"We Want Some Bayley: The Song"

Photo by Miguel Discart

"We Want Some Bayley"

Written by Russ "Scoop" Stevens

(to make Jonny Loquasto of the Wrestling Compadres comfortable with the Full Sail crowd's  2 Live Crew inspired chant).

Somebody say, "Hey, we want some Bayley."

Hey, we want some Bayley.

Let me hear you say, "Hey, we want some Bayley."

Hey, we want some Bayley.

Somebody say, "Hey, we want some Bayley."

Hey, we want some Bayley.

Everybody say, "Hey, we want some Bayley."

Hey, we want some Bayley.

She's the Saillor Senshi* of the two thousand teens.

Got some tall tube men for all of the parties.

She don't care if you use vicious knees.

She'll beat and hug till you beg for release.

If you wanna throw, just let her know.

You can get your chance at the end of the show.

You'll look at her, and think a kid you see.

You'll be the fool when she gives her long hair a squeeze.

Best know what to do, 'cause she will not flee.

Just kick your butt to reality T.V.

Check out the rest of the entire blog at http://ripemsystem.tumblr.com/.

"Don't let your babies grow up to be Cubs Fans, and always remember to spay or neuter your White Sox Fans," Russ Stevens

The Animated "Hobbit" - Wee Frustrations

It ends up that I may have to buy the DVD of 1977's "The Hobbit" by directors Rankin and Bash. You know those guys best as the director of all the seasonal TV specials that first and second grade teachers used to kill time and allow them to zone out until the holiday break.

Thank the gods for the Common Core puzzling all Americans. Teachers need the four hours the old VHS tapes would kill to make sure they can answer all the questions and complaint letters by parents who lost their jobs to imported employees from more educationally sound nations. I am actually surprised that teachers thought dealing with students screaming for them to fast forward through commercials or adjust the tracking on these dubs was better than coming up with lesson plans. At least the tapes kept kids from safety scissor and paste accidents.

Sorry for the little rant, but let me bring it full circle. I actually had a Civics teacher (first year) decide to kill a couple of classes showing "The Hobbit." He may have ran out of stories from his glory days as a Notre Dame (Peoria) wrestler and baseball player. Or, Rankin/Bash is something that all teachers are suppose to familiarize themselves with and show to justify the knowledge. In other words, I need to find out what the code name for this course is.

If I am going back to school next year, I may as well have enough hours from Illinois Central College to claim I have enough for a Bachelor's Degree. This would be like the Bachelor's Degree my dad was given so he would have to enter the draft.

Check out the rest of this review at NinetyForChill.com - A More Acceptable Runtime.

Being a Cubs Fan on a Superstitious Holiday and the Lame Puns that Come with It.

I have 12 minutes to punch out a blog to maintain my streak of writing some kind of journal since I left for Florida at the beginning of the month. This is on Blogger because I had left my journal at home before I came to work. The cat was a little too antsy when I left, so when I realized that I had left it in the apartment, even though I had the time to get it before work, it would have been too much of a hassle.

You add in realizing that my last OSF bill arrived during my week away from Peoria Heights, hence past due when I opened it, you can just call it a typical Friday the 13th. On the plus side, if I would have just given the bill to Dad when I saw him for Fox Trivia Night, I would receive immediate heat for giving him an overdue bill.

I am sure I can budget a late fee. To anyone at OSF who may read this, please mail me the late charge, do not tack it on the next bill. Yes, it may help knock down my deductible for next year, but it would be a pain explaining it to my caring parents.

So we learned my humility is worth 35 to 50 bucks, at least when it comes to my parents.

My phone is currently on the charger, so I am not going to check on my tentative Tinder date until I finish this. At least that way, I am not pressing my luck. It's three till midnight, so I gotta rely on a pun to justify wrapping it up. The only issue is that if I push press publish, I've left my readers with a cliffhanger. That seems appropriate when the date involves My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult. The last pun.

If "Chappie" Didn't Need Guns, Neither Do You

It's kind of a bait and switch title. I'm not going to go onto an anti-gun rant, I'll save my vacation journal for that.

Say what you want about Disney, at least he knew to kept trolls out of his work. In other words, it was not until half way through my stay in Orlando that the goofballs at #gunsense stopped acting like the host of every Fox News Channel show, overwhelming my notifications with constant questions and insults, too many to respond to. But to their credit, at least they gave me something to write about besides myself.

That is why I'm going to write a review for "Chappie" tonight. It keeps my personal, nihilistic ranting to my "Star Wars" themed diary and out of your hair. This way, if I am going to type up a blog, it should have some worth to everyone.

Something else that should be worthwhile to everyone is my project "Main Event of the Dead,"  a screenplay that I am trying to produce. After you have read through my expert analysis of cinema, surely you will think that my zombie pro-wrestling comedy is a sure fire B-movie. If you would like a treatment of the screenplay, just send a request to russthebus07@gmail.com. I also encourage the donation of ideas to promote the project to a crowd-funding stage.

"Chappie: What the Robocop Remake Should Have Been"

South Africa is the last outlaw nation of the English speaking world, but with the constant threats that Donald Trump is using as a base for his presidential campaign, surely the rest of the world will revert to this uncivilized nature if something is not done to enhance law enforcement. The Tetraval Corporation decides to be the world's savior by replacing the police force in Johannesburg with their Scout military robots. Their introduction is greeted with an immediate decrease in violent crimes, but skepticism remains since these machines lack a conscious. Fortunately, there are two engineers who are working to resolve the issue.

The first is Vincent Moore (Hugh Jackman), a former soldier who is developing the Moose, a heavily armored tank with jet propelled legs. This machine is controlled by neural transitions, so the robot is an extension of its human operator. At this time, the mech's operator would be Moore who seems to be becoming less stable as his budget keeps getting diverted to the production of the Scouts.

Moore's perceived competition is Deon Wilson (Dev Patel), the designer of the Scouts. Deon's passion is not the manufacturing of weapons, but the concept of artificial intelligence. He spends nearly all of his free waking hours trying to design the software that can bare consciousness. Eventually, he succeeds with the programming part, but without a body to put this mind into, it may all be for not.

