#and don't ask me what scrum is I don't really know

[debbiechanclub]

Please I started training today for a scrum master certification and in one of the videos the narrator pronounced "finite" as "finn-it."

[a-star-that-burns-brightly]

What the fuck is up with this man? No seriously, what the fuck was this about? I know what you're probably thinking "Everyone was trying to send Teruko to death, why is Whit being focused on here?"

That is true, but my thing about this is, to me, Whit joining in on the immediate bandwagon to vote for Teruko is...really fucking weird given his personality. One of Whit's main traits is the way he, almost rashly, puts his faith into other people. To the point where he is willing to lie or delay information from being presented. I made a whole post about this around a year ago, but later in this trial he puts his faith into the idea that Charles is not the culprit, lying about Charles being his friend so that the others would believe him. He interrupts when Teruko starts asking Eden for the note even though the note itself implicates Eden heavily. And he outright refuses to share David's secret for multiple minutes to "protect his career (paraphrasing), which I don't buy for a second because why the fuck would Whit care? what I'm trying to say is that all three of these circumstances where someone is being suspected or in danger of being suspected, Whit implicitly puts his faith in the idea that they are not the culprit, even if a majority of the evidence is pointing towards them. ...So why the fuck does he not do the same for Teruko? Later he joins Teruko's side in the scrum debate so we know eventually he stops suspecting her, but before that and especially in the screenshot, he just wants to vote and have the trial be done with. Given everything else, there's no reason for Whit to not defend Teruko, so why doesn't he? ...Well. Unless there was any particular reason he would want her to bite the bullet for Xander's murder.

Probably nothing though

[tkachuktkaching]

Matthew Tkachuk returns to Edmonton as Public Enemy No. 1

Tkachuk spent the first six seasons of this NHL career with the Calgary Flames, combating in the Battle of Alberta, the decades-spanning rivalry in which the Flames and the Edmonton Oilers would bludgeon each other to the delight of neighboring fan bases. It's a feud that stands next to any geographic rivalry in sports based on its championship prestige, Hall of Fame talent and unwavering vitriol.

Tkachuk remembers those rivalry games well.

"I guess I know them more than probably most guys by playing in Calgary," Tkachuk said. "But we just had the one playoff series against them that they won, and played a bunch in the regular season. There's a lot of different guys over there now."

Calgary traded Tkachuk to the Panthers two years ago. He has returned to Edmonton twice since.

"I know last year I was booed every time I touched the puck. This year there was nothing, so I have no idea this time," he said.

How close did Tkachuk come to becoming an Oiler? Four years ago, he told TSN Radio that they appeared ready to draft him before Dubois went to Columbus.

"During the draft, on the draft floor, it was kind of a weird moment where some people at the Edmonton table -- you could ask them, they would probably deny it -- but they're kind of staring me down and kind of giving me some smiles. The only people that saw it were me and my mom. So we're like, 'All right, we're going to Edmonton,'" he said. "Then Pierre-Luc Dubois went third overall, and the phone started to ring like crazy at the Edmonton table. They threw the jersey under the table and it looked like they stripped off a name and gave it to Puljujarvi with the next pick."

Tkachuk was drafted sixth overall by the Flames. The rest is (alternate) history.

TKACHUK SAID HE HAD "kind of like a Christmas Eve feeling" before the Stanley Cup Final, giddy with anticipation for trying to win the Cup after the Panthers lost in the championship round last season to the Vegas Golden Knights.

When asked about the Oilers, there was no trash talk, no bulletin board material.

"They're a great team. Finally got to watch some of their games against Dallas, since we were playing every other night. It was good to watch their games," he said. "They played really well and ultimately deserved to win the West. It should make for a great final."

After Florida went up 2-0 in the series with its Game 2 victory, Tkachuk was asked if the Oilers were rattled.

Again, he deferred.

"No, I don't think so. It's just sometimes the way it goes," he said, before leaving the media scrum.

The story of Matthew Tkachuk vs. the Edmonton Oilers is also a story of a young, brash superstar at the apex of his brashness who says he's a much different player today. Tkachuk speaks with pride about what he perceives to be the Panthers' maturity as a team and his own discipline on the ice, in contrast with how he'd played in the Battle of Alberta, for example.

"I'd say that used to be a part of my game. Now it's pretty nonexistent," he said. "I've kind of learned what works, and what works is playing as hard as I can for 30 to 45 seconds -- well, sometimes I take the long shift, so 30 seconds to a minute. There's no need to waste your time doing extra stuff."

Panthers coach Paul Maurice has cited the 26-year-old Tkachuk's maturity throughout the season, starting with how he approached this campaign after Florida's stunning run to the Stanley Cup Final last season.

Maurice said Tkachuk was part of the leadership group that got the Panthers locked in to their defensive game this season, which was a byproduct of missing Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour at the start of 2023-24 after surgeries. He said Tkachuk's attitude from the start of training camp help set the efficient, business-like tone of Florida's approach.

"Last year, I think we were just kind of riding the wave," Tkachuk said before the conference finals. "Going into this, we know what it's going to take to ultimately come out on top."

Tkachuk is tied with Aleksander Barkov with 19 points to lead all Panthers scorers. He hasn't had the soaring moments as regularly as he did last playoff run.

But Maurice is confident that Tkachuk is still capable of them.

"His game is better. He's more disciplined. He's matured with this group over two years. I think he's ... primed," the coach said. "I would never bet against him coming up with some heroics, but it's certainly not the only thing we have to expect now when we come to the rink from him."

