Tommy Lee Jones' Famous Line

The class for those 12-years-old and under was busy again today.  I'm curious to see how long the pace will keep up.  It's the second week of class.  After this week, people in all of the classes usually start to disappear.  But maybe with the kids that won't happen.  Sahia, Mikaela, and Noel have been working very good with the kids.  The kids appear to like and respect them.

Dexter, who is signed up for the teen class, was a no-show yesterday.  Today, he came strolling in an hour late, brushing his hair like there was no hurry.  His friend, who I think is named Jamil, was with him.  When I pointed out Dexter's tardiness, he came back with, "But I was in a fight!"  I felt like Tommy Lee Jones' character in the movie The Fugitive when he cornered Harrison Ford's character who declared he was innocent of a crime.  "I don't care!' I thought.  I didn't even ask about the fight if indeed one had taken place.  I told Dexter when the teen class begins and that he could not train during the adult class.  Jamil, who claimed he wanted to register for boxing, just stood there and said nothing. I suspected that neither Dexter or his friend was serious about boxing, and it appears that I was right.

I finally went into the system and withdrew Malik's mother's name out of the teen class.  No word from him yet as to whether or not his grandfather will register him for the class again.  That class is slowly filling up.  Perhaps by the time Malik gets it together the class will be full and he'll have to wait until the summer session to join the class again.

Only Darrin and Jada were in the adult class.  Trish had to work, and Ariel may have had a change in his work schedule as well.  Sahia and Rachey couldn't stay for the class because of a previous engagement.  Darrin's punches were looking very solid, and his form was nice.  Jada, like so many of the girls and women who are and have been in the class, has to work on being a little more aggressive when it comes to punching.

I haven't received any more mouthpieces -- or any other equipment, for that matter.  I may not have enough mouthpieces to go around on Friday.  Some kids may have to purchase theirs which means they won't be able to spar that day.  Despite the fact that I've informed people that the number of free mouthpieces may be limited at times, to hardly have any makes me and the program look bad.

Sparring With 13 Year Olds

Summer sparred with James during the youth boxing class at LaFollette Park. James did a little better than he usually does, but Summer got more licks in than he did.  I can't seem to break James out of the habit of pushing his opponents with his fists as opposed to punching them.  Summer didn't knock him down, however; Donovan did that when it was James' turn to face him.

Later, Summer complained about her head hurting.  "That's what happens in boxing," I told her.  I still don't get why some kids are so surprised about being hurt that after the first time they spar.  "Boxing is a hurt business," I told her, repeating something that I heard a professional boxer -- I think it was Joe Frazier -- say.

Maz and Lauren were the only two who showed up to the teen class.  Lauren immediately let me know that she did not want to spar with Maz.  She was worried about Maz going hard on her.  I sparred with Maz, who like Lauren, is thirteen years old and a little taller than I.  He has good footwork, and he moves well around the ring.  I was bopped in the nose a few times.  We did go light because I had left my mouthpiece at home.

After seeing that, Lauren changes her mind about sparring.  But she wanted to spar with me.  "Please go light," she said.  She's good at swatting punches away, but like James, she loves to hug the ropes.  I told her not to allow me to keep backing her up into them.  Lauren also has to put her punches out there.  She was very hesitant about doing that.

I talked to Steve about canceling out the adult boxing class, but I waited a little too late.  If a class or activity is not removed before a certain date, the computer system updates it to appear the next session.  There may still be a way to take it off before the end of the year, but I'm not banking on that.  I might still have to look at an empty gym during the adult class during the winter season.

Returning Fighters

Sarah takes aim at the speed bag at Loyola Park boxing gym in the photo above.  She has returned to train, and I heard Alan asking her to bring her mouthpiece in the next time.  It appears that he's eager to have her spar and compete again.  But Sarah wants to ease back into the routine.

I sparred with Kathy for the first time in about three months.  Ben was impressed with how I slipped some of her punches.  I wish my feet could have moved as fast as my head was.  Kathy danced around the ring, and I plodded after her.  She caught me in the face with a right; the impact left my teeth shivering.  Good thing I was biting down on my mouthpiece.

John (whom I learned recently got married), Ben, and Rojan went around for several rounds a piece of sparring.  Alan was asking people about going to Fuller Park's boxing show, which is later this week.  Some of those guys may attend.  I'm staying at "home" at LaFollette.  I have too many kids who are new and not ready for competition.  Also, not many people want to go out south, where Fuller Park is located.

The Ben who is at LaFollette Park walked into the gym late last week.  Surprise, surprise as Gomer Pyle would say.  His father said his son has been playing football, which is why he hasn't been in the gym.  Football?  This is the kid who seemed to keep waiting for perfect conditions to participate in a boxing show? Ben now has no problem with being tackled and knocked down in a different sport?  "I'm going to sign him again for boxing soon," his dad said.  It's now the fifth week of the fall session, I believe, so Ben will be coming in a little late.  Luckily, there's one spot left in that class.  But even if Ben returns, I'll be dealing with yet another kid who is trying to do more than sport at a time.

