Sandman

[Guest The Superstar]

He wanted someone to post this in the main thread after AngleMania 2, so I guess I'll have the "honor"

 

That's it. I mean it when I say I Quit. To be honest, this simply isn't fun anymore. I wasn't a big fan of the whole brand extension, but I was willing to go through with it when I saw the sizes of the IZ's I posted, since it was best for this fed. We've got a new load of newbies, everything is changing, and I'm just not keeping up. I first attributed it to character apathy, and figured I would be better once I got a chance to debut my new character. However, it's not. Again, right now, e-fedding simply isn't fun right now. And if I do want to return to e-fedding, I'm probably going to join up with the SWF. I've seen their stuff, and the way I write is closer to the way they write. I need a challenge, and the only way to challenge yourself is to write against someone who writes better then you. Also, if for some reason I do want to come back in the future, we've got an angle and an opening.

 

So, to Zack, AS, CWM, BPP, Tony, Evenflow, SS, everyone. It's been real, and it's been fun, but lately, it just hasn't been real fun.

 

Peace

 

Once again, Sandman, thanks for everything, and good luck.

[Guest Angle-plex]

Good luck in SWF, Sandman.

[Guest Tony149]

Like SS and AP said, good luck.

[Guest TheZsaszHorsemen]

I'm saddened to see such a talented writer go, but I think all the new talent coming in should fill the void.

 

Wait a minute... does this mean Angle-Plex is going to be a mod?

 

*Marks Out*

[Guest Zack Malibu]

I was really taken aback by this when I saw it. I know Sandman was getting a little disenchanted with his character, and I had actually written up a big angle that I wanted to do with him, hoping to freshen up his character and give a new side to his personality.

 

Sandman, said it before and I'll say it again...you've been a thorn in my side, character-wise, since day one. I bet most people don't even know that Sandman of all people was asked by me to be The In Crowd's "towel boy" upon his arrival in the thread. At the time he politely refused, but that evolved into a blood feud between our characters that has made his feud with Evenflow and myself to a lesser extent a big part of this fed. In reality though, Sandman is a pretty laid back guy, easy to talk to and with great ideas to boot. He's responsible for some of OAOAST's most memorable (in both the wrong and right sense ) moments.

 

The SWF awaits you, Sandman. I know you're not going to let them down, because you sure as hell didn't let us down. It's been a lot of fun, and hopefully we can mix it up again someday.

[Guest SP-1]

::salutes and blades his forehead in the process::

 

We shall miss you.

[Guest Sandman9000]

Well, I suppose I should do a real goodbye post here.

 

My reasons for leaving are threefold. First, general character apathy. If your character never evolves, it can only do the same things over and over. I had evolved from "Sandman the Towel Boy" to "Sandman the Deathmatch Guy," but hadn't evolved from that last stage. Sure, writing deathmatches are fun, but ultimately it limits what you can do. I was going to evolve shortly, and that's what had been keeping my interest in the OAOAST for the past few months; the promise of evolving my character. However, it wasn't enough.

 

Second is the drama. Not just the recent stuff, though that kinda sent me over the edge. I've said it before, I hate drama, and would rather leave then have to put up with the shit. The bickering between the brands had crossed the line between good-natured and personal, and I was tired of seeing it. SS's bumping of BPP's post after CWM's quitting was just the straw that broke the camel's back.

 

Third, and most important, e-fedding just wasn't fun anymore. I used to enjoy writing matches, but found myself in a slump after Doomsday. I managed to break out of that funk enough to write that massive Rumble (why the hell did I think gauntlet-style and pinfalls was a good idea?), but after that, I just didn't feel like writing anything. I didn't want to write a match, my promos had degenerated down to profanity, and I rarely posted in the TOAST thread. You could see my apathy when I posted IZ. My passion for the fed had gone away, and I decided it would be better to just move on then stick around.

 

Also, I owe Tony an apology. What I turned in for AM2 was an embarassment. A pathetic excuse for my role. What I did was dishonorable, and I apologize to Tony and everyone. I know my qutting came at a shitty time, but for all the hard work EVERYONE poured into this, they deserved the same effort out of me.

 

One of my regrets about leaving now is that I never got a chance to really work with everyone. It seemed like I worked with Evenflow, Zack, and SuperStar, while collaborating with BPP. I never even faced AngleSault, CWM, Agnes, and some of the newbies. I really regret never getting a chance to work with Jingus. The two big deathmatch people in this fed, we probably could have come up with something sick and nasty, and I really should have let him help with the KODM. And as much as I was looking forward to this Trinity angle, I just didn't have the passion for it that I thought I had.