Article taken from espn.com I Photos : Getty Images

[batsplat]

Oh im obses whit your blog like you are such a great historian on vale and love the way you analys stuff admire the way of writing all of your toughs in such a corent way 🩷🩷🐹

this is so nice, thank you!! okay so this ask was initially sent in response to this post about how marc knew what a dick valentino was to his rivals and appreciated/wished to emulate that side of him, in particular in the context of copying the jerez pass. and... well, there is one more follow-up post to that I did want to make. it didn't really work within that post because it's pretty speculative, but I think it's fun! here goes

so you know argentina 2018, right, big drama, reconciliation over, bla bla (I promise this is going in a more fun direction, stick with me here). there's a bit of marc's post-race media scrum that I am a wee bit obsessed with. or well, two specific lines, one in english (0:00) and one in spanish (1:02) - I've included the full responses for context, but in this post I'm really only interested in those two lines

in english:

But he was in the past also 25 years old, and will remember, everybody.

and in spanish:

He has also been 25 years old and, well, I hope that people also remember.

... 25 years old, did you say?

okay, look, fair warning. the rest of this post is going to be reading too much into what was probably an off-handed comment - even if, I'd just like to point out, it is something he felt the need to say twice. but let's just have some fun here, and read too much into it. as a treat

so obviously the most generic way to read this is him saying 'well valentino used to be really aggressive on-track too, so people shouldn't be criticising me more than they did him'. thing is, I wouldn't say there was that much of a noticeable decline in how aggressive valentino was being, and 2017 did still feature some major scraps where valentino very much got his elbows out (cf assen and phillip island, I included a bit more detail on this in the marc race rec post). sure, valentino did increasingly have his reservations about some of the behaviour of younger riders, so maybe he was less aggressive now relative to the field... but I just don't feel like that's quite what this line is implying. it's also not about valentino making 'mistakes' in general, because there would have been no reason to refer back to past-valentino in that regard... the 25 year old version of valentino was considerably more error-free than the 39 year old

so then, my theory is that it's about valentino's controversies! that's what people "will remember", right - it's not the general style of riding, not just innocent mistakes, it's the times when valentino caused a bit of a stir on and off the race track. now, again, you could go the generic route here and say 'ah well maybe marc is just thinking of all the mess valentino got himself involved in when he was younger, from getting into a fist fight with max biaggi at age 22 to pissing off casey stoner through his aggressive riding at laguna at age 29'. but let's say for a moment that marc was thinking a bit more specifically than that... after all, if we're just talking about valentino controversies in general, surely marc should be able to think of a rather more recent example where valentino, like marc at argentina 2018, caused another rider to crash and was subsequently penalised for his riding? of course, marc probably didn't want to bring up that particular controversy - but it's still interesting he feels the need to refer back to a younger version of valentino at all, the fact that this crossed his mind in the first place to make him bring it up unprompted while making his case. so maybe when marc, who is after all a known valentino rossi fan, refers twice to what valentino was like at "25 years old"... he is in fact thinking of what valentino was like when he was 25 years old. and in what year would that be? well, here's the thing. it would be 2004

readers of the sete post can probably guess where I'm going with this, but let's just take a moment to review what specific on-track incidents marc could be thinking of here. let's give him a little bit of extra leeway in terms of the age, even though I trust marc to be more on top of the exact age gap than valentino was in times past. let's throw in one year either way, so 2003 to 2005, and draw up a list of any particularly controversial races valentino was involved in. here's what I've got:

assen 2004 - valentino executed a hard overtake for the win on the last lap on sete gibernau. he's not in complete control and almost loses the front at the next corner, which would have taken them both out

qatar 2004 - after his team rubber up his grid slot the night before, valentino gets slapped with a back-of-the-grid penalty. he ends up crashing out of the race and burns his relationship with sete in the aftermath

jerez 2005 - at a time when their relationship is already very chilly, valentino and sete engage in another duel. valentino executes a block pass with contact at the final corner and is booed by the crowd

motegi 2005 - the first chance to seal that year's title, and one valentino would very much have liked to take to spite honda. an unwise overtaking attempt on melandri leaves both on the ground

so, my guess is that neither assen nor motegi were really big enough controversies to fit the bill, though maybe they stuck in marc's mind as instances of 'reckless riding' that he includes in a more generic internal understanding of young valentino rossi. we do of course know for a fact that marc was more than aware of what happened at jerez 2005, not least because he, you know, directly copied that move twelve years later (again, link to the relevant post). like marc in argentina 2018, valentino barged into a rival in rather controversial fashion, and obviously it also made the relationship between him and said rival deteriorate still further. sure, you can't really argue the move was 'as bad' as argentina 2018, but as far as I'm concerned it has the same general vibe

you know what else has the same general vibe? here's a race description for you:

a 25 year old rider is sent to the back of the grid for a reason they consider unfair

they proceed to deliver a phenomenal performance even by their lofty standards, quickly working their way up to a position that seemed unattainable to them

they barge a rival out of the way in their impatience, reaching back to apologise for the move

the race ends poorly for them and they fail to score any points

afterwards, their relationship with a rival is ruined as a result of the events of the race, and the whole thing remains a lingering controversy for years to come

one race that fits this description is, of course, argentina 2018. the other is qatar 2004. there's obviously plenty of details that are significantly different - valentino's move on barros is less egregious and far less controversial, and his race ends in the gravel rather than with a post-race time penalty. still, that start of valentino's? the impatience? the post-race fury? the repercussions this race had? come on, look at the race footage I included in the qatar post and tell me there's not a little bit of a shadow of that qatar fury to the argentina recklessness

this is a point I snuck into the marc race recs post, where I included this excerpt from a post-argentina 2018 write-up:

phillip island 2003, hm? as it happens, in the qatar post, I did include a bit of the autobiography that compares those two specific races:

so, phillip island 2003: a performance that made everyone wonder just how much valentino had left in reserve to draw on whenever he needed it. what valentino is saying here is that this performance wasn't a result of him holding back in all the other races that year - this was speed that was accessible to him only in that moment because he was so angry. so yes, maybe it's a valid question to wonder what would have happened at phillip island 2003 if it hadn't just been the ghost of his bike that had to pick its way through the stragglers. then again, valentino says it's not just rage that does the trick for him - it's controlled rage... which is all well and good, except when you lose control

and see also:

that's what argentina 2018 is all about, isn't it? it's a performance that's rooted in impatience, in restlessness, in frustration - where marc tuns his "rage into pure speed", as valentino would put it, in a hubristic dismissal of the rest of the field. ideally, the two of them channel those emotions to spur themselves on to special, signature performances... but sometimes, it gets the better of them. it got the better of marc that day in argentina and cost him the tentative peace with valentino. at qatar, it could have cost valentino the title

