Channeling Dad At The Gym

The photo above is of David after a bloody sparring session.

The gym was full, but not as packed as it was a couple of weeks ago.  I didn't go last week because I had a bad cold, but I was ready for some action this week.  I sparred with Alesia, one of the new people at the gym.  It was her first time sparring.  I kept my jab out there, and for good reason.  She was taller and thicker built than I, and her punches were hard.

Ro mixed it up with Jesus.  Jesus had his hands down a lot.  I realized that he was attempting to draw Ro in so he could drop a right hand on him.

Ben and John seemed to have a slug fest.  Ben was rushing in a lot, while John used footwork to keep away from the more wilder punches.

EJ watches the sparring in this photo.

Kathy sparred with Nicole (I think I have the name right), and Nicole was rushing in with her punches.  Kathy's long arms and legs warded off a lot of damage.

I decided to channel my late dad, so I came to the gym wearing one of his Stetson hats, a jacket of his, and I was holding one of his cigars.  Alan took this photo.  "Are you going to light up the cigar?" Alan asked.  "Oh, no!  This cigar is probably more than 12 years old," I answered.  I just have it for the look, not to smoke it.  I always wonder about some boxers who do smoke.  Boxing is a tough enough sport without trying to do with smoke in the lungs.

First Blood

The photo above shows Xavier getting the drop on BJ the other day. In the background, Davon and his older brother Cordell watch the action.

BJ kept moving around while sparring with Xavier, but he would not throw any punches back.  BJ kept his guard up, but Xavier would just step around and deliver punches to BJ's body.  I kept telling BJ to at least keep his jab going.  Instead, BJ kept allowing himself to get pinned against the ropes, and then turning his head and back away from Xavier.

The next round didn't last long.  Xavier reached out with a right, and BJ had his hands down.  BJ turned to look at me.  Just as I said to BJ, "You're not bleeding," a trickle of red came from his left nostril.  BJ leaned on the ropes, putting his head down.  I called to Cordell:  "Go to the men's washroom and grab some paper towels!"  Cordell took so long that his brother Davon went to see what was going on.  In the meantime, blood was dripping onto the canvas.  Finally, I ran to the women's washroom to get towels.

I cleaned up BJ, and that was the end of that sparring session.  The gym was busy because a lot of people came to the class that day.  It was awhile later before I was able to inspect the canvas again.  There was a bright red stain, the first blood that has ever been on that canvas.  I tried to get it up with a little soap and water, but it was too late.  The blood had set.  "That won't be the last blood stain on the canvas," I thought to myself.

A Bout With A Cold

Yesterday, I suffered through work.  I got sick the day before, and I had planned to stay at home.  But I had promised the kids -- namely, Cordell and his brother Devon -- that they would be able to spar the following week.  Cordell and his brother had to go home early, and they missed out on participating in the open sparring session.  I don't like making promises to kids then backing out of them.

I trudged into work despite feeling like I had been body slammed.  Earl started in with his usual, "I don't have my mouthpiece. . . .oh, it's in my coat pocket," routine.  After admonishing Earl for that, I had to ask him several times did he want to spar.  Justen, TJ and Jermaine were already suited up.  Earl kept mumbling and not really giving and answer.  It annoys the hell out of me when kids do that.  Mighty funny they can scream and yell about everything else, but can't seem to answer a direct question.  "Fine," I grumbled, giving up when I still didn't get a concrete decision.

Jermaine took a beating from Justen because Jermaine kept ignoring instructions from his mother and I to stop turning his back and giving up whenever he was backed into the ropes.

TJ hit Justen in the same spot -- in the ribs -- that Eddie did during the open sparring session.  Justen laid on the canvas for awhile, then decided he couldn't go on.

Neither Devon nor Cordell showed up.  I had dragged myself down to the job mainly for them only to have the brothers disappoint me.  Ben was the only one who showed up for the teen class.  Turns out his family will not be moving out to the 'burbs after all.  Once again, none of the adults showed up.

I talked to the boss about Brenan, who was registered for the class by another staff person, even though the kids' class is full.  The boss said one or two registered beyond the max is not a big deal.  Perhaps not.  But I'm worried about a staff member adding more, and that will be a problem to me.

I signed up a new kid named Ezequel for the teen class.  Too bad I didn't go to work today due to ongoing illness.  I met his mother and sister, but Ezequel wasn't present when his mom signed him up.  Hopefully, I'll get to meet him tomorrow, and set him up to get some work in with Ben and Xavier.

Open Sparring Session

Justen and Suave have a conversation on the other side of the equipment table in the photo above.

I invited several coaches to bring their fighters over for an open sparring session at LaFollette.  Only Marlen, the coach at Portage Park, was able to make it.  He brought three kids over.

Unfortunately, Cordell and his brother Davon forgot to tell family members they were sticking around for the session.  Their grandmother wanted them to come by her, so they had to leave.  Brenan couldn't stay either, and TJ and Earl didn't show up.  That left Suave, Justen, Julian, and Xavier.  There was no one among the kids Marlen had whom Xavier could spar with, so he just did his normal workout.

Justen surprised me while he was in the ring with Eddie (on the right in the picture above, working the pads with Marlen).  Now there were some things we have to work on.  Justen kept dropping his hands, and he turned his back on Eddie a few times.  But Justen had no fear, and basically kept his composure the entire time.  A hit to the ribs caused Justen not to continue after the second round, but he did fine.

Julian allowed the other boy from Marlen's gym to get the drop on him.  Julian's hands and head were down a majority of the time.  Every time the other boy would back Julian against the ropes, Julian would just lay there and take the punches.  Their three rounds ended with Julian in tears.

Suave sparred with Eddie, and he did okay.  But I have to break Suave out of the habit of hopping towards an opponent.  No sense in hopping into an incoming punch.  Suave always practices his footwork when he's in the gym, but we're going to need some more work on that.

In this photo (from left to right), Suave, Justen, and Julian are suited up for sparring.

I learned some other things about having an open sparring match:

1)  No matter how early in advance I let people know about it, there's always going to be coaches and fighters who are not going to be able to attend.  I have to just be thankful for the ones that do show up.

2)  I have to allow time for the visiting fighters to warm up.  That didn't even occur to me until Marlen mentioned his kids would have to have at least a half-hour to get ready for sparring.

