Humid Friday Night and No JABB

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

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

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

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

Quality of Boxing DVDs

I sparred with Sarah last Friday. Guess being knocked in the head so many times caused me to forget to record that here (smile). Figured out one reason I have a hard time with her in the ring is that she is a non-stop punching machine. I got her once with a left hook, but the rest of my efforts to make any kind of headway were pit-i-ful as Jed Clampett used to say on "The Beverly Hillbillies".

Steve and I were laughing about the quality of many of the instructional boxing DVDs we've seen. This is not to say that the information included on them is not valid; it is extremely helpful. The production values are off, especially on the ones put out by Ringside. The information is often given out in a monotone by John Brown, the head of the company, who appears to be a knowledgeable guy otherwise. It is obvious that he is reading cue cards most of the time. There's another guy who also appears on the DVDs, who's delivery is a little better, but I can't remember his name at the moment. Flubs, like accidently calling a speed bag a double end bag, aren't edited out.

The ones produced by Title Boxing appear to be a little better, based on a couple of them I've seen. Unfortunately, it is too easy for those instructional DVDs to be a series of talking heads. For example, I have one about proper nuitrition for boxers featuring trainer Freddie Roach and a British boxer. They stand in one spot for the majority of the video and give their advice about what boxers should eat. That's it. A list of acceptable and unacceptable foods scrolls across the screen at the end of the DVD. The one with the Canadian head of Title about how to properly work a boxer's corner is more lively.

I also have a couple of Everlast DVD's featuring boxing instruction featuring Michael Olajinde. He wears a patch over one eye due to an bad injury he suffered when he was a professional fighter. I believe he doesn't have his eye there anymore. I like how he breaks down the various punches, combinations and practice drills. He is also featured on one of Kathy Smith's DVD. She's a major exercise guru who has goo-gabs of DVD's out. That is a boxing workout, but it is obviously modified for those who are not looking to be fighters, who just want a more intense workout. Still, it's not a wimpy workout, with several jump rope sequences, and numerous punch combinations. I haven't used it in awhile--my apartment is especially too hot in the summer months to do much exercising inside--but I like it.

Hot Work Out

This past Saturday, I decided it was high time that I add a third boxing workout to my week. My first option was to pay for a stand-alone boxing class (without having to sign up for full membership) at the martial arts school I used to attend. I had been promising the boxing coach over there for a few years now that I would eventually return. The cost is rather steep for only about a month and a half of classes, unfortunately, and I can't really swing paying that kind of money on a regular basis. Instead, I opted to go to JABB, a professional gym that has been open for about over a year. JABB was featured in The Ring magazine several months ago. It's a clean, open space on the northwest side of the city, several miles from the downtown area. It's a bit easier to get to on public transportation that Windy City Gym. A day pass to workout costs $5.00.

Despite all of the ceiling fans being on that day, it was very hot inside the gym. I got in a two-hour workout before becoming too tired to continue. Samantha was there with her father, training in a small ring on the other side of the room. She and I were the only females there.

The first thing I noticed was that I had to modify my workout slightly. There are no step risers there, so I didn't do that. I finally found a speed bag that wasn't very high, but it was still not low enough to be completely comfortable for me to work with. Unlike the one at Loyola's gym, I could have lowered it, but I didn't want to take the chance of accidently damaging it. They also had a Cobra bag, which Loyola doesn't have, and I went a few rounds on that. Over in a corner were two LifeFitness walking machines. I hadn't been on one of those for a long time, so I choose the "cardio" setting, and walked for 15 minutes. An uppercut bag had been mounted to the wall in a good position for me to get underneath it and run drills.

The shower was cold after that long sweaty workout, but welcomed in contrast to the stuffiness of the air in the gym. I will return again next Saturday, but I'll have to get there early: there were signs posted stating that JABB will be closed at 2:00 PM on Saturdays beginning this weekend.

The Old Gal Sprints Again

Maybe if I had changed out of my boxing shoes and back into my tennis shoes before running sprints, I would have done better. Maybe not. Junior, Ben, and one of the new guys whose name I don't know, ran the length of a fence next to a baseball diamond outside of the fieldhouse. They did all five sprints. I managed to do two.

