Post by Deleted on Dec 26, 2009 7:05:41 GMT -5
Continued from the previous entry: Chosen Path
Some men are driven by their desire to be rich and famous. They care only about material wealth and basking in the proverbial spotlight. These men wish to be recognized as the pinnacle of their profession and celebrated as gods among men. Such men entirely miss the point of this exercise that we call life. They fail to understand that without love you have nothing in this world. You can’t take your millions of dollars with you when you’re a pile of bones in a box in the cold ground. Having a marble headstone and a cherry-lacquered coffin won’t make any difference to the worms and the maggots that are eating your flesh after you’re dead. The Beatles understood something and so has every other crooner who’s unleashed his dulcet tones upon the masses: the world is a graveyard and that much is irrefutable, but love is a soothing cream for all that irritates our soul. Love sweet love is the one thing that binds each of us and cures our ills.
If you’re a straight male then obviously you crave women. You may look at women as mere sexual objects and if you do then shame on you. Women are our mothers, grandmothers, aunts, daughters, nieces and granddaughters. They are our wives, girlfriends and life partners. Women are also our sisters in both a literal and figurative context. We should do our part as men to honor women and protect them, not in the chauvinistic sense that women can’t defend themselves, but rather in the noble sense that we as men would sacrifice ourselves to spare the women that we love from harm. That is indeed a noble gesture. There’s no denying that women possess sexual charms, that’s why men are attracted to them, but men can respect women as human beings with rights and opinions while also being physically attracted to those same women.
Each man is attracted to a different kind of woman, but for all men there lies a common theme: when Cupid’s arrow strikes a man through his heart that man falls hard for that woman. He becomes disarmed by her presence. The man becomes vulnerable and in some cases he becomes extremely insecure. When a man finds himself attracted to a woman certain questions immediately present themselves: “Does she feel the same way about me that I feel about her?” “Should I tell her how I feel?” “What if she rejects me?” These are among the most common male insecurities. It’s interesting that men can slice other men’s throats on the battlefield when their government commands them, but men don’t have the courage to approach beautiful women and ask them out on dates. What a bizarre species men are!
Of course not all men are such spineless weasels, only the majority of them. Some men take a measured, methodical and intellectual approach to matters of the heart. David Lynch, Ric Ocasek, Timothy Burton, Quentin Tarantino and Lyle Lovett are but a few of the slovenly gentlemen who have landed women well above their league, and they did so simply because they exhibited the confidence to approach and engage the women whom they desired. Does it help that each of these men is a renowned and groundbreaking artist? Of course it does. Any man who has the courage to see his artistic vision to fruition in a country so corrupt and commercialized as the United States certainly has the courage to approach a woman, even a comely young lass who seems far too good for him in most peoples’ eyes.
What becomes of the men who have not cut their teeth behind the camera lens or the microphone? Are they doomed to settle for a life of desolation simply because they weren’t gifted with brilliant artistic minds? Of course not, and they’re cowards if they ever doubted themselves for a moment! It doesn’t matter if you look like Louie Anderson, you can land a babe like Mira Sorvino if you have confidence, if you believe in yourself, if you have the spine to proceed, the intellect to engage, and the heart to bare your soul in the face of rejection. Remember that defeat is not something to be feared. We should be aware of the possibility of defeat but we should not fear defeat. Throughout history many great men have learned more from defeat than they ever learned from victory.
George Washington was defeated in many battles prior to and during the American Revolutionary War. Washington rebounded from those disappointments and led his men to victory on the Potomac in the battle that sealed a young America’s defeat of the vulgar and grotesque British Empire. Similarly, Ric Flair lost to Ricky Steamboat approximately 2,372 times (according to Scott Keith) before he finally defeated Steamboat in their (then) final battle in 1989 for the NWA World title. Flair was rewarded for his efforts by being piledriven through a table by Terry Funk following the match, but that’s inconsequential to the topic at hand. The point is that losing can teach us a great many things about ourselves that we would never learn from victory. Bitter defeat can give us the necessary tools to prepare for life-affirming victory.
Bobby Cairo, the former pro wrestler, businessman, presidential candidate and federal inmate, knows about victory and defeat. Cairo has lost more big matches than he’s won through the years, and his presidential campaign imploded along with the hopes and dreams of a nation in 2008. Cairo has learned from these disappointments and he considers himself a better man because of them. Throughout his ups and downs Cairo has never been a man afraid to take risks, but even Cairo has exhibited a shy side when it comes to the ladies. I know that sounds crazy. How can it be that a man who displayed such gusto while delivering punishment to his wrestling opponents and speeches to his political supporters be afraid of women who are roughly half his size? It’s because women hold a tremendous amount of power. A woman can make a man whole by completing the missing parts inside of him, but a woman can also shatter a man by destroying his confidence.