(also shades of this in jerez 2020 - an error sets the stage for some extraordinary pace before it all goes wrong) (catalunya 2003 is a fun more compact nephew to that race without the unhappy ending)

now, look, am I saying that marc was really referring back to qatar 2004 specifically, a race that had happened fourteen years earlier, when making an off-hand remark in a post-race media scrum as he tried to do some damage control in the wake of one of the most controversial races of his career? well, no. he could have been! but it's unlikely. maybe he's shit at maths and was actually thinking about laguna 2008 after all. still, I would like to once again point out that he felt the need to mention valentino's behaviour at age twenty five not once but twice. he's telling us that he wants people to remember what valentino was like at that age, and in the most literal sense I am doing what he's asking for. surely it's worth at least noting that there just happens to be a race where valentino was at that exact age and his temper overcame his rationality, leading to him making a costly error... surely it's worth acknowledging this...

even if marc wasn't actually obliquely referring back to that race or indeed any of the races I mentioned above, of course the parallels between valentino's foibles and marc's are in any case interesting. it speaks to how they get those special performances out of themselves, the similarities in how they operate in that regard... but of course also in how they both sometimes stray rather close to the limit, how they repeatedly flirt with crossing the line. a stubbornness and a hubris and a rage that can sometimes lead to disaster for the both of them. and another thing - who knows if marc was thinking about qatar 2004, but he must have been thinking about something. that's the point of that jerez post, right... marc is valentino's successor in so many ways, he has fashioned himself in valentino's image - and he keenly grasps and remains aware of all the different aspects of that legacy. he's the most accomplished of valentino's students and he felt strongly that what he did in that race in argentina was in some way comparable to what valentino himself had been doing at his age, part of the same tradition even. yes, to some extent marc is obviously accusing valentino of hypocrisy here: how can you judge me when you were once young and foolish too? his tone isn't exactly filled with remorse either, is it, he's pretty feisty in that media scrum! still, there's something more to it... something almost poetic to the whole thing, wouldn't you say? valentino had just accused marc of ruining the sport - and in response marc wants people to remember that they are just the same

[sergeifyodorov]

who is your favorite player on every team?

omg this is sucha good ask anon... under the cut for my little explanations

bruins: pasta... nails PAINTED front teeth CHIPPED glasses ON. i hate him every time he actually plays the leafs because he's so goddamn good but separated from that i enjoy his silly ass immensely

panthers: society has moved past the need for anyone to enjoy any florida panthers (bobrovsky)

leafs: im an austonhead through and through... generational goalscorer and queeny what can't he do

lightning: stamkos for symbolism reasons. bonus nikita kucherov because he's one of those larionov-type really analytical players and i love that

red wings: moritz

canadiens: juraj slafkovsky because he is just SO giant puppy and he is absolutely hilarious

sabres: dahlin for psychosexual reasons

sens: CLAUDE GIROUX!!! GINGER FRANCO ONTARIEN DILF OF ALL TIME!!!!!! NECK GUARD!!!! BISEXUAL SUBTEXT!!!!!! CLAUD!

rangers: artemi panarin (only child of divorce)

hurricanes: seth jarvis (one of very few nhlers i feel like i could have a normal human dumbass conversation with)

islanders: mat barzal (diva)

flyers: travis konecny (sexy)

devils: nico hischier (sexy)

penguins: evgeni malkin (diva)

capitals: alex ovechkin (sexy)

blue jackets: patrik laine (because there's something SOOOOO compelling about being a draft bust and also the fact that he is just kind of a weirdly blonde freak white walker lookin dude who wears interesting outfits)

jets: nik ehlers. points for being a) danish (nobody's DANISH in this league) and b) that one time sch*fele hurt that hab and ehlers protected him when everyone got into that scrum going for schiefele

avalanche: alex georgiev for punching tda

dallas stars: where do i START with the stars... robo i think

preds: JUUSE SAROS MY LEEDL GUYYYYY

blues: gonna go with brayden schenn... any relative of luke's is a friend of mine

coyotes: either clayton keller or alex kerfoot

wild: idk flower?

blackhawks: connor bedard is legitimately my little guy. i love that freak. im at practice... in chicago... CHICAGO???. went on a pilgrimage to see Him in person and it was great (leafs lost in overtime and he got 0 points)

canucks: as much as i love and appreciate my fellow gays im gonna have to go with quinnifer here. he's literally quinn hughes i don't know what you want from me

golden knights: jeichel

kings: anze kopitar <3

oilers: mcdavid... he's literally everything. cursed by god. pro gay. really good at hockey. ginger

kraken: honestly i have never thought about the kraken a single day of my entire life. who's their goalie? grubauer? i'll go grubauer

flames: naz kadri :))))))))

ducks: i know we're all supposed to have ducks opinions nowadays but im going to carefully say lukas dostal and be done with it

sharks: duclair. free of the panthers and ready to be given space in my heart

[dilf-in-peril]

please share the GTS drama i only saw todays tweet and im very curious

The short version is that KENTA invented the GTS (G2S). When Punk went to WWE he dropped his old own finisher Pepsi Plunge for a variety of reasons (WWE's safety concerns, wear and tear on his knees, Pepsi trademark) and started using the GTS as his finisher. I don't know if he met KENTA when he was in Japan, if anyone else taught him to do it or he just copied it from watching tapes.

