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Submitted by Hustle on Thursday, August 28, 2008 at 6:36 AM EST
 Good lookin out for the graphics work, Noc "I'm the meanest.. and I mean this.. I don't mean this to sound fiendish, but I'm a genius.." L-L-L-L-L-L-Lupe The Killa with the intro line this time out. I may not be a genius, but I'm trying my gosh darnedest to give my readers something different to read, or at least an old idea with a different twist to it. There's nothing wrong with review columns, preview columns, and things of that nature. Nothing whatsoever. However, there are already people here on the main page of Lords Of Pain that do columns like that (and do it well), and I don't want to step on their toes. Anyway, you've clicked the link, so you should already know it, but for those of you who aren't quite hip to the game yet, this is "Hustle Is Posting Right Now" that you're reading. That, of course, would make me the man who has got these niggaz mad cause I'm shinin like a light be.. the man who has an attitude like "fuck it" cause muthafuckaz love it.. the man with the flow that's opposite of handsome, it's ugly.. I am Hustle, and I am in the building once again. Shout-out to Will Smith, but damn, the summer (summer, summer) time has just been flying by. I vividly remember 2007 winding down, and now I'm sitting here as 2008 is starting to do the same. We're way past the halfway point in the year, and now it seems like the days are going by even quicker than usual. You know, before 2009 starts to wind down and I'm still here typing this intro, let's get it crackin like Humpty Dumpty after he had his great fall. Shall I proceed? (Yes, indeed.) Less dew eet!! "Kotori!" "Kotori!" They're calling my name. I don't know how to respond quite yet. "Kotori!" "Kotori!" I had only been in Tokyo for a little under 24 hours, but my promotional tour was already well underway. When I was told that they were trying to get a new era of wrestling over in this country, I really didn't think they were so serious about it. Here I was, though.. having my very own press conference. Sure, it isn't a very big press conference, but it's a lot more than I ever dealt with when I wrestled in America. Hell, it's more than I ever dealt with when I was wrestling in Mexico, and at the time, I thought I was being treated like some sort of a big rock star there. I wasn't sure of how to react to all of the attention, and a part of me even wondered if I'd be able to get through it all in the coming months. I mean, I'm not shy, by any definition of the word, but being outgoing is one thing, and having people constantly showering you in attention and complimenting you is another thing. I never was good at receiving compliments from people. Ever. "Kotori!" I looked over at the translator that was assigned to me, Mr Fukumoto, and nodded, allowing him to start taking questions. He peered out into the crowd, settling on someone at random, pointing at him politely. The man stood up quickly and started speaking in Japanese. When he was finished, it was translated into English for me by Mr Fukumoto. "How are you enjoying your stay in Japan so far?" A simple question. I was hoping for something simple, at least to start the press conference off. It's better than being asked about quantum physics, I guess. It would've been a bad start to my time in the country if I had been left to look like a complete idiot in a roomful of media members of various types. "Although I haven't been here very long, I've been very impressed with Tokyo, and with Japan, as a whole. This is my first time here, but it doesn't take long to see the beauty and the wonderful scenery, and the people have been very nice to me so far. I have absolutely no complaints." Mr Fukumoto translated my answer back to the reporters. I had just met the guy an hour earlier, so I didn't know anything about him. He could've been telling them that I said to eat shit and die a slow, painful death. It was almost like a game to wait for him to finish translating, and then see the looks on everyone's faces. They smiled this time. Alright, we're off to a good start. Another question came. "How did your journey bring you to wrestle in Japan?" You know, I think I could deal with press conferences like this. Short, simple, to-the-point questions. Good. "Before I answer that, I must say that I completely enjoyed my time wrestling in America, as well as in Mexico. I left on good terms, and I'm welcome back any time I would like to go. I had read some things on the internet that were untrue, and I wanted to clear that up. Now, as for why I'm in Japan and what brought me here, that's an easy one. I treat wrestling with the respect that it deserves. It's my art. It's my life. I felt that Japan was the right place to be for someone who has that outlook. The wrestling fans in this country are known across