Blood In The Mouthpiece

Jesus and Carlos sparred down at Loyola Park.  Carlos had his hands down too much, and kept hesitating to throw punches.  Jesus took advantage of this.  At the end of their session, I saw a lot of blood on Carlos' mouthpiece.   Alan wiped him off, but some blood ended up on the floor.  I got paper towels to clean that up.

Kathy sparred with Marta.  I was on the side, giving instructions to Marta to hit harder and do more body shots.  "Kathy can take it!" I said, to which Kathy laughed.  Kathy was not hitting Marta as hard as she is capable of doing.  I think that was because it was Marta's second time sparring.

When Alan sparred with Kathy, he caught her with a punch to the face that stopped her for a moment.  "I'm telling Reva," referring to Alan's wife.  "What?  Kathy walked into that!' Alan protested as I laughed.

I didn't do much of a workout.  First of all, I was hot.  Sometimes I think I don't take the heat as well as I used to do.  My left shoulder still hurts, but not as much.  But now I also feel discomfort across the back of my neck.  Kathy asked if I had gone to the doctor yet.  I still haven't made that call, but I need to because it's gone on for too long.  Two months?  Three months?  I've lost count.

This is the last week of regular summer camp -- thank goodness -- so things will get back to normal at LaFollette soon.  I have plans to go to Sheridan Park later this week for their boxing show.  Summer is slipping away, and outside of Jakie, I haven't had any fighters participating in the shows.  I hope that changes before September.

Donovan Saves The Day

James kept pushing one of the heavy bags yesterday while working out on it.  "Hit the bag, James," I kept telling him.  It kept swinging wildly.  "James, don't you know the difference between pushing something and hitting it?" I said as I marched across the gym towards him.  I was about to lose my patience. Fortunately, Donovan got next to him before I did, and proceeded to explain it to him.

Donovan spent several minutes with James, trying to help him stand correctly and to throw his punches properly.  He did a very good job.  I suspect that maybe Donovan is an only child because how articulate he is and how mature he is for his age.  He even lightly admonished Tayjon for standing around instead of training.

I'm still dealing with parents who apparently are just now realizing it's summer, and want their kids to be in an activity.  The time to sign kids up is not two to three days after an activity, especially a free one, has already begun.  I don't understand that -- the information about classes and activities is online, and can also easily be obtained by visiting or calling the field house well in advance of start dates.  My late mother was a very difficult person to be around, but I have to give her credit for always being on top of dates and schedules where her kids were concerned.  I'm not seeing that same kind of proactive behavior in most of the parents I encounter.

Ariel and another new teen, Jaylen, were in the gym yesterday for the teen class.  Jaylen wears braces.  I was so glad that I had a few mouthpieces on hand that are made specifically to fit over braces.  No sign of the other mouthpieces that I ordered going on three months ago.  I don't think I'm going to order those anymore.  It takes too long to get them, for one thing.  I suspect that's not the fault of the company that supplies them, but rather the administrative/bureaucratic functions of the park district.  Most of the kids keep losing them, and I'm going to start forcing them to buy their own.  They may not lose, misplace, or "forget" their mouthpieces as often if they are not getting the free ones anymore.

Xavier, Terence, and Ben were no-shows again.  I'm beginning to suspect that Xavier might not believe he needs a lot of training time.  I also suspect, based on his request awhile ago to have a buddy of his help train him, that Xavier thinks I'm not completely qualified to do the job.  I'm still wondering why Xavier didn't figure out that may have been rude to suggest something like that to me.  Whenever he comes in, I'm going to point out that Xavier need not have a "this is light work" attitude when it comes to opponents, especially when Xavier has no idea whom he might face during a fight.  Terence was involved in other activities during the spring, which was why he was only in the gym once or twice a week.  But school is out for the summer, so I don't know why Terence hasn't increased his time in the gym.  Ben was slacking off a lot during the winter and spring sessions.  I don't expect him to want to take a fight.  Ben has to realize there will never be perfect conditions in place in order for him to participate in a match.

I was going to lock up the gym early when none of the adults were there at the beginning of their class.  A half-hour into it, Maria showed up.  She told me that she had missed the first day of class due to her job.  Her job might have been the reason she showed up late, but she was able to get an hour of working out in.  I have told all of the adults that they are free to craft their own workout.  But in the interest of not having lulls during the workout, I do guide them to what they should be doing next.

Only five more days until the boxing show.  I have to return a phone call to Rodney, who is the coach at Trumbull Park.  He probably wants to know what fighters I have.  I don't think any of the kids will be ready or will want to at least try to take a match.  Xavier, Terence, and Ben are irritating me right now with their disappearances.  None of the adults want to compete.  I want the boxing show to be a good one, but I'm looking at a hard way to go between now and next Thursday to make it so.

Not Now, Please

Lately, I have been expecting sparring days at LaFollette Park to be off, and they usually are.  Right in the middle of everything that was going on, a guy named Jeffrey comes in and wants to have a conversation.  He told me he had been a coach, and had boxed in the military.