 

Well, I suppose I should thank some people. BPP, Zack, Tony, SS, for everything.

 

But I really want to thank Evenflow, since without him, this fed wouldn't have been the same. Out of everything I wrote in the past year, the match I reposted in last week's IZ, the No Rope Barbed Wire Ladder Match is the work I am most proud of. It was after I finished writing that match that I sat back and wondered how people would react to it. I think I turned it into BPP, who took the match and made it the main event, instead of curtain jerking. With that one match, I managed to "make" both of us here, if that makes any sense. Without Evenflow, this fed wouldn't have been half the fun it was, and I sincerely thank him for everything that I did to him, and him not complaining one bit.

 

However, Evenflow is also a reason I'm qutting, and it's not his fault at all. I always find myself going back to him; no matter what I try creatively, it comes back to Sandman vs. Evenflow. Whenever feuds and questions about them come up, my first answer is "Well, me and Evenflow did it this way." I think that by no longer having that crutch to support myself with, it'll help me creatively, and be a kick in the ass to come up with something new.

 

A few words of advice to some of the newcomers. You're doing this for fun. Hopefully, no one put a gun to your head and forced you to be here. This isn't about winning and losing and how many belts you have. This is about writing great matches and promos and working with each other. The OAOAST is about competition, but it's also about working together and helping each other improve. By competition, I don't mean who has the belts and who has the most wins. It's who can write the best matches, and who can write the best promos, and who can work together to make the best feuds work.

 

As for the future, I'm not going to be e-fedding for a while. My GPA is abysmal right now (barely over a 3) and needs to be juiced up big time. Also, I want to wait until I have an urge to write a promo and write a match, instead of dreading match writing. I want to have the same feelings that I did when I would write four matches for an IZ, or when I wrote the seven matches for Doomsday.

 

And when I do decide to return to e-fedding, I am going to try the SWF. Well, the SJL, since I'll be a newbie there, having to make a new reputation. The Sandman character is dead. He's dead here, and he's not going to resurface over there. I'll use as little of my history here as possible, just for background, but if I ever write something that causes me to de-evolve back to Sandman, then it's time to quit for good, since I'll be out of ideas.

 

Will I return to the OAOAST in the future? I don't know. Unless the SWF goes under, I don't see myself being back here. I won't be completely gone: I'll still read what y'all are doing, and if I see something I really like I'll comment on it. However, for being involved in the fed, I'm done. MAYBE in the future, I might come back, since the door has kinda been left open for a "Me vs. the fed" angle with my storyline departure, but don't hold your breath. As for doing both SWF and OAOAST at the same time, it's simply too much work. SWF requires a committment, and it would be dishonorable of me to not give the same effort to here. If I'm going to do something, I'm gonna hit it full blast.

 

Also, I know I've been demodded, and Agnes looks like he's next in line, but I'd like to nominate SpiderPoet. He's got what I used to have: passion. Devotion. You can tell he likes it here, and it shines through in his work and everything else. Who else would spend the time needed to make graphics for us. SP, I salute you for your hard work, and keep it up.

 

I also thank everyone for the Angle Awards. Storyline, I said I wasn't appreciated, but I knew my work really was.

 

Well, that's pretty much everything I can think of. Remember, this is about having fun. You're here because you want to be. Don't torture yourself if you're not having fun.

 

Hail To The King, Baby.

 

Jake "Sandman9000" Potter.

[Guest Big Poppa Popick]

::Raises a beer::

[Guest SP-1]

Thanks, Sandman. I'm going to try and make every IZ I help with one for the books. Everyone can count on that. You take care and let us know if you resurface in the E-Fed world. I want to read it.

[LaParkaYourCar 0]

Sad to see you go man. I may have just joined the OAOAST, but I sill enjoyed your work.

 

Good luck.

[Guest Plushy Al Logan]

[Guest HollywoodSpikeJenkins]

I would be glad to put you over in the JL....

 

 

Since I put everyone over....