the world for the respect they give the wrestlers and to the business itself. The wrestlers here in this country are known for their approach to their craft, as well as for the dedication they possess in working to perfect that craft. It's almost as if I was born to wrestle here." A lot of approving looks when Mr Fukumoto finished translating. That works for me. Time began to move a bit quicker as the press conference went on, and all the "usual" questions were asked.. ones that ranged from "What do you wish to accomplish before you leave Japan?" to "Have you thought about using some of your wrestling fame to transition into doing television or movies?", and just about everything in between. After posing for what seemed like 15,000 pictures, I was quickly ushered out of the conference room and into the lobby of the hotel that I was staying at. Did I mention that I hadn't even been in Tokyo for 24 hours yet? Yeah? Well, did I also mention that I hadn't even seen my hotel room yet? Yup. When I had arrived at the hotel, I had already been scheduled for a magazine photo shoot, which meant the bellboy got to take my luggage and take it to my new home for the next two-and a-half months, at which point I'd be moving into a cottage near the outskirts of town when it was finished being constructed. From the point of me handing off my bags, it was a non-stop barrage of different interviews, photo shoots, appearances, and then, of course, the press conference. It was hectic, to say the least. I hadn't experienced anything like that in my entire life. With my schedule finally at its end for the day, I was given a makeshift itinerary for the next day before being "allowed" to go up to my room and finally get some rest. From all of the reviews I read, this was one of the better hotels located in the heart of downtown Tokyo, which was really saying something. My room was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. The room was also much larger than it probably should've been, considering that I was the only one staying there. It could've accomodated a family of four quite easily, and it probably could've handled their family dog, as well. Everything was top-of-the-line, from the electronics to the bedding. I looked over the itinerary for the next day, and I sighed at the realization that my second day in Japan was going to be an even busier day than my first one was. I didn't quite understand why I needed to take part in so many different photo shoots. How many people needed my picture, anyway? I had an interesting stay ahead of me, and if nothing else, I'd be able to fill up my MySpace photo albums when everything was all said and done, so I had that to look forward to. ---------- "Aaaaand, in this corner.. from San Francisco, California.. Elllll Coliiiiibriiiii!" My final match before leaving to Japan. The crowd knew it, and they brought streamers to throw in the ring during my introduction. As hard as I tried to fight it, I couldn't help but get emotional as I made my way towards the ring, slapping hands with the fans in the front row. My opponent that night was Kelly Martinez. Kelly and I knew each other well, and we've both gone on record as saying that we were each other's toughest opponent. We'd had countless matches against each other. I was a face, Kelly was a heel. I was a heel, Kelly was a face. It didn't matter, as we'd went at it, one way or another. We stared across the ring at each other before meeting in the middle, face-to-face. There were some flashbulbs going off, but for the most part, there was just a silent buzz that filled the whole arena, as the crowd awaited the match. Kelly always was a rather talkative person, and this time was no different, regardless of whether it was my final match with the company or not. "This is it." "Yeah, this is it." "You'd better be ready, because we're about to tear shit up." "I'm more ready than I've ever been." With that, the bell rang. We did, in fact, tear shit up that night. If it wasn't the best match of my entire career, it was at least in the top five or so. I didn't get the win that night, nor would I have expected to. It has long been wrestling tradition (for the most part) that a wrestler who is departing a company lose their final match. In some cases, the wrestler will lose a string of matches to end their time with the company, but I was lucky to just get the single loss on my way out the door. When it was all over, Kelly's hand was raised as I was slowly making my way back to my feet. We looked at each other, and the crowd started chanting. "Please don't go! Please don't go! Please don't go!" I became very emotional again. I didn't want to leave. I was offered a top spot in one of the biggest and best promotions overseas as my specific type of wrestling was making its return to prominence in Japan, and since it wasn't set to be a permanent move, I was given the