Wow! I was shocked when I opened up my blog and noticed that it has been almost a full year since my last post. That's way out of line. I know that I had some readers at one point, but I'm afraid they'll all be gone now. Still, I want to return to posting regularly--ideally once a week, but no fewer than once a month. Maybe some readers will rediscover the blog and come back. I've had some great responses in the past, and one of them actually led to my meeting a local wrestler with whom I've wrestled some of my favorite matches. We first got together just a little over a year ago, and we've wrestled several times since then. (More on him later.) So, the blog has been important to my wrestling life, and I want to rev it up once again.

Youtube continues to be a great resource. When I was young in the '70s--living in Appalachia before cable TV--I used to wait for noon on Saturday when wrestling would hit the airwaves. Once a week. No videotaping either! Now, I can sit at the computer--for hours if I want to--and watch wrestling from all over the world and from its great past. (As you can see, I'm still into the head scissors!)

I plan to do some traveling this year, and I hope those travels will include some wrestling with old friends and maybe some new ones as well.

I'll pick up my wrestling history within the week, or I might post about a new wrestling experience. I've been hoping for one since this past Thursday, but it hasn't materialized yet. Maybe tomorrow or Monday? I'll let you know.

My mini wrestling tour continued in July 2005--

Ohio seems to have a lot of wrestlers. Although I've wrestled, let's see, five men there, I still know of a couple that I'd like to hit the mat with.

Anyway, after my stop in Kentucky during that July trip, I went on up into Ohio for a match with another fellow I'd corresponded with there for some time. When I arrived, I called and told him where I was staying--Motel 6--and my room number. I don't remember how long he said it would be before he got there, but I had time to take a nap. After an hour or so, I was awakened by the telephone, and my opponent was somewhat put out with me for not answering the door when he knocked. I told him that I'd been asleep but that, knowing my sleeping, I was sure I couldn't have slept through even the lightest knocking. He continued to be ill about it as we rechecked the name of the place and the room number. Obviously if he was calling me in the room he had at least partially correct information. As it turned out, he was at the wrong Motel 6!
While he was on his way to the right location and right room, I fixed up the floorspace as best I could to allow for a little wrestling. Sadly, I don't remember many particulars about our match. He weighed in, I believe, in the 190s or low 200s, making him one of the lightest men I've wrestled. And he was a scrappy grappler and fun to wrestle. He wore white trunks, which I remember because we took several "hold" pictures after the wrestling was over.

The next morning, he came by again. I think we did some more wrestling, but what I remember most is that I was having some problems with my car and he took me to an auto parts place and fixed it for me. A great guy, for sure.