I read that in 2011 KENTA said "Please list him up on the wanted list as he stole my move!!" Sounds like a serious accusation to me /jk

AFAIK no one really cared about this until recently. When Punk returned to AEW Punk and Kenta had exchanges on twitter, which were stiring the pot. Also this poignant "No" from Punk. Come on, you know what you're doing...

It should be mentioned that KENTA's twitter is entirely in kayfabe.

He did also demand a match and we know when people work together in a wrestling ring that's an expression of great hatred because wrestling IS real.

Honestly to me it looked more like harmless banter or buildup to a possible match. Like when Danhausen used the GTS and this happened:

Fast forward to the scrum and dirtsheet drama, one Bobby Fish is suddenly very verbal about how Punk stole KENTA's move. He also said Punk didn't even have the decency to rename it, as if that wasn't the most disrespectful thing he could have possibly done. It's still unclear why Bobby Fish is so invested in KENTA's honor. Possibly he's just obsessed with Punk with whom he's had a one sided feud for months now (to the point of basically kicking out of the GTS at 2.9).

There were also some news articles running the story that KENTA wasn't allowed to use the GTS when he joined WWE "because of Punk" which were misleadingly phrased, because Punk had already walked out of WWE and been fired by the time KENTA arrived and the reason why they didn't want KENTA using the move was because they had the crowd chanting for CM Punk to come back already, they just didn't want that to happen every time KENTA did the move.

Granted, I am also pretty certain that KENTA would have been told not to use the GTS if Punk had still been around, because that is how wrestling works, you protect your star's finisher and brand, regardless of who invented what. It wouldn't even have been good branding for KENTA because everyone already stongly associated it with Punk.

KENTA was later allowed to use the GTS but broke someone's orbital bone with it and WWE banned it again for a while.

Well, fast forward to today. On yesterday's Dynamite in Punk's hometown Kenny Omega bit his opponent and used the GTS, in yet another obvious dig at Punk.

But then he also tweeted a thank you to KENTA (despite being fluent in Japanese he did so in English, naturally, so you'd understand it and take screenshots!), which I assume is supposed to suggest that he asked for permission to use the move.

Basically, this is getting so ridiculous that people are starting to believe it's all a work.

[maxwelljacobfriedman]

hey uhh. seeing that you're about the only person whose wrestling opinions i trust around here ("here" being like. the whole ass internet), do you have an updated opinion on the whole punk vs elite drama? are you still thinking it's a work? i thought so for sure and now i'm just like. this doesn't make sense on so many levels. i'd just love to hear from someone smarter than myself (i understand if don't want to talk about it in which case just ignore me)!

Hi! Well, first that's very kind of you, and I feel very undeserving, although it would be very funny if you anonymously sent this message to a bunch of people, and also easier for me to take as someone who is bad with compliments, but thank you! I will try to articulate what I think, which I think is very much how it sounds you feel - which is that I was sure it was a work at first, and now I'm very much not, but there are still so many things about it that are weird, so I guess at this point I just want everyone back and okay and healthy, and I hope that can still happen.

There are only a few things I feel certain about, and that is:

-Punk went into the scrum with the intention of addressing the rumors about Colt, and that the Colt stuff had been at least rehearsed in his head beforehand.

-Punk went into the scrum knowing he'd injured himself during that match and was Not Happy about it*

-Punk would still be out and the title vacated regardless of everything else because of the injury.

-It sure looked like Kenny had a bite bruise on his arm in those pictures at the gaming show.

*Things I suspect could be true because of this: Punk knew he wouldn't be having the title match with MJF as planned, and that's why when asked about it he turned to Tony and said something like, "Do I have to -? Yeah, I guess I'll" - like does he really have to still sell that match/keep kayfabe, maybe. And that Punk was so down about getting injured again so soon after coming back, and after how difficult that recovery was for him, possibly just decided to air all his grievances.

Things that still make me go hmm:

-The timing of a suspension just as Kenny was about to go on this trip to Japan, and that they'd already delayed the trios titles until he was back, so I could very easily see them just wanting to let the Elite technically be the first to hold the titles, just like they had the weird squash match just so technically Mox could be a two (now three) time champion.

-"I'm trying to run a business," being such a wild thing to say.

-The feeling that it would be entirely in character for the Bucks to get (fake) suspended to take a vacation and/or a break from BTE.

So yeah, I'm trying to just live in the not knowing, leaning much more towards it being real than at the beginning. I do think Kenny and the Bucks will be back soon. I do hope Punk will be back. At the same time, if it's healthier physically and mentally for him to not return, I will be bummed, but okay with it. I really never thought he would come back to wrestling at all, so no matter what I will treasure his AEW run, especially the MJF feud, and I don't think this tarnishes anything in retrospect, but would only be unfortunate he and Max didn't get to do more.

Thanks for asking and giving me an excuse to get my thoughts out :)

[pepperstreak]

google's not helping; what did punk do that's got people upset?

Jesus Christ...

Firstly; How is Google not helping? This was all any reporter was writing about for weeks.

Secondly; Honey, of all the people you could have asked, I don't think you could have possibly asked anyone less qualified. I mainly absorb drama through memes if not just outright avoid it altogether. But I'll do my best,,, I guess...

So it started at the All Out Media Scrum, it's still up on the AEW YouTube channel so you can go watch it, Punk's time is only about 20 minutes and he'sthe first one on. Here's the (link)

So it started at the Media Scrum, except it actually probably started here (Link)

Hangman made a few comments during this promo that didn't make a lot of sense to me, then people were telling me it was about the CM Punk/Colt Cabana drama, a drama that I don't know enough about to comment on either, so I'm not going to risk putting my foot in my mouth more than I'm probably already going to.

So that happened, and Drama do as Drama does, and attracted reporters to print out their new takes on old drama.

Then the Media Scrum happened.