blessing to leave. I stood there, and the tears began streaming down my cheeks like waterfalls. I loved the company. I loved the wrestlers there. I loved all the fans that came out to watch us each and every week. Kelly hugged me, and the crowd's cheering and chanting just got louder. I was having a hard time thinking because of how loud it was in the arena, even though I'd end up thinking about leaving, which would only wind up making me cry even harder. Kelly raised my arm, and the fans applauded. I was given a mic, and the ring was cleared out so that I could give a "goodbye" speech. "Wow. I honestly wasn't expecting so much love from everyone." The chants began again, as if they were being cued up from somewhere. "We-will-miss-you! *clap, clap, clap-clap-clap* We-will miss-you! *clap, clap, clap-clap-clap*" "I'm gonna miss all of you, too. Seriously. I love each and every one of you.. even when I hated each and every one of you. Thank you for your support. Your support, not only for me, but for the rest of the folks in the locker room here, and for the pro wrestling industry, in general. Without you, there's no me. Without you, there's no us. I told myself that I wasn't going to get too cheesy or give you guys the usual cliche' stream, but here I am, doing it, anyway. Bottom line.. even though I'm leaving, it isn't for good. I love this place way too much to never come back. Are you kidding me? I will be back, and it'll probably be a lot sooner than most of you think. Trust me. Nothing in the world could keep me away from this place for too long. Nothing whatsoever. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. I really do love you. Goodnight." That was truly a chilling crowd response that I got as soon as I put the mic down. I got out of the ring and went around slapping hands with the fans again as I made my way to the top of the ramp, where the rest of the roster was waiting for me for hugs and a bit of a celebration. More hugs, hand slapping, and kind words awaited me. I even got awkwardly hoisted up on the shoulders of a couple wrestlers. I wasn't expecting to be lifted, so when I did, I just leaned forward on instinct, and they nearly dropped me. That would've been an amazing final memory for myself and for the fans. Cheers, adulation, applause, chanting, *thud*, unconsciousness. Needless to say, that would've made the DVD of the event a bit of a collector's item. People on eBay would've had fun bidding on it, that's for sure. Come to think of it, I probably would've put in a bid or two myself. ----------  I looked out the window at the big blur of neon-colored glow that was downtown Tokyo at 1:14am, and I just stood and soaked it all in. Even at such a late hour on a weeknight, there was still plenty of activity going on below. 41 stories below, to be exact. A part of me kinda sorta wanted to go out and join the people that were out and about, but I knew I'd never be able to make it through my next day if I did. I closed the curtains a bit and climbed into bed. The bed that felt like I was resting on a cloud, by the way. I grabbed the remote so that I could watch some TV as I dozed off, and I pushed what looked to be the Power button, based on its size and placement on the remote. The curtains slid back open. That, obviously, wasn't the right button. I looked around the room to see if there were any other remotes, but the one I had was the only one I could see. I pushed the "Power" button again, and the curtains closed once more. Not knowing how to read anything in Japanese, I just randomly picked a button and pressed it. The mattress began vibrating. Alright, that definitely wasn't such a bad thing at all, and I made a mental note to remember, for future reference, which button it was that I just pushed, but just how in the blue hell was I supposed to turn the TV on? I figured I'd give it one more shot, so I pushed yet another button, almost bracing myself for the surprise that was surely about to be heading my way. I was startled right out of bed when a female voice began speaking in Japanese. I looked up and there were little speakers built in to the ceiling of the room, not unlike the ones you'd see at a restaurant or a grocery store to play music from. Obviously, I couldn't understand a word she was saying, but it sounded as if she was asking me a question. Just then, I heard another voice. This time, it was a male, and it was in English, albeit really bad and broken English, but it was English nonetheless. "We can help you?" Room 4115?" "Umm.. I think I made a mistake. I didn't mean to summon you or anything." He chuckled a bit before speaking again. "You here first time?" "Yes. I'm sorry. I'm just looking to turn the television on and go to sleep. I didn't mean to be a bother." "You try push button on TV?" Gee, thanks, jackass. So, this remote could cause my bed to give me a full-body massage, draw