Humid Friday Night and No JABB

Steve was out of town, so I opened the gym, or should I say, Robert, one of the fieldhouse staff opened up. We had to go through the basketball gym and enter using the door there because Robert did not have a key for the main door to the boxing gym. I don't like having that door open when I'm watching the gym. Occassionally, kids and teens playing ball will wander into the boxing gym through that door, then it's a problem getting them out. "We want to box a few rounds", they'll say, knowing they don't know how, or they want to play around on the equipment. After I got my wraps and boxing shoes on, I had to go back through the basketball gym to get to the water fountain to fill the water bottles. Sometimes, the guys doing hoops don't pay me any attention, but there's always females hanging around the benches to watch the guys. They give me odd looks when I pass by, and mumble under their breaths. I want to say, "At least I ain't wasting my time trying to look cute and doing nothing." Reminds me of when I was in high school. I hated being around girls who seemed to have nothing on their minds but how to catch knuckleheaded boys. The same girls would roll their eyes at girls like me who weren't tunnel visioned like that.

It was hot in the gym because it was humid outside. I turned the one box fan on, but that wasn't enough. Too much of a chore to open the ancient windows. Besides, I didn't want to forget to close them. Steve told me how Barry had called to get on him once when he forgot.

Fortunately, the guys who were already in the gym did not want to stay late. However, Gabe, who is home for the summer from college, walked in near closing time, followed by Emmanuel. Gabe had a legit excuse--he works as a lifeguard at a pool, and the hours hard for him to get to the gym on time. Emmanuel is not an official member at Loyola Gym; he normally works out at Clarendon, a fieldhouse several miles south of Loyola. "Just let me have three good rounds," he pleaded, so I stuck around. I wasn't in a great rush to get home. My apartment was just as hot as the gym.

Missed out on going to JABB Gym on Saturday, because I accepted an invitation from one of my cousins to hang out with her out in the suburb she lives in. Judging by how stuffy it was in JABB the last time I was there, I can imagine it was even worse due to the heat wave we're having. I only remember being overcome by heat once, over ten years ago. I had been walking around for a long time outside, no water bottle with me, for whatever reason I don't remember. I leaned against a tree outside of a woman's house. She came out, gave me some water, and a wet nap to wipe my brow with. Might have been a good idea not to go down to JABB, jumping around in the heat.