I just watched it for the first time to make this post, (from bottom to top because I write weird)

So the video starts with a reporter asking a question that I can't make out, and Punk just goes the fuck off, for like 5 whole minutes. Talking about not liking Cabana, swearing (literally and figuratively, seriously there's so much cussing) up and down he didn't get him fired and he doesn't care what he's doing with his life and hasn't cared for ages. Something that, again, idk anything about.

Then he implies, if not outright says, that the EVPs (which everyone pretty much takes to mean Kenny and the Bucks) are the one's who started those rumors and they're unprofessional and arrogant and more cussing.

Then he calls Hangman an idiot and Untalented. This is the only part I can 1000% object to, how dare he. I love Hangman and won't hear a word against him. Everything else I am clueless as a clam (or however the saying goes) but I won't stand for Hangman slander. Punk can absolutely choke over this. Yes I am a fangirl but yeah, this is the one thing I won't change my mind on.

Punk goes on for the rest of his time, he interrupts Tony a few times, calls MJF a prick (possibly in kafabe), talks about Moxley and him bonding over misdiagnosed staff infections. He possibly contradicts himself talking about the AEW roster having a lot of talent, weird thing to say after trash talking everything that lives and breathes but okay.

Then at the end I think another reporter brought up Cabana again?? Again I couldn't hear any of the questions being asked. But it's honestly just as likely that Punk just decided he wasn't done talking about it. He doesn't really add much to what he already said, he tries to insult Colt by saying he owns a bank account with his mom. Which.. okay..? I think he was implying Colt's a mama's boy, or maybe he needs his mom's money? Idk cause I know my dad shared an account with my grandma as a way to pay for her hospital bills? Something about insurance I think.

So a lot of this, again, I cannot stress this enough, is above my pay grade (which is nothing btw, no one's paying me.. why am i doing this?). Idk enough about running a company, wrestling drama, colt Cabana, colt Cabana's mother, or backstage stuff to condemn what was said. I know a lot of people have been complaining about AEW's storylines lately, which could be mismanagement, it could also be that a lot of wrestlers all got injured one after another, plus other drama that I only know of through memes, could throw off plans, I don't know.

Also, and this is me sitting in front of my computer pulling this out of my ass as I type, possibly some of the EVP comments could be Kafabe? I'm just saying cause the Bucks have built a gimmick around "killing the business" as they say? Like not listening to veterans and just.. doing what they want? Idk probably not, I'm probably just being dense.

So afterwards, it got messy

There was a fight backstage. It first came out that the Bucks came to Punk's room and kicked down the door, and so punk felt threatened and started swinging. Then that didn't make any sense so then the story was the Bucks and Kenny came to talk to Punk, then Punk felt threatened and he swung first and a fight broke out. Then it came out that Ace Steele (who was there) bit someone? Then it came out that nick got knocked out? There was chair throwing? The Bucks threw chairs? Ace threw chairs? Kenny Dog Rescue? Kenny got Bit by Ace Steele? Punk transformed into the Antichrst and ate the Elite and the ones walking around now are Demon constructs? (Some of that is not, in fact, true... [I think I'm funny])

Basically there's no footage, no unbiased takes, everyone got suspended, Ace Steele got fired, Elite are back, Punk status unconfirmed.

That's all I know definitively.

There's more stuff that came out. The Elite aren't the only EVPs in the company. The Elite weren't the only ones to confront Punk. Stuff about Punk being toxic backstage. Punk having an ego. The Elite having an ego. Mismanagement from management. This and that. That? Idk anything about that. Don't ask me about that cuz idk.

My personal opinion? I don't have one. Leave me alone. Shoo. Don't be mean to Hangman, that's my opinion. Hopefully I haven't made too big a fool of myself.

And most importantly;

Don't listen to me I'm An idiot

I might delete this if people get weird about it

[foxhouten]

Public restrooms are just naturally creepy places, don't you think?

-- Stephen King Okay, so King didn't actually write that about public restrooms. He was talking about hotel rooms, but I like my version better. One time back in my 20's I was at a bar with some friends and stopped in to use the restroom. I was standing at the urinal, minding my pee's and Q's (get it?), while some other dude was washing his hands at the row of sinks behind me. We were ignoring one another, as is male bathroom etiquette. Seriously, I don't know how women can talk to one another while in the restroom -- men definitely don't. Even if we see a guy having a heart attack on the restroom floor, we will just step over him and go on with our day, lest we be labeled some sort of weirdo who dared speak to another guy in the bathroom. So anyhow, I'm doing my thing, hand-washing guy is doing his. And something told me, some voice in my head told me, that I should look over my shoulder at that moment. I'm so glad I listened to that voice. I glanced over my shoulder right as hand-washing guy, who had by now finished washing up, gave himself a big smile in the mirror and the two finger-gun salute. You know the kind: the one where you point both hands out like guns, and, if you're really feeling the energy, make pew pew sounds. Sadly, he didn't make the noise but he definitely gave himself the salute. In the mirror. When he thought no one was looking. Trust me, he didn't know I saw. He wasn't doing this for my benefit (why the hell would he?). He thought he was alone and finger-gunned himself.

My first instinct was to secretly mock this guy, or to tell my friends about it. I did the latter but I couldn't bring myself to make fun of him. He looked so genuine when he did it, it was almost...sweet? (Another male bathroom etiquette rule: never refer to what a dude does in the restroom as "sweet", "cute", or "adorable." Weirdly, though, "scrum-diddly-umptious" is acceptable.) Maybe this guy was on a date and was psyching himself up. Maybe he was about to sing karaoke and was giving himself a confidence boost. Maybe he was a drunk fucking psycho. Who knows, but wherever that guy is now, I salute him. *******************************************************************

A group of my friends take a semi-annual trip to Chicago to watch our baseball teams do their thing. One of our favorite haunts around Wrigley Field is a baseball-themed bar called Sluggers. It's a two-story, crowded place, complete with arcade games, plenty of TV's, and even batting cages. It also, as does every bar, have a restroom. Once I was in the Sluggers restroom alone, washing my hands in the sink. At least I thought I was alone. As I finished washing, I heard the door to one of the stalls creak. I glanced in the mirror to see the stall door open, where -- very tentatively -- a guy around my age stepped out, eyeballing me. He was staring so directly at me, I couldn't look away, so we stood there for a moment, neither one of us talking, both just weirdly looking at each other (I shouldn't have to tell you this is another male bathroom no-no). Finally, he spoke: "Are you the dude from Craigslist?" Well, that certainly wasn't the opening salvo I thought he was going to toss.