Some time ago, Junior had suggested that I do sprints, or at least run most days. He runs just about every day, but he's 19 years old. I used to love to run when I was younger. Even had a track class while I was in high school. I would jump the hurdles like a gazelle. Yesterday evening, I was wheezing like a long-time cigar smoker.

Back in the gym, I was awarded something that very few in the gym are: I was given a locker. There aren't many in the gym, about five, I think. The lockers are reserved for the coaches of course, then the guys who consistently train and compete, like Montrell and Junior. I'm actually sharing a locker with Junior. The only thing inside was a cornerman's jacket. Junior usually takes his gear home with him. I locked my gym bag up inside.

Steve, one of the new guys, is built like a professional wrestler, with tatoos on both of his huge arms. "Could you teach me how to jump rope the next time?" he asked. "I was watching you earlier, and I can't jump like that." I told him I would. I guess I think all guys should know how to jump rope from when they were kids. But now that I think about it, I knew very few boys who did jump rope when I was a kid. I guess the skill wasn't encouraged because that was something that girls did. There was one boy I knew in grade school named Jimmy, who could jump double-double better than most of the girls. The other boys picked on him about it.

Seems like half of the new people showed up last night, and then the ones that came in didn't stay long. The coach did have them working on the pads, doing the ol' one-two-three: left jab, right cross, left hook. In one of the women's eyes, I could see boredom setting in. Truth be told, doing the same six punches over and over can become routine. The fun is in seeing how you can perfect them, along with footwork.

A Week Off

I had a bad cold last week, so I stayed out of the gym. Last night, I returned to find several new people there. Forgot that a new session started. Near the end of the evening, Steve had them do interval training on the heavy bags: 1 minute of non-stop punching, 30 seconds punching at half-speed, then 30 seconds more of the non-stop punching. I never saw people clear out of the gym so fast afterwards. I half-wondered if Steve did that to weed out the people who are not serious about sticking with the workout (smile).

Keith came in with his girlfriend, but alas, did not do a workout. Jermaine introduced me to a friend of his named Muhammad, a big fellow with whom he played football with while he was in high school. Muhammad was surprised that I had also graduated from that school, and was a member of the very first class that graduated from there.

The regular gang stayed late, past 9:00 PM. It was pouring rain when we left, so Steve drove Sadiq and I home. Sadiq won a belt last weekend at a boxing tournament that was part of a tribute to boxer Barney Ross. I am so sorry that I was laid up with a cold--boxing historian Burt Sugar was there. Steve told me that he, Junior and Sadiq got to meet him and talk with him a little.

Unfortunately, Junior lost another fight, so Steve gave him a week off from the gym, figuring the kid needs the time to get his head together. Junior worries before every fight, and during the bouts, he often makes the mistake of waiting to see what his opponent will do. Steve asked me if I knew of any books Junior could read along the lines of setting goals and focusing his efforts. The first author that came to mind was the late Norman Vincent Peale, who was the pastor of a church in New York. He wrote many books about positive thinking. Steve also mentioned some sports psychology books, that I might pick up for myself.

Working Out With A VanDawl

Maria, or VanDawl, as she's known to her roller derby team, came by the gym last night. I showed her around the equipment, taught her the basic punches, and did some medicine ball exercises. She was interested in coming back and learning more. I can now see how boxing would be helpful to a derby girl, especially in terms of developing endurance. I should have told VanDawl that if any of the other derby girls are interested, to feel free to contact me.

Keith and Junior sparred last night. Keith hadn't been working out again for awhile, so he tired out quickly. Keith is bigger than Junior in size, a cruiserweight to Junior's middleweight build.

Surprise Workout

Keith showed at the gym with his girlfriend last night. It was a different woman than the one he used to bring in a couple of years ago. Later, I would find out that she is in her mid-30s. Keith is 23 years old. I ain't mad at the sister--she must be doing something right to pull a young man.

Sadiq also had his girlfriend there last night. She's a pretty, somewhat plump girl, who looks to be part Hispanic. Over the past year or so, I've noticed that is somewhat of a trend, the guys bringing their girlfriends in. The women sit in the corners and watch me and any other woman who is working out with looks of surprise and horror. It's funny to me.

Steve worked me to the point of exhaustion with a combination of left-right, left-right, slip, right-left hook-right, bob, right-left uppercut on the punch mitts. I had to sit down for a couple of rounds to recover.

