Sweet Sorrow Saturday

I thought everything was in order for me and Malik: rent a car for two days, hit up the local wrestling tournament hosted by AZ-USA Wrestling at Mica Mountain High School, spend a few hours at his classmate's birthday party, then drop him off at his mom's so I could go grocery shopping and grab some new clothes for him—he’s growing fast.

Meanwhile, at the Enterprise near the airport—where I’ve been renting cars on and off for over ten years—I ran into a problem. I realized my current address isn’t updated on my driver’s license. (Let’s be real, most people don’t update their license unless they’ve got a permanent spot.) So they asked me to show a utility bill with my current address. But since the landlord handles all the utilities and my only responsibility is paying rent, I don’t have any active TEP or Southwest Gas accounts in my name at this address. I had my lease agreement in PDF on my Google Docs and offered to show it to them, but they wouldn’t accept it. Ironically, how are you even supposed to request new service with TEP or Southwest Gas at a new address if you don’t have proof of residence? That’s why I’m puzzled—my lease should count as valid proof, but apparently, that’s not what they want. They asked if I had a credit card, and I do, but my credit limit is only $100. I don’t have a high income—guess you could say I’m a social security dad, lol. I buy everything in cash. I manage my finances my way, responsibly, and I’m not here to impress anyone. But I’ll still take practical steps, like updating my license, to avoid future hassles. So, we ended up leaving Enterprise without a rental car.

So, no wrestling tournament for us. I wasn’t even sure about getting groceries and clothes, since Malik really needs more food and clothes right now. I usually use Instacart, but it’s not ideal for big grocery hauls—most shoppers won’t take large orders unless the tip is really good. I normally tip $10 for small orders (like 10 items or less), but that’s not enough for a full load.

That’s why I needed a rental car for the day—to handle everything: the wrestling tournament, the classmate’s birthday party, dropping Malik off at his mom’s, and all the shopping errands. Uber alone—or worse, the bus—just wouldn’t cut it for all that.

I haven’t driven since January, after I gave up driving for Uber—for our own good. We’ve been managing our transportation without using the bus! But I’ll go ahead and update my driver’s license, just to be prepared for Enterprise whenever I need a rental car for a day or two. Probably once a month for things like a shopping day or something like that.

Malik was hungry, so we walked to Waffle House, not far from Enterprise. It was a busy crowd there, so we took an Uber home. We picked up two plates from Big K's, which is close to our place. Malik had BBQ chicken with collard greens and his favorite sweet potatoes.  While we were waiting for our order, I left a message on Marco Polo to let my friend Ralph know what was going on. The original plan was to stop by his house on Sunday to help him with some household stuff while I had the rental car. But since I didn’t end up getting the rental, I had to let him know the plan changed.

Ralph offered to use his documents and let me pay for the rental under his name. I appreciated the offer, but it didn’t seem like a good idea. So I asked if he could be our “Uber driver” for the weekend and I’d cover his gas. Ralph agreed.

The wrestling tournament was out of the plan, but the classmate’s birthday party and grocery shopping were still on. Ralph and his brother came by to pick us up. I did some grocery shopping at Fry’s, dropped the food off at home, and then we headed to the birthday party. Malik and I stayed there for about two hours. Ralph picked us up afterward and took us home. Malik had some leftovers, and then we both knocked out!

Off-topic for a quick chat here. You might ask, "Reggie, when will you get a car?" My answer: Later, later, I mean LATER! Not this time. Honestly, I don't care about owning a car, seriously. Maintaining one on my current income (or just Uber & Lyft income) messes with my financial stability, and that affects my mental well-being too. Too much stress. We’ve been doing great without a car, and we haven’t even used the bus since January 2025. I actually appreciate my car-free lifestyle more now. I think people who rely heavily on cars don’t get it... so I’m not looking for a car right now, not even in the near future. "Wait, what about a free or donated car?" No thanks, I still won't take it. A free car isn’t free at all... maintenance, insurance, and paperwork are never free, and I don’t have room in my budget for those.