Against CEO Michelle Bradley's (Sigourney Weaver) order to cease his personal project, Deon steals a Scout that is damaged beyond repair to install his operating system into. Since the software creates a blank mind, the designer hopes to teach this scout to be an ideal human being free of vice. Unfortunately, Ninja and Yolandi owe crime boss Hippo 20 million rand. They need something to stop the Scouts from foiling their next heist, so they kidnap Deon. After they find out that Deon cannot shut the Scouts down, they decide they need the stolen bot to fight for them.

Deon does not have the means to reprogram the Scout, so the two gangsters allow him to install his new AI in the robot. It is not the ideal situation for anyone because the robot needs to mature from being a newborn to adulthood before it can be effective in any type of mission. Ninja refuses to allow Deon to nurture the robot Yolandi named Chappie (voiced and performed by Sharlto Copley) and is disgusted by her patience with the machine that needs to become Ganster A-Number-1.

In the meantime, Moore is desperate after the last rejection of the Moose by the JPD, being told that things would need to get a lost worse in Jo-Burg before they would ever buy that machine. Moore determines if he can expose Deon and create some hostile circumstances, he will get the recognition he yearns for. This means Chappie may not get a chance to grow up and realize his importance to humanity's evolution.

That was quite the lengthy synopsis for two-hour film. With the limited time frame for all of it to occur in (not including the rushed concept of salvation), there are a lot of places for "Chappie" to malfunction as a film. Fortunately, Neill Blomkamp displays his resourcefulness as a director to make this film worth the time allotted.

Blomkamp wisely avoids making this story about the chase to grab the rogue robot. He goes out of his way to avoid action sequences until the third act so that we can appreciate the science fiction elements of the story and allowing us to relate to Chappie as a human in every possible way. Having two very inexperience actors in the members of Die Antwood (Ninja and Yolandi) actually work out well. It leaves the impression that everyone who watches the robot grow up (character or audience) understands the frustrations of trying to see a sentient being grow.

The only downfall to the focus on the robot and rappers is that it fails to have a hateable villain. You have two fine actors who can provide this, and you feel like they want to be that, but there is not any space in the run time for them. And if you rent the film for the action and to see Wolverine get truly nasty, you may feel left down by the bait and switch. This make the biggest knock against "Chappie's" is that it is unmarketable.

Chappie is not a wise-cracking action hero. He does his best to stay away from violence. This means he is not Johnny-5 and he is not Murphy. You lose the mainstream audience right there. Now if he was sexy like Ava, we might have something to sell without totally misrepresenting the feature.

"Chappie" is a coming of age story. It is difficult to recall a story like that in the realm of robots that has been adapted for the big screen. God created the "Short Circuit." Peter Weller was under the "Robocop" gear. "Ex Machina" was already intelligent.

You have to be willing to watch the story of a character growing up to possibly enjoy this feature. And since I am tired of seeing "Stand by Me" derivatives, I found "Chappie" to be an enjoyable experience.

Blomkamp is a reliable director who knows when he has a great story. He just likes to sell it with the latest special effects instead of strong acting and standards for use of CG. This director is still growing up and "Chappie" is the appropriate metaphor.

So, as a filmmaker, I need your support on the following, unless you have better publicity stunts.

The "Main Event of the Dead" Test Reel Needs:

• Someone with some makeup or special effects experience.
• The true antagonist of the feature is a woman, so an actress to set up the premise of "Main Event of the Dead."
• Three or four wrestlers to take the finishing moves.
• One or two wrestlers to deliver the moves.
• A wrestling ring with a canvas that can afford to be left a little messy. If we can get extra from the crowd-funding campaign, we'll make replacing it a priority.

Since this is an effort to try and make this feature a reality, I can really only afford to compensate what ever is spent to make this video. I am willing to negotiate terms on what compensation will be for performances before the reel goes online. If whatever raised can cover the compensation agreed to, even if I do not reach the goal to produce the film, compensation will be had.

If you need a treatment of the script for "Main Event of the Dead" please e-mail me at russthebus07@gmail.com.

I am the Depressed Kurgan - Death or the Prize

I worry a lot. That is an understatement, but recently it seems to have totally shut me. All I can think is that with knowing my life has to change, it feels like that change will be an end to pursuing my passions, wrestling and writing.

It seems my existence will solely be about surviving. If I survive long enough, surely something good will finally come my way. Focusing on the pursuit of resources to sustain my survival is my only option, so I cannot chase down my dreams that are supposed to reward my dedication. My dedication was for not, hence I feel like I am a failure.

No one gives a damn about me now, so I guess going to a place where no one will care about me should not be as dramatic as I am perceiving. I am just sick of being nothing but a footnote in a world that rewards assholes. If the only thing I know about focusing on surviving instead of pursuing is that the inconsiderate will have the advantage, then I am not making a change. There is nothing life has to offer me.

If I don't have anything to say that kisses someone's ass, no one cares. If I speak my mind without issuing a single insult, I'm told I deserve my present predicament. My current world has justified why I don't have any value. Since I don't plan on changing from being honest and considerate, one would assume I'm doomed in the next world.

Thank God I'm an atheist so I shan't worry about the world after the next.

I suppose I shouldn't worry about any stage of my life. At best, my existence is neutral. Because I exist, people will tell me to cheer up. People will tell me that as long as I keep on living, I'll be fine. Countless friends have told me that I'd be a great husband or parent when that time comes.

But for the past seven years, all I am worth to anyone now is lip service. At 35 years old, why would I believe the person I am is worth anything more?

If I change, I may end up in a bigger location. Law of averages dictates there will have to be people who'll care about the person I am. When you've failed 300,000 times to find that, the likelihood is missing will continue. I'll have to rely on luck, and that means I've failed if the person I am can't get anyone to care.

"See No Evil 2:" Will There be 12 Rounds for Kane?

