#2019 at 10:22PM

[totallyboatless]

Pip Gets High and Writes an Essay: Wrestling and Shakespeare Edition

Hello friends, today was stressful and I want to distract myself, so it is time for another writing-while-high game. For those new, here's the breakdown:

I'm about to take an edible. I'll time stamp when I took it and when I've realized it's hit. You will almost certainly realize it's hit before me

I will write this in one go with minimal editing. If I got back to edit or add a note, it will be from "Pip From the Future" who will be significantly more high

This is a topic I've thought about before, but have never sat down to write out

Additional notes:

I was super into wrestling when I was a kid in the 90s/early 2000s, fell off of it, and then was reintroduced this January when my boyfriend got me into AEW (I'm almost entirely going to be talking about AEW btw--I'm not as into WWE). So though it's become a significant hyperfixation this year, I'm still new to modern-day wrestling. Please forgive the inevitable mess ups.

2. I love Shakespeare with a passion and have taken a handful of classes and seen a lot of performances, but I'm by no means a scholar. Please forgive the inevitable mess ups.

OKAY WITH THAT: Devil's candy eaten at 10:22pm Mountain Time.

Now let's get into:

Wrestling is More Shakespearean Than Many Modern Day Shakespeare Performances

Part 1: When the Audience is a Character, Theatre Hits Different

I wrote about this in my previous weed-induced essay, but one of my favorite performances of A Midsummer Night's Dream of all time is the 2019 Bridge Theatre's version with Gwendolyn Christie (it was filmed, highly recommend checking it out on the National Theatre streaming service or...by other means). There's a whole lot to love about the production (it's so gay, guys, like SO gay), but one of the absolute highlights is the way that the stage is set up.

The stage is like theatre-in-the-round on crack. It's made up of multiple moving parts, and as the tech crew attaches and detaches parts of the stage to move throughout the space, the crowd needs to ebb and flow along with them. The actors engage directly with the audience, often as the catalyst to get them to move in order to make way for the stage changing.

Anyone who's ever studied Shakespeare, even in the most casual of ways, knows that in the original productions, especially for the Comedies, the audience was encouraged to interact with the show and actors--it was deeply immersive. The Globe Theatre isn't fully in the round, but it almost is; no matter where someone sat or stood, they could see the face of another audience member. Their shared reactions and interactions were an integral part of the experience.

This wasn't unique to Shakespeare, but this setup works particularly well when dealing with stories whose core (no matter the genre) are about visceral human experiences. Being able to feel something, whether it's joy or pain, and directly see someone else experiencing the same thing in the same way amplifies theatre in a gorgeous way. There's nothing like that feeling of connection with someone you'll never talk to.

Seeing the recorded Bridge Theatre's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream made me realize how much I missed that feeling of being completely immersed in a story, and I still feel so jealous when I watch the audience in the recording. I fucking love being surrounded by people whose bodies thrum along with my energy at a show. Shortly after watching it, I went to see a live performance of A Winter's Tale, and it was a good time--but it was on a normal stage, the barrier between the audience and the story well established. It was a show being performed at the audience, not with them.

And that's how most modern day theatre productions are, Shakespeare or not. And it makes sense from a logistics perspective--a lot of people are assholes when they're given the freedom to interact with a show. They take advantage, especially in the age of social media when the temptation to do something to make you go viral is there. And people pay a lot of money for live theatre now and don't want their experience disrupted. (it's high Pip from the future--I finally realized the thing I wanted to say here that was going to make for a better segue: Shakespeare doesn't just love the idea of an immersed audiences, he also saw the magic of "audience as character." So many of his plays break the fourth wall and are meant to be delivered to the audience not as performance but as someone sharing their deepest secrets to a friend). I get it, but in some ways it feels like an opportunity at magic is lost.

UNTIL I GOT INTO THE BIG MEATY MEN SLAPPIN' MEAT

It wasn't hard to sell me on wrestling since I already loved it as a kid, but there was one video in particular that my boyfriend showed me that flipped the switch so hard my brain lit up like Mark Briscoe got a hold of the pyrotechnics.