3)  It would be a good idea for me to provide something other than water for the visiting coaches and fighters, as well as their relatives and friends who may attend.  It doesn't have to be a full meal, but some light snacks would be nice.

4) I should treat the open sparring session somewhat like it's a regular boxing match, even though it isn't.  For some of the participants, this may be their first time sparring anybody.  That was the case with the three kids at my gym.  I have to be prepared to sooth nerves before the sparring begins.

I don't know when I'll schedule another open sparring session.  But the door at my gym is open to any of the coaches who want to bring their kids over to get extra practice in.

Registration Issues

A man walks into the class with his son and daughter.  He tells me that his son is signed up for the 12 years old and under boxing class.  I saw that his son, Brenan, was not listed on the attendance sheet.  "Oh, I just signed him up yesterday," the dad explained.

Cordell was the only one who came in for the teen class, so I had time to scoot upstairs and check the computer.  Sure enough, Brenan was signed up.  One of my co-workers -- I wish I knew who -- signed the kid up, ignoring the fact that the class is full, and kids are supposed to be at least eight years old to be in the class.  Brenan should have been placed on the waiting list instead.

That kind of stuff puts me in a bad position.  First of all, if management looks hard at the attendance records, they will assume that I authorized letting extra people into a class that was already full.  That is against the rules, as is signing up someone who is too young for a class.  I can't go and tell the parent that their child is not allowed in the class without creating hard feelings.  Looks like I'm going to have to explain to staff members why it's important that I'm able to give everyone in the class individual attention -- something I can't do if the class becomes overcrowded.

Fortunately, I saw Deja in the hallway.  I told her I mistakenly thought she and her brother Terry were not signed up for the class.  I told her that she and her brother should come back to the class beginning next week.

Elizabeth seemed very disappointed that she could not be in the boxing class. Turns out that her mother didn't want her in the sport.  Elizabeth showed up in the middle of the kids' class the day before, following me around like a puppy.  She was oblivious to the fact that there were several kids in the class going off in all directions, and I was trying to keep on top of things.  I allowed her to stay in the class if she would sit down.  Not a good decision on my part.  She began fooling around with the equipment, and I reminded her that she couldn't touch anything.  Then she comes up to me while I was helping another kid and asked, "Can I use the weights?"  I gave a second, stronger reminder that she was not in the class and therefore, the equipment was off limits.  It took way too long for Elizabeth to take the hint, but finally, she left the gym.

Another little girl whose name I can't remember wanted to be in the class, too.  She told me, "My mother doesn't want my face to get banged up."  But I assured her that I don't force anyone to spar nor compete.  "Tell your mom that you can just learn the punches and not have to hit anyone in class," I told her.  She'll have to go on the waiting list, but even if she doesn't get in this session, she would be able to have dibs on the summer session.

A Brief Talk

Earl claimed that he wasn't feeling well (again), and his cousin TJ backed him up.  "There's something wrong with Earl's heart," he said.  That was the first time I heard that one.  "Sounds like another excuse to me," I grumbled for all in the gym to hear.  Not long afterward, Earl's goofing around told a different story of a boy who was perfectly fine.

But Earl's tired antics couldn't put on damper on what turned out to be a good kids' class.  I was able to work with most of the kids on the punch mitts, and go around and give pointers to those who worked out on the equipment.  It was just a good vibe in the room.

Maybe it had something to do with the brief talk I gave in the middle of the class. All the time I was working with some on the punch mitts, I noticed Earl, Justen, TJ, and Jermaine goofing off.  I gathered everyone around the main equipment table.  "I can show you boxing techniques, but everybody has to be self-motivated.  Y'all gotta want to do this sport.  If people don't, there's not a whole lot I can do.  The kids at the other 20 boxing gyms in the park district are training every day.  It's not that we can't have fun and laugh in here, but people have to be focused.  Trust me, the others that you'll have fights with at the boxing shows are going to figure out quickly if y'all haven't trained hard enough.  I don't get mad at people because they lost a match if they gave it their all.  I get annoyed when people lose a match and complain to me about the loss, when I know people didn't do enough in here to make a good showing," I told the kids.

I talked to Suave about the boxing shows.  He told me, "My dad and I spar at home."  That's a good sign.  I've mentioned the shows to the other kids, but I still don't know how they really feel about competing.  I'll be getting around to questioning the others soon.

Cordell was the only one who showed up for the teen class.  Cordell is very quiet.  Cordell is also awkward with his movements.  I told him that he needed to move around during shadowboxing, but the footwork wasn't working.  As I worked with him on the punch mitts, I moved around so he'd have to follow me and stay on his toes.  The results produced were much better.

Bennie returned to the adult class.  "My right uppercut feels fine, but the left uppercut feels funny to me," he told me.  I suggested that Bennie use his right uppercut to go for the head, and the left uppercut for the body.  That worked better for him.

Bennie has a friend who is interested in taking the class.  "Please tell him to come in.  There's plenty of room," I said eagerly.  The other two participants in the adult class still haven't shown up yet.  It would be nice to have at least two adults in the gym to train.  

New Session, Same Issues

I was told that I should not tell kids the boxing class is full.  Instead, I should put them on the waiting list, especially if the kids regularly participate in other classes and activities at the field house.  If some kids already in the class stop showing up, then I can let the kids on the waiting list in.  Sounds like a solution on the surface.  But none officially withdraw out of the class once they are in.  Most opt to just show up sporadically, which to me, is a disruption of the class.

It was the first day of the spring session for me yesterday.  The kids' class is full, but only half of those who signed up came in.  Deja and her brother Terry returned.  The attendance list I had didn't show their names, so I told them they weren't signed up.  A check on the computer later showed me that they were.  I wondered why those two didn't speak up to tell me they were registered.  I'll have to rectify that situation later.

Michael showed up, but he is not signed up for spring.  I told his mother I have to put him on the waiting list.  She promised that Michael was going to act better, but I'm not putting any bets on that.  After all, it was about twenty minutes into the class when he walked in, and Michael's attitude clearly did not say he was ready to work out.

The dad of Shynla, a new girl in the class, explained she was over 15 minutes late because she gets out of school the same time the boxing class begins.  It's not worth me getting annoyed about that situation anymore.  The parents know what time the class begins when they sign their kids up.  Their kids will just cheat themselves out of training time, that's all.  I can't wait to see what happens when the kids' and teens' class times are cut down from 75 minutes to 60 minutes when the summer session begins in June.