Fine.  Great.  But I was in the middle of trying to corral the kids -- TJ, Earl, Justen, Suave, and Jermaine -- into sparring.  Most were running their mouths, mainly about subjects that had nothing to do with boxing.  A couple of them kept interrupting while I was talking to Jeffrey.  "Don't you see that I'm talking to an adult?" I snapped at Jermaine, channeling my mother.  Another time I told TJ, "Don't get involved in grown folks' business!"

I don't mind talking to people who drop by the gym.  But bad timing is bad timing.  Jeffrey took awhile to get the hint that I was too busy to talk.

Justen told me he had to leave early.  It had something to do with him going out of town on a vacation soon.  I wanted to know why Justen only shows up to the gym on the days when sparring is going on.  "I wasn't in last week because I had to pack," came the answer.  "I'm not talking about last week.  This is a habit," I answered.  Justen once again tried to use the excuse about preparing to go out of town.  I dismissed the excuses.  "Justen, you're not going to learn how to box just by sparring only.  You need to show up here more often.  I've providing the opportunity, but you have to take advantage of it and want to do it," I sternly told him.

TJ and Suave sparred first.  Justen started yelling instructions, instead of doing a workout.  Justen was the only one who didn't have a mouthpiece.  I shut that down with, "I'm the only coach in here."  The session was going okay until TJ caught Suave with a right hook to the body.  Suave fell to the canvas.  After a few moments, Suave became scrappy again and finished the round.

Earl and Jermaine sparred next.  Both had their chins way up in the air, and head movement was not happening.  Body shots were not on display, either.  Jermaine was throwing wild punches as usual.  Because of that, Jermaine took a hit to the mouth that left the kid with blood in his mouth.  Some of it was spit out, along with water he had taken, onto the canvas near where I was standing on the apron.  His mother asked why would he do that at my feet.  "Yeah, I have to get the mop to clean that up," I said.  Jermaine's mother made him clean it up.

Justen had the nerve to go sit down on the exercise mat and read a book.  Apparently, a decision had been made not to do anything that looked like a workout.  "Uh, excuse me, but this is not school.  Want to read a book?  Leave the gym to do it," I warned Justen.  It got him up and about, but still, a poor workout was done.  I gave Justen a hint not to ask me about putting him into any boxing shows until see some self-motivation and focus.

Coaches' Heartbreak

Finally figured out how to get photos off of my raggedy cell phone.  The picture above is of Barry and I during an opening party for Fernando Rivera's boxing gym in Evanston.  I believe the party was last summer.

Yesterday, only Brenan and Suave showed up for the youth class at my gym.  I can't seem to get Brenan out of the habit of running from an opponent and turning his back.  Whenever Brenan turned his back, his hands were down.  He'd look over his shoulder, and Suave would catch Brenan in the face with one or more punches.  "His nose is bleeding," his dad said.  "Again?" I replied.  The sparring went on for another round.  Suave was feeling very confident at the end, I could tell, but Brenan was sniffling as tears rolled down his cheeks.

Today, Earl showed up -- late -- and (in my Gomer Pyle voice) surprise, surprise, had his mouthpiece.  But the only other two who came to class, Brenan and Suave, did not have theirs, so Earl was out of luck that time.

Nay came in late for the adult class.  But I have to give her credit because she is focused.  Her form is not bad.  Nay and I have something in common.  The both of us were always in fist fights with others when we were younger.  I don't see a lot of fear in her when it comes to throwing punches, and that is a plus.  Too bad that the others in the adult class don't come in regularly or else, she could spar.

Suave said something about wanting to switch to MMA.  On top of TJ and Earl telling me they may not sign up for the summer class, all I could do is sigh inwardly.  It's heartbreaking when you have kids who have potential, but they decide not to continue on in the sport.  Sometimes, they return.  Most of the time, the kids get lured away by another activity or sport, never to look back.  It leaves the coach to wonder what might have been.

I threw my old boxing shows out today.  It was time.  The left shoe was really banged up, and I couldn't figure out why.  The sole was completely worn down, while the right sole didn't have much wear and tear.  The right shoe did have other spots where it was wearing away.  Well, in order to receive something new, I have to throw something away.

Spring Break and Annoying Cell Phones

It's Spring Break for the public school kids.  Maybe that's why so few of them showed up at the gym.  Suave was disappointed because he had a new mouthpiece, and he was looking forward to sparring.  Earl and TJ had their mouthpieces, but both had eaten way too much just before class began.  Luckily, Suave's mom gave him a pep talk, telling him not to be discouraged.

It always bothers me when due to lack of adequate opponents on sparring days, the kids who are willing and ready to spar can't.  Xavier could have sparred as well, but Ben, Terence, Ezequiel, and Cordell were no shows.  Jaland joined the teen class, but it's too early for him to spar.

Jahnaja came in, bringing along a gal pal of hers.  It was taking too long for her to put on hand wraps, mainly because she was having a conversation with her friend.  She was also checking her cell phone.  Earlier, I had to say something to TJ about playing on his in the middle of a round.  I'm wondering if I should ban cell phone use in the gym.  I'm tired of youths stopping in the middle of rounds to fiddle around on their phones.  Unless important calls are coming in, there's nothing happening on the Internet that can't wait until after gym is over.

