Lost some AMOGing skills, but I still have some moves

I've been pushing myself a lot harder lately compared to just a few weeks ago, but I've been shying away from mixed sets.  Today, 2j and I were both in a state where we wanted to really push ourselves to face more difficult situations.  2j wanted to force himself to approach the hottest sets.  I also have that goal, but I'll usually do it unless it's a mixed set situation.  In that area, we both agreed we needed to do more of those sets.  

We're reluctant to open mixed sets because we fear facing the situations that arise, but it's a necessary skill, especially if you want to excel with the hottest girls as they'll almost often have orbiter guys around.  The hot girls will have alpha guys around as well which makes it more difficult.  A deeper seeded explanation of this fear is from evolutionary biology.  I believe Tyler and Mystery explained it as it being from the caveman days where if you tried to get the girls and you weren't the real alpha guys, you might get hit in the head with a rock for your efforts.   

I can think of many times in the past two years for I dealt with AMOGs successfully.  It was almost always used as defense: meaning an orbiter or some natural came into my set trying to tool me, thinking I was an easy target.  Alpha guys like to tool others guy to increase their status: in pickup, you can learn to do that as well, but I don't like doing it as offense.  I consider AMOG skills like fighting skills, you use it in defense, not to start shit.  

I suck at AMOGing now:

Tonight, 2j pointed out this high buying temperature girl out to me.  It was this chubby girl with this decent looking blonde friend.  I passed on the opportunity because it was early in the night and I wasn't attracted to the high buying temperature girl.  A few minutes later, some natural, sensing the high buying temp went in and started talking to the friend.  2j and I started giggling about the situation and 2j said I should go talk to the friend.  I knew that was the right move.  

As I got near the set, I heard the guy introducing himself to the ugly high BT girl.  The cute friend looked bored.  I came in, but I didn't open strongly.  I was a bit meek, and the guy saw this and immediately put his arm around the girl.  He tried to tell me something like this girl was with him.  

Okay, I suck, but I don't suck that badly.  As a newbie, I would have walked away, afraid of the guy.  I knew I was on the wrong end of this battle as I had started off badly.  The proper way to get into the set was to open like I already knew the blonde.  The guy would have been less confident in busting me out had I done this.  The next best move would have been to pen louder and with a stronger breaking rapport voice so I actually got the girls attention.   The natural was fast enough that when he saw me having a problem getting my target's attention, he immediately went to try to solidify himself in the set.  

It's still amazing what you can get away with:

I immediately went into my AMOG mode and standard Tyler AMOG lines that I remembered.  I patted the dude on the back and called him my little big brother.  I also put my arm around him.  It's funny that we have this fear of this sets, but I shouldn't fear them.  I know how to handle these situations and because I keep the fun, happy vibe going even when I'm not completely comfortable, the guy can't act like an asshole and try to fight me.  Tyler explains the social dynamics of this in his old "AMOG tactics" newsgroup posts.  Thinking about it, it is funny how you can get all physical with dumb shit like that and not get into a fight.  

I write that "I suck" because I lost this battle.  I was reacting too much to the guy and I wasn't as calm as I used to be doing this.  Still, I'm glad I went into this set because it showed me how I had lost a bit of the skill, yet still have enough to hold my own.  I also feel more compelled to force myself into these mixed sets.  I have to remember that I need to practice this skill again to have the tools available when I need them.  

I used to get more practice when I had I less "skills":

My immediate thought after losing the AMOG battle was how I used to be super good at this stuff.  This was even three years ago which seems like a life time ago.  I have to again thank Tyler's old newsgroup posts for giving me the theoretical framework to develop the AMOG skills.  As I told Prodigy, my ability to deal with AMOGs and also to stick up for myself in general came from nothing but Tyler's posts and field experience.  I used to have low self esteem and got picked on constantly in high school .  Now I can hold my own.  

I have to thank my rough childhood and teenage experiences for propelling me to learn pickup and to learn social dynamics.  I have to thank all those AMOGs out there who used to come in my sets when I was a total newbie.  I had the stones to open sets when I started this journey years ago and then guys would get confidence from seeing me open and then come into my sets.  Initially, they'd just scare me off with their presence.  Thanks to meeting that Dahunter from the forums years ago, I learned I had to stay in the sets even when guys came.  Staying in meant that I had to face dealing with these guys stealing my sets, and through practice and with Tyler's theory and tactics, I slowly developed my AMOGing skills. 

I haven't had much practice lately, as I said above, because I haven't been forcing myself into mixed sets.  Since my game is so much better than it was as a newbie, guys usually don't feel confident coming into my sets.  My verbal game can be so good that the guys seems me and thinks I either know the girl, or she's so engaged by what she's saying that there's no way he'd think he could get in.  This is with shitty kino.  When I'm actually kinoing, no guy except RSD Ozzie, or students in his bootcamp, or someone like Crazyfoot would actually try to open the girl I'm talking to.  Seriously, think about it, how many guys are gonna try to open a girl when I have my arm around her, or have my hands on her hips as she facing me and gazing into my eyes?!   

I'll just close by saying that what was especially effective in AMOG battles the past two years was that guys trying to tool me had idea of what hit them.  They'd stereotype me by my looks and think they'd easily tool me, and they'd get obliterated with AMOG skills they didn't see coming.  Alas, that wasn't to be this past evening.