[WWE] Update on a Tough Enough Champion

Back for Round 2… sorry about the delays but you’ll see why later in this entry.

Let’s go back a couple weeks to WrestleMania 22. Fortunately I live close enough to Chicago to drive up there, so I made the trip for Mania. I drove in Friday night so I could attend the Hall of Fame ceremony on Saturday – I’m glad I did. For any wrestling fan, the Hall of Fame is an awesome event. So many of the greats were in attendance that I watched with my dad when I was a kid. The stories that were told that night were priceless. From Bret Hart talking about Owen ribbing people on the road to Sensational Sherry randomly screaming during her acceptance speech – it was a great night. I do have to say, I enjoy anything Bobby Heenan does to this day, not many people can match wits with him.

I won’t comment on everyone, but just a few thoughts about a couple inductees. I thought Bret was as classy as ever with his speech and it was good to see him be inducted after all that has happened. I’m not sure if his whole speech aired, but it was really entertaining. Glad to see the Hitman in the HOF.

To say Eddie’s induction was very emotional would be a HUGE understatement. I don’t think there were many dry eyes in the building – it was a great celebration of his life and legacy that he left with all of us. Once again when you hear people talk about Eddie, you realize what a great heart he had for others. I only had a few conversations with Eddie when I was occasionally on the road, but I admired his compassion and faith so much.

Sunday came and WM22 had arrived. I’ve gotta say, I was really excited, this was my first WrestleMania and I couldn’t wait for the show. Before we went over to the arena I went with MNM to an appearance they had scheduled with reps from WWE’s partner companies, etc. These were people involved with THQ video games, JAKKS pacific action figures, and also some reps from the book department who help collaborate with WWE for upcoming book releases.

After that luncheon was over, we all headed to the arena for the show. This was the first time I had been to a WWE show since my diagnosis. It was so good to see friends I don’t get to see very often and just be around the atmosphere. It was so good for me emotionally to be around and just soak in the atmosphere once again. I thought it might be bad for me to go to a show at first – sometimes it’s so hard be around something that you know you can’t do right now. I wanted so badly to be performing, but I know it’s just a matter of time before I beat my current battle and get back in that ring.

I spent most of the day talking with everyone and just enjoying the fact that I was able to be there. I got to spend some time with P.O.D. that afternoon – they are great guys with an even better message in their music. I’ve been a fan of them for years and was stoked to meet them. They actually helped me out with a project I’m getting ready to launch – keep an eye out for that (coming soon)! It’s something I developed before I started wrestling, but just recently obtained the resources to get it launched. Keep checking back for updates very soon!

Everything was great until I got an unfortunate phone call. It was about 4:00 and only a few hours until Mania started when I found out that there was a death in my family. I had to find a flight back home immediately. I ended leaving for the airport at about 6:00 that night. I sat on the airplane for 2 hours before they cancelled the flight on us. Basically I sat on a plane for the duration of WrestleMania – not the best seats in the house. I had to catch a ride back to the hotel and grab an early morning flight back to Louisville. It was a crazy couple days to say the least and I’ve had to do so much work regarding the funeral, paperwork, and moving into my new place. I’m probably the most stress-free guy you’ll ever meet, but these past couple weeks have had me on edge for sure. There is still a lot of work left to do, but at least things are calming down for now.

I’m hoping to update everyone on my medical situation in the next week or so, thanks to everyone who has asked and who has continued to pray for me –