Biography Last Updated: 08/10/08 - Massive Update

Date of birth: 29th of November, 1981

Place of Birth: Point Pleasant, WV

Most Important Days of My Life: Thursday, 28 August 2003, when I met my Dearest Angel.  Click here to see my Claddagh ring. Satuday, June 24th, 2008, when I married her.

The Day My Life Changed Forever: November 3rd, 2004, when I asked Monica to be my wife.  I told her that she brought my life joy, love, and youth, and that I wanted to grow old with her.  By the light of the fountain at Ritter Park, I asked her to marry me, and she said, "Yes, I will marry you."  Here is a picture of our engagement ring.

Faith: Christian (Episcopal)

Confirmation Name: Duane David Patrick Will, Jr.

Fraternal Affiliation: Freemasonry
-- Blue Lodge: Marshall Union #8, A.F.&A.M.
-- Raised in Minturn Lodge #19, A.F.&A.M.
-- Royal Arch: Pt. Pleasant Chapter #7 R.A.M.

Favorite Scripture: "...as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." (Joshua 24:15 KJV)

Finished Reading Entire Bible: May 11th, 2005

Currently Reading: Vulgata Clementinam (Latin Vulgate Bible)

Place of residence: Moundsville, West Virginia USA

Degrees:

M.A.T. in Social Studies Education, 5-12. (4.0GPA)

B.A. in History (Cum Laude, 3.52 avg - Red cords and tassel).  Minors in Sociology and French. Click here for a picture of me in my cap and gown.

Honors Societies: Gamma Beta Phi (Academic Honorary - Yellow/Black Stole), Phi Alpha Theta (History Honorary - Red/ Blue Cords)

Email: will2@marshall.edu

Current Occupation: Social Studies Teacher, John Marshall High School, Moundsville VW (since Oct 2006)

Lifetime Goals: Doctorate in Theology so I can teach college.  Become a famous novelist. I've written three novels, all unpublished thus far.

Great Accomplishments: Dropping 59 pounds to get back down to 176 from 235.  Here's the NEW picture.  Getting my undergraduate in four years! (Even if I did change majors three times)  Writing my first (unpublished) novel in High School.

Most Rewarding Experience: Three summers of temporary manual labor at Kyger Creek Power Plant.  Here's a picture of the crew I worked with, and one of me after work.

Spoken Languages: English (native), French, Spanish.

Literary Languages: Latin, Old English, Middle English, Ido

Favorite Number: 42

Hobbies: Writing sociopolitical intrigue novels, studying, watching television, tinkering with my computer.  Crochet and, horseback riding.

Musical background: Self-taught, but have spent some time in various church choirs.

Instrument: Vocals - Baritone to 2nd Tenor (2.5 Octave), Bowed Psaltry, Saxophone, Recorder, and some piano.

Currently Reading: Histoire d'une Revanche, Louise C. Seibert (again), et. al.

Literary Fodder that I have recetly devoured:  The Butlerian Jihad, Brian Herbert & Kevin J. Anderson

Song I was watching during this update: 
None. Been listening to a lot of Coldplay recently.

Favorite...
Food: Sesame Chicken (Extra Spicy), Crab Rangoon, Greek Stuffed Grape Leaves, Pastichio, Kebbeh with Hummus and Pita Bread.  (Get the feeling I like ethnic foods?)
Drink: Anything Coffee related, Kiwi Strawberry Snapple; Tea, Earl Grey - Hot. ;) Chewing Gum: Shaarawi Bros. Mastic Gum, Canels' Goma de Mascar.
Movie: Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith, The Last Samurai, The Majestic, Shogun, The Stand, Cloverfield, Rocky I-VI, A Good Year, Die Hard Series, Beowulf, Amadeus, Yankee Doodle Dandy, Ray, Walk the Line, Transformers, Pirates of the Caribbean Trilogy, Iron Man, Chronicles of Narnia, High School Musical, etc.
Music: U2, Johnny Cash, Coldplay, Maroon 5, Tarja Turunen, Nightwish, Sonata Arctica, FFH, Phillips Craig and Dean, Alizée, Oldies Music, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Styx, REO Speedwagon, Gnarls Barkley, Michael Bublé, Lou Rawls, David Cook, Jason Castro, as well as classical and opera.
Athlete: Kimi Räikkönen, Formula 1 Driver - Scuderia Ferrari
Sport: Formula 1, Sumo Wrestling, Combat Fencing
Artists: Mary GrandPré, Thomas Kinkade, Frank Frazetta, Steve Leonardi (← I've met him a few times!)
Director: Ron Howard, Rob Reiner, Ridley Scott, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas... too many to name. I'm a movie buff.
TV-program: Babylon 5, Naruto, sCRYed, Battlestar Galactica, Fullmetal Alchemist, M*A*S*H, The Simpsons, Deadliest Catch, Stargate SG-1, Star Trek, Everwood, Smallville, Kyle XY, Airwolf
Actor/Actress: Martin Sheen, Andreas Katsulas (G'Kar from Babylon 5), Sir Ian McKellen  and Patrick Stewart.
Book: The Bible, Dune, Lord of the Rings, Chronicles of Narnia, Left Behind Series, The Kite Runner, Nicholas and Alexandra, Paradise Lost, Beowulf, Casca, Pendragon Series, The Killer Angels, The Hunt for Red October, Lingua Latina per se Illustrata, anything by Thomas Harris
Author: ME! (kidding, but not by much) or the late Douglas Adams.
Band: Nightwish, Sonata Arctica, Pearl Jam, Collective Soul, Blues Traveler, Maroon5, Styx, U2 Coldplay, etc...  Christian bands such as Phillips, Craig and Dean, FFH, Audio Adrenaline, Newsboys. 
Album: Viva la Vida - Coldplay, Century Child - Nightwish, Let Your Glory Fall - Phillips, Craig, and Dean, From Wishes to Eternity, Nightwish, Songs About Jane - Maroon5
Favorite Songs: "Keeper of the Stars" - Tracy Byrd, "One Boy, One Girl" - Collin Raye, "Cello Prayers for the Chinese Dragon" - Mikisum, "Christmas in Sarajevo" - Trans-Siberian Orchestra, "Beauty and the Beast" - Nightwish duet between Tarja and Tony Kakko from Sonata Arctica at Tampere.)
Season: Winter
Poem: "Fire and Ice" - Robert Frost, "What Work Is" - Phillip Levine.

Best gig I have seen: Styx, REO Speedwagon, and Survivor at the Huntington Civic Arena or Third Day and TobyMac in Charleston

Worst nightmare: Permanently being out of communication with my literary muse.

Weirdest Dream: Musket shootout with George Washington and John Adams in the Marshall University Parking Garage (After having put the SS-090 Website on the Internet at 1:00AM).  I think I lost.

My Idea of Beautiful Irony: to one day learn that Emeril Lagasse eats TV Dinners when he gets home after filming a TV show.

Place I'd like to go: Montreal, France, Greece, Kyoto (for the Sumo Wrestling Basho held there), maybe take the Trans-Siberian Railroad from St. Petersburg to Vladivostok.

Life philosophy: Live well, be well, write well.