On the bulletin board was a story about the documentary featuring Barry, Montrell, Michael and Edmund that was in a local newspaper. The article was very complimentary about the film. I had made a mistake earlier when I said the kids competed at the National Junior Olympics; it was actually the National Junior Golden Gloves tournament.

Sometimes, I put things on the bulletin board. Currently, there's an article about a five year old girl named Mia Ellis, who has garnered a lot of attention for her boxing skills. Her dad is a former boxer, and he trains her. In addition to articles, there are numerous pictures of the current boxers, plus ones of those who no longer come in to workout. Steve has pictures of his baby boy up there, and Neil, who hasn't been in the gym for months, has a picture of his youngest child, also a boy, posted. One picture has me decked out in boxing gear while sitting at my desk at my job. Les, my boss, groaned when I asked him to take the picture, but he did it anyway.

Queen of the Gym

Jermaine came in Wednesday night; he goes to college, so he's only in the gym during summer and school breaks. He had two guys with him, who he introduced me to them as being "the queen of the gym." That tickled me! Junior and Steve had said not long ago that if Jermaine was serious about being a heavyweight contender, he could turn that whole division around. For a big, tall guy, he's very quick.

I got in on an interval exercise where you hit the heavy bag as fast as you can for 30 seconds, then hit it normally for 30 seconds, alternating like this during a whole round. Most of the guys went a full five rounds, but I tried it for one. Next time, I'll go for more rounds. It's a very good exercise, and it builds endurance.

Wrote down all of the park district boxing shows for this season. I noticed the last show takes place two days before my birthday in December. They are running kind of late this year, because they are starting in July, rather than June. Our boxing show is in late September. This late spring has become busy for me, and I don't see a slow down this summer. Figured I'd better get the dates into my Franklin Covey before too long.

Learned From A Documentary

Apparently Barry was a wild kid when he was young, according to an admission he made in the boxing documentary I viewed last night. "I was arrested for some minor things and a couple of major things," he said in a voiceover. Pictures were shown of him riding motorcycles down alleys and doing dangerous jumps. He said the cops picked him up in front of his house once, and began to slap him around. His mother ran out, ready to jump the police. "Leave my son alone!" he said she told them.

Edmund, brothers Montrell and Michael, and Lavar were profiled as the film followed them as they trained and then competed at a National Junior Olympics tournament in Syracuse, NY. None of the boys won their matches, but it was a learning experience for them. I found out some things about them I didn't know, as well. I knew Montrell and Michael's mom had passed away, but I didn't know she died so young. She was 37 years old. Currently, their older sister, who's in her early 20s, looks after them.

Steve told me that he and Ellen would have brought Eli to the film, but they thought he might have become too cranky. Steve had Eli outfitted in Everlast boxing clothes. I told him he had to take a picture of the baby wearing the gear and bring it into the gym.

A Shiner

Mike came in sporting a shiner. Junior said, "What the . . .?" It was from when he sparred Sadiq on Wednesday. Didn't know he was hurt like that. Reminded me a little of Neil, who used to bleed everytime he stepped in to spar. I still remember Sean, a tall, thin guy that used to train at the gym. He was bleeding at the Golden Gloves, before he even got into the ring with his opponent! I remember Josh and I looking at the drops of blood on his towel and commenting on how strange that was.

Josh came in and announced he graduated from college. In a few months, he'll be on his way to Japan to teach English for a year. I told him he's got options now that he's received his degree, so why not go for it? On the flip side, Junior was saying he didn't know what he was going to do. He needs a better paying job, but is not sure if he should also think about returning to school. "Back in the day, people didn't need to have degrees, did they?" he asked. Steve told him to look up the word "deindustrualization". "I could have just got a job and kept working after I graduated high school," I told Junior, "but nowdays, you have to have a degree just to have someone look at your resume." Junior keeps talking about going pro from time to time, too. Oh, to be young and have numerous opportunities.

Maria, the roller derby member, didn't come in tonight to learn some boxing drills, and about a couple of hours ago, I found an email from her. She said she was still available for tonight, but of course, I got the message too late. She has a new cell phone, so I emailed her my home number so we can set up another time. I've been going through my boxing books at home to come up with routine for her. I'm assuming she'll want some things to put into use right away, so starting up slow with the basics may not be practical. It probably would be a good idea to show her exercises specific to boxers, instead.

