A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

death

Farewell to the Jack of all Trades

It’s never easy writing posts like this. 

Kevin Parker, otherwise known as Jack Trades to many, passed away after a courageous battle with cancer. I was lucky to have known him, and to see different sides of him, for more than a decade. 

For those who didn’t know him, his magical way of connecting to people on so many levels isn’t easily explained. For those who did know him, you more than likely realize that magic. 

Jack Trades
One of my favorite photos I ever took of Trades. This was at a 2CW card in Syracuse.

As I go further into this post, I’ll just be calling him Trades – as it what makes the most sense. 

My history goes back to a small, semi-dark Legion Hall in Binghamton. It was the first time I had been to any sort of wrestling in years and I wanted new things to photograph. So a couple of us went to watch some independent wrestling that night. 

One of the first things we noticed was this crazy guy running all over the place and doing just about everything. He was at ringside grabbing gear, he was in the right spots to make sure people were safe, and he would just pop up in random spots. 

And people seemed to really know who he was. 

On the back of his 2CW shirt, it said “Trades.” 

I commented to my friend… who the hell is this guy and what’s his deal?We joked about that until we finally figured it out … ohhhhhh, he was a jack of all trades. Then we also realized that was his “gimmick” or his “ring name.” 

Telling his story at an open mic night. It was pretty surreal to be in person for this one.

It was the epitome of independent wrestling. I loved it. We continued to go to 2CW shows and slowly but surely I had the chance to meet, talk to, and befriend Trades (as many did). 

But more than that, over the next decade or so, I had the chance to see the man Trades was. I remember one time he said so many people will only know him as Jack Trades – and that he was fine with that. I think so many people got to see him well beyond that and that’s a good thing. 

The reality was he wasn’t a walking gimmick who ran around the ring or took a bump at times. He was so much more. He was a genuine and likable guy, who not only was good at what he did within the wrestling world, but was also a true person outside of it. I base that, of course, on my personal interactions and observations, but also on the words and actions of others when it came to Trades. 

Trades could also fly when needed.

He connected with people, no matter who you were. That’s a special trait to have. It’s not often somebody can connect on so many different levels with a lot of people. He did it and he did it well. Not only that, but so many generations. He went back to college later in life and seemingly connected with college kids just as easily as he would people in their 40s and 50s.

I consider myself lucky to have gotten to see and know Trades beyond the ring and in different settings. I can say one time that I met him in the Utica area where he was one of the main cooks at this one restaurant – he made me one of the best hamburgers I’ve ever eaten. That just shows the variety of talents he had — indeed a Jack of all trades!

I was lucky enough to see him perform at an open mic night, also in Utica, when he told a 10-minute powerful life story about how he almost lost a battle to drugs (blog post/video about that is linked up below). 

Always ready to work at ringside.

Heck, three of us and Trades were inducted into the “pro wrestling fan hall of fame” when we went and watched former ring announcer Gary Michael Cappetta’s live show about his career. 

There are photos I took of him during 2CW days that I still see people posting. One of them is connected with this post as it’s one of the coolest wrestling photos I’ve taken. I feel it truly captures life in wrestling. 

In recent years, through the positive side of social media, I had the chance to watch him have such a positive outlook on life and impact on other people. His travel adventures, banter, or doing magic, shows at libraries and other ways to give back. He had a zest for life and shared that feeling with so many others. 

Rest easy, my friend. You’ll be missed. 

More reading about Trades on my blog: 

2CW: JACK (OF ALL) TRADES
From June 13, 2016 (from the 2CW magazine): https://hoohaa.com/?p=10734

A STORY MANY SHOULD HEAR
From July 3, 2012: https://hoohaa.com/?p=4011

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook!

Internet people are just as real as those you know elsewhere

In a world where news comes miles per minute, it’s not always the fastest to hear news.

Years ago, I happened to come across a blog – We Work For Cheese – that was prepping for a writing challenge.  That had been what I was searching for, so I joined in. And, for a few years, I participated in said challenge until it ended.

During that time, I had the chance to get to know the owners of the site/curators of the challenge. Nicky was one of them.

Witty and sharp, she was a fun blogger to read and speak with. And being not far from Montreal, you knew she was automatically OK in my book considering my love affair with that city.

Over the years, I had lost normal contact with her. I’d drop her  an e-mail here and there to say hi. Way back when, when I used to try to get to Montreal each year, we had plans meet with the two founders of the website over poutine and beer.