Earl started his usual habit of talking too much, but I dismissed both him and his cousin TJ.  "The both of you have been in here before, so start your workout.  I have to work with the new kids," I told hem.  TJ had the nerve to ask me, "What do I do next?" while standing in front of the workout list.  "Read the board," I said dryly for the umpteenth time.

Elizabeth and her brother Jamil roamed in and out of the gym a few times until I asked them to recognize that class was taking place.  Apparently, Elizabeth never asked her mother to sign her for boxing.  Oh, well. . . . .

I've taken an instant liking to Suave, who's real name is Joseph.  His mother told me he's wanted to be a boxer since he was five years old.  She had taken boxing at the YMCA, but her dad took her out of it.  "My parents didn't like the fact that I boxed either," I told her.  Suave seems to be a little scrapper to me.  I have to help him channel that energy into boxing technique.

There are currently eight people signed up for the teen class, but only Xavier, and a newcomer, Cordell, came in.  Terence signed up again, but he can only come in on the weekends.

Three are on the books for the adult class, but none of them came in.  That class keeps teetering on the brink of being cut completely, in my opinion.  It's the only one of the classes I coach that never really took off.  There's only a couple of times I can think of where I paid for a class of any type and didn't finish it.  The cost for the adult class is low, but that's still money wasted when people don't continue through or don't show up at all.  That class is already slated to continue during summer, but if it keeps going like it has, I may strongly suggest that it be dropped from the fall schedule.

A Contrast Between Two Adult Classes

There had to be at least 30 people in the boxing gym at Loyola Park.  This was the first day of the spring session there.  Alan thought that while the boxing program at Loyola doesn't seem to be advertised heavily, he still gets a full crowd each session.  I think that's because the program is fed into from the student population at nearby Loyola University.  It also attracts the yuppies and other upper middle class types in the neighborhood who are looking for a different way to exercise.  Of course, the numbers will thin out as people drop out for various reasons.  But Alan always begins the sessions with a lot of people.

That is in sharp contrast to the adult boxing class at LaFollette Park. I only have three people signed up.  It's difficult to get adults interested in the class, and when they do sign up, they don't stay long.  There is no major college nearby to pull participants from.  The neighborhood is largely made up of the poor, low-income, and working class.  The culture of the area places high emphasis on football and basketball, but boxing comes in dead last, if at all.

Today's sparring participants were David, Kathy, Professor, Ben, myself, the other Ben (who wears a beard), Rojan, and Andres, who returned to the gym.  Sparring was the heaviest exercise I did, because there were too many people in the gym to get in any time on the equipment.

Very few of the adults in the boxing class at LaFollette have sparred.  I remember Ben Sr. (yes, another guy named Ben) sparring with his sister, but that was about it.  I'm curious to see what types of adults I will have in the class this session.

Mr. Wizard Couldn't Save The Day

Jesus, who hadn't been in the gym for awhile, works one of the heavy bags in the photo above.

I begged off sparring at Loyola Park, thinking I would put my energy into the general workout.  My body had other plans.  I was dragging like Tooter Turtle trying to get out of a predicament back in time.  Mr. Wizard could have said "Drizzle, Drazzle, Druzzle, Drome; Time for this one to come home", all day long, and it still wouldn't have helped me.  By the time my body decided to perk up, it was time for the gym to close.

Arvin sparred with David. . . . .

Kathy sparred with David. . . . .

Ro and Alan mixed it up.  

Meanwhile, at my own gym, I noticed the seasonal sports coach putting together a flyer for a track meet.  "Oh, he runs that sport too,"  I thought to myself.  "I can recruit the kids who show up for this for football," he explained to the staff.  I've been looking at the low numbers I have so far for the spring boxing session, and I'm currently at a loss as to how to get more people in.  But boxing continues to be a hard sell, especially among the adults.

The problem with getting the kids interested is mostly on them:  a lack of self-motivation.  I teach the techniques, I suggest exercises and give advice on what to eat.  But if a kid doesn't want to push themselves to take advantage of what the program offers, there's not much else I can do.  I'm up against a generation who believes professional wrestling is real, and who prefers the free-for-all that is mixed martial arts.  

Some of the kids seem not to be able to comprehend a sport where there is no ball to kick, hit, or throw, nor teammates.  No matter how many times I point it out, some kids don't get there is a big difference between a street fight and a boxing match.  

As for the adults,  some sign up without figuring in their other time commitments, mainly work, school, and their kids.  When they disappear after a few classes, I think, "Wow, that's some money thrown down the drain."  Others underestimate how tough the workout is, claiming, "Yeah, I need this," but giving up after a few tries.  Even though I make it clear that the adults do not have to spar nor compete, the thought of it scares some away.  

It's an ongoing battle, and Mr. Wizard can't easily fix that, either.  

From The South Side To The Stadium

It was a long day.  It began with my stepmother's funeral, which was held at the same funeral home on the south side where my dad's wake took place twelve years earlier.  The situation felt very unreal to me -- a busy, lively woman laying in a coffin, looking as if she was only sleeping.  After the service, I went straight home.  I took the day off from the gym.

Later, I went up to Cicero Stadium.  It was Kathy's turn to step into the ring.  Kathy beat everyone to the gym.  She had been there two hours when I arrived.  Alan showed up a little while afterward.  Kathy's bout was the ninth of the night.  Alan told her to get ready, because the prior fights may end early.  The first two fights of the night did.  Another fight ended due to a disqualification.

When I first got to the stadium, I went to the washroom.  There was a woman, dressed to box, sitting out in the hallway.  Later I found out that she was Kathy's opponent.  During the boxing match, Alan kept yelling for Kathy to "punch!", but the other woman threw non-stop punches.  It was hard for Kathy to return any punches back.  Joe, the referee, gave Kathy an eight-count twice.  The third time Joe not only stopped the action, but he stopped the fight.

Kathy was not upset at the outcome.  She was relieved that all the tension that had built up to that point was finally over.  I told her she would probably sleep good that night.  "I bet I will!" she smiled.

I saw two people whom I hadn't seen in awhile.  I ran into Emmanuel downtown as I was changing trains to get to the stadium.  JJ was at the fights; he was telling Alan about an injury to his hand.  Other familiar faces were on-hand, too, including Rita, Tina, Sam, Percy, Shifty, heavyweight boxer Fres Oquendo, and ex-boxer David Diaz.

