Time sure does fly when you are having fun right? I have been in Thailand for just over 11 weeks now and I have a few more days before I say goodbye. I have got to tell you that around the middle of the 9th week I really started itching to come home and that itch has manifested into a full blown epidemic now. Thailand has been fun no doubt about it! I’ve learned a lot, pushed myself to limits that I could only imagine and met the most interesting souls that one could only pray for. However, now is the time to come home.

In all honesty, I tried to reschedule my flight twice in the last week to come home earlier, but I could not get a flight out of here. There had to be a reason why all forces were conspiring against me leaving Thailand even one day earlier than I had originally planned. I accepted my fate and carried on. To say that the last week has been easy would be lying through my teeth. My feet are weary and my hands are bruised. My entire physical body is exhausted, but I nonetheless keep pushing hard. It’s time to come home now.

The intensity of my training has actually picked up in the last couple of weeks. I feel awesome and I am extremely happy that I was able to stick it out for this long. It’s truly been an experience of a lifetime. But folks…..

I’m coming home!
 

I’ve had my trainer Yod on my mind the last couple of days. (Yod is the one in all my videos). I call him Master Yoddy which is my attempt at being snarky and riffing Master Toddy (coach from fight girls). Every Sunday, Yod and his wife (who is visiting from Surin) come visit me at my Crib and they bring me food. We sit on my floor and we eat. Yod and his wife insist on doing this on most Sundays. It is apparent that I’ve bonded with them.

Well Yod has been absent since Monday because his father has been sick. Apparently his father was on a respirator and wanted to see him before he died. Yod then had to rush to Surin. Well, I got the news today that Yod’s father finally passed away. I am sad and hopeful at the same time. His father has been in so much pain for so long. Death is essentially easing both the father’s pain as well as the pain in Yod’s soul which he cannot hide no matter how much he tries. I’m not sure if I’ll be seeing Yod before I leave for the US, but my prayers are going out to him and his family at this time.

My condolences to you and your family Yod. It will be alright.
 

Well it’s not a mansion, but this is my new crib in Thailand. I’ve been meaning to post about this for quite sometime. I just finally got around to doing it today. This place is right across the street from the gym so I don’t have to keep driving back and forth after a tough workout.

It’s a pretty nice place. It’s got a lovely salt water pool that is quite refreshing after a hard day (now if I could only attempt getting into the damn thing!). The people that own it are the loveliest people around and they really take care of us. I will be staying here when I come back to Thailand for more training later this year….I hope you all didn’t think I was done here forever did you?

Well think again!
 

The one thing I can’t get passed in Thailand is thier signs and the menu selections. Nothing is ever spelled correctly as I have blogged about before. Here are some new installations of those signs. The first photo is of the signs to the bathroom where simple man and woman icons cannot possibly suffice. In addition, there is a picture of a menu item that I ordered the other day. Can you decipher what that salad is supposed to be?
 

 
Enjoy.

So it’s 2008 and we have all solidly put 2007 behind us (well I hope we all have!). As I reflect back on 2007, I am full of hope and optimism about 2008.

2007 for all intents and purposes was a good year for me regarding all the tangible things that most people grade themselves on. Did you meet your financial goals? Check. Did you remain physically healthy? Check. Did you accomplish most or all the goals you set out to accomplish? Check. Did your family remain safe from harm and well? Check. Did you help people in need when financially able to do so? Check.

It’s the intangible goals that I failed monumentally on. Did you seek spiritual growth? No. Did seek emotional balance? No. Were you happy? No.

Don’t get me wrong. It wasn’t like I was miserable all year. I did some things that brought me pockets of happiness. I made a lot of new friends, joined a great gym, saw Thailand for the first time, enjoyed football games and the like. However, finding pockets of happiness in all the aforementioned things, doesn’t necessarily make me a happy person in general.

In 2008 I will make every effort to bring the tangible and intangible into alignment and live a balanced life. The common denominator for merging the two is that it will make me happy. So this year, I’m not making the same superfluous new year’s resolutions that I make every year…….You all know the drill: lose weight, etc etc.

This new year, I have decided to pursue one thing and one thing only……

Happiness!

So I decided not to be my usual boring self during new Years and went to Patong to bring in the new year with some folks from the gym. It was more than what I had bargained for. The streets were full of people setting off random fireworks every 2 feet. It was downright dangerous. We ended up at Tiger Bar and it was pretty wild out there with all the “Lady Boys” (thai term for transvestites) and women all dancing on the countertops. I felt really bad for some of the drunk guys at the Tiger Bar who were kissing, fondling and all over the lady boys and didn’t even know they were men.

We ended up going to the beach for the fireworks show and the actual show was very good. The only problem was getting through the streets with fireworks going off right in your face.

