Post by photographerbob on Aug 8, 2015 9:09:28 GMT -6
While Bob would often complain about the uninteresting places his job would send him to compete, like Little Rock Arkansas, he tended to enjoy the actual drive from place to place. Something about driving helped settle Bob's nerves, helped him clear his head. While navigating the roads from one city to another Bob would find a way to navigate where he currently was in life to where he wanted to be. Unfortunately for Bob, the distance between Hot Springs and Little Rock wasn't quite long enough a trip to help Bob plan his next move. So instead, Bob would drive west to California, back to the studio apartment he called home.
Before he had started his drive, Bob had posted one of his cameras on the dash looking back at him and the interior of his car. He sets the camera to record, though he's honestly not sure the battery will last the entire trip. From the camera's view we can spot the UWA Television Title resting on the passenger seat. The nameplate reads Amy Zing, but if you asked Bob who it belonged to he'd point two thumbs towards himself and tell you he was the real champion. The radio was quietly playing an old Hootie and the Blowfish song. For a moment Bob would find himself singing along with it.
Bob: Let her cry, if the tears fall down like rain. Let her sing, if it eases all her pain. Let her go, let her walk right out on me. And if the sun comes up tomorrow, let her be.
The song begins to fade out, and Bob glances over at the camera's direction.
Bob: Some people are finally starting to talk about me now. Most of the talk is petty jealousy, or simple misunderstanding but it's a start. I'll take people saying Bob Brooks has gone mad, or that Bob Brooks is taking more than he can handle over being ignored and forgotten. After all taking nothing and turning into something, has to be the most difficult part of my journey right? I mean now all I have to do is mold doubt into faith, change critics into believers. I've got people's attention now, and that isn't something I plan on letting go to waste. I've got to be honest though, I haven't quite finished my plan on what I'm to do with this new found spotlight of mine. So far in my career I've just taken what I've been given and made it work. Now I feel like I hold my career in my own hands for a change, get to make my own decisions. Like whether or not I'll be competing in UWA's upcoming Supershow. With no opponent booked, no path set in stone, no clear obstacle for me to overcome, I could use this time to sit back and relax for a moment. I'm already headed home, maybe I just stay there a bit longer and wait until the higher ups find a spot for Bob Brooks.
While Bob would love to keep eye contact on the camera, the road ahead of him forces him to pay attention to it instead. He still manages to crack a smile however, even with his eyes looking elsewhere the majority of his attention on the camera, and more importantly the people who would hear the message it records.
Bob: Then again, let's be real, lately the ring has been more of a home to me than my shared apartment. With how quickly trends change, and how short the average person's attention span is, I take this show off I might get lost in the shuffle once again. Not only do I plan on competing at UWA's upcoming super show, I plan on making whatever match I end up in the most talked about match of the night. Whether I'm the first match on the card or the last, whether I'm facing some random new signed rookie or the World Champ himself I'm gonna turn my match into the real main event. And I do expect to see the World Champ competing, along with the other champions of this company. Ashley Kenyon representing the North American Title, those Sang Real fellas me and Lacey beat a while back showcasing the tag team titles, and me, doing the Television Championship the justice it deserves. You know who won't be represented at this super show though? The false champion Amy Zing.
Whether or not Bob should, he looks away from the road and glares at the name Amy Zing on his championship belt.
Bob: I know some people don't think I deserve to carry this belt around with me. They mistake me as the same kind of fraud that Vince Jones and his posse seem to be. By the way I wouldn't mind for one second to find Vince Jones across the ring from me at this super show. I've won our last two encounters, and Vince is still owed a beating for that cheap shot he took at the end of our last match. Back to my point though, Vince and his cronies stole the belt from rightful owner Sentinel. Don't get it wrong, I'm not a big Sentinel fan either, but if I had to root for him or Vince, well I'd cheer for the one who hasn't sucker punched me. Anyway Vinny and his boy Reno got their hands on the World Championship belt by sheer cat burglary. I mean I can't say exactly how it went down, weren't any cameras around to catch the actual theft on video. Point is there was no confrontation, it was a cowardly act that proved nothing. Me on the other hand, I walked up to Miss Zing in person, beat her to a bloody pulp, sent her to the emergency room for medical assistance, and took that title away from her on my own. Just like if I found myself in the ring with Vinny at this super show, I'd kick his ass and send him to the ER on my own. Hell while we're at it if I end up against Sentinel I'll do more than just hurt his hand if you catch my drift.
Somehow Bob manages to not crash his car into a ditch while staring at the Television Championship, or the camera, or pretty much everything else but the road in front of him.