Kathy said she didn't know if she would fight again.  I hope she takes another chance, perhaps at one of the upcoming park district boxing shows.

Here and Absent

The photo above explains why the gym wasn't open yesterday.  It was Election Day, and despite promises to the contrary, my space was used once again for voting purposes.  Yet, I didn't have too many problems in the gym.  That is, if you don't count one of the election judges playing around on one of the speed bags, or a toddler I caught rolling around in the ring, or the fact that the boxing equipment room door was left open by one of the attendants -- again.

I had time to complete the attendance records for the winter session that recently ended.  I was marking "absent" more times than I was marking "attended" for most of the participants.  There were several days in a row when no one showed up to the gym.  I also noticed that Janae and Tyler never signed up for the class.
Janae's dad told me he registered his daughter again, so I was confused as to why her name didn't appear on the computer system.

As for Tyler, I remember reminding him several times to have his parents/guardians sign him up.  I don't get why the youths who beg to be in the gym simply can't open their mouths and ask whomever is responsible for raising them to sign them up.  Honestly, I'm tired of constantly explaining to most that the park district can't allow liability and legal issues to arise because people were not officially signed up to participate in the boxing program.  Tyler has been showing because his buddies Xavier and Terence are there, but I'll let him know since his buddies are signed up, Tyler has to follow suit.

A grandmother came in to speak to me about putting one of her grandchildren in the program.  Turns out her grandchild was too young to be in the program.  "Are there any other activities here they can sign up for?" she asked.  We were in the computer room that is tucked back behind the front counter.  That means she passed through the front area where there is a table and a huge bulletin board loaded with information about what classes and activities are at that park.  It was impossible not to notice the table and the bulletin board.  I directed her back out front to get that information so I could get back to putting in my attendance numbers.  That's another problem -- people not noticing things and not reading the literature.

Another person came in to sign up her kid, but the current numbers for the spring session still aren't satisfactory to me.  I would prefer to have most signed up before the session starts.  It throws me off when people sign up in the middle of a session.  It's irritating too, because most of the time, they knew the session had already started.  There's too much of this waiting around to register and then assuming there will be room.

Sparring and Another Funeral

Like my late mother and father, my stepmother didn't like the fact I boxed, either. She did attend one of my fights, however, and she filmed some footage of Alan giving me a pep talk beforehand.  My stepmother passed away late last week, nearly a year after she had an accident in her home.  I'll be attending her funeral later this week. I wasn't in the mood to spar at Loyola Park, partially because my stepmother was on my mind, and partially because I wasn't sure my knees were going to stand up to it.

The sparring sessions began with Professor and Ro, who really seemed to work well together.  Alan said that he would like to see Ro compete in a boxing show down the line.

Professor also sparred with David.

Kathy also sparred with David.

Then Alan put his gear on and told her, "You've brought the old man out of retirement."  Kathy caught Alan with a few jabs and straight rights.  She got in as much sparring as she could because she'll be fighting in the Chicago Golden Gloves later this week.

Alan then sparred with Arvin.  Arvin has good punches, but he often hesitates to throw them all the way out.  I was standing on the apron, giving Arvin advice as the two men sparred.

I wondered where everyone else was, then I remembered that the winter session ended last week.  Alan asked me when the spring session begins, and I had to remember that his boxing class begins a day before mine resumes at LaFollette.  Alan had word that his class was filling up fast.  If any of the classes I have fill up, it'll be a long time coming.  People waiting until the middle of the session to sign up -- then disappearing quickly -- seems to be the norm.

Losing The Potentials

Here is one view of the boxing equipment room at LaFollette Park.  I put most of the stuff back in their places.

Here is a second view.  No, the kiln hasn't been moved yet, but someone is supposed to come and get it and take it to another field house.  Mitch, one of the swimming instructors, helped me set the little table back up and put the small refrigerator on top of it.  The extra heavy bags still need to be put back in the room.

I made the announcement that this is the last week of the winter session, and it's time to sign up for the spring session.  Earl and TJ waffled on whether or not they would return.  David said he's on a swim team, so he probably won't sign up again.  Michael just said straight out he didn't want to take the class again.

Xavier, Tyler, Terrance, and Ben didn't show up for the teen class.  I signed up a new guy, Jesus, for the spring teen boxing class, but I'm wondering if any of the guys who are currently in that class will come back next session.

It's so frustrating to have people in the gym, especially if they are showing mad potential, decide to walk away from the sport.  Nearly two years have gone by, and I still don't have a core group of fighters that will stick around.  I know the football/basketball/baseball coach deals with the same issue.  But then those programs have great methods of recruiting players and getting the support of parent/guardians.  Even though Coach James loses a lot of the kids before the season ends, he still has enough of a crowd to populate the games.  And a lot of those kids keep returning year after year.

The gymnastics instructor was shaking her head that only four of her girls are ready for an upcoming competition.  However, she has many kids in that class, and that class continues to grow.  Some of the girls who used to be in boxing ran off to be in that class.

I feel as if some people sign up for boxing intending only to kick the tires and window shop.  They determine what the "trial run" will be, which is usually very short.  When that time is up, people are gone, and I'm sitting around in an empty gym, twiddling my thumbs.  I would like to bring my fighters to competitions, but that's hard to do when they're not there to begin with.  Depending on how soon the competitions are coming up, there's not always time to get people ready for fights.  Then I'm back to square one.  Again.

Earl and TJ's Modus Operandi

One of the attendants at LaFollette Park shook his head when he saw the boxing equipment room (in the above photo).  It has now been painted white, but it was apparent to him that the paint job should have never taken this long to get done. I agreed.  There wasn't that much to paint. I was wishing they had asked my opinion regarding what color the room should have been painted.  Judging by the constant dust and debris there, I certainly would not have chose white as the color.  The painters dragged the job out unnecessarily, and now it appears they will take their time removing the paint and other equipment out of that room, too.

Just as sure as Roger Bolander, Virginia Johnson Bolander, Terry Murphy, and Ken Doering are abject failures as human beings (see previous posts), Earl came in with yet another excuse as to why he couldn't spar.  "Uh-huh", I said, opting not to comment any further.  TJ also had one.  "I ate too much junk food and forgot I had to go to boxing today," he said.  Jaylin won't spar with the smaller boys because of fear of hurting them.  I had sparred at Loyola Park the night before, so I didn't want to spar with Jaylin, so no sparring took place.