I must say, I have not been in much of a mood for writing lately. If you're a loyal reader (a possibility) you've probably taken note. Worry not, there have been blogs written, they're just real downers. When you're having enough issues feeling down, you question whether or not the wallowing should be spread.

Perhaps that's why Iowans' love their pig gestation crates. Confines where movement is prohibited maybe hellish, but at least the shit stays in the same place.

After the negative, figuratively vocal, reaction to my last blog, it felt my opinions on wrestling were not wanted. Hind sight, I should have just addressed Matt Cage about it since his first gimmick started with ironic awareness of the meaning of the rebel flag, but I digress.

Two weeks later, opinions about the topic of race relations in wrestling was at its highest demand, but when you just assume that Christian Rose, Moondog Bernard/Mr. Bernard, Gavin Alexander, etc. would deny my sincerity because they feel it's a non-issue, did I really want unwarranted hate sent my way? They may not be racist, like Hulk Hogan was in 2007, but they are definitely hateful. I suppose the Confederate Flag just rallies hate, it just needs an outlet to be exposed.

Now, I'll digress. Maybe I should post the unpublished blog "Wrestlers Only Read when Hate May Be Involved" just to draw their eyes to this movie review.

This blog probably will not be posted until the next episode of "Raw." Hopefully, when I get Fridays at the hotel, I'll be able to publicize these more. In this case, I want to see if I'll cool down more from the commentary of two undeserving, talent-free guys who are getting to pursue my passion.

It may not be the depression and alienation that's making writing a chore, it's the grudges. If I find out either is a White Sox fan, I may have to fuck them up out of principle. Too much sin.

Sorry it took seven paragraphs to get to a transition, but it may have been fate, a paragraph per deadly sin.

See No Evil 2:

Check out the rest of review at "Ninety For Chill: A More Acceptable Runtime"

In Love with Love and Dog Biscuit Poetry

October 25, 2014.

At times, it feels I wasted my youth so why not the occasional weekend?

If part of my motivation behind maintaining this blog was to keep up in the practice of writing, I probably wouldn't be so down on myself for skipping the 10/18 edition. It would have been quite the ego stroke to have published something before last Monday since my plan was to hit up Shimmer Weekend. With how down I can get, I need to appreciate the little accomplishments. Instead of putting my eggs in one basket on a big gamble to try and sell one person on my worth (women). To the credit of my audience (which is silent, but large enough for a viral base), the expense to try and impress you is virtually nihil.

Maybe I should just change my style, since I cannot be happy without descriptions of your smile. Bastardizing Galaxie 500, am I in a worse state of mind than I thought?

If I would have gotten up to Berwyn this weekend, I'd probably have back ups of blogs to publish to avoid my self destruction from affecting me creatively. At least that would have made my production seem constant.

Then again, if WWE would provide us with some spectacle that I could get second hand through the podcast world (do you really expect me to choose an episode of Raw on Hulu over Fall Brawl 96), my lack of dedication to wrestling snobbery would be camouflaged. And there would be less coverage of my work to prove my existence is as valid as a cassette deck. It still operates, but is dependent of the whims of hipsters. If that was your fate, do you want to see a future after the Dwarves and Screeching Weasel show? I am NOT going to see Naked Raygun and Cheap Trick OPEN for the Foo Fighters.

My apologies for calling you hipsters.

If you want to prevent further accusations of being considered posers who claim mustaches, tape-based technology and anything that reminds you of post World War 2 society are signs of intellectualism, please leave some feedback to develop a promotion strategy on that can lead to the production of "Main Event of the Dead: The B-Movie" or "Main Event of the Dead: The Podcast." The former, a film based on my screenplay about "pro-wrestlers" conned into facing off with zombies with tacky and politically incorrect gimmicks (treatments of the script available upon request [russthebus07@gmail.com]). The latter being a podcast about professional wrestling with some intelligence, table reads of the screenplay, and other ungodly discussions.

And this is where I excuse Hinduja Global Solutions needs to concern themselves with any of my effort. There are some great people who work there (and some absolute pieces of shit like the gluttonous biggot John "Big Pappa" Kroell who shows sympathy may only be gained from hospital selfies that are the result of undeserved opportunities) and if you have patience with customers, and haven't worked there before, definitely apply because they'll find a place for you. But, if you've tried to move on to better things (and maybe it hurts because my copy writing job isn't since they refuse to help their employees better themselves), here's the message they will send you, regardless of the time you spent managing an account on a weekend first shift as you work weekdays on second:

Dear Russ Stevens,

Thank you for applying for CSR - Product Consultant .  After much review, we've determined that your skills and experience are not the best fit for the position. 

We will keep your resume on file and contact you if there is an opening that fits your skills in the future. Again, thank you for your interest in HGS.

Thank you,

HR Team

Two things make this sting more:

1. They called me to offer me a job, but I acknowledged that I had worked for them. So claiming my "skills and experience are not the best fit for the position" is utter bullshit.
2. I cannot mention who I currently work for. I left HGS for a position that fit my education and offered a $0.75 pay increase two-years ago. Since then, HGS at least adjusted to the needs of a livable wage and increased their wage accordingly. So my education has me at a company that pays me $0.50 less.

After letting myself down, I didn't need that carrot of hope. Dangling a carrot, no wonder I'm not a fan of hope if that's associated with it.

Well, I better get to some wrestling. When I get the time. Until then, here's my pitch to get "Main Event of the Dead: The Screenplay" to the point of production.

The "Main Event of the Dead" Test Reel Needs:

• Someone with some makeup or special effects experience.
• The true antagonist of the feature is a woman, so an actress to set up the premise of "Main Event of the Dead."
• Three or four wrestlers to take the finishing moves.
• One or two wrestlers to deliver the moves.
• A wrestling ring with a canvas that can afford to be left a little messy. If we can get extra from the crowd-funding campaign, we'll make replacing it a priority.

Since this is an effort to try and make this feature a reality, I can really only afford to compensate what ever is spent to make this video. I am willing to negotiate terms on what compensation will be for performances before the reel goes online. If whatever raised can cover the compensation agreed to, even if I do not reach the goal to produce the film, compensation will be had.