my curtains open and then close them, give me my own concierge service, and God knows what else it could do with all the buttons that I didn't push.. but it couldn't turn the TV on and off? What sense did that make? "Umm.. no. I guess I'll try that now. Thanks." "Have good sleep." I stopped the mattress massage and just rolled over to go to sleep. I didn't want to wind up pushing a button and having a group of circus-trained midgets pop out of the closet to give me an impromptu juggling performance, although now that I think about it, that may not have been such a bad thing. Hmm, I wonder what button that would be.. I tossed and turned in the bed for a while, unable to get any rest. I couldn't quite understand why. I was tired. My bed was more comfortable than just about any bed I had ever experienced before. It was plenty quiet in the room. I just couldn't get myself to sleep. I rolled over and looked at the clock. It was 2:48am, about an hour-and-a half since I first slid under the covers. I figured I'd call home, seeing as how it was in the middle of the afternoon there. I was starting to feel a bit homesick, anyway, so it only made sense to call. "Hello?" "Hey." "Hey there. What are you doing up? Isn't it, like, 1 in the morning over there?" "Actually, it's just about to hit 3am here." "Even worse. What's wrong? Are you alright?" "I'm good. I just couldn't sleep, so I figured I'd make a few calls instead of heading back out to find some trouble to get into." "How's Japan so far?" "I haven't had a whole lot of time to actually stop and enjoy Japan just yet. Everything has been so fast-paced since I got here. This is the first time I've had to myself so far, and it just so happens to be in the early hours of the morning, when I need to get some sleep, yet I just can't seem to get any." "I'm sorry to hear that. You know, it won't be too much longer, and we'll be out there to visit you, so I hope you're able to get some free time by then." "Oh, I'm sure I'll have some time set away for you guys by then. It isn't gonna be the same here without you. I miss you guys." "I miss you, too. We all miss you." "What are you up to?" "Actually, you kinda called at a weird time. I've got a late-lunch appointment that I was about to head out for. I'm sorry." "Don't be sorry. It's not like you knew I was calling or anything. Should I just call you back later then?" "I think you should try and get yourself some sleep, and then focus on what you're there for. We'll be in touch. Don't you worry about that." "Tell everyone that I miss them and that I'm thinking about them. I'll talk to you soon." "Definitely. Take care." 2:52am. Christ, I had hoped it would be a bit longer conversation than just a tad under four minutes. Being alone, so far away from home.. in a place where I didn't really understand anybody, and they didn't really understand me, either.. was a bit tougher than I thought it would be. ---------- "Are you sure you really wanna do this?" "I've never been more sure of anything in my entire life." "Don't you think you're a little.. well.. small?" "Of course I'm small, but I can't let that stop me from pursuing my dream. I'd never be able to live with myself if I didn't even give this a shot. I've wanted this ever since I could walk and talk, and now that I'm here, nothing is going to stop me. I've learned to look beyond my size, and I'd like it if everyone else could look beyond it, as well." "I respect your heart, kid. I'll train you." With those words, my journey began. I was the smallest trainee in the entire class. I was the smallest trainee in the history of this gym, as a matter of fact. We had 18 students that came to train on the first day, almost half of which were gone by the second day. The money they paid to train wasn't refundable, so I was a bit surprised that people didn't give it more of an effort, no matter how difficult it was or how much pain they were in. The days went by, and we lost a few more trainees along the way. We were down to five, and that ended up being the final total for the remainder of the sessions. We grew close to each other, almost like a family. Of course, with any family, there was the good and there was the bad, but we all got through it. In the beginning of the training, I felt like I was being patronized, in a way, as it seemed like the other trainees were being told to go easier on me because of my size. Sure, it meant that I wasn't as tired or as sore as they were at the end of each session, but I knew it also meant that nobody was going to take me seriously as a wrestler if it continued on. I knew that if I didn't speak up, it would only continue to get worse, so I waited for the next training session after my realization, when I was put together in the ring with one of the largest and strongest trainees there, and I said something right before it was our turn to go. "When we get in