Cairo has dated various female celebrities through the years. Cairo was also involved in a torrid romance with his first true love, Lucy Burke. Lucy bore a striking resemblance to Sarah Michelle Gellar, at least in terms of her facial features. Her body was closer to Jennifer Love Hewitt. Cairo was able to overcome his anxiety and approach these beautiful women because he had an inflated sense of self-worth. At that time Cairo was a multi-millionaire, wrestling star and business mogul. Nowadays Cairo is working as a delivery man for Federal Express. Cairo’s millions are long gone, seized by the government on a bogus tax evasion rap and flushed down the toilet for illegal wars and corporate bailouts. Without his crutches, his money and celebrity status, Cairo was forced to walk the same narrow and brittle path that most men walk in this life. It’s a path that each man walks alone as he searches for love in a world so cold, relying upon only his wits, heart and courage.
Sometimes the solitary man finds what he’s searching for. Cairo is presently intoxicated by a young woman named Emily Hotchkiss. Emily is a heaven send in every way. Physically she’s unbelievable. Any straight man would pay to drink her bathwater and thank her for the privilege. Cairo would like to do more than that with Emily, but his attraction is not limited to the sexual aspect of male-female relations. Cairo is drawn to Emily like a fish to water because she’s compassionate, intelligent, honest, generous and enlightened. Emily is driven and hard-working. She has integrity and principles that she will not compromise. Emily is also strong and fiercely independent, but she’s willing to open her heart for the right man. Each of these things attracts Cairo to Emily, each of these things makes her special, but they don’t tell the full story about her life.
It can be said that none of us are quite so strong as we like to pretend, but Emily is truly a strong young lady. Emily was born into a working class family. She overcame the tragedy of losing her father to cancer when she was a teenager. Emily’s mother June raised Emily and her two younger siblings while working two and sometimes three jobs to support them. June couldn’t be home to look after the kids all the time because she would often work until late at night. It was Emily’s responsibility to look after her two younger siblings, cook dinner for them, help them with their homework, bathe them, make sure that they went to bed on time and make sure that they stayed out of trouble. It was difficult for Emily being so young and having so many responsibilities, but she didn’t complain. Emily loved her family and she dedicated her life to making a better life for her family.
In high school Emily shunned many of the social engagements of her classmates and instead focused on her studies. When other kids were partying on the weekend Emily had her nose in the books. Emily’s hard work throughout her high school years paid off when she was selected for a scholarship to Brandeis University in Boston, Massachusetts. After four years at Brandeis, Emily earned honors while graduating near the top of her class and earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. After graduation Emily put her degree to good use by landing a job in the administrative office at Federal Express’s main Connecticut branch. It was here that she met a young temp worker named Bobby Cairo, a charmer of a man with a different story than most temps.
Cairo himself is no stranger to tough conditions, though his childhood was relatively happy. Cairo was raised by a working class family in an urban environment in Hartford, Connecticut. Cairo’s father Victor was a construction worker. His mother Maria was a nurse at a local hospital. When Cairo’s parents were working he looked after his little sister Rose, three years his junior. This instilled a sense of maturity and responsibility in young Bobby Cairo. The Cairo family’s financial situation fluctuated over the years, but it was mostly adequate. The children never went without the essentials such as food, clothes and materials for school. Cairo was always an intelligent young man. He was a good student, though held a strong disdain for the rigid public school structure. Cairo often dreamed of being a famous athlete. He fantasized about being the quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the center fielder for the New York Yankees, and boxing’s heavyweight champion of the world.
Cairo loved sports and he played football and baseball during his youth, but he never thought about wrestling until he was a freshman in high school. At that time Cairo’s best friend Nick Katsopolis told him that the wrestling team was holding tryouts. Cairo initially expressed opposition to the idea. Cairo had watched wrestling on TV a few times and it seemed stupid to him. Nick explained to Cairo that this was a different kind of wrestling: it was the Olympic style of wrestling and it lacked the theatrics of televised wrestling. Nick also told Cairo that the wrestlers were considered cool amongst their peers and enjoyed high levels of popularity with girls. This persuaded Cairo to try out for the wrestling team. Initially Cairo took his lumps during the tryouts, but he quickly adapted and proved an impressive young prospect. Cairo made the varsity squad as a freshman and he improved with each passing year, eventually reaching the state finals in his weight class during his senior year.