I told everyone that the gym was operating on regular hours this week.  I'm well aware that not everyone paid attention to what I said.  That will be apparent next week when those who don't show up this week will express surprise that the gym was open during Spring Break.  Of course, I will have something sarcastic to say in response.

Boxing Frustrations Galore

As I watched the 12 years and under class as they leaned on the ring ropes, I wondered to myself, "What am I going to do with this group?"  It's just about middle of April, and the park district boxing shows are closer than the kids think.  Yet I seem to be facing one obstacle after another in getting kids ready for competition.

The other day, I found a mouthpiece on the floor in the men's washroom.  I had given out a couple of mouthpieces to kids who didn't have them.  I threw that mouthpiece out, thinking it couldn't be saved nor cleaned properly because it had been on the washroom floor.  The following day, Suave told me his mouthpiece probably slipped out of his backpack, because he couldn't find it.  The one I threw away was probably his.  But I have no more mouthpieces to give out at the moment.  I'm waiting for the ones the park district ordered to come in.  In the meantime, Suave won't be allowed to spar until he has a mouthpiece.

Jermaine's whining and slacking off have become highly annoying.  His mother usually comes to the gym with him, and Jermaine doesn't listen to her anymore than he does to me.  Finally, I told Jermaine that he needs to stop giving his mother word-for-word every time she tells him something.  "I would have been laid out on the floor if I was always talking to my mother like that," I said.  Yet Jermaine's mouth kept running.

Both Jermaine and Davon shrink when they are sparring.  As soon as the pressure is put on them, they sink into the ropes, turn their backs on the other person, and drop their hands.  "The other person is not going to stop throwing punches because y'all did," I keep telling them.  The fact the kids keep doing that tells me I'm not being heard.

Ben, who's in the teen class, has been doing the same thing lately.  This has been especially true when he has to face Xavier.  I get the feeling that Ben always wants to "win" his sparring matches.  No matter how many times I explain to all that sparring is practice, it just falls on deaf ears.

Justen got in the ring to spar with TJ and then stopped in the middle of sparring.  "I forgot I shouldn't be sparring today because I have a knot on my head," he said.  I was irritated, but I was too frustrated to argue.  "Just come out of the ring," I grumbled.

Shynla, who hasn't been in the gym in over a week, decided to show up on a sparring day.  I couldn't work with her because I had to deal with the issues the other kids had with sparring.  I didn't ask either her, or her dad who was with her why she had been absent for several days.  I hoping that both understand that she's not going to learn the sport well if she's only showing up to class here and there.

Of course, she's not the only one.  In addition to the ones whom I've never seen in the class, there are several others in all three of the classes who keep doing the "now you see me, now you don't" routine.  None of the teens showed up yesterday, and Bennie, who is in the adult class, showed up after being AWOL for several days.

A woman who has been telling me for about a year that she was going to sign up for the adult class, finally did so.  "Can I bring my kids in here?" she asked.  I believe she has four of them.  Suspecting that she might want to have the kids work out with her, I explained that the kids can't be in the gym when the adults are there.  Then she tells me she can't show up every day.  I don't know, y'all, but if I'm paying for a class, I'm going to be there every time the doors are open.  I like to get my money's worth when I'm paying for anything.  But maybe others just don't feel like I do.

Then I was late the other day to the field house.  It's a long ride from Rogers Park all the way to Austin, and if CTA does anything wrong, I'm jacked up.  As soon as I got there, the field house supervisor told me the parents were grumbling.  Steve explained to them that I was on public transportation.  From what he told me, that didn't go over well.  If those parents are driving everywhere, of course, they didn't want to hear that.  Most who drive have zero sympathy for those who have to deal with public transportation problems.  My reaction is usually to ignore drivers' lack of understanding about that, because, honestly. . . .unless they are going to buy me a car and pay all the expenses involved with that, I really don't want to hear their opinions.

I want things to work.  But when everybody else ain't on board. . . sigh.

What A Boxing Coach Wants Parents To Know

1.  I can only focus on the kids who are actually signed up for the program.  I'm not there to give free lessons and "try it out" sessions to the siblings, cousins, and buddies who have tagged along with the kids, but who are not signed up for the gym.

2.  I'm not a babysitter nor a playground monitor.  I can't watch the siblings, cousins, buddies of the kids in the program.  If they're not signed up for the gym, please leave them at home, or take them with after dropping off the kids who are signed up for the gym.

3.  Boxing will not automatically solve bullying issues.  In fact, it may escalate matters.  Also consider that most schools have a zero tolerance policy about fighting.  I do agree that people should be able to defend themselves.  However, it would be better to address bullying with your kid's teachers, the school administrators, and the parents of the kid who is doing the bullying than teaching your kid how to fight.

4.  I'm not going to deal with kids who present discipline problems to me in the gym.  I will bring it up to the parents at least once.  If I keep having to deal with it, and especially if I suspect nothing is being done at home to curb the behavior, I will strongly suggest that the kid be placed in another activity.  Please know that I'm not putting up with disrespect.