Gotta Do The Work

Keith asked Steve if he could get him a fight. Steve refused because Keith always wants to fight, but doesn't want to train hard. "We've been down this road before," Steve told him. It was pointed out to Keith that getting him fights is never a problem. However, it makes no sense to put someone in the ring when they haven't prepared enough to face an opponent.

Boxing is not an easy sport. Doesn't matter if one is in the pros, or in the amateur ranks, or in the yuppie world of white collar boxing. In order to be successful at it, you have to work. My main goals are to keep the skills up for self-defense purposes, and to get and keep in shape. I was glad that I was at the gym for more than two hours today. I needed the workout. I needed to sweat. I needed to come home tired and sore. The work has to be put in.

No, I don't like jumping rope. It's a chore to do the crunches, sit-ups and squats. Some nights, I can't get my mind in the right place to focus on getting the right rhythm on the speed bag. There are times I hit the heavy bags improperly, and my hands and wrists sting. There are other times I move like a turtle with a limp when I should be up on my toes. But I keep working, because I'll never get better if I don't.

Fighting At The Aragon

Barry was on a local independent radio station this morning to talk about the boxing program. There is a documentary that was done by Steve's brother-in-law, Kevin, that will be shown in early June. The documentary will focus on the youth boxing program. Junior's name was mentioned several times. Junior and Steve were supposed to be a part of the interview, too, but Junior stayed in bed, and Steve had to rush Ellen to the hospital. She is fine now, but it was a bit scary earlier.

The host of the show asked Barry if there had been an adult female boxer at the gym who was a graduate student. Barry mentioned mine and Lan's name. "Maybe it was Hillari," the host said. "Yeah," Barry said, "she's at Northwestern." I wish I had the time and money to go to grad school! I got a good laugh out of that.

Steve was able to make it to this afternoon's match at the Aragon. Mike came along, too. The place had been a ballroom back in the 1930s and 1940s. It is used for concerts and sporting events today. The program was a fundraiser for research to cure cystic fibrosis. It was a pro-am fight, meaning both amateur and professional matches were featured. The draw was what was the last amateur match for a kid named Tome who is also a football hero at Notre Dame. The kid won, which I suspected he would, against Jeff, or TNT, as he is nicknamed. The crowd was clearly on Tome's side. News cameras were all around the ring to catch the action. I'm still trying to figure out why Tome is touted so much as the next best thing in boxing.

Junior was getting the best of his opponent, but for some reason, the judges were not watching the same one everyone else was watching. Junior was robbed. An older man came up to Steve and Junior immediately afterwards and said, "That was a bullshit decision!" Sadiq won his match. His opponent caught him a couple of times with some hard shots; Sadiq had his head up. After the second time, Sadiq stayed low.

Junior was pretty bummed out that he lost. He said that his brother had admonished him about losing other fights, stating that Junior had "talent, but not skills." I think that sometimes, Junior listens too much to negativity from others about his boxing.

Flurry Of Activities

I sang the National Anthem before a show at the fieldhouse that highlighted the sports activities that take place there. The focus was mainly on the kids' participation in the programs. Diego, Kevin and Nate Jr., along with Barry, did a boxing demonstration for the crowd. Before the show started, I caught the eye of a baby who seemed to be fixated on me. His dad, Michael, joked that his son could not take his eyes off me. The baby was a very pretty boy who had a light mocha complexion and soft, sandy brown curly hair. I played with him a little before and after I sang. His wife, Allison, came in with their older son, who had been featured in an earlier portion of the show. The older son was a good looking kid, too.

The gym had a lot of people hanging 'round for the first portion of the evening. Sam was there, along with a kid who I had not seen before. I assumed he was a new guy in Barry's class, because Barry was giving him a lot of encouragement. Barry saved a T-shirt for me with the same of the boxing gym printed on it. I thought that was very nice. Made me feel very appreciated.

Was offended by an answer to a boxing question I saw on Yahoo! Answers earlier. A woman wanted to know if boxing was a good workout to lose weight, and another woman told her to avoid the sport if she didn't want to look like a man. Mia St. John, a professional boxer, doesn't look masculine to me. Neither does Laila Ali. Looks as if people are still not aware that very few women have the capacity to naturally build themselves up to look like professional bodybuilders. Only 2% of women can do that; the others have help, usually of the wrong kind (steroids, anyone?).

