Photo via TUF Twitter
Yesterday Al wrote something very interesting on his twitter which was great, yet simple advice for whatever your career may be. He wrote “ The best days of my life and the worst days of my life have come from this sport. Whatever your dream is pursue it.” Not to get too deep but life isn’t always easy. You may have a goal in mind and encounter some road blocks along the way. If you have a dream, and something you feel passionate about you shouldn’t let anyone stand in your way. Sometimes you have to make sacrifices, which is exactly what Al and everyone else in the TUF house is doing right now.
I was reminded how incredible yet how difficult this experience was on last Fridays episode. It was Easter Sunday and of all people the controversial Chris Tickle was making the guys in the house turkey for dinner. On a day like that you realize what a huge sacrifice Al is making in earning this opportunity. Being away from everything important to him, especially including his friends and family. In that, he’s also signed up for three months of not having any real contact with the outside world. Yet for now this is what’s most important to him.
Most people talk about how “awesome” it is having Al on the show and even more exciting the weeks we actually get to see him fight. In reality for Al the opportunity is exciting, but the experience is a difficult grind. It’s more like being in a boot camp. The only difference of course being he gets to live in a multi million dollar house. He can’t watch TV, go on the internet, or go anywhere for that matter. He can’t even talk to anyone in the outside world. The guys only contact with people outside of the house for the most part has been answering questions from time to time via twitter. Al and the guys also have to constantly deal with the stress of cameraman being in there faces monitoring everything they do.
It isn’t going to get any easier. The competition is going to get tougher and everyones patience will likely begin to grown very thin. The longer you spend around the house the less your going to want to be there and get back to reality. The important thing to remember is this IS reality. Al is going through hell because this is his goal and nothing is more important to him. Those “worst days” may be the ones where he’s stuck in the TUF house with nothing to do missing friends and family, but the “best days” will be when he’s standing in the middle of that cage on the biggest stage with his hand raised in victory. That alone makes the sacrifices seem well worth it.
-Matt Pellicane
Iaquinta Nation 
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, Charles Dickins, Tale of Two Cities