Monkeyshines

For those of you that have known me for any length of time will know that I have more than just a passing interest in Professional Wrestling. I started watching it as a kid with my Dad and have continued to watch it for most of my adult life. While I do keep current with WWE and to a much lesser degree, TNA, I tend to think that a handful of International and Independent wrestling promotions are by far, a superior product for the wrestling fan. (Read: not sports entertainment)

While I always tend to keep my love of wrestling as a low priority talking point on dates, I am not ashamed to admit that I enjoy it. For those people that don't immediately chuckle, the next most common response is, "Oh like that sumo stuff?" After explaining that I do not watch Sumo wrestling, I then attempt to explain what it is about wrestling that I enjoy. During said explanation, I usually tend to see eyes start to gloss over at which point I just wrap it up and move on to the next topic. So, I will attempt to explain as succinctly as I can, what it is I enjoy about Professional Wrestling.

I am a big fan of storytelling in any medium, but there is something very compelling to me about watching a story between two or more competitors unfold before my eyes inside the squared circle. They are not telling the story with words, but instead with actions. As a viewer it is usually obvious who is the bad guy (heel) and who is the good guy (face). Every time I watch, I can feel ebb and flow of momentum, the anticipation of what will happen next, and there is always the possibility of seeing something I've never seen before. Even now when I attempt to explain the essence of what I enjoy about Professional Wrestling, I am having trouble verbalizing my affection for the medium. If you get it, you get it, if you don't you probably never will.

So, why have I waited 33 years to make this confession to the world? Well, there will be more to this story as the weeks unfold, this is merely the beginning. And no, I am not training to be a wrestler. There are much younger, athletic people out there. I will leave it to them and I will continue to watch with a keen eye from afar, or sometimes from the front row.