To be honest with you guys, I would have preferred to just have curled up in a fetal position sucking on my thumb and counting down the time my damn self. Not to add to the fact that I had to train at 7 am the next morning.

Not Cool.

Enjoy the video

Well folks, I decided to make another video for you all to see if I’ve improved since I first got here. Personally, I think the punches are much better than before. Yod(I call him Master Yoddy now), is working me to death here. I’m up to doing about 8 three minute rounds with that nutter every single day. It’s not easy.

I think my body is about to break down, but I must keep pushing on. Take a look and tell me what you think in the comments section.

Cheers
 

Well I finally found my alter ego in Thailand (Who knew?). It doesn’t matter that we don’t particularly look alike or that she’s originally from Zimbabwe. It makes no difference to me that she resides in the UK and I live in the US, she’s just the best! I’ve mentioned in previous posts that I’ve never laughed as much or as hard as I have in Thailand. Chenge is the main reason why that is. The things that come out of that girls mouth are unbelievable most times and astounding the rest of the time. Here are some of the key things I’ve learned from Cee while in Thailand:

1. Lie with impunity

2. Deny any and everything

Just kidding!

In all honesty I’ve learned so much from Chenge, most of which, I really can’t publicly comment on. I’ve never met a more inquisitive and adventurous person than Chenge. She’s constantly asking questions….ALL.THE.TIME. Some of us are embarrassed to ask questions because we are afraid to look like a bunch of idiots. That logic doesn’t not apply to Chenge. I once asked her why it was that she asked so many questions. She calmly responded “Well if I don’t ask, then I won’t know!”

Good point!

Chenge will try ANYTHING at least once. She’s gotten me to eat some local Thai food, fruit, bugs, plants etc that I wouldn’t normally touch with a 10 foot pole. She taught me how to speak Thai english which is a feat on it’s own. She taught me how to make good porridge with Udo’s oil and peanut butter. The most important thing I learnt is to be more open minded, spontaneous and adventurous. Basically, the woman has changed my life! You all have to meet this nutcase. You’ll love her as much as I do!

A few weeks ago, I climbed the hill accompanying this post for the very first time. I don’t even think the pictures do this hill any justice. It’s so much steeper and much longer than what I could capture in a photograph.(click on pictures for larger view). I’m not embarrassed to say that it was very tough for me and I uncontrollably broke into tears when I got to the top. I was pushed along by a very good natured Swedish guy called Johan who made it his personal mission to see that I made it to the top. He stuck with me every step of the way and wouldn’t let me give up. He just kept saying, “no matter how tough it gets, just keep moving your feet”.
 

 
It’s funny how little nuggets of wisdom come at the strangest and sometimes the toughest times in our lives.

“No matter how tough it gets, just keep moving your feet!.

That’s a metaphor for life right there. It’s easy to give up and give in. It takes a special kind of inner strength to force yourself to persevere in the face of adversity. It’s not easy. Then again, nothing worth having ever really is. Sometimes, we all need a little push to get us going. I know I did!

Whatever your personal “hill” is, you have the power to surmount it and reach the summit if you keep going. You don’t have to conquer the hill in one fell swoop because afterall, Rome wasn’t built in a day. However, if a decision is made to do so, incremental steps can inch you closer to the summit of any hill or mountain.

A few weeks ago, I could barely make it to the top of that hill. Today, at least three times a week, I am able to make it up to the top of that hill twice in the morning before my daily Muay Thai training sessions.

How did I manage that? ……………I just kept moving my feet!

Well I’ll be damned! Mcdonalds delivers to your home in Phuket, Thailand.

Dial 1711 and you’ll get whatever grease infested atrocity from Mcdonalds that you would like to your door within 15 minutes. Now that’s what I call a “Special Delivery” of hot garbage!

As for me, I’m sticking to the Thai food with the occasional chicken on the street which I will be blogging about later!

It seems like everyone here is catching the tattoo bug around these parts (maybe even me, you never know. I blogged about my henna tattoos before, but it’s time to be a big girl now and consider getting a real one. There is a trainer at TMT called “Oh” that does bamboo tattoos for everyone. If you decide that you want to get a protection tattoo, you have to give him 3 days notice so that he can fast before he does it. In addition, while he is actually doing the tattoo, he does not talk at all. It’s really fascinating to watch.

I witnessed him give Mieke a protection tattoo on her wrist, and it was pretty interesting stuff to say the least. How he is able to do all that with a bamboo stick is beyond me. He sometimes spends 8 hours doing very detailed bamboo protection tattoos on the backs of some Muay Thai students here. It’s really exquisite work to be honest with you.

Apparently, his Master was the one who gave Angelina Jolie the protection tattoo that she has on her back shoulder. Imagine that!

Well “Oh” has done it again. This time, it’s not a bamboo, but the work is still exquisite. He did the outlining of the tattoo and had some help to finish it due to time.

