15 Comments
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Michael Woudenberg's avatar

Apropos, I like calling that idea Mixed Mental Arts.

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Andrew Smith's avatar

Feel free to drop a link in case folks wanna see a more explicit version of this idea! Your framework is well developed.

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Daniel Nest's avatar

It would actually be kind of nice to have the real-life equivalent of pressing pause, reshuffling your starting positions, and getting back into the game with what feels like better chances. Alas, all we have is near-constant information overload and life's pressures. Someone needs to invent the "Pause & Reset" button.

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Andrew Smith's avatar

I guess AI is the closest you can get to that in reality. At least you can sort of compress time and begin to make sense if it, anyway - though me calling that a pause is mighty generous.

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Andrew Sniderman 🕷️'s avatar

The number 3 steps in again to show why it's the best number. Beginning, Middle, End. I think, if you play your cards right, and with a bit of luck, your choices will increase as you travel.

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Andrew Smith's avatar

Not to mention: I kind of framed this as one idea against another, but really? It's more like a mosh pit than a wrestling match.

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Andrew Sniderman 🕷️'s avatar

A mosh pit of dongs

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Andrew Smith's avatar

You know the phrase "think with your dick" or other similar versions? I used to take that phrase pretty literally in my older artwork. I wish I had taken more photos of a giant painting (8 x 20 feet) I had made of old masonite tabletops. I was strong with the cock symbolism.

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Andrew Sniderman 🕷️'s avatar

Feed that thought into your fave AI-pilled future picture maker and then don't show it to me.

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Andrew Smith's avatar

I've thought about doing that, along with recreating some songs I wrote when I was about 18. Maaaaaybe. There are some mixed feelings here, and the ones causing me to hesitate are in the lead.

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Andrew Sniderman 🕷️'s avatar

Bring them back alive? You can always play and keep to yourself. This week I took a cartoon OC I made while bored in grad school and AI brought it back to life - well kinda.

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Andrew Smith's avatar

I don't even want to share some of these things with AI. It's hard to explain, but I have a tiny handful of things that are only inside me... and that's one of them.

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David Perlmutter's avatar

I was worried you were going to be writing about Fako Kayfabe Land. But the genuine article is more interesting.

One of the things about writing superhero stories is that, inevitably, high-school style wrestling ends up being used to play for big stakes. I am guilty of this myself in these two attached stories:

https://davidperlmutter.substack.com/p/how-candy-got-her-brother-back and https://davidperlmutter.substack.com/p/how-i-lost-my-muscles-but-kept-my

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Andrew Smith's avatar

David, this is a great comment for a couple of reasons. First, your observation about mental pro wrestling gives another potential layer here. I feel like most folks actually do exactly that - there's no actual robust debate, no actual challenge to a preconceived notion - just the pro wrestling version.

But the amateur version isn't sexy or glamorous, whereas actual effective things are LAME and BORING.

I encourage folks here to go check those stories out! I'm off now to take a gander myself.

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David Perlmutter's avatar

Thank you, Andrew. We have to remember that there are more than just one type of wrestling, and some of them don’t involve the body at all.

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