I boxed in college so, yeah, I got hit a lot, got a broken nose, etc.. I was from the Homer Simpson school of boxing apparently. I could really take a punch so I just let the other guy keep hitting me until he was exhausted and then I would nail him. 🙂 Not really but that is how it felt sometimes.
When someone would get a really good hit on my head it registered in my brain as a smell. It was a passing thing lasting a half second or so. I figured it was my brain’s reaction to impact – kinda like it scrambled the electrical signals for just a second and those scrambled signals were interpreted as a smell. Some guys said it registered like a flash of light. Who knows.
Two times when it could have happened: Once was in downtown San Diego when a mugger tried to relieve me of my wallet. I squared up with him and pushed my future wife behind me to get her out of the way. He threw one sloppy punch, which I batted away. He then thought better of the whole thing and ran off. I never threw a counterpunch because hitting someone in the melon with a bare fist is a good way to break your own hand.
The other time was in Philly when two muggers tried to steal my girlfriend’s camera. I squared up with the guys and put up my fists. That was all it took. They bolted off down the street sans camera. BTW, I got real lucky on that one. One of the guys was holding a knife at about gut level that I didn’t notice until I was already committed.