I told him no. He meekly apologized, then went back into the stall and closed the door. Seriously, bro just crept back in and shut the stall door behind him. I have many regrets in my life but arguably my biggest is not saying yes in that moment. Life lesson, kids: if someone asks if you're the dude from Craigslist, always say yes. You may not know what they're talking about but you're probably in for an adventure. Now, I can make a pretty good guess as to what this guy and his Craigslist partner were going to do in that stall. But I don't know for certain. Who knows, maybe if I had said yes, he would've pulled out a backpack and been like, "great, here's the blu-ray player I told you about." That would've been fucking sweet. I hope he found his Craigslist partner, and I hope the two gave each other the ol' finger-gun salute.

[adampage]

No omg i listened to that podcast a few days ago and that shit got me heated especially the first part where they mentioned punk not giving hangman the time alone with his home crowd to send them home and not even calling him the right name.

it feels like punk looked down on him because he was younger and thought he needed some “advice” from a veteran to get over. But the guy got over by himself and wrestled about the same time as punk so I’d imagine that feel like he’s being belittled. Hangman was the top babyface, not punk no matter what he believes especially with the way his character was going and how he fought mostly faces everyone thought he was about to turn heel. That comment he said at the scrum never made sense to me.

the thing about people who believe they've done a lot in this world is that they love to give people advice. and that's totally well and good but just because you have the experience to give advice, doesn't mean it will always work for someone or that they even asked for it. some people like to learn things on their own. it's not always the Best thing, because it's always good to learn from history, but what really grinds my gears about that whole 'advice' thing the most is that nothing about hangman's beliefs about that are any different than the way punk used to be. punk used to be the guy who would offend veterans in the locker room by not taking their advice or by paving his own way, by believing that HE was right and everyone else was wrong, by believing himself the underdog and that the world was against him, and they were. in wwe, though, not here. nothing about hangman's mindset is any different, apart from his mouth. he's a whole lot quieter than punk will ever be, even in his openness and honesty. he doesnt need to shout things to the whole world for them to hear him, he is a cautious person in that regard.

and to me that's always been the wiser strategy in the long run. people who are long winded when they speak don't ever sit well with me. shut up and listen every once in a while. THAT'S real wisdom. and hangman said he does listen. not very Well, but he listens. listening to advice and taking it are not the same thing. and like what else can you expect from someone younger than you? literally you should expect that kind of audacity from someone younger. that's just god's honest truth. i've been the same way since i was a teenager. there are so many things i regret doing because i refused to listen to my elders. but NOW i know. and it's not that i didn't listen to everything. but certain things can only be learned with experience. by going through it yourself. the hardest life lessons, the ones that will change you, are the ones you gotta learn on your own. and boy, i bet hangman's learned a valuable one in all this mess, too. when it comes to the old dog, though, it'll be hard to teach him a new trick.

[misskatebishop]

I need to get it off my chest because I don't wanna dwell on it for too long, and I've been thinking about it all day. I'm always polite to everyone here. Always. Even when I ask something on anonymous, I'm extremely polite.

I've never sent hate to anyone, but I've received a lot of hate lately. I got an ask last week, which I don't give a damn. People had called me scrum, bitch, and even racist for no reason at all. Look, I'm Brazilian and I write in English because I like it. I enjoy writing in this language, and some people are really rude in AO3 comments when they point out a mistake. I let pretty clear in all my stories that I'm not a native and that they might find mistakes, if you don't like grammar or spelling mistakes, then don't fucking read it.

And I'm saying this even though I've found mistakes in British, Canadian, and American works here on Tumblr and AO3 because everyone makes mistakes, natives most of the time because they are not aware of the grammar rules, they just know how to use it because they grew up listening to it. Look, I'm saying this because I've had American, French, and German people in my university asking me about my own language, Portuguese, and most of the time I didn't know how to answer them. I do speak Portuguese fluently because I grew up listening to it, but I don't know its grammar rules.

Back to the main subject, if you don't like a ship that I write (stony/stucky/buckytony/buckynat) then don't read it either. It's tagged properly, if you click it's your responsibility, no one is obliging you to read it. It's easy. Don't like don't read it.

When I read a fic and I don't like it, I don't come here on Tumblr and complain about X pairing or I send hate comments or 'asks' to the authors. I just close my tab and go on with my life, because even though I don't like it, I'm sure there will be people out there that will enjoy the story. And I'm sure that the author enjoys it too.

So, I go another hate comment today, and I honestly don't give a fuck about it. I'm just posting it because I think people forget that there's another human being behind the screens. I might not care, but other authors might, and I've seen people that stopped writing because of that.

Here's the comment:

It's none of this person's business if I'm a virgin or not, but they assumed that I was because I wrote romantic smut? Like, what the fuck, dude? That's just my writing style, and I enjoy the way it's written. Plus, it's a work of fiction, if I was interested in writing about real life, I'd be working on documentaries and not fiction.

That's not a problem. What really, really shocked me was the poor choice of words. As I said I'm polite here and irl. I get completely shocked with some songs that play in my neighborhood, let alone this sort of comment. I have to admit that this was the most shocking for me.