The Joints

Larry came in the gym, which has become a rare occurrence lately. He told me that school was out for the year, so hopefully, he will come in more often during the summer.

Mike and Junior sparred for a few rounds. Steve found a print out of sparring drills, and he had them try them out. Afterwards, Junior felt that Mike had more stamina, but I could see that Mike became tired out more quickly. Junior, on the other hand, didn't appear to break a sweat. Junior never seems to actually get tired, despite the fact that he often claims that he is. "I'm tired of these young men talking about they're tired!" I tease him whenever I hear him claim exhaustion.

Finally had to admit something to myself: it takes longer for me to get up off of the floor these days. There are a couple of aerobic steps in the gym. I seem to to be the only person who uses them. I'll sit on one of them to put my boxing shoes on, then struggle to stand up. The same thing happens when I get up off the mat from doing crunches and push ups. It's too easy to blame weight. I have to face the facts: it's age.

My middle aged joints don't have the spring they used to have. It's funny, though. . .when I'm jumping around practicing punches and footwork, I don't notice my right shoulder acting up or my knees cracking. It's as the clock turns back twenty years, and I'm able to glide and fly.

Place of Deep Pockets

Sadiq and Diego had matches at a non-for-profit fundraiser held in the Gold Coast neighborhood. During the evening, a silent auction as well as a live auction was held. A lunch with Laila Ali went for $4,000, while a visit with her dad on his Indiana farm went for $8,500. A lot of people with deep pockets were in the room that night. The attendees paid $175 per ticket to be there.

Junior came along, but the guy he was supposed to have a match with crapped out. We joked that the guy was scared of him. The guy was the 2005 Golden Gloves champion. Since Junior is the 2006 champion, that would have been a good fight. Kevin should have had a fight, too, but that fell through as well. Both Sadiq and Diego won their matches.

I met Mike, who is the head of the Illinois Boxing Association. He announced that there would be an all female boxing show soon. There may be an opportunity for me; I hope.

Missing In Action

A guy was talking to Steve about taking up boxing. I guess the guy asked how many people are normally signed up, because Steve asked me how many I thought there were. It appears that about 40 people are signed up at any given time. Many do not come in on a regular basis, like Rias (I've been spelling his name wrong; I hope that's the correct way) who came in on Wednesday. Some showed up once or twice, but never came back, yet their names are still on the roster.

Gilberto, one of the fieldhouse staff members, asked Steve and I had we heard from Lan. She's been on my mind lately. A few months ago, she was assigned to a military base in Missouri. Steve had emailed her awhile ago, but the email bounced back to him. I hope all is well.

From time to time, I wonder what happened to Igor. He was a middle aged man of who was a regular in the gym when I first started training there. Igor didn't have a good command of English; I don't remember which country he was from. Half the time, we couldn't make out what he was talking about. He would ask Steve a lot of questions, often while the coach was trying to concentrate on something else. Got on Steve's nerves sometimes.

Ike was a young man who had a great interest in boxing and seemed to be moving up. He had a lot of personal challenges: job issues, family issues, financial problems. Ike had moved to another city for several months, then came back, claiming to want to get back in the game. His appearances at the gym became sporadic, though. Rumors began to fly about drug use, drug dealing, and child support problems. I was surprised to find out that Ike had a toddler. One of the last times I saw him, Ike attempted to work out with alcohol on his breath. Steve admonished him about coming to the gym under the influence.

Betty was a tall, big boned woman who came in on and off, but regularly than most of the women who have been there. She had to have been six feet tall. I liked her. She was very articulate. Steve put her and I together in a sparring match. I dipped down to avoid her fist at the wrong moment, and her glove came down on top of my head. I had a headache the rest of the night, and was sore for days afterwards.

Mike and Dorian were a couple. Dorian worked at the martial arts school I used to attend, and Mike had taken classes there. Mike had also graduated from the same high school I attended, although years after I had gone there. Dorian didn't come in often, but Mike was usually in the gym. Dorian was sophisticated, and Mike, a tall, friendly, lanky guy, always seemed in awe that he landed such a woman. They moved out of the neighborhood over a year ago.

