As those of you who've been through my blog will know, I am a big time wrestling fan. This wasn't always the case however, in fact for my entire youth I managed to completely avoid contact with wrestling products besides one hand me down rubber toy that I only realized years later was Hulk Hogan.
However just a few years ago I began hanging out with a neighbor of mine, he was an older guy I helped him and his wife (they live upstairs) take his groceries up and trash out, and he began to pay me in hitters. So getting high with this guy in his place we inevitably watched some tv, and him being a 40+ year fan of wrestling, we eventually got around to watching some WWE. Now again, I wasn't a fan back then, so I wasn't big on watching even going so far as to poke some fun.
But then came women's wrestling, and being a youngish, single guy, who was already "watching" the show, and was also stoned out of my gourd, I paid more attention. There was more than one girl that caught my eye of course, but in the beginning there was one who stuck out. A girl who fit my beloved Gothic aesthetic, was good in the ring and on the mic, and was booked well. Her name is Paige, I have her, at least in part, to thank for my love of wrestling.
While watching her I eventually became more interested in both storylines and the in-ring product, however not long after I started watching in earnest she was injured, this neck injury resulted in surgery and 17 months out. She returned very recently leading her own faction Absolution. However in a recent house show the woman she was wrestling against delivered a damaging and unprotected kick to the back of the neck.
This kick resulted in Paige being unable to continue the match and she was assisted out of the arena. And now it appears as though her wrestling career is over. One of the people I most wanted to see have a successful career has now had her career ended, at only 25 years old, and after missing a year and a half already. This is a sad day for me, for fans of wrestling, and I can't even begin to imagine how sad a day it is for her.
I will always be thankful for Paige and how she helped me get into wrestling, and so I say thank you Paige, and may you find success wherever you go.