The video in question is Invisible Man vs. Invisible Stan, in which two invisible wrestlers fight each other. When my boyfriend first told me about this, I thought two dudes in green suits were going to come out, or that everybody was going to pretend they couldn't see two real-life dudes. But my guys IT IS A FULL FIGHT BETWEEN TWO IMAGINARY WRESTLERS.

I'm not kidding in the least when I say this video is one of my top favorite pieces of art from the modern world. It's a story told entirely by two entities: The referee (Bryce Remsburg) and the audiences. And yeah, I'm considering the audience one entity--just watch the video, the way they all meld together is WILD. The crowd is fully bought in, they all take cues off of Bryce and each other in order to collectively decide where the Invisible Man and Invisible Stan are and they move accordingly. That bit where one of the wrestlers goes up to the balcony and jumps down, and like 10 people all fall in unison as if they've been landed on--are you KIDDING ME?! That shit is some of the best improvisational collaborative storytelling I've ever seen--and it could never have happened if the audience wasn't as much of a character as Bryce or the wrestlers. Seriously go watch it, it's incredible.

"The audience is a character" is a sacred rule in pro wrestling--audience participation is the meat of what moves storylines along, and can (and has) literally change(d) the course of character arcs over the years. They set the tone for matches: for the audience back home, for the actors, and most importantly for each other. They chant together, they hold signs together, they gasp together.

(They chant "he's gay he's gay he's gay" in the kindest way those words have ever been spoken -- high Pip from the future, i went to go grab the link to insert bc i had forgot and i rewatched the video so the rest of this video.........this is not a video, but it's playing in my head as one. Anyway I'm tearing up that is such a good gay moment. Also for non-wrestling people reading this -- why are you reading this? -- that tall blonde man is named Daddy Ass. I need you all to go look up the story of how "Scissor me, Daddy Ass" came to be if you do not know it. Unrelated my keyboard feels like it's tilting)

They give the ability for actors to feel more immersed, themselves. A wild crossover I never expected: Anthony Burch (DM for Dungeons & Daddies) held up a sign for a Kenny Omega match that references a years-long storyline that's HONESTLY HEARTBREAKING LIKE JESUS FUCK THE GAY TEARS IT MAKES ME CRY THEY CALLED THEMSELVES THE GOLDEN LOVERS ARE YOU *KIDDING* ME--

(Aside: Is this the first time the edible hits and I realize the same time as you guys? Time 11:17pm, almost an hour after taking it. Or am I going to read this back tomorrow and be like "what the fuck that is gibberish.")

Anyway, I'm not going to go into it (that's Super Eyepatch Wolf's job)--all you need to know is Anthony's sign stopped Kenny Omega in his tracks. His face changes as he sees the sign, and it feels like the energy from that reaction carries him through the rest of the match. It gives a beautiful additional motivation to his character actions--and it never could have happened without an audience that was alive.

TL;DR and main point of part 1: Wrestling understands theatre-in-the-round productions and audience immersion in a way that many theatres don't understand or utilize the vast power of, and I think going to a live wrestling show would finally sate that desire that the Bridge Theatre's A Midsummer Nights Dream makes me feel that I haven't been able to find.

Shakespeare would fucking lose his shit over wrestling, man. He would be like "this is real theatre, baby." I'm not joking. I think he'd think that. And not just because of the "audience as character." OH HEY WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT

Part 2: Good Wrestling Stories Are Fueled By a Core Made of Visceral Human Experiences of Joy and Pain and Mortality and Legacy, Shakespeare also did that

Nailed it, what a good title

When we talk about Shakespeare not being as high bro and pretentious as the general public often thinks it is, we're not just talking about the dick jokes (though there's a lot of dick jokes).

