Okay, That Was Hard

Erin sparred with Mike first last night. She has a fight lined up at the Sabre Room next week. I believe she may be the first female out of Loyola Park Boxing Gym -- at least since I've been there -- to get a fight. Mike, as usual, was being helpful by giving out pointers. The others in the gym, with the exception of Kate, Sarah and Tim, were not paying attention to the sparring. That is, until they noticed Steve cleaning blood up from the canvas.

Erin bloodied Mike's nose, and he stood in the middle of the ring for several moments with a tissue up to his face. I got the bleach for Steve, and he used an old shirt to clean up. Mort was the first to notice. "What the hell happened?" he said. They all looked at Erin with new respect after that.

I also sparred with Erin, and dealt with the possibility that I might get bloodied up, too. I got rocked instead. The first time her left hook connected, I thought to myself, "I almost got knocked the hell out. Okay." Then I was caught with a jab, as I moved in and put pressure on. Like everyone else, she's taller than I, so I kept focusing on her mid-section as opposed to trying for her head most of the time. The third time, she smashed me in the head with a left hook, and I tried to play off the fact that I became unsteady on my feet.

Steve gave me a suspicious look and asked, "Are you okay?" "Nothing's wrong with me. I'm fine," I lied. "You sure?" he asked. I kept reassuring him I was, and the sparring continued. Later when he drove me home, he told me he was not only concerned that I might get hurt, but that Erin might feel nervous about getting into the ring again if I did. She knocked out Crystal several months ago. If I had been laid out in the ring behind Mike having his nose jacked up, it might have been very hard for Erin to feel comfortable about stepping back into a ring. She kept apologizing for hitting Mike right before she caught him in the nose.

Erin has a good right, and I now I know, her left isn't bad, either. She just has to not hesitate when throwing punches, and she could be big trouble for an opponent.

Raphael came in and picked up his camrecorder from me. Hopefully, he'll come back soon with a copy of Mort's fight from this past Saturday.

Keith showed up, as he has a match at the Hollywood Casino in Aurora on Friday. I opted not to go to that one, and open the gym instead. Otherwise, the gym would be closed both Friday and then on Wednesday for the Sabre Room matches. I'm kind of hesitant about asking Les if I can leave early next Wednesday, considering I've taken off time during the day three times this month for doctor's visits already. I have the option of making up the time by coming in early or staying late, but I don't want to give the impression I'm always taking off for this and that.

A new guy, Q, came in, all hyped up about wanting to learn how to box. "Man, all I need are the fundamentals, and I can make some money, for real," he told the guys. "You ain't gonna make money in here," Mort pointed out, and that got a laugh. "If you jump into professional boxing, having never had any amateur experience, you're gonna get knocked around. Here, in the amateurs, is where you not only learn how to box, but you learn to love the sport," Steve told Q.