[Guest evenflowDDT]

But I really want to thank Evenflow, since without him, this fed wouldn't have been the same. Out of everything I wrote in the past year, the match I reposted in last week's IZ, the No Rope Barbed Wire Ladder Match is the work I am most proud of. It was after I finished writing that match that I sat back and wondered how people would react to it. I think I turned it into BPP, who took the match and made it the main event, instead of curtain jerking. With that one match, I managed to "make" both of us here, if that makes any sense. Without Evenflow, this fed wouldn't have been half the fun it was, and I sincerely thank him for everything that I did to him, and him not complaining one bit.

 

However, Evenflow is also a reason I'm qutting, and it's not his fault at all. I always find myself going back to him; no matter what I try creatively, it comes back to Sandman vs. Evenflow. Whenever feuds and questions about them come up, my first answer is "Well, me and Evenflow did it this way." I think that by no longer having that crutch to support myself with, it'll help me creatively, and be a kick in the ass to come up with something new.

Even though I was on vacation, I "cheated" once or twice and checked the boards for five minutes or so, and came across a few stray quotes about Sandman being gone, and thought it was just some joke or storyline thing or something. Then I come back and skim across Anglemania II and read this thread and realize that holy shit, it's for real. It makes me a little sad, but I've noticed you phoning it in quite a bit recently (although I didn't want to mention it in case you really weren't), and your reasoning makes absolute sense: if something completely optional that's supposed to be fun ceases to be fun, what's the point?

 

As for the rest, I owe you many many thanks as well. You talk about the No Rope Barbed Wire Ladder Match, and I still remember the match, and I'm glad you posted it last week because I still enjoy that match. Even though in terms of gore and otherwise we've long trumped it, I still consider that "our moment". I still consider that my favorite match by far, for many of the reasons you mentioned. It was the first of many times in our many matches I'd say "Holy shit!" It really impressed me how often I'd have these moments in your matches, and oftentimes I'd be more amazed by an alternate-universe never-existing moment from the words of your matches than all the things that happened in "real life". Though it could be partially because I've never been able to get a hold of and be desensitized by any CZW or deathmatch tapes, your matches never ceased to awe me. You're a talented writer, and if you ever get back into e-fedding, I'm gonna track you down so I can keep reading, and keep being amazed. So, allow me to be the first to say, "Fuck you for making me trudge through those damn lengthy SWF shows!"

 

Secondly, I want to thank you for letting me be something I've always wanted to be but never could - a bad-ass. I remember you talking about how you've done some backyard wrestling and stapled bills to your forehad at parties and stuff, and I was thinking "Wow, I wanna do that!" (see how naive I am?). Your matches allow me to do that, they made me be able to fight, to dive, to bleed like I'd never be able to bleed in reality. Let's face the facts - I'm 5'10", 160lbs, and with the gentlest demeanor of anyone I know (I won't even hit in self-defense). I'm not going to be entering, let alone winning, any tough fights in the future. And yet, because of all the violent movies and stuff I watch, that kind of person is one of my "role models", even though I know it'd never be. So, it might sound a bit silly, but I genuinely want to thank you for making one of my most degenerate fantasies come alive every time. In fact, you did this too well - because now I can't compare as a match writer, and when I try I don't even know my own character's style except for our super-violent matches.

 

Thirdly and finally, even though it's not my fault, I'm sorry I became your crutch. This was the easiest of your points to understand, because this has happened every time we've feuded (which of course, has been quite often). I also share this problem, until now I haven't had any really big feuds that I can remember other than with you - however it affected your character much much worse. Since you always lost (and I think I brought this up a long time ago after the King of the Deathmatch tournament), it really pigeonholed you, and never gave you another opportunity to evolve (it did always come back to "ha! but Sandman never beat evenflow so they'll be paired up again!" - almost like Raven/Tommy Dreamer in real-life, where after a while it seemed like a lazy guaranteed place-holder). Even the blow-offs made you look weak, and kinda kept you in a spot as "that other deathmatch guy - the one who loses", and I should've tried to cyber-threaten you or something to make it a bit more even, but that doesn't even matter anymore.

 

I just want to make sure you don't forget - you made me too. And I'll miss you man. After all, it's a given after all the crazy shit we've done that we're blood brothers, in the most literal and symbolic and any other sense of the term.

 

- Ed"venflowDDT" Robins

 

PS: About the GPA thing man... after all the jokes we've made about causing each other to drop out of college, I'd feel so terrible if one of us actually did. Don't worry about it though, it's just a number, don't let it psyche you out. That's exactly what they want you to do.