By Juan C. Ayllon I had just completed the fourth grade and was waiting for my turn at bat in the third inning of a midsummer softball game, when a fast moving, murky wall of green-gray clouds appeared on the horizon. Turgid and roiling, they canvased the skies overhead in five minutes. Though it was midafternoon, it now appeared to be dusk, and the coaches canceled the game and told us to hurry home. Whooshing winds followed, and as hard as I pumped the pedals, I couldn’t make headway. Heart pounding, I leaned into the cool blast and, step by step, I was Sisyphus rolling a huge boulder uphill. I willed my bike home, where my mom, my brothers and I huddled in the crawl space and waited out the storm listening to radio updates. Well, this isn’t fourth grade, but as summer approaches, I face other sorts of excitement. First, on June 18th, Artur Beterbiev (17-0, 17 knockouts) faces Joe Smith Jr. (28-3, 23 KOs) in a 175 lb. world championship unification bout. At risk are Beterbiev’s IBF and WBC titles, and Smith’s WBO belt. Both hit extremely hard. I witnessed both fighters in separate bouts in Chicago. The favored Beterbiev, who in September 2014 flattened the durable ex champion Tavoris Cloud—who’d lost his title to all-time great, Bernard Hopkins by decision—battered and crushed the 16-2 Alexander Johnson in six rounds at the UIC Pavillion in June 2015, while Joe Smith Jr. (who’d go on to stop Hopkins in December 2016) upset favorite Andrzej Fonfara by one round demolition on June 18, 2016. That’s exactly six years before Smith’s showdown with Beterbiev. Both are fully capable of winning by knockout. Although Smith has three losses, they are all via decision, and he’s shown technical improvement since he lost via decision to Dmitry Bivol in September 2019 (a bout where he rocked Dmitry twice, but was nearly stopped). Meanwhile, Beterbiev, who is regarded to have better boxing skills by insiders, has been dropped several times and has an alarming tendency to keep his head stationary, making it easier to hit. And Smith throws a lot of punches; in his last bout, he threw almost 700 punches in halting Steven Geffrard last January. Either way it plays out, it should be a barnburner. The victor of this showdown will likely face the winner of tomorrow’s Pay-Per-View championship between highly favored Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and Dmitry Bivol for the WBA world title in Las Vegas tomorrow night. Second, a pair of Usher ML-802 loudspeakers that I’m purchasing should arrive no later than June. Currently, I am reviewing the Usher ML-801s, which are a three way speaker with a magnesium alloy tweeter and midrange, along with an eight inch carbon fiber woofer, for an online periodical, and their performance is stellar so far; the ML-802s feature an additional eight inch driver. I will be reviewing the latter for Prairie Audio Man Cave. Needless to say, I am looking forward to their arrival. Third, I have a series of additional articles in the queue, including reviews of Straight Wire’s Crescendo 3 speaker cable, Pass Labs XP-17 phono stage, and XP-12 preamplifier, as well as a couple high profile interviews. Stay tuned for details! Fourth, I will do more reading. A wise instructor once said, “if you want to become a better writer, you should always have a book in your hand.” Quite honestly, I don’t read nearly enough, and I aim to take steps to remedy that. Fifth, I have plans to visit world renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s campus and estate at Taliesin Wisconsin this summer with Belle. As a one time architecture student and lifelong fan of design, I am really looking forward to this trip to Spring Green, Wisconsin. Additionally, we are planning some other day trips just across the Illinois-Wisconsin border to enjoy various festivals and waterfront attractions. Sixth, I look forward to indulging my inner visual artist by working on some paintings. It’s been a few years, and with no major projects in sight, this summer should provide ample time to put brush to canvas.
Seventh, Belle and I plan on spending more outdoor time with family and grandchildren. This last month, our fifth grandchild was born. As the weather warms, we anticipate cooking out, visiting parks and checking out the sights with our latest additions. And eighth, I am excited about focusing on physical and spiritual renewal. Having put on the “COVID-19”, I aim to trim down with exercise and a better diet. I also aim to spend more time in prayer, fellowship, and reading the Word. Trimming down the outer man while beefing up the inner one – it’s not just a good idea. It’s time. So, am I excited about this summer? Absolutely! Is there a risk that I won’t accomplish all that I set out to do? Of course. Yet, I am confident that it will be a fruitful and fulfilling season. In fact, I think it's going to be a knockout -- and hopefully, there won’t be any major tornado storms to muck it up!
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Juan C. AyllonA writer, artist, educator and owner of Prairie Audio Man Cave, he lives with his wife, Isabel (AKA Belle), and their Goldendoodle, Liam, enjoys listening to high fidelity music and all things hi-fi at their home in the greater Chicagoland area.. Archives
March 2024
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