5.  Don't sign up kids for the gym with the idea of making them tough.  Some kids will, but others don't have the personality for it.  Know your kids.

6.  Don't force the kids into boxing.  Please ask the kid if they really want to take the sport up.  It is a waste of the kids' time to put them in an activity they don't enjoy.  It is also a waste of my time to try to teach them.  I will step in when I see a parent/guardian forcing a kid to spar when I see the kid is not returning punches, being injured, crying, etc.

7.  Make sure the kids are there on time.  When people show up late, people cheat themselves out of valuable training time.  The class times are what they are.  I'm not in a position to change them, nor make accommodations and exceptions.

8.  If the kid is involved in another sport whose practices take place at the same time, make a choice.  People can't train for two or more sports at the same time.

9.  Make sure the kid is showing up at the gym on a regular basis.  No one is going to learn how to box properly by showing up at the gym on and off.  I have other kids in the gym who show up regularly.  I'm not going to call home to find out why your kid is not there, because I'll be doing that every day.  I don't have the time to chase people.  If the kid really wants to be there, they'll show up.

10.  The classes are divided by ages for a reason.  I can't have an eight-year-old sparring with a fourteen-year-old.  I can't allow kids who aren't old enough for the classes to sign up.  Kids aren't allowed in the adult classes under any circumstances.  Kids need to be in the correct boxing class for their age group.

11.  People must be on time to boxing shows and tournaments.  Once the officials close the weigh-in, there is nothing I can do.  I'm not going to argue with them to let one more kid in, because everyone knew in advance when they were supposed to be there.  If a kid shows up without a mouthpiece, they won't be fighting that day.  I won't be carrying extra mouthpieces with me, especially when I know I gave your kid one some time ago.

12.  Respect the fact that there's only one boss in the boxing gym, and that's me.  I don't need parents/guardians standing at ringside calling out instructions over the instructions I'm already giving to their kids during training.  I don't need parents/guardians in the corners during boxing shows and tournaments giving their opinions.  If I know for a fact that the parents/guardians have had some boxing experience, I will gladly welcome their help.  Otherwise, it my job to coach.  Also, to male parents/guardians -- don't assume that I need help or worse yet, that I don't know what I'm doing because I'm a female.

A Cool Day To Box

It's supposed to be summer, however, the sun was out, but the heat wasn't up.  I was going to turn on the fan in the gym, but the extra ventilation wasn't really needed.

Plenty of sparring action went on, with Justin, John, Nick, Melinda, Jesus, Jason, and Geniece as the participants.

Jason and Jesus's session ended quickly after Jason said "I'm having trouble breathing."  Alan told Jason he had to pace himself.

Justin and Keith were both aggressive during their sparring session.  Justin was pleased.  He said during the session, "That's what I'm talking about!  Finally!"

Melinda and Geniece went at it.  Melinda was a little hesitant in throwing her punches fully out.  Her and Geniece were hitting each other at the same time with jabs.

Later, John worked the punch mitts with Justin.  The two girls standing on the apron of the gym?  One was Justin's girlfriend.  I wasn't sure who the other girl was; perhaps a friend of Justin's girl.

John called me out -- for sparring, that is -- the next time we're in the gym.  The next time, I'll be able to use my new mouthpiece.

Rinsing Off Blood

This is supposed to be the summer season, but today was overcast and foggy.  I was chilly because I wore no jacket, and I spent most of the day in a training class held in a heavily air-conditioned room.  When I went to the gym later, I put on a heavy hoodie to keep warm.

Frank returned to the gym, having signed up, and he was ready to work.  He was talking about buying a mouthpiece when I remembered there was an extra one in my locker.  Alan had given it to me to hold on to just in case someone needed one.  Frank wanted to buy it, but I asked Alan if it was okay to give it to him.   Alan said ok; the coach had forgotten that he had asked me to lock it up for safekeeping.  Just then, Jason rolled up, asking if I had another one.  I had also forgotten that Jason had asked if an extra mouthpiece was around about a week ago.  I had sent Jason to ask John if he had any extra, since the latter had given Rachel a mouthpiece.  Jason looked disappointed when he learned I didn't have any more of them.

Justin fights wild.  Justin was in the ring with Brian.  Brian got caught up against the ropes and Justin clocked Brian with several hard uppercuts.  Alan stopped the action a few times in order to slow Justin's momentum.

Brian hung in there, but when Justin would let loose with flurries of punches, Brian couldn't answer easily.  I heard Brian tell a friend of his whom he brought to the gym,  "I couldn't figure out how to get around some of those punches!"

I sparred with Rachel for a couple of rounds.  Alan kept telling her to keep her hands up.  "I thought I was," she said.  I explained that she always has to protect her face.  Alan said to her, "Keep the hands up by the cheekbones."  "But how do you do that?" Rachel asked.  "It takes practice to keep the hands up for the whole round," I replied.  I went light because Rachel is still getting used to throwing punches.