I replaced the air pump that had been stolen.  I now keep it locked up with the sparring gloves.  After putting air into the speed bags, I noticed that the one my friend Donna gave me has to be replaced.  It keeps leaking out air.  Looks like that's something else I will have to pay for out of my pocket.  The equipment budget for the gym is already too small to get everything for which I asked.

Marty at Simons Park returned my call on the field house phone, but I didn't get the message until after I closed the gym.  Marty must have been already gone, because when I called back, the answering machine at his field house picked up.  I'm really interested in having Marty bring his fighters over to LaFollette for the open sparring session I've planned for next month.  Simons Park is very close to LaFollette, and Marty has always been supportive of me from the get-go.

My right wrist was bothering me.  I had sprained it several years ago due to not using a properly padded set of bag gloves.  The first thing I thought was, "I hope this doesn't mean arthritis."  My late mother had a little bit of arthritis in her hands, and my oldest aunt -- who is now 90 years old -- really has a tough time with it in various joints.  Being an aging coach/fighter is a trip, but I just have to keep it moving.

Catching A Nose Ring

I felt someone tap me on the shoulder while I stood in front of my locker at Loyola Park.  I turned around to see Kenny, and I gave him a big hug.  In the photo above, Kenny gives David some pointers in-between sparring sessions.

I sparred four rounds -- three with Kathy, and two with Carrie Anne.  My knees refused, absolutely refused, to cooperate during the first two rounds I was in the ring with Kathy.  It was as if I was slogging through thick Jello.  When my arthritic knees don't want to work, my feet follow suit.  I tried to get up on the balls of my feet, but I remained flat footed the entire time.  Meanwhile, Kathy was popping me in my head and my stomach.

I sparred with Carrie Anne before doing a last round with Kathy.  I found a second wind from somewhere.  I kept thinking to myself, "Let's go, Action Jackson!"  Action Jackson (1988) was a movie starring Carl Weathers.  I've never seen the movie, but I remember my younger sister telling me about it.  For some reason, the title popped into my mind.  Carrie was throwing some good jabs, but I kept tapping them down and going for her mid-section. I got in a left hook to her head, which amazed me, because I seldom manage to get left hooks in on anybody.

Later, Carrie Anne told me that she had a bit of a nosebleed.  I was shocked.  "Are you okay?" I asked.  "Yeah, it's okay.  One of your punches got my nose ring," she said.

I learned that Connor lost his preliminary match at the Chicago Golden Gloves.  It sounded like the same situation that happened with Ben's fight at the Gloves. Alan said that Connor stuck to his game plan and was winning the rounds.  But the judges apparently saw something else and gave the win to the other guy.  Alan and Connor told me that even the coach of the other guy was shocked that Connor didn't win.  Now there's just Kathy left to compete, and I hope she will steamroll over her opponent.

Training, Tournaments and Painting

Rojan watches a sparring match at Loyola Park in the photo above.

No kids or adults showed up to LaFollette gym, as I have come to expect on the weekend.  But Janae and Terrance were there for the teens' class.  I didn't suggest that any sparring take place because Janae has almost zero experience with that, and I didn't want to take a chance with putting her in with Terrance.  However, I was pleased to know that Janae does shadow box on her own when she's not able to come to the gym.

I've made some more phone calls to coaches to set up the sparring session next month.  It's hard to catch people because they are usually working the same time that I am.  But I want to make it work because most of the youths in my gym really need the sparring practice.  It won't be long before the park district boxing shows begin, and I'd like to see everyone who is willing get a chance to participate.

I made it to the Chicago Golden Gloves last night only to miss Ben's (not the one in my teen class, but the one who trains at Loyola Park) fight.  Alan told me that Ben did a great job, but the judges gave the win to the other guy.  I made a point of telling the teens at my gym that they have to do the best they can not to leave the outcome of a fight in the judges' hands.  In other words, they have to work hard to make sure the judges have no choice but to hand them the win.

I've been hearing that the people who now own the Chicago version of the tournament are happy with it being out at Cicero Stadium.  But judging by the low turnout, the audiences still aren't down with the idea.  Even when the tournament moved away from St. Andrews, where it had been for decades, to Gordon Tech high school, the crowds were huge and the vibe was high.  That hasn't been the case since the Golden Gloves have been held out in the suburbs.

A check of the attendance sheets for the LaFollette spring boxing session showed that Elizabeth hasn't been signed up like she told me.  People may think I'm being mean, but I kind of hope that she doesn't.  After all, it seems odd to me that a girl who has been telling me for over a year that she doesn't want to box now all of a sudden is interested in the sport.  She's already told me she doesn't want to spar, which is problematic in a program that is set up for youths to compete.  I like Elizabeth, but I'd rather not have yet another kid just holding a place in class when another kid who wants to learn the sport and would actually do the work could have that spot.

Several boys kept coming into the gym being disruptive.  I kept putting them out (I have no problem or reservations with doing that).  Later, the same group of urchins came in with a woman who was related to a couple of them.  It appears that everyone still hasn't received the message that the Chicago Park District has gone paperless in terms of registrations.  While I was explaining online registration to the adult, the boys kept messing with the equipment.  I had to get loud with them a couple of times.  I apologized to the adult for my outburst towards the kids, but I have to also start letting the adults know that I'm not going to tolerate discipline problems out of their kids.  If their kids don't follow the rules and regulations, they're gone.  It's just that simple.

I've been toying with the idea of not allowing the youths to spar if they show up late on the days when sparring takes place.  There are still problems with youths taking too long to wrap their hands (because of goofing around), then not starting their workout right away.  No matter how many times I point out that showing up late cuts down on what they'll be able to do that day in terms of training, tardiness keeps happening.  The next step beyond that is just not allowing them to participate in tournaments due to lack of not being on time, and not training well on top of that, regardless if it was a sparring day or not.

Finally learned what happened to Deja -- she's in the gymnastics class.  Deja was one of the kids who had good potential (and her brother Terry had started to come along as well).  But it seems that gymnastics is a better fit for her.

Maybe when I come in next week, the painters will finally have finished painting the supply room.  Trust me, it's not a big job.  The painters seem to have a habit of stretching out jobs for some reason.  I could have gotten it done in a day or two.  Having painted my mother's house inside and out a few times when I was younger, I do know something about how to paint.