Bob: Talk about a showstealer though right? Champion vs champion. Never been in the ring with big Sentinel. Never been face to face with him backstage either. I've already bested his contender two out of three. if given the chance I'd really like to finish spoiling the main event of Raising Hell and defeat the so called top dog of this company too. I like to think I'd be able to get Sentinel's attention pretty quickly. Doesn't seem too hard to get under the big hulk's skin. Hell if things get a little too heated all I'd have to do is stand next to a fan or two. I hear the best wrestler in this company has trouble telling the difference between fan and foe. And you all like to paint me as this terrible dastardly villain. I mean I've always considered this quest of mine for redemption, this journey to be taken seriously, to be a long and tiresome road. I find myself in the ring with Sentinel, I beat the most respected and feared guy in the company, hell there isn't an achievement I can strive for that does as much for me in such a short amount of time ya know.
Finally Bob returns his attention to the road in front of him, which also seems to remind him that the odds are just as likely to book him against some nobody as they are to book him against the World Champion.
Bob: Can't get too focused on one possibility though. While it's completely my choice to compete, who I end up competing against is out of my hands. I could end up against Freeman, who made his return at my expense roughing me up before losing his focus and the match. I can't imagine he'd be one hundred percent after how Mayhem ended, but he isn't the kind of guy to stay at home and heal up even if it is what is best for him. I'd enjoy the chance to beat him on better terms and more impressive fashion if we were to have a rematch. I wouldn't hesitate for one second to finish the job Cole and his pals started. Maybe I'll get a much more immediate rematch and face Danika Bayne again. She's never lost before she met me, and while the idea of redemption might be stronger for her, the ability to prove it wasn't a fluke would be more than enough drive to keep me going until my hand is raised again. Instead of a potential rematch maybe I get someone new to me. I brought up the idea of a champion versus champion earlier, perhaps it's Ashley Kenyon I bump into at the super show. She's no Lacey Roberts but she is quite the looker, and strange as it might be I think she thinks about her sister even more than I do. Speaking of Beth, she's a former World Champ, one that I believe I could beat just as I've beaten everyone else I've faced this year.
Try as he might, Bob can't seem to get a grip of where he's headed in the immediate future. Every match seems just as likely, every potential opponent offers different challenges, and different rewards for defeating.
Bob: Hell I keep trying to think of this show with me competing on my own, but it's not guaranteed I'll compete in a singles match just because I am a singles competitor. I actually hold a victory over the reigning defending tag team champions, though the person I won with is still recovering.
The idea of Lacey still not being one hundred percent, still not being a part of UWA, and more importantly, still not being a part of Bob's life lights a fire in him. His knuckles begin to go white as he tightly grips the steering wheel.
Bob: Don't have many friends I could trust to team up with this go around. Been on a roll though, better than I've ever been. It'd be foolish and arrogant to claim I could beat the tag team champions on my own in a handicap match, but that might be how my night plays out at this super show. Hell, nobody thought I'd beat Vince Jones, let alone beat him twice. Who says I can't beat them all by myself. Or maybe I'll end up in an even worse spot than a handicap match, they could book me with someone who hates my guts and make it a three on one instead. Pretty much any potential match up I've mentioned so far wouldn't be thrilled to team with me. To be fair the feeling would be mutual, I don't really like anyone on the roster. Well, I suppose teaming with Kyle Travis could be neat. Dude is pretty much the biggest influence on making me into a wrestler anyway, possibly bitch slapping the tag champs alongside him would be a pretty neat life experience. Or maybe I'll stand across from The Once and Future King, he can pass the torch to me from one great Canadian to another.
Both of those possible outcomes seem to soothe Bob's anger. He rolls down his window, and stares outside of it letting the wind blow his hair into a mess.
Bob: Suppose it isn't really up to me how this next chapter of my career plays out. Some people in this company, they're good, damned good, but none of them make adjustments like I do. Hell just look at where I am now compared to where I was just six months ago. When life gets rough I make the necessary changes to get through it. Nobody is more prepared for the unexpected than I am. Whether it's a big strong bull like Sentinel or Vince Jones, a small agile ninja like Danika or Ashley, or a complete unknown making their debut, I'll be ready. Each second that passes in the match is a second I'm learning, a second I'm evolving, a second I am bettering myself. That is my current goal in life, to continue to improve by any means necessary. Improve until I surpass all my peers who mocked me, or flat out ignored me. Keep on moving forward until she comes back, and when she does..."
Bob doesn't look at the camera. His eyes locked on the road, but the road being the furthest thing from his mind.