(Aside: I'm not sure who the "we" is I'm referring to--who the fuck am i to be using academic talk i literally just spent too long that i want to admit trying to spell academic)

(Aside again: aHIGHed. Is that anything? That's nothing. Don't look at me)

Shakespeare isn't just low-brow, it's also incredibly accessible on a story level. Obviously the language is hard to overcome, but if you boil any Shakespeare story to its bones to explain to someone, they're stories almost everyone can relate to in some way:

In the tragedies:

The experience of deep grief, and the existential crisis of mortality that comes with it

Loving deeply and passionately while the world tells you it's better to hate, and the existential crisis of mortality that comes with it

The desire for legacy, how your story will be written in the minds of those left behind, and the existential crisis of mortality that comes with it

In the comedies:

The hilarity of being part of a friend group when relationship drama is going down, and you know two of your friends have a crush on each other

Having a fantasy about romping around with horny faeries in the forest

Enjoying sex jokes, twins, and weddings

Doing trans shit and then being really bisexual about it

Good wrestling, when it boils down to it, approaches storylines in a similar way of centering visceral human emotions.

So which genre is wrestling? It can be sad and happy and gay, sometimes all at once.

Wait I thought of a funnier way to say this:

Broke: Wrestling can't be put into a Shakespeare genre of Tragedy or Comedy because it's both at times

Woke: Wresting is a History

(Aside: GOD this is like the core of what I wanted to write about but it's almost midnight and I am p r o p e r high now, I keep staring off into space and my beanie is squeezing my head--if you like this next part and want me to talk about it more maybe i'll do it sober)

(Aside: I was about to go into a full aside here about Prince Nana and the ongoing bit from multiple characters that they want his weed...but we don't have time for that)

My favorite Shakespearean monologue is the "Let's talk of graves, of worms, and epitaphs" speech from King Richard II. I have those first words tattooed on my upper thigh, like some kind of pretentious slut. Anyway, the monologue is all about how kings only become kings and stop being kings due to one main thing: death. And there's this part that goes:

For within the hollow crown that rounds the mortal temples of a king keeps death his court

In a recording of Ian McKellen receiting these words, he takes a crown and tilts it at the audience until it becomes an O.

A crown is something that's coveted, given so much weight and meaning and power. And yet when you look in the middle, it's ultimately hollow.

Belts are crowns, you got I was going there, right? A wrestling belt is a stand in for a crown, it's a symbol of proven power, it's coveted beyond anything else. But ultimately, it's hollow.

And just like with kings, there's only way one to win a belt and to lost a belt.

Well like metaphorically. It's not death with this one, and it's not like when wrestlers lose their characters die off. But like defeat is a metaphor for death in this. You get me.

There are.....

Fuck my brain is fully breaking friends, lol. This weed friend has sent my mind to space. I gotta wrap it. There's some more thoughts on this, and wanting to tie some parallel stories (Orange Cassidy has big Prince Hal vibes, etc.) Maybe I'll return to this sober, or maybe this is way too niche of a crossover and no one will read this lol. If you read this, I appreciate you.

I'm truly unsure if this is readable but i gotta commit to this bit even tho i just got freaked out by my own fingers for a second (we're good now) so gonna post

/end

[remembertheplunge]

No words for "when" "want" or "worry"

June 10, 2007.  5:22pm Sunday

The TV news show “60 minutes” had a segment on the language of the people of the Trobriand Islands. The Trobiand Islanders have no word in their language for “when”“want” or “worry”.

 If asked "How old are you?" They don’t know.

There is no word for “Hello”

No word for “good bye”.

They do have words for give and take. But, no word for “want”.

They have no need for things. They are nomadic.

Just before the Trobriand Islander story, there was a story about a really rich guy who was mean to his employees. He yelled at them. Every word was “want”, “when”, “worry”. Age on his forehead. Full of hellos and good byes.

My partner Jim got a check for $98,000 plus as his share of his parent’s estate. . Jim is angry. Feels nothing. 

One of Jim’s two brothers got $50,000 more than Jim. Jim now has no reason to contact his brothers. I agree. They were horrible through this division of the estate process. A lot of money went to lawyers. Odd. Outside of memory and emotion, there is no connection between them anymore. No hello. No good bye. No want. No worry. No when.

End of this part of the entry

Jim was my partner of 12 years. He and his brothers got into a legal battle over their parent’s estate after their mother died in 2005.