A Clean Room Reveals Another Theft

The photo above is of the boxing equipment room/my office at LaFollette Park.  That is the cleanest I have ever seen that room since I've been working there.  Some of the staff members helped me move practically everything out of there so the room can be spray painted (allegedly) tomorrow.

Unfortunately, I discovered that an air pump that I brought for the gym is gone.  Xavier noticed one of the speed bags was low on air, so I went to get the pump to fill it up.  I've found the equipment room open on most days when I've arrived at work when it was supposed to be locked after the painters did what little work they had been doing over the past few weeks.  With that much easy access going on, it's anyone guess who might have taken it.  A work order is going to be put in to place a lock on the cabinet from where the pump was stolen.

Another view of the equipment room, facing the back of the space.  The cabinet where the pump used to be is on the right.

Elizabeth, a pleasant, but chatty little girl, informed me that her mother signed her up for the spring session of boxing.  For a year now, she's been telling me that she didn't want to take the class, mainly because she didn't want to get hit.  I'm trying to figure out how that is going to play out.  The kids and teens' boxing classes are designed to give them an opportunity to compete.  I'm concerned that Elizabeth is going to get bored with the workout routine and the discipline that goes along with it.  Also, the youths in the gym who do want to spar and compete can be relentless about picking at the youths who don't.

I went to the Chicago Golden Gloves only to meet Kathy and Alan coming out of Cicero Stadium.  Ben's fight was rescheduled to later this week.  Kathy's fight is two weeks away.  She's nervous, but looking forward to it.  I gave her some tips about blocking out the crowd noise and listening for the coach's voice.  I hope to help Alan in the corner with both Ben and Kathy.

Pretty Girl and Maintenance Issues

Professor and Martin watch the sparring at Loyola Park gym.  Martin hasn't been in the gym in awhile, but he's planning to sign up again.  He told me about Grauben, whom I also haven't seen in awhile.  Grauben would like to return as well, but he lives way out on the south side these days.

I sparred with Kathy.  No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get in close enough to throw any hooks to the body.  "Catch her in corner," Alan said, and I only managed to do that once.  My head was easy pickings for Kathy.  I fared a little better with Melissa, but only because she is still new to the boxing game.  I was able to get a lot of body shots in, and a few good ones to Melissa's head.

Ben and Connor's first fights at the Chicago Golden Gloves take place this week. I'm planning to see Ben's fight, but because my niece and her husband are coming to town later, I may not get to see Connor's fight.  Kathy's fight is still not on the schedule according to what I saw on the Golden Gloves web site.

Meanwhile at LaFollette, most of the boxing equipment is still in plastic bags.  The painters responsible for fixing up the supply room have barely done anything.  I do know that at least one of them sat at my desk in the supply and leisurely worked on a puzzle in the newspaper.  Yesterday, I loaded up the top of the desk with bags of equipment so that whoever that person was will have to find another spot to sit and read the newspaper and eat,  and whatever else they've been doing at my desk.

Now the painters are claiming that more things have to be moved around and perhaps out of the supply room so they can do their jobs.  Well maybe that would have been a good thing for them to communicate up front so the painting job would have been done by now.  I'm not going to have my program and its participants disrupted and inconvenienced; the painters will have to work around us, not the other way around.  I'm still salty about the two months it took them to finish painting the gym last year.  It took me awhile to build back up the boxing program, which had been shut down all that time, because of that.  And trust me, it should NOT have taken two months to paint that gym.

Ben sparred with Xavier.  "It's going to be my funeral", he told me beforehand.  Xavier is bigger than Ben and older by three years.  But Xavier was giving pointers to Ben while they were in the ring, which I appreciated.  Ben's father was helpful as well in encouraging his son.  But Ben wasn't answering many of Xavier's punches, and he could not figure out the older boy's moves.  Ben received some good head shots and body shots.  "He'll be alright.  Ben is just mad," Ben's father said afterwards.

One of the teen girls whom I believe is a part of the gymnastics program told me she's like to sign up for boxing.  Yeah, right.  It's become easier for me to recognize the kids and teens who are all talk and have no strong interest in the sport.  Ever since I was a little kid, I've recognized the girly girl issues some females, no matter how old they are, have.  I don't have time for pretty girl issues in my gym.  You know the type. . . ."I can't have my hair and nails messed up!", "I don't like to sweat!" and other types of nonsense.  Those types of girls need to find something else to do other than come to my gym.

Between Loyola and LaFollette

Alan watches as Rojan and David spar.

I didn't spar the last time I was at Loyola Park.  Both my knees and my right shoulder said, "Hillari, please don't."  I told Alan that my right shoulder had been hurting from holding the punch mitts for some of the stronger participants in the boxing class at LaFollette Park.  "Use the punch shield instead.  I can't hold mitts for people because of my wrists," he suggested.

David also sparred with Kathy.  I had my back to the ring, shadow boxing, so I didn't see an apparently good punch she gave out.  I heard Alan exclaiming that was the best punch he had ever seen her throw.  Later, when she was on the heavy bag, Alan told someone else, "Kathy's a beast!"  She smiled.  Both Kathy and Connor have signed up to compete in the Chicago Golden Gloves.

Back at LaFollette Park, I took Alan's suggestion and used the punch shield instead of using the punch mitts.  It helped ease some of the pressure on my right shoulder.  Only TJ showed up one day, and he looked a little down because neither his cousin Earl nor any of the other kids showed up to the gym.  But I worked with him a lot using the punch shield, and he brightened up.

Xavier has been showing up regularly to the teen class every day, and he's been very consistent in training.  Xavier can fight either orthodox or southpaw.  Other fighters are going to have a hard time trying to figure out his style.  His friends Tyler and Terance haven't been as steady with their attendance.  I hope that changes soon.

Bennie has disappeared from the adult class.  He told me he was moving back into the area (currently, he lives on the south side) so maybe that's what is going on.  I'm concerned because of all the adults in the boxing gym, Bennie is the most consistent in coming to class.  Yami and Jesse returned after a brief absence.  Yami got another job which cuts down her participation in the gym to once a week.  But I understand.  She's going to school and working, and both of those things are more important than hanging out in the gym all the time.

