40 Years Older

No sign of Kishaun today.  Ashanti called her cousin via cell phone, only to be told that Kishaun was hanging around with another set of cousins somewhere.  I know I told him last week there was a boxing show at Harrison Park going on this week.  "Kishaun shouldn't be missing days at the gym," Ashanti said, and I agreed with her.

For a brief moment, Shanita and Julius made another appearance.  As usual, Shanita did all of the talking, while her brother just looked around.  She's fully into basketball these days, so she (nor her brother, for that matter) are returning to boxing any time soon.  The both of them seemed surprised to see Derrick, his parents, and Ashanti in the gym.

I had Ashanti and Derrick do sparring drills for a few rounds.  Then Derrick asked if I would do some rounds with him.  The drill was made up of just us moving around and throwing punches, but not landing any.  The point was to work on footwork, head movement, getting out of the corners, and defense.  Derrick is very quick, but I managed to get him backed into the corners several times.  Once there, he easily turned out of the corners.

At some point, I realized that I was chasing around a 13-year-old kid.  "I'm forty years older than he is," I thought, as I struggled to keep up.  That's one of the benefits of being a boxing coach.  The coach has to practice their skills in order to keep time with the people he or she has in the gym.  I got a good workout today.  "You've got some skills!" Derrick exclaimed afterwards.  I try to do my best.

Ashanti's mom doesn't want her to spar, I learned.  "Accidents could happen," Ashanti explained.  I guess that means she won't be taking on any boxing matches.  Yet she has a good pair of strong hands.  Sigh. . .it seems that I've lost Ashley, even though she won her one fight.  Now it looks as if I won't have Ashanti facing anyone in the ring.  Girls show up expressing their interest in fighting, but the challenge is getting them to really get into it.

Gym Dancing

Feeling better on Wednesday, I opted to spar with Reygie.  But before I could get my turn, Reygie sparred first with Arnold, then with Brandy.


Arnold could have sworn that he threw his mouthpiece in his gym bag before he left the house but it wasn't there.  Alan had to improvise and give him some paper to bite down on.  "I'm only in the ring with him because he's got a fight coming up," Arnold said in between rounds. 


Just like when I was in the ring with him, Reygie encouraged Brandy to get in as many hits on him as possible. 


Alan told me, "Come on, Hillari, you're not really hitting him!".  I was trying, but Reygie covers up like a turtle, and it was hard to get those uppercuts in.  I got in close and gave Reygie a few right hooks to the body.  "Stop holding him," Alan said.  That was the first time I had did that to someone that I can remember.

I noticed Alan was wearing a mouthpiece, and I gave him a look.  "We're just going to throw body shots!" he insisted before getting into the ring with Reygie.  "Coach, you can hit me in the face!" Reygie said.  "We have to look out for him," I told Reygie, referring to Alan.


Colonel brought in his iPod again.  I was steppin' more than I was working out at times.  I was even dancing in the corners a little in between the rounds I was sparring with Reygie.  He was dancing, too.  "Go Reygie, go Reygie, it's your birthday!" I was saying while he was shaking in the ring. 

I used to dance a lot of time in between rounds when I used to workout in the church's gym a few years ago.  The radio would be blasting with the music I had burned onto CDs.  Pastor Roger would see me shadow boxing or jogging around the gym, but he never did catch me dancing.  I know I would have been admonished. 

Training Before Hamlin

When Rich got there, he commented, "I bet a lot of people don't come in tonight."  "Every time it rains, most people don't come in," I said.  But it wasn't a bad crowd.  Colonel, Kenny, Tommy, Franco, Matt, Owen, Maria, Amy, and Andres were in attendance. 

I wasn't feeling well while on my way to the gym.  When I got there, I sat down on one of the stools for awhile.  Have no idea why I wasn't feeling well -- again.  To an extent, I've given up trying to figure it out.  After awhile, I felt better and got up on my feet to train. 

Alan was running late due to a meeting he had at work.  When he got there, I told him, "I'm docking your pay", and he grinned.  Kenny had already ran some drills with Rich before Alan got there.  Later, Kenny would run some drills with me, showing me how to slip punches.  "When you slip to the right to avoid their jab, you can come in with a hook to their side.  Really throw that (beep) when you get to their side!" he told me. 

