I had been ruminating on how to start this post. Finally, I decided to start with clearing up something that happened in June. A rumor spread that I was responsible for Brad Stutts being made to leave the NOVA Pro Commonwealth Cup show on Friday night. Here now are screenshots with the promoter, Mike King, that show exactly what I said.
I heard from various places that I had "forced" Mike to make Brad leave the show. I saw where I was accused of being a "raging lunatic". I was told by one person that I should stop going to shows because it seemed I was determined to find and point out the negatives instead of the positives. I made that weekend difficult for some folks as well as for myself.
My point by starting out with this is not to put Mike on blast, nor Brad, nor anyone else. Just myself. Since that weekend, I have taken a good, long, hard look at myself and my relationship with wrestling and the community overall. I didn't like what I saw. I didn't like the fact that, when I attended a show and some controversy erupted, I was immediately blamed as I was in this case. Most of the times in the past, there may or may not have been some validity to the blame. Not in this case, however. I was accused due to my reputation. I'm showing these screenshots for two reasons. One, to show that despite what anyone may think, I in no way, shape or form demanded that Brad leave the show nor did I throw a fit or act inappropriately in these messages.
The second reason is quite simply that I don't like my reputation. I don't like the fact that I may be seen as a negative if I go to a show. I don't like the fact that anyone may be apprehensive if I go to a promotion. Mostly, I don't like the negativity that I have been putting out either consciously or unconsciously. Because I didn't used to be like that.
I got into independent wrestling in 2009-2010, mostly SHIMMER and Ring of Honor. It wasn't until 2012 that I started branching out, attending my first CHIKARA, AIW and Insanity Pro shows. I liked it. I liked the driving, the new atmospheres, the new talent I was discovering (they may not have been "new" in the real sense but since I hadn't seen them before they were new to me). However, it wasn't until 2013 that my love of independent wrestling truly bloomed. A lot of this is due to the fact that I dove in as a way of dealing with the death of my wonderful mother. My Dad realized I needed an escape, I needed a way to cope with her death and he gave me the freedom to start road tripping to new promotions, new places - and I loved it. I fell in love with new promotions, new wrestlers, new friends that I made. I drove all over Indiana, into Illinois, down to Nashville and up to Ohio. Friends that I had known prior to 2013 were there for me as were friends that I made during that year. I attended promotions with reputations, shows with controversial people on it - if there was a name on there that I wanted to see, I went.
2013 could have been one of the worst years of my life. Instead, it turned into a milestone because of how much I grew and how much my circle expanded. I give the credit to wrestling and the people that I met during that year as well as the next. It feels now like every weekend I was gone somewhere although I know that isn't the case. I was busy, though, and I was happy.
I don't altogether know when that changed. It might have changed when I started reading more and more about the problematic aspects of wrestling. It might have changed when I saw news stories about the folks accused of crimes and misdemeanors seemingly get away with what they were have said to do. It might have changed when I started to focus too much on who the wrestlers were as people instead of as performers. It might have changed when I started to comment on rumors and take unproven facts as gospel. It might have changed when I started paying too much attention to the bad apple fans instead of the good ones.
I cannot tell you when things shifted. But they did. I realized as time passed that I was being talked about, that I was seen as someone who brought her own baggage to shows I attended. I professed not to care. "If people think they know me just by my social media then they don't know me at all," was something along the lines of what I thought.
In hindsight, I see how stupid that is. My social media is a reflection of myself. If I constantly put out negativity, then I am seen as a negative person even if I claim not to be. Garbage in, garbage out.
The NOVA incident made me take a long look at myself and made me realize that I had lost the person I was in 2013. Granted, I can't put some genies back in their bottles...but I can change my outlook. I can change what I put out on social media. I can see the positives in wrestling and focus on them, give them my attention and support and recapture that love I lost. It never truly left, but I have given enough time and attention to the negative.
I am tired of drama. I am tired of immediately jumping on bandwagons when something bad comes out about Person A or Person B instead of hearing both sides and coming to a private conclusion. I am tired of giving my time and attention to controversy when it erupts. I am tired of, when controversy does happen at a show I am at, having the finger pointed at me automatically.
What does this mean in concrete terms for me going forward? It means a few things.
It means I no longer care about who has said what about Person A or Person B. It means I no longer care about what baggage Person A or Person B has. It means that if I want to attend a show that has a "problematic" person on it, I will pay my money, see the show and support the promotion and the people I went to see. If I choose not to attend a show because of one reason or another, I will not go on social media to trumpet how Such and Such Promotion won't get my money because of (insert reason). "Tweeting doesn't change the world" as an acquaintance, ironically enough, tweeted. It also means that I will not abandon my fandom of a wrestler or promotion due to rumors either.
This also means that when I do go to shows, I will focus on the positive. I will use social media to promote what and who I like. I will stay off my phone more and focus on the matches, promos, etc. I told a friend a few days ago this:
"I just want to get back to where I was before. I lost that these past few years. Became jaded and quick to join in on stupid shit and drama. I'm done with that. Give me a good show, give me people to hang with, maybe a dinner after wards with friends, and that's it. That's what I want."
The friend was encouraging, responding with, "Talking about letting go, wanting to be a fan, enjoying yourself and being positive - this is the PV I met years ago. This was the strong woman who stood her ground but kept an open ear and would use educated dialogue to express positive change in a negative sport."
Some folks may be disappointed, thinking I am giving up speaking out about the bad things that are in wrestling. To some extent, I am because this is something I am doing for myself. If I want to receive positivity, I must put it out into the Universe. However, this doesn't mean I am going to excuse the racism, sexism and homophobia willynilly. But, given the fact that I still subscribe to the WWE Network, I realize I am a hypocrite to some extent. We must all come to terms with what we are willing to overlook or put up with to remain a wrestling fan. No promotion or company is perfect.
In the end, wrestling is a fandom that I've been part of since 1999 when I discovered WWF and WCW, followed by ECW and WOW. With the advent of social media I have become a more connected part of said fandom by being able to interact with other fans and wrestlers alike. Some wrestlers I have been fortunate enough to become friends with and I have gained some insight as to what the life of an independent wrestler can be. I admire so many of them and, admittedly, live vicariously through their own adventures. I choose to remain in the fandom to support the folks that deserve success. I choose to remain in the fandom to celebrate it with other fans who are as passionate as I am (and even more so sometimes). To give a recent example, at the last SUP Wrestling show, I hung out with D, Heather, Jordan and the great time I had was amplified by being with them, partaking of their energy and enthusiasm and giving out my own. The wonderful energy and positivity I felt powered me through the rest of the week until I went to my first Pro Wrestling Freedom show in a few years, where I enjoyed myself immensely despite not sitting with anyone yet still seeing friends in between matches and after the show. The energy and passion from those shows were the uplift I needed and led me to realize my decision is the right one for me.
Most of all, I choose to remain a wrestling fan because ultimately it has saved and helped my life in more ways than anyone could ever know. Now, I want to turn myself and my outlook around. I do not want to be known as the "Negative Fan" or the "Problematic Person" anymore.
I just want to be a fan.