Check out the pictures of Phillips tattoos!

Have a safe flight back to Florida Philip! We will miss you!

I decided to be a big baller, shot caller spender and I hit one of the local markets in Phuket Town to see what I could get my grubby little fingers on. I only had an hour to blow some serious cash, so I had to make it quick. I was determined to do it big and “make it rain on em”. So what did my big money spending scheme get me? Well, lets take a look shall we:
 

 

1. 8 t-shirts

2. 2 pairs of original birkenstocks (very comfy)

3. A hat

4. Taxi fair included

All for a whopping total of $60. haha!

Man, this Thailand is expensive I tell you. This must be highway robbery to buy all that stuff and pay that kind of money for it! I’m never coming back here. Never.

This has been another edition of things you will never experience in the United States!

At TMT, there are so many from around the world that come to learn Muay Thai. It’s like the United Nations right here in Thailand at TMT. I’ve been noticing that my British accent is becoming a little more pronounced since I got to Thailand. I’ve been using random British slang all of a sudden. I’ve been using words such as “bullocks” and “rubbish”. It’s kind of crazy that one would come all the way to Thailand to speak better English and annunciate their words better. Go figure!

All this leads to the word “Nutter”. The definition of a “nutter” is someone who is crazy. The British use the term “nutter” as we in the US use the term “gone nuts”. I trully believe that everyone here at TMT are complete and utter nutters including myself. Sane people wouldn’t do Muay Thai in my opinion.

This brings me to Prathet!…Prathet is a trainer at TMT who has an obsesssion with teaching me Thai. Every time he sees me, he comes up and says “Chem(he can’t pronounce my name) speak Thai!. We go through the exact same Thai words over and over and over…..and over again. That continues to the end of the training session. Then guess what happens the next day?

“Chem, speak Thai”. We do the routine all over again.

Well, I flipped the script on his ass a few weeks ago. Before he even opens his mouth, I say “Prathet, speak English…”You’re a nutter!” I told him that it was Mieke’s name!

Here is some video of me trying to teach Prathet (TMT & Veronika Lundemo’s trainer) to say the phrase..”You’re a nutter”. Too..too…funny!

Enjoy!
 

A couple of us over here have been in mourning for the last couple of days? Why? Well, because Mieke is gone. She’s off to Australia for a national t.v fight on December 8th.

Mieke is one of those people you meet along the way that you don’t soon forget. She’s a vicious fighter in a supermodel physique, unpretentious, funny and good natured. She eats like a friggin’ horse and trains like there is no tomorrow. She’s not afraid to throw them ‘bows either if necessary. I’ve never met anyone who loves to see blood in fights as much as Mieke. She thinks busted noses with streaming blood is “awesome”. She would know, she’s broken or split open almost everything on her body for crying out loud.

Mieke, ‘C’ and I have been hanging like white on rice every single day for the last month and we all bonded a little too much if you ask me. I’ve never laughed so much and so hard in my life as I have in the last month with ‘C’ and Mieke. If you guys think I’m a character, wait till these nutcases come to New York!

We are all suffering from separation anxiety right now. The only saving grace is that ‘C’ will be here for about another 10 days. Being the great friend that I am (you all already know this), I recorded some of Mieke’s training and sparring sessions and made a compilation video for her on DVD. I then added to the DVD as menu selections all the raw footage of her training and sparring sessions, as well as our other shenanigans in Thailand and gave it to her. Let’s just say that she was very emotional(not usual for this particular nutcase)! It’s a long clip (7 minutes), but you all really need to watch it so you can see what a beast this girl is in the ring!

Mieke we all miss you, and that poor girl doesn’t stand a chance on Dec 8th! Keep cracking them skulls!
 

Thanksgiving has come and gone, but have you all really given thanks and counted your blessings? I know that being in Thailand forces me to count my blessings day after day. Take a look at the picture accompanying this post. Three trainers from the TMT gym live in that hut! They cook and sleep there, and they use the general bathrooms to shower and clean up.

The most amazing thing is, that they are the happiest people I’ve ever met. Always smiling, always inviting me to come share their food no matter how small it is, always welcoming with open arms no matter your shape, size, skin color, religion. Nothing matters to these people than being happy in their simple existence.

It really begs the question of what really makes people happy. I’ve been blessed with a lot of fancy things, and have fancy friends, and gone to many fancy restaurants, and live a somewhat fancy life. However, I really can’t say that these aforementioned things have brought me any happiness. If I really think hard, they’ve probably brought me unneeded stress and aggravation.

How is it then, that these Thai folks are so happy and content with so little, and I’m so miserable and angry with so much? It may sound like a cliche, but I’m living proof that material things don’t necessarily bring much happiness. I plan on changing some things when I get back and keeping it as simple as possible.

Like my man Brad Pitt says in fight club…“the things you own end up owning you”.