Unfortunately, that trip never happened.

Last year, she posted about cancer coming back and how she was battling that. Every once in a while, I’d pop to the blog to see if she had any updates. There hadn’t been any.

Then I came across a blog post from another blogger who was close to Nicky. In Ziva’s post, she talked about meeting Nicky and her memories. I realized then that Nicky had passed away this past March. News doesn’t always trickle down fast, if you don’t see the same blogs.

The blogging world is a crazy and strange place. The people you meet can become fun internet friends, or an acquaintance you read once or twice and move on. Maybe you meet people at a blogging conference, or for a drink, or at a game. But the blogging world is interesting for sure. Some people stick out more than others.

Nicky’s writing style was fun and she was a pleasure to interact with. Because I haven’t made my normal blog rounds in a few months, I didn’t realize Nicky had passed. I have since read several beautiful tributes to her by KZ, Dufus, and Linda.

Though the poutine meetup never happened, Nicky was always a fun and interesting blogger to interact with, be it through comments or e-mail. It was sad news to read, though reading the posts about her made me realize just how much she meant to so many people.

She will be missed.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

Goodbye, Molson

Goodbye, Molson.

You came to me in 1998, when my niece (now a senior in high school) was still a toddler. In fact, I have photos of you and her both at your early age. It’s rather cute, actually.

Molson in 2013.

Molson in 2013.

It was late July 1998 and you were probably about six weeks old or so. You licked your chops. You meowed. You found a home that you could call yours. And boy did you. You owned it. You patrolled it like nobody else could be in it.

Your colors were lovely, a striking calico who always kept yourself groomed and in pristine look.

Like other cats, you slept a lot. And you ate. But you ran around and enjoyed life. You loafed and you sped around, almost like you were being chased. You had so many secret places to sleep, it was hard to keep track of where you were. Of course, as you got older, some of the “upper” spots you may have jumped to as a kitten weren’t as easily accessed.

Molson and Nicole in 1998.

Molson and Nicole in 1998.

Strictly an indoor cat, you never seemed to care about getting outside. In fact, in times when you could have ran, you’d just wander out on the porch to maybe soak up some sun, before wandering back inside to the safe confines of your home.

Speaking of sun, you could seem to find every patch of sun possible. Even if it was just a sliver, you’d plop yourself down and let it warm you all over.

Some of the habits you had were odd, such as drinking out of a flower watering pot instead of your own water dish. There was a reason, at times, you were called “dummy.” As you grew older, you became used to having your dinner at a certain time. And you’d sit near your bow or meow until you got your food.

Originally names after the beer I enjoyed most at that time, it seems like a fitting tribute for me to work on a couple of home brews to make and name them in your honor.

Licking her chops, even at a young age.

Licking her chops, even at a young age.

You didn’t like the camera, but living through the digital age with somebody who takes a lot of photographs, you were a subject often enough. You seemed to like it as a kitten, when I was still in the film age, but if I pointed a camera at you, you’d often turn away or walk away. I still managed to get many good photos of you, which I’m obviously happy about.

I never did get that picture of you yawning, despite trying hard to do so for many years. I came close several times, but never had the camera up when I needed it most.

There’s a lot I will miss, that’s for sure.

Such as you meowing when you wanted attention, or more often, when you wanted food. I’ll miss walking by your favorite sitting/laying down spots and not seeing you there. I’ll miss watching you just flop on the floor and being queen of the home.

Molson chilling with one of her best friends.

Molson chilling with one of her best friends.

I keep walking past those spots, hoping to see you. Or I keep hoping you’ll come around a corner, hop up on a chair and curl up. There’s that one teddy bear on a lonely chair that you used to hop up on to see you snuggle with the bear. It won’t be the same not seeing you there.

I know it’s been less than a week, but every once in a while, I’ll hear a creak or a noise – something that seemed to be associated with you coming from somewhere – and I look around hoping to see you enter with that meow.

Owning a pet is a wonderful thing. Watching them go is one of the hardest things people can deal with, especially when you’ve had a pet for so long. It wasn’t the easiest thing to say goodbye to you, Molson. But you weren’t yourself anymore and I think you were ready. You said goodbye in your own way and you didn’t have to spend your final days at the Vet, rather at home, where you belonged.

The ending was hard as it is with human or animals who are so close to you. But soon enough those feelings will ease to the memories of all the good years you had and gave people. You will, however, be extremely missed and remembered fondly.

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!