When you are young life is simple. The things you want, toys, cake and balloon are pretty easy to come by if you play your parents right. My kid has enough to go around. I wasn’t so fortunate in that territory, I wanted other things. My dad to come home and save me from my older brothers, my mom to keep her promises and for the monsters in the dark to leave me alone. I got older, we all matured, my mom is my mom and the monsters aren’t as strong as me. The wants changed. I found out about hunger.
Off to college I went chasing a pipe dream. Found out the hard way that college wrestling doesn’t pay well. I went hungry some nights, others a 99 cent loaf of french bread never tasted so good. Disappointed a few people when I dropped out to pursue MMA. I met some good and bad people, all of them taught me a lesson for better or worse. Fortune smiled on me when I met a good friend in need of a life change.
I met a lady in need of weight loss, which I knew a thing or two about. We became friends outside of the gym, I cried over my girl problems and she cried over her dude problems. It was a good friendship. But the greatest thing she did for me was introduce me to her parents. Mom is a hairstylist extraordinaire with most childlike,beautiful soul. Dad is full of old time wisdom, full of sage advice and an unwavering belief in God. The best part? They let me eat over. All the time. I would lay in the family hammock, the two family dogs laying with me, dad and mom would cook. Some of the best days of my life, a second family.
A few months ago I received a call. Dad has cancer. Talk about the last guy you’d expect to receive/deserve cancer. I can think of a hundred people off the top of my head that could use some cancer, rotten people. How could this kind man get something so awful? After my last Bellator fight in SoCal, I went over and visited with them, hugged him and gave him my walkout tee before I left. his faith in God to make it better, amazing. A deity couldn’t ask for a more faithful follower.
This morning I woke up to “dad has 1-4 weeks left”. Wow do I take things and people for granted. I’m a gamer, I hit the reset button on the Xbox when ish isn’t going well. Apparently this is life, no reset button or do overs. The talks after my fights won’t be happening, no more bbq’s, the girl advice, the ammo reloading, it’s over. I’m going to miss him so much. He took me in at a rough time in my life.
I know it’s part of life to pass on to the other side, heaven, reincarnated as a wolf, a mansion in the sky where you have everything you ever wanted. I haven’t found a faith or belief system outside of the man in the mirror is the one that I look to. But with all that I am I hope he was right. That he goes to the place where there are no burdens, no hunger and the crippled walk. I envy his surety of God. No fear whatsoever. Only the good die young.
Gods speed Gary Brooker.

After a really good nights rest I woke up and did my normal routine, vitamin popping (vitC,b-12,omegas,fishoil,etc). Anyway one of the vitamins in a peanut butter flavored chewable. It’s pretty much the highlight of my morning, I could care less if its good for me or not, they are wonderful. I walked over to my Korean friend Tommy’s room to check my weight. Forgot to mention yesterday’s Tommyism: “the building here like a sand castle. I wonder if they do on purpose.” Gold. I’m a kilo under. B You T full. Back to my room for more Sopranos marathon. They don’t make too many good shows these days, CSI and all the spinoffs aren’t my cup of tea. Every so often I repeat older shows, Rome, Deadwood, Chappelle show etc. classics.
After a nice ice cream bath this morning, I indulged in one of my favorite fruits, the date. If you’ve never had it before, imagine a donut hole. Literally, amazing. They are highly nutritious, great for work outs, but be careful, they are also high in sugar and calories. Highly recommended. Shake recipe: 1/2 cup of cashew, 1cup water, 2bananas, dash of cinnamon and dash of nutmeg, 5 DATES. Amazing meal replacement shake that I don’t mind skipping a meal for. Try it and leave me feedback.
We are on our way to weigh ins now, tommy is on weight finally, a couple sweat runs and ice cream baths later and he is one hungry Korean. His first request “can I have a coke after weigh in?” Was promptly rejected. Tommy and I did a mock weigh in, the promoter of G.F.C Adel Wawan and family overseeing. We both were under by 2kg. Piece of darabeel ( Arab cake ). Took some photos with the owners sons, one of which has some great hair.
Now we are chowing seafood, lobster, fish, crab, etc.
While eating with my Arab friends it dawned on me. Khalid should be Batman. He has all the makings of the hero this city needs. He’s very unassumingly ridiculously wealthy (mfer owns skyscrapers). He’s a good guy to boot. I keep telling him, it’s time for him to don the black cowl, start building hopping and saving the people. Me personally, Id love to be batman. I’m poor yet blessed with super strength, I’m superman out of necessity, not choice.
So i haven’t mentioned Mishari, my royal Arab friend yet. Standing at 6’11, he’s a gentle giant but that’s not all. He’s a direct descendant of the Kuwaiti royal family, you wouldn’t guess it by meeting him, he’s another unassuming guy who doesn’t wear his status on his sleeve ( I have a few people in mind that could learn a thing or two from them ). Anyway, he walks into my room, opens the window and says ” Wooow bro! The view! It’s so majestic! “. Not what I expected from a giant royal Arab. Cool guy though, not at all homosexual as I’m describing.
Just did the face off. I hate him. I don’t like tough guys, he’s Dead.
That’s all I have for tonight guys. Going to Starbucks. ma’asalama