Diana, whom I sparred with next, threw punches a little harder than she usually does.  One of those punches got me in the mouth and rocked my teeth a little bit.  Thank goodness I wore my mouthpiece instead of putting it my pocket.  I put a little power on the punches I threw back, getting Diana in her face and head several times.  We did three rounds.

Alan stepped out of the gym for a moment, so I watched as Ken sparred with Jesus.  Both Justin and I noticed that Ken was batting at Jesus with his right hand (Ken was fighting southpaw).  We told Ken to straighten out his punch.  Ken kept ducking down to get punches in, even though he was the taller man.

When Alan returned, he gave more pointers to Ken.  But Ken kept dropping his hands, and Jesus noticed that and stepped up.  At the end of the sparring session, I noticed blood dripping from Ken's gloves.  A look at his face confirmed that Ken's nose was bleeding.  There was no tissue in the gym, so Ken rushed down to the men's washroom.  I grabbed the water bottle and rinsed the blood off of the gloves and the headgear. Ken was fine; the bleeding stopped quickly.

A couple of guys, Dan and Dave, peered into the gym to see what was going on.  I talked to them about the gym for a few minutes.  They might have been new to the neighborhood because Dave said, "We were curious about what goes on in the community center."  Both look interested, so they may return at another time.  I told them that Alan doesn't mind people looking around to check things out.

Alan called out the last round, and I was going to shadow box, but I stretched out instead.  I've been real stiff lately, so I need to stretch all the time.  I was standing up and stretching during breaks at work earlier because I had been sitting for so long.  The older I get, the more I need to stretch it seems.

I didn't get a full picture of this, but this is a cool gift that Kenny made for Alan's b-day.  It's a picture in a frame.  A pair of boxing gloves is in the picture.  Colonel stopped in for a moment to deliver it.  I believe this quote is from Joyce Carol Oates' book called On Boxing.

Refusing To Be Sidelined

Recognize the guy in the above picture?  It's Jack Palance who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his role in City Slickers (1991), a movie which also featured comedian Billy Crystal.  Did you know Palance had also been a professional boxer?  He fought under the name Jack Brazzo in the late 1930's.  His achievements in the ring included 15 victories and 12 knockouts.

I forgot the camera at home in my haste to hobble down to the gym.  Yeah, my left knee is still acting up.  It was fine when I woke up this morning.  Later in the day at work, I took a misstep as I went downstairs to check on cleaning supplies.  My knee went "Ping!" and I was back to being in pain again.  For a second, I thought to stay at home.  Alan told me that perhaps I should have.  "What am I going to do at home?" I said, typical of someone who's not a domestic type.

Vachel and Sarah were in attendance at the gym, but there was no way my knee was going to take all of the movement that sparring requires.  I shadow boxed, hit the heavy bags, and worked on the speed bag instead.

Amy sparred with Sarah.  She was pushing her sister back a lot with both fists.  Yet she did get in a few shots to Sarah's face.  Amy was turning away to avoid Sarah's punches; both Alan and I reminded her not to take her eyes off of her sister.

Vachel had the same problem I do whenever I spar with Sarah; trying to get around Sarah's long reach.   Vachel got frustrated. A few times during the action she just stopped and stood.  "What's wrong?" Alan asked the first time she stopped.  The both of us thought that perhaps Vachel had been hurt.  "I keep hitting air.  I hear you two telling me to get in close, but it's hard when she keeps hitting me in my 'effing face!" Vachel said.  Alan explained that she had to work her way in with jabs, then duck low and hand out body shots.  "I don't know how to do that," Vachel sighed.  She was concerned with coming in low with Sarah being able to still throw shots at her head.

Alan got into the ring briefly to show her what he meant.  Vachel was able to reach Sarah with some jabs, straight rights, and right hooks to the body after that.  However, she wasn't any less frustrated when their sparring session ended.  "I'm sorry for cursing.  But it was just so hard to get close to her!" she said.  I told Vachel how I always have to fight inside when Sarah and I spar.  I'm too short to do otherwise.  I explained to Vachel that while she may take some hits, she has to remember to keep her hands up going in.

Gabriel and Sebastian did some light sparring without headgear on.  Sebastian backed Gabriel up against the ropes.  For a minute, I thought Gabriel was going to flip backwards over the ropes and crash onto the floor. But his brother backed up a little, and Gabriel was able to slide out of the line of fire.  One of Sebastian's fingers was put out of joint during the last time he and Emmanuel sparred.  "It doesn't hurt, but my finger just feels numb.  It's going to be awhile before it gets better," he told me.

Doug was the only other person who showed up at the gym, making for a small crowd.

I wore a knee supporter to the gym.  It's still on as I type this.  If I thought it would fix my current knee issues, I'd wear the thing all night.  The pain killers I took before I went to the gym didn't do much help.  I had been drinking a honey and cinnamon concoction -- a recipe I got from Facebook -- for a few days.  It seemed to help for a minute, but then I was right back to being and feeling disabled.  As I put my sweatpants back on at the end of the evening, Alan observed, "Hillari, you can't even move your leg."  "I can barely bend my knee," I said.  Amy and Sarah noticed my limping around.  "This is just another part of getting old," I told them.  The constant problems with both knees, which seems to get worse as time goes by, is probably something I'm going to just have to live with for, well. . . .the rest of my life.

