u/sataigaribaldi

Here's the conversation half of you were hoping wouldn't make it here and the other half was wondering why it hadn't been talked about yet. Slinging the ring, who does it?

I broke in 20 years ago in the US Deep South. Things are/were what you'd call traditional or old school. Now to be fair I mostly worked smaller promotions, low-budget-to-no-budget type deals. One guy would show up with the ring and everyone put there hands in to help set up and tear down. For rookies, trainees, and the like, it was part of "paying your dues", but it was also just what we did. If you wanted to get in the ring to work on some stuff, either spots for your match or just general training, you would help to get the ring up faster so there was more time to work out.

Gonna name drop a bit here of guys that I've slung rings with. Scott and Brian Armstrong, Larry Sweeney, Rodney Mack, Shane Douglas, Orlando Jordan. None of those guys HAD to sling the ring or were expected to, but they did it anyways because it was what we did. It was part of the culture we had. It's brotherhood and at the end of the day we were all just people doing the same job.

Now, should the workers have to sling the ring? I don't believe so. A promoter books a ring or owns it, whatever, should have guys to set up the venue. Ring, chairs, etc. But the reality is that's happening in only a few promotions. I mean, if the guys working are making $50 or less, you really think they're paying for a ring crew?

We go from what should be to what is. The boys help sling the ring if they need to help sling the ring. My two cents on the Styles situation goes contrary to what a lot of names have said publicly. If you're asked to help sling the ring and put up chairs, then that's what you do. What does it say to the rest of the card that is slinging the ring and you refuse? It says you think you're better than them, above them. Avery Styles shouldn't get a pass because of who his dad is. It's like if your dad was a doctor and you went through med school but then didn't have to do your time as an intern because your dad was chief of medicine in another hospital.

It's run of the mill nepotism, and it happens. Hell, a lot of things in life wind up being a who you know deal. Can't even be mad at the kid for being in his spot because of his dad, but no one likes the guy who feels they don't have to do the work everyone else does because of it.

That's my two cents that's not even worth that. So what's y'all's take on it?

I don't have many people to talk to about my random MASH musings, so y'all get this. And yeah, maybe not a great title.

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I've always enjoyed MASH, but prefer it once Potter and Winchester are in. Col. Blake was great fun, and Burns was too. I've been trying to figure out what it was that made me like Potter and Winchester more, and it comes down to one word, competence.

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Potter and Winchester are both good at their military and medical roles. Potter is a great leader, firm when needed, emotional when called for, and knows when to let the doctors be boys and when to join in.

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Winchester is a better antagonist than Burns because he's not just the butt of the joke. He's just as good if not better than Hawkeye in surgery. He's the opposite of Hawkeye and BJ, personality wise, but could still cut-up and have fun with them too. It gives them so much more to work with in the show.

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Linville himself said he left the show because Burns was fairly one dimensional and had done all he could do with the character.

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One more related take, Klinger out of dresses is a better character than Radar. Fight me.

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I've been a solo guy for a couple years now. A few months ago, I got a helper that works with me as his second job. His other job is his priority number one and his bread and butter. That's worked out fantastic as he's been able to help me and learn, and if I'm in a lull, it doesn't hurt him at all.

Now I'm starting to stack up more work than I can get to in a decent time. I now need another electrician that can handle jobs without me. I've got a buddy of mine that I worked with for a company over ten years ago. I've talked to him about coming on board.

Here's the catch. I don't have the ability to provide him a truck and tools and such. He does have his own work truck, his own tools, etc. I'm thinking, in addition to a fair hourly, giving him a mileage and gas stipend, which would only be fair anyways. My other consideration is, on top of that, giving him a percentage of the profit on all jobs he does solo. I'm thinking in the 5-10% range.

He's a good dude, so I'm not worried about him fluffing billing or doing anything sketchy.

My thought is, would the percentage deal be too much too soon? Maybe something to work up to? What's y'all's thoughts?

I've seen a few comments here where people have said heeling is easy. All you have to do is get people to boo and cheat. Someone taught you guys wrong.

Heeling is hard. There's a reason why your heels are usually guiding the match and are the more experienced hand. As a heel, you've got to understand psychology and timing. You've got to read the crowds and know right when they are about to give up on the Babyface and let the baby fire back up and suck em right back in. You're the conductor and the crowd is your orchestra.

Now let's talk about getting heat. Getting cheap heat is easy. I could walk up to anyone and tell them their Mama is a stupid fat whore and piss them off. That takes no skill. Anyone can hit someone in the nards, do an eye poke, pull tights. That's all cheap heat and it gets a momentary response, but if you don't make it it mean something, it's bullshit.

Speaking broadly, the time to cheat comes in a moment of desperation. The baby has you on the ropes, they've got you dead to rights. He's about to take you out then BAM! Eye poke, low blow, sneaky bullshit whatever. Now the crowd doesn't hate you for cheating, they hate you because you just took a sure thing away from the baby.

My job as a heel isn't to get the crowd to hate me, my job is to make them love the Babyface. As a heel, I can drag a lifeless baby-face along and make the crowd care about them. And here's the selfish secret, the more they care about the baby, the more they're going to hate you when you fuck them over.

Just watched Blackout. The last line of the episode is Jake saying, "Everybody wash their hands." Season 8 starts with Jake and Charles doing social distancing high-fives because of COVID.

B99 predicted COVID.

Edit: Looks like a lot of y'all skipped the first sentence. I had just watched the episode. Mac being born is kind of a MAJOR plot point and obviously why Jake said "wash your hands". Just thought it was funny that was the last line of the season and then COVID happened.

Also, the use of the humor tag should have given some context.