Rich was happy that Andres came in so they could get some more sparring work in.  Andres is about 280 pounds now, and Rich is about 220 pounds.  Rich gave up a bit of weight to Andres, but he was able to get in some good combinations from what I saw of their sparring.

I sparred with Andres later and got him a few times with some hooks.  "Good one," he'd say each time I caught him.  For some reason, I had big time energy while I was in the ring with him.  I felt that I was moving a lot better, too.  Usually, I plant myself in one spot and throw punches, giving the other person all kinds of opportunities to crack me upside my head.  But this time, I moved after throwing most of my punches.  During the last round, Andre backed against the ropes and allowed me to just whale on him. 

This past Monday, when I told Adam I was going to fight Edith again at Hamlin Park, he said, "Oh, you can take her easily."  It may not be so easy.  I've been thinking about what Alan told me -- that Bill told Edith to be more aggressive.  Then there's the matter of that 33 year age difference.  I told Pastor Roger, Paulette, Olga and Ken that I was fighting Edith again.  Ken always finds it amusing that I'm willing to take on bouts.  Paulette and Olga groaned, and as usual, the pastor didn't say much, but he shook his head. 

I saw JJ when Ken and Paulette and myself went to Home Depot to pick up some stuff for church.  We got traps for the mice we've seen running in some rooms, and a new handle had to brought for the men's toilet.  Someone broke the previous handle and left it laying on the toilet.  JJ and I didn't have much chance to talk because he had customers, but we hugged and said hello.

Franco told me that he would like to get a fight at some point, but he mainly wants to do it for fun.  He wanted to know what it's like to do the Chicago Park District boxing shows.  "Do some people take it very serious?  Have you gotten hurt badly?" he asked.  I explained that some do go into the ring with a definite killer instinct, but there are a lot who just do it for fun.  The fight where I was hurt the most had to be the second fight I had with Meg.  It happened not too long after our first fight, and I remember feeling the effects for what seemed like weeks.  I don't want to feel like that after the next fight with Edith, so I'd better be moving a lot around the ring to avoid that. 

I'm Dizzy, Then I'm Buzy

I almost was on time to work this morning until I realized my latest copy of The Ring magazine was missing.  It was the second time in a couple of months that I had lost a copy of the magazine before I was finished reading.  Now I've got to go up to the store on my lunch hour and buy another copy, I grumbled before leaving the house after a fruitless search for it. 

Never do I look forward to scrubbing toilets Monday afternoons.  But I was going at a good clip until I began to mop the floor in the women's washroom.  Suddenly, I felt dizzy.  I stopped for a moment, then I continued my work.  But the off-kilter feelings kept going.  Was it the six White Castles I had for lunch (that I had no business eating)?  Pastor Roger shuddered when he saw what I was eating.  "Don't drop a match!  All the grease will catch on fire!" he said. 

I was leaning against the wall outside the men's washroom when the pastor came downstairs later with his coat on.  "I'm going to Aldi's to buy food for the food pantry, then I'm going home.  What's going on?" he said.  "I don't feel well," I said, as I moved to sit down on a nearby bench in the hallway.  I was still upright and perhaps I didn't look like I was dying, so Pastor wished me well and went on his way.  After resting a little longer, I finished cleaning the men's washroom -- the last washroom I had to do today -- and I went home.

No matter how ill I feel, I always manage to rally to go down to the gym.  The dizziness disappeared to be replaced by energy.   

Andres, seen in the picture above on his cell phone, returned to the gym.  He sparred with Rich, and from what I saw of it, they had a productive session. 

A new guy named Owen came in with a woman named Andrea (?).  She wasn't there to box, but he was.  He was a friend of Franco's.  "I detect an accent.  Where are you from?" I asked.  "I'm from England," he told me.  Colonel perked up and asked, "Did you hang in Birmingham?"  "Oh, that was the party place," Owen said.  Colonel had been in England back when he was in the service, so he and Owen talked about the culture there.