Later, a similar situation happened in my family. My sister Zoe and I were disinherited by our mother in 2011. We learned about it after her death in 2012. Our younger brother and his wife and her son and his wife inherited everything. My brother and I have never spoken again. We never  will speak. No good bye. No hello. 

Jim and his family were good teachers. They showed me this can happen. This is sometimes part of the family experience. 

“This is what white people do to each other”. This is a line from the 2019 movie “The Last Black Man in San Fransisco”. A young black man desperately wants to own a victorian house in San Fransisco's Filmore district. An elderly couple lives there now, but, are forced to leave because of an inheritance battle.The young black man says to his friend “This is what white people do to each other”.That one line, more than any other, has helped my through the desolate landscape of being disinherited.

[cassowary-rapture]

I forgot I had a last.fm account linked to Spotify to track how many times I listened to songs

Sadly it somehow became unlinked, so it wasn't linked at the height of my classical music or Mechanisms obsessions and just goes from January 2018 to October 2022. But it is still fun to look through

I am so fucking obsessive with music and it is fascinating and hilarious

For instance, this song

On July 10th, 2021, from 12:38 to 4:54pm, I listened to it 91 times in a row. On July 6th, 2021, I listened to it once at 10:13am, and then from 12:22pm to 5:43pm, I listened to it 100 times in a row

I stand by that. It's a fantastic song!

Then there were a few days in 2019 where I was really into this song

On September 24th, I listened to it 6 times between 2:30 AM and 4:14 AM. I guess I liked it, because I went back at 11:29 PM that night and didn't stop listening to it until 5:30 AM on the 25th, for a total of 127 consecutive listens. Then I went right back to it that night, listening to it 12 times between 10:49 PM on the 25th and 5:33 AM on the 26th.

On the 27th, I listened to it 3 times between 12:10 AM and 1:22 AM. At 9:16 PM, I listened to it again, one more time, bringing the total listens for those four days to 149. And then I forgot it existed until February of 2020

As expected, my #1 most listened-to song from January 2018 to October 2022 is John Denver's "Take Me Home, Country Roads," with a total of 382 listens (157 more than the second-place song, Khruangbin's "Maria Tambien"). But my most obsessive listening session for that one was 74 consecutive listens between 4:55 AM and 9:16 AM on November 29th, 2018, which honestly seems quite tame now

This is why I had trouble answering when people asked me what my favorite bands were before I got into The Mechanisms and ended up listening to and liking pretty much their entire catalogue

John Denver put out ~300 songs in his career. I've listened to two of them -- "Take Me Home, Country Roads" and "Rocky Mountain High." I didn't really care for the latter, but I've listened to the former 382 times, or more than 382 since I have definitely listened to it again since 2022. Am I a John Denver fan? Not really! I'm more of a "Take Me Home, Country Roads" superfan

[ao3feed-destiel-02]

From the river to the sea

From the river to the sea https://ift.tt/w84Zt2S by Sydrian Palestine will be free Words: 40, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: Supernatural (TV 2005), Merlin (TV), Star Trek, The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types, 原神 | Genshin Impact (Video Game), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS, Star Wars - All Media Types, Teen Wolf (TV), The 100 (TV), The Boys (TV 2019), Gen V (TV), The X-Files, Batman - All Media Types, Spider-Man - All Media Types, Superman - All Media Types Rating: General Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Categories: Multi Characters: Dean Winchester, Castiel (Supernatural), Sam Winchester, Bobby Singer (Supernatural), Scaramouche (Genshin Impact), Albedo (Genshin Impact), Octavia Blake, Leonard "Bones" McCoy, Dana Scully, Fox Mulder, Aragorn (Tolkien), Frodo Baggins, Sam Gamgee, Pippin Took, Gandalf (Tolkien), Éomer Éadig, Dick Grayson, Damian Wayne, Peter Parker, Mary Jane Watson, Michelle Jones (Marvel), Billy Butcher, Hughie Campbell, Starlight | Annie January, The Homelander | John, Mother's Milk (The Boys), The Frenchman (The Boys), Soldier Boy (The Boys), John Murphy (The 100), Lincoln (The 100), Echo (The 100), Thranduil (Tolkien), Kíli (Tolkien), Balin (Tolkien), Bilbo Baggins, Kaeya (Genshin Impact) Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester, Liam Dunbar/Theo Raeken, Scott McCall/Stiles Stilinski, Scott McCall/Kira Yukimura, Scott McCall/Theo Raeken, Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, James T. Kirk/Spock, Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Frodo Baggins/Sam Gamgee, Billy Butcher/Hughie Campbell, Billy Butcher/The Homelander | John, Hughie Campbell/Starlight | Annie January, Stiles Stilinski/Malia Tate, Malia Tate/Kira Yukimura, Allison Argent/Scott McCall, Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne, Clark Kent/Lois Lane, Clark Kent/Lois Lane/Bruce Wayne, Tim Drake/Jason Todd, Bellamy Blake/Clarke Griffin, Clarke Griffin/Lexa, Aragorn/Boromir (Tolkien), Lydia Martin/Stiles Stilinski, Albedo/Kaeya (Genshin Impact) via AO3 works tagged 'Castiel/Dean Winchester' https://ift.tt/k6DTXxz November 28, 2023 at 10:22PM