If you need a treatment of the script for "Main Event of the Dead" please e-mail me at russthebus07@gmail.com.

Racism Can Play in Peoria. What About Your Local Wrestling?

I did not think the most challenging thing about this blog would be coming up with the most appropriate derogatory term to describe a white American.***

White trash pretty much covers every Caucasian who displays pride in the immoral elements of their nature. Since this is a wrestling blog, it seems to be the misconception placed on the majority of American fans (and because this blog discusses one of the best-known test markets in this country, Peoria, it may end up being a fairly accurate term). But with the issue being about the misplaced Southern pride, redneck is probably the best term when I posed the initial question (my only issue with the term is that having a sun-burnt neck from exerting themselves farming is not a shameful thing...at least till the invention of sun screen...).

Which sport is more redneck, NASCAR or wrestling? NASCAR is a sport-based in the South and founded by bootleggers while every region had its own style of wrestling at sometime. This may have already answered the question, but lets make sure I solidify the concept that wrestling is seemingly more prudish.

I am certain wrestling historians can come up with times where money-making promotions north of the Mason Dixon line celebrated Southern rebels and their flag, but I cannot recall the paramount promotion of the region (and eventually world) under its current ownership bringing anyone in with that as their gimmick. Big Boss Man's state flag happened to feature the Stars and Bars and The Fabulous Freebirds' Giant shortened stint* are the only occurrences I remember (35 years old) the Confederate Flag made it to the USA Network and Madison Square Garden. The opening scene from "Highlander" does not count.

Did Jamie Noble ever wear his "Dukes of Hazzard" trunks in WWE? If so, was it just cross promotion with The Broken Lizard film of the same name?** To them Duke boys' credit, they were inclusive of an Indian-American director. And to TV Land's credit, yanking dem boys may allow us to forget that movie as well.

If you take into account how The Monday Night Wars ended, one would wonder why anything as Southern as the battle flag of an army that fought for a racist government is a gimmick worth getting over. Eric Bischoff ridding WCW of its Southern taste allowed that promotion to at one point rule the wrestling world. The greatest star of the era was the Bionic Redneck "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, a redneck who never sported the garb of Michael "P.S" Hayes to tell the world he will not bow down to yuppie politics.

Wrestling is not necessarily a sport of higher class, but the competition between WWE and WCW made it into a form of entertainment that is easier for everyone to accept. It is a form of entertainment that does not have fans fighting to express divisive messages or banners, unlike NASCAR.

Thankfully, NASCAR is doing their best to get those fans to realize that inclusion is the only way to further the sport. Stock car racing at the highest level is bigger than wrestling, so imagine how popular it could be if it the American Swastika was not being waved, intimidating people certain people from making a weekend of their events. RV rentals would increase.

Perhaps making money is strictly a Northern value, hence the resistance of NASCAR's message board fans. They see making money as the only reason to ban hateful imagery, so oddly enough to them, waving the rebel flag shows that they have a greater value for the common people than money.

If this was science-fiction, they see themselves as the Brown Coats against the greedy Alliance from "Firefly" (and I've lost the rednecks reading this blog). Since Nathan Fillion was fighting along side the darker complexion of Gina Torres, rebellion and simpler values cannot be racist. If Captain Mal can wear his brown coat with pride, why can't people wear the Confederate Flag with pride?

That's because that side of the Civil War were the ones fighting to enslave people. It maybe more profitable to be politically correct, but that does not make it a bad thing.

It is possible that you are not racist if you support the public display of the Confederate Flag, but it shows you are comfortable with the values of the Confederate States of America. You can make the standard state rights argument was the cause of the Civil War. In eight grade (thanks Morton Jr. High), I was taught in eighth grade history that the war was about the need to keep the country together, so no state could secede. State rights allow South Carolina to fly the flag. Secession is always brought up as a course of action when the party the state voted for does not get the power in D.C. The only argument the Civil War settled was that you cannot own other people. That was settled when the general who flew the Stars and Bars surrendered to a lieutenant general of the country that abolished the concept his opposition's government stood for.

I maybe overthinking things as I finally get to the meat of my blog.**** It could be that the concept of what makes money is unimportant. This blog was inspired by small independent in Peoria, Illinois (my hometown and where I started wrestling before I found an established trainer in Davenport/Chicago), a town that never drew money. They may wrestle for the love of the sport, but it is not for the creativity this business allows to be expressed. If they are only going to draw their friends who are among the common people, it is easy just to rely on the common gimmick. It has always been that way for the locker room's true veteran, Tracy Smothers. I guess they fail to recognize the the most inclusive and over gimmick he had was the Full Blooded Italians.

My issues with Midwest Impact Pro Wrestling started over this tweet I posted:

@MainEventZombie  Jun 24Peoria Heights, IL

Hoping that Tracy Smothers has the sense to either be a Young Pistol or FBI member @Midwest_Impact shows. Confederates aren't baby face.

The response I received on Facebook was generally negative ranging from "you're overestimating the audience's intelligence" to outright denial by the promotion's booker Jeff "Ryan Phoenix/Waylon Beck" Irons, whose response featured the picture to the side.

It was my Facebook post that followed the responses, a request that lead to a direct argument with Irons.

To Midwest Impact Pro: Please do not allow any of your babyfaces to sport anything associated with the RACIST Conferate States of America. Fans may not care, but as a creative and hopefully intelligent entity, you will.

It was about Irons claiming that I was accusing them of being racist. I explained my stance, somewhat inspired from the picture above, that how are parents of children who ask "what do the Stars and Bars mean?" and suggested that no good parent was going to lie to them. Again, I suggested to wear that flag is to say that you are okay with racism. If he and Tracy are over, they do not need to wear that gear. To further his stance, he suggested that I visit a a website that debunks the Civil War, which he acknowledged was bad information when challenged, and told me that if I am upset at what he does down as Ryan Phoenix, I would be even more upset about what the Rebel Flag wearing Waylon Beck does at Dreamwave Wrestling in La Salle/Peru, Illinois. After two days of arguing with him, this tweet was my conclusion leading into their two shows that weekend.