Kids who aren't in the class have been showing up to the gym a lot lately.  I caught two kids before they started playing around with the equipment, and told them they need to sign up for the spring session.  The same two kids came back minutes later, looking for paper registration forms, which the park district doesn't use anymore.  The third time, they returned with a few more kids and had the nerve to ask me if they could go in the ring.  Do kids comprehend the word "no" anymore?  Is it not taught in schools?  Are parents giving in to every whim their kids have?  Somebody tell me something. . . . .

As for the the other kids, like nine year old Elizabeth and pre-teen Desire, for example, they're welcomed.  They usually come in to say hi and hang out for a minute before going home for the day.

Eric and Aaron may return to the kids' class for spring.  Their dad is interested in re-starting them in the sport again.  Football took them away for most of the previous session.  If they're not playing basketball this season, they may be in boxing class more often.  Justin, whose son Jaylin is already in the boxing class, told me he has an eight year old nephew he wants to sign up.  The spring session could possibly be filled up again this time.

As usual, I tripped out the kids with some information that only an old woman (me) can give.  David was talking about who might win the next presidential election, and Jaylin chimed in with his opinions.  Somehow, the subject turned to presidents being hurt while in office.  I told them about John F. Kennedy.  Both boys looked very surprised to hear about what happened to him.  They hadn't learned about the attempt on Ronald Reagan's life either.  I wondered why they hadn't covered that in their American history classes yet (David is in 5th grade; Jaylin is in 6th grade).  Jaylin shook his head at the news, and David said, "Wow, that's messed up!"

Excuses For Everything

You may be wondering why a photo of the ultimate late night talk show king, Johnny Carson, is featured here.  I've been watching reruns of his show on Antenna TV lately.  I looked him up online because I could not remember what year he passed on (2005).  I learned that Carson had boxed while he was in the Navy during WWII; he had a 10-0 amateur record.

Here lately, Earl has been offering one excuse after another as to why he can't do what he's supposed to do in the gym.  I hear a boatload of excuses especially on sparring days.  Earl's favorite one is, "I don't have my mouthpiece."  Both Earl and his cousin TJ were on time to the gym because Earl's dad had dropped them off.  When the boys come on their own, they don't show up until thirty to forty minutes of class time have passed.  Earl's dad admonished his son for not keeping up with his mouthpiece, then gave me a dollar to give him another one.  "This is the last time I'm paying for a mouthpiece," he warned Earl.

Suddenly, Earl finds his mouthpiece in his coat.  Surprise, surprise.  That always happens when Earl is criticized for supposedly not having it with him.  The excuses didn't stop there.  During the warm up and shadow boxing rounds, Earl kept whining about being supposedly hurt.  I kept ignoring him, but Earl doesn't take hints well.  Finally I said something to Earl about warming up more.  Seeing that I wasn't in the mood to play sympathizer, Earl stopped talking about his "hurt".

Another annoying thing that Earl does is always insisting he only wants to do two rounds of sparring.  Then he keeps repeating it as if I hadn't gotten the message the first few times.  He is most evenly matched with his cousin TJ, so that's usually with whom I pair him. Plus, the other kids in the class do not show up on a regular basis, or else, I would match Earl with some of them.  But I know that Earl doesn't want to spar with his cousin because TJ is faster and more   aggressive.  "Earl, the park district boxing matches are three rounds.  You will not be able to tell the referee that you only want to do two rounds," I informed him.

The sparring session went well for TJ, but not so much for Earl, who kept dropping his hands.  After two rounds, TJ elected not to continue because Earl was sniffling and crying.  I opted not to show much sympathy because all of the fighters need to learn how to take hits as well as give them.  I also was still a bit irritated by Earl's earlier antics.  If only most of the kids would get it in their heads that they would do better if they took their training more seriously!  I'm not saying there never should be time for fun, games and laughs in the gym.  But there needs to be a realization that once the bell rings to start a round, time for goofing around is off, whether it's a sparring session or a real match.

Hit In The Same Spot

Michael sparred with TJ, but he didn't exactly keep all of his promises about conducting himself properly in the ring.  I don't understand -- Michael has been telling me a lot of stories about hitting back kids who are picking on him.  But Michael's alleged fearlessness towards his classmates doesn't seem to translate into confidence in the ring.

Earl took too long to decide whether he was going to spar or not.  It's a habit with him.  "I don't have my mouthpiece," Earl will announce whenever it's sparring day in the gym.  Later, he'll change his mind after much whining about having to spar with his cousin TJ.  They are a good match in terms of size, but TJ is just a little more aggressive, which scares Earl.  I keep telling Earl that he will not be able to pick and choose with whom he has a real match.  Earl might as well get used to that in terms of sparring, too.  Eventually, Earl did spar with TJ.

Jaylin, who is eleven years old, sparred with me.  I was not wearing headgear nor a mouthpiece.  I should have said, "let's go light", but I just assumed Jaylin would.  I was hit in my left cheek, the same spot where Kathy hit me last night at Loyola Park.  Jaylin also hit me in both of my eyes.  My left eye looks a little bruised, and the right eye doesn't look healthy, either.  Ah, the things a boxing coach has to do to show their fighters technique.

An Almost Knockout

Ro makes his way to the ring at Loyola Park for sparring in the photo above.  He told everyone "I'm 27 years old," to which Alan replied, "You look six!"  Ro is very young looking.

Ro faced Connor in one sparring session.

Ro also had a good match up with David.

I did five rounds of sparring: one with Deb, one with Carrie Ann, one with Melissa, and two with Kathy.  Kathy caught me with a right to my left cheek.  It nearly knocked me cold on the canvas.  She keeps improving, and her punches have gotten harder.  Kathy is going to sign up for the Golden Gloves along with Connor.  The registration is this weekend.

While cleaning up a little around the house today, I found some stuff I could take to LaFollette.  One of the items was an ab roller that I had stuck way back in one of the closets.  I haven't been using it despite my best intentions, so the people in the gym can get use out of it.  I also found instructions on wrapping hands which should be helpful to the kids.  Luckily, I also found some duct tape.  The uppercut bag has some wear and tear, and I want to patch it up.

I threw away an old heating pad.  Since my right shoulder has been bothering me, I think I got rid of the pad too soon.  Fortunately, I didn't throw away the Icy Hot or the Mineral Ice.

The Full And Empty Boxing Gym

All of the boxing classes I coach are now full.  But the numbers don't add up to actual attendance most of the time.  There are people who can only show up once a week.  Others may come in twice a week.  Then there are always those people who showed up a few times and never came back.  I have a a few people who signed up but never showed their faces in the gym at all.