there, if you don't give me all you've got, so help me God, I'm going to stiff the shit out of you!" My point got across, and it got across quite nicely. From that point on, I was treated as an equal, and not as some fragile, delicate being based on my size. That's all I wanted from the very beginning, so I was ecstatic to finally get it. The level of respect that seemed to come my way grew tenfold after that incident. I guess people thought I would try to take advantage of their kindness or something. I never thought I'd be so happy to be getting my ass beaten on a regular basis. ----------  Riding around in the backseat of the takushii (taxi) the next day, I got to see more of the city life that was so beautiful. One of the highlights was going past Ueno Koen park to view the cherry blossoms. It was that time of the year, and they were on full display. I had wanted to see the cherry blossoms in person ever since I them on TV as a child. I'm sorry, but simple things like that impress me. I'm just someone who appreciates beauty, even in things that a lot of people wouldn't necessarily find themselves thinking about. We were heading to a photo shoot involving me and my opponent for my first match in Japan. The funny thing about it is the fact that, as we were driving to the magazine's offices, I still had absolutely no idea who my opponent was going to be. I didn't have a name, any tape to study, or anything like that. I didn't know if that's how things normally worked in Japan, but it was just a tad bit strange to me. We arrived at what looked to be an oversized outhouse, and we stopped. The driver did the hand signal for "here we are", and I just stared at the run-down building in amazement. It didn't even look like it should be standing anymore, let alone operate as the headquarters for one of the biggest sporting magazines in all of Japan. Mr Fukumoto paid the fare, and we made our way into the building. I had to fight myself to stifle laughter once I saw the setup for the photo shoot. I'd already known that the Japanese imagination was a magnificent, and sometimes strange, thing, but this was something else altogether. The stage was set like something straight out of the movie "300", and judging by the person I had just seen walking by dressed as Xerxes, the God-King, I assumed I had just seen my upcoming opponent. I guess that meant I was set to be dressing up as King Leonidas, and sure enough, I was right. I knew they wanted to get us across as "warriors" of sorts, but my goodness, this was taking things much further than I would've ever expected. The site of me in my slightly-altered Leonidas outfit looked absolutely ridiculous. I mean, I looked great. I always looked great. I knew that. I mean, have you seen me? However, this particular outfit made it nearly impossible for me not to laugh a bit when I looked in the mirror. We were given various props to use, ranging from plastic shields to brass swords, which made the entire thing just that much more comical. Face-to-face with my opponent, we posed for a large amount of photos, and I was pretty numb to the entire thing. I just did as Mr Fukumoto asked me to do, as per his instructions from the photographer and the director of the shoot. I think that Mr Fukumoto could sense my doubts about the entire thing, as every time he looked at me to give me my directions, he had a look on his face as if he were apologizing to me for the entire situation on behalf of his country. When it was all said and done, I changed back into my regular clothes quicker than I even thought was physically possible. I knew I had an hour or two to kill before there was anything else scheduled in my day, so I knew exactly where I wanted to go and what I wanted to do. Ueno Koen had itself a repeat visitor on that day. ---------- "I just don't think it's a very good idea, that's all." "Why not?? This is what I've always wanted to do. You knew that when you met me, and you always said that you didn't have a problem with it, but now that I'm trying to make it all happen for me, you're against it??" "I just don't want you getting hurt." "I don't exactly want myself getting hurt, either, you know." I didn't understand why people were having such a big problem with my decisions. They didn't seem to realize that their negative thinking and energy was only going to make things even more difficult on me, which was, supposedly, what they were trying to prevent. There was so much to be proud of me for.. to be happy about.. and yet everyone seemed to want to focus on the negatives. I hate it when people do that. "I love you, and I do support the decisions you make, regardless of how it seems sometimes, but you have to be able to see this from my point-of-view this time." "I love you, too, and I do see things from your point of view, but I also think that it's sort of a two-way street. You need to see things