Bison Smith on The Art of Wrestling

Bison Smith vs. Kenta Kobashi for the GHC title, August 26, 2003 

EDIT: I've had this sitting in my drafts since July. Holy shit! Gotta start writing at length again.

I've been trying to get ahead on some household chore stuff, so I decided to load my iPhone up with some podcasts to keep my mind occupied. I'm WAY behind on Colt Cabana's The Art of Wrestling, so I put four on my device, including one with Mark "Bison" Smith, an American pro wrestler that plied his trade in Puerto Rico and in Japan for Pro Wrestling NOAH.

The Bison episode was terrific, because it gave me a glimpse of what it's like to be a regular gaijin for NOAH, how to get over with the fans out there, and proper conduct with guys like Kobashi, Jun Akiyama, and Mitsuharu Misawa. He also talked about his role as someone that gets pushed to a certain degree, but in the end, gives the native stars of the promotion the rub. The man was just happy to be a part of the pro wrestling family. In the end, the interview was also quite sad, as Bison was in the ring when Misawa died, and he recounted the situation, and two other wrestling-related deaths he had witnessed. Bison went on to mention that he had gained an acceptance of death's inevitability, which gave me chills, as he would die a couple of months after this interview.

I'm not sure why I felt compelled to share this with you, but I did. It just hit home with me as someone that loves pro wrestling, Japan, and the combination of those two things. I guess it's also an opportunity to share a match or two of his, as he was an agile monster heel, therefore, fun to watch.

Thank you, Mr. Smith.

Additional Match: I just found this tag bout with Colt and Bison vs. Kobashi & Takeshi Morishima.

I'm Hooked

Friend and illustrator Stacy Curtis got me hooked on Strip Search. With the exception of The Amazing Race, I hate reality TV competitions, but this, THIS speaks to me. Cartooning and a reality show where folks are actually civil to each other? Sign me up!

I watched the first episode just out of curiosity, and there was enough to keep me coming back for 24 more episodes. Several shows into it, I wondered aloud as to why I was watching this thing, but now I'm fully immersed and unashamed.

It's down to the final four cartooning combatants, but I'm not going to spoil it all for you. If the teaser above didn't drive you away, jump right into the first episode.

A side note: I'm a webcomic junkie, but I've read very little of Penny Arcade, the title (and apparent pop culture empire – they've got a shitload of shows and merch, man) that this show is based on. Unlike Sinfest, Girls with Slingshots, and Johnny Wander, I've never felt like diving way back into the archives to start at the beginning. And I can't say that the whole "dickwolves" thing spoke to me, either. With that said, none of the 12 contestants seem to have a problem with any of that. So, I'll continue watching.

Disclosure: I've got crushes on Katie and Lexxy. Can you blame me?

Let's Take a Break

I love you pro wrestling, but I think we need some time apart. I've been down with you since 1985, and you've been there for me through everything. I gotta say though...I've that 28 year itch right now. You're boring me.

Let's cut to the chase: it's WWE. Raw is three hours. That's too fucking long. I don't have the time or PVR space to sift through wackness.
Also, money is (eternally) short, so I can't buy all the New Japan Pro Wrestling iPPVs I want. And believe me, I want to. I SO fucking want to.

So, until I get some more free time, more cash, or until Kassius Ohno makes his WWE debut, we've gotta go our separate ways. I'll keep tabs on you via Slam! and through Ring of Honor and NJPW's YouTube channels, but no hanging out for a while. No coffee dates, no booty calls.

Signage Mystery

Sarah and I have been living in this house for nearly three years, and I'm surprised it's taken me this long to talk about (and photograph) the old signs under my basement stairs. I initially thought they were hand painted, but upon closer inspection, they looked like they were screen printed.
I should hit up Christian Cassidy and see if he knows anything about these signs.
I've got a few more shots here.

An Airing of Grievances

I was just watching episodes of the unjustly cancelled Sym-Bionic Titan that I PVR’d around New Year’s (there was a set of marathons running at the time), and it got me thinking about Cartoon Network Canada’s schedule. SBT is in repeats in the Toonami block of Cartoon Network/Adult…a block of programming us Canucks don’t get, unfortunately.

The FAQ addresses this (in a roundabout, condescension-with-a-huge-smile way), in addition giving you a reason for redirecting you when you try to access cartoonnetwork.com. It’s a good way to avoid questions about why the U.S. schedule is so much better than ours, questions they get anyway if the FAQ is an indication. Pretty cyclical, eh? Anyway, I decided to write what you see above. It probably won’t change a damn thing, but making my voice heard feels good. I’m also doing it because I’m not a dude that’s into torrenting programs (not judging if you do, though). It’d be great to see those shows here without goin’ on some piracy bullshit.

Birthday #38

I've been 38 for over a week now. Feels all right, so far. Right now, I'm writing this blog post, listening to an interview with Laurie Rosenwald, and getting ready to draw some stuff for the Manitoban. There are a lot of things I wish were better in my life, but I can't complain about how things are at this very moment.

15 Years Later...

Sarah in Shinjuku. May 11th, 2009.

Fifteen years ago today, I met the most awesome lady via telephone dating, a fact that makes us sound like absolute fossils to a bunch of you, I'm sure.