I fell asleep at around 8am this morning and was promptly woken up by housekeeping an hour later. I’m one of those unfortunate souls that if woken up can’t fall back to sleep. It’s a curse. Anyway I got out of bed and checked my weight, 1kg under weight. Today was going to be a feast day. My previous weigh in at Bellator a few weeks ago set the tone for a lifestyle change. Normally I’d take a couple weeks off after a fight and ease back into it. Not this time. The last fight just made me hungrier. I can’t wait to get back inside the cage.
My friend Khalid picked us up from the hotel and we drove to lunch. We ate fish as well as some of my local favorites, hummus and tabbouleh. Kuwaiti fact: it is a dry country, meaning zero alcohol. This means that men and women go out of their way to be noticed, women wearing their Sunday best everyday and the men being extremely aggressive. To the point of hopping curbs in cars to catch up to the possibly beautiful girl in the white jeep (yeah that really happened).
After a fun drive after lunch we went to a local bazaar, kind of like the night markets in Thailand but on a higher/fancier scale. The building are very old in this district. The air is heavy with Arab perfume and spices, local fruits and rugs hang from show windows. I can’t help but feel like I’m walking through a scene in Assassins creed (yes I put my hood up). I have a few things on my list: Magic oil lamp (Aladdin), dates (dried fruit, delicious), and saffron (a very expensive spice used in payala). I quickly found the dates I was looking for of which the quality blew the ones I had eaten before out of the water, and the saffron, which was a quarter of the price usually charged. I stocked up on both. I had no luck in finding the lamp, apparently every star crossed idiot had the same idea. Luckily I found a Janbiya, a curved dagger traditionally worn by Arab men( more so in Yemen than Kuwait ). So armed and with my hood up, I stalked the crowd, blending easily (like a white beacon) with the dishdasha wearing crowd. I was almost spotted by the guards a few times, but with my local dialect(all five words I know) perfected and easy going Arab mannerism, I was a chameleon.
The last stop on our list was a local pharmacy to buy bath salts, not the zombie kind, the weight cutting booster.
Amazingly fly enough, one of the most abundant resources in the world was out of stock at three different pharmacies. So we got back to the hotel and down the elevator to the hotel spa. With bright shining lights on it and Angels singing ahhhhhh in the background, there was the bath salt. This wasn’t any bath salt though. It was Hawaiian ice cream bath salts. Done. I jumped on the tread mill, ran for thirty minutes and filled up the tub. Dropping the scoop of ice cream in the water gave it a pleasant ice blue color. After 20 minutes of watching “it” float (usually I take bubble baths so that it isn’t a visible problem), I got out of bed, put my Egyptian cotton bath robe on and climbed into bed. (Hilton, you are thee best)
Tomorrow is weigh ins, ill be meeting my Egyptian opponent who made the mistake of accepting the fight. I didn’t come here to eat lamb and hummus all day (kind of did , I came for a belt to hang on my mantle and something Juliet can play dress up with. That’s all I got. Afwan, sahby.

