mad

For the second time in recent memory, I was paired with a new person for sparring in advanced fighting class. 

This generally culminates in disaster, major or minor. 

I have never had what one might call good reflexes. I'm slow, okay? I will admit that. And I'm just not that good at sparring yet.

The two new people have one level of intensity: hard.

And that is all fine until I miss a punch and get hit in the face. Getting hit in the face, hard, makes me mad. I don't mind getting hurt when it is an accident but when I'm getting hurt because someone cannot moderate their intensity no matter how many times I say, "Gentle!," I get mad. 

I get extra mad when someone can't remember whether they are throwing punches or catching them and so keeps hitting you in a whirlwind-like manner when you are supposed to be throwing punches at them, and even more mad when someone tries to do things like catch your leg that they don't have the skill to do. 

And I get hardcore mad when someone flails about hitting me when they are supposed to be blocking and catches my arm and wrenches my elbow, the very elbow that suffered from golf elbow in law school and has been hurting again lately.

I refuse to work with either of the new people now until they know how to correctly throw a sparring punch that will not knock someone out. I will fully and completely blame that on my lack of skill. And theirs.