A Frenchman came in a little later, and I heard him telling Alan about his experience with kickboxing.  Alan asked me if USA Boxing sold equipment because the guy was looking for some.  "They have shirts and other clothing, but the best places to buy boxing equipment is from either Ringside or Title.  Both companies are online.  Local sporting goods stores have limited boxing equipment for sale," I explained to the guy.  "I'm surprised.  I would think that because so many box in America that the equipment would be easy to find in stores," the guy told me. 

Adam sparred with Nate as I recorded it on Adam's camera.  Adam was getting some good hits in on Nate in the first round.  Alan wiped what looked like blood from Nate's nose at one point. During the second round, Adam popped Nate with a right, I believe, and Nate went to one knee on the canvas.  Alan watched closely to see if he was okay, as Adam hovered nearby.  Another few moments went by, Nate got up, but he didn't go on with the round.  Unfortunately, the camera didn't pick up that round for some reason.  But at least Adam could see what he had done in the first round. 

Adam and I sparred for three rounds.  He had his right hand down one time, and I got in a left hook.  I was so proud of myself because that's the one punch I never seem to be able to execute properly during sparring or regular fights.  Afterwards, he and I did sparring drills which I really needed.  We practiced catching jabs and slipping punches. 

I have a fight coming up at Hamlin later this week.  Alan told me I'll be facing Edith again -- the seventeen year old.  "Bill told her to be a little more aggressive this time," Alan said, referring to Edith's coach.  "Like she wasn't aggressive the last time?" I said, and both Alan and I grinned about that.  Hopefully Rich and Adam will be able to get fights this time.  Hamlin Park's show tends to bring out a lot of people, so there could be guys with whom they can match up.

My Mind Distracted

It was a rainy night in Chicago. . . .I commented to Carolyn that I wasn't sure if anyone would show up to the gym Monday night.  No one was waiting outside the gym door when I got there.

Andre came in a few minutes later, followed by Amy, Sarah, and Anthony, who gave me a big hug.  I hadn't seen him in a long while.  I had just went through some old entries last night and saw that I had mentioned him several times.  Marcus and Gene came in also.  Alan was out because Monday was Rosh Hashanah.

Andre and Anthony wanted to spar, but the rules are, when the coach's not in, no sparring takes place.  But they got into the ring, promising to do some sparring drills.  Anthony did not wear a mouth piece.  I watched carefully so he didn't hit Andre in the ribs.  Andre has a cracked rib due to sparring with Andres the other week. 

Gene got in with Andre.  I kept reminding Gene to keep his right hand up, as well as throw his jab out completely.  Andre's rib didn't keep him from dancing around Gene and throwing quick punches.  Andre came out, and Anthony got in, coaching Gene the whole time as they moved around.  Gene had gotten tired, but Anthony encouraged him to keep punching during the last 30 seconds of the round. 

Sarah and Amy did sparring drills, too, but unlike the guys, they wore no headgear or mouth pieces.  Sarah threw punches while Amy caught them during the first round they were in the ring.  The second time around, Amy threw hooks while Sarah defended against them.

I didn't do much of a workout.  My mind was distracted by the fact my mother's body is still in San Francisco.  I showed up to work this morning, and Virginia, the pastor's wife, was there to tell me her husband was ill and wouldn't be in.  She had to leave briefly to pick up some bread for this morning's food pantry, so I watched her little boy, Isaac.  Isaac and I spent a pleasant time watching Elmo videos on YouTube until his mother returned. 

Everybody, including Vera and Stephanie, two of the food pantry volunteers, were surprised I had come to work.  When my dad died eight years ago, I came to work that Monday because I had to take care of some work related duties.  I was off the rest of the week after that, but things were different back then.  I was working at a full-time job that provided benefits, and I could afford to take the time off.  These days, I work two part-time jobs (albeit in the same place),  I don't get benefits, and any time lost at work is lost wages.  The main job of dealing with Dad's funeral arrangements fell to my stepmother, but he had insurance to cover things.  As far as I know, Ma had no insurance or money, and as her only living child, everything falls on me. 

So I half-heartedly shadow boxed, and I barely hit the bags.  The rest of the time was spent watching everybody else run drills.  I was the last one out of the gym.  I walked home alone in the rain, my mind still distracted. 