Also, am I the only one who felt a tingle of homophobia in these words? I've read a post here on Tumblr about how some people think that gay sex is shameful and it shouldn't be because there's beauty in all types of sex. I'm serious.

I'd like to remark the word FANFICTION. Let's make a morphologic analysis here.

Definition of FAN

a person who has a strong interest in or admiration for a particular person or thing.

late 19th century (originally US): abbreviation of fanatic.

Definition of FICTION

literature in the form of prose, especially short stories and novels, that describes imaginary events and people.

invention or fabrication as opposed to fact.

a belief or statement that is false, but that is often held to be true because it is expedient to do so.

It's clear what's my interest on this fandom. As well as the word Fiction makes it clear that we are talking about something not real because the deal with fiction is not to retreat things how they really are.

Do you guys believe that literature would be so good if it portraits the world as it really is? If the words weren't carefully chosen and placed to turn something beautiful? If poets and writers took the world literally as it was, we wouldn't have so many beautiful pieces of history nowadays.

I don't wanna read about the world I live in because it's a shitty world. I wanna read about a world turned beautiful by an ensemble of words chosen carefully to make it magic. I wanna be a dreamer. I wanna read about sex and enjoy what I'm reading because the author put so much effort into it. They don't have to be romantic, but if they don't touch me, then they are worth nothing.

[patchworkpuzzle]

Hi, doll! Just recently followed your account--you seem so lovely, so well-deserving of your milestone and I look forward to seeing you go through more and more! <3

I'm Sophie and I'm quite indecisive; everything in your cozy shop looks scrum-diddly-umptious! Can I order a frappe please? Just for a little context: I'm an INFP-T, 4w3 Virgo that loves the soft boys and the bitch boys! You can choose between AtsuSoph, SemiPhie or KeijiPhie (aaaa I don't know how self-ship names go :o) I love all ze purdy setters but these three especially!!! I couldn’t choose :’)

Lastly, could I order a lemon bar and a cookie? If I misunderstood and bit off more than I could chew (or ordered more than I could eat), I’d be satisfied with just a lemon bar! Lots of love and congrats again bb kiss kiss

Oh my goodness, thank you so much for your sweet words! Making me blush over here! It's so nice to meet you, love! I hope to see you more often!

Frappe, huh? Those are so very popular! Let's see.... how does a Double Chocolate Chip frappe sound to you?

Atsumu wasn't what you would call your prince charming when you first met him

I mean, you thought he was super cute, you weren't blind! It's just... when he opened his mouth did almost all your attraction to him get thrown out the window.

Not to say that you didn't like him, not at all! It just shifted more towards being friends, as you said a witty reply to his sarcastic greeting.

And while your attraction when down to zero, his went up to 100.

He thought you were the cutest thing, always having the last word and keeping him on his toes. He just HAD to be around you all the time.

And that's just what happened. Every lecture you had together, he was there asking for a pencil. Every hang out with the gang, he's always sitting next to you, lazily slinging his arm over your shoulders as he steals bits of your food.

Every party he's by your side, scaring away any guy that tries to get too close to you.

It wasn't until one part, a Christmas one, where he finally got the urge to kiss you. Granted it was due to the assistance of mistletoe, but still.

And he just couldn't stop. And neither could you - and before you knew you were on his bed sharing kisses until your lips were bruised.

Everything changed after that.

Well, not everything, you both still acted the same, just the dynamic shifted.

Soon lunches turned to dinners out - date nights. Lectures seemed a whole lot less interesting now, with him sitting by you with his hand on your leg.

And you both just skipped parties altogether to just spend time all cuddled up in bed; sharing laughs and kisses and you enjoyed each other's warmth.

It made the others wanna puke sometimes at just how cute you both were.

Oooo now to some desserts! Let's start with your cookies! Do you like shortbread?

Oh my goodness you need to read [5:29 pm] supernova by kaysayshey because it is the most beautiful and sweetest pieces ever??? like I adore this so much, and I know you will too!

Lemon Bar next! Freshly made, just for you!!

You should check out ♡ good boy ♡ by angelashido, they always write really well, and this is no exception! Though it may not be everyone's cup of tea, I still recommend checking it out regardless

Enjoy~

Next order, please!

[haventacluewhatimdoing]

Right. So I am an avid reader of high school au fics of any fandom, and since my current obsession is Sherlock that's what I'm spending most of my time doing.

And I've read quite a few fics where John plays rugby, which is entirely apt.

BUT as a rugby follower, I can't help but notice that some writers don't seem to know much about rugby. Which is cool, no need to massively research every single thing you write about. But sometimes it simply doesn't make sense. So I thought I'd make a reference post for anyone wanting to write about rugby.

1. There is no goalie

I've seen this a few times where someone is in goal. This is simply not a thing in rugby. The goalposts are in the shape of an H, and the aim is to kick it above the horizontal bar, so it would simply be impossible to have one.

2. There are two types of rugby

There is rugby league and rugby union, and although they are similar, there are some differences. I have sometimes seen people mix the two, so I want to clear something. In the original stories (The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire) it says John played rugby union, so that is what I am focusing on in this post. Basically from here on in when you see the word 'rugby' I am talking about rugby union.

3. There are only 23 players in a game of rugby union

Sometimes I see people writing "x is number 28" and that simply does not exist. In rugby union you have 15 players on a pitch at one time (for each team), and 8 substitutions.

4. People aim for tries, not goals

Of course, goals do exist in rugby, but a try scores more. I'll explain basic scoring below. (These are rugby union scoring rules)

A try is worth 5 points. This is when a player grounds the ball over the try line (this is a white line in line with the goalpost). The team then gets a chance to kick the ball through the goalpost. If this is achieved, an extra 2 points is added. This is called a conversion or converted try.

A drop goal is worth 3 points. This is simply kicking the ball through the opponent's goalposts. This is not usually done as people go for tries instead.