from my point-of-view. Just support me and be happy for me. That's all I can ask of you. That's all I've ever asked of you." "Fine. Whatever you want. I stand behind you." "I didn't call to fight with you, or for you to give me an attitude." "I'm not giving you an attitude. I just don't know what you want from me. You know that I'm going to support you in your decision making, even if I'm not completely sold on the ideas that you're following. This just happens to be one of those times. You're asking me to just change my outlook on things, like it's that simple or something." "That's not it at all! I'm just saying that-" "You know what? This isn't going anywhere, and it's only going to lead to us fighting. Call me later, when things have cooled down a bit." Not only was I interrupted while I was talking, but I was hung up on, as well. It felt like I was being pushed and pulled in all different directions by different people. It made me start to wonder just who really supported me, and who was only saying that they did because they thought its what I wanted to hear. Before I even saved up enough money to think about training to become a wrestler, I knew that I had people in my life who were against the idea. Family members, friends, co-workers, classmates. It was always the same shit, too. They all wondered if I was too small to make it. Some of them were even caught off-guard a bit, as they didn't even know I was a wrestling fan, let alone a big enough fan that I wanted to be a wrestler myself. ---------- It was the night of my debut match in Japan, and as the saying goes, I had butterflies in my stomach the size of eagles. I was pacing around in the locker room, and my heart must've been beating 20 times per second. One of my biggest concerns was the fact that "calling a match" wasn't anywhere near as big in Japan as it was elsewhere. A lot of matches were "called" pretty much on the fly. That was a problem, seeing as how I didn't understand, nor speak, a bit of Japanese. From what little research I had done, there weren't many people in this company that understood or spoke English, and the ones that did weren't set to be in the ring with me any time soon. The company's promoter, Mr Hayashi, saw me pacing and walked over to me. "What wrong? You no need nervous." Great. More broken English. "I just want to make sure that I go out there and make everyone happy." "Work on make self happy first. You happy, people happy for you." Wait.. was his name Mr Hayashi or Mr Miyagi? That was deep. "You're right. Thank you." With that, he was on his way. My opponent that night was Shark Ishikawa. Shark wasn't one of the top names in the company, but was still a respected veteran. I knew we were going to be the second match of the night, so there wasn't much time to do much thinking, as the show was starting, and we'd be up before I knew it. Several of us were gathered around a monitor as we watched the night's opening match. Once the final sequence was over, I went off to the side to stretch and get myself into the proper mood for my match. After about 10 minutes, Shark's music hit, and I knew it was time to really get myself into the "zone". Once Shark was in the ring, my music hit. It was some generic-sounding rock music that I knew I'd be asking to get changed as soon as possible. Of course, I couldn't understand damn near anything the ring announcer was saying, but I knew my cue to walk out was when he said "Koooootooooorrrrriiiii!", so I listened closely for it and followed my cue. The crowd reaction was subdued, but respectful, just as I expected it would be. That's generally how the fans in Japan are, which can sometimes be jarring for wrestlers coming from countries that have wild and crazy fans. I got the streamer treatment when I got into the ring, which did surprise me a bit, as I figured I would have to win them over a bit more before something like that took place. As the match itself got underway, my previous worries were proven to be for good reason. I was whipped into the ropes, and as I was coming back towards Shark, I thought I noticed the sign to do a leapfrog and to continue running, but at the exact moment that I jumped, Shark did, as well, and we crashed into each other rather hard. There was some quiet laughter from some in the crowd, but not from Shark. Oh, no, not from Shark. In fact, Shark looked pissed and ready to tear my head from my shoulders. There were a few more brief moments of miscommunication between Shark and I after that, but nothing anywhere near like that first one. All things considered, I'd say the match went pretty well. I was honored to be given a victory over a respected veteran in my debut match, and it may have even surprised some of the fans in attendance. My hand was raised, and I looked into the crowd and saw more than a few people applauding in a half-hearted way. Don't get me