@MainEventZombie  Jun 26Illinois, USA

If your looking for a place to cheer on the Southern Values and Principles of the 1850's, @Midwest_Impact is your wrestling promotion.

I took my stance that many commented I only got a board with because it has become a popular on. Unless you mention wrestling or names on Facebook or Twitter, no one really pays attention to you. You can get attention on commenting about how someone pro-gun, pro-death penalty, anti-welfare or anti-working class meme is ill informed, but I think the one who post the meme feels the most accomplished since they got attention from you.

When it comes to this issue, this was always my stance. Unfortunately, when one of the comments made about my earlier Facebook post, "If the fans react positively, then why should you care? Know your audience," I knew I would be considered (and still am) to be the bad guy. Only recently, with the coverage in the media opposing this flag, everyone is aware of the evils that flag represents and have no valid argument for it. Sorry that I waited till common sense was present before I went after this racist symbol. Sorry I felt it was safer for me to tweet about my distaste for C.M. Punk "Red Face" Blackhawks Memorial T-shirts. I did not know there were lesser and greater types of racism.

And I guess I should be sorry that these are my politics after my next conversation with Irons. In May, I had inquired about working for this promotion. The owner of the promotion is Joey Grunge, a man who has treated me disrespectfully and was homophobic towards me, so I figured it was better to approach the booker whom I have had a positive 12-year history with. When I contacted Irons then, he said there were no openings until July.

So on July 1, I contacted Irons about chances to work. He said he would bring it up to Joey, but said "Calling his company out on being racist isn't gonna help ya," And sent me the photo below. Thus, we got into another argument about where he went and disrespected me any chance he could. His claim is that I would not get booked because of my attitude while I said he was implying that it was my politics.

He said I would be a hypocrite anyhow if I worked for their promotion anyhow. I said you gotta work where you can to get to better places, and in wrestling, any booker could work around politics. Irons took that as an accusation that he was a bad booker and that someone who speaks truths about a promotion will be looked past for the person(s) who will promote them even if they do not work there.

Again Midwest Impact Pro Wrestling may not be racist, but they are definitely discriminating in their business practices. May as well be the same thing when the flag their top babyfaces wear denounces inclusion.

With all the heat between me and this promotion, the worst thing I found was Jeff Irons boasting about his babyface status as Waylon Beck in La Salle/Peru's Dreamwave Wrestling. At least that promotion does not advertise him on their flyers*****, but if they let him kiss babies and raise that flag, are they any better? I suppose that is why there are not a lot of indie wrestling websites that are quick to post their results.

I just do not want to see indie wrestling turn out to be the last bastion for Stars and Bars celebration. You do not need it to make money. I am pretty sure it does not make any promotion money. It is just a cheap way to get a response from an audience. If your sending the wrong kind of message, you are eventually going to get the wrong audience and you will lose the fans who will keep the industry going.

If Vince McMahon can lose fans by pushing an unproven wrestler, imagine what he would lose pushing hate messages. Is the Internet connections down south good enough to get the WWE Network? Having worked for a cable company that handled the Gulf Coast, it's a valid question.

*The Freebirds were suppose to represent Southern rock, not pride (listen to that Lynyrd Skynyrd's "That Smell" and "Saturday Night Special," and you can see that they did not embrace all of the stereotypical values from the South) and hailed from the same state as Ray Traylor, The Big Boss Man.

*****Midwest Impact Pro Wrestling's March 2015 show's flyer:

**I was working second shifts at the time to assure that I had my weekends free to train.

***As I was writing this blog, choosing the appropriate slur directed at whites was actually a fairly easy task. Getting from the history of why the flag is unimportant to the racist supporting promotion in Peoria was the challenge.

****Let me apologize to my English teachers for abandoning the traditional thesis statement, content, and conclusion format. I guess the coverage or lack there of will dictate if I should return to that in future argumentative works.

Main Event of the Dead: The '2Do' List Is the 'Bucket' List

So, I may not be Schrodinger's Cat. The cat was just chilling out in a box. Cats love boxes. It did not consider the fact about whether or not it would live through the experiment. If it went mad, that's only because that's what isolation will do to you.

Perhaps I was the cat. Maybe I've just gone mad which would explain the focus on the constant chaos (lack of order, not the stuff that they make crappy summer movies from..."Jurassic World") that my life seems to be in. Or the perceived chaos is my resistance towards going mad. I'm trying to bring order to what's beyond my control.

This may just make me Batman. I suppose I could always let go and be Mark Hamill's second greatest character, but I happen to like my darker complexion and I can't maliciously hurt anyone (at least physically, I'm sure there are those who'll volunteer scenarios where I may have left some mental damage...but I refute any malicious nature).

Just because an app is well reviewed and free doesn't me you should download it. I doubt that's what eating up the memory on my iPhone, but "2Do" is eating away at my resolve.

When you have a tool that lets you organize and encourage you to complete task, you get stressed out when you have no tasks to perform. No task to perform, why am I still breathing.

Sorry for the misuse of pronouns. It should be "I" in place of "you." Why would anyone want the Russ Stevens experience? Until they see "Main Event of the Dead," my comedy script about pro-wrestler versus zombies, there aren't any reasons to "peel back my eyes (KMFDM just added "Ultra" to their set list, so lyrics are on my mind). Treatment for the script can be requested at russthebus07@gmail.com.

Now it seems like there maybe more order in my life that I originally thought. "Main Event of the Dead" is the third draft I had completed (fourth that I had started), but it's the first that is ready to go. All that we need to do now is shoot "Guy Does Finishing Moves on Zombies." At least that would give me something to keep "2Do" on the phone.

I think I can afford to pay for the entire production, so any wrestler in Central Illinois who wants to crossover genre, get a hold of me.

And now it's back to being the Cat. Everyone knows that we can get it done, but is it worth the effort. Only way to know is to give me a chance and observe the results.

