inside the 'Royal Box'. I've been shown where the RCMP snipers are, where the plain-clothed policemen are in the crowd in case I need help. And for a 2 hour performance, I'm sitting with the Queen of England, close enough I could just turn in my seat and poke her in the eye. (Did I mention the snipers?)

And because the event was nationally televised, every time the camera turns on the Queen, there I am sitting next to her. I have the DVD. For a long time afterwards, I was known by my co-workers as the luckiest bastard on the planet.

I once had a brief conversation with Ernie Hudson (aka the black Ghostbuster) during an online celebrity chat.

During my brief stint as a professional musician, I was invited to perform onstage with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band. I declined.

I almost got in a fist fight with Dick York...

hepcat wrote:I almost got in a fist fight with Dick York...

Man, I read that sooo wrong...

razgon wrote:

hepcat wrote:I almost got in a fist fight with Dick York...

Man, I read that sooo wrong...

i'm guessing it was a case of wishful thinking on your part?

On a research cruise for the University of Florida in 1986 I collected 6 very rare mollusks with one being extremely rare. At the time I think there were only 8 in the world due to it being a deep water mollusk.

Nice picture of it here http://malacos.chez.com/htm/EE0G13.HTM" target="_blank

And my name in fame at the FLMNH: http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/scripts/dbs/ma ... b_proc.asp" target="_blank

I almost got into a knife fight with Dick Sargent.

The first time I went to the doctors office by myself, I was given a cup by the nurse and told to urinate in it.
I proceeded to poop in it, not knowing what "urinate" meant..

The summer after I graduated college, I worked as the personal assistant to a Saudi Arabian princess, who made some not-so subtle threats to me when I discovered she was having an illicit affair with an American.

I have diarrhea.

WYBaugh wrote:On a research cruise for the University of Florida in 1986 I collected 6 very rare mollusks with one being extremely rare. At the time I think there were only 8 in the world due to it being a deep water mollusk.

Nice picture of it here http://malacos.chez.com/htm/EE0G13.HTM" target="_blank

And my name in fame at the FLMNH: http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/scripts/dbs/ma ... b_proc.asp" target="_blank

Sweet. Was that in the invert zoo class? If so, who taught it back then?

In second grade, I won a helicopter ride. I sat next to an OPEN DOOR (I was strapped in the seat, of course). On the ride, I saw a nude couple having relations on a boat. Unfortunately, we were up too high to see anything and I was too young to know any better.

Ralph-Wiggum wrote:

WYBaugh wrote:On a research cruise for the University of Florida in 1986 I collected 6 very rare mollusks with one being extremely rare. At the time I think there were only 8 in the world due to it being a deep water mollusk.

Nice picture of it here http://malacos.chez.com/htm/EE0G13.HTM" target="_blank

And my name in fame at the FLMNH: http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/scripts/dbs/ma ... b_proc.asp" target="_blank

Sweet. Was that in the invert zoo class? If so, who taught it back then?

It was with Dr. Maturo. Have missed Doc over the years. I was fortunate to be able to work for him during my senior year...great guy!

i have shaken hands with Buck Dharma.................

WYBaugh wrote:

Ralph-Wiggum wrote:

WYBaugh wrote:On a research cruise for the University of Florida in 1986 I collected 6 very rare mollusks with one being extremely rare. At the time I think there were only 8 in the world due to it being a deep water mollusk.

Nice picture of it here http://malacos.chez.com/htm/EE0G13.HTM" target="_blank

And my name in fame at the FLMNH: http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/scripts/dbs/ma ... b_proc.asp" target="_blank

Sweet. Was that in the invert zoo class? If so, who taught it back then?

It was with Dr. Maturo. Have missed Doc over the years. I was fortunate to be able to work for him during my senior year...great guy!

Ah. He retired before I got here. But a scholarship he founded did give me $2000 for working at Seahorse Key.

I once won an award for top executive in my field. (The competition was weak that year).

I've stood on center ice at the Wachovia Center.

I played against (and beat) Wil Wheaton in a Pokerstars SnG tournament. We were heads up for a while, but I pulled out the win. No major suckouts, but there was a key hand where I turned a flush the same time he turned a full house, but somehow I got away from the hand. He checked on the river hoping I would bet into him, but I ended up checking. When he saw my flush, he asked me why I didn't jam it. I think part of the reason was that I was playing LOTRO with my son at the time and was distracted.

I potentially have a braces-sized rubber band stuck in my skull.*


*It could have also been just an artifact of the x-ray....

When I was in the 6th grade my art teacher entered my painting into a art contest. It was for PBS and they liked the picture so much that they put it in their collection. Supposedly it's still there but I doubt that's true. I have no idea on how to paint so that was a bit odd.

When I was a kid I was a pretty good bowler. Good enough to win a few trophies, anyway. I haven't been bowling since I married my non-bowling wife of Polish ancestry. That's right: a Polack who doesn't bowl.

I once played Christopher (Chris) Reeves son in a movie.


Yes he preferred to be called Chris and uner no circumstances were you to refer to him as Super Man.

Frank Sinatra Jr. took me out to dinner.

I was in a play with his step daughter and after opening night he took the whole cast out for dinner and drinks.

Ironrod wrote:When I was a kid I was a pretty good bowler. Good enough to win a few trophies, anyway. I haven't been bowling since I married my non-bowling wife of Polish ancestry. That's right: a Polack who doesn't bowl.

My dad used to set up pins in a bowling ally when he as a kid. His own personal brush with the buggy whip.

I once beat a chess master in chess once.

Mark Fidrytch came to my 4th grade class to sign autographs.
I once saw Itzhak Perlman in an airport.
At one time the president of Kroger was a customer of mine.
I know someone who was a plaintiff in a major US Supreme Court case.

WYBaugh wrote:On a research cruise for the University of Florida in 1986 I collected 6 very rare mollusks with one being extremely rare. At the time I think there were only 8 in the world due to it being a deep water mollusk.

Nice picture of it here http://malacos.chez.com/htm/EE0G13.HTM" target="_blank

And my name in fame at the FLMNH: http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/scripts/dbs/ma ... b_proc.asp" target="_blank

Very cool! I will dovetail for my own personal little known fact. I found the first Colorado record for a rare moth (Pygarctia neomexicana) while doing a rare plant survey in SE Colorado. The really cool thing is I got a photo of it laying eggs on the actual rare plant we were there to survey for (Asclepias uncialis ssp uncialis, aka dwarf milkweed) and the moth record was verified by one of the worlds top lepidopterists, Paul Opler.

Here's the moth laying eggs:



And here's a pic for scale:



Closeup on the tiny yet diagnostic milkweed bloom:

I once ran a raffle for an antique car with Ken Osmond (Eddie Haskell.)

I met quite a few astronauts and noteworthy scientists when I worked in a science museum. The best of the lot was Jim Lovell (Apollo 13). Other names off the top of my head: Sally Ride, Alexei Leonov, Valentin Lebedev, Richard Mullane (space shuttle), Murray Gell-man, Donald Johanson, and Stephen Hawking.

I was in the executive offices of the Chicago Whitesox the day before the opening of New Comiskey Ballpark. Went to pee at an empty set of urinals when an old man decided to pee right next to me, breaking all man-codes. I gave him a serious sneer and a "hrrumph"....only later to learn it was Jerry Reinsdorf. Not sure what his deal was.

I was born in Wyoming. And lived there for over 20 years without suffering any alcohol, meth, or hunting-related fatalities.

I once got to speak to John de Lancia of Q fame from Star Trek the Next Generation. But instead of asking about his time as Q I asked him about his time on Days of Our Lives.