wrong, though, as there were still plenty of people who seemed genuinely happy that I won. I knew I would have plenty of opportunities to try and win everyone over in the coming months, so I wasn't all that worried about the people in attendance who had any sort of doubts about me. It's not like I hadn't been dealing with doubters for years up until that point, anyway. ---------- "You're quick. Almost too quick for your opponents. It's almost as if you're just hovering all around them, quick-striking, and moving around before they can get you back. It's fun as hell to watch, I'll tell you that much. In fact, it's so fun that I want to use it for your name while you wrestle here." "What are you going to call me?" "El Colibri." I was basically "The Hummingbird" now, which was fine, as I liked the way that my wrestling style was described to me. Besides, "El Colibri" sounded much better, in my opinion, than "Pajaro Mosca" did, which was another name for "hummingbird" in the Caribbean. At first, the idea for my ring attire would be to have "wings" built into my costume, but I politely shot that idea down. I knew that Lucha Libre was known for its colorful attire, fancy costumes, and over-the-top ideas as much as it was known for the wrestling itself, but I just wasn't all that thrilled with the idea of flapping my arms up and down on my way to the ring every single time out. Apparently, though, they really wanted to go with the idea in one way or another, as they stitched wing shapes onto my outfit. They gave me a mask to use, as well. I don't think I would've felt right wrestling in Mexico if I didn't have some sort of mask. I didn't wrestle in Mexico for very long, but I made the most of my brief time in the country, wrestling for four different titles in two different promotions, winning one of them. I was also a bit of a trailblazer, as I was the only non-Mexican to wrestle in my divisions, although I do have roots in El Salvador, so it's not like I was a complete polar opposite of the people in Mexico or anything. Of course, I was billed as being from America, not El Salvador, so it isn't quite the same, but the point remains the same. ---------- I was on magazine covers. I was making appearances on various television shows, from talk shows to variety shows. I even had a song written about me that charted as high as #4 in the entire country of Japan. My popularity had reached levels that I couldn't have even imagined in my wildest dreams. I wasn't a legend or a godly figure or anything, but far more popular than anybody in my situation had ever been in Japan before. It had reached such a point that I was offered a contract that would have had me relocate to Japan on a permanent basis. On one hand, I missed America. I missed it a lot. I missed the food. Sure, you could go to a McDonald's or Burger King or Pizza Hut, amongst the other American restaurants in Japan, but it just wasn't quite the same. I missed the ability to fully communicate with people, even though my Japanese was improving, both in reading and speaking. On the other hand, I was being offered far more money than I'd be able to make wrestling in America, and that's not even counting the endorsement deals and things of that nature that would only be available to me in a market like Japan. I could also wrestle less dates on a yearly basis to make that money for myself, which was also nice. It actually got to the point where there was a bit of a bidding war going on for my services. It wasn't like it was when WCW would battle the WWF for free agents, and the contract numbers would reach insane levels, but it still felt good in a selfish way to have companies from multiple countries that thought highly enough of my work to try and outbid each other for me. In the end, the idea of wrestling in front of my friends and family was just too much for me to pass up. Sure, it was a paycut, but thanks to the escalating bids from both sides, it wasn't anywhere near as big of a paycut as it would've been had I chosen to return to America from the very beginning of the contract talks. I return to America in a few days, and my first match back in the states will be exactly one week after I arrive. I've already been notified that I'm getting semi-main event status for my return match, and I even have my very first DVD shoot interview set to be filmed the day after my match. In one of the stranger bits of cross-promotion, I was even chosen to co-host one of DJ Drama's popular "Gangsta Grillz" mixtapes. It was one of his first Bay Area tapes, as he usually sticks with rappers from the south, but he was going with San Francisco and Oakland-based rappers Ya Boy, Mistah F.A.B. and Keak Da Sneak to co-host. I wasn't going to turn down a new avenue to attract fans, but it still caught me a bit off-guard that I was asked to co-host a hip-hop mixtape, even with my Bay Area roots. I got all of