The "Main Event of the Dead" Test Reel Needs:

• Someone with some makeup or special effects experience.
• The true antagonist of the feature is a woman, so an actress to set up the premise of "Main Event of the Dead."
• Three or four wrestlers to take the finishing moves.
• One or two wrestlers to deliver the moves.
• A wrestling ring with a canvas that can afford to be left a little messy. If we can get extra from the crowd-funding campaign, we'll make replacing it a priority.

Since this is an effort to try and make this feature a reality, I can really only afford to compensate what ever is spent to make this video. I am willing to negotiate terms on what compensation will be for performances before the reel goes online. If whatever raised can cover the compensation agreed to, even if I do not reach the goal to produce the film, compensation will be had.

If you need a treatment of the script for "Main Event of the Dead" please e-mail me at russthebus07@gmail.com.

How I got my $20 back from WWE and What It Should be Spent On

Am I going to get back to focusing on "Guy Does Finishing Moves on Zombies," to promote "Main Event of the Dead" this week? It was kind of an uneventful week. Not to say I didn't do much, but anything constructive? Only time or credit limits will tell.

Since credit limits were mentioned, I better get to focusing on "Main Event of the Dead" promotion. At least WWE Network will be paying for this website's domain for the next couple of months. Maybe I should give them a production credit.

Maybe that'll let me hand over the directorial responsibilities to the Soska Sisters. The only problem with that is it allowed me to discover that they weren't full-blown auteurs on "See No Evil 2." It's nice that they'll take on other writer's projects, but the sense of dismay that they didn't get to lay the foundation for Kane's latest return from the dead is palatable.

Why shouldn't I think this way? If you take note of how WWE writer's handle Raw, Smackdown and Daniel Bryan's health, the affirmation of my stance cannot be disputed.

The previous paragraph maybe a bit harsh. From what I've seen on Hulu's editions of Monday Night Raw, the only thing that irks me is Macho Sandow and Axelmania. And that's only in concept since their debut didn't make the 90 minute cut. I'm a couple of weeks behind on WWE programming since I thought I would need to be cancelling the network after the free month of service on April 30. When I went to do so, they said my free trial ended on June 1. So I didn't cancel, and prior to 11:00pm CDT, Paypal let me know that I'd been charge $9.99. We don't all live on the East Coast. Paypal is based in California to discourage anyone from fucking the Universe over.

Just a query, do I come across as more of a Second City guy or a New York...hipster? I've got a friend who supports my efforts to relocate to the Windy City, but says I'm better fit for the Apple. What's with ginger feminists (a little jab at another friend based in New Amsterdam who is yet to send me an address to send her two kids birthday gifts to)? I don't think I got any mixed signals from Kathleen Hanna work that NYC is the place to be. Then again, she chose NYC over the Portland, OR.

Enough about my existential dilemmas. I've been able to limit the exposure to my Schrodinger experiment of a brain (since I don't believe my readership to be what I hope, I think it's fair to bring up whether or not I'm alive dead) for the past month and a half, lets try to maintain that. My Paypal/WWE conflict is far more tangible.

For the wrestlers who love what they are doing and want to get the most eyes on them, lets hope my victory in getting my $10 back from the WWE (the other $10 is the free April...which lead to my conflict) is not indicative of how they are handling the attempted class action lawsuit about head trauma.

Sorry Billy Jack Haynes, but you knew what you were getting into. With so many promotions, excessive violence may have been required to stay a float. As for Big Vito, I blame WWE for negligence because there were no other promotions to force you to be edgier and encourage/demand greater risk taking. In the end, two wrongs do not make a right, so Haynes involvement should negate the validity of the lawsuit.

Why I fear for the WWE in their larger case is because I claimed and could prove to have been in the right about not needing to pay for their network this month, but they never asked for my screenshot. They initially hoped by taking no action, I would forget to follow up with Paypal about the conflict or be fed up with Paypal not taking any action. Instead, I escalated my concern with Paypal, and I got my charge back.

I'm stroking my ego perhaps by celebrating my victory. Ten dollars is nothing compared to the millions that former wrestlers demand. But, my victory suggests that they will ignore instead of dealing with their issues. Judging how many times I've read about them actually going to court over anything since the World Wildlife Fund, it may work too much to change.

But what if I had some Twitter clout. Hell, what if I had just sent out a tweet telling everyone to do what I did to get May for free. Could WWE have fixed it in time?

And thus, I lost the chance to win the gratitude of the wrestling community. A chance where surely they would repay it by just offering money to Kickstart "Main Event of the Dead."

Instead, the following is the best I have to offer in making my pro-wrestling zombie comedy a reality.

The "Main Event of the Dead" Test Reel Needs:

• Someone with some makeup or special effects experience.
• The true antagonist of the feature is a woman, so an actress to set up the premise of "Main Event of the Dead."
• Three or four wrestlers to take the finishing moves.
• One or two wrestlers to deliver the moves.
• A wrestling ring with a canvas that can afford to be left a little messy. If we can get extra from the crowd-funding campaign, we'll make replacing it a priority.

Since this is an effort to try and make this feature a reality, I can really only afford to compensate what ever is spent to make this video. I am willing to negotiate terms on what compensation will be for performances before the reel goes online. If whatever raised can cover the compensation agreed to, even if I do not reach the goal to produce the film, compensation will be had.

If you need a treatment of the script for "Main Event of the Dead" please e-mail me atrussthebus07@gmail.com.

John Cena and Why 40 Years is Enough (Version 1.2)

Does humor end with well thought out dead kid jokes?

Would not the last thing a "Make a Wish" kid want to see is the celebrity that they wished to see? They know after the meeting is over, it is back to that pesky terminal label. Pro wrestler John Cena provides the most wishes. Maybe it is having 23 to 30 years of experience on these kids, but if I was meeting my wrestling hero, I would like them to end my life with their finishing move/hold. What better way to end my days than to party with the Hulkster and then get leg dropped to heaven?

Is it still too soon to make Chris Benoit jokes?

And I wonder why I am single. No really? Surely there is someone on OKCupid that is game for addressing such a query, appreciating the effort and having a little faith to spend, at worst, three hours with me. With no more JRR Tolkein adaptations being prepped for the big screen, how can I expect more time?

