it amazes me how fast this life will fly by if you let it. wasn’t it just a few years that we’d put out the carrot for the Easter Bunny, Mom? and didn’t last year I accidentally knock over the motorcycle, Dad? i swear if was but a few months ago that I went away to college, and last month I graduated. a few weeks ago, we’d just met, fallen in love and all that good stuff (ex)baby. well i know one thing. a day ago i grew a year older and a minute ago i found out you were pregnant. i am happy for you. i wonder if you find out things about me and smile fondly. i shrug indifferently as i hope i’ll never know because it was an eternity where we drudged along and while most memories feel like that they just happened, i’ll keep those long days, nights far far far from my, psyche.

Hawaii’s own and UFC Light Heavyweight Champion BJ ‘The Prodigy’ Penn emerged triumphant with a third round victory due to strikes over Sean Sherk. In other action, Lyoto Machida maintained his perfect record against Tito Ortiz in what was possibly Ortiz’s last UFC fight and Wanderlei Silva destroyed Keith Jardine with a knockout in under a minute of the first round.

I thought the card was pretty sick. It kicked off a summer of amazing MMA contests. This is truly an exciting time for the sport, the fighters, and the fans. The sport has the potential to unite people from around the world because it is like a constant Olympics and world sport. There are a seemingly endless amount of fighting arts that showcases countries and cultures. Ill Will had participants from North America (US), South America(Brasil), Africa, Eastern Europe, Asia(Japan), the Pacific(Hawaii).

Next up, the May 31 EliteXC card, which is huge, as CBS is the first national network to broadcast an MMA event live. Don’t be an Uncle Dana and oppose EliteXC. EliteXC is giving more opportunities for fighters to make a living and develop. With the demise of Pride, fighters haven’t had anywhere else to really go save for WEC which the UFC also owns. This year saw the rise of many new promotions from Dream, World Victory Road, Affliction, HDNet Fights and some tremendous offerings from EliteXC, ICON Sports, and Strikeforce.

But why support fighting? At one level, yes it is pure violence. At another it’s just a spectacle, modern day gladiators. But stop and think about it. How many people can protect themselves because of Brazilian Jiujitsu and Thai Boxing? Did you know that both disciplines have a philosophical aspect that guides them? Most, if not all of them do. Yeah, you can use the arguments that there’s choke(many) knuckleheads out there but that is the case in any type of system.

Go beyond the physicality of it and look at what we can learn about other cultures. In the promos, in the interviews, in everything we see or read about the fighters, you learn that they are more than just fighters, you get to see them as people. Many fighters do work for charities(Tito Ortiz, Roger Huerta), I’ve heard almost every fighter express a love for their communities and fans. Then you get to the end of the fight and 99% they shake hands, hug, all that. It is far more likely you’ll see a post match brawl in the NBA, NFL and so on.

My whole life I have heard talk about how we differ. This has the potential to break down that sociological Berlin Wall if you will. You see two equals(in weight, combined skills) in the ring battling it out and then coming together at the end.

Maybe I’m biased because I love the sport but I dunno, I think we can learn something here it doesn’t hurt to look at other ways the sport brings people together.

Until the next time…

Shoots.

JMAW

Triumph United

I just want to share how impressed I am with Triumph United. Not only are they about creating a brand founded in values, taking care of their team, and customers but they are really amazing people.

I got the chance to interview both Jason “MayheM” Miller and Hans Molenkamp. MayheM is ranked 8th in the world as a Middleweight by Fight Magazine. He is an adopted son of Hawaii, as a former SuperBrawl and Icon Sports Champion. Hans is the founder of Triumph United. He shared alot about his life experience and perspective on MMA.

Both dudes were very professional and I can’t help but think their company is founded in Aloha. For real. They both had alot of love for the 808 and were very professional and nice people. That kind of thing stands out to me. Call me ole fashioned.

Check them out at online and support the cause.

UFC 84- Ill Will

UFC 84 is this Saturday! Penn v. Sherk. Ortiz v. Machida. Silva v. Lister. This card is going to be crazy. I can’t think of another card I’ve been more excited for. Maybe Liddell V. Rampage, that was on my birthday last year, it’s the same card in May. Thank you God for looking out and having great fights around my birthday. Ha. Nah, nah.

Shoots.

JMAW

~Catch the MayheM and Hans interviews in the July issue of MMA Hawaii.

Note: this was originally posted at www.DownTownHilo.com by none other than me brother.  Shoots.

What is home?

A quick search on www.Dictionary.com returned 55 answers like… ha, like I goin tell you.  Nah, nah.  Just joke.  I figure you neva like look at 55 answers and I goin branch off anyway.  This is what they call a segue I suppose.  That is segue like intro and transition not like those motorized walkers you see all over Honolulu.  Eh, I am small kine kolohe and this is my first blog on www.DownTownHilo.com so we both getting acquainted. Where was I…  Home, das right.

Home is home.  It is comfort.  It is a feeling like you in a place where can lay your heads to rest when you tired or feel warm when it is cold.  It has a sense of welcoming and familiarity to it.  

For me home is always Hilo.  I was born Oahu and we moved  to Hilo when I was 10.  Ho, brah, I hated it at first.  It was still small keed time for me and I liked where I was.  Change can be hard for anyone, harder when you a kid and you no really understand.  Hilo wen work its charm on me though, so much so ten years later when I returned to Oahu for go UH, I knew instantly, well slight exaggeration, I knew real quick.  If it was a movie as soon as pau da plane ride, da guy get off and boom, it would wash all over him, he fall down, tears in the eyes, etc.

I knew early on when I came back to Oahu that Hilo was home.  Da Big Island, or da B.I. was home next, den all of Hawaii and so on.  Was an interesting sociological study of people living in the dorms at UH.  Had the people from the mainland, the different cliques of athletes, the outer islands by island, then each town there in.  Oh yeah and Oahu people but eh, das one noddah story, not the country people but the Townies.  Wot was full mean about living in the dorms is you could pick out the different types of pidgin spoken.  Fo real, each island get a unique dialect.  And who is to say it is not a language?  Dose buggahs, hard fo write li`ids.  Gotta think two different ways.  Anyway, back to Hilo, but you see, we neva really left Hilo, cause Hilo people, we can talk stories and tell all kine related stories with the best of em.  Chee Huuu!!!!

It is just something about Hilo.  Again, it warms you, it takes good care, I would go so far to say it heals you.  No matter wea I stay go or wea I goin` stay, Hilo is forever apart of me.  It truly is a way of life.  If you can take the time to appreciate it, it leaves a mark on your heart that others see wherever in life your feet stay standing, Oahu, the mainland, China, Europe.  If you lived Hilo, you lived Hilo.  No one can take that a way.  It is like being local in Hawaii plus 10 in my humblest of opinions.  Nah, nah, but I think you get what I mean.

Shoots.

JMAW, The Simple Voice   

www.TheSimpleVoice.com