New Toys To Play With

Steve was back in the gym on Friday. His wife is better. Turns out she doesn't have strep throat, but what looks like a bad cold, which is torture enough.

The new equipment he ordered some time ago finally came in. A new medicine ball, a maize ball, groin protectors, a fast feet (to help a boxer stay in correct stance and build up power in the legs), aerobic shadow boxer, an ab wheel and jump ropes. I noticed that a T-shirt and hat was included in the order. I guess because a certain amount was spent on the equipment, a few free items were thrown in. Steve gave me the hat.

I have an ab wheel at home, but I seldom use it. Great exercise for the abs and arms, but hard to use. After trying the one at the gym, I gave up and did regular push ups and crunches. My upper body strength could be improved; I don't do many push ups before my arms start crying for mercy. My strength in actually in my legs.

It was another one of those nights where I had to force myself to focus on the workout. I'm becoming tired of spending part of or all of my workout taking out my anger over irritations at work; it's been happening too often over the past couple of months.

Got some good news when I stepped on the digital scale; I lost a few pounds. Haven't been eating a lot of the junk I was last week.

Somewhat Of A Lull

Ben wondered if the warmer temperatures were keeping people out of the gym. Only myself, Ben, Junior, Logan 2 and Joe were there tonight. Weather could have been the reason, but there is a bit of a lull right now before the Chicago Park District summer boxing show season starts. Steve stayed home; Ellen was sick, and he wanted her to rest while he took care of their son.

Junior was telling me that jogging was the best thing. He jogs and runs all the time. I may take that up now that the seasons have changed. There is a track not far from the house that I can use. I admitted that I have been very lazy about roadwork (running/jogging); I don't do it. I want to in-line and roller skate a lot this summer to help with stamina and endurance. Now all of my skates are street ready, including the rink skates, which were converted to street skates. I put street wheels on them, replacing the old indoor wheels.

A kid came in and asked about the gym. He was harmless enough, although I did have to lightly admonish him against hitting the bags and jumping rope. Had to tell him a few times to come back when the kids are in the gym. Didn't want to discourage him; when I see kids hanging around the gym door looking curious, I'm helpful with giving information.

Good Sparring

Saddiq sparred with Pierre, a guy who normally trains with the Evanston Boxing Club. Pierre has sparred with Junior in the past. Saddiq continues to amaze me as how mild-mannered he appears to be, and his viciousness in the ring. Pierre's nose was bloodied up a bit.

Only two of the new folks showed up tonight: Fara and Mike. I promised Mike I would show him how to put his wraps on the next time he comes to the gym.

I was pooped out early. Eating too much of the wrong stuff this week, namely Eli's cheesecake, and not exercising at other times are the culprits. I'll be glad when the outdoor roller skate wheels I ordered come in this week. The weather is getting better, and I'm going to do a lot of street skating to supplement working out in the gym.

The Little Gym That Could

Found out yesterday that Saddiq is now the Citywide Boxing champion in the 147 lb. weight categeory. God has really smiled on our gym this year. There have been so many championship wins over the past several months.

Both of the women who are named Logan were at the gym last night, but the other newbies were missing. I understand that Fara was in the gym on Wednesday, the day I had to go to choir rehearsal, but she was the only new person that night. Already people are skipping out. I'm surprised that Crystal didn't show up. She seems to be the most interested out of all of the new people. The weather may have contributed to the absences, too. It was extremely nice, warm enough for me to wear shorts to the gym.

Neil, who hasn't been in the gym for awhile, stopped by with his kids, a little girl named Carmina, and his baby son, Luka. I was shocked at how big Luka was. He looked more like a two year old child than a baby who's only a few months old. Carmina was her usual shy self.

Junior was grumbling about having to pay the IRS. He was also complaining about having to pay rent to his dad. At least his dad only asks him to pay once a month. Mine wanted rent out of every paycheck I got. That nonsense was squashed when I moved out of the house when I was twenty, which is how old Junior will be in a couple of months. Steve asked him when was he planning to move, but Junior didn't have a idea. He's thinking about dropping his cleaning business and getting another nine-to-five gig. I wish he would consider going back to college. It'll help him in the long run.