Missing In Action

A guy was talking to Steve about taking up boxing. I guess the guy asked how many people are normally signed up, because Steve asked me how many I thought there were. It appears that about 40 people are signed up at any given time. Many do not come in on a regular basis, like Rias (I've been spelling his name wrong; I hope that's the correct way) who came in on Wednesday. Some showed up once or twice, but never came back, yet their names are still on the roster.

Gilberto, one of the fieldhouse staff members, asked Steve and I had we heard from Lan. She's been on my mind lately. A few months ago, she was assigned to a military base in Missouri. Steve had emailed her awhile ago, but the email bounced back to him. I hope all is well.

From time to time, I wonder what happened to Igor. He was a middle aged man of who was a regular in the gym when I first started training there. Igor didn't have a good command of English; I don't remember which country he was from. Half the time, we couldn't make out what he was talking about. He would ask Steve a lot of questions, often while the coach was trying to concentrate on something else. Got on Steve's nerves sometimes.

Ike was a young man who had a great interest in boxing and seemed to be moving up. He had a lot of personal challenges: job issues, family issues, financial problems. Ike had moved to another city for several months, then came back, claiming to want to get back in the game. His appearances at the gym became sporadic, though. Rumors began to fly about drug use, drug dealing, and child support problems. I was surprised to find out that Ike had a toddler. One of the last times I saw him, Ike attempted to work out with alcohol on his breath. Steve admonished him about coming to the gym under the influence.

Betty was a tall, big boned woman who came in on and off, but regularly than most of the women who have been there. She had to have been six feet tall. I liked her. She was very articulate. Steve put her and I together in a sparring match. I dipped down to avoid her fist at the wrong moment, and her glove came down on top of my head. I had a headache the rest of the night, and was sore for days afterwards.

Mike and Dorian were a couple. Dorian worked at the martial arts school I used to attend, and Mike had taken classes there. Mike had also graduated from the same high school I attended, although years after I had gone there. Dorian didn't come in often, but Mike was usually in the gym. Dorian was sophisticated, and Mike, a tall, friendly, lanky guy, always seemed in awe that he landed such a woman. They moved out of the neighborhood over a year ago.