[kodittomat]

Sumu Mihh! Mähhh… Suomeksi sanottuna siis hei! Ääntelyni on aivan uniikkia, ja ihmisten kanssa keskustelu onkin varsin mukavaa, kun heihin tutustuu ajan kanssa minulle sopivaan tahtiin. Olen parivuotias kollipoika.

[skrubu]

Now. #starwars #riseofskywalker #helsinki #finland http://bit.ly/38LfksS

[sangklp]

RT @ippatuOUT: 数時間でこの世の真理の公式を2つ閃いたんだしやっぱクレイジーさんって人智を凌駕してるわ https://t.co/xIMXFoTA9Q https://www.youtube.com/c/lifesang

[joelwindows7]

October 8, 2019 at 10:22PM

October 8, 2019 at 10:22PM

[remembertheplunge]

August 4, 2017. Friday. 10:22pm

Great time with Justin Johnson tonight.

We Texas Road Housed and Art Showed and Queen Bean Coffee Housed and Baskin Robin’d.

And, talked homeless truth talk.

The Post its and Pastries approach simply serves the guilt of the pretty people. (the homed)

At Preservation Coffee, two of the 20 something male clerks  said that they wanted to come and see the homeless wall at my house.

The Girl Scouts want to contribute to the TJSK bags re:  the gym clerk’s daughter.

 I had zero TJSK encounters today. Second day in a row.

Great talk with a close friend today. She worries about me between calls (re:  That I might get hurt or killed  doing my homeless work). 

End of entry

Justin Johnson was a friend I met at AA meetings. He was helpful in guiding me through my homeless work experience. He knew how to help me say ��No” when needed. He died  in 2019. He was probably around age 40. He was a talented Artist. He did paintings and wall murals.

I read some where about a Civic  meeting , in which the homeless problem was discussed with the use of post its and the consumption of pastries. The issue was tabled and and a solution and or action left undone. .

But, they prided themselves on their post its and pastries. They could have left the meeting, filled up bags with food and taken action by hitting the street and encountering the homeless.

As the homeless encounter evolved from March to October of 2017, during which time homeless men lived in my house at various times, and I passed out TJSK bags in various cities, the walls in the main hallway of my house became a repository of street graffiti. This included card board signs that the homeless would “fly” when asking for money, newspaper articles about homelessness and whatever else I might find that caught the feel of the experience. This is what Taran and Travis wanted to come and see.

TJSKing = filling reusable bags from Trader Joes with food and toiletries and passing them out to the homeless.

[food-log-life]

カレー🍛#夕食

[piratorbay]

The M of M's.. Stanmore. @maccas.sunsets ... Just missed golden hour though.

[90363462]

I've Been Abstinent For 12 Years. Here's How.

Shellie R. Warren

Jan. 04, 2019 05:22PM EST

Back when I wrote my first book that included all of the reasons why abstinence is a good idea, I actually had sex with my then-boyfriend to "celebrate" the book's release. If there seems like there's some hypocrisy there, you'd be right. What was even more apparent was just how hooked onto sex I was...although I wasn't sure why at the time.