Cairo was so highly regarded by scouts that he received a wrestling scholarship to the University of Hartford, where he thrived and became an NCAA Division II All-American wrestler. Cairo later graduated from UHart with a major in political science. At the time of his graduation Cairo had no idea of the heights that awaited him as a wrestler, entrepreneur and political activist. In fact Cairo lacked any real direction after graduating from college. Cairo was looking at several career options, but nothing struck him until he saw an ad for Johnny Hotbody’s wrestling school. Hotbody was famous for being ECW’s first heavyweight champion and the first man to complete ECW’s career triple crown (winning the heavyweight, television and tag team titles).
Cairo decided to attend Hotbody’s school, in hopes of receiving guidance and direction from the (then) recently retired wrestling star. During the first training session, Hotbody immediately recognized Cairo as a prodigious talent with a strong work ethic. From that point Hotbody pushed Cairo hard, grooming Cairo to become a major star in the world of professional wrestling. Within months Cairo graduated from Hotbody’s school and he was ready to try his hand as a full-fledge competitor. Cairo debuted in WCF in February of 2006 and experienced immediate success, going undefeated on his way to winning the world title within three months of his debut. This made Cairo one of the youngest world champions in the history of the sport. For Cairo early success was a double-edged sword. It was at the point of his title victory that Cairo became unglued, lost his focus, and allowed his personal and professional lives to fall apart.
These are the kinds of experiences that shape peoples’ lives. For so long Cairo was scared of so many things, including failure, rejection and defeat. Cairo isn’t scared anymore. Cairo has learned from his mistakes and overcome his demons. Cairo mustered the courage to approach Emily. He put himself out there and risked having his heart ripped out, because he knew that he had to take the chance. Some men let life’s opportunities slip away. Cairo has been there, done that and learned from it. Through the years, Cairo has lost more than wrestling matches, elections and money, he’s also lost true love. He could not live with himself if he let that happen again. Through courage and perseverance, Cairo has rediscovered love. Through her courage and perseverance, Emily has made a better life for herself and her family, while also finding love. Cairo and Emily have taken different paths to reach this time and place, but now they are joined together, as soulmates and kindred spirits. They are living proof that love can conquer all of life’s obstacles, including fear and adversity.
Some men are driven by their desire to be rich and famous. They care only about material wealth and basking in the proverbial spotlight. These men wish to be recognized as the pinnacle of their profession and celebrated as gods among men. Such men entirely miss the point of this exercise that we call life. They fail to understand that without love you have nothing in this world. You can’t take your millions of dollars with you when you’re a pile of bones in a box in the cold ground. Having a marble headstone and a cherry-lacquered coffin won’t make any difference to the worms and the maggots that are eating your flesh after you’re dead. The Beatles understood something and so has every other crooner who’s unleashed his dulcet tones upon the masses: the world is a graveyard and that much is irrefutable, but love is a soothing cream for all that irritates our soul. Love sweet love is the one thing that binds each of us and cures our ills.
If you’re a straight male then obviously you crave women. You may look at women as mere sexual objects and if you do then shame on you. Women are our mothers, grandmothers, aunts, daughters, nieces and granddaughters. They are our wives, girlfriends and life partners. Women are also our sisters in both a literal and figurative context. We should do our part as men to honor women and protect them, not in the chauvinistic sense that women can’t defend themselves, but rather in the noble sense that we as men would sacrifice ourselves to spare the women that we love from harm. That is indeed a noble gesture. There’s no denying that women possess sexual charms, that’s why men are attracted to them, but men can respect women as human beings with rights and opinions while also being physically attracted to those same women.
Each man is attracted to a different kind of woman, but for all men there lies a common theme: when Cupid’s arrow strikes a man through his heart that man falls hard for that woman. He becomes disarmed by her presence. The man becomes vulnerable and in some cases he becomes extremely insecure. When a man finds himself attracted to a woman certain questions immediately present themselves: “Does she feel the same way about me that I feel about her?” “Should I tell her how I feel?” “What if she rejects me?” These are among the most common male insecurities. It’s interesting that men can slice other men’s throats on the battlefield when their government commands them, but men don’t have the courage to approach beautiful women and ask them out on dates. What a bizarre species men are!
