'Pursue what you want to do, because you get a short amount of time here before you pass on. If you don't enjoy it, what's the point?'

Chaffee native Brandon Anderson -- "Barbwire" as the wrestling community knows him -- is one of the many faces you'll see representing at the next Cape Championship Wrestling event.

He's always been interested in wrestling, and some of his earliest memories are watching wrestling with his uncle.

"I don't think there was ever a time where I didn't want to be a wrestler. Even if I never made a living doing only this, this was still something that I needed and wanted to do," he said. "Pursue what you want to do because you get a short amount of time here before you pass on. If you don't enjoy it, what's the point?"

For the most part, Anderson said, he has lived in Chaffee but has moved around some. Wrestling sparked his interest around the age of 5, and ever since the age of 16, he has been actively pursuing his wrestling career.

"I've lived in Memphis, I've lived in Mississippi, and these are all short stints, little stays, because primarily I had a lot of wrestling work going on there at the time," he explained. "I was working there so much and doing so much in those individual parts of the country, I thought, all this traveling back and forth is stupid."

CCW wrestler Brandon "Barbwire" Anderson, below, demonstrates a "bump" while practicing before a One Night Riot event Saturday, Feb. 24, 2018, at the Arena Building in Cape Girardeau.BEN MATTHEWS

Anderson has been in the wrestling scene for 14 years. And in the beginning, he said it was "constant traveling" and trying to get his name out there.

"For a long time, it wasn't like I was going to big, reputable companies. It was just any company where I could go and get in a ring, get some time in, and maybe find guys there who know more than me that I can learn from," he said. "That's a huge part of all of this. It's just learning from everyone around you, and eventually learning how to weed out the stuff that you probably shouldn't be paying attention to. Because you can pick up just as many bad habits as you do good. That's a learning curve for people for the first five years, for sure."

And according to Anderson, he "has a good following here."

"I was the first champion of [CCW], I started out as 'The Villain,' and eventually transitioned over into what I'm doing now. I'm one of the more popular characters here at the moment," he said. "I wouldn't want to say I'm 'the guy.' There are a lot of guys here, and a lot of them are really worth paying attention to."

Monthly events Anderson is involved with include the "One Night Riot," which he explained is similar to the WWE Royal Rumble, also featuring 20 wrestlers.

"You throw your guy over the top rope, and if his feet hit the floor, he's out, he's eliminated, he's gone," he explained. "The last guy standing in the ring wins, and that guy has an opportunity next month for a CCW title shot."

Anderson also said events he's been part of at the Arena Building draw quite the large crowd for Cape Girardeau.

"We've drawn up to 550 people, and I don't think we ever get below 300," he noted.

Anderson said when he first realized he was interested in wrestling at the time there were shows in Dexter and Kennett, Missouri, and he got the chance to talk to wrestler Derrick King.

"[Derrick] was like, 'Hey, here's my phone number. Call me, and well see about getting something set up for training," Anderson said.

Soon after his conversation with King, Anderson said he was making trips to Dyersburg, Tennessee, every weekend and training there.

His first time wresting was at a venue in Tennessee in 2004.

"There was a place just off South Parkway in Memphis. Real rough neighborhood down there, but there's not much to do for families. There was this little community center and a company called MAW, which booked me and my buddy, Antoin, at the time for a tag team match against two other guys. Honestly it was awful. It was terrible. We sucked so bad," he recalled

As of right now, Anderson's primary focus since CCW opened has been that organization.

"There's nothing that I'm really solid working towards at this exact moment other than CCW. The growth of this company is huge," he said. "I think this company has a really bright future and the fact that I get to be one of the front-runners for that, this is where my focus is right now, because I think it's going to yield the biggest return, personally."

Anderson added it's "not even about a dollar value. It's just the personal rewards of being able to be involved in something I feel is genuinely special."

TRENDING

Oscars 2018

Ninety years in the making, Sunday we honor the movies that made it big-time in 2017. The Academy Awards takes place at the Dolby Theatre at the Hollywood & Highland Center in California, but you can enjoy it from your living room TV at 8 p.m. on ABC.

Worth the mention

Social Club Misfits were at the Cape Girardeau Show Me Center last week, and they've got a new album, "Into The Night." If you like hip-hop and rap but you've never heard of them, check them out.

Because food

It's not always easy to eat healthy and actually enjoy it, but if you decide to go the gluten-free or vegetarian diet route in Southeast Missouri, here's a list of recommended places you should try, according to Visit Cape on Twitter.

• Faithfully Fed
• Sta
• Burrito-Ville
• Pho 8
• Sugar Chic Creamery

Don't forget

"Punk Rock" -- presented by Southeast River Campus -- runs March 8 through 10. It's a tale about raging hormones and minimal adult supervision, featuring a group of highly articulate 17-year-olds from Manchester, England.

They must prepare for their future -- and survive the savagery of high school.

Get tickets now at www.rivercampus.org to guarantee your rockin' good time.