So even though I missed the chance to attend an actual AZ-USA Wrestling event for the first time, I’m still glad our Saturday turned out well. We met a few parents at the classmate’s birthday party, and Malik has plenty of fresh food at home—that’s what really matters to me. And yeah, it’s pretty rare for AZ-USA Wrestling events to be hosted in Tucson; they’re usually up in the Greater Phoenix area.

Why was I so interested in attending the wrestling event? Because I’m in “pre-training” for my wrestling comeback. I wrestled in school for five years—from 7th grade through 12th, except for 11th grade. I’m not sure if I ever participated in youth wrestling events officially affiliated with USA Wrestling, but I did do a few off-season events back then, like local AAU tournament in my hometown Orlando and even one at Walt Disney World’s Wide World of Sports. I never made it past high school wrestling, but I was once interested in joining the college wrestling program at Gardner-Webb University—it just never progressed. So technically, I’m new to the wrestling community. I don’t have a big name with USA Wrestling or anything. This tournament at Mica Mountain High School could’ve been a great opportunity for us to connect and maybe even make some new friends in the community. Hopefully next time we’ll make it out for real—maybe in August for the event in Phoenix, which I already signed up for.

I know it’s going to be different from my high school wrestling experience, but back to the point—why am I interested in making a wrestling comeback? Simple answer: to re-write the narrative. I ended my high school wrestling career with a mix of happiness and disappointment. I won my last two matches in the final stage of my high school wrestling career against rookie wrestlers at ESDAA (cheap wins). Thanks to those so-called wins, Coach Maurice and the team won the ESDAA championship for the very first time in Coach Maurice's coaching career. If it hadn’t been for my cheap wins against rookie opponents still in middle school, my team might never have claimed that first championship title in 2003. Good for Coach Maurice and the team, but not so much for me. After the ESDAA tournament, I lost a wrestle-off to a new guy who earned the 160 lb spot, so I didn’t get to compete in the district tournament, and that’s where my high school wrestling career officially ended. On top of that, I didn’t follow through with the paperwork for the NCAA Clearinghouse, so I missed my shot to wrestle at Gardner-Webb University.

Now, at 40, I want to re-open that chapter—to eliminate all the “what ifs” and finally win some meaningful victories that I never had back then. Assistant wrestling coach Greg once hinted that I could keep participating with the team during practice, even though I lost wrestle-off matches against Brian twice. But I was overwhelmed with anger and bitterness, so I ended my involvement with the FSDB wrestling program. That’s something I regret. But if Coach Greg were standing right here in my apartment and I told him about the upcoming wrestling stuff, I know exactly what he’d say: “Reggie, why not?!”

So that’s another reason for my wrestling comeback. It’s part of my inner healing journey. Yeah, I know it won’t be the same experience—and I know my adult competitors probably have years of wrestling experience beyond high school, maybe even college. Some of them might be actual wrestling coaches or professionals in combat sports like MMA or jiu-jitsu. So yeah, the level of competition will be a huge difference and challenge compared to who I faced in high school.

Of course, I maintain realistic expectations. I’m not trying to return to my "high school self" and expect to win matches easily, so I’m not hyping myself up with unrealistic hopes. I know I need to upgrade my athletic performance to meet the competition style in modern wrestling, especially within the USA Wrestling Masters community. That’s why I’m actively looking for formal training at local clubs or clinics, and it’s likely that I’ll have a partner as a private mentor/instructor. Of course, I also watch tutorials and exhibitions on YouTube & FloSports, haha, and apply these techniques to my real-life training.

So, as I mentioned earlier, inner healing is the reason for my wrestling comeback. But would I make a career out of it? I'm not sure, but it's unlikely unless I aim for world team qualifiers or the Olympics. Realistically, that’s probably not going to happen, so again, it’s all about healing and fulfillment, not a career. However, I do believe that Malik and I might encounter potential opportunities through my involvement with the wrestling community—who knows? So like the legendary late George Foreman once told his trainer about his comeback—he’d start at the bottom, not the top. Same here. I’ll start at the bottom…

Even though I'm not religious, maybe fate (or what Christian believers would call "the Lord") allowed the situation that caused us to miss the event at Mica Mountain High School—maybe it just wasn’t the right time for us, or there’s a reason I may never know. Either way, I’m glad our Saturday still went well.