Some of you may already know this stuff, so I guess it's more like 10 things you might not know aboout me.

1. I come from a long line of mechanics, and can probably fix anything from your car to your leaky pipes or your air conditioner. I'm even HVAC certified.

2. This also includes old gaming hardware, and a lot of my older systems and controllers have undergone surgery to keep them working or improve them. My Atari 2600 connects to the TV with a composite cable and my NES controllers have 8' cord extensions. :)

3. I have never played a single Metal Gear game.

4. I grew up in a predominantly black and Latino neighborhood, and spoke fluent Spanish until the age of about 7 or 8. Now I don't remember any of it. I do speak Japanese on a 2nd grade level, though.

5. I collect toys. Go nextdoor to Tomopop and click my name on the sidebar, you can see about half of my collection if you look through my reviews.

6. I'm a huge nerd/snob when it comes to tea. My kitchen contains a dozen different kinds at any given time.

7. My brother works on the Emeril Lagasse show. He's also done a bunch of work in film, including Body of Lies and the last Die Hard movie. Search IMDB for Benjamin Cantler.

8. My initial foray into the writing world was poetry. (Modern poetry, not "roses are red" or the emo stuff.) Some of it has been published and is still floating around out there. I'm also in the process of illustrating a children's book in my spare time.

9. I was badly electrocuted once and had a near-death experience. I spent about 15 seconds being dead before they revived me and rushed me to the hospital, and then I couldn't talk for 4 days afterward. It was neat.

10. I play guitar, bass, and a little piano, though I'm not very good at piano.