Another stab of pain happened as I was getting out of his car later.  The left side of that knee was hurting last week, now the right side is hurting.  I keep thinking there's fluid building up inside, too.  "Maybe you shouldn't come in on Wednesday," Alan said, looking very concerned.  "I hope there's not knee surgery in my future," I told Alan, but who knows?   I keep coming back to this: common sense would tell most to not go to the gym and to take a rest.  But I'm stubborn when it comes to being sidelined with injuries.  I just refuse to sit out.

Sparring and Strokes

I was in bed the majority of today.  I'm usually good at managing all of my health problems, but sometimes one of them decides it's going to take me for a bumpy ride.  I woke up at four in the morning, my head pounding.  Since I couldn't sleep, I took a baby aspirin and turned on the TV.  There was an episode of "Mr. Ed" on regarding the horse's objection over Wilbur accepting a bear rug from his grumpy father-in-law.  It beat watching the parade of infocommercials on the other channels.  The headache still hadn't gone away by the time the alarm went off.  I laid back down, worried about having a stroke.  Because of high blood pressure, I'm at risk.  My dad had a stroke back in 2000, and his health wasn't quite the same afterwards.  Another couple of hours went by, and I called Pastor Roger to tell him that I was going to take a rest today.  The headache was finally gone by late afternoon, and I felt well enough to get ready for the gym.   Tomorrow, I'll get my high blood pressure meds refilled.  It's my fault that I always wait until the pills are gone, then I call the doctor, who then can't see me right away.

"You're too short," Alan said, as I helped him put on sparring gloves to get in the ring with Matthieu .  It's always a little hard to help put gloves on him because of that.  He has to push his hands down into the gloves, and because I'm so close to the ground, it's not easy for him to do.  "I know.  I haven't grown since I was thirteen years old," I chuckled. 

Matthieu caught Alan by surprise with a right (it had just happened before I shot the photo above).  Alan later said, "I wondered where did that come from?"  It looked as if Matthieu has become more confident in the ring.  He did a great job of keeping his eyes on Alan and watching him. 

Brandi gleefully announced that she had a mouthpiece and wanted to spar with me.  "We'll go light," I said, which is my standard response to everyone who spars for the first time in the gym.  Brandi had taken fitness boxing before, but tonight was her first time sparring ever.  "What are the basic rules for sparring?" she asked after we had suited up.  "The idea is not to kill one another, but to work with each other and practice technique," I answered.  Ana and blond Sarah took ringside seats to watch the action, as well as several others in the gym.  Brandi was quite good.  She caught me with several shots to the body.  She blocked a lot of my punches that were aimed at her mid-section and her head.  "That was fun!" Brandi said afterwards.

Matthieu also sparred with Ian for a few rounds.  Ian often had his hands down, but he hung in there with Matthieu.

Mary came in to remind Alan to make sure that there's no one working out in the gym who hasn't paid the fee.  On Monday, Alan made that announcement to people several times.  Both Alan and I noticed the gym was not as crowded as it had been the other day.  I knew that Wayne hadn't paid, and I don't think Robert was signed up, either.  A tall, lanky guy walked into the gym tonight wondering if the program was an open gym.  I explained about the fee and directed him to Mary, who was at the front desk.  He didn't return, so I'm assuming he either didn't pay, or he paid but decided to start next week. 

I found the fan.  I thought someone had walked with it.  The gym was very hot on Monday, probably due to all the people who were packed inside it.  It was hot again today, and on top of that, I kept having hot flashes.  The fan was hiding behind a stand alone file cabinet.  I turned it on, but it was still steamy in the room. 

Cool In The Ring

"I don't think Missy realizes how hard she hits.  That's why I won't get into the ring with her," Vivian told me tonight in the gym.  Missy doesn't hit as hard as Ieisha, but she hits hard enough.  She also keeps her composure very well while sparring. 

A blow dead on my nose nearly took me down.  "Are you okay?" she asked me.  I shook my head to get back into the present.  "Yeah, I'm alright," I answered.  "You don't ask me if I'm okay if you hit me," Alan joked with her from his position outside of the ropes.  Missy then got in an uppercut during our second round that almost took me out.  I was not wearing my mouthpiece because I kept gagging on it.  After the round ended, I checked my bottom teeth.  Fortunately, none of them were loose.  "You've got blood on your lip," Alan said, as he took my gloves off.  "Again?" I said. 

"The both of you were very composed in the ring," Alan commented.  I was thinking back when I was a kid in street fights, throwing wild punches and kicks.  The few fights I won were due to lucky blows I threw.  These days, I realize that one has to fight focused with a cool head.

JJ was in the gym, and he was surprised I was able to have gotten a fight.  "I thought you weren't able to get fights," he said.  I explained about being able to do exhibition fights.  "How long do you think you'll fight?" he asked me.  "Until I'm fifty.  That's a couple of years from now," I answered.  "You're forty-eight?" JJ asked in amazement.  "In December," I grinned.  "I didn't think you were that old," JJ said.