Maybe this is the point to give up on the online dating. I would like limit this consideration to the free dating sites, but Zoosk left a bad taste in my mouth. Perhaps if the site would have lead me to a scenario where I could literally have found a bad taste for said mouth, I would think differently

My latest exploration of OKCupid left me with too many words to tweet and too few to blog. Worst of all, it leaves me in a tough spot in trying to figure out how to reiterate my planned YouTube video, "Guy Does Finishing Moves on Zombies," to promote "Main Event of the Dead," my proposed pro-wrestling/zombie comedy. For a treatment of this B-Movie screenplay, send me an e-mail to russthebus07@gmail.com.

Maybe I should not blame online dating for my loneliness. I might just be in love with my own text. Hence the re-re-issue of one of my more popular blogs "40 Years is Enough." Who knows? Maybe this will give you a better insight into my talent as a writer.

40 Years is Enough (new incites)

Read the rest of this blog and other stories at Main Event of the Dead.com and determine if this thought process can be translated into a B-movie comedy about pro-wrestling zombies.

A Pitch to Those Who Want to See My Brain Matter Splattered

I hate the title I gave to this blog. It is definitely the most suitable headline. The only reason for my personal disdain is that may limit this former child star's creative chops when it comes to the finishing of my film "Main Event of the Dead." (Drop me an email at russthebus07@gmail if you have ideas or want a story treatment.) Then again, during my review of the blog, this may have been the only self-deprecating portion of it.

If you get to call yourself a porn "star" because you screw on film once, surely having an agent and more too offer than Macaulay Culkin (John Hughes missed out on three stellar, authentic Midwestern performances) allows me to claim that, at one time, I had more importance than a waiter with a script in Los Angeles who would not be filmed when they blew a producer to get a meeting.

That rant should indicate that Dad and I indeed went to see Auggie Smith at the Jukebox Comedy Club. His set featured the best satire I've seen since late 90's Dennis Leary. He may have even been more poignant than the Bostonian.

This means I am going to have to devote my time to catching up on Bill Hicks instead of writing with my limited spare time between the two jobs. Since writing about my exploits with unattainable women has been the latest subject on my mind to document, a little research into the true art of post Lenny Bruce satirical stand-up sounds like the best option for me and my perceived readership. Too bad the two jobs also prevented me from having the time to formulate a message to promote Smith's ability as he had two more shows that needed tickets sold this past weekend.

Fortunately, the two job thing maybe short lived. Scheduling difficulties may result in the one that takes up the most time while paying the least (the statement can only be considered the opinion of a Kohl's employee [start date 4/30/15]) becoming incompatible for both parties. At least I got the heavy discounts and a line of credit out of it. Perhaps the hotel needs to develop one of those points programs with attached employee discounts. It may make the thumb-twiddling seem more like Mr. Burn's "excellent" pose.

What's fortuitous about the situation is that it allows me more time to tighten up my hold-to-hold wrestling and get use to adrenaline highs while training at the DTM Dojo (it's that or get use to heroin in my system again, but that dragon chasing is tough). But with a booking in Peoria or Chicago being two-to-three months from realization, I need some creative outlet to put the bumps towards.

Thus, why not promote "Main Event of the Dead" by taking the "Shaun of the Dead" approach to basically recreating the famous(?) "Guy Who Does WWE Finishing Moves on Girls" YouTube video as my crowd-funding test reel. Just replace the girls with zombies, suggest the premise of the feature a bit, and feel rewarded that I took out the misogyny the original YouTube video featured. Who knows? It may end up being better than the Jim Ross, Paul Heyman and Madusa starring sequel (shown below).

My only issue with the strategy is, I will probably have to get killed a couple of times before we even start shooting. After watching "Franklyn*," I further appreciate that t'he dreams in which I am dying are the best I have ever had,' but I only have so many lucha masks to destroy in the name of cinema (bad taste to use my Pegasus Kid and Blue Blazer hoods?). And...I planned to give myself one of the bigger roles (I have established my stardom).

I should step away from my own dilemma that this promotional effort places me in (I have realized that this is a B-Movie and a horror flick, so continuity doesn't necessarily prevent my original self-casting plans) and discuss what I need to make this video work.

The "Main Event of the Dead" Test Reel Needs:

• Someone with some makeup or special effects experience.
• The true antagonist of the feature is a woman, so an actress to set up the premise of "Main Event of the Dead."
• Three or four wrestlers to take the finishing moves.
• One or two wrestlers to deliver the moves.
• A wrestling ring with a canvas that can afford to be left a little messy. If we can get extra from the crowd-funding campaign, we will make replacing it a priority.

Since this is an effort to try and make this feature a reality, I can really only afford to compensate what ever is spent to make this video. I am willing to negotiate terms on what compensation will be for performances before the reel goes online. If whatever raised can cover the compensation agreed to, even if I do not reach the goal to produce the film, compensation will be had.

If you need a treatment of the script for "Main Event of the Dead" please e-mail me at russthebus07@gmail.com.

So a month away from blogs, and I am back without too much self-loathing. Guess I just needed sometime away from myself...or a one nighter with a dancer 13 years my junior. The wrestler in me really needed "You Still Got It Chants" to make that night absolutely perfect.

*A British Film from 2008 featuring Ryan Phillippe and Eva Green that tries to bring an early Alex Proyas film into a somewhat realistic realm--very good, but why didn't director/writer Gerald McMorrow try to hand it off to Proyas, thus keeping "The Dark City" director away from the typical Nicolas Cage performance that was "Knowing?"

I'm the 7-Year Bitch (Maybe that'll be My Gimmick)

Beats trying to be the first wrestler to compete with shingles. This disease will keep Keith Olberman off the air for a month. I'm stronger than the conservative conspiracy that keeps him from being the voice of the reasonable. As long as my opponent's had chicken pox, nothing can go wrong.

So maybe the worst has finally occurred in the recent downward spiral.