Sparring Frustration

As Jilberto opened up the gym door, Igor asked, "Coach coming in at 7:30?"  "He'll be here at the time he usually gets here," I said in a tone that indicated that I wasn't going make a conversation out of it.  The thing with Igor is one has to cut him off quick before he gets on a loop of talking. 

Andre One and I were doing our usual footwork drills when Igor started babbling to him.  "What is he talking about?" Andre One asked me.  "I don't know," I said wearily.  Turns out that Igor wanted to spar, but not the normal way of sparring.  Andre indulged him, and they moved around throwing very light punches a couple of rounds -- no headgear -- before Alan came in.  I don't know why Igor singled out Andre One this time.

I sparred with Andre One for four rounds.  In between one of the rounds, Igor stepped to ringside just as Alan was in the middle of giving both Andre One and I pointers.  Igor was going on about something involving getting his buddy Victor a fight.  Alan told him several times to have Victor give him a call.  Unfortunately, Igor's resistance to knowing when and how to listen led to him repeating the same questions again to Alan.  I wanted tell Igor to a) learn some manners, and b) recognize that he was interupting the coach.  But like I told Pastor Roger earlier in the week about a particularly annoying food pantry patron, sometimes it's not worth me wasting my breath snapping on someone. 

During sparring with Andre One, I became very frustrated.  Alan told me not to chase him, and to deflect his jabs, and step in with jabs of my own.  But Andre One is 28 years younger than I, and he easily avoided just about every punch I put out.  By the time I came back with anything, he had hopped away.  "Come on, Hillari!  Stop throwing half-assed punches," Alan admonished.  I wasn't throwing solid punches, but it was hard to do so.  I agreed to do a fourth round mainly because I wanted another chance to try and land something, anything during the round.  I was not successful.

I agreed to tape Andre One, using his camera, several times during the evening on Wednesday as he did various drills.  Alan took notice and told him, "Andre, you've got to get another camera person, because I need her to move around.  She may have some fights coming up."  Tommy made some jokes about me being the gym's documentarian, and both Alan and I laughed.  I don't mind doing a favor for Andre, but Alan was right.  I need as much practice as I can get. 

I have a video of Jake and Andre Two going at it for three rounds.  Unfortunately, I kept getting an error message when I tried to post it here.  Maybe I'll be able to include it in a future post.

I told Alan that he reminded me of my father when he asked for my help again in reading the attendance sheets.  Dad probably needed prescription lenses, but he wasn't going to have his eyes checked.  Nor was Dad going to use the reading glasses he had.  "Hillari, what does that say?" was a frequent request from my father to have me read something for him.  We got to Max's name on the list, and I said, "Max only came in on Monday."  "Max is probably scared to come back after what you did to him during sparring," Alan grinned.



Let The Fighting. . .Rather, Cussing Begin

"Everybody seems kind of down," Amy commented as she looked at Alan, Professor, and Professor's fiancee, Kelly.  "I'm tired," Alan said, after admitting to have eaten a large pizza by himself.  We were really waiting for Kevin to arrive, so the show between Professor and him could begin. Those two planned to spar after they had a disagreement on Monday. 

When Kevin arrived, he had headgear that was designed to fully cover the face.  It reminded me of a hockey mask.  "Is that what you're going to use?" Professor asked him.  "Yeah.  You disapprove?"  Kevin sneered.  Professor made a comment about it not being proper headgear to use.  Kevin snapped that he needed to wear it to protect his broken nose, and another spat took place.   Ever the gentleman, Alan told both men, "Watch your language; there are women in here.  Just chill." 

After some more bickering, Professor and Kevin stepped into the ring.  "Get your camera," Alan told me.  "I almost forgot," I said, as I scooted to my locker to get it.  But before I could take any pictures, the sparring session ended.  Kevin had leaned into the ropes and settled there.  Professor could have took advantage of the situation, but he thought better of it.  "If he's not going to hit back, there's no use in us sparring.  It's not competitive enough," Professor said.  This set Kevin off, who snatched his gloves and headgear off in anger.  He yelled at Professor, "If you're going to quit now, you'll quit again.  F&%$ it!"  Professor decided not to respond to Kevin's comments. 

Jacob came in right after that exchange, and Professor was glad to see him.  "Here's my guy," Professor smiled.  They sparred instead.