Bob: ... I'll be someone she can be proud of.
It's possible that Bob may have eventually said something else after this. Maybe another song would play that he liked and sang along with, but this was the last thing he considered worth value. The video fades black, and the rest of Bob's journey home would be a mystery to us.
Before he had started his drive, Bob had posted one of his cameras on the dash looking back at him and the interior of his car. He sets the camera to record, though he's honestly not sure the battery will last the entire trip. From the camera's view we can spot the UWA Television Title resting on the passenger seat. The nameplate reads Amy Zing, but if you asked Bob who it belonged to he'd point two thumbs towards himself and tell you he was the real champion. The radio was quietly playing an old Hootie and the Blowfish song. For a moment Bob would find himself singing along with it.
Bob: Let her cry, if the tears fall down like rain. Let her sing, if it eases all her pain. Let her go, let her walk right out on me. And if the sun comes up tomorrow, let her be.
The song begins to fade out, and Bob glances over at the camera's direction.
Bob: Some people are finally starting to talk about me now. Most of the talk is petty jealousy, or simple misunderstanding but it's a start. I'll take people saying Bob Brooks has gone mad, or that Bob Brooks is taking more than he can handle over being ignored and forgotten. After all taking nothing and turning into something, has to be the most difficult part of my journey right? I mean now all I have to do is mold doubt into faith, change critics into believers. I've got people's attention now, and that isn't something I plan on letting go to waste. I've got to be honest though, I haven't quite finished my plan on what I'm to do with this new found spotlight of mine. So far in my career I've just taken what I've been given and made it work. Now I feel like I hold my career in my own hands for a change, get to make my own decisions. Like whether or not I'll be competing in UWA's upcoming Supershow. With no opponent booked, no path set in stone, no clear obstacle for me to overcome, I could use this time to sit back and relax for a moment. I'm already headed home, maybe I just stay there a bit longer and wait until the higher ups find a spot for Bob Brooks.
While Bob would love to keep eye contact on the camera, the road ahead of him forces him to pay attention to it instead. He still manages to crack a smile however, even with his eyes looking elsewhere the majority of his attention on the camera, and more importantly the people who would hear the message it records.
Bob: Then again, let's be real, lately the ring has been more of a home to me than my shared apartment. With how quickly trends change, and how short the average person's attention span is, I take this show off I might get lost in the shuffle once again. Not only do I plan on competing at UWA's upcoming super show, I plan on making whatever match I end up in the most talked about match of the night. Whether I'm the first match on the card or the last, whether I'm facing some random new signed rookie or the World Champ himself I'm gonna turn my match into the real main event. And I do expect to see the World Champ competing, along with the other champions of this company. Ashley Kenyon representing the North American Title, those Sang Real fellas me and Lacey beat a while back showcasing the tag team titles, and me, doing the Television Championship the justice it deserves. You know who won't be represented at this super show though? The false champion Amy Zing.
Whether or not Bob should, he looks away from the road and glares at the name Amy Zing on his championship belt.
Bob: I know some people don't think I deserve to carry this belt around with me. They mistake me as the same kind of fraud that Vince Jones and his posse seem to be. By the way I wouldn't mind for one second to find Vince Jones across the ring from me at this super show. I've won our last two encounters, and Vince is still owed a beating for that cheap shot he took at the end of our last match. Back to my point though, Vince and his cronies stole the belt from rightful owner Sentinel. Don't get it wrong, I'm not a big Sentinel fan either, but if I had to root for him or Vince, well I'd cheer for the one who hasn't sucker punched me. Anyway Vinny and his boy Reno got their hands on the World Championship belt by sheer cat burglary. I mean I can't say exactly how it went down, weren't any cameras around to catch the actual theft on video. Point is there was no confrontation, it was a cowardly act that proved nothing. Me on the other hand, I walked up to Miss Zing in person, beat her to a bloody pulp, sent her to the emergency room for medical assistance, and took that title away from her on my own. Just like if I found myself in the ring with Vinny at this super show, I'd kick his ass and send him to the ER on my own. Hell while we're at it if I end up against Sentinel I'll do more than just hurt his hand if you catch my drift.
Somehow Bob manages to not crash his car into a ditch while staring at the Television Championship, or the camera, or pretty much everything else but the road in front of him.