I'm not saying that's a bad thing. SEX IS AWESOME. Incomparably so. That said, the reason why I brought up my book in the first place is because there was a poem that I wrote that I featured in it. Its title? "Why Not the Prostitute?"

The gist? Why do so many people give prostitutes such a hard time when at least they seem to value their "stuff" (and their time) enough to get something out of the sexual situation? I mean, I've given my good stuff out to numerous dudes and had absolutely NO-THING — sometimes not even an orgasm — to show for it.

media1.giphy.com

No, I'm not advocating prostitution. At the same time, what I am saying is that on January 9, 2007, literally right after having sex, something in me was like, "This just isn't working for me anymore." It wasn't the sex either. It was just that…it felt like I was not enjoying it so much as using it as a coping mechanism — a pacifier.

Hmph. Yeah, "pacifier" is the right word. When a baby is upset or even impatient, some parents will put a pacifier into their mouth and, at least for the time being, everything seems all good. Let that thing fall out though, and the child is back to being upset and impatient; maybe even more than they were before. The lesson here? Pacifiers don't really "fix" anything; they just distract you for a little while. Oftentimes, just like sex.

When I decided to give abstinence a try, just to see if I could find out why sex wasn't enough for me, I told myself I would do a year. On January 9, 2019, it will be a whopping (count 'em) 12 years! 

And while I get that not everyone thinks abstinence is for them, at the same time, I do believe that if more of us tried it — even if it was just for a season — it would provide a greater sense of clarity as to what we truly want and need outside of the pleasure (and/or distraction) that sex alone provides. We'd be able to see if it might just be more of a "pacifier" than we might think.

How did I come to the conclusion that it was for me? Ironically, it was by paying attention to the steps I used to stop having sex in the first place:

I Continually Remind Myself of Why I Stopped.

I stayed in my last relationship much longer than I should have. I cared about him, but I wasn't in love. But between our friendship and the sex, I would ignore my gut that said, "You really need to end this thing."

You know what? When I look back on my sex life, in general, with most of those dudes, I ignored my gut and listened to my libido. I had this pattern of ending up with guys where — eh, 8.5 times out of 10 — the sex was outstanding but everything else was below average. Way below average.

I guess the best way to describe how I was feeling is a Maureen Dowd quote that I like a lot: "The minute you settle for less than you deserve, you get even less than you settled for."

I have girlfriends who just want sex and they're out. But when it comes to me, I wanted — needed — more than that. I felt that way back then. I still feel that way now. So on my super-horny days, I look at the tat on the inside of my right forearm (Matthew 13:45-46; my birthstone is a pearl so if you look it up, it'll make sense) and remind myself that I stopped because I want more than good sex. I want a solid — and super-lasting — connection.

Related Articles:

You Can't Sex It Away: A D*ck Appointment Is Not An Antidepressant – Read More

I Tried Masturbating For 7 Days As An Act Of Self-Care - Here's How It Went – Read More

After the Breakup: How To Avoid Giving In To The 'Hoe Phase' – Read More

Tiffany Haddish Gets Real About Soul Ties & So Should We – Read More

Featured image by Getty Images

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[magnifyk-official]

#paris #likeforlikes #avilon #avilonjoel with my brother @christkobe24 #familyiseverything #familyfirst #familyforever #lovemyfam #habitandhome #mytinytribe #nestingly #thepursuitofjoyproject #paris #topparisphoto #thisisparis #pariscityworld #visitparis #parisgram #visitfrance #wonderlustparis #paris_bigcity #parislife https://ift.tt/2XizSC5

[sangklp]

RT @StudioLumio: Handmade Japanese Origami Paper Doll With Detachable Stand https://t.co/bsNeWxSydc https://www.youtube.com/c/lifesang

[mwesterl]

To Change the Way You Think, Change the Way You See https://t.co/VESuxCGGVa https://t.co/tnv9GCDQDy | mwesterl | http://twitter.com/mwesterl/status/1118248315940896781