I keep hearing the emphasis is on getting the numbers for the classes.  But I'm not satisfied with just having names on the attendance sheets.  I guess I just don't understand all the reasons why people don't love boxing like I do.  I do know that those who need a team of people around them to be motivated to learn in this sport don't seem to stay in it for very long.

For example, Xavier and Tyler sparred the other day.  Several kids who should have been upstairs participating in or watching a basketball game elsewhere in the field house were hanging around in the gym.  After getting on them about goofing around with the equipment, they settled down and got interested in the sparring.  As soon as Xavier and Tyler went back to training on the equipment, the kids lost interest.  Slowly they went back to where they were supposed to be in the first place.

When I first got to the field house, I hung around the front desk, waiting to see if any of the kids under twelve would show up for their class (they didn't).  Kier, one of the kids who plays the seasonal sports back to back asked if there was going to be boxing class that day.  "Why would I be here if the gym wasn't open?" was what I wanted to say.  Once again, I had to explain to Kier when the gym was open.  "There's no one here," he said.  Kier has a bad habit of attempting to use the gym as a hangout spot when Kier has nothing else to do.  I suspected that was on his mind, but I was ahead of him.  Not bothering to hide the irritation in my voice, I replied, "I have to be here at work whether or not anyone shows up."  "I know," he said.  "Really, kid?" I thought to myself.  Sorry, but I wasn't in the mood for lame conversation that day.

Maybe I'll have a full house again during the spring session.  I know it won't be like that during the summer.  I'm planning to change the class hours for the summer.  Giving everyone an hour and fifteen minutes was an experiment that didn't work, especially where the youths are concerned.  Besides, I need some time built in to sign up people and do other administrative stuff.  The youths only need an hour for their classes.  The adults can have an hour and a half because they are paying for the class.  The new time change will be the permanent one.

Second Mama In The Gym

One of the attendants, plus Xavier (a new guy in the teen class) and Xavier's friend Tyler (?) helped me put the new bag up in the above photo.  Now there are five heavy bags hanging at LaFollette Park boxing gym.  I should go to my supervisor and have him cross the Bob the Boxer punching bag off of the list of supplies I gave him.  I would love to have that, but it's more of a want than a need at this point.  I have enough heavy bags for the participants at this time.

Xavier had taken up boxing at the high school he attends, but he's never been in a tournament or boxing show.  His form looks very good, and I'm hoping to get him into the Chicago City-Wide Boxing Tournament in April.

I learned that people can apply for their amateur boxing licenses at this year's Chicago Golden Gloves Tournament registration.  People had been prohibited from doing that for a few years, and they were told to go to USA Boxing's web site to get a license.  That will be good news for some of the teens and adults I have who may be interested in that tournament.  Jesse looks like a strong possibility, but Yami may wait and compete in the park district boxing shows starting again this summer.

I still don't get why most of the youths think they can sign up for the boxing class themselves.  Assuming that they have participated in other activities and classes at the field house, I would think they would know their parents have to register them.  Over the past few weeks, there have been too many youths, mostly teens, who seem to think I can just put them on the attendance list.  When I tell them the proper procedure to follow, I get a lot of confused looks.  It's not rocket science.

Most of the under twelve years of age crowd have disappeared, including David and Devian who were the most consistent in showing up.  Among the few that still come around, I've noticed that some only seem to show up on the days that sparring takes place.  It appears that Michael, Earl, and TJ have been doing that lately (and Earl and TJ also have a habit of showing up a half-hour late to the gym).  I always have to make speeches about how the whole workout needs to be done, just not one part of it.  Besides, Michael is already in trouble -- again.

Turns out that one of the field house staff is a substitute teacher, and they were covering Michael's grade school class.  The staff member asked me to let them know when Michael's parents showed up to pick him up.  Michael allegedly was showing out in class.  The staff member also correctly guessed that Michael doesn't pay attention in the gym, either.  When it was learned that Michael's parents don't always come into the gym to get their son, the staff member said, "I'm going to be looking for them when they come inside the front door of the field house.  I'm going to tell them about Michael's behavior."

After the staff member left, Michael began grumbling about them, and how he wasn't about to take discipline from his parents.  I explained to Michael that he's always going to have to listen to somebody and be focused on the right things throughout his life.

Sometimes, I feel the same as a friend who told me about her trials with dealing with a church youth group:  "I am so tired of playing second mama to these kids all the time!"  I often find myself sounding like my late mother when I'm talking to the youths.  I'm not crazy about that.  But one of the good things about boxing is that the lessons learned there can be applied to other situations in their lives, and that is a good thing.

Women's Sparring World

It looked as if it would be all women at Loyola Park gym.  That's all who were standing around the gym door for awhile.  Eventually, some of the guys showed up.  But it was the women who dominated the sparring action.  "It looks like Women's Workout World or Curves in here," Alan said.  "I knew you would say something like that," I said, and he grinned.

Alan held the punch doughnut for a couple of the women.  A few of the guys sparred, including David (who has a good jab) and Connor, but it was the women's show from that point forward.

Before Vachel (wearing the red shirt in the photo above) sparred with Kira, she said, "Please don't hurt me!"  She hadn't sparred in a long time.

Here, Alan helps Vachel on with her gloves.  Kira also sparred with Kathy.

I ended up sparring with Deb, Rachelle, and Carrie Ann.  I took it easy on everyone, like I usually do when they are sparring for the first time.  But here's a tip:  when sparring with someone who hasn't done that before, pay attention.  Some people think, "Oh, this is light easy work,"  not keeping in mind that a newcomer will often throw wild punches while moving oddly and/or stiffly.

EJ, in the photo above, hadn't been in the gym in ages.  It was good to see him there again.  He used to live up the block from me, but he and his family have since moved elsewhere in the neighborhood.

My fame seems to be spreading.  A pastoral resident mentioned to a member of the church I've been visiting often that he wants to learn how to box.  The member told him about me being a coach.  I'm acquainted with the pastoral resident, but he didn't know about my job.  "I'm doing a spin class now, but when that's done, I will get in touch with you about boxing.  I've been interested in that for awhile," he told me.  Another member there also learned I was a coach; he used to box a little, and he's interested in having more conversations with me about the sport.