I guess with "The Game of Thrones" being hours away, maybe that wasn't the wisest thing to say. Or maybe the worst thing that can happen is HBO Now goes NXT Rival when they webcast that. My recent odd hours have resulted in me forgetting to watch the live-stream of HBO. Of course, what's the point to watching a live-stream when it's not an event? Netflix has done fine without it.

Oh yeah, the worst. I received next week's schedule without seeing my name anywhere. This is after I managed a long slumber after fearing that I may have lodged cotton into my surgically repaired ear (It's probably just be tinnitus. Again, I'm Archer sans the vacant women [I gotta change to how I spend my time at strip clubs. You're not suppose to be going there for intellectual conversation]). So the next overnight and minimal sleep my schedule allowed wasn't entirely comfortable.

But, work-schedule was remedied, another source of income was suggested (which isn't Archer-esque), and my trip to Berwyn ended up being an optimistic one. I could go on the "Indie Wrestling is Alive and Well" rant (Too easy. I mean Shimmer Weekend is like a Wrestlemania without the misogynist chants that hijack Monday Night Raw), but it's because I found out that Seth Rollin's (and my) trainer would give me a reference for Chicagoland employment in and out of the ring.

Well, definitely outside the ring. I mean, it's the third largest market in the country, and we both know I'm not physically ready for that.

Perhaps, I'm spilling too much of my soul into this blog. It may not be the soul I'm exposing excess of, it's the sense of optimism. This may prevent me from trying to guilt my way onto the local card this Friday. For those from the local show, I still gotta grin and bear my seemingly invisible existence until February first. Hope I don't die from poor health since wrestling is the only thing I'll physically bust my ass for.

If you can't book me, how about some insight on how you would start your own Kickstarter campaign to fund a script for a zombie/pro-wrestling comedy? If you don't have a script/director/producer, I've got all three of those with "Main Event of the Dead." Please send your suggestions to russthebus07@gmail.com. If you need a little more incite before committing your knowledge, e-mail me and I'll send you a treatment.

It reminds me of the second most annoying thing about my efforts to try and bring "Main Event of the Dead." First is the total lack of support (story of my adult life). Second is that I originally wrote it to be a tribute to the guys I started wrestling with at the first Peoria Athletic Club 13 years ago. This script was written as an homage to the guys I respected from that time, a chance for their bumps to be recognized...on a level they thought they could never be on.

That's the nicest way of saying it. After expressing my opinion about what a tribute show for the level the local scene was at, I'm just considered a bitter asshole and gained a better understanding of their motives. Hopefully I can get a little feedback on that statement so I know who the phony friends were/are.

As I said in the last blog (and probably my "Schrodinger's Cat" series), I don't have any supportive relationships. At least, none of those that want me to be thrive. If I'm optimistic about whatever the hell I'm chasing, I feel good. Whenever I hear, "hang in there it will all work out," I feel defeated. You cannot sell me on (as long as you stay in line according to social mores and values): the right job will just happen; the future wife will just appear; the next goal will just happen.

FUCK SHEL SILVERSTEIN PSYCHOLOGY.

Sorry, I shouldn't make it seem I'm bitter of the poems of my childhood. FUCK OSF'S PSYCHIATRIC DEPARTMENT for fucking ruining "Where the Sidewalk Ends."

Wrestling and writing is what I do to endure and stay in shape. It's fucking tough to do so when you are denied one by guys who refuse to hear about their shortcomings. If you don't like what I said, ask how we can get to common ground instead of waiting to laugh at the announcement of my death, reminiscing about how he was a loser who couldn't find a girl to get comfortable in mediocrity.

You can say (and it's not like I haven't been told) how many of those individuals who "don't understand me" or "act like complete assholes" are truly alone and empty. To that: I'm Peoria's only professionally trained, first generation wrestler. I appreciate a great illusion.

Zero Gravity is from the Bloomington/Normal, so don't bring them up as your counter argument to my "only" claim. Even if you bring it up, I'll say they weren't trained. They're just Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel. Transcendent talent won't be denied.

As for the seven-year gimmick, more accurately it would be six. Of the 12 years of my actual adulthood, I have to reboot after six. The first was my transition from aspiring wrestler to aspiring screenwriter. It's been another six years, and I've done my best with nothing again, and I know I gotta change. And that change will come when my lease ends, but I think I need help to get there.

Those who at least tell me to hang in there curse a lot of those I've figuratively broken my back for to assist, but I've never stopped messing my spine up for those who I can help. I'm good for a favor and your last name doesn't have to be Stevens or Daniels to end the irony of my adulthood.

A Post to Establish Relationships.

I have seemingly given the impression to many that I am a negative person, void of optimism. If that were the case, how could I be a Newcastle United and Chicago Cubs fan?

Before you say, "that maybe where your negativity stems from," imagine where I would be without those clubs to cheer about? Is the positive about going cold turkey not resisting the evil that is present? And the Cubbies and Magpies are not evil. At least I do not believe you place faith in something that is evil.

Junkies are dependent on drugs, but they don't put faith in them solving their problems. If the Welps or the Toonies win a championship, we know everything must be right with the world.

I think my issue is that I am just too honest. If you ask how I am doing, I will let you know. When you have lacked what you have needed to be happy for the majority of adulthood, it is tough to be cheery. And compensating by being clever and sarcastic either wears thin or is not understood.

My dispute of the negative impression is that I keep fighting. My (the) world may suck, but I cannot sit back and let it continue to do that. In other words, I want to be happy. It's just tough to reach that status...when the job you took on says they cannot help you like they did because they made assumptions...when you get shingles 15 years sooner than most...when your car's windshield gets splintered...when your groin is strained from getting on the mechanical bull to make sure the birthday girl would take up the same challenge...then there is the cavity...

Well, that was my last week. Fortunately, I abandoned the wagon, so my drunkenness has not made my Twitter feed too morose. At least in my opinion. No one ever tells me otherwise.

Read the rest of this blog and other stories at Main Event of the Dead.com and determine if this thought process can be translated into a B-movie comedy about pro-wrestling zombies.