Bob: Talk about a showstealer though right? Champion vs champion. Never been in the ring with big Sentinel. Never been face to face with him backstage either. I've already bested his contender two out of three. if given the chance I'd really like to finish spoiling the main event of Raising Hell and defeat the so called top dog of this company too. I like to think I'd be able to get Sentinel's attention pretty quickly. Doesn't seem too hard to get under the big hulk's skin. Hell if things get a little too heated all I'd have to do is stand next to a fan or two. I hear the best wrestler in this company has trouble telling the difference between fan and foe. And you all like to paint me as this terrible dastardly villain. I mean I've always considered this quest of mine for redemption, this journey to be taken seriously, to be a long and tiresome road. I find myself in the ring with Sentinel, I beat the most respected and feared guy in the company, hell there isn't an achievement I can strive for that does as much for me in such a short amount of time ya know.
Finally Bob returns his attention to the road in front of him, which also seems to remind him that the odds are just as likely to book him against some nobody as they are to book him against the World Champion.
Bob: Can't get too focused on one possibility though. While it's completely my choice to compete, who I end up competing against is out of my hands. I could end up against Freeman, who made his return at my expense roughing me up before losing his focus and the match. I can't imagine he'd be one hundred percent after how Mayhem ended, but he isn't the kind of guy to stay at home and heal up even if it is what is best for him. I'd enjoy the chance to beat him on better terms and more impressive fashion if we were to have a rematch. I wouldn't hesitate for one second to finish the job Cole and his pals started. Maybe I'll get a much more immediate rematch and face Danika Bayne again. She's never lost before she met me, and while the idea of redemption might be stronger for her, the ability to prove it wasn't a fluke would be more than enough drive to keep me going until my hand is raised again. Instead of a potential rematch maybe I get someone new to me. I brought up the idea of a champion versus champion earlier, perhaps it's Ashley Kenyon I bump into at the super show. She's no Lacey Roberts but she is quite the looker, and strange as it might be I think she thinks about her sister even more than I do. Speaking of Beth, she's a former World Champ, one that I believe I could beat just as I've beaten everyone else I've faced this year.
Try as he might, Bob can't seem to get a grip of where he's headed in the immediate future. Every match seems just as likely, every potential opponent offers different challenges, and different rewards for defeating.
Bob: Hell I keep trying to think of this show with me competing on my own, but it's not guaranteed I'll compete in a singles match just because I am a singles competitor. I actually hold a victory over the reigning defending tag team champions, though the person I won with is still recovering.
The idea of Lacey still not being one hundred percent, still not being a part of UWA, and more importantly, still not being a part of Bob's life lights a fire in him. His knuckles begin to go white as he tightly grips the steering wheel.
Bob: Don't have many friends I could trust to team up with this go around. Been on a roll though, better than I've ever been. It'd be foolish and arrogant to claim I could beat the tag team champions on my own in a handicap match, but that might be how my night plays out at this super show. Hell, nobody thought I'd beat Vince Jones, let alone beat him twice. Who says I can't beat them all by myself. Or maybe I'll end up in an even worse spot than a handicap match, they could book me with someone who hates my guts and make it a three on one instead. Pretty much any potential match up I've mentioned so far wouldn't be thrilled to team with me. To be fair the feeling would be mutual, I don't really like anyone on the roster. Well, I suppose teaming with Kyle Travis could be neat. Dude is pretty much the biggest influence on making me into a wrestler anyway, possibly bitch slapping the tag champs alongside him would be a pretty neat life experience. Or maybe I'll stand across from The Once and Future King, he can pass the torch to me from one great Canadian to another.
Both of those possible outcomes seem to soothe Bob's anger. He rolls down his window, and stares outside of it letting the wind blow his hair into a mess.
Bob: Suppose it isn't really up to me how this next chapter of my career plays out. Some people in this company, they're good, damned good, but none of them make adjustments like I do. Hell just look at where I am now compared to where I was just six months ago. When life gets rough I make the necessary changes to get through it. Nobody is more prepared for the unexpected than I am. Whether it's a big strong bull like Sentinel or Vince Jones, a small agile ninja like Danika or Ashley, or a complete unknown making their debut, I'll be ready. Each second that passes in the match is a second I'm learning, a second I'm evolving, a second I am bettering myself. That is my current goal in life, to continue to improve by any means necessary. Improve until I surpass all my peers who mocked me, or flat out ignored me. Keep on moving forward until she comes back, and when she does..."
Bob doesn't look at the camera. His eyes locked on the road, but the road being the furthest thing from his mind.
Bob: ... I'll be someone she can be proud of.
It's possible that Bob may have eventually said something else after this. Maybe another song would play that he liked and sang along with, but this was the last thing he considered worth value. The video fades black, and the rest of Bob's journey home would be a mystery to us.