Of course not all men are such spineless weasels, only the majority of them. Some men take a measured, methodical and intellectual approach to matters of the heart. David Lynch, Ric Ocasek, Timothy Burton, Quentin Tarantino and Lyle Lovett are but a few of the slovenly gentlemen who have landed women well above their league, and they did so simply because they exhibited the confidence to approach and engage the women whom they desired. Does it help that each of these men is a renowned and groundbreaking artist? Of course it does. Any man who has the courage to see his artistic vision to fruition in a country so corrupt and commercialized as the United States certainly has the courage to approach a woman, even a comely young lass who seems far too good for him in most peoples’ eyes.
What becomes of the men who have not cut their teeth behind the camera lens or the microphone? Are they doomed to settle for a life of desolation simply because they weren’t gifted with brilliant artistic minds? Of course not, and they’re cowards if they ever doubted themselves for a moment! It doesn’t matter if you look like Louie Anderson, you can land a babe like Mira Sorvino if you have confidence, if you believe in yourself, if you have the spine to proceed, the intellect to engage, and the heart to bare your soul in the face of rejection. Remember that defeat is not something to be feared. We should be aware of the possibility of defeat but we should not fear defeat. Throughout history many great men have learned more from defeat than they ever learned from victory.
George Washington was defeated in many battles prior to and during the American Revolutionary War. Washington rebounded from those disappointments and led his men to victory on the Potomac in the battle that sealed a young America’s defeat of the vulgar and grotesque British Empire. Similarly, Ric Flair lost to Ricky Steamboat approximately 2,372 times (according to Scott Keith) before he finally defeated Steamboat in their (then) final battle in 1989 for the NWA World title. Flair was rewarded for his efforts by being piledriven through a table by Terry Funk following the match, but that’s inconsequential to the topic at hand. The point is that losing can teach us a great many things about ourselves that we would never learn from victory. Bitter defeat can give us the necessary tools to prepare for life-affirming victory.
Bobby Cairo, the former pro wrestler, businessman, presidential candidate and federal inmate, knows about victory and defeat. Cairo has lost more big matches than he’s won through the years, and his presidential campaign imploded along with the hopes and dreams of a nation in 2008. Cairo has learned from these disappointments and he considers himself a better man because of them. Throughout his ups and downs Cairo has never been a man afraid to take risks, but even Cairo has exhibited a shy side when it comes to the ladies. I know that sounds crazy. How can it be that a man who displayed such gusto while delivering punishment to his wrestling opponents and speeches to his political supporters be afraid of women who are roughly half his size? It’s because women hold a tremendous amount of power. A woman can make a man whole by completing the missing parts inside of him, but a woman can also shatter a man by destroying his confidence.
Cairo has dated various female celebrities through the years. Cairo was also involved in a torrid romance with his first true love, Lucy Burke. Lucy bore a striking resemblance to Sarah Michelle Gellar, at least in terms of her facial features. Her body was closer to Jennifer Love Hewitt. Cairo was able to overcome his anxiety and approach these beautiful women because he had an inflated sense of self-worth. At that time Cairo was a multi-millionaire, wrestling star and business mogul. Nowadays Cairo is working as a delivery man for Federal Express. Cairo’s millions are long gone, seized by the government on a bogus tax evasion rap and flushed down the toilet for illegal wars and corporate bailouts. Without his crutches, his money and celebrity status, Cairo was forced to walk the same narrow and brittle path that most men walk in this life. It’s a path that each man walks alone as he searches for love in a world so cold, relying upon only his wits, heart and courage.
Sometimes the solitary man finds what he’s searching for. Cairo is presently intoxicated by a young woman named Emily Hotchkiss. Emily is a heaven send in every way. Physically she’s unbelievable. Any straight man would pay to drink her bathwater and thank her for the privilege. Cairo would like to do more than that with Emily, but his attraction is not limited to the sexual aspect of male-female relations. Cairo is drawn to Emily like a fish to water because she’s compassionate, intelligent, honest, generous and enlightened. Emily is driven and hard-working. She has integrity and principles that she will not compromise. Emily is also strong and fiercely independent, but she’s willing to open her heart for the right man. Each of these things attracts Cairo to Emily, each of these things makes her special, but they don’t tell the full story about her life.
It can be said that none of us are quite so strong as we like to pretend, but Emily is truly a strong young lady. Emily was born into a working class family. She overcame the tragedy of losing her father to cancer when she was a teenager. Emily’s mother June raised Emily and her two younger siblings while working two and sometimes three jobs to support them. June couldn’t be home to look after the kids all the time because she would often work until late at night. It was Emily’s responsibility to look after her two younger siblings, cook dinner for them, help them with their homework, bathe them, make sure that they went to bed on time and make sure that they stayed out of trouble. It was difficult for Emily being so young and having so many responsibilities, but she didn’t complain. Emily loved her family and she dedicated her life to making a better life for her family.
