The Manhattan Center is far more intimate than the Frontier Fieldhouse in Chicago Ridge. The ceiling is lower, the fans are on top of each other, creating better acoustics. The problem was we seemed very low to the ring. I couldn't even see the floor of the ring. So if I returned, I would go for the balcony. I like the concession stand. They sold NY pretzels by the half for one dollar! But there was one other thing NY had that Chicago doesn't have. A bar. I didn't drink there, but with the liquor readily available to these fans, I was a little caught off guard. I was just hoping they wouln't get too rowdy. Suffice to say, I was not spending 8 bucks for a beer. Then I ran into analyst Lenny Leonard before the show and we talked about New York City, New Year's, and our beloved Jets.
I would rate the show (called Rising Above) as good to very good. There were no bad matches, but no blow away matches. The world title match between Nigel McGuinness and Austin Aries was the best of the night. And Kevin Steen and El Generico got an amazing reaction. But we were disappointed in the Dragon-Morishima match, for which our hopes were so high. Dragon started bleeding one minute into the match and Morishima was disqualified after 7 minutes. We were pissed. That really put a damper on the whole night. I did buy Dad a Bryan Danielson t-shirt for a late Christmas gift.
The show ended at 11:30 and we headed down the stairs and over to Tir na nog. We were absolutely crammed in this tiny space, about 100 of us in all. They started passing out the appetizers before the wrestlers even showed. The steak skewers with the remoulade were excellent. The chicken drummettes were fresh and hot. The BBQ quesadillas were good too. Then they brought in 35 pizzas. I'll never forget it. We open the first box and it has spinach. One big guy (who looked like David Ortiz) gets it out of the way. We open the next one and it's plain cheese. Eight guys come in and all at once, we each rip a slice out of the box. It was so sudden and so aggressive, it was like an atom got split eight different ways. We wiped out those pizzas like we were at a Weight Watchers convention.
Then the guys showed up and I met a load of them. There were quite a few no-shows. Unfortunately, Danielson was not there. Nigel wasn't either (though I found out he later had a concussion, a broken nose, and 14 stitches that night), Davey Richards, Jack Evans, Ruckus, Steen, Generico, and Marufuji. I first met Bushwacker Luke who I loved as a kid. As much crap as I took for liking them, it was cool to meet him in person. Ring announcer Bobby Cruise gave me more crap about Chad Pennington and the Jets. I congratulated him on his f'n Pats going undefeated. He asked me why I was wearing the jersey and I said he was my favorite player. He just looks at me in awe/disgust and mutters, "You son of a bitch." It was hysterical.
A few guys deserve special mention. Matt Cross was great to talk to. First he was with a girl about 4 inches taller than him and he's shorter than me, which was cool. I want Julius Smokes' wardrobe. With his "pimp-esque" suit, I think Isiah Thomas his getting fashion tips from Julius. Jimmy Jacobs, who Dad cursed at all night, actually stopped and talked to me! I told him I wished he could do some more Karaoke with Nigel. Larry Sweeney is as smooth off the camera as he is on. He and Chris Hero were ribbing Bobby Dempsey in the restaurant, checking his diet, snatching away his Coke, and getting him "Diet water." And this was in front of Dad, me, and maybe two other fans. They didn't need everyone's attention, they just wanted to have fun. Dad and I thanked Adam Pearce for his amazing promo at the Driven show and for entertaining us.
But the best was Roderick Strong. He drank like crazy at the last show, but I guess I got him at a good time. I told him how his match with Danielson absolutely hooked me into Ring of Honor and he gave me a bit of a hug. Considering how much heat he gets from the fans, that was cool. I wished they respected him more, because he deserves it. I also shook hands with the Briscoes, Claudio, Chris Hero, and Brent Albright. And best of all, Dad had way more fun than he thought he would. He couldn't get over how friendly everyone was and what a cool place Tir na nog was.
And I have to credit Greg H for putting these parties together. He's just a fan in his 50's with another job and the party cost him several thousand dollars. His sacrifice is something I have to just stand back and applaud.
We left the party at 1:15 am and got back at 1:50. I was in bed by 2:30 am and woke up around 9:30 on Sunday. I was useless all day. We went to a local deli to pick some cold cuts and rolls, but I had no energy. So in the early part of the afternoon, we watched football and that lovely Knicks-Bulls game. A STELLAR effort by Isiah Thomas' joke of a team. Watching it in high def, the Knicks still don't move on defense. Then I watched the Jets beat the Chiefs in overtime. Great, the Jets won, now they drop four draft spots. Even when this team wins, they lose.
So Uncle Brian came over from Staten Island. We pigged out on Italian sandwiches, shrimp oreganata, pigs in a blanket, and cheesecake and watched the Rangers win an amazing overtime game 4-3 over Montreal. End to end action in the first period, the Rangers blow a lead, tie it 3-3 with 6 minutes left, and Brendan Shanahan scores the game-winner on a breakaway.
My flight home was brutal. Screaming kids around me and a few young couples all over each other right next to me. Throw in the snow that delayed us 30 minutes on the runway AFTER we landed and it was almost enough to make me vomit. It makes me wonder. What's the desire to do something crazy? Just to have a wild story to tell? I wonder about why some people prioritize certain things. But then I think about me. I read an analogy this weekend that we don't remember the speeched at graduation, we remember when we graduate. We don't necessarily remember our wedding vows, we remember the process of getting married. And I have been so worried about saying just the right words in just the right way to get a specific reaction. So I realized it's not really about the words I say, or even the thoughts I think, but what matters are my actions. It's about what I choose to do every day. Years down the road, people won't remember too many of my words, but they will remember my deeds. They will remember how I treated them.
Song pick: "I Should Have Never Started Loving You" Marshall Tucker Band. Feels right for New Year's Eve.
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