Leon was happy to mix it up with JJ in the ring.  I was on the side of the ring, having my usual conversation with Justin about the bag of toys he always brings with him.  I heard some loud thuds, and looked up to see Leon and JJ throwing bombs at each other.  I was worried that one of them was going to end up laying on the canvas.  Leon was very tired afterwards, hanging over the ropes breathing hard.

Jamil was very worn out after he was sparring with JJ, as well.  Alan told me he would love to get in and move around with JJ.  "I wanted to the other time, remember, but there were a lot of guys in that day who needed to get in the ring.  They're paying for the gym, while I'm just the old man who wants to jump around." 

Alan had pictures of himself with legendary trainer Angelo Dundee, the guy who trained Muhammad Ali.  They were very nice shots. 

Justin's Toys

For a long time, several of us in the gym thought that Wednesday nights were Carlos' regular time to babysit his son Justin.  "No, he wants to come here with me.  He likes the people, and he likes that you all talk to him," Carlos smiled.  Justin and I got into a conversation about the toys his brings to the gym.  He likes action figures, and had several that evening, including Spiderman and Silver Surfer.  The boy is perfectly happy to go to a corner with his bag of toys when he's there and get lost in a make-believe world.  Occasionally, he does pay attention when his dad is sparring. 

Justin was also telling me about when he was in pre-school.  I went to Head Start, but I told Justin that I didn't remember any of it.  "I remember Kindergarten," I said.  "That was a looong time ago," Justin grinned.  I had to grin, too, because he was right.  Over forty years have gone by since then.

Missy and I sparred for two rounds.  She had no mouthpiece, so it was more like doing defense drills, with me practicing how to deflect incoming punches.  "I think I get caught a lot because I'm leaving my jab out for too long," I told Alan afterwards.  "You have to throw it all the way out," he said. 

My energy level has been very low lately.  I haven't been eating much, and I've been taking long naps in the early evenings.  Other than when I'm at Loyola Park, I haven't been exercising.  I usually walk to my job at church, but in another few weeks, it's going to be too cold outside.  I'll have to take the bus. 
Maybe my slow down has to do with the seasons changing.  That's usually the main reason.

Deo's Progress

It was a surprise when Deo walked into the gym last night. I assumed he'd be out for awhile due to his eye injury. Deo explained to Alan and I that his sight is still blurry in his left eye. When Leon hit him, the muscle around that eye got caught up in the bone fracture. Doctors were able to move the muscle back in place, but Deo has to be careful for awhile. He's still under a doctor's care. Deo hung around for awhile to talk to Alan, who also experienced a bad eye injury years ago.

Carlos sparred with Alan. The oppressive heat in the gym was bothering me, so I did one round on the uppercut bag, then I watched the guys. I reminded Carlos to keep his hands up. Alan likes overhand rights, and he tagged Carlos a few times with them. Carlos improves each time he spars. Regardless of what he gets hit with, he keeps coming forward. He tends to back away straight from his opponents, however, and I also reminded him to be mindful of that.

Upon looking at the class roster, Alan noted, "Ieisha hasn't been in for awhile." The other women have not been around, either. Some of that could be blamed on the weather. It's been too hot outside, and unfortunately, there's no air conditioning in the gym.

One of the last times I sparred, my mouthpiece became very loose in my mouth. Teddy Atlas of ESPN's "Friday Night Fights" grumbled once during a match when a boxer's mouthpiece kept flying out onto the canvas. He stated that there's no reason -- or excuse -- for a mouthpiece to keep slipping out. It was a sure sign that it's not fitted properly. I've had both of my mouthpieces for several years. Maybe it's time to change them.

Get your boxing gloves and equipment for less.

Since I've had my mouthpieces, I've had five of my teeth removed: all four wisdom teeth, and another tooth in the back that was too bad to save. I'm guessing that when dental extractions have been done, a boxer should be fitted for a new mouthpiece. I would love to get one professionally done by a dentist, but the cost is steep. Most of the ones that can be brought from boxing equipment companies are very good, however.

Two-A-Night

I sparred with Oksana again last night, and my head was bounced around again. Allen was barking, "Come on, work the jab! You gotta get in there!" I was definately not on my game at all. Halfway through the round, I was tired out. Something told me not to agree to spar, but I did it anyway.

Then I was in the ring with Sol. "Are you hitting with your full strength?" she asked me at the end of our first round. "No," I answered. "Me neither," she admitted. It was a little easier with Sol because she's about the same height as I am. Sol did manage to pop me in the stomach a few times.

I have got to check my gym bag before I leave the house. Got all the way to the gym to find out I had left one of my boxing shoes at home. I was sparring in the ring wearing socks. My mouthpiece wasn't in, either. "Any tips on how to wear a mouthpiece without gagging on it?" I asked Allen. "Try wearing it while working on the bags," he suggested.

I also need to remember to wear my volunteer badge. The park district is cutting down on folks showing up in classes who haven't paid. As a volunteer, I attend the gym for free. However, in order not to get Allen or myself in trouble in case someone shows up to monitor, I need to have the badge on me.