Alan put me in with Kevin.  We did two rounds.  Kevin was answering punches, but he wasn't throwing hard ones.  He didn't lean on the ropes at all, either, basically keeping me near the center of the ring and near the corners.  Kevin encouraged me to hit him.  I didn't want to target his face because of his nose.  I had visions of me accidentally causing even worse injury.  For the most part, Kevin was wide open.  I got in uppercuts, and numerous shots to the body.  Each time I hit him in in the sides and stomach, he went, "Oof!" very loudly.  "Beautiful!" Alan commented from the side.

I landed a good number of hooks, too.  Kevin had his head way down, so it was easy to get them in.  But I executed one of my right hooks wrong.  My thumb bumped up against his head, and Kevin has a very hard head.  My thumb is still hurting as I type this. Pastor just told me back on Monday to try and not hurt anybody when I joked about going to the gym and showing everyone "what a 50 year old can do". Maybe I'll be the third person in the gym -- behind Jacob and Ray -- with a thumb injury. 

Professor and Kelly engaged in some boxing drills in the ring.  I didn't get a shot of them kissing at the end.  Ray laughed as he asked Alan, "Is that what happens at the end of rounds?  Should I expect to get some sugar from a woman, too?"  Alan shook his head, "No, not then. Not in boxing!"

Spring Newbies and Old Faces

While waiting for Alan to come in, several of us were out in the hallway at Loyola Park, including the new people who showed up for the first day of the spring session.  One of the women, Erica, said that her boyfriend had came to the gym in the past.  He told her that it was alright.  It didn't occur to me to ask who her boyfriend was.  Later on, Matthieu, a Frenchman who used to work out there, came in.  "I'm here to see her," he said, pointing at Erica.  "Oh, you're the boyfriend she was talking about!" I exclaimed.  He has signed up again, and will be in soon.

Robin, another new person who looked to be closer to mine and Alan's age, came in.  "I just want to get in shape.  I think it's a good idea to learn how to throw a punch.  If someone messes with me, I'd like to not fight like a girl.  You know, with the arms flaying in the air," she said.  Neither Erica nor Robin were keen on sparring.

A couple of faces from the past were in the place:  Tommy and Sarah, both of whom used to come in when Steve was the coach.  Sarah used to have long brown hair; she's cut it short.  Tommy's still trying to manage his schedule so he can come back to the gym.   Both he and Sarah asked about JJ, whom I haven't seen in awhile.  "I came in and recognized no one except you," Sarah grinned. 

Kenny and I sparred, and he is quick.  I did catch him once with an overhand right.  That was after I tried to throw a right and slipped and fell to the canvas.  That has been happening too often when I spar.  It makes me feel like the overly clumsy little girl I once was (and I have the scars to prove that).  After our two rounds, he told me he figured I would use that punch sooner or later, because he always notices that I practice throwing it. "You throw that punch well," he said.  He worked with Oscar, Jacob, and another new guy, Derek, on a defensive drill.  They had to block against the one-two-three (jab, right, left hook). 

The place was packed.  I overheard Jacob and Hector joking about how now they would have to take numbers and wait in lines to use the bags and shadow box in the mirrors.  Hector was sparring with Oscar, I believe, when one of his contact lenses slipped and went further up into his left eye.  Eventually, it came back to where it should be, and I was glad. 

My middle and lower back feels a little sore now.  Sigh. . .I think a lot of that is due to how I sleep at night.  I try to sleep on my back, but I tend to favor sleeping on my right side.  Throughout the night, I'm in all kinds of crazy positions, and then here lately, I've been rolling out of the bed onto the floor.  Maybe I'm fighting opponents in my sleep?

Shots and Knees

Justin told me that he liked Kindergarten so far.  He was in the middle of the ring, playing with his Spiderman action figures.  "You missed it.  I brought my Kindergarten class picture in, but you weren't here last week," I told him.  Later on in the evening, I attempted to sneak up on him while he was sitting on one of the tires in the gym.  At the last second, he saw me and grinned.  "He's learned to be quick in catching people do that.  I have a hard time sneaking up on him at home," his father Carlos said.