As I said in a previous entry it’s my birthday, just another day in my book. It just so happens I’m flying out today with Mark Mariani and Tommy Yang to Kuwait. Celebrating is out. Ill blow candles later and steal my opponents belt for a present.
Anyway we had a quick layover in Qatar( the ammount of dishdasha and ninja robes sky rocketed) pretty uneventful except my S.Korean friend Tommy and his “Rambo car”. We asked him what a Rambo car was, I was thinking tank. His reply “you know like a ramboghini”. Boom. Tommyism for the day.
A quick hour flight and we landed in Kuwait. Stopped at the visa desk, picked up my free 90 day visa (guess that little skirmish we had with Iraq paid off) and Tommy got his 3kd($10) visa (S.Korea was no where to e found during the war). Grabbed our bags and found my Kuwaiti Combat friends Ebrahim and Khalid. They don’t exactly fit the stereotypical image, no robes for them. I’d say Khalid looks more Cuban than he does Arab. Quick fact check: 95% of Kuwaiti exports are oil. Dave Chappell was right :/
Anyway just checked into my hotel, the Hilton Kuwait. It’s 6am, I’m wired. Going to check my weight, try out the bidet, maybe hit a jog at the 24hr fitness center and hopefully crash out.
Assalamu alaikum.

I didn’t realize it was my day today. I wake up every morning at around 6:30 depending on my daughter kicking me awake or not. I go down the two flights of stairs, into the kitchen and prepare my juice. One apple, carrot,celery, ginger, spinach/kale, beet and whatever else I can find. Drink up and head to practice. It is this routine that gets me out of bed, the familiarity that is as comfortable as an old couch. I like this part of my life, the easy familiarity, the starting the day right. If I diverge from this I don’t feel right. I am paranoid about my health. When all my ducks are in a row I’m a happy, care free person.
Today, feb 6, is no different. It’s just another day to me. Christmas, new years, halloween. same Sh*t. I was given a birthday cake from the gym owners wife, which I regretfully will not be able to enjoy (Juliet will instead blow out the candle and indulge). Today I’m getting on a plane bound for the desert sands of the Middle East.This weekend I will be fighting the current GFC champion, an Egyptian stand up specialist. It doesn’t matter what day it is, nor who my opponent is. My day looks the same either way, I will fight and I will win because I have walked the path, I have paid the price. What I find joy in isn’t the same as most. I never had a taste for alcohol and am too engrossed with my own reality for drugs. I have thee worst sense of guilt if I indulge in sweets, one that far out weighs the fleeting pleasure they give. I’m not sure what my opponent is doing, it matters little. In the Middle East they say Inshallah, Gods Will. I respect all Gods, religions and ways of life. If they are correct, then Inshallah I will win because I have sacrificed the most and my will is stronger than his. I’m not saying this out of arrogance but by fact.
To all who wished me a happy birthday, thank you. I appreciate you taking time off of your journey to wish good things in my life. Up up and away.

In Kuala Lumpur getting ready to corner Adam Kayoom for his second OneFc fight tonight against an Indonesian fighter named victim #2 (I’m bad with names :/ ) . I brought my swim/mental coach Scott Stevenson. In preparation for my fight in Kuwait next weekend, he’s been running me through all sorts or circuits and drowning me in the pool/ocean. Little by little I’ve been improving my breast stroke and front crawl, I’m no Michael phelps but I’m happy with my progress. Today we decided to up the training by swimming in a local swamp where I challenged some crocodiles to a thumb wrestling competition. Needless to say they didn’t show up. So we did sprints and butterfly/unicorn/princess flutters in the mini lake and called it a day.
Play time now over, time for Adam and the team to go to work. Watch live on http://www.sherdog.com and special shout to Kuwait Combat Athletics for believing in me, there faith is well placed, the belt is mine. Inshallah I will win because he’s not ready for me. Cheers