On January 22nd of that year, we thought we were kind of amazing together and really enjoyed kissing each other.

Ten years later, we got hitched.

Almost five years after that, we now have a charismatic toddler.

It's been a fantastic ride so far, Sarah. I can't think of another woman I'd want to share my life with. I'm so glad we found each other.

I Like to Make Lists

Three lists. Two look backward, one points to the future (I love melodrama).

Albums I Should've Bought In 2012 But I Was Fucking Broke
(I'm sure there are a few titles I'm missing, but here goes anyway...)

• Quakers – Quakers
• Oh No – Ohnomite
• El-P – Cancer4Cure
• Killer Mike – R.A.P. Music
• King Tuff – King Tuff
• Alabama Shakes – Boys and Girls
• Aesop Rock – Skelethon
• House Shoes – Let It Go
• Neneh Cherry and The Thing – The Cherry Thing
• The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – Meat & Bone
• Ben Folds Five – The Sound of the Life and the Mind
• The Walkmen – Heaven
• Anything Ty Segall put out this year
• Blu and Exile – Give Me My Flowers While I Can Still Smell Them
• King Tuff – King Tuff
• Sean Price – Mic Tyson

My Favorite Posters and Art Prints of 2012
Posters:

• Luke Drozd's "Shhh" poster: http://www.gigposters.com/poster/148908_Tiny_Ruins.html
• Drew Millward's Black Keys poster: http://www.gigposters.com/poster/149603_Band_Of_Skulls.html
• Landland's Eric Church poster: http://www.gigposters.com/poster/150075_Eric_Church.html
• Drew Millward's At the Drive-In poster: http://omgposters.com/2012/04/13/drew-millwards-poster-for-last-nights-at-the-drive-in-show-in-marfa-tx/
• Daniel Danger's At the Drive-In poster: http://omgposters.com/2012/04/16/daniel-dangers-poster-for-fridays-at-the-drive-in-show-in-el-paso/
• Kevin Tong's At the Drive-In poster: http://tragicsunshine.com/band_posters/at-the-drive-in
• Aaron Horkey's Andrew Bird poster: http://omgposters.com/2012/05/03/exclusive-aaron-horkeys-new-poster-for-andrew-bird/
• Scott Campbell's Washed Out tour poster: http://omgposters.com/2012/06/11/scott-campbells-washed-out-tour-poster/
• Laura Park's Kelly Hogan poster: http://www.flickr.com/photos/featherbed/7367603710/
• Miles Tsang's Odd Future poster: http://www.gigposters.com/poster/155413_Odd_Future.html
• Landland's Eric Church poster: http://www.gigposters.com/poster/155678_Eric_Church.html
• Rob Jones' Jack White poster: http://www.gigposters.com/poster/155773_Jack_White.html
• Kevin Tong's Umphrey's McGee poster: http://tragicsunshine.com/band_posters/umphreys-mcgee
• Mik Baro's Devil Dogs poster: http://mikbaroblog.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-devil-dogs-electric-sluts-loco-club.html

Art Prints:

• Tiny Kitten Teeth's Adventure Time art print:  http://adventuretimeart.frederator.com/post/15695472846/new-limited-edition-poster-sets-from-mondo
• Jay Ryan's postcards: http://omgposters.com/2012/02/09/new-postcards-and-an-art-print-by-jay-ryan/
• Tim Lee's "Space Station Number Five": http://omgposters.com/2012/04/16/space-station-number-5-art-print-by-tim-lee/
• Joe King's "Cephalopod": http://omgposters.com/2012/04/18/cephalopod-art-print-by-joe-king

2013 Wishes
I know we're a day into it, but I'd like to see these 10 things happen in 2013:

1. I hope to see more tan lines in the Tumblr-based nudes I come across. 
2. It'd be great to get my head out of my ass at some point in the year. 
3. I'd like more attribution to take place on Tumblr, so I won't have to get on my fucking soapbox for the umpteenth time.
4. A cash windfall. Hey, it could happen! 
5. A visit to Minneapolis. It's been two years, and five since I visited Grumpy's. 
6. I need to meet the man who does these signs for Public Meat. It'd be nice to get one of those joints, too.
7. Mik Baro will post his more recent work on gigposters.com. That'd be killer. What's currently there is a far cry from the badass shit that he's doing right now.
8. Maybe Michel Casarramona will update his site? Add a blog or something? Fingers crossed.
9. iTunes. I have serious iTunes problems. It'd be great to take care of those.
10. Disney...seriously. Stop being dicks about the Ward Kimball book. Like, where do you fuckers get off?  

Like We Always Do About This Time

Normally, I'd make a bigger deal out of this sort of thing, but:

1. this is my 900th post,
2. and this blog recently saw its 10th anniversary.

Crazy, eh? Anyway, those are my resolutions up top.

1. The usual. Self-explanatory. 
2. I lost 30 pounds last year via physical labor. Now I have to really work at it. 
3. I wasn't late often, but there were times where it could have been avoided. Planning ahead is key. I hate being late. 
4. The Naylor layoff almost two years ago was the beginning of a downward spiral. Will I be out of debt by the end of the year? Not likely, but I really want to make moves toward being debt free.