A penalty kick is worth 3 points. There's some intricate stuff here, but the basic idea is if the other team commits a foul, the team gets a 'free kick' to try and score some points.

So although 'goals' are possible, they are not very common.

5. Other bits of basic play

A scrum is where the forwards of each team join together to try and gain the ball. Basically there's a lot of shoving involved.

Players with the ball can only pass it sideways or backwards. The defending team tries to tackle them to the floor, where they have to release the ball. It keeps going until a penalty occurs or one team scores a try.

A lineout is where the ball is thrown in from the sidelines. Often somebody gets lifted up into the air to catch it, and sometimes from both teams in order to try and get the ball.

As you have probably gathered, rugby is a contact sport. That means people get hurt. Injuries are common. Leg injuries occur a lot, and sometimes people can even gain a concussion from playing. This may be a good plot point when writing a fic.

6. Players and positions

Players don't wear protective gear on the whole. They wear mouthgards of course, because frankly it's a pretty dangerous sport, and some forwards choose to wear a scrum cap (see below). But no helmets, shinpads, etc.

The forwards are players 1-8, and the backs are players 9-15.

The kicker on a team can be anyone, but it is usually 10 or 12.

On the whole the heavier, taller, powerful players are the forwards. The smaller, faster players are usually the backs, especially at 11 and 14. These two numbers score most of the tries.

It is rare that forwards score tries, but it does happen when there's basically a massive pile of people by the try line and it is pure chance that they have the ball. Backs are more likely to score tries, although not number 15 as they are the player that hangs back in case the ball gets booted to the other end of the pitch. As mentioned above, 11 and 14 are the fast, nimble players as they score the most tries.

Personally, I would place John at 2. This is usually played by one of the smallest people on the pitch (I know I'm contradicting myself, but the paragraph above is generalised), and they are extremely powerful as they control the scrum. They also throw the ball into the pitch in a line out. They are arguably the most important forward player, so need a lot of confidence and nerves of steel, which suits John perfectly.

There's loads of intricate rules and other things, but I think I've covered the basics here. For a good description of what each player does, the link below is very handy.

7. Quick note on English schools and rugby

Not entirely related but this does also crop up - I see people writing about rugby matches as if the whole school turns out in a massive pitch with bleachers and the like (what you always see with American football in high school movies). That doesn't really happen in England. Of course, the rugby team would normally be very popular throughout school, but those huge matches you see in films? They don't really happen. It's more like two schools play against each other, not even always on school grounds but a local facility, and parents and mates come to watch.

Also, rugby is MUCH bigger in Wales than in England. It's still popular, of course, but the teams are sometimes local clubs rather than school teams. Of course, if you want to make it a school team go ahead, that's probably what I would do too as it makes the plot a whole lot easier!

I think I've covered all the basics here. Any questions feel free to drop an ask or message me, I'm happy to help! Also let me know if I've forgotten anything crucial, as I wouldn't put it past me.

[orionsangel86]

re: the groping, it's not gay imo, just an aggressive way to assert dominance. jared clearly isn't all there, and i'm sorry, but any grown man who thinks getting that physical with his friends is just 'good fun'...well, isn't very grown at all. which we knew anyway. remember that crew member who was talking about it? how j2 have fun ruining takes and meanwhile everyone else has to work overtime? ugh. i don't like that side of them at all. entitled pricks.

okay woaaah, lets ease up on the negativity there nonny.

Okay look, with the whole gay joke thing, yeah if you want my totally honest opinion? I don’t think that when Jared does it, it’s some sign that he is gay for his co-stars at all. I don’t like the groping thing. It’s not a “prank”. It’s downright sexual harassment and it makes me uncomfortable. Now, if Misha is cool with it, fine. I’m not gonna go lecture Misha about how he should probably report his costars for unwanted touching. There seems to be a mentality between the three of them where they don’t have the same kind of boundaries that most normal people do, and I don’t know if that’s just because they are all so extremely close and see each other like brothers - not that I think any actual brothers would legit grope each other either - or whatever. Hence me saying it baffles me. 

Like I said in my original reblog to that post, the only other time I have heard of men actually groping each other is apparently during rugby matches - unsure about other sports - but what goes on in a scrum is apparently quite shocking - not that I have any first hand experience but the behaviour is purely to put off your competitors so you can win the scrum or whatever the terminology is. 

When Jensen does it, it’s never with the same malice as Jared. I think the few times we’ve actually seen that behaviour from him - which is rare - it’s less a grope and more of a tap or a stroke - I think that whilst he is influenced by Jared’s behaviour, he is still much more reserved with it, and I get the impression that he only ever does it with Misha and only when he thinks Misha would be okay with it. Jensen genuinely knows when to stop, whereas Jared doesn’t. That’s the big difference between them. Do I think that Jensen acts out of some repressed desire to reach out and touch Misha though? Yes I do. Most definitely. That’s the other big difference. Jared does it purely to fuck with Misha, Jensen does it to satisfy an urge in himself. So maybe there is an element of “gay” to what Jensen is doing. I don’t really know, its just an opinion based on observation and a leaning towards cockles ideology I suppose, hence my analysis is biased. But his behaviour is different to Jared’s.

Nevertheless I still don’t like it, and yes I remember that crew members story and yes I think it is really unprofessional for your actors to constantly mess up takes on purpose and fuck things up, yes I do think it is arrogant and inconsiderate to the people that have to clean up after them and work super late because of it. Yes, everything I hear about what goes on on the set of Supernatural makes me shudder and if I ever did end up working in the industry (highly unlikely now) then the Supernatural set sounds like a nightmare I’d want to avoid.

Is this all extremely controversial and will probably lead to people being grumpy with me? Probably. The fact is nonny, “entitled pricks” is a bit harsh, well, a lot harsh actually. Whilst I somewhat agree with your sentiment, in that their behaviour is problematic, people tend to get jumpy when you criticise their faves. Maybe try to phrase your ask differently next time.