In high school Emily shunned many of the social engagements of her classmates and instead focused on her studies. When other kids were partying on the weekend Emily had her nose in the books. Emily’s hard work throughout her high school years paid off when she was selected for a scholarship to Brandeis University in Boston, Massachusetts. After four years at Brandeis, Emily earned honors while graduating near the top of her class and earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. After graduation Emily put her degree to good use by landing a job in the administrative office at Federal Express’s main Connecticut branch. It was here that she met a young temp worker named Bobby Cairo, a charmer of a man with a different story than most temps.
Cairo himself is no stranger to tough conditions, though his childhood was relatively happy. Cairo was raised by a working class family in an urban environment in Hartford, Connecticut. Cairo’s father Victor was a construction worker. His mother Maria was a nurse at a local hospital. When Cairo’s parents were working he looked after his little sister Rose, three years his junior. This instilled a sense of maturity and responsibility in young Bobby Cairo. The Cairo family’s financial situation fluctuated over the years, but it was mostly adequate. The children never went without the essentials such as food, clothes and materials for school. Cairo was always an intelligent young man. He was a good student, though held a strong disdain for the rigid public school structure. Cairo often dreamed of being a famous athlete. He fantasized about being the quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the center fielder for the New York Yankees, and boxing’s heavyweight champion of the world.
Cairo loved sports and he played football and baseball during his youth, but he never thought about wrestling until he was a freshman in high school. At that time Cairo’s best friend Nick Katsopolis told him that the wrestling team was holding tryouts. Cairo initially expressed opposition to the idea. Cairo had watched wrestling on TV a few times and it seemed stupid to him. Nick explained to Cairo that this was a different kind of wrestling: it was the Olympic style of wrestling and it lacked the theatrics of televised wrestling. Nick also told Cairo that the wrestlers were considered cool amongst their peers and enjoyed high levels of popularity with girls. This persuaded Cairo to try out for the wrestling team. Initially Cairo took his lumps during the tryouts, but he quickly adapted and proved an impressive young prospect. Cairo made the varsity squad as a freshman and he improved with each passing year, eventually reaching the state finals in his weight class during his senior year.
Cairo was so highly regarded by scouts that he received a wrestling scholarship to the University of Hartford, where he thrived and became an NCAA Division II All-American wrestler. Cairo later graduated from UHart with a major in political science. At the time of his graduation Cairo had no idea of the heights that awaited him as a wrestler, entrepreneur and political activist. In fact Cairo lacked any real direction after graduating from college. Cairo was looking at several career options, but nothing struck him until he saw an ad for Johnny Hotbody’s wrestling school. Hotbody was famous for being ECW’s first heavyweight champion and the first man to complete ECW’s career triple crown (winning the heavyweight, television and tag team titles).
Cairo decided to attend Hotbody’s school, in hopes of receiving guidance and direction from the (then) recently retired wrestling star. During the first training session, Hotbody immediately recognized Cairo as a prodigious talent with a strong work ethic. From that point Hotbody pushed Cairo hard, grooming Cairo to become a major star in the world of professional wrestling. Within months Cairo graduated from Hotbody’s school and he was ready to try his hand as a full-fledge competitor. Cairo debuted in WCF in February of 2006 and experienced immediate success, going undefeated on his way to winning the world title within three months of his debut. This made Cairo one of the youngest world champions in the history of the sport. For Cairo early success was a double-edged sword. It was at the point of his title victory that Cairo became unglued, lost his focus, and allowed his personal and professional lives to fall apart.
These are the kinds of experiences that shape peoples’ lives. For so long Cairo was scared of so many things, including failure, rejection and defeat. Cairo isn’t scared anymore. Cairo has learned from his mistakes and overcome his demons. Cairo mustered the courage to approach Emily. He put himself out there and risked having his heart ripped out, because he knew that he had to take the chance. Some men let life’s opportunities slip away. Cairo has been there, done that and learned from it. Through the years, Cairo has lost more than wrestling matches, elections and money, he’s also lost true love. He could not live with himself if he let that happen again. Through courage and perseverance, Cairo has rediscovered love. Through her courage and perseverance, Emily has made a better life for herself and her family, while also finding love. Cairo and Emily have taken different paths to reach this time and place, but now they are joined together, as soulmates and kindred spirits. They are living proof that love can conquer all of life’s obstacles, including fear and adversity.