Carlos sparred with Oscar.  Both guys keep coming forward and going non-stop whenever they are in the ring.  It looked as if Oscar had punched Carlos in the stomach.  Carlos crouched down to the canvas and mumbled, "I need to wear a cup."  Turned out that Oscar had scored a low blow.

Alan got in the ring with Carlos next.  Carlos would start to throw his left several times, then stop short.  In between rounds, I told him, "It looks like you're faking him out, but then you don't follow up with a second punch."  "I begin to throw a punch, but then he backs up and is too far away for me to land it," Carlos answered.  I mentioned it to him again when the action resumed.  "I'm trying," Carlos said, while Alan bobbed and weaved.

Earlier in the evening, Mary asked me if I would sing the National Anthem for the field house's boxing show, which will take place on the 25th of this month.  It seems to be a tradition now.  I think I've sung the National Anthem there since 2004.  Mary pulled out a banner to display out front to announce the upcoming show.  "Any of the adults going to be in the show?" she asked.  Alan had been talking to Johnny, Oscar and Carlos.  Later that evening, he would also ask Ieisha.  "I'm not sure," I said, hoping that someone from the adult program might be able to participate.  Several of the kids usually do have matches.  Alan walked in as we were looking at the banner, and Mary asked him the same question.  "Well, I'm trying to get a match for Hillari", he grinned, pointing at me.

My stamina is way down.  I was telling Ieisha there was a time when I would go three or four rounds in the ring.  I remember doing sparring drills with Keith for five rounds once.  I only lasted one round with her last night.  I took a shot to my upper right chest in a sensitive spot (guess what spot), then was stopped momentarily by a body blow.  I went down on one knee to rest, just like I have seen professional boxers do on cable TV.  "You both need to wear chest protectors," Alan said.  I'm going to have to dig mine out of the closet at home and bring it in.

I seem to have had a hard time on the speed bag lately.  I believe it has to do with the platform.  When it was installed in the gym a couple of years ago (one of the free pieces of equipment we received from Everlast when the international boxing championships were in town) it worked like a charm.  No longer did I have to stand on a riser to reach the bag.  The platform could be moved easily to adjust to a boxer's height.  A minor adjustment had to be done to the platform, and handymen were called in to fix it.  I don't know what was done, but now, the platform can't be moved up or down.  So I'm back to standing on one riser, which still doesn't put me up high enough.  I read somewhere that a person's head should reach the halfway point of the speed bag.  If I stand on both risers, I'm too high. 

Save on speed bag platforms at Boxing Depot.

Ieisha and Oscar sparred, and he caught her in the back of the head twice.  She would come in just as he was throwing his right, and it would snake around to the back.  He also threw in an overhand right.  I had done the same thing while she and I were sparring.  "Now I know what that overhand right is!  I will need aspirin for those knocks in the back of my head tomorrow," she said.

Night Of Women

It was an easy and mostly quiet night in the gym Friday night. I was determined to get there on time. Les had me come out to the south side site again yesterday. After enduring someone falling on my knee while I was on the Red Line, and freezing on the Adams and Wabash platform while five trains zipped past before the one I needed arrived, I made it out there. Then he thought I was going to stay there all day, even though an annoucement had gone out earlier that the offices were closing early in observance of Dr. MLK Jr. Day. I keep telling him over and over that I cannot stay out at that location until 5:00 PM. The commute is too long getting there and coming back. "I have to be home in time so I can get ready to open up the gym. The coach won't be there tonight," I informed him. I'm beginning to believe he thinks I don't have a life outside of work. I certainly don't share his passion for kids, something that I've never misrepresented myself about to Les. I agreed to stay until 3:00 PM, and then I was out faster than water out of an overturned glass.

Jordan showed up, as I predicted he would, asking where Steve was. Paris Two came in, and it didn't take long for Jordan to gravitate to him. "You a new boxer?" he asked Paris Two. Jordan convinced Paris Two to put on some gloves and come in the ring with him. "Steve doesn't want people sparring when he's not here," I said, issuing the rule more to Jordan than to Paris Two. "We not sparring," Jordan said. I told them to be careful, then they did light drills for a few rounds.

At the end of the night, there was just myself, Carla, Deb and Arin in the gym. Usually, the guys are still hanging around and all the women (except for me) are gone. I had never seen that before in the six years I've been going to that gym.