October 28th, 1989

October 28th, 1989 is one of those days that stuck with me. It was a Saturday, which meant cartoons in the morning, but what made it truly memorable was everything that happened that night. I had two big things competing for my attention: our school’s annual Harvest Festival and WCW’s first Halloween Havoc pay-per-view. For a kid that loved pro wrestling like I did, that was a tough decision.

I spent the morning glued to my usual lineup of cartoons, but even as I laughed at Looney Tunes and munched cereal, I couldn’t stop thinking about the evening ahead. I was torn. The Harvest Festival was a tradition, something I looked forward to every year. But Halloween Havoc was new and exciting, and the buildup had been incredible. Ric Flair and Sting were teaming up against Terry Funk and The Great Muta in a Thunderdome cage match. It was the kind of thing that made your imagination run wild.

Just when I thought I’d have to choose, my dad came to the rescue. He suggested we set the VCR to record Halloween Havoc while we were out at the festival. That way, I wouldn’t miss a thing. We didn’t have one of those cable boxes that gave you all the pay-per-views for free, so I had to be selective. I’d skipped WWF’s SummerSlam that year just so I could get The Great American Bash in July. Halloween Havoc was my pick for the fall, and now I wouldn’t have to miss it.

With that settled, I could finally focus on the Harvest Festival. I spent the afternoon playing with my Construx toys, trying to build my own version of the Thunderdome cage. I remember it clearly because I was so excited about the match that I wanted to recreate it before I even saw it. My version wasn’t too far off, either.

That year, I dressed up as a convict. It wasn’t the most creative costume, but I was happy to have something to wear. Before we left, I had a little time to kill, so I watched an episode of “She’s the Sheriff.” It was the only time I ever saw that show. I must have caught it on our local Fox affiliate, since it had already ended its original run. I don’t remember the episode, just that it was part of that day It’s weird what little things we remember.

When we got to the school, my first stop was the showcase. The fifth graders were in charge of it that year, and our theme was antiques. My mom had donated her grandmother’s kitchen knife for the display, so I had to show it off. It wasn’t anything fancy, but it felt important because we had worked on it ourselves.

After that, I grabbed my tickets and took off with my friends. The parents headed to the cafeteria for bingo, which I used to think was boring. Years later, when I had kids of my own, I realized bingo was actually one of the best parts of those nights. Funny how things change.

My friends and I ran wild. We played games in the gym, braved the haunted house, and made several trips to the Batcave, which was really just the disco room. We didn’t dance, of course. No fifth-grade boy wanted to be seen awkwardly moving in front of the girls. We just hung out, soaked in the music, and enjoyed the dark.

Even with all the fun, part of my mind kept drifting back to Halloween Havoc. I couldn’t wait to get home and see how the matches turned out. Before we left the festival, I stopped by the general store setup and bought some old-fashioned candy. It was the perfect way to end the night.

When we got home, the show was still going. I didn’t want to spoil anything, so I waited until it ended, rewound the tape, and started from the beginning. The show lived up to the hype. The Thunderdome match was wild, and the whole card was stacked. The Road Warriors versus The Skyscrapers, The Steiner Brothers against Doom, Lex Luger taking on Brian Pillman. It was hard to stay awake, but I managed. Watching that show capped off one of the best nights of my childhood.

Looking back, it’s funny how a school event and a wrestling show could leave such a lasting impression. But I think it’s more than that. Life gets busy. Jobs, families, responsibilities. Sometimes your heart just wants to go back, even for a little while. That’s what memories like this are for. They’re a way to return to simpler times, when all you needed was a costume, a few tickets, and a VCR set to record.

And for me, October 28th, 1989 will always be one of those perfect days.

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