this press and marketing opportunities only a short time after basically being told that I was too small to ever amount to anything in this business. Not bad for a women's wrestler, wouldn't you say? Thank you to the following for helping me create ideas for this column: - "Lost In Translation", starring Bill Murray & Scarlett Johannson - My Partner-In-Crime, the one with my BFF bracelet - Feeling "lost in translation" in life - Wanting to be elsewhere - Being different Thank you to the following for getting me through this column: - My Partner-In-Crime, the one with my BFF bracelet - Lemonade flavored Gatorade - 112's self-titled debut album - "Everything" by Lifehouse - Layla El Writer's Note: Thank you. Thank you for being who you are, in good times and also in bad times. I know I say and do things from time-to-time that make things difficult, and for that, I do apologize. I just can't help myself from wylin' out every now and then, I suppose. There are times when I don't deserve for you to be a part of my life, I know that, but whenever I look, there you are, and I'm forever thankful to you for that. I'm sorry for putting you through some of the things that I put you through, and you're still everything I said you are in the previous two sections. Know that nothing will ever change that, no matter how many fights, how many arguments, or how many disagreements we go through. I do understand that you're going through a bunch of things in your life right now, and that you really don't need my baggage at the moment, so I'm respecting that. Either way, though, know that I care. Know that I still have your bracelet. Know that I miss you. Know that I always have your back. Thank you again. You know who you are. Writer's Note Part Deux: Thank you. Thank you for listening when I needed someone to talk to. Thank you for the advice whenever it was required, and even when it wasn't. Thanks for also not making fun of me through certain things, at least not to my face, even though I'm sure I deserved it. I made fun of myself for it, so I know damn well I deserved it from other people. As I said in the last note, I know that I tend to be on the wild side from time to time, and I appreciate it when anybody sticks with me through those times. Thank you again. It really does mean a lot to me. You know who you are. Writer's Note Part Tres: To my lil homie, Mavsman.. this is to broadcast the fact that you get those two free shots at any of my favorite sports teams in whatever sport you choose. Could be the San Francisco 49ers, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Hurricanes football, Hawaii Warriors football, or the Cleveland Indians. To sweeten the deal for you, I'll even extend the offer to particular players instead of entire teams, if that's the direction you wish to go in. Colt Brennan, maybe? Whatever's clever, Trevor. Writer's Note Part Quattro: "What is that? Who is that? I never heard of it.. I will take your picture and make a "Rest In Peace" shirt of it.." There's a few of you cats out there that are just begging to be put on a "Rest In Peace" shirt. Some of you Harvey Dent clowns out there have decided you'd like to try and be Two-Face. I have something real special planned for you guys, though, so don't worry. I'm giving you some time to come clean and to try and repent for your sins, but once your deadline expires, I'll be putting you on blast. Don't test me. I'll make sure I change your life. Well, damn, that one was different, wasn't it? It was birthed as an idea in my head, and it was different then, but now that I've formulated all my flows and had those ideas typed out, the entire thing was far more "different" than I could've ever thought it would be. I hope it wasn't too "out there" for some of you. One way or another, at least you gotta admit that it was more than just "Why I Like John Cena".. wait.. I did that one, too, didn't I? Well, you all get the point that I'm trying to make. Anyway, if you're reading this, thank you for riding with me on another edition of HIPRN. We just keep on rockin and rollin, ladies and gentlemen. Before you know it, there'll be some pretty big numbers following the word "Volume" in the column title. Calvin, hope your check-signing hand is ready to go, cause I'm fixin to earn them paychecks. That next check will be earned in 1 weeks time.. same Hustle time, same Hustle page. Until then, however, I'm gone like the Autobahn, nah'mean? From Paradise, I bid you farewell. Aloha and Mahalo Nui Loa. "Life can change ya directions, even when you ain't planned it.. all you can do is handle it.. worst thing you can do is panic.. use it to your advantage.. avoid insanity.. manage to conquer every obstacle.. make impossible possible.. even when winning's illogical, losing's still far from optional.." Hustle HIPRNFeedback@gmail.com 
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